"I was trying to be hospitable."

[imsorryibityoux]

lilo was so giving up on the gym for today. probably forever! who decided that this was good for you, anyway? she was so gross and someone else had totally stolen the machine she liked. ugh, anyways. she was about to refill her water bottle and dip when she saw victor. "no offense, victor, but do you like... do anything else?"

[victorlumiere]

"wow thanks, kiddo. i walk sultan, i work, i go for runs... that's three things right there" he gave a smile to his favourite honorary niece "how was the recovery after your rager? yeah i heard about it. damn kid, are you trying to give your sister a heart attack? on a scale of one to ten, how in trouble were you?"

[victorlumiere]

since the break up with babette, victor had doubled down on his gym time to keep himself preoccupied. even with sultan running around, the house was too quiet. with his second gym trip of the day in full swing, victor finished up his run on the treadmill and headed over towards the water station to rehydrate.

@happieststarters

[flash-hundredyarddash]

flash had dropped off a student at the gym after they'd almost successfully paralleled parked. he hopped into the gym to get a gatorade out of the machine (he had a membership, sure, but he'd been meaning to cancel it for... what? four years?). that's when he saw victor over at the water station.

"hey, vic! lookin' good, man. jeez. you planning on lifting about fifty cars with your bare hands or something?" flash wasn't worried about victor-and-babette. they had broken up before, this time would be no different. they were meant to be.

[victorlumiere]

"hey there flash, how are you?" he greeted, giving the guy a pat on the shoulder "nah, i've just been coming here more often to keep myself busy...y'know...after the whole..." he shrugged, not quite wanting to get into it yet. in an ideal world, babette and him would figure all this out and they'd live the rest of their lives in bliss - well as close to bliss as their personalities would allow.

[itsmarygibbs]

"i'm glad to hear it. i'm doing alright thanks" she smiled, filling up her water bottle "i'll have you know that stella the stairmaster and i are trying to work out our differences, thank you very much"

[victorlumiere]

victor grinned at mary and stella the stairmasters current truce. "and how long will the blossoming friendship last? until the second or third set?"

[gabe-guzman]

gabe nodded in agreement. "we have to hold onto memories like this, don't you think? good to meet you too, victor," he smiled as they shook hands. "no, i just rolled in a few days ago. i'm a private investigator and i have a penchant for the unexplained. the weirder the better. this town checked a few boxes, fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your point of view."

[victorlumiere]

"we do, life throws enough at us, it's important for us to remember the good things" a private investigator sniffing around the town was interesting to say the least, it wasn't something he's ever seen around. "this town does have a habit of finding itself in trouble or drama"

[babettedust]

she could see that he was trying, he really was; and if they were younger it might've been enough to prolong what was currently the downfall of their relationship. wishful thinking was all fine and well but it wasn't going to solve the elephant in the room. babette met sad smile with sad smile and lifted her hand to cup his cheek, her thumb softly grazing his skin "victor, we've had timelines in the past, we've just never acknowledged missing them. besides, what happens if we were to set one again and at the deadline you still felt the same way you do now? it doesn't get any easier." this conversation wasn't getting any easier "and what if you met someone that you felt like you wanted to settle down with? that you wanted everything i want? what if you miss that because we can't let go of one another?"

[victorlumiere]

it can't end like this. their relationship was fire, it was fireworks, it was a stick of dynamite blowing up in your face. this was devastating to watch that always burning flame finally fizzle out to nothing. he never thought he'd see the day. "timelines don't mean shit, you can't put a timeline on this." he argued, pointing between them "you're putting timelines on your feelings and it doesn't work like that. we talk it out like we're doing now. things could change." he was clutching at straws but it was all he had. "and what if you miss this working because you let it go? you're that person for me, babette. just because i'm not there yet doesn't mean i'll never be. you're asking me to watch you fall in love with them. you're asking me to lose you, and i don't think i can do that."

[dexmorgans]

#it’s about the thighs

[ritasaysrelax]

"got you," she nodded before taking the stool beside, gesturing to the bartender for two more. "and are we talking about it or just drinking about it? i'm good with either one."

[victorlumiere]

"talk about something that is already the talk of the town? sure, why not. i guess we can start with what you'd heard and we go from there"

[arthurrasa]

Arthur normally didn't go to the gym, but seeing that he had a little bit more cash to spend since he had a room now, he found himself at the gym ready for some action. When he arrived, he noticed a guy who seemingly was very handsome, but also seemed a little bit saddened. Being the person that he was, he decided to ask why he was feeling this way. Normally, he wouldn't be this noisy, but seeing people sad just wasn't something he could easily ignore. "I noticed you were feeling a little bit off, but I am new here, so I wouldn't know why. And I was just wondering if you were okay?"

[victorlumiere]

"i'm alright, relationship woes...nothing to trouble you with" he offered to try and calm the guys concern about him "i'm alright. i don't recognise you, are you new in town?"

[iridessa-sol]

three times has phil attempted to chase iridessa out of the gym for her holding up scorecards to any hot person on gym equipment but eventually he gave up when she would keep finding her way in. "victor, vic, vicky my guy. ten out of ten, looking hot as hell these days" she said holding up a ten on her scorecard.

[victorlumiere]

he had seen iridessa singlehandedly cause phil to have a full on crash out during his time in the gym. did he find it funny? yes. she was making phil's day a misery and it was about the first thing that had made him laugh in a while when he saw her with her scorecards. lifting his headphones from his ears, he laughed at her scoring "i appreciate the score. it's a well needed boost to the ego"

[babettedust]

it felt like another life now. in maybe another world that it would all work out and none of this had to happen. her life felt emptier without him being there all the time.

babette sighed "do you really believe that? we might've always figured it out at the time, but we always eventually ended up back at the same crossroads. it's not fair for me to ask you to meet me there if you're still unsure, and it's not fair for you to ask me to give that want up. my love has never wavered for you, victor, but we want different things. sometimes things don't work out no matter how much we want them to"

[victorlumiere]

he hated everything about this, and he hated that after all of this he still wasn't sure that he could give her what she wanted. he wanted her more than anything but that didn't mean their goals alined. "call it wishful thinking from a hopeless romantic" he sighed, a sad smile on his face. "i don't expect you to put your wants and needs aside to suit me and i know you don't want me to do that either, but i can't envision my life without you in it in that capacity. we could find a middle ground, work out a timeline. etta, are we going to to leave everything at the door? for what? us both to be miserable? us to find other people and wonder what if with us for the rest of our days?"

[itsmarygibbs]

mary was in the gym to get her exercise quota in for the day. she was loitering around the water station trying to hype herself up to go over and deal with the stairmaster that was looming over her, and smiled when she saw victor approaching.

"victor, how are you?"

[victorlumiere]

he smiled at the sight of mary, she was always so sweet "i'm alright, thanks. how are you? still having your one on one war with the stairmaster these days?"

[cameroncxrter]

Cameron hadn't gotten to work out in a while, but now that the holidays were over, and her life was getting back to normal, she was back in the gym. She was about to head over to the lockers, when she saw a familiar face. "Oh, hey Victor, how's it going?"

[victorlumiere]

victor looked up from filling up his water bottle at the station and nodded "hey cameron, i'm alright. how are you?"

[woodwardpride]

woody was taking part in his daily workout, a routine he wouldn't dare mess up since it seemed like his gym time was the only moments of peace and sanity he was allowed anymore. he gave a nod to victor at the water station "are you not normally in here in the morning?"

[victorlumiere]

victor gave woody a nod in return. as much as he card for his friends, it annoyed him how observant they were "i am. i mean i was, but i came here again today. i'm trying to clear my head"

[victorlumiere]

How does it feel knowing Babette is eyeing other people? Other men?

it fuckin' suuuuuucks

[victorlumiere]

since the break up with babette, victor had doubled down on his gym time to keep himself preoccupied. even with sultan running around, the house was too quiet. with his second gym trip of the day in full swing, victor finished up his run on the treadmill and headed over towards the water station to rehydrate.

@happieststarters

[babettedust]

it felt awkward and painful. normally a relationship ending would be a clean break but victor was complicated, victor was victor. they had years of history and they worked together, they ran the cafe together. there was no escaping one another.

"they've been working non-stop for hours, the more we can provide with them then the more morale stays up" she agreed, continuing to hand out drinks to people "i'm the same. it's strange not having you around either, or sultan. everything seems quieter"

[victorlumiere]

he didn't want to talk about sandwiches, he wanted to talk about her. about them. how he was an idiot and how much he missed her. how he missed the way she would yell at the tv in french at game shows, how she would always share her coffee with him, how she would subtly sneak sultan treats when she thought he wasn't looking.

"anything we can do to help" it was all he could offer "it doesn't have to be like this you know. we could figure it out like we've done before. we've always figured it out."

[victorlumiere]

would you consider going out with someone after babette?

i would, eventually, but it would have to be the right person.