* 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 / ʙᴇᴛᴛᴇʀ !

ariel balfour. hayden clarke. blaze greene.

[onlyhuman]

[veranc]

𝔩𝔬𝔯𝔢𝔫𝔷𝔬, 𝔥𝔲𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯.

    he shrugged and turned back to the shelves. it wasn’t his place to tell blaze what his wife needed or not. briefly distracted by the labels, hunter turned his head back to the other male as he spoke again. “ i think you’ve got plenty of time to prepare for that talk, man, ” he chuckled. “ and if not, there are bigger issues at hand. – isn’t the whole parenting thing just a whole mess of trial and error anyway ?? ” hunter had always been so focused on taking care of his current immediate family - his father and sister - that he hadn’t really thought about the future and being a dad himself. in his current state, he shuddered at the thought and turned his attention back to blaze’s concerns instead.

       “ true. ” he replies, silently wishing for his kids to never grow up and just stay as they are. “ damn man. ” he sighs, both amused and baffled by his statement, racing the cart into one of the checkout counters, managing to score one that was without a queue. “ you’re twice as mature than i was when i was your age. ” it was a compliment for sure. “ —wiser too. ” he added as the cashier punched in his items and secured them inside the reusable bag that blaze had provided.

       “ we’ve got roughly, ” he looked at the clock on the kitchen wall, estimating the time of his children’s arrival “ two to three hours of till my kids come home from play group. ” then, blaze crouched down to detach one of the wooden floorboards in the kitchen to reveal his stash of narcotics. “ so, kid. wanna go with your usual ?? or are you feeling a little adventurous today. ”

[veranc]

𝓁𝑜𝓇𝑒𝓃𝓏𝑜, 𝒽𝓊𝓃𝓉𝑒𝓇.

    his eyes glanced down at her fingers against his coat with bated breath, unsure how such a simple, small act caught him so off guard. “ and i’m assuming the convincing pout is something she’s passed down to you ?? ” he teased harmlessly with a raised eyebrow, attempting to get his mind off of just how close her touch had been. with a surprised but pleased nod at her decision, he continued the walk down the hall to the elevator. “ you know, i won’t judge if you choose not to walk in those, ” he glanced down at her shoes as he spoke in a tone that said he would most certainly judge - lightheartedly, of course, just enough to poke fun at her from now on as a running joke. “ impressive, ” he replied, wiping the surprised expression off of his face at her added thought and adding onto the now prolonged royalty quip, “ i thought princesses weren’t allowed to do anything on their own. ” as if to back up his own statement, he held the main lobby door open for ariel like he had upstairs. nodding, he stepped out into the cold air beside her and nodded towards the left as he started in the same direction. “ down this way. i promise it isn’t a bad walk. ”

      she gave him a glimpse of the pout as a response to his assumption. “ you tell me. ” a smile, one of mischief, then slid on her lips. if she was truly her mother’s daughter, she’d succeeded in showing him the irresistible charm she’d inherited. “ oh please, i can run in my heels if need be. ” she scoffed, in a playful manner, one that equalled his. on the back of her mind, she knew that she’d have quite a few blisters after this unexpected adventure of hers. “ sometimes, princesses need to bend the rules, else they go mad. ” it was the slap of frigid london air that made her realise that they were already outside, in the streets. the exchange they were having must’ve been really striking that she’d lost all focus from anything else but the company she was in. “ i don’t remember it being this cold earlier. ” she shivered, rubbing her hands together, desperate for even just a spark of warmth. “ i hope wherever we’re eating serves food close to godliness, or my sacrifice would’ve been for nothing. ” deciding to wear a skirt today was a wrong choice, she thought.

[veranc]

𝓁𝑜𝓇𝑒𝓃𝓏𝑜, 𝒽𝓊𝓃𝓉𝑒𝓇.

    an amused expression rested on his features, completely enthralled by everything she said, how beautiful she looked. he had been swept off his feet from the first time he’d seen her all those years ago, despite being from two completely separate worlds. “ how kind of you, ” he said with a small bow to play along before locking the door to his and julian’s flat behind them. his lips cracked into a smile at his lucky guess, feeling so far so good about this unexpected time with ariel. “ i’ll never tell my secrets, ” he mused with a wink. “ that must’ve been incredible, ” he said dreaming of a life in which he could go to a country just to have their authentic cuisine. “ definitely a surprise, ” he replied, chuckling softly at the thought of ariel balfour eating street food with her hands. “ it isn’t too far from here. are you okay to walk or do you want to take a taxi ?? ” he asked, glancing down at her footwear to gauge how far she might willingly walk. after the two options, excluding the tube since it wasn’t far enough for another stop, he joked with good humor, “ i’m sorry to break it to you, but peasants don’t have chauffeurs waiting for their next move, so it’s one of the two today, princess. ”

         she laughs, and it was the first time in weeks that she’d been able to do so without any sort of sarcasm or snark fused in it, seeing that she had been in peculiar situations the past few weeks that have brought nothing but unwanted stress. it was just pure, unadulterated laughter and it felt absolutely gratifying. “ don’t get too cocky. secrets spill, they always do. ” she said, fixing the lapel on his coat. “ i wouldn’t know, i was still in her womb, but from my mother’s stories it took a lot of effort and pouting to convince my dad. ” either way, her mother always had her way with things and she guessed that that’s where she got her own attitude.  “ we are walking. ” she decided with a nod of her head. “ you underestimate what a princess in heels can do—and i’ll have you know i drove myself here today. ” she wasn’t sure if it was her pride talking or she was just completely going mad for wanting to attempt to walk for god knows how long in louboutins. “ lead the way then. ”

[veranc]

𝔩𝔬𝔯𝔢𝔫𝔷𝔬, 𝔥𝔲𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯.

    hunter raised his eyebrows at blaze’s description, “ well, shit. sounds like you need to take her on an all-inclusive vacation with shitty wifi. ” he followed the male along through the supermarket, the products around him triggering his mind to think about how he couldn’t remember the last time he’d properly taken care of himself. he shrugged off the thought as he let out a careless laugh and tossed the mac and cheese into the cart - good for the munchies later. “ how young are we talking ?? because i think i’m still a young adult, but do you want practice with the birds and the bees talk ?? i definitely don’t need that one and i’m flattered you think i look young enough to look like i need one, ” he said in a joking manner.

        “ mmm... easy to say, hard to do. ” he replies, glancing at the grocery list he wrote down the other day. the word vacation wasn’t included in her wife’s vocabulary and as much as he tried to instil it in her, it was a fruitless effort. “ they’re way younger than you right now, that’s for sure. ” he jokes back at him. “ but i don’t want to fuck it up, y’know ? see, i never really envisioned myself being a dad. and now that i am one, i wanna be the best dad ever. probably even surpassing my own old man. ”

[veranc]

𝕜𝕝𝕖𝕚𝕟, 𝕕𝕒𝕚𝕤𝕪.

BOTHERING the man was the last thing daisy wanted, though, picking up cues quickly wasn’t always her best trait. ❝ maryland, i’ve heard it’s nice there. i’m from new york, BROOKLYN to be exact, but i’ve been living in london for a little over a year. ❞ she replied happily. ❝ are you here for work ? ❞

         ❝ oh, you’re american. ❞ maybe he would’ve noticed that if he had payed more attention to her earlier. ❝ yeah, i am. you’re either a mind reader or it’s just that obvious. ❞ he asked, even allowing a slight chuckle to escape his lips. ❝ why’d you move to london ? if you don’t mind me asking. ❞ 

[veranc]

𝔬𝔟𝔢𝔯𝔣𝔢𝔩𝔱, 𝔪𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔰𝔞.

“oh and i don’t?” she asked with a small smile, but a stern glare. he had to watch his mouth, she thought. “i just like to give my children a normal upbringing, not one where waffles are off limits.” she told him with an eye roll. “but yes, if you’re nicer i will give it to you.”

        “mmm, i didn’t say anything like that at all, mel.” he grins, as if to annoy her further—like he was practically asking to be punched. “c’mon, i’ve been a very good person to you.” besides being an overall annoyance, he believed he was doing pretty good with playing nice with other parents.

[veranc]

𝓁𝑜𝓇𝑒𝓃𝓏𝑜, 𝒽𝓊𝓃𝓉𝑒𝓇.

    “ i believe it, ” hunter commented sincerely with a half smile. he wasn’t about to share verbally that he did feel that lucky to be spending this time with her, especially when he wasn’t inebriated and making a fool of himself, but he could at least agree with her statement. “ i don’t even know if you could call what i did any help, ” he shrugged. he had never wished he had found a pair of sunglasses so badly, to play hero even in a scenario where no one actually needed any saving. “ oh yeah ?? ” the native new yorker smirked as he did as expected - following a step behind ariel as he swung his coat on. “ you think you can survive with us peasants ?? ” he teased, quickening his pace to grab the door for her before she could get to it. he took a moment for a quick check to make sure he had his essentials - phone, wallet and keys - in his pockets before letting his mind race to think of one of his favorites that could double as something she would like while being completely out of her comfort zone. “ do you like asian food ?? ” he asked with a particular street-stall-turned-restaurant in mind.

        “ i don’t see why not ?? if barbie managed to live like a pauper, why can’t i ?? ” sure, maybe comparing a fictions character’s life to her was a little out there, but it wasn’t impossible. “ besides, i’d like to grace the peasants with my presence. it’s charitable. ” she jests, pointing her nose in the air while she acted all high society. she nods her head as a small gesture of gratitude for opening up the door for her, before she steps out of their flat and into the hall. “ did you just read my mind ?? ” she looked at him, both confused and astonished. “ my mum told me when she was pregnant with me and my twin, it was all she craved in the world. she even went as far as go to the actual countries of the food’s origin, ” she explained and started to walk. “ what are you thinking ? japanese ? chinese ? malaysian ? or is it a surprise ? ”

[veranc]

𝓁𝑜𝓇𝑒𝓃𝓏𝑜, 𝒽𝓊𝓃𝓉𝑒𝓇.

    hunter shook his head of curls that somehow fell naturally into a just-messy-enough look as they continued to dry. his eyes darted around his room, wondering what it looked like to someone else. his walls were bare - there wasn’t much reminder of his family across the pond or the achievements that had brought him the luxury of living in a place like mayfair. he admitted there was a bit of a mess, but honestly, who could keep everything in their life tidy every minute of every day? “ damn, ” he sighed. he hadn’t been hopeful about her sunglasses being in his room, but there was a piece of him that had hoped her search would result in something. then again, if she decided the search were over, he didn’t want her to leave. he wanted to spend time with her. it was why he subconsciously showed up at her doorstep every time he got too drunk instead of coming home. at least this would be a more kosher setting. hunter blinked in surprise at her request, or more accurately command. “ oh, um – no, no i don’t, ” he stammered uncharacteristically. he couldn’t remember the last time he had been so… uncool around a girl before. for all he knew, he could’ve had a packed day, but it all went out the window when she asked him to lunch. “ that doesn’t sound like such a bad way to spend my day, ” he smirked in an attempt to get back some of his usual charm as he reached for his coat, “ where do you want to go ?? ”

         “ i know people who’d kill to spend time with me and bend hell if it meant they’d get to have lunch as well. ” and she wish they were only exaggerations, but they truly weren’t. having fans were both a blessing and a curse. “ so consider yourself extremely lucky. all you had to do was help in a futile expedition for my sunnies. ” not entirely, she thought as her hand subconsciously rested on top of her purse, where her lost pair of sunglasses were. “ i haven’t thought about it that far, but i was thinking you’d take me somewhere different. ” she replied as she walked out of his room, assuming he’d follow. “ i’m not exactly dressed for lunch at my usual. ” despite her looking as if she’d just stepped out of one of the catalogues on vogue. “ and it’d be fun, i suppose, to try out something new. my mum has been telling me i should get out of my comfort zone more often. ”

[veranc]

𝔬𝔟𝔢𝔯𝔣𝔢𝔩𝔱, 𝔪𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔰𝔞.

melissa rolled her eyes at blaze and shook her head. “you will make a problem out of absolutely anything. waffles are just fine. it’s more about the sugar in it anyway, or acid in case of fruit juices. i brush their teeth twice and a day and they’re just fine. besides, my oldest will kill for a waffle. i use a recipe for belgian waffles, they are crispy and airy and delicious.” she told him with a small nod, thinking that some of these pta parents really were too much.

          “what can i say? i want only the best for my kids.” that and his father-in-law would frown down on him if he didn’t get the best for them. “but, i will try out that waffle recipe. if you’re up for sharing it, of course.”

[veranc]

𝔩𝔬𝔯𝔢𝔫𝔷𝔬, 𝔥𝔲𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯.

    “ i’m just saying, i’ve never seen someone agonize over pancakes and waffles like you before, ” hunter laughed, shoving his hands in his pockets as he tagged along blaze’s movements. he raised his eyebrows at his proposition and shook his head - not necessarily as his answer, but more just as a reaction, “ sounds weird, but do it for the dime, am i right ?? ” he had always been a pretty easygoing guy, and deep down, even though he’d lost himself in the last few years, he still was. so, hunter picked up a box of mac and cheese, the nearest item as they walked down the aisle, and said loudly, “ hey dad, can we have this for dinner tonight ?? ”

         “ you should meet my wife then. only the best for her, no less. precision and perfection is important and all that nice shit. total workaholic. runs on caffeine. i’m telling you, she was working even when she was going through labour with our first kid. ” he rambled on as he strolled the cart along the isle. “ hm, don’t know if you’re mum is gonna like that processed stuff, kid. but, sure go ahead. ” grinning as hunter played along. “ man, this is great practice for when my boys grow up. what questions you got for me ?? i wanna be ready when my kids start asking me young adult stuff, y’know ?? ”

[veranc]

𝓁𝑜𝓇𝑒𝓃𝓏𝑜, 𝒽𝓊𝓃𝓉𝑒𝓇.

    a chuckle escaped from the back of his throat because there was so much truth behind her words. “ you’re not wrong, ” hunter laughed - honestly, he was confused as to how she put up with their place at all. it was like a frat house squeezed into one flat and the same mess only caused by two guys. he scratched the back of his neck nervously as he walked into his room and scanned the area for anything he wanted to hide from ariel’s sight before she walked in. the bare walls and organized chaos honestly left little to be embarrassed by, but he grabbed the dirty clothes he had discarded before getting into shower and threw them into a hamper in the corner. “ all clear, ” he joked, looking over at her with a small smile. “ feel free to look around for your sunglasses, i’ll just get dressed quickly in the bathroom, ” he nodded towards the adjoining door as he grabbed whatever was on top of the pile in his dresser. he was too flustered to actually take the time to pick anything out. thankfully, he’d ended up with a plain blue shirt and jeans, which he put on quickly, not wanting to miss out on this gifted time with her. “ any luck ?? ” he asked as he reemerged from the bathroom with a hand running through his damp curls.

         once he announced that she could come, she entered without hesitation and pretended to search the moment she got in. “ all right, i’ll just have a look around then. ” she nods her head and continued her ultimately fruitless search. naturally, she was a nosey person. finding things she wasn’t supposed to gravitated to her, like some sort of magnetic energy. so she skimmed through the room as if it were a book and was trying to find something in particular, yet nothing came up. it just felt off to her. athletes were supposed to hang up their achievements in their walls, plaster them everywhere, but not hunter. where were the medals, trophies—hell even a certificate of participation would be good enough. completely engrossed in her scavenger hunt, she hardly heard him come out of the bathroom and when he spoke, her heart physically stopped as if she were caught red handed. “ what ? ” she looked at him for a second, before looking down on her empty hands. “ oh ! yeah. no, unfortunately it’s not here, ” she sighed. if there wasn’t physical evidence, she wondered if she could get something from him verbally, instead. “ say, you don’t happen to have plans today, do you ? if so, consider them cancelled. you’re accompanying me to lunch. ”

[veranc]

𝕜𝕝𝕖𝕚𝕟, 𝕕𝕒𝕚𝕤𝕪.

pale pink lips curved into a wider grin, daisy couldn’t help but chuckle slightly at his words. ❝ well, it shows. ❞ she could tell he was a tad awkward, and she understood that, but being the sometimes OVERLY friendly person she was, she always wanted to keep a conversation going. ❝ thank you very much… are you from around here ? ❞

         he thought after his polite response, she’d look the other way and continue with her business and leave him to do his. he supposed some people were just innately neighbourly, they just couldn’t help it. good thing for her, he caught him in a pretty decent mood. ❝ you’re welcome and, uhm, no. i am not. ❞ he folds his newspaper neatly and sets it on the table. ❝ though, i guess i am, in a way — i’m staying for a few months, till i go back to maryland, ❞ he explains. ❝ you ? ❞

[veranc]

𝔤𝔯𝔢𝔢𝔫𝔢, 𝔬𝔡𝔢𝔰𝔰𝔞.

“at least you’re doing a brilliant job at making me the favourite child, at least in mama’s eyes. you should have seen papa with lia on christmas, he could sub in for the fucking help it was awful.” odessa almost slapped her hand over her mouth, a habit when in rory and blaze’s home, the last thing she wants is to be a bad influence on her nephews, she’d do anything for those boys. she nodded in response to his question, she couldn’t wait to feel the tension roll off her shoulders once she had a hit. “so… i didn’t want you to freak out, and certainly not up and leave and anger mr balfour… toby was in hospital for pretty much the whole time i was there. in and out mostly, we were lucky to get christmas at home… he was back in there when i left.”

        “you know how he is with his favourite—his only brainiac. literally, ophelia is an encyclopedia personified. what kind of person recites all the capitals of the world like it’s a goddamn nursery rhyme.” there was no contempt in his voice, only fondness and nostalgia for the day when they were only but children running around their hampton home. he stretched out and handed her a roll, before taking a drag from his and attempting not to cough at the news she relayed. “c’mon, dess. that’s a bad joke.” he refused to believe it. “you can joke about anything and you choose our... frail brother. you’re better than that, baby sis.” though, in the back of his mind it made sense. no wonder her mama was calling him nonstop during the holidays... and what did he do? ignore it.

[veranc]

𝔰𝔲𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔩𝔞𝔫𝔡, 𝔪𝔦𝔩𝔢𝔰.

miles didn’t know how to grocery shop for himself, maisie and archie, serena did all of that and more when she was alive. but he couldn’t afford to live like he did in uni, banana’s and sweets can only sustain people for so long, let alone two eight year olds. and so he figured it was best to reach out to a friend, a fellow parent, and not one that would toss intermittent pitying looks or judge him for being incapable of normal everyday tasks. “yeah mate, but have you ever tried to get a toddler to floss? i have a scar from mais when i tried to get her to try it. just get the pancakes, unless the missus prefers waffles. if that’s the case, you know you need to grin and bear the teeth brushing with waffle bits for a happy wife.”

        “flossing a toddler? sounds like something straight from a horror movie.” he hissed. just getting his children to brush their teeth was a difficult task, especially with their fondness of sweets. “your courageous act won’t go unnoticed though. you’re a hero to all dads ‘round the world, man.” he said, then gave him a pat on the back. before chucking both cartons in his cart. “ah, rory’s not much of a breakfast person. i’d doubt she’d notice the difference. she’s always busy reading some important business papers.” he shrugged his shoulders, nonchalant as he spoke. 

[veranc]

𝕣𝕠𝕤𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕝, 𝕡𝕚𝕡𝕡𝕒.

          “ is this what having children does to you ? ” she scoffed, taking yet another sizable sip ( gulp, rather ) of her glass, nose crinkling with both disgust and annoyance. there was no way she’d survive hayden sober. “ because, if so, remind me never to go down that route. ” it was a strange thought, that not only had someone chosen to marry the human equivalent of a wet towel, but they’d also chosen to have children with him. more than once, even. “ hah, don’t flatter yourself, darling. you see the woman in the white dress over there ? ” a well-manicured finger pointed discreetly in the direction of the woman in question. “ my boss. and, i’ll have you know, she noted that someone hasn’t been playing well with the other kids. so, believe it or not, my job tonight is just to make sure you don’t accidentally insult a un ambassador. ”

          “ ah, i see. so in other words: you’re my babysitter. ” he nodded his head, humming as he fully absorbed her explanation. “ certainly an upgrade, no ? maybe i could borrow you for my little ones too.” social interaction wasn’t his purpose at this event, and truthfully, he didn’t understand why he was being monitored like a toddler.   “ —if i happen to insult anyone, that’s on them. clearly, i don’t look like i want to be conversed to. they had it coming. ” he comments, eyeing the amount of alcohol she was ingesting, and the speed of which she was doing so. “ if anyone needs some looking after here it’s little miss alcoholic over here. god knows how courageous you get when you’re hammered. ”

[veranc]

𝑔𝓇𝒾𝓂𝒶𝓁𝒹𝒾, 𝒽𝑒𝒸𝓉𝑜𝓇.

         “ oh, go on.” hector knew enough about the balfours to know that the chance that ariel would go through with her … proposals were slim to none. more than anything, he’d come to learn that his mother’s brief engagement to the balfour patriarch was a sore spot for ariel’s mother. “ i’m sure your deeply catholic family will take well to the news. lying, infidelity and getting knocked-up out of wedlock ?? don’t think 12 hail marys would be enough to get you back on your mother’s good side. ”

        “ that’s not much of an encouragement, ” she pouted. “ now that you’re allowing me to do it, well, it’s just not that fun for me anymore. let’s save that exciting performance for another time, shall we ? ” she took her cup of tea and took a quick sip. all in good timing, she thought. “ they’ll get over it. ”  she sets her cup down. “ though, speaking of mothers, how’d you think her serene highness would feel ? knocking up a balfour while you’re promised to another. completely betrayed i assume. ”