Who: Royce Courtright + Gerard Leadux + Anyone! What: Royce is bored. No surprise, really but anyway, the point is that he is now out and about. When: Friday early afternoon-ish but totally flexible! Where: Starts at Courtright Residence Rating: tbd Status: ongoing.
There was probably little else more frustrating than the lack of updates on one's Facebook wall. For 300 times now, Royce had been sliding his finger lazily around his wall but no matter how many patterns he drew on it, no one was still suddenly getting married among his friends. Which was a sad development if only because he couldn't crash it.
He stifled a yawn as he reached across him to take a piece of See's chocolate from the box in the middle and unwrapped it skillfully with his long fingers. He bit it in half while he allowed the brown paper holder to drop to the table.
"How about this masquerade ball? This one in Shiloh. Should we do something about that?"
Royce let the chocolate melt in his mouth while he navigated to his Twitter feed and swiped it down for updates for the 500th time. He returned his chin to his left hand.
"We're already giving away the discounts, aren't we?"
"Obviously, I meant the donations! Should the ranch be donating?"
"We're already donating, aren't we?"
"But should we put that donation under the Courtrights or the ranch?"
"Suppose it can be either way. Err...Royce. Royce, son..."
Royce navigated towards Instagram.
"Royce!"
"What?" Royce's head snapped up and he looked at his father and his stepmother across the table. All around them were papers, an open laptop, their phones and their tablet devices.
All around Royce was the wrappings of chocolates long consumed and his iPad, showing him his Instagram feed.
Roy sighed, running a hand down his white hair while to his left, Royce's stepmother giggled like a seal although she tried to hide it behind her hand. "Royce, while you were busy playing Fruit Ninja--"
"I wasn't," Royce said honestly and defensively, shaking his head.
"--we were talking about the upcoming charity ball, the one you'll be attending if I remember correctly."
"Oh that's right," said the stepmother.
"We were wondering whether we should make the donation under the Courtrights' name or the ranch. What do you think?"
Royce took his time to clean his mouth, suck the chocolate out of his teeth and gums with his tongue. "Well, I don't think there's much of a difference between the two but if you really need an answer, I guess you can just make the donation under our name. Everyone in Newport knows we own the ranch and anyway, it already has a presence in the ball through the discount. And there really isn't much opportunity to advertise the ranch in it."
"He has a point," said the stepmother.
"Okay." Roy went back to his iPad.
Royce went back to his, too, and his chocolate.
"Actually," the stepmother cleared her throat, "Royce, honey."
Royce looked up, the half-chocolate in mid-pop with his mouth open for it.
"Are you still with us?" she proceeded to ask. "Have you got something you want to say?"
Royce remained gaping as he looked at his stepmother and then at his father who looked back to him. He dropped the chocolate into his mouth and then took his time to chew it while he sucked his fingers clean.
And then clearing his throat as he shifted in his place, he said, "...can I go now?" He, at least had the grace to wince as he said it. "I mean, you seem to have this meeting down pat without me and...I do still have to pick up my mask and the vouchers down at the printers..." Which was a lie, he could do that anytime.
But that seal-like giggle returned to his stepmother anyway as Roy sighed and scratched his head. But with a nod to him, she said, "Go on, then. We'll call you if anything comes up."
Royce grinned as he clapped his hands together for a sharp smacking sound. "You're the best, Mum," he said as he rose from his seat to kiss her on the cheek and then went around to plant one on his father's head, too. Roy sighed and patted his hand, nodding. "Call me for anything."
"We will," Roy promised with exasperration as his son collected his iPad and hurried out of the dining room.
That was how Royce was soon rolling out of their driveway in his Rolls-Royce Phantom convertible (because if he didn't drive one in spite of his name, he'd have pretty much failed in life) and making a beeline towards the city proper. To be quite honest about it, he actually had no plans in mind. There were a few friends he didn't mind seeing, a few places he didn't mind checking out but as far as he was concerned, it was all still up in the air. He just really needed to be out of that dull conversation before he lost his head.
Not long after, he parked his car just near a shop he frequented and hopped out to join the passing crowd. His phone was instantly out and on his ear and he walked happily aimlessly as he waited for someone to answer his call.
"Hey!" he said to it at about the same time someone bumped into him and he apologized to them.