Ryan McCormick (mediumwell) wrote in remains_rpg, @ 2017-03-30 08:03:00 |
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Entry tags: | # 2019 [03] march, ryan mccormick, violet holladay |
Who: Ryan McCormick & Violet Holladay
Where: Their house in the Greenbelt
When: 3/8, evening
What: Taking stock of their now-healthier friendship and bringing a little more Chicago to Austin.
As much as Violet enjoyed being in the kitchen on any occasion, it was even better when it was to work on something new. At Burgatory, they'd had their menu worked out and executed well for months - and she wasn't about to complain. But there was a reason she'd been happy to go a little bananas back on Valentine’s Day, and that was because it meant making new things. Their burgers were good, but they were more than that. They could do more than that. It was simply a matter of getting what they wanted to do as perfect as they could so the roll out would be smooth. “It's a good thing I already ate, or this would be killing me.” Violet glanced over to Ryan with a good natured smile before she crouched down to peek in the oven, taking a moment to assess the meat cooking inside before straightening up and wiping her hands on her apron. “Everything looks good, though.” "Everything looks great," he corrected, "and almost all of the foods we've been testing over the month have been well-received so far." The Chicago hot dog was as polarizing as it had been pre-apocalypse, but Ryan was determined to prove that people could grow to love a poppyseed-bun hot dog with all the fixings. They'd thrown themselves into testing new recipes with a fervor, and Ryan was well aware that a good part of it was his own attempt to forget everything that had happened with the employee they now knew as Leo Russo. He took a deep breath, willing a smile and happier memories into his head, and turned to face his best friend. "I think we're on track to officially announce these new items early next month. What do you think?" “I think you're right,” Violet agreed, leaning back against the counter and breathing out a sigh. Ever since they'd started working on the new food, it had felt a bit more like home. Every time she got to be in a kitchen where it smelled so much like reminders of Chicago, good memories came flooding back. Having that chance to feel so connected to it despite being far away, she took it as a blessing. “I can't believe we waited this long to pull out some of these.” She paused, tilting her head. “Well, I guess we haven't been here that long. It feels like a lot longer, though.” "I keep thinking that, too." It really hadn't been all that long since the two of them had packed up in Chicago, but Ryan was starting to feel like they'd always been here in Austin. Of course, they happened to miss all the messy stuff, but Ryan knew their lives had been a different kind of messy back then even if they didn't go through what their new friends had gone through. Everyone had gone through stuff; what mattered most, he was starting to figure out, was how you dealt with it and moved forward. "Do you think you got what you wanted, moving down here?" Ryan smiled sheepishly. "Not that we're leaving any time soon, or that you have to have an answer now." Violet paused, taking a moment to worry her bottom lip between her teeth as she considered his question. She hadn't really known what she wanted when they moved, other than to not be in Chicago anymore. In that sense, yes. In a lot of others, she got more than she wanted - or than she'd expected. “I do,” she replied after a silence, bringing up a hand to brush a loose strand of her hair back. “It was hard, you know? And it's still hard, but it feels like we can do it. That I can do it.” Violet smiled softly, thoughtfully, and looked over at her best friend. “What about you?” "I do, yeah," he replied without hesitation, returning her smile. Considering all of the changes lately, Ryan had done more than his fair share of thinking through this stuff. "Chicago was… tough. And I don't want to stop remembering what we had there, with our parents and Scott. I don't think I actually could. But it's… I think it's easier to keep going forward here." “It's easier,” Violet agreed with a nod. “I think it helps, not living where we can still feel all of them.” Her brow furrowed, and she nearly winced at her words. “You know what I mean - not that we’re forgetting them, but we’re not expecting to see them around every corner.” For her, she knew it certainly helped not being in the same space where she kept thinking she'd see her dad walk through the doorway, or Lacey waiting for her to come to bed. The former made her sad a bit, but the latter she was glad to let fade. “Chicago was important, and it always will be. But here is important, too. It really feels like home.” "We made it that way," Ryan said, a tone of pride to his voice. There was more he wanted to say, too, but he was saved by the bell; he turned as their timer went off, deftly bending down to retrieve the finished dish from the inside of the oven, then set it on the counter. "And this way, we'll always have a little piece of home with us, too." He sent another smile in Violet's direction, though this one was brighter than the last. "Hopefully, Dick's doesn't get the idea to add deep dish to their menu after we put this stuff on ours." “I wouldn't mind a good deep dish,” Violet mused, but then gave a shake of her head. “It's just I wouldn't trust them to make it right.” Then again, she didn't trust many people to make food to the standard she liked, but particularly when it came to hometown classics being made by those not from said hometown. She drew in a deep breath, exhaling with a quiet hum. “See now that? Smells perfect.” Reaching over to switch off the oven, Violet considered Ryan for a moment before clearing her throat softly. “I don't think I ever said thank you, by the way. For moving here, with me. I know we decided to come together but I also know it had a lot to do with dad, and me needing it.” "Of course." Ryan returned her gaze without hesitation or deflection. "It was… More than the right choice. For both of us. But I appreciate you saying that. And hey, if you hadn't suggested it, who knows where we'd be now." His expression turned a little less serious then, the way it often did lately -- perennial messiness in the Greenbelt district notwithstanding. Apparently he was learning to lighten up, even if others would say it was slow going on that front. "Like I would've let you move this far away without me, anyway." “Like I would been able to do that without you,” Violet replied teasingly, though there was truth in her words. After being close, geographically and otherwise, their entire lives, she couldn't imagine being far apart from Ryan. Sure, the uprising had pushed them closer, but they'd already been close. Taking a step in, Violet slipped her arms around Ryan and hugged him tightly. “I love you.” "I love you, too." He returned the gesture with a readiness he reserved for his best friend, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "Your dad would be proud of us, how far we've come. Proud of you especially. Big shot restaurateur, pretty girlfriend…" Ryan couldn't help the twinge of guilt he still felt every time Mina was referenced or mentioned, but that was his own fault. "You're amazing." Violet turned her head so she could rest it against Ryan’s chest, smiling softly as he spoke. She wished her dad had been around long enough to see what they accomplished, but she had to try and know that Ryan was right - he would have been proud. “He'd be proud of you too, you were always his favorite son,” she added, fingertips scritching against his back. “And your parents would be so proud.” Violet loosened her hold on Ryan so she could lean back, just enough to be able to look up at him. “We turned out pretty good.” He smiled back down at her, happy to have her with him despite the emotional tug he felt at the mention of his own parents. After four years since the last time he'd seen them, it was getting easier to think of them -- something that made him happy and sad at the same time. It was easier too, though, to know there was truth in her words. "I think we did, too." A pause, in which he tried to tamper down his emotions, before adding: "How about we give dinner a shot before it gets cold?" “Sounds like a plan.” Violet gave Ryan one last squeeze before letting him go so she could plate up their food. Between the food and talking about those from back home, those they didn't have with them anymore, it felt a good bit like they had their old home there with them in their new one. They were making it their own, each day as much as the last. Putting their Chicago food in Burgatory was the next step, and one that was coming soon - just as soon as they finished all their taste testing. |