Realistic or Modern Do We Want This?

[Becboc]

Josie Fox | 31 | Currently between jobs | Previously a relationship columnist

Was there such a thing as too slutty for a children's birthday party?

Who was she kidding, of course there was, but Josie had spent the Uber ride over to one of her best friend's house convincing herself otherwise and that her skirt definitely wasn't too short. In reality though? The defining moment of her realisation was how difficult it was to get out of the car without flashing the whole world in the process.

Josie wasn't sure what had led her to the decision of the shortest skirt known to man, mostly bare legs and knee high boots (at least with no heel) but here she was, standing outside the house, tugging at the bottom of the black, A-line mini with one hand, gift with an obnoxious red bow tied around it in the other. Well, actually... she could pretend that she wasn't sure but in truth a terrible part of her brain had considered how many repressed hot dads she was about to run into and her hand had accidentally gravitated towards the thigh showing masterpiece. If Josie could give herself credit for anything, it was that she had GREAT thighs. Shapely. Supple. Sexy--

The front door swung open before she even had a chance to admire the oversized door-knocker sat upon it and suddenly there stood Harper, one of her best friends of almost five years that she'd met at some networking event when she'd just started out on her column writing endeavour. Oh how things had changed; or rather, how they were about to.

"Oh thank GOD," the slightly older woman pulled Josie into a one armed hug. "A normal human, I have been saved."

"Woah, wow... okay." Josie's voice muffled into Harper's shoulder. "If that's what you're describing me as tonight I hate to think how low the bar is." As if it had been rehearsed, a chorus of screams sounded from somewhere inside the house right on time and Harper groaned. "Ugh, this whole thing is so fucked. Please come in, help yourself to whatever while I try to pry my overstimulated child away from whatever it is she--" Glancing back over her shoulder, Harper switched tack before Josie could so much as blink, "Oh Gregg honey, that's adult juice! Not for under-eighteens..." Then a moment later she was moving away, but not without a flash of a grin tossed back in Josie's direction.

"You look hot by the way. Nice skirt - the Stepford moms are gonna hate it."

A somewhat nervous smile was returned at that as Harper re-joined the party, leaving Josie stood in the doorway in her tiny skirt and the grey, oversized blazer that hung to about the same length. With a deep breath and a very quick consideration of whether she could do a runner before anyone noticed, once Josie realised that it was far too late for such a thing she stepped inside of the chaos and closed the door shut behind her.

The interior of the house, as expected, was utter chaos. Kids ran around every corner, toys were scattered across the floor of various rooms. The walls and ceilings were bedecked in happy birthday banners and balloons, and the kitchen was an array of brightly coloured cakes and sweet treats. Adults stood chatting as if nothing was happening around them and Josie, for not the first time that night, wondered what in the hell she was doing here. She had no child, no true attachment to this kind of situation other than being Hallie's godparent of course, and she looked very much like she had wandered into the wrong kind of party. Mothers and fathers alike eyed her for different reasons but ever the trooper, Josie plastered a smile on her face and breezed towards the kitchen, nodding very polite hellos to people she was sure were questioning her morals at the same time as offering their greetings.

This. This was why she had been invited, she realised. Because despite the pressure to be gods damned Mother Theresa now she was an actual mother, Harper would always be, at her core, one of Josie. Or at least in part, one of Josie. A little fucked up, a little cynical - even though her life was much more put together than Josie could ever hope her own to be. Josie's sole purpose right now was to support her friend and perhaps act as a comparison that made Harper look like an angel. She was okay with that though - surprisingly okay, actually. She could take one for the team; god knows, Harper had taken one for her more times than she could probably count.

When she finally made it to the kitchen, Josie placed her gift down onto a barely free counter and set about fixing herself a glass of white wine. She was about halfway through her first much needed sip when Hallie, in all of her six year old energy came bumbling over, face red, eyes wild; clearly over-sugared in some capacity.

"Auntie Josie!"
"Hey Hal, looking very cute today. Do you think you could find one of those in my size?" The kid beamed as Josie pretended to once over her sparkling pink tutu.
"Did you bring me a present?" Fair play to her, Josie wished she could ask the same at her birthday parties straight off the bat.
"A present, why would I bring you...? I mean, it's not your birthday so..."
"Auntie Josie!" Hallie groaned; a scarily accurate impression of her mother. "It IS my birthday!"
"What... when? Now? As in, right now?"
"YES!"
"Oh shoot, then I think I um... I err... where is it...?" Josie made a show of looking around herself for the huge box that sat on the counter next to her, much to Hallie's delight.
"It's right there!"
"OH! So it is!" Josie pressed a hand to her forehead in feigned mockery of herself. "I wondered where I'd put that thing." Then hauling it from the counter, she pressed it into the little hands that awaited, outstretched. "Happy birthday, Hal."

There was no time for thank yous before Hallie tore into the gift, revealing in all its glory a rather fancy looking mocktail kit. A squeal of delight was what left her and then, "Mommy! Mommy, look what Auntie Josie got me! It's a fancy drinks thing, I can make happy drinks like you and your friends!" Hallie bounced off with the large box in her arms while some of the other mothers looked in Josie's direction, clearly unimpressed with the potential encouragement of alcohol drinking in a six year old. Hmm... maybe not her finest decision, now she was actually thinking about it.

"Pfft it's a mocktail kit," Josie said to nobody in particular, waving her hand and wrinkling her nose. "Alcohol free. It's basically a juice mixer..." Her voice trailed off at that part and before she could say anything more that might further incriminate her, she took a rather large mouthful of wine. Then another. And then a third. Only after her glass was nearly empty did she sigh and bend to begin scooping up the discarded wrapping paper, all the while trying not to question her life decisions. There had been plenty of time for that prior to this birthday party, as Josie was sure there would be plenty of time for it post-party too.

 

[BoneBrain]

Noah Parker | 33 | Starting his new job come September | New guidance councillor to Grey Field High (home of the Pirates)

There was a particular ambiance at children's birthday parties that was entirely energizing and yet inexplicably at the same some completely exhausting. Noah could feel it, the moment he stepped off his bike and tucked his helmet in it's carrying spot. Harper's house was a study on the word lavish, from the oversized door knocker to the well loved planter boxes filled with a mess of flowers. In a way it suited his old friend perfectly, a high class woman with a penchant for the wilder side.

That had been the Harper he'd known growing up when she lived across the street from him and they walked to school each morning. She'd thrown stones at his window and coerced him into being an accomplice when her middle school ex had done her dirty and his car was just down the street, just begging to be egged. She'd kept in contact with him even after he moved a full state over, sending him letters filled with homemade confetti and polaroid's. Harper was the kind of friend one hung on to for life, no matter the distance.

It had been a delightful surprise to find his new job placement was in her town and the second he let his old friend know she'd been quick to invite him to any and every event she had planned, the first of which being young Hallie's birthday. While Noah had never met the girl, he could easily imagine Hallie as Harper's double and judging by the burst of screaming laughter from inside his suspicions weren't far off. Noah gathered the small gift from one of his motorcycles satchels and shook out of his leather jacket revealing a combination of clothes one wouldn't expect for someone fresh of a motorcycle. He wore a grey knit cardigan, complete with tan elbow pads, a low black v-neck tee under it. Loose fitting jeans with a rip above one knee dipped into riding boots and he was quick to wipe them on the welcome mat before giving the doorbell a ring.

It took less than a minute for Harper to open the door and Noah's smile grew, lifting up until the left side was just the barest bit higher than the right in a crooked smile. Harper wasn't even looking at him, instead her head was turned to glare over her shoulder at a small gathering of kids roughhousing in the entryway hall.

"You'll get no cake if you keep that up Greg! I told you already, vodka isn't just like water. Kids these days I swear to God- oh! Holy shit! Noah you came!" Noah laughed as Harper rushed forward gathering him up in a fierce hug which he happily returned.

"It's good to see you too. Uh, Harper...?" Noah's eyes widened at the scene unfolding in the hall.

"Yeah, Noah?" Harper wasn't letting go, not just yet and normally Noah would have been more than happy to stay right there.

"I think Greg decided to give rum a try next."

"For Christs sake! Greg!" Harper whirled around, her fury scattering the shrieking children. "Come on in Noah, make yourself at home!" Harper called over, her feet stomping as she went to hunt down the nefarious Greg. Noah let out a bark of a laugh, his light green grey eyes twinkling with mirth as he let himself into the home and into the mass of chaos that was Hallie's birthday party. He wandered through the throng smiling at gatherings of parents and children as he made his way through the rooms. There was a part of him that wanted to see if he could find Hallie before Harper had the chance to introduce them, just to see if he could see the same spark lived in his friends daughter and so he wandered.

He meandered through the crowds, keen eyes searching until they landed on what had to be the most beautiful sight of his life. His heart stopped, restarted, gave out and then thumped painfully in his chest. Now reader, try not to judge Noah too harshly here, because the sight that stopped him dead in his tracks was an ass. But it was a gorgeous ass. Thick with a few extra c's and the cherry on top was those killer knee high boots that made him just about swallow his tongue. Said ass was attached to a woman bent over, collecting scraps of wrapping paper from the floor.

"Oh lord." Noah breathed out the words, absolutely captivated as the woman straightened, revealing a curtain of golden brown hair and a figure that he'd do unspeakable things to. He stood, completely dumbfounded before noticing the woman's nearly empty wine glass. It was like his feet acted of their own volition, trudging closer and closer until he stood next to the woman and caught a whiff of her perfume. Whatever it was he wanted to drown in it.

When he met the woman's eye he couldn't help the way it lingered there before dragging down and meeting the sleek leather just covering her knee. "I didn't realize that kid's birthday parties needed a superhero like Mrs. Incredible, but I can't say that I'm complaining." With his crooked smile firmly in place he thrust out his hand, "I'm Noah, can I get you a refill?"

 

[Becboc]

If she were anyone else she might have been embarrassed but Josie had this… knack of dusting off mishaps in the moment and owning them as a part of her questionable personality. Hallie liked the gift and that’s all that really mattered, even if to outsiders it looked mildly inappropriate. It wasn't like she was going to be joining the exclusivity of parenthood any time soon and so impressing the Stepford moms really wasn’t at the top of her to do list. Plus, she would probably never even see half of the people here again after tonight so all that was really left to do was wear her hopelessness like the badge of honour it was and—

"I didn't realize that kid's birthday parties needed a superhero like Mrs. Incredible, but I can't say that I'm complaining."

She had just scooped up the last strand of paper when she realised that this comment was intended for her and without turning to see who it had come from initially as she balled her collection between her hands, Josie huffed a snigger of amusement. "What can I say, I'm all about the knee highs and unrivalled flexibility."

Okay. So that sounded way dirtier than she had meant it to but Josie had no time to comment as she finally straightened, only to come face to face with... a human who she was pretty sure had been carved out of marble by the actual gods themselves.

Holy fuck.

Ocean blue eyes blinked at the sight before her; the sweep of dark, unruly curls, the sparkling light green eyes, the spatter of freckles... the cardigan with elbow pads and... the ripped jeans. Good lord, the jeans that were tucked into boots.

Where on earth had Harper been hiding this fine creation?

Josie blinked again at the amalgamation of styles that she hadn't known could work until now and slowly, her bright red lips began to curl into a half smile, half smirk as she finally noticed the hand being held in her direction. "Josie." She returned the gesture by placing her fingers into the outstretched palm and shaking lightly. "And please, yes. You absolutely can. God bless you for noticing." Her gaze lingered for a second longer before she released Noah and then with an inhale she turned to scouring the kitchen counter tops for the half full bottle of wine she knew was lurking somewhere in amongst the balloons and offensive colours.

"So, I haven't seen you around here before... Noah," she clarified casually once she had found it and handed the bottle towards him, a lilt of humour to her voice. "Do you come here often? I'm a sucker for a sixth birthday party myself. I don't even know whose house this is really; I saw the balloons outside and couldn’t resist. Turns out it's actually a good thing I have no self-control though, because this whole gathering would have been severely lacking in superheroes if I did."

 

[BoneBrain]

"What can I say, I'm all about the knee highs and unrivalled flexibility."

What on earth was a man to do at such a perfectly debauched response but swallow thickly and pray he didn't mess this up. Noah did just that, his throat working up and down as the woman turned and he caught sight of quirked up red lips and ocean blue eyes he would have been happy to drown in. By no means was he a sailor but he'd get lost on those sea toned eyes for days without worry. His brain scrambled to keep up with the conversation while his body short circuited, alive with the sudden pressing need to be as close to this woman as possible. Harper truly did have excellent taste in friendship.

She slipped her hand into his in greeting and he felt a zing travel up his arm as she revealed her name. Josie- it suited her. They released and he followed her like a lost puppy as she led him towards the overflowing kitchen's counter.

"Well we can't have the incredible Miss Josie without her wine- you deserve it after all that crime fighting, certainly."

Normally he would have helped her with her perusal over the counter but he hadn't quite worked up the logic to look away from her just yet. He blinked back into awareness as she passed the bottle his way and asked her question, and then proceeded to declare that she was a stranger in from the street. There was a faint sort of glimmer in her eye and not for an instant did he worry if such a declaration was true. His smile crooked up the barest degree more and he cracked open the lid to the bottle and began to fill her glass. There was such an inherent deep knowing within him that the woman before him was ruled by flights of humour and fancy. Heelllooooooo kindred spirit.

"Not usually." Noah began in response to her query if he came her often. His shoulder lifted in a half shrug as he screwed the lid of the wine back on after pouring a glass for himself, he hoped that the random glassware he'd grabbed from the counter hadn't already been used but he didn't have it in him to take even a step away from Josie. "Normally I pick up the children needed for my ritualistic sacrifice just off the streets but I hear this Hallie kid has chutzpah." Conspiratorially he leaned in, "here's to being party crashers."

Noah lifted his glass and clinked it against hers before lifting it to his lips and taking a sip. The crisp taste reminded him of a fresh autumn day, where the leave drifted to the ground in piles of gold and yellow, not unlike Josie's sleek hair. Behind them a conga line of children started behind who Noah had to presume was Hallie. The small child lifted a box into the air like it was the greatest treasure she'd ever been given, and directly behind her Gary stared up at the mocktail kit with the reverence one might look at the Holy Grail.

"Shit." Noah breathed out, taking in the scene of children chanting for adult juice as they marched around the living room. "How the heck is my measly gift supposed to top that?"

 

[Becboc]

Josie wasn't sure what she had been expecting as a response to her lighthearted, potentially worrying, quip but a return of ritualistic sacrifice... was not it. For a moment she was taken aback, though not at all in a bad way. Over her 31 years, Josie had become very good at casting out a net with an open mind of what may become tangled in the wire - her comment regarding how she had ended up here was exactly that but the catch this time was far beyond what she had ever managed to reel in before. This one was... a discovery, an unknown, one that required a closer examination in which she was more than willing to oblige.

Ocean blues watched Noah fill up her glass and then his own as she considered a long list of things she would do just to hear him say 'chutzpah' again. "Is that so?" Josie raised a brow but her shorter response was very indicative of the fact that she was still somewhat pleasantly surprised, as was the steady quirk of her lips as her gaze upon Noah lingered, even after he had looked away to take a drink of his wine.

"To being party crashers."

Josie's sip however, was unfortunately destined to be not quite as peaceful. Her first time in looking away from her new drinks partner was when a gathering from behind them caught her attention, one that was led by Hallie raising the mocktail kit above her head so that a conga line of children could form in worship. Josie did very well not to choke as she eyed the parents looking on in mild horror, while Harper herself glanced over towards Josie with a look that could have stopped a fully grown dinosaur in its tracks. Boy, was she in trouble, yet she couldn't bring herself to do more than raise her hands in a sort of 'my bad?' kind of way that didn't cover an apology at all. In reality, Josie knew they would laugh about this after the stress of the party had diminished.

It was when she heard Noah's voice again however, that she was pulled out of her momentary reprieve and she looked over at him with a soft, "Hmm?", before her brain finally caught up with what he'd just said.

"I mean, you've got no chance I'm afraid," Josie considered honestly. "In their eyes," she gestured to the children, "I've won. The parents however... I reckon you still have a chance with them. Especially..." As an older looking woman walked by, she side-glanced Josie over, her lips pressed into a line of disapproval before she headed towards her child in an attempt to remove her from the ritual. "That one. Yeah, that one isn't convinced my gift isn't actually a portable meth lab in disguise? Which it isn't by the way," she then added a little louder, "Just in case you were wondering."

The woman glanced back over her shoulder but didn't seem to quite register what had been said (which was probably for the best), and Josie huffed a sigh of amusement as Harper tried her best to break up what was descending into mocktail kit induced mania by announcing a game of pass the parcel. As the kids once more began to rally, Josie turned back to Noah with a wry smile.

"So come on what is it, this measly gift of yours? It's not something super wholesome like a paint set, is it?" She wrinkled her nose slightly. "... It's a paint set isn't it? Come on Noah, put me out of my misery here."

 

[BoneBrain]

Those ruby red lips of hers quirked up and there was a flicker of some emotion he couldn't quite pin down that danced in the depths of her eyes. Noah couldn't be sure if he was looking upon amusement or polite misgivings, though he certainly hoped for the former. She met his glass with her own and before he could attempt to charm her again the conga line took precedence, diverting their attention and the eyes of everyone around them. Even Harper looked on the scene with a mixture of amusement and half-hearted shame.

There was an air about Josie that seemed to change, and Noah was reminded of impenetrable vaults, ones with thick metal doors and five step processes to open. Whatever it was that was going on in Josie's mind was locked up tighter than the crown jewels. Her eyes took in the scene of a parent trying to disengage their child from the entirely too tempting present and it was like clouds had shrouded the light that had danced so freely in them only seconds before. Noah leaned back against the counter hands lifting in mock surrender when the parent glanced back at Josie a dumbfounded look on their face.

"Meth lab set? Chemistry set? Either way it's science and we could make an argument for learning." The parent shook their head and once they were certain the children were properly diverted, they walked away from Noah and Josie without a second look back. Noah watched as the children began to arrange themselves in a circle, their greedy, sticky hands reaching out, trying to be the first to hold the present before passing it around. Harper began the music and delighted shrieks filled the air as the present traveled from hand to hand. When Josie turned her attention back to him, he twisted as well, angling his body so that his full attention was on her. He didn't even look when the music stopped and parents cheered while the first layer of the present was removed.

Josie's nose wrinkled and Noah through it was quite possibly the sexiest thing he'd ever seen. How a nose and it's scrunch led to the dilation of his pupils and the way his mouth watered Noah had no reasonable explanation for, and yet here he was. She demanded to know what he'd brought, clearly on the edge of her seat and so Noah naturally took his time with it.

"A paint set? Come on now." He scoffed, his hand reaching into the cozy pocket of his cardigan to draw out a soft pink envelope, covered in gold star stickers he's stolen from his last job. "It's even worse than that." He told her gravely as he slapped the envelope down on the counter between them and lifted his soft green eyes to hers. In truth, it really was a very uninspired present but Noah knew well enough from the rotating line of students that had entered his office that there wasn't one subject, toy or activity that was universally liked by children and so he'd come up with the safest bet he could.

"I hope you're prepared for how terrible this is." He leaned closer still and caught another whiff of her scent, his eyes fluttering closed for the barest moment before opening again. He whispered his next words. "It's a goddamned gift card."

 

[Becboc]

Was this guy for real?

His casual demeanour in the face of snooty middle-aged women was nothing short of mesmerising and within moments, the sparkle had returned to Josie's eyes once more. She was very used to judgement or a slow edging away from whatever unhinged comment had fallen from her mouth, not... brazen acceptance and returned dark humour.

"Right? That's what I keep trying to tell them! Parents these days." She spoke as if she knew what that might be like but in reality, Josie did not have a clue and her comment was more of a nod to that than anything else. Her smile though, the one that showed her teeth, the first proper once she had given all night - that was meant solely for Noah as around them more chaos ensued. Music began to play and multiple pairs of hands reached for the present that was now being passed from tiny lap to tiny lap. Much like Noah, Josie also didn't look as the music stopped and the first layer of paper was removed. Neither did she look when the music started again, or indeed when a child began to cry when the parcel passed her without pause. A gods damned nuclear bomb could have gone off just outside the window and Josie was pretty sure she wouldn't have so much as blinked if Noah was still stood before her, clearly teasing her with the knowledge of his gift that she so desperately craved.

Upon his confirmation that the gift was not a paint set, and the revelation of the pink envelope with the small gold stars on that followed, Josie took another sip of her wine in preparation. "I am not," she concluded, "Is this about to break my heart?"

As he leaned in, Josie couldn't help but do the same and for a moment, her heart skittered a little beneath her ribcage. Well. That was new, she considered quietly with the slightest of frowns that was thankfully concealed by her head tilting slightly so that she could hear the upcoming confession clearly. When it finally entered the open space between them was the point that Josie pulled back, her hand flying to her mouth in feigned shock and grateful distraction.

"Stop, no it isn't," she half-gasped, half-laughed, her other hand reaching out to grip onto Noah's forearm as though it was the most natural thing in the world. "Noah! A giftcard?" Her nose wrinkled again, she couldn't help it. "God, and here I was thinking that we had something special. I simply cannot be friends with giftcard guy, Noah, I'm sorry, I just can't. I can't do it." Josie raised her hands in surrender before taking another sip from her glass, only to realise something mid-drink.

"Mm," she pulled it away again, "unless you can tell me that you decorated the envelope with those little gold stars yourself? That's the only potential light in the darkness right now and even that is... well, it's an ember, not a flame, you know?"

 

[BoneBrain]

Holy fucking shit.

The smile of hers notched up, red painted lips curving up to the ceiling and with it came the rise of her rosy cheekbones and the narrowing of her ocean blue eyes. Noah had to remind himself to breathe as Josie's smile turned from completely attractive all the way up to utterly devastating. Be still his heart, his mind and every other bit of him that leapt to attention under her notice. He liked having her focus on him, and when she didn't stop to check how the game was going, even as a little girls wail filled the air. There was a sweet sort of victory that came with knowing someone like Josie found him the most interesting thing in the room. It was a heady, altogether powerful sensation.

He let out a self deprecating laugh as Josie gave his give the reaction it deserved, hand jumping up to cover her mouth before it fell on his arm and gripped around it. His gaze dipped from her face to the spot where she touched him and he half expected their contact to manifest a warm glow from between her fingers. She radiated warmth and comfort through the woolen fabric of his cardigan and he wanted to memorize that feeling.

"No, no. I understand. I wouldn't want to be friends with the gift card guy either." He's green eyes flicked back up to her face as she stepped back from him, hands raised like she didn't even dare breathe the same air as the gift card guy. His mouth twitched up in his trademarked crooked smile. "Surely there must be some way for me to redeem myself?" Josie pulled the wine glass from her lips as she considered, and when she brought up the gold stars he breathed a dramatic sigh of relief.

"A spark is a spark nevertheless. I'll take it." More cheers and crying resounded from the circle of children as one more layer was peeled from the parcel. Noah stuffed his hands into his pockets once more, digging around for the folded bit of sticker paper that still held a few more stars. As a guidance councillor he knew the power of stickers well, the prospect of a sticker had saved many a student from the brink of tears in the past, he'd thought nothing of adding it to his person before leaving. The need for stickers could arise at any time and though he certainly hadn't expected to use them in such a way, Noah was glad he'd thought to bring them.

With a flourish he opened the sticker paper and carefully peeled one of the stickers off and before he could talk himself out of his silly little plan he reached and pressed the sticker to her cheek, warmth filling his eyes.

"There we are. I had a few left over from the envelope that of course I decorated. I'm not completely inept." He paused, considering for a moment. "Well perhaps I am at gift giving, but every other aspect of my life I'm absolutely incredible." His eyes narrowed as a thought occurred to him. "Ok, maybe that's a lie- I've been advised by government officials that my singing voice should never be used in public areas.

The music ended again and the final bit of the wrapping paper was removed revealing a fun little LEGO set, everyone but the recipient of the gift looked on the brink of a total melt down. Harper, sensing that she had only seconds to turn things around clapped her hands together and captured the attention of everyone.

"Alright folks, lets head outside to run around for a bit before cake." Harper slid open the glass door to the backyard and gestured for the guests to file out.

"I want a LEGO set!" One of the kids cried out and multiple other voices joined in with their demands and complaints.

 

[Becboc]

She simply could not stop smiling as Noah played along with her feigned horror and she had been about to suggest other ways in which he could potentially redeem his choice of present when he went all out and surprised her again. Josie’s brow furrowed a little as he delved into his pockets, only moments later to retrieve the sheet of stickers that he had indeed used to decorate the envelope. Upon this realisation hitting, Josie’s expression faded marginally into something softer, even more so when he peeled one off so he could lean forward and press it to her cheek. Blue eyes blinked in mild surprise before her red lips once more curved upwards at the unexpected but not unwanted contact. More giggling followed as he went on to inform her of his impeccable life skills.

“Is that so?” She asked, arms folded, wine glass cradled into her shoulder. “I guess a first date at the karaoke bar is out of the question then? Damn.”

Of course, there was more to that statement than just pretend disappointment but this time, before Josie could speak anymore on the matter, the quiet of the room and sound of tearing paper finally pulled her attention back to the party. It was very clear from one glance that the whole thing was one tear away from descending into heartbroken chaos, which Harper tried her very best to counter but to no avail. More voices sounded and parents began to look over at where their children’s bottom lips were wobbling like it was catching or something.

“Oh that’s not good…” It was clear to see that the situation was getting out of hand and that Harper was quite possibly on the verge of some kind of breakdown, which is why Josie did what she did next, in a way that only someone like her could. Someone like her being an individual with very little care for what middle class parents thought of her.

“Noah, would you just excuse me for just like… one second? Thanks.”

Josie placed her wine glass on the counter beside him and then inhaled like she was on a mission. Her face set with determination and she weaved her way into the throng of almost bawling children, towards the glass door which she then proceeded to pull open before squealing and jumping up and down so loud that the whole room turned to look at her.

“Oh holy hell, is that a bouncy castle I can see?” Josie made a show of shielding her eyes and angling herself to appear as though she was searching for something.

“What?”

“Where?”

There was a pause before numerous small voices popped up from around her.

“Over there! Look!” Then, tiny bodies began to converge by the door but it was Hallie whose voice shone through the rest.

“Oh holy hell it is! A bouncy castle! MOM!”

“Who’d want to sit and build Lego when you can jump around in an actual castle? Am I right?” Josie scoffed and tried not to cringe at Hallie’s copycat use of holy hell, an unexpected side effect of her chosen words. The way she saw it, Harper owed her one and it seemed she knew that as she made her way to the door and amongst the chorus of voices now pestering to be let outside.

“Thank you,” she squeezed Josie’s arm. “Not for teaching my kid words she shouldn’t repeat at school but… for saving my ass.”

“I’m just glad you’re not mad at me for ruining the surprise.” Josie gave a wry smile – it was the risk she had taken but it seemed to have paid off on this occasion, and so with a salute and her job now suitably done, she finally left behind the new found chaos and began to make her way back over to where Noah still stood. Upon reaching him, a smug smirk now adorned her features as her hand reached out to retrieve her much needed glass of wine once more.

“Sorry about that,” she offered coolly, pretending to dramatically sweep her hair back from her face as though she’d just gone two rounds with King Kong himself and come out without so much as a scratch.

“I believe you were just about to tell me why exactly you have a sheet of star stickers in your pocket before I got dragged away to save the party from deteriorating into a sea of wailing kids?”

 

[BoneBrain]

The collar of Noah’s shirt suddenly felt ten times too tight. Josie’s reaction to his quip about being a poor singer was unequivocally the best combination of words he’d ever heard. Sure they couldn’t have a first date at a karaoke bar, but the fact that she’d even spoken of a first date bolstered Noah. His brain scrambled to suggest a different activity that they could perhaps take part in when Josie took notice of the parties state of mind.

“Oh, lord…” Noah whispered out in agreement to Josie’s accurate assessment of the party. He definitely didn’t bring enough stickers to turn this potential shit-show around. Josie, however, seemed undaunted. The little spitfire in her knee high boots straightened, seemingly possessed by the fun loving spirit of a drunk girl making friends in the bathroom as she set down her drink and marched through the throng.

Noah, the trained green-flag-golden-retriever he was, took the guarding of Josie’s drink seriously. While he didn’t think anyone would do anything unseemly at a birthday party he wasn’t about to risk her safety. So while Josie stood at the open back door calling the attention of all the kids with her dramatic and attention pulling announcement that a bouncy castle was present, Noah slipped his hand over the top of Josie’s glass.

He laughed as over a dozen little bodies pressed to the window and the door, their noses and hands smudging the glass as they peered towards the outrageously large bouncy castle set up in the back corner of the impressive yard. The damn thing looked to be plucked right out of the pages of a fairy tale novel, with turrets and pretty pink flags swaying in the slight breeze. Attached to its side was a blow up slide that looked like it was an absolute hassle to climb up.

Harper had wisely fenced off the pool area, but the flimsy fence didn’t look like it would even present a challenge to the feral kids scrambling to get outside. Noah stayed where he was, hand over Josie’s wine glass, grinning like an absolute idiot when Harper pulled Josie aside with a grateful expression and a few words he didn’t quite make out.

The house grew calmer as each child managed to fight their way outside and dive for the bouncy castle, their screams indicative of war cries. He handed over her glass and delighted in the way she proverbially brushed the dust from her shoulders.

“Well done on that, by the way.” Noah told her and they clinked their glasses together in celebration. While he wasn’t a teacher Noah knew how incredibly hard it was to regain control of a group of children on the brink- rightfully his respect and awe of the woman was skyrocketing. “Ah, right about those stickers-”

“I see you two troublemakers have met.” With the last of the children outside, Harper shut the door on the hellions and approached. Normally Noah would have been glad for his old friends company, but he found himself wishing she’d gone outside with the rest of them.

“If I recall correctly, you were the one dragging me into all of that trouble, Harper.” Noah told her, he went for a stern face but failed spectacularly at selling it.

“What yourself with this one J, he may seem harmless at first but next thing you know you’re sneaking into the hotel pool after hours only to get chased out by security.” Harper nudged Josie. Noah rolled his eyes and set down his wine to pour a glass for Harper. “Bless you.” She thanked him with a fond wink.

“I’m sure this one has pulled you into all sorts of trouble and had the gall to blame you for it.” Noah jerked his head towards Harper while grinning at Josie. “Perhaps we need to start a support group for being Harper’s friend and being blamed for her outrageous ideas. We could meet Tuesdays, I’ll secure the meetup spot if you want to make the shirts?” That earned him a jab to the side and Noah chuckled.

 

[Becboc]

Noah's positive reinforcement of her success only earned a further shrug of Josie's shoulders, one which was meant to portray casual, yet her expression glinted with anything but. Her blue eyes were once more upon the features of the man who had fully captured her attention, waiting intently for the explanation of the stickers that in the end... never came. Harper was upon them both before he could so much as utter even a part of it and Josie made a mental note to revisit it later should the opportunity arise, which... she really, really hoped it would.

The accusation of being a trouble maker narrowed her eyes but just as Josie parted her lips to protest, Noah did so in his own defence and she ended up being caught between the banter of two friends who had clearly known each other for a while. Surprisingly, Josie had been so engrossed in Noah's company that she hadn't stopped to think about why he was here, what connection he had to her friend. Now she found herself wondering where exactly, Harper had been hiding him all these years?

"Is that so?" Josie raised a brow at Harper's warning and proceeded to take another sip of her wine as the friends jibed at each other, eventually resulting in an opening for her to join in.

"Oh absolutely, I mean we're totally survivors, right?" She raised her wine glass like it was a given. "Text me a place and I'll be there. With the t-shirts. And more stories of Harper's bad influence on my life."

This time it was Harper's turn to scoff. "Oh come on now, hang on just one second. Noah may have a point but you, little miss let's climb out of the bathroom window he'll never notice?"

For the first time that night, Josie actually looked mildly uncomfortable in the face of that quip, her gaze flickering to Noah and then back again to Harper in a way that almost looked a little like she was... silently pleading?

"That was... a one time thing." She tried to shrug it off, but Harper didn't pick up on the cue.

"Um, no it wasn't? That was the one time we didn't get caught. The second time those guys found us again at the next club and you tried to convince them of a case of mistaken identity with that terrible Australian accent that you think is a good one."

Oh god. Josie could feel her cheeks heating just a little. Okay, so there had been a few dates that had gone wrong and yes, she wasn't very good at being upfront about it and yes, there had been a couple of times where she had... rung Harper to come rescue her and/or climbed out of a bathroom window; she had forgotten whose idea that actually was, but everyone had stories like that... didn't they?

"It is good," Josie protested sulkily into another, now much needed, mouthful of alcohol.

"Right."

"In my defence Harper, those guys were jerks. I wasn't getting us into trouble, if anything I was avoiding the trouble."

"Sure."

"It's true!"

"Mm-hmm."

Josie let out a sigh of exasperation. "Anyway," she continued in the hopes of saving herself further humiliation. Usually, she was very well-versed in wearing her failures on her sleeve but right now? She wasn't sure what was happening, but right now she wanted to brush them into a very deep grave never to resurface again. "Moving swiftly on from that little exposé..."

Harper frowned slightly, still oblivious as to why her friend seemed coy all of a sudden as she continued to change the subject, waving her hand between them both as though the gesture could remove any and all embarrassment. "So how do you two know each other? A prison break gone wrong? Runaways from a travelling circus? I'm all ears."

 

[BoneBrain]

The back and forth between Harper and Josie had Noah's eyes swivelling back and forth between the two women like they were opponents at Wimbledon. But with each volley back and forth, Josie's swing seemed to grow weaker. Near the end of their rally Noah thought he picked up on hints of embarrassment. It emanated from Josie in pulsing waves and she was quick to move on from the topic. Wisely, Noah stayed silent, though he desperately wanted to know what it was like to climb out of a bathroom window at a club. It seemed like a pinnacle experience one might laugh about and share jovially. He wondered why she carried such shame about it. Though, fuck, he really wanted to hear that Australian accent.

Harper considered the two of them for a moment, as if just realizing that he and Josie had no reasonable motive for talking to each other.

"Would you believe that we hadn't ever met until a short while ago?" Noah gave his old friend a stern regard. "I can't believe you were hiding your cool friends from me this whole time. Last time we hung out you brought around that guy, what was his name... Doug?" Harper's hand lifted, effectively shushing him with it's sweeping motion.

"I thought we chose never to speak of Doug again." Harper looked at Josie. "You too- this doesn't give you permission to speak of the night we met and what we did at the convention to escape him. I'[d wiped him clean of my memory and now I have to scrub it again thank to you." She took a healthy sip of her wine and Noah shuddered at the preverbal energy vampire that had been Doug. Never had a man made stocks and trading seem so soul crushingly boring.

"Well that's what you get for hiding Josie from me." Noah flashed Josie a smile.

"Oh? Would you have been more inclined to move back had you known about my little friend?" Harper lifted a coy brow.

"It certainly would have helped speed up the process." Noah didn't look at Harper, his gaze zeroed in on Josie. Harper took that opportunity to reach and pinch his cheek hard, dragging his attention away from Josie. "Ow!"

"Away with you Mr. Parker! I want time with my best friend and I don't think you've said happy birthday to my daughter yet. Shame on you!" Harper demanded and Noah frowned, rubbing at his sore cheek. He looked like he wanted to protest but the gleam in Harper's eye left no room for arguments. Dejectedly he stepped away, sliding the card in his pocket and headed for the sliding glass door. He opened it and the mostly silent house filled with the screams and cheers of children who'd lost their grip on sanity.

Once he was outside, Harper twisted an accusatory look at her friend, "look, you know I love you- but if you're using Noah for one of your columns, please be gentle." Harpers eyes dropped to the ground on her next words. "He's... he's a good guy. Almost too good if you catch my drift. Very easy to hurt."

Noah wandered through the throng of children, doing his best to pick out the little girl belonging to Harper. He found her, crouched by some bushes next to a boy he didn't know. Together they whispered like they were planning something devious. With his hands in his pockets he meandered up to them, shading them from the sunlight with his shadow and smiling with the blinked up to see who had disturbed them.

"Who are you?" Hallie asked, her eyes narrowed on the envelope decorated with stars, she held out her hand in a silent demand for the gift which Noah obliged.

"I'm Noah. I'm an old friend of your moms. Happy birthday kiddo."

"Oh." Hallie tore into the gift and revealed the nondescript gift card without bothering to read the card or appreciate the silly little drawing he'd done, it made Noah laugh. "Does this have money on it?"

"It sure does."

"How much."

"Like 50 bucks, I think."

"Is that enough for me and Danny to buy some adult juice?"