killin'⠀the⠀illusion

when⠀you⠀talk⠀talk⠀talk.

[vellichorz]

vellichorz is  a  private ,  dependent  blog  associated  with  arconiafm .  this  space  is  reserved  solely  for  the  members  of  the  group .  please  do  not  interact  with  this  blog  if  you're  not  a  part  of  it  !  (  penned  by  kloudy  )

meilin — fifty7 , fashion house founder . ( 506 ) rory — twenty8 , flight attendant . ( 804 )

[lieslvonbismarck]

⸻ It was a nice night out, her twins were with the nanny, and she needed a break for herself. Socializing more. She was having a glass of Gin tonic, and watching a random game that was on display, she saw the player get injured at the stadium, and she grimaced. ❛ Ugh, that hurts. ❜ She thought out loud, realizing she actually said the words, feeling the blush of her cheeks. ❛ I'd never play this sport… ❜ She says it to the person next to her.

CAP: 03 ( 00 / 00 )

@arconiastarters

[vellichorz]

rory hadn’t really been paying attention to the game, her thoughts elsewhere until the woman's voice pulled her back in. her eyes lifted to the screen just in time to catch the replay and she winced at the impact, a quiet breath slipping out. “ same, ” she agreed with a nod.  “ that looked brutal.  i don’t think i’d last even five minutes out there, ”  she let out a chuckle. “ it’s fun to watch though.  i went to a game once with my dad—he’s a huge giants fan—didn’t really get all of it, but the energy in the stadium was infectious. ”  a small smile tugged at her lips, something a little nostalgic slipping in.  “ are you into sports at all?  or more just here for the drink and a break tonight? ” 

[luminarafms]

the night is slowly but surely starting to wear billie down. it isn't a particularly rough night by any means, but the ebb and flow of patrons isn't filling her with energy like it usually does. every request seems to deplete her already lagging energy. she can feel it in her shoulders and she just knows the people around her can see it on her frame. she plasters a smile on her face as a new patron walks towards the bar, sliding into the barstool directly in front of her. "alright, how strong are we having it tonight?" she jokes easily, setting a freshly cleaned glass in front of her. "and i do fear that i'm feeling a little mischievous tonight," she drums her fingers along the edge of her workstation, eyes wandering before lighting up. "you have to tell me your best joke. and i mean it! if you make me laugh, i'll give you a discount." this was exactly how she was going to refuel her energy. she took a particular level of enjoyment out of making the patrons do asinine things for her amusement.

[vellichorz]

rory had only just slid onto the barstool, still feeling a little out of sync in that way she always did after a long flight. she took a second to settle, rolling her shoulders, eyes drifting over the bar before landing on billie. “ honestly,  surprise me.  perhaps one of your specialty? ”  she leaned a little more comfortably against the bar, resting her forearms on the counter as she looks at the other expectantly.  “ wow, you're just gonna put me on the spot like that? ”  she lifted her brows, a small smile tugging in but it grew at the challenge.  her fingers tapped once against the bar as she pretended to think it through.  “ if i say my life,  does that count? ”  she glanced down briefly then back up, still playing along.  “ you’re setting me up here but in my defense,  you caught me fresh off a flight.  my brain is still somewhere over the atlantic. ”  she lets out a huff of laughter. “ you’re probably better off giving me a dare, that’ll go better than whatever joke i come up with. ”

[hearteclipscd]

as soon as meilin came towards her, she couldn’t help the grin that tugged at her lips, taking great satisfaction in being the one to elicit such a response from the woman. she had always had a knack for romantic gestures, but with her girlfriend it seemed to triple. she was utterly bewitched by the other woman; body and soul.

“oh yes i did,” she replied playfully, unable to keep the lovesick grin off her face, her arms instinctively moving down and resting against her waist, gifts still clasped in each hand.

‘you really have no restraint, do you?’ the question, while rhetorical, provoked a mischievous hum as she bit down gently on her bottom lip. “no, i don’t, but that’s how i like it.” leaning in, she stole another kiss, completely unable to resist doing so while being in the embrace of such a goddess.

after adeline’s divorce from her husband, she’d dated frequently, the majority of the relationships weren’t anything serious, nothing more than a warm body to fill the empty side of her bed that had taunted her since the demise of her marriage.

it wasn’t until meilin that she found herself falling head over heels; something that she had only ever experienced once before, way back before marriage and babies were even a passing thought.

her eyes lit up at the mention of the bath, her smile morphing into a smirk. “you are so good at reading my mind…” she spoke softly, purposely grazing her lips against her lover’s. “care to join me?”

[vellichorz]

of course, she has no restraint. she had seen as much the moment she saw the cartier bag earlier, the glimpse alone enough to tell her exactly how far adeline was willing to go for something as simple as a first valentine’s. it’s indulgent in a way meilin was never taught to be and yet here she is, already having peeked inside the bag, already knowing she’s been thoroughly spoiled, and still more distracted by the woman in front of her than anything she brought home.  “ i noticed, ”  she murmurs. she doesn’t pull away when their mouths meet again. if anything, she leans into it with a satisfactory hum. when she finally breaks it, her hands move to ease the bouquet from her grasp first, then the bag. she sets them aside carefully before her attention returns where it belongs.  “ thank you,  baby, ”  she adds, the words quiet but not an afterthought.

breath catches almost imperceptibly at the invitation, though the softness of her smile betrays just how easily adeline unravels her composure. her hands, resting at the curve of her girlfriend’s waist, tighten ever so slightly.  “ join you? ”  she echoes, voice low and warmed by amusement. her gaze dips to adeline’s lips, still close enough to feel the ghost of that last kiss, and she tilts her head just enough to close the distance again.  “ i thought you'd never ask. ”  her fingers find her lover's again, tugging lightly as she starts to guide her backward toward the bathroom where the warmth waits, no need to ask twice.  “ come. you’ve had a long day.  now,  let me take care of you properly. ”

[ofselenite]

( closed starter for @vellichorz ) | any. )

serena sits cross-legged on the floor with a small blanket draped around her shoulders, a notebook open beside her that she clearly hasn’t looked at in a while. her cat, bell, is curled up nearby, occasionally flicking its tail as if supervising whatever she’s supposed to be doing. she glances up when she hears someone nearby, a soft smile forming almost instantly. “hi,” serena says gently, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “i was trying to be productive, but i think i’ve officially reached the staring-at-the-page stage.” she lets out a quiet laugh, nudging the notebook aside a little. “so… what have you been up to?”

[vellichorz]

the lounge is quiet enough to breathe in, which is exactly why she walks in after the call ends. meilin pauses by the entrance before spotting serena on the floor. the sight pulls a tired but genuine smile from her, and she steps in and leans her hip against the counter.  “ is that work? ”  she asks, nodding toward the notebook.  “ that is probably the official sign you’re done.  seriously,  if you’re not in it, forcing it only makes it worse. ”  the sympathetic smile evident on her face as she turns her phone in her hand, then adds with dry sarcasm,  “ oh, nothing much on my end.  i just got off a very civil conversation with my soon-to-be ex husband and needed somewhere to unwind.  men are such a pain in the ass,  even when they're trying to be decent about things. ”

[vellichorz]

[vellichorz]

FEATURING : rory & piper ( @ofopalites )

WHERE : pink pier pop-up

WHEN : one fine february evening

if there’s one thing aurora likes, it’s new york when she doesn’t have to arrive half asleep from a flight. the pink pier at watermark is glowing by the time she makes it through the entrance, everything tinted some shade of pink. she slips past couples tangled up in each other before she spots piper by the railing facing the hudson. when she turns, rory's face breaks into a bright and unfiltered smile, eyes crinkling as she hurries the last few steps with two pink lemonades in hand.  “ hiii, ”  she says as she steps in front of her best friend.  “ please accept this as my formal apology for being late.  i swear the line doubled just to spite me. ”  still grinning wide and a little sheepish as she offers one out.  “ it’s not too much pink for you, is it? ”  she asks as she looks around, taking in the pink view and lights strung overhead. and then, a little quieter but excited all the same,  “ i’ve always wanted to come.  for once my schedule’s actually clear and what better way to spend it than with my better half? ” she bumps her shoulder playfully against piper's.

[vellichorz]

( jeong yunho, cis man, he/him ) ✧ ⸻ was that EMERY KANG walking through the doors of the arconia this morning? i heard they just moved in to APARTMENT 1002 from ONTARIO, CANADA. the 26 year old works as a RADIO HOST & PODCASTER seems like they’d be LOYAL but also a little bit FLIPPANT. whenever i see EM, i always think of HALF-DRAINED COLD BREW SWEATING ONTO SCATTERED LEGAL PADS, RECORDING RED LIGHTS BLINKING IN THE STUDIO, ANNOTATING CONSPIRACY BOARDS WITH CLINICAL DETACHMENT.

NAME: emery kang ( kang youngjae ) NICKNAMES: emery, em BIRTHDATE: july 7th, 1999 GENDER + PRONOUNS: cis man + he / him ORIENTATION: bisexual / biromantic OCCUPATION: radio host + podcaster RELATIONSHIP STATUS: single PETS: 2 cats he adopted from the shelter, simba & nala

emery grew up in a town where friday night hockey was a bigger event than anything on tv. his dad had been a minor league hockey player who almost made it all the way and that almost became part of the family mythology. there are still old jerseys in a box somewhere, but his dad never really made a huge deal about it.

when emery’s mom got pregnant with him, his dad decided to find a more stable job in town. being the oldest meant he was the built-in assistant coach of the house. drive your siblings, help with homework, it all just happened naturally and he got good at being dependable to his younger siblings as well as his working parents.

in school, emery did play hockey for a while, because of course he did, it was practically the default setting. he was good enough that people started doing the comparisons, but he didn't really love the feeling of being watched like that. he wanted, quietly but stubbornly, a name that didn't come with an asterisk.

emery studied media & broadcasting at nyu and finished his degree knowing he wanted to be in radio, even if he didn’t need to be the loudest person in the room. after graduation, he got a job at a station behind the scenes. sometimes he’d fill in on small bits, test reads, late shifts nobody else wanted and eventually that turned into a regular slot. that’s where he found his footing as a host.

outside radio, he co-hosts a supernatural & true crime podcast with his friend ( think: shane & ryan @ buzzfeed unsolved ). his friend is the one who gets genuinely excited, fully into every story while emery is the skeptic who just shows up and goes along. he doesn’t believe in ghosts, but he believes in the bit and in his partner.

the most emery thing about emery is that he’s spent his whole life around attention and still doesn’t want to belong to it. he wants to be good at what he does, not consumed by it. if you’re close to him, you’ll see how he cares: quietly, consistently and in small specifics. he’ll give you more time than he gives most people and that’s how you know you’re in. the people of new york know his voice, but he’s always been the kind of person who decides, very carefully, who gets to know the rest.

[hearteclipscd]

𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐃𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 for @vellichorz !

STARRING — adeline xu & měilín chen.

LOCATION — home; apartment 506.

a vibrant bouquet of freshly picked blooms in one hand and the unmistakable ruby red cartier shopping bag in the other, adeline entered the apartment with a pep in her step — the season of romance had always been a time of year that she enjoyed as a romantic at heart, although, she didn’t need a particular date on the calendar for an excuse to spoil her other half.

“my love, i’m home!” her words sounded almost melodic as she made a natural beeline for their bedroom, more than ready to shed the day’s attire for something far more comfortable.

as she rounded the corner into the master bedroom, dark eyes laid sight on the utter vision of perfection that was měilín — adeline swore that the woman was a divinity for her to worship every inch of. waking up next to her each day felt like a ‘pinch me’ moment, as if she was living her wildest dream.

“i come bearing gifts!” she announced jovially, holding up the cartier bag as she closed the space between them. “this is just an early valentine’s surprise… a taster for the main event.”

[vellichorz]

it is their first valentine’s season together, and although meilin was not usually sentimental about dates, she has taken extra care where adeline is concerned. the bathroom is warm and softly lit with scented candles along the counter and the rim of the tub, steam beginning to rise in gentle curls. she has already set out the thick towel adeline loves, and the expensive bath bomb sits ready on the porcelain edge, saved for the right moment. she adjusts the towels one last time before her girlfriend’s voice carries down the hall. the sound alone pulls a smile from meilin, and she dries her hands and steps out of the bathroom, already glowing with quiet anticipation. 

she means to greet her casually, but the sight of the gifts makes her stop short, eyes widening in a way that’s almost comical for someone who prides herself on being poised.  “ darling... no, you did not! ”  she exclaims as she moves closer, fingertips brushing the petals first and then she takes the bag by the handles. warmth floods her instantly as she sees the gleam of excitement on her girlfriend's face and she loops her arms around adeline's shoulders without hesitation, mouth meeting hers in a quick yet tender kiss. she peeks inside with a grin she can't hide, then looks back up at adeline, fond and a little breathless.  “ unbelievable. you really have no restraint, do you? ” she says incredulously, even though she should be used to this by now. she's been spoiled before, by adeline, especially. “ i was about to run you a bath so you could unwind, ”  she murmurs near her lips, cheeks faintly pink even as a smug little smile tugs at the corner of her mouth.  “ and now you've completely distracted me. ”

[s0livance]

[  ✽  ]     𓏹     STARTER     open to @vellichorz . [  ✽  ]     𓏹     LOCATION     in bloom,  during the flower arranging classes .

luciana tried to be as careful as possible handling the flower’s stems,  something that was a challenge for someone like them,  usually clumsy with small,  fragile things.   they were used to sturdy glasses and firmly metal-made mixers,  not delicate things like the ones currently in their hands.   they managed,  though,  and in front of them there was a decent arrangement of flowers with a meaning they couldn’t remember anymore.     “ what did they lily mean again ? ”     they inclined to a side,  closer to nate to whisper the question to him.   it’s been their idea to bring them both to this class,  and even when luciana wasn't excelling at it,  at least they were having fun.     “ and what is yours supposed to mean ? ”     god,  they were terrible at this.  

[vellichorz]

sure, their own arrangements don't have the tidy symmetry of the ones arranged near the front, but nate actually thinks they’re doing… decently well, for first-timers. at their whisper, he leans in automatically.  “ uh… i think it means…. purity?  or grief.  it's always one of those with flowers, there’s no in-between,  ”  he muses, brow furrowing as he searches his memory and comes up mostly blank. he had tried, briefly, to read the little meaning cards stuck into the buckets, but there had been too many similar shades, names and sentiments to absorb in the span of a single class. the colors had blurred together after a while. he had gone with instinct instead — deep blue delphiniums, warm yellow ranunculus, a couple pale stems he’d added without overthinking.  “ honestly,  i have no idea.  i just went with what looked right. ”  he huffs a small laugh before his gaze drifts over their arrangement.  “ what do you think they mean?  we could just decide.  rewrite the symbolism. ”  feels very on brand for them, nate thinks.

[vellichorz]

( alfred enoch, cis man, he/him ) ✧ ⸻ was that NATHANIEL ALLEYNE walking through the doors of the arconia this morning? i heard they just moved in to APARTMENT 805 from SAN FRANCISCO, CA. the 37 year old works as a COLUMNIST seems like they’d be RECEPTIVE but also a little bit AUDACIOUS. whenever i see NATE, i always think of GAS STATION COFFEE IN A PAPER CUP, THREE OPEN TABS OF BAD TAKES, A SOBRIETY HELD TOGETHER BY ROUTINE AND SHEER STUBBORNNESS.

NAME: nathaniel james alleyne NICKNAMES: nate BIRTHDATE: december 31st, 1988 GENDER + PRONOUNS: cis man + he / him ORIENTATION: bisexual / biromantic OCCUPATION: columnist RELATIONSHIP STATUS: single PETS: tba

( tws/ suicide mention, addiction )

growing up, nate felt like a bird born in the wrong kind of house. his parents were pillars in a conservative little world and he was supposed to be the proof that all of it produced something good, but nate came out curious instead of compliant. he wanted to ask questions that didn’t have polite answers and he hated the way everyone spoke in rules and euphemisms, disagreements were constant and rarely resolved in their household. by the time he left home, the relationship was already largely unmaintained and he never felt much urgency to repair it.

the person he relied on instead was his best friend. they grew up close in a way that replaced family rather than supplemented it. nate trusted him completely and built his routines around that constancy without naming it as dependence. when that friend died by suicide, the loss was destabilizing in a way nate wasn’t prepared for, and nate carried it as something he should have prevented.

addiction entered his life the way it often does for people who are high-functioning. it helped him sleep, stop thinking, get through a day without feeling skinned open. for a while it even made him better at the only thing he’d ever been rewarded for. the fallout only came later when self-sufficiency finally failed him. deadlines missed, bridges burned and one confrontation he couldn’t outtalk pushed him into therapy and then sobriety.

the person who remained closest to him throughout everything was luciana. he never tried to pretend they were grieving the same way, but it was the same absence and it kept making them reach for each other. they saw straight through him on his worst days and he always let them. somewhere in the middle of all that, they became the closest thing he has to family.

when san francisco started to feel like a mausoleum of old routines and ghosts, leaving felt necessary. they took what they could and ended up on the road for weeks. now he lives at the arconia with luce, still writing with a voice that dares people to push back. it's supposed to be a clean slate for the both of them, though some losses don’t stay behind when you change cities.

[hollysdekker]

Alfred Enoch as Isaac Fagbenle in Run Away (TV series)

[hollysdekker]

Isaac Fagbenle & Ruby Todd - Run Away (TV series)

[apartmentbuddies]

⌛status: closed (one-liner starter call) 📍location: resident's lounge, 3rd floor. 👥featuring: @vellichorz (rowan & alia !)

"oh hi." she glanced up to see the person coming into the lounge. "don't mind me. just... exhausted from work."

[vellichorz]

still buzzing from the gym session, rowan was half-tempted to keep the momentum going and take the stairs up to the eighth floor, but the second she reaches the third floor, her legs slow to a stop. so she pushes into the lounge where she notices the other slumped on the couch and gives her a small, sympathetic smile.  “ long day, huh? anything i can do to help? ” she asks as she flops down onto the couch the opposite of her, gaze flicking toward the counter.  “ i can put the kettle on. tea might help to take the edge off. ”

[vellichorz]

( lucy liu, cis woman, she/her ) ✧ ⸻ was that CHÉN MĚILÍN walking through the doors of the arconia this morning? i heard they just moved in to APARTMENT 506 from SHANGHAI, CHINA. the 57 year old works as a FASHION HOUSE FOUNDER seems like they’d be TENACIOUS but also a little bit COMPETITIVE. whenever i see MĚILÍN, i always think of SILK BLOUSES IN FILTERED SUNLIGHT, SPENDING FREELY TO STAY INTERTWINED WITH THOSE AROUND HER, PRIDE LINGERING IN THE FOLDS OF LAST SEASON'S GOWNS.

NAME: chén měilín NICKNAMES: měilín, měiměi ( family ) BIRTHDATE: april 21st, 1968 GENDER + PRONOUNS: cis woman + she / her ORIENTATION: bisexual / biromantic OCCUPATION: fashion house founder RELATIONSHIP STATUS: separated & attached PETS: n/a

it's kind of easy to assume měilín has always had money, she carries herself like nothing ever rattles her but she did not grow up cushioned. she was the youngest of five in a home that could be humble and tense at the same time, where everyone talked over everyone and being small meant being dismissed.

when she left to study abroad, she knew she wasn’t the first. still, she carried it like a win. in the us, she learned the etiquette of wealth. she met her husband at a gallery and what got her wasn’t just that he was rich. he wasn’t loud like the other kids with money, the kind of man who made you feel like you could step into his life without him ever needing to announce he was letting you.

their relationship started with an understanding, it was transactional. she wanted stability and access to build something of her own. he wanted her taste, her edge and the way she made him look like he had a life. they weren’t loyal and neither of them pretended they were. sure, she did hope love might grow because she’s not a robot, but she also wasn’t going to gamble her future on a feeling.

then there was a baby. and she loved her child in the way měilín loves things. she tried to be a good mother, but the truth is her attention was always getting pulled back to work. the line her husband financed became the thing that finally made people stop calling her “someone’s wife”. the household stayed that way for a long time and child grew up inside that version of their marriage.

now it’s ending anyway. people aren’t saying anything officially but the word’s getting around. there's that saying about divorce where someone takes everything after it. with her, it's the network, partners and the people who used to pick up on the first ring. when that started getting pulled away, she had to downsize, cut staff and plans.

she had to leave her old penthouse and had made the decision to move into the arconia with her new partner. she needed somewhere to put her body while she tries to save what she built. she’s in a rut, she knows it, and she keeps throwing her own money and charm at the problem like if she can just hold everything together for one more season, the house will stabilize.

[bellat0rs]

    ›    STATUS    :    closed.  (  @vellichorz  )     ›    LOCATION    :    the spa during the blizzard     ›    FEATURING    :    teagan  &  rowan.  

         (    ↻    )    the wind howls and teagan can’t help but glance up from her phone and over to the window.  she’s not even sure why she bothers looking out when all she’s met with is a sea of white.  “  as much as i love spending time here,  maybe i should’ve taken the opportunity to get out of the east coast when i had the chance,  ”  teagan comments to rowan.  “  don’t get me wrong,  i love a night in but not when there’s the looming threat that the power can go out at any moment.  ”

[vellichorz]

it's hard to stay optimistic when her phone won’t stop buzzing with friends texting about what they’ve stocked up on. rowan can’t seem to sit still even in the warmth of the spa and the situation only makes her appreciate the company more.  “ you and me both. if driving was an option, i'd have us out of here already, ”  she says to teagan, there’s real relief in hearing someone else say it out loud.  “ i mean... a building like this has to have something in place, ”  she draws in a breath and makes herself sound sensible, even if she doesn’t actually know if the building has backup power, it just feels like the kind of place that would.  “ we'll probably be fine. i'm just so bad at staying put when i'm not paid to do it. ”

[vellichorz]

closed for : @flowsgold ( lian )

location : the spa on the fifth floor

meilin steps out of the changing room with her hair still a little damp, dressed again in soft lounge clothes that smell faintly of lotion and eucalyptus. she’s headed back through the cool-down area toward the manicure stations when she catches sight of lian by the windows, unmistakable even at a distance, and it makes her slow without even realizing it. still, she walks over without rushing, stopping a comfortable distance from lian, whatever softness rises in her face tucked quickly behind an easy, familiar smile. “ lian, hey, ” she says, gentle and bright. “ i wasn't expecting to see you here. i've been meaning to get hold of you since the blizzard. well, that kept turning into later. ” she clears her throat softly, almost keeps going, then decides not to and glances toward the manicure stations before looking back at them. “ if you're not in a hurry… would you sit with me for a second? ”