tessa darling ☂ eggsy unwin. (nobrogues) wrote in dunhavenic, @ 2018-05-11 22:35:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log, * jamie, * kit, * terri, c: abigail moore, c: dorothy darling, c: finnley sparks, c: tessa darling |
WHO: Abby, Dottie, and Tessa Darling & Finnley Parker
WHEN: Friday, May 11, 2018; Afternoon
WHERE: Driving through Dunhaven → Finnley’s House
SUMMARY: The Darlings are in pursuit of a place to call home that doesn’t charge by the night.
WARNINGS: None!
It still baffled Abby just how perfectly everything worked out in the last handful of months. Saying goodbye to Leo and her sisters had gotten harder and harder with every end of a vacation or event that left her boarding an airplane and returning to Portland. When she and Leo had broached the subject of what they could do to end the long distance relationship that had been their entire relationship, it felt less like making a career sacrifice and more like entering the next phase of their lives together. The fact that her sisters could take that step with her was just the cherry on top of an otherwise perfect situation. Now that they were all in the same place, though, they just had to work out the finer details -- like finding a place to live that didn't charge by the night. Abby had already started her work at the newspaper, but they still needed a house. "You know, this really is a cute town," Abby commented, pushing her sunglasses up her nose as she rolled to a stop from behind the steering wheel of her car. It had arrived a few days after she had, having been shipped along with her other belongings from Portland shortly after her arrival. Most of her things were in a storage locker, but her teal Prius had gone with her. "But it still feels weird driving and not having to fight traffic at all times." “I miss the noise,” Dottie commented idly, a wistful sigh lingering on her lips, “Although someone was playing loud music and a car alarm went off the other night, so that was nice.” Even though her apartment in New York had been in a high rise, the noise had still drifted up to her. It was the lack of background noise that often filled the air that marked the most difference in her day to day activities. She had found herself reliant on music to make up for the lack of sound. She reached up from the back seat, placing a hand on Abby’s shoulder. The blinker was indicating an intention to turn right, but Dottie instructed, “We should turn left.” It was less a concrete knowledge than a feeling, although her gut rarely steered her wrong. They had looked at most of the house listings in town, after all, and had found little to suit their tastes. Now, they were mostly just browsing to see if there was anything they could base their search on, “Meeting the people here has been a fun adventure so far.” If she were honest with herself, Tessa had only moved to Dunhaven because her sisters had. She wouldn’t necessarily say she was codependent, but the thought of being the odd one out was unappealing. As much as she loved the city life and everything that came with it, no city was quite as fun without at least one other Darling triplet in it. Still, Dottie was right in that it was too quiet around here. The houses were so big, too. She wasn’t unfamiliar with large houses, but they’d always been meant to party in and leave. Now they were going to buy one and the houses felt so foreign from the penthouses in New York City. “This is why Dunhaven needs us,” Tessa said, “we bring life with us.” And as Abby became distracted by Dottie’s hand and change in direction, Tessa reached over and honked the horn twice. “That better, Dottie Sue?” She held her hand up to block retaliation from Abby, a wicked grin on her face as she laughed. “Have you met that many? I pretty much know the same people I knew before we got here plus Leo’s brother.” Even as Tessa lifted her hands to fend her off, Abby still reached over with her right arm as soon as she'd completed the turn to the left. The way she waved her hand around toward her sister was half-hearted, to say the least, but it was a necessary reaction. "There's the people here that I went to college with," Abby pointed out, having had mentioned connecting with Danielle on the network briefly when she had first written on there. "You guys would like them. We'll have to do lunch or something for some intros." Glancing up at the rearview mirror, she looked toward Dottie before adding without missing a beat, "There a reason we're going this way, Dottie?" Dottie had, in fact, met many people. She had met a gaggle of old women at the local salon that she had shared a Sprite with and allowed them to tell her all about their grandsons. She had also met a few younger people at the local coffee shop, including a boy with sad eyes that she had spoken with briefly about the merits of restoring Pluto as a planet - the only thing that had made him smile. She had met people walking their dogs in the park and stopped to pet every single one that she was allowed. So yes, Dottie had met many people, even if she hadn’t made any friendships of note yet, “It would be nice to have more friends, and meet the people that you think highly of, Abby.” Dottie met Abby’s gaze in the mirror and grinned, “To find our house, of course. You should probably stop now or we’re going to miss it.” She took a glance to the left side of the street where a house was coming into view. It was spacious and beautiful, with well-tended landscaping and plentiful windows. She liked it the moment that she saw it, and though there was no sign in the yard indicating it was for sale, she immediately decided, “We should make an offer.” “As long as we don’t start trading sugar and recipes with these college buddies of yours, I’m sure they’ll be great,” Tessa replied, craning her head as she peered out the window, carefully watching for signs of houses for sale. “I’m all for experiencing the quaint country life, but I have to draw the line somewhere.” Her eyebrows shot up in question at Dottie’s declaration, though she wasn’t really all that surprised by her sister’s words. If any one of the three of them was ready to march up to some unsuspecting family and ask them to vacate their house, it was going to be Dottie--she was likely the most fearless of the trio, and also the most underestimated. She snorted back a laugh and said, “It’s gorgeous, but maybe we should give these people a little more warning than ambushing them on the front stoop.” Even as Tessa spoke, though, Abby had rolled to a stop on the curb. She didn't want to be so presumptuous as to actually pull into the driveway, but she would at least listen to Dottie enough to stop the car. Once the car was in park, she craned her head to the side and looked over the house. It certainly was beautiful, especially compared to the small apartment she'd been living in before. Just from the outside, it looked well kept, which hopefully meant that repairs wouldn't be needed anytime soon -- not that any of that mattered, of course, since it wasn't for sale. "Dottie, we can't just make an offer on a house that isn't for sale," Abby said, turning to look from one sister to the other. "Right?" “If we don’t walk up to the door, we can’t get her contact information for negotiations,” Dottie reasoned simply, and with a small smile, she added, “Just because we make an offer, it doesn’t mean they have to accept. We’ll never know if we don’t ask.” Without further ado, Dottie opened the door closest to the curb and let herself out of the car. She was careful to walk up the driveway and then the path to the front door so that she would not trample through the well-kept grass. Before anyone could convince her otherwise, she had rung the doorbell, just once out of politeness. She was smiling with her hands clasped in front of her when the door opened and a pretty blonde appeared, looking at them quizzically, but not unkindly, “Can I help you?” “Hello. I’m Dottie Darling, and these are my sisters, Tessa and Abby.” She stuck out her hand, to which the other girl did reach out after only a moment’s hesitation to accept the greeting handshake. “Finnley Parker,” the woman replied, pushing her glasses up her nose a little as though she were trying to make sure she wasn’t experiencing triple vision of some kind. “It’s lovely to meet you, Finnley. We just moved into town, and we would like to buy your house. Could we take a tour?” Her tone was cheerful and matter-of-fact, even as she peered into the house beyond the woman that was apparently the owner. Finnley took on an expression of mild shock, looking over her shoulder at the interior of her house in her bewilderment and then back to the women on her doorstep, “I...I mean…wait, what? How did you know I was looking to put on the market?” Finnley looked between the three sisters. Dottie just smiled. |