Near the docks: Jeremiah/OPEN
Jeremiah would admit to no one how much courage it had taken him to pull on shoes, put Heart on a leash, and walk down towards the bonfire that he could easily see from the large windows of his property. He was half afraid that he'd turn into someone else along the way, or that something strange would happen, and it was perhaps almost a relief when nothing did, and he was still very much himself when he stepped up near the shoreline, considering the lights on the dock. He wasn't certain he wanted to go out on it, and he kept Heart on a tighter than typical leash, not wanting her to get into the water after dark. He'd not had the best of luck with parties in Repose, and that had been before the film had been released, and his photo had been splashed across the internet again with his real name attached. And it wasn't that this had never happened before, but it was the first time it had happened since he'd moved here. He half believed everyone in Repose had their secrets, and his were now decidedly less secret.
But fuck that, and if someone wanted to make a scene, they could. It honestly wouldn't be the first time he'd been the center of a scene at a party, although the last time had been high school, and, well, drama club was always prone to dramatics. This wasn't that.
He lit a cigarette took a drag on it, and stepped back a bit further from the dock, finding a rock to sit down and look out across the lake, the way the lights reflected on the water. For a half-moment, it reminded him of Lake Washington and parties spent at a friend whose Dad worked for Microsoft and thus got lakeside property somehow. Heart nosed about in the dirt chasing ants or whatever it was that dogs did.
He was aware of someone walking near him, and glanced up, offering a quick smile and pulling his dog back in a bit closer so she wouldn't be a bother.