A New Future (rp)

"It's good to know that law school didn't make me completely cold hearted" she smiled weakly.
---
Gil shook his head with a sigh and then checked his phone. Then he glanced back at the door Laine had gone through and a smile creeped on to his face. He stood and headed back to the station.

(Timeskip! c: Hopefully this isn't too crappy xD I was a little over half asleep when I wrote it)

Laine was being followed.

She had worked late at one of her legal jobs, ignoring all requests for her company that night, and now she found herself wondering if one of them had decided to take it upon themselves to find her and get what they wanted. It wouldn’t be the first time, although she had no way to protect herself this time, as she had upon other meetings with unhappy customers.

For the past fifteen minutes, a man had been following her on her way home. She didn’t dare try to talk to him-Laine had learned to trust her instincts when it came to things like this, and something told her that this man was not trustworthy. She had tried taking odd turns and shortcuts, to reassure herself that he was just out for a stroll, but he had followed her no matter where she went. She shivered, pulling her coat tighter around herself and checking her phone. She had called Qayin hours ago, asking if he had any clients and if she even could come home. But, there was still no reply. She started looking through her contacts, desperate to find someone to call, and still there was no one. Finally, she came across Gil’s number… She held up her phone, checking the reflection on the screen to see if the man was still there. He was. In a split-second, her choice was made, and she dialed the number. She sniffed, muttering to herself “Pick up pick up pick up…”

"You could never be cold hearted..~"

"That might be why I was fired..."
---
Gil was at the gym, running on the treadmill. He was deep in concentration, listening to music from on his phone when his phone vibrated. He stepped off of the treadmill, and furrowed his brow as he looked at the caller id. Winded, he quickly answered the phone. "Laine?"

He chuckled a bit and took another bite. "No, but who knows, you could have just been a bad cook" he said with a smirk. "I just never expected you to be the cooking type I guess, I don't mean anything by that. Don't go getting offended." He turned his attention to a waitress as she set their coffees on the table, giving her a quick thank you and one of his cheap smiles.
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Noah let out a laugh. "Oh gosh I've been there! I can't work a coffee machine to save my life! It took me years to master the toaster." She smiled. "And don't worry so much about how they look at you. Get what makes you happy, you're not any less of a man for wanting fancy coffee~". She smirked a bit. "Okay maaaybe a little bit." She was joking of course.

She spoke in hushed tones, but tried to enunciate. She didn't want whoever was following her to hear. Even if there was very little chance he would, considering how far away he was, she was scared enough to speak above a whisper. "Gil, I think I'm being followed. I need you to come pick me up."

"...Well, being a lawyer is boring, and awful. It's most likely a blessing in disguise.."

"I think my relationship with the toaster is beyond saving, the edges are always so burnt they're practically cancer on bread, so I guess I just won't have a toast in the near future!" He chuckled. "I'm not too sure about the coffee though, I don't want to make the workers legitimately scared I'll barf rainbows and sparkles any minute!"

Victoria rolled her eyes at him. "I suppose I don't really seem like the cooking type, I'll give you that. But honestly, I still have taste buds and they work perfectly fine."

She started sipping at her coffee, subconsciously glaring at the waitress who she was pretty sure had been eyeing---Nope. Why would she care?

"If I was a bad cook, believe me I'd rather spend money on the crap they sell here than find myself throwing up in the trash bin."

Way to kill the mood at lunch. She mentally facepalmed and started chewing on her sandwich, as to not say something stupider.

"God works in mysterious ways..." She sighed and ran her hand through her hair again. She didn't know what god was supposedly trying to accomplish by putting her through all of this, but she hoped it would be good.
---
His frowned deepened and he froze for a moment before half hazardly collecting his things with one hand. "All right... where are you?"

"I... I don't know." She squinted and tried to look for a sign, to give her some idea of where she'd wandered off to. "Apparently the corner of Baker street and... 45th street"

He waited a while before reaching for her hand and taking it in his. "Don't worry. Everything will work out."

She looked at Dilyn for a moment, squeezing his hand. All she knew was that she loved him. She always had even after the breakup. That had been one of her biggest regrets, especially whilst being stuck in a loveless marriage that lead her to constantly being attention deprived. Kelti wanted to be with Dilyn. He was the one bright spot in all of this... She didn't care that her emotions were on edge at the moment, there was no turning back. So, she leaned in and pecked the corner of his mouth, hoping to god this wasn't about to mess everything up.
---
He slung his bag over his shoulder and grabbed his keys. "Okay, I'll be there as soon as I can... I'm going to keep you on the phone, all right? Are there any stores you can duck into while you wait?"

He jumped a little when she leaned in to kiss him, and began to panic. He didn't think his day would end up like this, with Kelti coming into his house and kissing him, he didn't know if he was the rebound or not, and he was nervous that he was. "..Kelti..I-" he paused for a while. He didn't know what to say to the girl. He wasn't going to tell her to leave because she kissed him, no no, he's been wanting to kiss her since they last saw each other. He just...wasn't sure if she really meant it or not. "..I'm not just a rebound am I?.."
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Renee liked going to coffee shops. She liked the smell of coffee beans and carmel and whipped cream. She liked people watching, lovers and loners alike; they all brought her happiness and joy. She on the other hand, didn't like being alone. It made her sad that her dear brother couldn't join along but she didn't mind. Despite the fact that she didn't like being alone, it gave her time to clear her mind and think of her future; and maybe write a thing or two in her journal.
She calmly sipped her coffee and stared at the small floral book, messy scrawling gracing the pages. She didn't know what to write next, she didn't know what would happen to the main character in the story she was writing, there were many possibilities.

"I think so... One second-let me check this place out." There was a greasy little diner open across the street, and Laine headed for that. She forced herself not to check to see if she was still being followed. Even if she was, no one would be stupid enough to try anything in a... Poorly lit, poorly staffed diner. forcing all these thoughts to the back of her mind, she finally replied to Gil. "I found a place. There's a little diner open. I'll sit by the window."

"Okay, hold tight. I'm on my way" He jogged to his car and quickly got in, knowing his destination was luckily not too far away.
---
She looked away for a moment or two before looking back up at Dilyn and biting her lip. She didn't know what to say without sounding like a psycho. She had to say something though. "... If anything, Cole was the rebound."
---
Grayson had frequented this coffee shop a few times, for the sole fact that they had really good scones. Nothing else about the shop had really caught his eye... At least not until today. He couldn't help, but watch the young blond woman with intrigue as she sat and wrote in her journal. She was gorgeous for one thing, but she also had a serene air about her. He'd obviously never spoken to the woman, but he found it intriguing nonetheless. Having already finished his scone, Sonny was now just absently fiddling with the focus on his camera as he watched Renee. (Sonny is effing creepy. That is the truth.)

He stared at her for a little while, complete silence filling the room, before he smiled, and leaned in to press his forehead against hers. "You're funny."
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She frowned when she couldn't think of anything and gave up, and placed her pencil down in between the pages. She had given up on writing for the day, since she was completely tuckered out. She decided to just enjoy the scenery of the coffee shop, and took a sip of her coffee when she felt someone staring at her. It wasn't an unusual feeling, but it did bother her a little. So, very quickly she took a glance at the room to find a gentleman playing with his camera and staring at her. She blinked, and looked back down at her journal again, hoping he didn't catch her glancing at him.

Laine just sat down to wait. She ignored the waitress giving her the evil eye, already having decided she would order a coffee if prompted to buy something, and tried to resist looking out onto the street. All her life, she'd battled against norms regarding how she should act in various situations-when she was raped, when she ran away from home, dealing with her occupation, every STI test-and she refused to do what was expected of her. She wouldn't check to make sure she was safe-she would pride herself instead on having acted so well under pressure, reassure herself that no one would be stupid enough to make a move in public, and she would keep her composure. she would not let herself be afraid.

Yet, sitting there, examining the chipped Formica tabletop, she choked back a sob. Laine looked up in fear, hoping no one had heard her, then bowed her head once more and took a deep breath. She had to keep calm. She would not give in. She would not be weak. She would not be what was expected of her.

She closed her eyes and just sat there for a moment before putting on a small smile. "...I wasn't trying to be"
---
Unfortunately, Sonny caught the glance and couldn't help, but smile at her. He hoped that she would see it as an invitation for conversation. He wouldn't want to go over there and so rudely interrupt her writing after all... Even if she had just put her journal away.\
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Gil quickly parked his car, and threw a few quarters into the parking meter. Then, after a few quick glances around, he caught sight of the cafe and Laine. He ducked in and walked towards her. "are you okay? Did anything happen?"

She forced a smile, but avoided his gaze. "I'm... I'm fine, I just got scared." With Gil here, she felt safe enough to check outside. She didn't see the man who had followed her, and prayed he'd decided she wasn't worth his time. "And I really need a ride home... if you aren't too busy?"

She caught Sonny's smile as her head ducked back down, and thought it completely rude to not look up and smile back at him. And that's what she did, she looked up, and shot him a very nice, very polite smile. "Hello."
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Without thinking-and at this point, not even caring-he moved in to kiss her eye gently.

He looked at her, uncertain for a moment, then nodded. He didn't want to ask further questions here, so he gestured to the door. "You ready? Let's go" He'd ask further questions in the car.
---
"Hi..." He put his camera aside. He glanced at the ceiling for a moment, gathering his thoughts, then looked back to Renee. "Sorry, I was staring... but, it's not what you think. It's just... You have very nice eyes"
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She just leaned against him, not wanting to get up or have to leave, or deal with the inevitable. This felt right, and that was all that mattered. She didn't even care that the tow truck was probably already outside...

She nodded and scurried out of the door, then started towards his car. The sooner she was out of here, the safer she'd feel.

Gil unlocked the door and opened it for Laine, before heading to the driver's side and climbing in. After a moment or so, he looked at her. "So, what happened? You're not hurt, are you?"

She blinked, and turned a soft shade of pink. "Oh, uh, thank you." She smiled awkwardly. "That's very kind.."
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When Dilyn pulled away, he burried his nose into her hair. It smelt like rain, and really nice smelling shampoo, and he smiled. "You think the tow truck is outside yet?"