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Phillip Wolfe | Phobos ([info]inclinedfear) wrote in [info]paxletalelogs,
@ 2011-09-21 14:46:00

Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:ereshkigal, eris, phobos, tiamat

Group Dinner Date!
Who: Rylee, Charlie, Karin, and Fee
What: The group meet for dinner: Charlie and Rylee meet Fee for the first time.
Where: Sage Restaurant
When: Tonight!
Warnings: Seeing that Charlie is involved and she doesn't have meat to eat, I'm sure cursing will happen.


Rylee had decided to wear a button down shirt and nice pants for the little dinner. He didn't know what the ladies would be wearing but he didn't want to look like a slob with them. He realized with faint humor that he would be the only man in the little group and it brought a smile to his face.

After collecting Charlie, Rylee wondered if he had over dressed, her usual dress of jeans and a shirt made him feel a little awkward but he tried to push the feelings aside. They drove together to the restaurant, chattering about details to his oral surgery that was scheduled for Friday and random stories pertaining to work, and arrived promptly on time.

Walking with Charlie into the restaurant he held the door open for her, already scanning the crowd to see if he could spot Karin... or at least someone who looked like Karin. Maybe her sister, considering he didn't know what she looked like, but didn't see anyone.


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[info]eristic
2011-09-21 07:14 pm UTC (link)
Rylee's invitation was accepted easily - she had nothing else to do that night, so why not knock it off with a trip out? It would be something nice before his oral surgery, which would undoubtedly be painful and irritating. She had no idea where they were going, but he did mention the accompaniment of Karin and her unnamed sister, which Charlie tried not to mind. Karin was all right, in her book; the sister was an anomaly, something Charlie usually relished, though generally not in the form of people. Still, she kept her mouth shut and acted nice thus far, simply because she was solely in Rylee's company. He made her happy, which was enough, even if there was still some lingering issues between them regarding what exactly they were.

"A fuckin' vegan restaurant? What, are yah tryin' to kill me, Ry?" Her displeasure with the food selection was clear, and she frowned as they entered the establishment, looking for their fellow diners. She kept her hands in her jacket pockets, adopting a sullen look that exclaimed loudly her lack of desire to be present in the restaurant.

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-09-22 12:02 am UTC (link)
Karin rose from her seat, smoothing down her short blue dress as she did. She resisted the urge to tug down at its hem. What had possessed her to dress as if this outing were a date eluded her now. Earlier, in the dim light of her closet, it had seemed an appropriate choice: one of the only choices, in fact, that did not make it painfully obvious how much weight she had lost, hugging her lessening curves in a fit surprisingly flattering. Heels and makeup had completed the potentially overdone look, but had also done much to hide the hollows beneath her eyes and the pallor of her skin. It was a fair enough exchange.

Still, she could not help but feel a touch foolish as she saw her acquaintances stride in, Charlie's expression making quite clear just what she thought of Karin's suggestion. Karin's lips thinned, and she drew a slow, deep breath, steeling herself for the worst. After this moment of collecting herself she managed a wave, more determined in its broad sweep than she herself felt, and a broader, more welcoming smile.

"Charlie," she said, giving a small nod in greeting as the pair drew near. "Rylee. Thank you for coming."

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[info]ladyofaralu
2011-09-23 02:35 am UTC (link)
Fee arrived a little late; it was her night off, sure, but she'd just wanted to go over a couple of things with Ysolde at CASKET before heading to dinner. It hadn't taken too long, and she wasn't too late, that she could tell. For her part, she'd dressed in electric blue leggings and a short, white sleeveless dress belted in the middle with a cord and a bright yellow vintage bag. She'd already looked at the menu online before she got here to see if she'd have to eat dinner twice, but they had cheeseburgers. Sure, they were grass-fed and organic or something, but that was fine, as long as once, it mooed.

With a grin, she strode up to the table.

"Hey gang, how's it going?"

She squeezed Karin's shoulder before sitting down next to her.

"Sorry I'm late -- I will never get used to the goddamn traffic around here," she laughed.

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[info]inclinedfear
2011-09-23 01:25 pm UTC (link)
"You'll live," Rylee grumbled to Charlie before acknowledging Karin's greeting.

"Karin, you look very nice," Rylee said with a grin. He felt less self conscious for wearing a button down shirt but he worried that Charlie would feel out of place. If she felt out of place there was a good chance that would lead to her being grumpy.

The newcomer obviously was Karin's sister and Rylee waited until she had taken a seat before grabbing one of his own. He had nearly pulled out a seat for Charlie, but realizing this was just a meal and that Charlie would likely snap at him if he had tried to do something romantic, he felt it safer to plop down into a chair between Karin and Charlie.

"I've never been here before, it looks nice," Rylee commented with a bright smile. He looked at Karin's sister and produced his welcoming hand to her. "I"m Rylee Ekholm. It's nice to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you!"

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[info]eristic
2011-09-24 04:09 am UTC (link)
Charlie gave an unconscious frown toward Rylee's comment on Karin's clothing, but managed to keep her mouth shut, instead giving the other female a short and terse smile.

Once the other arrival, Karin's sister - what had Rylee said her name was? Francesca? Charlie was really going to have to start working on remembering people's names - was present at the table, the stray thought that perhaps she was a little underdressed crossed her mind. But she shrugged it away. Her jeans were comfortable, her leather jacket kept her warm, and her boots were all purpose. Charlie was a minimalist to the extreme, and though she wasn't necessarily worried about form and function, her clothing worked perfectly fine without the unnecessary frills of jewelry or something as stupid as a skirt.

That issue settled, she took a seat next to Rylee, glancing at the newcomer with apparent apathy as she picked up a menu and started to look it over. Using that as an excuse, she did give Karin a spare glance - did the woman look a little thinner than she had a few days previous? Their brief run in on the beach hadn't left Charlie making a character study of the other woman, and though she had certainly used a good portion of makeup along with a flattering dress, something seemed a little off.

But Charlie wasn't one to make comments about those kinds of things, instead focusing on what the hell was edible in that sort of establishment. Her mouth remained shut, unsure of what to say or do exactly; before the invitation had seemed perfectly harmless, but thrust into the situation, she felt a little thrown.

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-09-27 01:14 am UTC (link)
"Thanks," Karin said, smiling brightly at Rylee, giving Charlie one of slightly lesser wattage. Though she noted Charlie's silence and wondered at its cause, she thought it best to let it pass without mention; there were after all a number of potential causes, and it seemed foolish to try to guess. Again she told herself it was likely her choice of restaurant was to blame, but this was nothing for which Karin dared apologize: A little healthier fare would do all her fellow tenants some good, of that she was certain, even if 'healthier' here meant little more than an organic, free-range burger.

She drew a deep breath, at once bolstered by her sister's hand at her shoulder and deeply frightened of it. Beneath her dress she was skin and bones, and she prayed Fiona would let it slip beneath her notice. She sat down before she could attract still more attention to herself, again smoothing out her skirt beneath her as she did.

"Fee, I promise I didn't say anything but good about you," she said, chuckling quietly.

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[info]ladyofaralu
2011-09-27 01:51 pm UTC (link)
Though it looked like Fee made a beeline for the menu, she wasn't missing any details. Rylee seemed sweet as a puppy, and maybe as wet behind the ears, and this Charlie looked sullen as shit, but that didn't necessarily mean anything bad. As she opened the menu, she grinned broadly at her sister.

"Yeah, right," she said, nudging Karin with her elbow. She had noticed her sister's thinness; it was hard not to. Now that they were sort-of living together, it was easier to see why. Not enough good sleep, not enough eating, too much work, and too much exercise. Even though this place was obviously ridiculously healthy, Fee had seen online that they had some Fatty McGoo items on it. Hopefully she could get Karin to eat something that weighed more than a paper clip.

"Anyway, nice to meet you, too, Rylee. You too, Charlie."

She leaned in conspiratorially.

"I'm the bad sister. I like red meat and booze. I say inappropriate things. But Kar loves me anyway, which is good, because I'm definitely beyond help."

She grinned and winked.

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[info]inclinedfear
2011-09-28 11:45 am UTC (link)
Rylee hit Charlie's leg under the table while maintaining a pleasant, if a little nervous, smile on his face. She wasn't going to clam up and leave him to be the entertainment. She was not going to do that. And she was sure as hell going to behave or else... or else.... well, Rylee hadn't thought that far.

Fee seemed nice enough, a little talkative and the mention of meat and booze was surely something that would grab Charlie's attention, hopefully in a good way. Turning his attention between Karin and Fee, Rylee could see the family resemblance, and it was then he noted that Karin seemed to look weaker... maybe a little thin and pale. But it was impolite to at one moment tell a woman she looked nice then ask if she was feeling okay because of the way she looked. Rylee kept his mouth shut on that one but couldn't hide his worried glance at her.

"It's nice to have a sibling," Rylee replied quietly, his nerves beginning to get the best of him. Giving a desperate glance at Charlie to help him with the conversation, he took a moment before continuing. "Especially one so close by. I... I don't have any siblings. And my family is in Missouri. But I do have Charlie." He couldn't help but grin at that, looking from the sisters to his friend before turning his attention to the menu.

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[info]eristic
2011-09-28 03:49 pm UTC (link)
Charlie gave a little jump and squeak, glaring at Rylee before glancing back at Fee. She seemed like an interesting character.

"Ain't most of us," she replied, the smallest of smiles edging around her mouth. This woman obviously had an attitude, which was always something Charlie could appreciate - that or things would inevitably go south as they rubbed each other the wrong way. It stood to be seen how things would work out.

"Yeah, yah got me, ain't that enough? Hell, I got yah into enough trouble back home yah think I make up for four siblin's," she added, obviously being forced into the conversation.

It seemed like everyone was going to play nice and ignore the elephant in the room - Charlie frowned at this assessment, then mentally shrugged her shoulders. She picked up her menu and frowned again as she perused it, unhappy with the selection that was being offered her.

"So what in here used to make a noise before it ends up on my plate?"

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-09-29 12:10 pm UTC (link)
"It's good to have someone, blood or not," Karin said, chuckling at Charlie's assessment of their relationship. She had seen enough of the rapport the two shared to understand something of it. Though she was certain Charlie's assessment of the trouble she brought on her heels was no exaggeration, it was a sentiment she felt oddly warm toward; it reminded her all too well of her hell-raising sisters, and the role she'd happily stepped into to save them from themselves. Often she had wondered what they each might have suffered without someone there to watch their backs, but that was an alternate ending she did not care to contemplate overlong.

To better answer Charlie's question, Karin turned to her own menu, flipping through to find those items she had seen online. A leaflet of seasonal specials had been inserted into the hard-backed book, but these she bypassed, looking for those items that had earlier caught her eye. "The filet mignon sounded really good," she said. "There's a pork tenderloin, too, and I know Fee found a burger that sounded great. To her, anyway." She cut her eyes toward her sister, laughing weakly. For her own part, the salad of prosciutto and wilted spinach sounded as rich as she cared to indulge in tonight. She suspected it would be large enough to put her sister's protestations to rest - or hoped it would be, rather - and if she shared a dessert, the meal might seem entirely passable.

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[info]ladyofaralu
2011-09-29 08:52 pm UTC (link)
Fiona's thoughts were far from her sister's -- she rarely gave much thought to having had her ass pulled out of the fire. In her mind, things just happened the way they happened, and while maybe she hadn't had the best judgment when she was a teenager and young adult, she remained certain she'd have been fine without Karin's persistent attempts at intervention on her behalf.

But that was an old argument, one that she and Karin had had over drinks, usually ending with them laughing, many times since Fiona had become something suspiciously like an adult.

"Missouri's cool... well, I'm full of shit, I've never been to Missouri, even though I'm from Chicago, except St. Louis, and I'm pretty sure I was drunk the whole time, so I'm not sure it counts."

Then, without missing a beat,

"It's important to have somebody who'll lend you their car or bail you out or have your back when you talk too much shit," she said, grinning as she looked at Karin sidelong. "You guys both from there?"

She looked thoughtful, then, at her sister's comment. "But yeah, give me a burger any day of the week. Filet mignon's nice and all, but nothing beats a good burger. Except maybe good pizza. That's a tough call."

She looked over at Karin and narrowed her eyes. "So you're actually gonna order a meal, right? Not a side salad with half a breadstick?"

It wasn't that Fee wanted to call her sister out in front of her friends, but at the same time, maybe the peer pressure would actually get Karin to eat something.

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[info]eristic
2011-10-01 02:19 am UTC (link)
Charlie gave a very unladly like snort.

"Bein' drunk is probably the best way to stomach Missouri," she muttered in reply, semi-throwing the menu down onto the table. She'd just order the burger, rare, and then force Rylee to take her to Taco Bell after this. Though it wasn't as though she weren't enjoying herself, the setting was simply one normally unknown to her.

Lifting her eyes from the table's settings, she glanced from Fee to Karin, wondering at the underlying tension therein, and shot Rylee a curious look to see if he knew exactly what was going on. Considering the contents of Fee's apparent complaint, it more than likely had to do with Karin's somewhat unsettling appearance.

"An' yeah, born an' raised." She left her answer at that, letting Rylee add more if he so chose - Charlie was one who would always be short spoken when it came to talking about home. Because talking about home inevitably led to talking about family, and Charlie never wanted to talk about family.

Of course she recalled what she'd said to Karin the night she'd stumbled into her floormate's apartment, but was very carefully avoiding the subject - things were already strange enough around her and Rylee, especially since they'd seemed to have come to some kind of conclusion regarding their feelings for one another. Even then, there was no telling how long it would last, and Charlie would rather enjoy the truce until another fuse blew.

"Seriously? How do yah make do with just a handful of weeds an' some bread? I don't get why people around here do that, starve themselves, it's so dumb..." It was an honest opinion, even if it was delivered a little harshly. The waiter came around the table, depositing glasses of water for everyone, and then left as it seemed those seated were still taking their time ordering.

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-10-01 05:49 am UTC (link)
"Well I..." Weakly, she trailed off, a faint flush creeping over her cheeks. She tamped the feeling down, gritting her teeth, thin fingers curling spider-like around her water glass. Beneath thick lashes her eyes flicked toward her sister, then back toward their guests, avoiding Charlie's pointed sneer. Her short-bitten nail traced over the menu, indicating the salad she had earlier found. "The prosciutto in this salad should be enough, I think. It can be kind of rich..." It was not an explanation her sister would buy, but she hoped Fiona would not feel inclined to call her out on it when surrounded by such new friends. The thought of attempting to stomach anything more flavorful than lettuce truly turned her stomach, but the show must go on. And she had felt far better since Fiona had moved her things downstairs; if luck was with her, she might pull this off after all.

She turned her attention instead to the couple with them, studying their body language, the way they interacted with one another with such familiarity. She had said nothing of her late-night conversation with Charlie, even to Fee; she wondered if anything had come of the slightly awkward, late-night conversation they had shared. And then she was able to smile, distracted from her problems, pulled out of the mire of her own mind by the goings-on in someone else's. Crunching at a piece of ice, Karin searched for something to say.

"Anyway," she said, praying this would end all open contemplation of her choice in meals. "Fee, it's a shame you missed our first meeting. These two had fireworks in the parking lot. Almost as good as Navy Pier." She gave a playful wink, laughing quietly. "And much more likely to burn your hands off. Sounds right up your alley, huh?"

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[I'm gonna go out of order cuz I missed my turn before...]
[info]inclinedfear
2011-10-01 12:27 pm UTC (link)
Rylee had cautiously kept his eyes on his menu as the other women seemed to be addressing a topic he felt he had no part in. She did look thin and rather ill but Rylee wasn't going to be the one to bring that up. If the girls felt it necessary, so be it, but he was going to remain quiet.

The mention of the fireworks was a near safe topic and a welcome one compared to what they had been discussing. It still brought a faint blush to his cheeks as he peeked up at the sisters and smiled shyly. "The fireworks were nice and entirely Charlie's idea," Rylee replied quietly before peeking a look at his best friend. "My father used to set off fireworks in our back yard when we were kids," Rylee began to explain to Fee. "Some summers we weren't home because my dad and I would go to Pennsylvania. But the summers we were around for the fourth Charlie would come over and we'd set them off. Well, even if we missed the fourth we still set off the fireworks at some point during the summer."

His eyes settled on Charlie and his smile immediately grew stronger. It was close to a secret smile, as if he had mentioned something only Charlie could understand, and that was true. Only she could understand the amount of fun they had as kids. His parents had been witness to it but his father was dead and his mother was back home. In California Charlie was the only person who truly knew him.

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>.>
[info]ladyofaralu
2011-10-02 05:42 am UTC (link)
Fee grinned at Charlie's assessment of how best to experience Missouri, but her smile faded when the other woman started talking about what Karin was going to eat. Fee reached under the table and squeezed Karin's hand in apology.

"Yeah, prosciutto is pretty fatty. Read: delicious." Fee nodded at her own menu, having decided on her own free-range, grass-fed toppings, leaving her sister's eating habits alone for now. Later, she'd needle her to take her vitamins and have a protein shake, even though she didn't drink them if she'd eaten a real meal.

When Karin brought up the Fourth of July episode, Fee looked up with an arched brow and a grin.

"Sorry I missed it. I always did like fireworks." She grinned at her sister, then at Rylee's story, nodding.

"Fireworks are illegal in Illinois - or at least, all the cool ones are. So as soon as our other sister and I figured out that it was possible to get M80s or Roman Candles or whatever, we always made it our personal mission to get some, and so obviously, it became Karin's personal mission to make sure we didn't! Or at least, didn't blow our heads off."

Fee laughed. "Good thing, too. I swear, that thing they say about teenagers missing a part of their brains? Yeah. We had that."

She laughed again.

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[info]eristic
2011-10-04 05:08 am UTC (link)
She glanced at Ry, a flicker of a smile similar in tone to his striking across her face. There were a few good memories of Missouri, she had to admit, and then Charlie pulled her gaze away from his to stare back at the menu, finally leaving it alone entirely. She'd just get a burger, preferably without the sprouts, whatever the hell those were. Maybe they could give her extra ketchup or something.

"Yeah, I 'member what that's like," she agreed, thinking of all the stunts she'd pulled back at Bull Creek, often with Rylee in tow. Suddenly her mouth was moving with a story of her own to tell, something she usually wasn't inclined to do.

"Ya'll should'a been there when Ry learned to drive; this boy, he's got the smarts, but sometimes he does do things that make yah wonder," she started, a mischievous gaze bouncing back to Rylee to see how he would fare in retelling this particular adventure.

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-10-05 12:12 am UTC (link)
"He can't have been half as bad as Fee," Karin said, chuckling behind one upraised hand. "Driving like a bat out of hell since the first day she was handed a set of keys. Before that, really." She flashed a brief look, plainly amused, in her sister's direction, then turned a far softer expression toward Rylee. This was a story she wanted to hear; in her experience it was rare enough that Charlie provided such an opening without the aid of late-night boozing, and Karin intended to take full advantage of the attempt at camaraderie.

"So what was it, Rylee?" she asked, a shadow of her old smile creeping into her voice. "Backing into mailboxes? Hitting parked bikes?"

True to form, their waiter seemed to sense the cadence of the conversation finally hitting its stride, taking the ill timed opportunity to walk over and attempt to interrupt. Karin placed her order as quickly as possibly, adding to the quite short list of her order a glass of dry red wine. It was a rare treat, but now more than ever she felt she needed it.

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[info]inclinedfear
2011-10-05 01:26 pm UTC (link)
Rylee glared at Charlie for bringing up that horrible experience. Learning to drive was terrifying and he felt he had failed miserably, even if Charlie and his father had found it to be hilarious. But before he could reply he was forced to order. "I'll have the balsamic glazed salmon, please," Rylee asked politely before handing the waiter his menu and turning back to the group with a look of dread. He had to tell the story.

"My dad taught me how to drive but I was really nervous so he had Charlie sit with me instead. We drove around a parking lot and we were doing okay, I guess, I really was nervous..." Rylee looked at his plate and played with the table cloth. "Then I hit a chipmunk. The poor little thing. I didn't mean to."

He shot a glare at Charlie, keeping his eyes on her as he continued. "Charlie and my dad found it to be hilarious. But if you want daredevil stories about driving you should look at Charlie. She's the one who stole cars and the likes when we were kids."

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[info]ladyofaralu
2011-10-08 01:47 am UTC (link)
Fee looked at him for a minute, seeing how distraught he was at the death of what basically amounted to a tree rat, and then burst out laughing. Immediately she closed her mouth and coughed.

"Sorry," she said, trying to suppress her grin. She turned to the waiter. "Cheeseburger, bloody as hell, cheddar, bacon, mushrooms. Thanks. And a pint of whatever cute microbrew organic stout you guys keep here."

At the mention of car thievery, Fee laughed again, shaking her head. "I only ever stole my parents' car. Or friends parents' cars. How'd you get into all that?" she asked, taking a drink from her water glass, wishing it were a beer.

"Hey," she said to the waiter. "Could you bring me my beer first? Like, soon. My doctor here --" she nudged at Karin -- "says if I don't have constant access to beer, I could die."

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[info]eristic
2011-10-09 06:30 am UTC (link)
Charlie rolled her eyes.

"It was one car that one time," she complained, though she looked far more amused than annoyed.

"My pop owned a garage - some of the customers had really nice cars. One'a 'em was a Firebird. Was it my fault that my pop always left the keys to the garage where I could find 'em?" She shrugged as though the question were rhetorical (and in her mind, it was), reaching out to pick up her glass of water. Upon Fee's insistence on beer, she choked trying to wave the waiter down.

"Same as what she's gettin'," Charlie interjected - Karin and Rylee could have their healthy what-cha-call-it, but she was discovering that she had much more faith in what Fiona was thinking.

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-10-10 02:29 pm UTC (link)
Though Karin laughed - sincerely laughed - at Charlie's wording, at how close it rang to things she'd heard from her own sister's lips, for the first time Karin wondered if it had been such a good idea, after all, to get this particular pair of women together. Whatever part of her found the stories entertaining, even amusing now that they were both out of harm's way, the larger, more insistent part of her was certain such things should not be condoned, or even given the appearance of approval. Still, she held her tongue, recognizing that this storytelling, unsettling as it might be to her, had certainly served as an effective ice breaker. She chewed her lip, biting back whatever lecture wanted to come.

"It was obviously the chipmunk's time," she said, allowing herself a good natured laugh at Rylee's expense. "If it helps, he probably didn't suffer."

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[info]inclinedfear
2011-10-11 12:27 pm UTC (link)
Rylee turned his gaze to Karin, hearing her laugh brought a smile to his face while the laughter of the others garnered a glare. She had seemed quiet, thoughtful every time Rylee had met with Karin but now she seemed to be a little sad, or maybe she was ill. Still, Rylee was happy to see her smile, even if it was at the expense of himself and the experience with the poor chipmunk.

"My father and Charlie wouldn't let me live it down. Once I got my license, my dad got me a used car and stuck and stuffed animal of a chipmunk inside as a joke." Leaning back in his chair he gave a nod. "I took it as a cautious reminder."

Smiling at Charlie, his eyes settling on his friend, he continued to talk to the sisters. "But stealing just one car that one time wasn't the only thing Charlie did. She was always dragging me into situations that we could get in trouble for. Despite living in a small town, Charlie made life interesting."

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[info]ladyofaralu
2011-10-17 04:10 pm UTC (link)
The laugh that Fee choked back twisted into a snorty sort of noise at the whole chipmunk enterprise, and when their waiter brought their drinks, she was grateful to take a long sip of the rich, chocolatey stout.

"Mmm... nom nom nom," she said, nodding her approval at the drink. "That'll be nice with the burger. Just like a milkshake!"

Then, as though she hadn't said a thing, she turned back to the larger conversation. "Listen, that was the chipmunk's own damn fault. If you see something the size of a car coming at you, and you're the size of a chipmunk, your first thought should be to get the hell out of the way."

She took another drink of her beer.

"Also, I don't know how I feel about this 'dragging' stuff. I'm thinking you must have liked it if you kept hanging out with her so much!"

There was a wicked little grin on her lips as she watched the two of them, looking from one to the other.

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[info]eristic
2011-10-18 01:11 am UTC (link)
Charlie was fairly content that Rylee's attempted aversion onto the topic of the car theft was routed as both Shepard sisters remained steadfast in their teasing. The waiter placed a beer in front of her as well, which she quickly and happily took a deep drink of the liquor, feeling it settle into her stomach and take the edge off of the hunger she was feeling.

"Yah know, Ry, she's got a point," Charlie chipped in, canting her head as she turned to give him an amused stare.

It was bad enough that he was the only man at the table, even worse now that all of the attention was on him, something she knew he disliked. "No one forced yah to keep hangin' out aroun' me. Though I hafta say, if I hadn't stuck with yah, my grades would'a been shit."

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-10-18 01:39 am UTC (link)
"Sounds like a fair trade," Karin said, nodding as she did. "You brought him out of his shell-" She canted her head, a wry smile twisting her lips- "For better or worse. And he helped you get by." She arched a brow, glancing toward her sister. She was partly teasing and partly not, and even she could not have said which side now held greater sway. "If only everyone made such good use of positive influences." She drew a deep breath, praying for her own relaxation, wishing it were easier to let go of this damnable need to guide and correct and occasionally bludgeon with the truth. She nipped at the end of her tongue, searching for something less pointed to say. "Oh, well. All that aside, we've all turned out pretty well so far, huh?" She reached up, clutching at her water like a lifeline, sipping at its still frigid contents.

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[info]inclinedfear
2011-10-18 12:47 pm UTC (link)
"That's because I wouldn't shut up about the inaccuracies of our history teacher. I forced you to hear about school even when we weren't there," Rylee replied to Charlie as he played with the edge of the table.

Despite a small blush arising on Rylee's cheeks, he grinned from the sisters comments and turned his smile to Charlie. For better or worse was most certainly accurate. If it hadn't been for Charlie, Rylee would have likely been a hermit. He would have continued his four miserable years of high school alone, bullied, and with no social life. He would never deny that Charlie influenced his life and her positive influence outweighed the negative trickster activities they found themselves in as children.

"We're all socializing, somewhat mature adults," Rylee replied with a slight elbow into Charlie's side to tease. "I think you're right. It seems we've all turned out fine." He grinned at the sisters, happy to have gone out to dinner with them. The edge had been taken off and Rylee was feeling comfortable. Despite not knowing Fee, he felt comfortable with her too, likely because she seemed so much like Charlie.

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[info]ladyofaralu
2011-10-19 01:50 am UTC (link)
Fee's was an evil laugh.

"Speak for yourselves!" She was grinning broadly though, her eyes twinkling. "I like to think I leech respectability out of the room wherever I go."

She took a long sip of her beer, watching the foamy head sink as she did. These two were OK, she decided. Somehow, they made sense to her, even if Rylee was probably impossibly sweet. There was something underneath here -- she didn't understand that part, but it was this recurring thing with people she'd met here. At least people from the building. Some felt more familiar than others, some felt more... right? than others, but it was this weird kind of sense that they all seemed to make.

For the moment, she decided not to question it and just enjoy it.

"So anyway, what is there to do in this town? From what I can tell, the whole city seems uptown. I can't believe they charge what they do for these apartments, seriously."

She wondered if either of them shot. Fee could use a trip to the gun range... now that could be a fun group outing.

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[info]eristic
2011-10-19 04:23 am UTC (link)
"We're alive, I guess we can say that much." Her comment was definitely a little depressing, compared to others' remarks, but thankfully, the conversation moved along and over her pessimistic words.

Leaning back in her chair, Charlie slung an arm over the back rest as the other allowed its fingers to lightly grip the glass of beer. A waiter arrived with food, putting steaming plates in front of everyone, and Charlie eyed her burger suspiciously.

"My bike keeps me pretty occupied," she said in reply to Fee's question, "but there's a nice lil shootin' range over in Huntington Beach. If yer not afraid of guns, that is," she added, picking up the garnishing pickle from her plate and giving an amused smirk before helping herself to a bite. "I always wanted tah try paintball, too, but yah gotta get a group together for shit like that," she added, still chewing.

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[info]sheltering_sky
2011-10-20 03:13 am UTC (link)
"I'd go," Karin said, surprising herself with her own total lack of hesitation. Perhaps it was that Charlie's answer had struck a chord with her. Given all that had gone on of late, and the tension and stress that had plagued her, Karin clung to the idea of being alive, feeling equal parts terrified of and intrigued by such a modus operandi. Too, it was a plan she suspected Fiona would be strongly in favor of, which only added to its appeal in Karin's eyes. "To either, really," she added. She speared a bit of lettuce and a thin-sliced bit of prosciutto. "You won't find anyone on this side of the table who's afraid of firearms, whether they shoot bullets or paint balls." She looked up to Fee, flashing a proud, almost maternal smile. "That one over there is even licensed for concealed carry."

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[info]inclinedfear
2011-10-21 12:50 pm UTC (link)
"No one is afraid of firearms over here either," Rylee replied with a grin. He gave a nod to Fee and smiled. "I have a concealed carry permit as well and a collection of firearms, varying from modern guns to more...antique arms."

Rylee began to dig into his food, enjoying the flavorful taste and waiting politely until he finished chewing before he continued to speak. "I was in the Marines and nearly placed as a sharp shooter but I enjoyed the intel side of it all much more. We should all go to a range together at some point." He looked at Charlie and grinned. "Or paint balling."

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[info]ladyofaralu
2011-10-22 05:50 pm UTC (link)
Fee's grin just kept getting wider, between Charlie's gun-range ESP and the challenge that went with it, then Karin's bragging about her. Rather than blush modestly, as she probably should have, her grin only broadened.

"Well, don't let Nurse Shepherd here fool you; she's a crack shot, and has definitely taught me a thing or two."

Then she looked at Rylee, nodding, fairly impressed. "Nice! You know Sam? He's on the 7th floor? He used to be a sniper for the Rangers. He's a fucking trip, but he will whip some ass in Call of Duty." Then she grinned again. "Though I've gotten his ass once or twice..."

She laughed. "Sorry, if you're not careful, I'll just dive into deep gamer mode."

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[info]eristic
2011-10-23 04:43 am UTC (link)
Charlie had no idea what the hell 'call of duty' was, and no interest to delve into the subject since it was apparent that she would continue to be rendered clueless. Instead, she focused in on everyone's agreement concerning the paintball.

"Well, that's four right there, an' if everybody here is good with a gun as they claim, sounds like it'd be a decent team." She picked up her burger with one hand and took a massive bite, filling her mouth to capacity. "An' yeah, Ry knows Sam. Two're like peas in a pod, couldn't pull 'em apart with the jaws of life if yah tried."

The conversation continued to patter on, the subjects shifting as necessary. For all accounts, the dinner went incredibly well for everyone present - Charlie herself was certainly not begrudging Rylee for having dragged her to the weird vegan restaurant, as she found her burger to be one of the best she'd ever had. Though she'd still make him take her to Taco Bell afterward.

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