RP: Girls Night In Who: Alex, Dagny, & Eve What: Pizza and gossip When: 18 May 2028 Where: Eve's house Warnings: References to adult topics Completion Status: Complete
Arranging three schedules to line up just right was harder than it had seemed, but Eve finally got something on the books for the girls. The pizza was hot and gooey on the kitchen table, box open between the three women. There was even a cold six pack of coca-cola sitting on the lid of the open box. Napkins were everywhere, Eve had a thing for pastel colors, and she wasn’t good enough with her cleaning charms to get the grease stains out well enough that she wouldn’t still see it if she squinted hard enough.
Eve was pleased as punch as she sat at the head of the table eating her slice of pizza. “This is what I’ve been missing, it can’t compare to home, but it is so close,” she murmured happily, using her index finger to snag a piece of cheese that just kept stretching between her mouth and the slice after taking another bite.
Her short blonde locks were in messy low pigtails, her clear glasses on, and clad in a pair of black women’s sweatpants that had flowers all over them, and her favorite white sports bra. It was a very laid back look for her, but she wasn’t intending to go out. The pizza had been delivered and the soda had been bought earlier. She had been prepared for the lazy day. Even though she'd spent time with Eve and Dagny each on their own, Alex was excited at the prospect of hanging out with them both over dinner and drinks and gossip. Sure, they were sticking with soda for now, but she was thinking she might suggest daiquiris in a little bit. Things were going so well for all of them, it seemed, that the summery drink seemed appropriate.
"It's true. The food is one of the things I miss most about home," she said with a sigh before taking another bite of her own pizza. No, it definitely couldn't compare to home. Even Boulder, with all its health nut food joints, had better pizza than any of the places she'd tried here. Not that the food was necessarily terrible here, and there were quite a few other redeeming factors, she thought, her mind drifting to her sexy healer boyfriend. Dagny swallowed a bite of pizza. “If you think it’s hard getting good pizza over here, you should try finding good Caribbean food.” She’d found a few places in London after a bit of searching, but always got the weirdest looks when she went into restaurants, a white woman with a mostly American accent; she’d have been an oddity even if she weren’t a witch.
She did miss New York City, though. The East Coast had agreed with her, despite her island upbringing, and if things had been different she might still be there now. But then she wouldn’t have had Thad and he was completely worth it.
“But one thing I don’t miss is work.” Dagny picked up her soda, shaking her head. “I actually have a life outside of work now and I couldn’t go back to the hours I used to do at the Ghost.” There was something so fulfilling to hear her sister and her friend talk so happily about being in London. Maybe she’d be able to get Alex to agree to staying for good. She had that extra room, and who knew, if things kept going well with her Healer… Maybe they’d be getting their own place, wouldn’t that be fantastic? She was certain she could talk Dagny into helping talk Alex into staying.
“Where in the world have you found good Caribbean?” she asked, surprised. “I work more now than I ever did, but I’ll say I enjoy the dating scene here more. How are your men doing?” she asked both women. She was excited for both of them, they both seemed happy in their relationships. She hoped wedding bells were in the future for both women, she loved a good reason to go dress shopping. Alex was curious to hear the answer to that, as well. She hadn't gotten anywhere near close to trying all the options for foreign food around here, but she could imagine that Caribbean food was particularly difficult to find.
"The work here is way better than back home. It's insane that I don't have to rely on tips. I actually get a livable base wage? Unheard of! And Manny's doing great. Working a lot, of course, but so am I," she said with a small shrug. She wasn't struggling with his work schedule the way she'd thought she might, but that might just be because they'd both made it a point to spend time together when they could. “There’s a few places dotted around. All on the No-Maj side of things, of course.” Dagny wasn’t sure British wizards would really know what to do with foreign food that wasn’t Indian or Chinese.
She sipped her soda, deciding to share something that she hadn’t really discussed with anyone outside of family. “Everything’s going really great with Thad. We’re actually planning to build a house.” Dagny smiled wryly, cheeks turning a little pink with pleasure. “I guess this has turned into a permanent move for me.” She shrugged. “Or at least for the next few decades.” There wasn’t a chance on this earth Eve was letting Dagny leave without at least writing down one of the good restaurants. She’d see if Gavin might take her, she still had to make plans with him.
Talk of Manny and Thad had her distracted from restaurants, this was more exciting. Maybe her sister would be staying longer. “Oh that’s exciting, Dagny!” Eve gushed, maybe she would be shopping for a dress sooner than she thought. Building a house was rather big and important, a step towards marriage for sure. “Where are you looking to build the home at? Have you chosen the spot just yet?” she asked curiously. Dagny's news was definitely surprising, and Alex's eyes widened. Moving in together was one thing, totally normal in her experience, but building a home together? That was a statement, wasn't it? She'd never been with anyone who was serious enough about her for such a Big Deal statement, and she couldn't help wondering if that might change now with Manny. Could they have that kind of epic love?
"Yes," she said, dragging the word out a bit. "Do tell!" She had so many questions, but she figured she would let Dagny fill them in before launching into them. Definitely pink now, Dagny’s smile grew wider. “We’ve been looking, but haven’t decided exactly where yet. But we met with an architect I think we’re going to use. It’s all kind of… coming together.” They weren’t in any rush to break ground, the cottage suiting the two of them just fine for the time being.
“It was Thad’s idea, really. The cottage is lovely but we’ve talked about the future and what we want. Someday, I don’t know, a few years from now? We’ll want something bigger. And we both liked the idea of having something that’s just ours.”
Dagny felt like it had been forever since she’d gotten together with other women like this. Her cousin Isla was always there, of course, but their schedules were somewhat incompatible, even when they had been living in the same house. This was nice. Cathartic, even. The excitement in the air was palpable. Eve let out a little squeal as Dagny admitted it was Thad’s idea, it was better than some romance novel. A dreamy little sigh left her as Dagny admitted they’d need something bigger. “So does that mean we’ll be hearing wedding bells in the future?” she asked, being completely nosey and unashamed. If Dagny hadn't specified 'a few years from now,' Alex might have teased her about the possibility of being pregnant, but she bit it back this time. The last thing she wanted was to encourage that sort of karma her way. She and Manny were being as responsible as a sexually active couple could be in that area, after all.
"That is so exciting! Probably makes it worth dealing with the hard to find foreign cuisine, right?" That seemed like a safe topic to tease with. “I don’t know. Maybe? One day?” Dagny hoped so, but she wasn’t in a rush for that either. They’d been together less than a year and while their close friends and family could see that what they had was the real thing, she was very aware that Thad was a professional athlete. Over the last year, she’d seen how vile the gossip columnists could be and she had no intention of being labeled as some kind of American gold-digging WAG.
She took a small bite of the slice she was still holding. “It sounds so stupid, but he makes everything worth it. I turn into a big, squishy marshmallow around him.” The excitement had Eve grinning widely, he made everything worth it. That’s the sort of love she hoped to one day find, someone that made everything worth it to just be in their arms. Why did her mind seem to drift off towards Phoenix? Could they eventually be her person, like that? Was it possible?
She was a bit lost in thought, using her bare feet to idly poke at the floor beneath her chair. A nervous habit that was so easy to hide. “It doesn’t sound stupid, I think it sounds wonderful. You’ll have to be sure to have a housewarming party. I’ll help you decorate,” she offered excitedly. Although she wasn't sure anyone was as much of a secret romantic as her sister, Alex couldn't help but sigh wistfully at how ridiculously sweet Dagny and Thad seemed to be. "Wedding bells or not, I am so happy for you!" She didn't think marriage was requisite for a happy, successful relationship, but she also couldn't deny fantasizing about her own potential wedding someday.
"Did Eve tell you much about her ocean adventures with her… Phoenix?" she asked Dagny, though she looked at Eve with a mischievous expression. Blushing, Dagny shook her head. I think it’s going to be a while before there’s any house to decorate.” Then again, with magic there was always a chance that they would be celebrating Christmas in their own home.
At Alex’s prompting, Dagny cast a sidelong look at Eve. “A Phoenix, huh? She did say something about the company being worthwhile, but that’s about it. Sounds like there’s a story there.” A pepperoni, that had been picked off a piece earlier, was tossed Alex’s way when she outed Eve. “Yes, my Phoenix, but no, there’s hardly a story,” she said with that bubbly laugh of hers. “We enjoyed three months alone on a boat, traveling all over the most beautiful tropical islands, and had my own room to retire to in the evenings,” she said wistfully, reminiscing on laying in the bed reading, Phoenix coming to join her, taking her romance novel away. They really were better than any romance novel. Alex laughed and held her slice of pizza out to try to catch the pepperoni thrown at her. It missed and landed on the table, but she picked it up and tossed it in her mouth. She rolled her eyes at Eve's initial dismissal, certain that Dagny was savvy enough to see through it. "Uh huh, cause that's all it was," she teased, giving her sister a pointed look. It wasn't that she expected Eve to give Dagny all the details she'd given her, but she did think there were better nuggets to share than that! Dagny finished the last of her soda, stifling a laugh as Alex was pelted with pepperoni. She certainly didn’t believe that there was no story there, not with such a wistful recollection of months of time together. The fact that Eve mentioned having her own room seemed almost like a red herring, but if Eve wanted some secrets or just a bit of mystery, then she was entitled to it.
She looked at the half-finished slice in her hand. “I think I might explode if I eat another bite,” she remarked, deflecting attention away from Eve and her Phoenix. “I doubt either of you want to hear about the fantastic sex we had,” she said with a happy little laugh. Just remembering the first time they had met, that had been out of this world sex. The three month long trip had just sort of sealed the deal, they were her favorite partner at the moment. She wondered if they might enjoy a fancy dinner party, meet her friends. Would it be too much? Crossing that line they danced around?
Not wanting to fall into those thoughts and worries, she distracted herself with Dagny’s comment about exploding. “I fully agree, it was so good. How much longer do I have you both for? Care to watch Gentlemen Prefer Blondes with me?” Alex resisted, just barely, pointing out that she'd already heard a bit about the fantastic sex her sister had on her trip with the mysterious Phoenix. The teasing could wait until later, especially since Dagny hadn't joined her in it. "I'm all yours tonight. Manny's working late," she said. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes wasn't her favorite, but she would indulge her sister. “Just hearing that it was fantastic is enough for me,” Dagny remarked with a grin. Knowing where Eve worked she had to assume that it had been at least a little adventurous too. Really, though, Eve’s happy expression spoke a thousand words and told her everything she needed.
At the suggestion of a movie, she nodded. “I can’t remember if I’ve ever seen it, but I’m in.” Old No-Maj movies in her home growing up had been things like James Bond, courtesy of her dad. Getting lost in a story sounded like the perfect follow up to eating so much. “Just promise to wake me up if I fall into a food coma.”