Charlotte Heywood (ardent) wrote in dunhavenic, @ 2019-03-06 21:15:00 |
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“Ok, mom, mom listen will ya? Jeeeesh I’m SORRY I’ll pick it all up later, I tried scrubbing but the oil was still slick and like, YOU KNOW how clumsy I am?? I was gonna DIE in there?? I just --” A voice on the other end of the phone was rapidly speaking, and the curly brown haired girl holding the phone tilted it a little farther away from her ear. The sound came out like the adults in Charlie Brown. Wah wah wah. “Yes momma, absolutely. I’ll be home later okay? I’ll bring new olive oil.” Cold weather and an unfortunate run in with an oil-slicked kitchen floor never stopped Alice from look fabulous, and despite the lack of sun she was rockin’ her favorite pair of sunglasses, which were pushed up on top of her head as she entered Java Chip. Getting coffee with Sonya was one of her favorite things ever, and even though she wasn’t typically a fan of doing the same thing over and over again, hanging out with her sister was never boring. She was blessed to have an exceptional family. Having left the house a little later than she had really meant to, she wasn’t surprised to find Sonya already there, standing off to the side of the line waiting for her. “Sorryyy!!” She called, too loudly and certainly enough to draw attention to herself. “I know I’m late but this seemed like the perfect opportunity to break this skirt out???” She rolled her eyes at herself and laughed, greeting her sister with a hug. -- Given that her working days were spent minding a very small child, Sonya didn't often prioritize her outfit choice. She didn't want to be too in love with a shirt only to have it ruined by Yuri's spit-up. Of course, she was off work today, but she'd only gone a step or two further than normal- red lipstick and a fashionable scarf, the latter of which she'd pulled around her head as she darted from her car into Java Chip, trying to avoid the light rain. (Given Alice's propensity to talk loudly, it was probably best that she'd chosen this place over Anteaques.) "It is a nice skirt," Sonya agreed, hugging her sister close. When she stepped back, she asked, "Do you know what you want? I feel like I only ever get two or three things here, but they're just so good that I can't bear to switch it up." -- “Fame, fortune, a super hot husband?” She replied easily, leaving her arm draped around her sister as she looked briefly towards the menu. “Oh you meant what drink I wanted.” Alice laughed, clearly joking. “I don't know yet, I think I'm going to try something different. You go first, but let me pay!” After all, Alice had no bills currently. She stepped back to allow Sonya to get in line first and took her place right after, staring at the menu like she didn't already have it memorized. “Oh and I totally have gossip. Kind of. Have you checked Instagram since yesterday??” -- Sonya gave a faint snort of laughter as she and Alice stepped toward the line. She would have protested her sister's offer to pay, but there was no real point in it. No sense arguing over a few dollars. She ordered her drink- an iced chai- gave her name- "Sonya-with-a-Y"- and then shifted sideways to allow Alice to do the same. "No? I don't think so, anyway. What have I missed?" -- “Iced chai again??? You need to live a little.” Alice almost never got the same thing twice, though when it came to drinks the options were a little limited. Eventually she’d circle back around to something she’d had previously, but not before she ran through all the options in between. “Iced english toffee latte please? With three shots of espresso annnnnnd, instead of four pumps of the english toffee can I have three with a pump of hazelnut? For Alice.” The barista looked a little put off, but Alice flashed him a huge smile and, to be fair, she was here every day. They were more than used to it. “Thanks!” Handing over the money, she quickly turned back to Sonya. Pulling up her Instagram feed, she paused. “Okay Celebrity gossip first or do you want to talk about Cash liking a picture of Sorcha’s?” She rose a brow, and then made the executive decision (not really, since it came up first) to talk about celebrities. “Apparently Amber Riley is boycotting Lea Michele’s wedding.” -- Cash had done what now? Sonya raised an eyebrow, curious, but didn't mind setting this familial intrigue aside for celebrity news. Even if the latter was much less familiar to her. "I… didn't even know that Lea Michele was getting married," she admitted, somewhat abashed. -- “She TOTALLY is. The guy is a friend of hers I guess? He’s part of that AYR company, you know, does all-year-round essentials for women.” Alice had actually bought a few things from their site before, and had requested some for her last birthday. “The ring is insane, super big but totally not my style.” Standing off to the side waiting for their drinks, she kept scrolling through her feed until the image from Sorcha popped up. She had forgotten to delete her when they broke up, and continually forgot to do so. “Yep, a like. I think that’s a good step. I hope it means he’s healing from all that bullshit now.” -- "I mean, I'd hope they're friends, if they're getting married." Sonya recognized the name brand, even if she couldn't have picked the guy out of a lineup. "I don't like those big, gaudy rings, either." Not that anyone was offering her one. Medium iced chai for Yonya! Sonya rolled her eyes as the name was called, but stepped up to retrieve her drink anyway. It had, indeed, been spelled with-a-Y. Just, somehow, without an S. She found two plush chairs nearby, and sat to wait for Alice. Once her sister rejoined her, she continued, "I hope so. Not that she deserves him back, of course, but if it's good for him to not be so… angry, well." She shrugged, unsure quite how to finish that thought. -- “I meant they were friends before they dated, silly.” She replied, a loud bark of a laugh escaping her. The barista setting down her drink jumped a little and almost spilled it. “Her name is Sonya, by the way.” She corrected, giving them another big smile as she grabbed her drink and followed Sonya over to the chairs she’d claimed. Glancing at her phone for another moment, she closed the app out and set it down, focusing her attention on her sister now. Sibling gossip was always, well, not fun, but interesting. “Oh hell no, I don’t think she deserves him back either. I just want him to be happy, you know? If that means reconciling enough to send likes or whatever, I’m good with that.” There had been a lot to be concerned about in their family, and Alice was ready for this one to come to a close so her brother could get on with his life, find peace and all that. “So what’s up in your life lately, Sonya? Anything fun?” -- "Of course, I want them all to be happy," Sonya insisted. And maybe she was too adamant about that, but she remembered Regina's thoughts just as easily as her own. And Sonya didn't want to destroy anyone's happiness. "But Jordan's got Viola and Theo has Tess, so two out of three ain't bad, yeah?" She didn't count their youngest sibling, since he was still in high school. She'd pulled the sleeve of her shirt down just a bit to cover the palm of her hand, to protect from the cold cup she was holding. "I wish I could say something monumental or exciting, but most of my time is spent with a baby, so…" After a sip, Sonya gave a little shrug. "Not that I mind it. Yuri's really great, and Lucy pays me probably more than I deserve, honestly." -- "And Cash has Evan, even if it's not romantic." She added, though there was slight implication in that. Alice, as she was sure the rest of her family, had suspected Evan and Cash had feelings for each other, but Alice didn't know. She was mostly just a sucker for love, and wanted everyone to have someone like that. Alice took a quick sip of her coffee and had barely finished that sip when she blurted out (quietly) "Ugh why are we still the single ones? You're really telling me you haven't met anyone worthy of your time??” Not that Alice had always been single, she'd had boyfriends before but it had been a while. She wasn't the type of girl who handled being single very well, but she also was a little too old fashioned to join up on an app like Tinder or something and get dates that way. She wasn't that desperate. If only Jace and her had had better chemistry... "Yuri is cute though, so that's probably a more fun job than working at a movie theatre. ALTHOUGH I do get to watch all the free movies I want so?? I think that's a good trade off? And like, I can eat so much popcorn?" Not that she needed to continually justify her dumb job at the movie theatre... but she felt like she did. "I just live vicariously through celebrities until I'm the one blowing up the gossip feeds on twitter and insta." A girl can dream, right? Her phone buzzed again and after briefly reading the text, she just put it back down, face of the phone flipped over so she couldn't see it anymore. "Sonya I need help. I have to move out before I lose my mind. Or before Binx destroys any more floors." -- "True, true." Everyone knew that Cash and Evan were going to wind up together one way or another, it was just a matter of how and when. Honestly, Sonya was surprised there wasn't a family betting pool on it. But she gave a sharp laugh when Alice asked why the two of them were single. "I'm not even trying to meet anyone," Sonya corrected, when Alice seemed to theorize that she was just meeting a bunch of frogs instead of princes. "I've got enough to work on in here," she tapped her temple with a finger, "before I invite anyone else in." She wasn't entirely certain why her sister craved fame so much, but Sonya couldn't speak against it. Those were Alice's aspirations, and all she had to do was support them. "Just don't forget the little people, once you get there, yeah?" The last declaration came as a bit of surprise, but Sonya just offered- with little hesitation- "You know I have an extra room, right? I mean, I'd still prefer Binx not destroying anything, so I can get my security deposit back eventually, but..." -- “I guess you're not wrong.” She agreed, thinking about herself, the things she didn't share with her family - except Sonya, whom she found keeping anything from was near impossible. “I could work on myself more.” Her voice lost its typical happiness in tone, and for once she sounded a little tired. “But you're awesome and don't like ignore a possible opportunity!” Said seriously, because she didn't want either of them to end up old spinsters. “And you guys are not little people. I'd never forget you, uber famous or not.” Alice perked back up again and took another sip of her coffee, nearly spitting it out when Sonya offered to let her live there. “Really?? Are you serious, Sonya????” -- "I'm not saying you have to, Alice," Sonya amended, quickly. "Just that... that's what I'm working on. For me." She seemed surprised by her sister's, well, surprise. Sonya leaned back a bit in her seat, taking a sip of her iced drink and giving a little shrug. "Yeah? I mean, it's not like we haven't lived together most of our lives. Honestly, I'm a little offended that you didn't consider it an option before now." Though she tried not to crack a smile at this, it was offered playfully. -- “I know, but it’s probably a good thing right? To work on yourself and all.” She shrugged, knowing she sure as hell wasn’t perfect - even though she tried so hard to be. “True I just thought, like, you know…” She finished a little lamely, waiting for a second before finishing her thought. “I mean the reason people move out is to be independent and like, away from their family. Not that I think that’s what you wanted but being independent is like, important? And, I just don’t want to mess that up for you? I don’t know many people who’d just want their baby sister around all the time once they’re adults?” She laughed, knowing how absurd it sounded. If it were the other way around, Alice wouldn’t think twice before letting any one of her siblings move in to her own place. “If you’re serious I’m totally one thousand percent down.” -- "I hope it is!" Sonya laughed, though it was a genial sound- she wasn't teasing her sister in this. "I'm the only one I'm going to have forever, so, I've got to like myself." And sometimes, with Regina's memories in her mind, that was easier said than done. "If you were a kid, or someone I had to take care of, sure. Maybe it would be different, then." Sonya gave a little shrug. "But we're both adults, Alice, and I'm sure we can keep our independence and still live together. You've just got to promise to keep your cat under control." The latter was added with a playful sort of smile as she took another sip of her drink. -- “I never thought about it that way.” The familiar twinge of loneliness tugged at heart, making her feel empty. Taking a quick sip of her coffee and forcing a bigger smile, Alice sat up straight. “Well I like me mostly so I think I'm okay dating around a little.” She was teasing, though it was true she often did whatever her sister was doing. A serious face at the mention of Binx and Alice shook her head. “I cannot control my son. He's a free spirit, Sonya, he roams the land in search of birds and snacks. Sometimes that means a rough encounter with a bottle of olive oil.” Spoken like she was talking about some famous traveler or something, Alice laughed. “I know, I know. He's just a really clumsy cat, it was my fault. I'll be careful.” When the realization hit her, she brightened up considerably, if that was even possible. “Oh man! I'm moving out! This is so exciting!!!” -- Sonya at least managed to roll her eyes a little bit. "If you can't control him, then you're paying me back for the security deposit." She didn't ask for a handshake on it or anything. Hopefully things wouldn't be quite so dramatic in reality as Alice liked to say they were. -- “Can do! I’ll buy you a whole new house once I’m famous if that’s what it takes! OH MOM IS GOING TO BE SO SAD THE LAST OF HER BABIES IS MOVING OUT!” She half-yelled, before standing up abruptly and grabbing for Sonya’s hand. “Can we start now??” Patience wasn’t one of Alice’s strong points. -- Several people looked. Sonya felt her cheeks flush a furious shade of red, and- for just the faintest moment, she felt that familiar seething that Regina so craved burgeoning in her own chest. She swallowed it down, determinedly, and offered a shaky smile to her sister. "Yeah, Al. Sure we can." |