Scarlett McLaggen (![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} starlitscarlett) wrote in ![[info]](https://www.insanejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} 20somethings,@ 2022-01-23 21:32:00 |
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Who: Aldrich, Scarlett, Fiona, and Ophelia (NPC)
What: Running into his sister and cousin on their romantic trip to Paris wasn't very romantic...
When: 23 January 2028
Where: Paris
Warnings: Language
Completion Status: Complete
The last thing Scarlett expected when Aldrich had taken her to the little bistro that he said had the absolute best bagels was for them to bump into his sister and cousin. Of course, she hadn't known at the time that the bistro was right around the corner from one of the several family homes on the continent. She would have wondered if it were some sort of plot to get her more comfortable with the thought of his family and all the lovey-dovey stuff he clearly wanted, except she'd seen the surprise on his face when Fiona and Ophelia approached them.
Smiling sweetly so as to hide her annoyance, she greeted the other women and hoped that they would say their hellos and be on their way quickly.
Fiona was quite surprised to see her brother in Paris, but even more surprised at the companion he had with him. If she were to guess at who he'd bring to Paris, she never would have thought it would be Scarlett McLaggen. There was a hint of disappointment in her eyes as she greeted her brother with a traditional la bise, though she didn't offer his companion the same.
"Bonjour! I didn't expect to see you here!" Fiona said a tad pointedly.
The moment Aldrich made eye contact with his sister and their cousin, he knew he was doomed. He knew there wasn't a chance he could avoid them, it would just ensure that Fiona would tell mum he was in town and hadn't come by. He couldn't take Scarlett to his parent's house! She would bolt like the bunny when was, he didn't want to chance it.
She greeted him happily enough, at least he was dense enough to ignore the look his sister had given him. Instead he greeted her with a hug, already trying to find a way to keep Fiona from talking to mum. "Yeah, last minute trip," he said with that dopey smile. "Claude opened his bistro last night. I had to be here," he said, speaking of his oldest friend. He had lived just up the street from the kids growing up.
Ophelia was standing just behind Fiona, amused at the newest woman on Aldrich's arm. She wondered if Kenzie knew she was sharing her girlfriend with the big dope. She put a hand on her hip, both brows raised as she watched the chaos.
"I thought Uncle Cooper had mentioned something about a family brunch today, he would be so thrilled if you made it," she piped up, doubting Fiona was going to want Scarlett there. It was going to be wildly entertaining for her. She wanted to watch Aldrich squirm. If what they said about Scarlett was true, she wouldn't stick around.
Scarlett wasn't sure if that was a lie or if Aldrich actually did have a friend named Claude who had opened a bistro last night, but she did know that they'd certainly not gone to any bistro. She wasn't about to throw him under the bus, though, as she had a feeling that would prolong his family's presence. "It was... mmm... magnifique," she said, lifting a hand to mime chef's kiss. Although she didn't actually speak French, she wasn't an idiot and had picked up on some of the more obvious words.
But then the black woman piped up with that bullshit about a family brunch, and she had to fight to keep from rolling her eyes. Instead, her eyes went a little wide, and she gasped with a little more drama than the moment likely called for. "Oh, love, I'm sure you'd love brunch with your family, but we've got those tickets in a half hour." Glancing at the women, she smiled sweetly again. "He insisted that we couldn't do a weekend in Paris without seeing a show at the Théâtre du Châtelet, and since we've got an early afternoon portkey out, it would be such a shame to miss it." Was she putting it on too thick? It felt a bit like she was, but she figured they didn't really know her, so she was probably fine.
Ophelia could not keep a straight face. This woman was a trip. She couldn't see why this woman had anyone wrapped around her finger.
Aldrich was at a loss for words. There was a family brunch? He could hear Scarlett telling her lie, which he knew both women would see right through. He was instead internally trying to figure out if he would be able to leave Scar to go see his mum for just a minute.
He gave a wary glance to the blonde, realizing there wasn't anywhere he could leave her really. They were in Paris, and he was the one who knew where the port key was. "Scar, I should probably pop in just for a moment. Just to see mum," he explained, his tone of voice letting everyone know that this was just expected. Of course he had to go see his mum.
That made Ophelia burst into laughter, unable to keep it contained anymore. There was even a soft snicker and some muttered French.
Fiona's brows furrowed slightly as she looked between her brother and Scarlett. It was obviously a lie, but the only reason Fiona could tell was because she knew her brother was rather picky about the theatre and wouldn't have wanted to do a matinee at the Théâtre du Châtelet. The girl was good, she'd give her that, but how much could Scarlett actually care about her brother if she was trying to keep him from visiting his family while in Paris? Pourquoi l'amèneriez-vous ici?" she asked Aldrich, not sharing in Ophelia's amusement, but rather extremely concerned for her brother.
It was more difficult to keep the irritation out of her eyes now, but Scarlett managed it through sheer force of will. Why was she even trying to get him out of it? It wasn't as though she actually cared about him or about spending time with him. But it did rather annoy her that he would so easily give up this time that he'd pushed so hard for. Of course, then the sister piped up in French, and Scarlett didn't bother to hide her annoyance then, thinking it quite rude of her to do so.
Turning fully to Aldrich, she offered him a small, tight smile. "Of course. I'll just head back to the hotel, and we can make a new plan," she told him, mostly honestly. What she didn't say was that the new plan wouldn't be a jointly made one.
He should have known that Fiona would call him out. He just gave his sister a shrug, completely missing just how angry his date was becoming. "I love her, I wanted to show her my favorite city," he clarified, not minding slipping into French. Momentarily forgetting that Scar couldn't speak it.
He did however look at her confused as he processed what she had said. "I checked out this morning, sorry," he said, finding it difficult to converse with both women at once. It didn't help that he could still hear Ophelia snickering.
Ophelia clapped her hands loudly, laughing vibrantly. "Oh good! It sounds like you're both incredibly free, you can come back with us. Mon dieu, won't the olds be happy," she said happily, that snarky smile still in place. She was curious what the blonde would do, she clearly didn't want to go back to the house. Ophelia was hoping to paint her into a corner.
Fiona knew the surprise was written all over her face, the disappointment crashing just moments later. How could he be in love with Scarlett McLaggen? She'd thought for sure that he and Athena would be serious by now! It was heartbreaking in a rather surprising way, and she knew their parents would be just as crushed. "You can't really mean that," Fiona said softly, still speaking French.
The continued speaking in French only irritated Scarlett further, but then he said he'd checked out, and her head whipped around to look up at him, fury in her eyes. "You checked out without telling me?!" Who in the bloody hell does that? "Where is my bag?" She'd had stuff! How could he take her stuff and check them out and not even tell her?! Scarlett wasn't sure she'd ever been this mad before, and a part of her recognized it was because she'd never cared enough to bother getting this angry. Of course, the laughing hyena bitch wasn't doing anything to help her mood.
There were so many people that Aldrich could have gotten away with lying to their face, unfortunately Fiona wasn't one of them. The pained look was so hard to hide from his sister, he was just so tired of coming home alone. He was so tired of not starting his life. He felt so adrift in his life, like nothing was happening. Everyone else was doing something with their lives, while he seemed to be doing nothing. He was following Violet Nott around like a lovesick puppy, trying to write a book about her. He had gotten a lot of good pieces, but nothing about her relationship with Wes. It still made him nervous.
He was jogged from the spiral he'd taken to Scarlett's screech, wincing as he looked at her. "It's in my bag, I was intending to surprise you," he said with the softest of huffs. He was defeated, the women around him had won. He was giving in to the chaos of the moment, was he going home? He had no idea. He did think he was going to get a drink tossed in his face however.
How in the world could anyone think that would be a good surprise? What if she'd forgotten something? What if she'd hidden a gift somewhere? She hadn't, but what if?! Her eyes narrowed at him again, and she held out a hand. "Give me my bag," she said firmly. Scarlett would manage to find her way home without it, but it would be infinitely easier with it. Regardless, she didn't intend to give him any more of her time than she already had, and she decided in that moment that not even the sex was good enough to deal with his fumbling buffoonery.
Fiona took a step back as the couple sorted things out. Were they even really a couple though? She'd never got the impression that Scarlett McLaggen was serious about anyone, except perhaps Kenzie, but she hadn't got the sense that was a romantic seriousness anyway. And it wasn't as though Aldrich shielded his emotions or desires, so she couldn't help wondering what the petite blonde was playing at. She glanced at Ophelia, raising her eyebrows, her expression just a tad uncomfortable at the awkwardness playing out before them.
Aldrich would never know if it was the fact that Fiona was there or if he truly did love Scarlett, but his heart broke in that moment. His stomach fell out, and he dug his bag from his pocket. With a couple of motions, it expanded enough for him to get her bag out, and hand it over. "I'm sorry, Scarlett," he said softly, unable to bring those big puppy dog eyes to look at her. Instead he worked on shrinking his bag back down, and slipping it into his pocket.
Ophelia may have been pouting just slightly, she actually felt a little bad for Aldrich. The big dope was apparently inlove. It didn't seem the girl was, Ophelia was sure she'd find her way home or into the bed of a different Frenchman. She met Fiona's gaze, nodding her head. "Should we take him home?" she mouthed.
The apology went in one ear and out the other as Scarlett took her bag from him. She wasn't going to give him another moment of her time, so angry was she still. For someone who claimed to love her, she couldn't believe how inconsiderate he'd been. Without another word, she left the bistro, pulling out her phone so she could search for the best place for her to go next.
Fiona nodded at Ophelia before stepping up to her brother, wrapping an arm around his back. "Come on, then. Mum will be thrilled you're here. She doesn't even need to know about this," Fiona said graciously, waving a hand absently toward the blonde walking away.
The lovesick man watched the blonde walk away, hoping that she'd turn around. She had to turn around, didn't she?
It didn't happen, and finally he gave into his sister. "Alright," he said with a nod of his head, turning his attention back to her. "Thanks," he said softly, knowing that Fiona would know he was thanking her for not telling mum. His chest hurt, but he knew he'd be able to fill the void with food for the day. He'd give Scar some time to cool off, reach out to her in a week or so. He hoped stupidly that he hadn't blown it.
Smiling sweetly so as to hide her annoyance, she greeted the other women and hoped that they would say their hellos and be on their way quickly.
Fiona was quite surprised to see her brother in Paris, but even more surprised at the companion he had with him. If she were to guess at who he'd bring to Paris, she never would have thought it would be Scarlett McLaggen. There was a hint of disappointment in her eyes as she greeted her brother with a traditional la bise, though she didn't offer his companion the same.
"Bonjour! I didn't expect to see you here!" Fiona said a tad pointedly.
The moment Aldrich made eye contact with his sister and their cousin, he knew he was doomed. He knew there wasn't a chance he could avoid them, it would just ensure that Fiona would tell mum he was in town and hadn't come by. He couldn't take Scarlett to his parent's house! She would bolt like the bunny when was, he didn't want to chance it.
She greeted him happily enough, at least he was dense enough to ignore the look his sister had given him. Instead he greeted her with a hug, already trying to find a way to keep Fiona from talking to mum. "Yeah, last minute trip," he said with that dopey smile. "Claude opened his bistro last night. I had to be here," he said, speaking of his oldest friend. He had lived just up the street from the kids growing up.
Ophelia was standing just behind Fiona, amused at the newest woman on Aldrich's arm. She wondered if Kenzie knew she was sharing her girlfriend with the big dope. She put a hand on her hip, both brows raised as she watched the chaos.
"I thought Uncle Cooper had mentioned something about a family brunch today, he would be so thrilled if you made it," she piped up, doubting Fiona was going to want Scarlett there. It was going to be wildly entertaining for her. She wanted to watch Aldrich squirm. If what they said about Scarlett was true, she wouldn't stick around.
Scarlett wasn't sure if that was a lie or if Aldrich actually did have a friend named Claude who had opened a bistro last night, but she did know that they'd certainly not gone to any bistro. She wasn't about to throw him under the bus, though, as she had a feeling that would prolong his family's presence. "It was... mmm... magnifique," she said, lifting a hand to mime chef's kiss. Although she didn't actually speak French, she wasn't an idiot and had picked up on some of the more obvious words.
But then the black woman piped up with that bullshit about a family brunch, and she had to fight to keep from rolling her eyes. Instead, her eyes went a little wide, and she gasped with a little more drama than the moment likely called for. "Oh, love, I'm sure you'd love brunch with your family, but we've got those tickets in a half hour." Glancing at the women, she smiled sweetly again. "He insisted that we couldn't do a weekend in Paris without seeing a show at the Théâtre du Châtelet, and since we've got an early afternoon portkey out, it would be such a shame to miss it." Was she putting it on too thick? It felt a bit like she was, but she figured they didn't really know her, so she was probably fine.
Ophelia could not keep a straight face. This woman was a trip. She couldn't see why this woman had anyone wrapped around her finger.
Aldrich was at a loss for words. There was a family brunch? He could hear Scarlett telling her lie, which he knew both women would see right through. He was instead internally trying to figure out if he would be able to leave Scar to go see his mum for just a minute.
He gave a wary glance to the blonde, realizing there wasn't anywhere he could leave her really. They were in Paris, and he was the one who knew where the port key was. "Scar, I should probably pop in just for a moment. Just to see mum," he explained, his tone of voice letting everyone know that this was just expected. Of course he had to go see his mum.
That made Ophelia burst into laughter, unable to keep it contained anymore. There was even a soft snicker and some muttered French.
Fiona's brows furrowed slightly as she looked between her brother and Scarlett. It was obviously a lie, but the only reason Fiona could tell was because she knew her brother was rather picky about the theatre and wouldn't have wanted to do a matinee at the Théâtre du Châtelet. The girl was good, she'd give her that, but how much could Scarlett actually care about her brother if she was trying to keep him from visiting his family while in Paris? Pourquoi l'amèneriez-vous ici?" she asked Aldrich, not sharing in Ophelia's amusement, but rather extremely concerned for her brother.
It was more difficult to keep the irritation out of her eyes now, but Scarlett managed it through sheer force of will. Why was she even trying to get him out of it? It wasn't as though she actually cared about him or about spending time with him. But it did rather annoy her that he would so easily give up this time that he'd pushed so hard for. Of course, then the sister piped up in French, and Scarlett didn't bother to hide her annoyance then, thinking it quite rude of her to do so.
Turning fully to Aldrich, she offered him a small, tight smile. "Of course. I'll just head back to the hotel, and we can make a new plan," she told him, mostly honestly. What she didn't say was that the new plan wouldn't be a jointly made one.
He should have known that Fiona would call him out. He just gave his sister a shrug, completely missing just how angry his date was becoming. "I love her, I wanted to show her my favorite city," he clarified, not minding slipping into French. Momentarily forgetting that Scar couldn't speak it.
He did however look at her confused as he processed what she had said. "I checked out this morning, sorry," he said, finding it difficult to converse with both women at once. It didn't help that he could still hear Ophelia snickering.
Ophelia clapped her hands loudly, laughing vibrantly. "Oh good! It sounds like you're both incredibly free, you can come back with us. Mon dieu, won't the olds be happy," she said happily, that snarky smile still in place. She was curious what the blonde would do, she clearly didn't want to go back to the house. Ophelia was hoping to paint her into a corner.
Fiona knew the surprise was written all over her face, the disappointment crashing just moments later. How could he be in love with Scarlett McLaggen? She'd thought for sure that he and Athena would be serious by now! It was heartbreaking in a rather surprising way, and she knew their parents would be just as crushed. "You can't really mean that," Fiona said softly, still speaking French.
The continued speaking in French only irritated Scarlett further, but then he said he'd checked out, and her head whipped around to look up at him, fury in her eyes. "You checked out without telling me?!" Who in the bloody hell does that? "Where is my bag?" She'd had stuff! How could he take her stuff and check them out and not even tell her?! Scarlett wasn't sure she'd ever been this mad before, and a part of her recognized it was because she'd never cared enough to bother getting this angry. Of course, the laughing hyena bitch wasn't doing anything to help her mood.
There were so many people that Aldrich could have gotten away with lying to their face, unfortunately Fiona wasn't one of them. The pained look was so hard to hide from his sister, he was just so tired of coming home alone. He was so tired of not starting his life. He felt so adrift in his life, like nothing was happening. Everyone else was doing something with their lives, while he seemed to be doing nothing. He was following Violet Nott around like a lovesick puppy, trying to write a book about her. He had gotten a lot of good pieces, but nothing about her relationship with Wes. It still made him nervous.
He was jogged from the spiral he'd taken to Scarlett's screech, wincing as he looked at her. "It's in my bag, I was intending to surprise you," he said with the softest of huffs. He was defeated, the women around him had won. He was giving in to the chaos of the moment, was he going home? He had no idea. He did think he was going to get a drink tossed in his face however.
How in the world could anyone think that would be a good surprise? What if she'd forgotten something? What if she'd hidden a gift somewhere? She hadn't, but what if?! Her eyes narrowed at him again, and she held out a hand. "Give me my bag," she said firmly. Scarlett would manage to find her way home without it, but it would be infinitely easier with it. Regardless, she didn't intend to give him any more of her time than she already had, and she decided in that moment that not even the sex was good enough to deal with his fumbling buffoonery.
Fiona took a step back as the couple sorted things out. Were they even really a couple though? She'd never got the impression that Scarlett McLaggen was serious about anyone, except perhaps Kenzie, but she hadn't got the sense that was a romantic seriousness anyway. And it wasn't as though Aldrich shielded his emotions or desires, so she couldn't help wondering what the petite blonde was playing at. She glanced at Ophelia, raising her eyebrows, her expression just a tad uncomfortable at the awkwardness playing out before them.
Aldrich would never know if it was the fact that Fiona was there or if he truly did love Scarlett, but his heart broke in that moment. His stomach fell out, and he dug his bag from his pocket. With a couple of motions, it expanded enough for him to get her bag out, and hand it over. "I'm sorry, Scarlett," he said softly, unable to bring those big puppy dog eyes to look at her. Instead he worked on shrinking his bag back down, and slipping it into his pocket.
Ophelia may have been pouting just slightly, she actually felt a little bad for Aldrich. The big dope was apparently inlove. It didn't seem the girl was, Ophelia was sure she'd find her way home or into the bed of a different Frenchman. She met Fiona's gaze, nodding her head. "Should we take him home?" she mouthed.
The apology went in one ear and out the other as Scarlett took her bag from him. She wasn't going to give him another moment of her time, so angry was she still. For someone who claimed to love her, she couldn't believe how inconsiderate he'd been. Without another word, she left the bistro, pulling out her phone so she could search for the best place for her to go next.
Fiona nodded at Ophelia before stepping up to her brother, wrapping an arm around his back. "Come on, then. Mum will be thrilled you're here. She doesn't even need to know about this," Fiona said graciously, waving a hand absently toward the blonde walking away.
The lovesick man watched the blonde walk away, hoping that she'd turn around. She had to turn around, didn't she?
It didn't happen, and finally he gave into his sister. "Alright," he said with a nod of his head, turning his attention back to her. "Thanks," he said softly, knowing that Fiona would know he was thanking her for not telling mum. His chest hurt, but he knew he'd be able to fill the void with food for the day. He'd give Scar some time to cool off, reach out to her in a week or so. He hoped stupidly that he hadn't blown it.