Realistic or Modern Upper Eastside

[lonecoyote]

Imani Everest and Saruh Austin​

Imani walked to her car, grumbling the entire way. If she wasn’t into the get together before, she really was about it now. Now she was angry and upset because her fiance or whatever he was couldn’t even ask her about her day like most people did. Hell, even a complete stranger could ask about her day. A stranger. But her fiance? Nah, he was too busy for her. She growled almost animalistically as she searched for her keys but forgot them upstairs. “Wait…” she looked around and realized that she had also left her partner in crime. “Fuck me….” she groaned out and entered the apartments again, going up the elevator and to the top floor.

Imani knocked on the door almost violently and waited for Anthony to open it. When he did, she brushed her way past him and found her keys, going to Saruh’s door and knocking on it. “Are you ready, Saruh?”

Saruh had been essentially high and sleep since they had gotten home. Seriously. She was either smoking. Though she was sure to make sure she did it on the Terrace so that it wouldn’t be around the kids. She was currently sleep when Imani had knocked on the door, and she did it in that cop way she had a habit of doing when she was upset.

She basically jumped out of the bed, scurrying around her room and into the bathroom and into her closet, putting on her dress stocking and shoes. Brushing her hair a little bit and putting leave in conditioner and spraying herself with burberry perfurme. She dropped some eye drops in her eyes and scurried to the door, opening it slowly with a smile, purse and make up bag in her hand,”Yeah I’m ready….let’s gooooo…”

Imani looked at Saruh and breathed a sigh of relief. She could smell the heavy perfume on her and could tell that she was hiding the smell of her weed. Imani signaled for her to follow her, adjusting her laced top and jeans before walking out the front door again. “Bye, lock the door and go to bed at a reasonable time.” she waved off to Anthony and kissed Nadir.

She walked with Saruh to the car, explaining what happened between she and Zay and also showing her the messages as her proof. “I am so over him right now, Saruh. I want tonight to be full of alcohol and some fun.” she grinned and unlocked the car and got inside. “I really need tonight more than I thought.

Saruh couldn’t help but smile as they left the pent house and went down the elevator, Imani explaining everything to her. She had her phone in her hands and nodded, holding down the appropriate buttons and turning it off. When they got in the car, she put it in the glove deapartment and looked to Imani, “You got two more phones, so i’ll just text Tony and tell them to reach you there….or me…” she stated gently.

She looked over to her hands as Imani grabbed the steering wheel and reached out and grabbed her left hand examining the empty spot on her ring finger. She turned away and chuckle before shaking her head, “If you’re going to wear no ring like you’re single...maybe you should talk to my single friend. He’ll be there. Get you some dick and go about your night.”

Imani stared at the road as she drove, her brows furrowed and mouth turned into a frown. Her eyes looked at Saruh and her hand, listening to what she had to say. She thought about what she said and sighed. “I’m not opposed to meeting him, but I’m not getting dicked down. As much as that asshole pissed me off, I can’t cheat on him like that.” It was her fatal flaw that she was so loyal to Zay no matter what happened between the two, but Imani had never been a cheater even when she was on the streets.

“But, what is this single friend of yours like? I don’t want a crazy guy, I have too much stuff to do to handle a crazy.” So this wouldn’t fall under cheating. She was just going to be her flirting under the influence and it would be the alcohol talking. So anything that went down tonight wouldn’t be her fault. She’d blame it on the alcohol. Imani looked to her gps of where the house was and saw that they would be arriving within the next 15 minutes.

“You call it cheating, I call it fulfilling your needs,” she mentioned as she opened her own phone and started to go through her instagram and opening Karter’s. She paused for a moment to see how she should describe him,” I mean….he’s not crazy but he is fine..look.” she stated handing her phone to her so she could see.

“I have a- you know what we aren’t talking about my needs.” she said with a huff and looked at Saruh’s phone and took it in her hands. She looked from the road to the phone and scrolled. She began to nod and grin a bit. “I mean, damn. He is fine. Tattoos, nice body, and ooooo his eyes. Okay, okay I can definitely work with that.” she handed her phone back to her and smiled. “So he’s going to be there for sure? Cus I like what I see so far.”

She rolled her eyes when she almost mentioned her stimulation aides, before taking in deep a breath as she got her phone back. She glanced out the window and chuckled, “Yeah he texted me back before I went to sleep…..well one of the times I went to sleep. But bet, soon as we see him I’m going to introduce him to you. “ She with a laugh before rubbing her eyes, “And we can get drunk all night and cuddle up in my room later.”

Imani nodded and smiled, making their turn and pulling up to the large townhouse “Fat bet.” she agreed, knowing well that she wanted to get wasted and probably wouldn’t make it to her own room. “Well, I mean what did I expect? It’s a star football player and fashion designer’s house.” she said to herself and parked her car next to a rather nice orange car. “We’re probably going to have to make a food break before we go home and a back up ride.” Even though she drove and planned on drinking and could handle her liquor, she wasn’t going to risk driving them home and get a DUI. “Plan a Uber for later, okay?”

“Food will be a must, I’m sure the food will be delicious here...but after drinking I’ma need a chopped cheese, some fries and maybe a burger...oh and a shake yes. All of that, “ she stated as she got out of the car and looked over to Imani, “Yeah, Uber. Got it. You know Uber is my main transpo anyways. Let’s go.” she stated as they moved to the door.

 

[copacetic]

Sierra Saunders

Sierra was rushing to get ready. She had already missed the committee meeting by several hours and she was not going to miss the get together that night. Her flight had been delayed for several hours after she had spent a few days coaching her last client before her break to work on the Charity Ball. Unfortunately they lived in Nevada, so it was already a long flight, but since it was December, weather in the flight path had been a problem. She was just relieved that her flight was not cancelled completely. She had only gotten to her apartment that she is renting for the duration of the planning and execution of the ball about a half an hour ago. She showered quickly and was now working on her hair before she started on her makeup. Even though she had been flying all day, she refused to show up to the party with anything but perfect hair, a fresh face, and a killer outfit. She had sent one of the assistants on her film crew with her credit card to buy a nice bottle of champagne to bring to the party because she couldn't show up empty handed.

By the time the assistant returned, her hair was done and she was about halfway done with her makeup. She was speaking to the camera as she got ready, explaining where she was going and why. While it seemed pretty self-explanatory, she had learned through her years of reality television, it was easier to explain and have it cut out than not and have viewers be confused. Once she was finished with her makeup and the cameras were off, she popped two ibuprofen to shake off the minor headache she had from traveling all day. She had her stuff sent ahead and her apartment decorated before she arrived, so she went to her closet and searched through it to find something to wear for the party. She decided on a red halter dress and wedges. Sure, it was freezing out, but she preferred to be cold for the short period she'd be walking outside to and from the car than to look bad and be warm.

If she was being honest, she would have preferred sleeping as soon as she got home from the airport and meeting the rest of the committee at the next meeting, but she felt like that would reflect poorly on her. She was always focused on her image and how she would be perceived by others. Sure, the meetings wouldn't be the most interesting aspect of her series, so she wanted to make sure to capture the moments outside of the meetings that were still relevant to the ball. After all, who would want to watch Sierra sit around? There was only so much editing could do without some interesting substance. She suppressed a yawn as she gathered her things.

Once she had pulled on her jacket and tucked the bottle of champagne into the crook of her arm, she led her camera crew out her door and down to the car waiting for her. She had decided not to drive herself since she probably would be drinking at the party. She couldn't imagine the fallout if she were to drive intoxicated, so she decided to play it safe. She slid into the back seat of the car and relaxed as the driver started towards her destination. She knew first impressions were important, so she was set on making a good one. She knew this get together would be important on establishing the dynamic and the relationships she will have with the others on the committee.

 

[Aato]

An Vinh Phan

A dark blur rushed in through the doors of Smile Jun in a fashion seemingly inappropriate for the restaurant's poised and prestigious demographic. This caused the greeter to look up with a bit of a startled and wide-eyed expression although the newcomer's skateboard had made on attention-grabbing ruckus along the sidewalk before even entering the building. "Can I hel--"

The speech that had been unsure yet maintained formality was cut off before the rehearsed line could even be finished. "There-- There was a, uh-- a meeting-- f-for the charity ball..." An Vinh stood panting, clad in a long black coat, colorful hat adorned with a pompom, and brown boots with her skateboard in hand as she tried to explain herself. The building she had left to get here was fairly close, but that didn't mean energy hadn't been expended during her hustle.

The woman staring back at her seemed a little slow to respond then looked at a computer. "...What's the--?"

"Phan. An Vinh Phan."

The greeter nodded slowly. "Right... Well, Ms. Phan, I regret to inform you, but it seems that meeting ended about twenty minutes ago."

She muttered a short string of expletives before her eyes returned to the greeter behind the podium. "Alright. Well, thanks." With that, she exited the restaurant.

An hour or so earlier, Vinh had found herself in a tall building downtown with a seemingly infinite number of floors, though her affair was luckily taking place on the twelfth. She had an interview with a women's sports organization who led regular workshops that encouraged the empowerment of young female athletes and often provided scholarships among other funding programs. During the interview, she was asked how she felt about receiving an honorary position on the East Side Charity Ball committee, how she planned to contribute, and if she would find a way to incorporate her passion into that plan. ...That's when she remembered. A few more questions followed, then as soon as it came to an end, she rushed out of the building. In a split second decision, she opted to travel by skateboard. Obviously she was already late and she only imagined that while her car may get her there more quickly, she'd waste time finding somewhere to park. So, she started down the sidewalk in the direction of the restaurant, hoping she may even make it before the meeting's unspecified end, if even by a sliver. Needless to say, she ended up in the present, skating back to the parking deck of the skyscraper to pick up her car and head home.

She pushed in through the heavy door of her apartment (the door always reminded her of that of a dorm room) with a sigh of relief to finally be home again. Well, "home" was relative. This place was primarily paid for by the agency she skated for while in New York. She'd moved in less than a month ago, but didn't seem to spend much time in it, the place still appearing more ready for show than occupied. For an apartment in the city, it was more than a decent size (she could only imagine how much the rent was) and she was glad it wasn't any larger as it would have seemed excessive and been too much empty space for her to live in alone. A smirk crossed her lips at the thought, the prompting words of her parents encouraging her to find a spouse filling her mind. "You wouldn't have to worry about 'lonely' if you had a husband..." Of course; that was almost always the solution...

After showering and getting comfortable, she made her way into the small kitchen area to make a late lunch...or, perhaps, an early dinner, and immediately regretted not picking something up on the way in... or even getting something while she had been at that restaurant. She had been so exasperated at the time that eating was the last thing on her mind. Just as she reached into the refrigerator, the abrupt 'thrrr' of her phone vibrating against the coffee table could be heard - once, twice, and then a consistent rhythmic pulse followed. She hiked an eyebrow before leaving the pan she had taken down on the stove with a 'clank' and going into the living room. She made a mental note to later readjust her phone settings.

She picked it up to find a notice of two unread texts and an incoming call from Kinni M. A grin crossed her face before tapping the screen to answer.

"Hey, hey - what's up?"

"Hey girl, you still coming to the get together? You need me to pick you up? I'm in an Uber leaving the airport."

'Get together... Get together... Oh!' In the span of seconds, her mind caught up, the memory returning. "Yeah, definitely coming! That'd be great. Gimme an ETA."

"About ten minutes."

Vinh's eyes nearly bugged, but aside from a small crack when she spoke again, kept her tone cool. "A-A'ight. Lit. Thanks, KK. See you soon." With that, she hung up then did a swift read over the new texts in the group chat and left her own message confirming that she would indeed be there.

Now, a new challenge arose: her wardrobe.

She scrambled up the stairs and into the open space that served as her room. Her eyes scanned the outfits in her closet, comprised mostly of dark-colored utilitarian clothing and athletic wear. Off to the back were a handful of skirts, dresses, and other frilly, lacy, and bright things that had probably only seen the light of day once or twice by comparison to her other clothes. She sighed. These were the times that she needed the expertise of her more "fashion forward" friends. Then again, it wasn't so much that she couldn't dress herself as it was that she was simply stubborn. However, there was no time for stubbornness, so she'd have to make the swift decision to meet herself halfway.

Finally, she pulled out a light-colored off-shoulder top and slipped it over her head before taking out wine red jeans to pull on. She slid her feet into similarly colored, platformed snow boots - red with a white trim. Then she added a few finishing touches - a choker, some eyeliner, a couple of dabs of a light perfume that had been given to her as a gift, and pulled her dark hair up into a messy bun (more out of laziness than as a fashion statement).

Now trotting downstairs, she stuffed her phone and wallet into her pockets, then grabbed her black coat off the rack by the door, pulling it on as she headed out. She figured Kinni would be rolling up at any moment.

Interactions: Kinni [ AkuTheWolfOkami ] ​

 

[Melanin-Gxdess]

Ailyn was doing exactly what Jordan said and getting dressed, Aidan all dressed in his onsie and overalls. He was sitting up, playing with one of his toys while Ailyn had her hair up and was trying to figure out what she wanted to wear. "Alright baby, what about this?" She asked, turning around in her fifth outfit choice, a simple black dress with a pair of creme colored Louboutin red bottoms. Aidan giggled and clapped his hands together, making her smile and pick him up. "Aww yay!" Whenever she was around Aidan, she was happier and could let the weight of the world drop from her shoulders. He was like her medicine and a little dose of her could and would brighten up her day until the next person came by to screw it up. Their next stop would be the bathroom while she figured out what to do with her hair. Setting him in one of the chairs she let her hair down and as soon as she did so, Aidan started laughing. She turned to him and smiled, narrowing her eyes. "What, you like my hair down?" He nodded and she shrugged, turning back to the mirror to make it look a little better. As she was done applying her makeup, something that was just enough but not too much, she heard Maui entering the house. Aidan heard too and slid off the chair, trying to run to the stairs.

Aidan still hadn't started talking although he did understand words. A lot of it was just him nodding, smiling, and saying some words. It worried Ailyn but the therapist said that it was normal and he would talk when he was ready. At the moment, he was smiling and saying, "Mau." Ailyn picked him up, still not wanting him to walking on the stairs. "You ready to see Maui?" With his fingers in his mouth, he nodded. Once the two of them got downstairs, she set him down and watched him make his way over to her. "Hello my loves, how are you?" She asked, making her way into the kitchen where she found Jordan on the phone. She made a face at him, expressing her distaste at him talking while they were supposed to be partying. He knew he was wrong which is why he smiled and waved at Maui and Justin before excusing himself. Currently, he was trying to calm down one of the girls he was talking to, as she thought he was with another female at the moment. Now while Jordan isn't the player type, he did give off that vibe. He didn't want to break the girl's heart, but she definitely wasn't someone he was going to get serious with.

Once he was done, he went back to the kitchen and rubbed his hands together. "My apologies. Had to handle some business." He started to open up the bottle of wine he bought, but for whatever reason couldn't find it. So instead, he went to the refrigerator where he had a bottle of Tito's. "Tried to be classy but can't find the shit so Tito's it is." Ailyn shook her head, grabbing down glasses before she went off to turn on some music. First song to play was "Suge" by DaBaby and Ailyn couldn't help but nod to it as she checked on the snacks that were laid out on the counter space, shrimp cocktail, guac, salsa and other finger foods with the drinks and whatever bottles on the counter space. The clothes were in the living room and would remain there until everyone else arrived. "Odi! Where are you hiding?"

​

 

[AkuTheWolfOkami]

Odi Beckham Jr.


When Jordan's attention was grabbed, Odi swooped in the bottle had found itself outside on the terrace trashcan. When he returned inside, he noticed that people had started coming in starting with Kortia and Maui. Then a few more came in, and he checked his phone to note his squad was on their way. This caused a smile to cross his lips as he took in a deep breath glancing around. Ok. So he needed to devise a plan. He had to be to his meetings in the morning, and coach would not appreciate him coming in hungover, though he could probably get himself together as long as he made sure his night ended earlier. So drink a lot early, get to bed 'early' sleep it off before getting to the stadium and training facility at 9. It sounded crazy, but it just might work.

So now that he had his plan in order and the women were occupied with the child, he moved his way to his bar where he looked over his several selections of alcohol, but decided to keep it simple and grab the bottle of D'usse and poured himself a cup. He took a slow breath taking a sip of it and shaking his head with a smile, before nodding. Yeah, that's what he needed. Now he just needed two of his closest friends to show up, but until then he needed to figure out what he could do to keep his attention occupied until they arrived.

He wasn't actually sure what his fiancee' had planned for the night, but he sure it was going to be something he didn't enjoy, but being supportive right? He had slowly tried to sneak his way back to his game room before he heard his name and cursed under his breath raising his glass to his lips and finishing it off, before quickly pouring another round. He moved towards her as he took another sip, and rose a brow, "You rang?" He offered his signature mischievous smirk before shaking his head.

He felt his pocket vibrate and excitedly reached to fish his phone out, but sighed to discover it was merely just a text from one of his teammates about something he really didn't care about. Where were Vinh and Kinni?







interactions: Ailyn , Jordan Melanin-Gxdess

 

[AkuTheWolfOkami]

LTJG Kortia Deneka Velentino

The brief greeting, or lack thereof, didn't really bother her much. Nevermind she was the one who rang the doorbell initially, and nevermind she was the one who arrived first with gifts, and no not just her own family's alcohol. It didn't matter, she wasn't really hear to fellowship anyways. She was here as an excuse to drink. Drinking in excess at 'party' didn't seem suspicious as getting drunk by yourself.

She was familiar enough with the home to set the bottles up at a designated area, an array of liquor before grabbing a bottle of casket strength maker's and pouring it into a glass. She took a sniff of it, proud of her drink and didn't even bother tasting it as she shoved it down her throat. She drank a couple more glasses like that before pouring one she would sip on. A gentle sigh left her lips as she could feel the buzz creeping in, well more so, she felt it arrive. She took a slow breath again as she looked around trying to gauge how much it had hit her so far.

She felt a little imbalanced but she could walk no problem. Her world seemed just a bit shaky, but she coherent and could talk. That was good news. She could interact now. She was sure of it. She moved to be near where the rest of the people were heading towards Jordan as he seemed like the only person NOT currently engaged in conversation. A slow head nod to say 'what's up', as she looked him over. He was definitely worth taking a thorough look over.

"I think I have an unread text from you," she joked with a flirty chuckle as she pulled her phone out with her free hand, taking a sip of her drink at the same time. She scrolled through her phone before nodding, "Yup, you sent me a text a couple weeks ago. Pretty sure I was somewhere I can't tell you, doing something you can't know. I told you when I'm active, email. Lucky for us...I won't be active for a while. So next time, face time." Yeah, that was her way of flirting.


Direct Interactions: Jordan Aato

 

[AkuTheWolfOkami]

Lee Tan

There he lay on the ground after one of his benders. He had spent all night drinking that he had no idea where his clothes had gone nor how he ended up in the rags that he was wearing. That didn't matter though, not too much at this point at least. He had his bottle of liquor stored in his brown bottle and that was all his he needed. He needed to know where he was first so he picked his head up from the black trash bag it was resting in and noticed he was under an awning. He looked around and he was in some warehouse district in a pile of trashbags. There was probably better places for him to be so he got to his feet and stumbled a bit tripping into the parking lot and on to his back. He was no longer protected from the sun and covered his eyes with his arms, "Christ.." he muttered his accent as American as they come.

He slowly pushed himself to his feet stumbling a bit, running into a man that was dressed in some street clothes who pushed him to the ground, "Get off me you homeless drunk....you smell like shit." The man was accompanied by two others who chuckled as they moved pass and Lee lied on the ground a bit disoriented. What seemed like a few hours, though in truth it was only about 15 minutes, went by and he could hear yells and screams in the background from one of the warehouses.

He got to his feet..barely.... at the sound and looked around. Before the fellows from before came back covered in blood...and ran into him again knocking him back to the ground.

The leader from before groaned and started cussing at Lee, "Alright It's obviously you're too drunk to understand so I'ma have to teach you a lesson..." he went to stomp on Lee but Lee did a little twirl almost like a break dance and swept the dude's legs from under him. The man dropped hard to the ground as Lee lied on the floor on his elbow and his legs crossed before bringing his bottle to his lips. The other two began attacking and he kicked them both in the stomach before twirling his legs around in the air and rolling to his feet. He stumbled a bit when he got there, but this time it seemed to be precision as if deliberate. The three men began attacking again but they couldn't seem to hit Lee as he stumbled through them before putting them with a few quick strikes with ease. The strikes were vicious and blood splattered from the strikes to the face. One fell to the ground unconscious, one was dazed but conscious and the other died.

Lee was still stumbling as he took a drink of the bottle, but all of the sudden straightened up and seemed to be in complete control. He took the bottle and threw it at the unconscious one with enough force it shattered against his head. He kneeled next the one who was still in a daze and reached into his pocket pulling out a stack of money and in the other pulling out a bag of drugs, "Tsk tsk tsk...You know where I'm from they would sometimes cut fingers off of thieves. " he sniffed a bit as he looked around in his kneeling position, "I was a thief, but I never got caught. Everyone knew it was me, but they couldn't prove it. So the key isn't going unknown, it's going without being caught in the act."

He took a slow breath before shaking his head, "You ever watch Mulan? It's kind of racist and shit, but still a good movie. Some good representation. Well anyways, there's a part where two chinese soldiers get caught by the huns right? And they're spared to deliver a message. But then he asks how many does it take to deliver a message and they shoot the other guy. Ok so think about that. One of you is dead. So, he can't deliver the message obviously. The other is out for a while and...to be frank I don't have the patience to wait and besides..." he reached to his side and pulled out a blade twirling it around before slicing the other one's neck, "He just died too. So that leaves you. So this is your luck day...up you go...go run."

The man seemed to have hesitated but soon got to his feet and began to take off. Slowly Lee stood up and took a cigarette from his pocket and then a lighter, and lit it taking a slow puff. A gun shot could be heard in the distance before the man dropped in the middle of his run. Another man walked up next to Lee wearing all black with a black hoodie and a rifle in his hand.

Lee chuckled, "When these three show up in fucking pieces they'll get the message." He looked over to the man who nodded and Lee switched to Cantonese,"I'm going to go shower and pay a friend a visit. You finish up here. " And with that he was off...

A couple hours would pass and the man who once looked like a homeless drunk was now dressed to impress and clean. He was driving in an Audi R8 pulling up to intercept Brice as he left his building, "Pretty boy...let's take a ride."


Direct Interactions: Brice Tang Aato

 

[copacetic]

Julien walked quickly to the nearest subway station, thankful that Ailyn lived on the same line she had. She wouldn't be held up by the subway being late. While the subway smelled and often ran behind, it was Julien's only form of transportation besides walking. She still freaks out when she has to ride in a car, so she just chooses not to. Though, she does feel a bit bad when she drags people along like she was doing to Nico right now. But, she really didn't want to deal with nerves on top of the party hosted by Ailyn. They were never very fond of each other. Julien would go as far to say that they could not stand each other. They were able to work professionally, since their jobs had brought them together on numerous occasions, but that was about as civil as it got. It wasn't long until their train came to a screeching halt at their stop.

"What are the chances that tonight goes well and there's no drama?" she asked Nico as they approached the luxury building Ailyn and Odi lived in. "Is this even a good idea? You know Ailyn and I do not get along," she questioned, though it was already too late. They were there, so it would be stupid to go back home now. Plus, she did make Nico get ready and leave his apartment. She hesitantly rang the door bell and waited for someone to answer. It would probably be fine, so she needed to stop worrying.


Nico followed in step behind Julien, his long skinny legs that made up half of his body keeping up with her easily. His hands were in his pockets where he had a couple of small baggies filled with something. Inside the small baggies was two white pills and one that was a capsule. He hadn’t told Julien that he was bringing anything but he knew some of his clients would be there tonight once he heard who’s house it was going to be at. He knew his number one customer was going to be there, thus the small packages in his coat pocket. His mind was calculating how much his profit would be as he trailed behind Jules that he didn’t realize they had stopped and gotten onto the train. It was all a blur for him until he felt the train stop. He never minded the subway though he didn’t take it often. Of course he was well aware that they would be taking it tonight since every time he offered to drive them somewhere, she would decline so he eventually stopped asking.

A perfectly plucked brow rose and he looked at her. “The odds are slim to none if you want me to be honest with you.” He sighed as he said the statement and he could basically feel how uneasy she was. So, to counteract her nervousness, Nico wrapped an arm around her and rubbed her side as they walked to the front door. “If anything happens I’m right here for you, Jules.” he said as she knocked and he kissed the top of her head.

 

[Aster Sapphire]

Johari and Ben​

Johari didn't like surprises. When she could, she'd plan every second of every minute of her day, and she came pretty close to doing so most of the time. The only thing she couldn't seem to predict or plan for was Ben. No matter how hard she tried he always had one way or another of throwing a wrench into her plans. Last week it was showing up to her apartment unannounced with a personal chef and hundred dollars worth of wine. Tonight, it was crashing a party. They'd been on the way back from her office. He'd told the Uber driver to pull over in front of a building that pulsed with music. People trickled in by second, and it already looked packed inside. He frowned when he saw the look of bemusement on Johari's face after they stepped out of the car and onto the curb. She crossed her arms and hit him with her clutch.

"Cafe, huh?"

"Come on, Jo! Be a workaholic some other night, you gotta let loose sometimes. Let's just hang here for an hour or two than we'll leave. Tonight's the most I've seen you out of your office all week. We go in, shake our asses a bit, have a couple drinks and then leave." He does a dance next to her on the side walk, that prompts some by passers to look over in concern. She over hears a woman ask her friend if she should call an ambulance.

"Ben! Stop that people are staring!" She recomposes herself, putting her back in place as a passing car sends it flying around her face. "Okay first of all, that's an exaggeration you stopped by two days ago," she says defensively. Ben wasn't necessarily wrong. If she were to be completely honest with herself, he wasn't wrong at all. She couldn't remember the last time she did something that didn't involve the story she was working on. Between the interviews, the research, the investigation, and many the hours she'd spend on air. Personal time had become non existent. She'd consider it every now and then to humor herself in the midst of her sobering work. She's pulled from her thoughts by Ben's retort.

"Yeah, and what were you doing? Working! Come on! You're even dressed for a party! Being bougie really has it's perks huh?"

She narrows her eyes at him smoothing down the skirt of her orange dress, the color popping brilliantly against dark ebony hue of her skin. "How do you know this isn't private or something?" She asks, following Ben as they walk to the building.

"I don't! Don't really care either. Looks lit and I want in. Besides, you see how many people they are? It's gotta be open invite. Nobody knows that many people. Come on, just a couple hours. That's all I'm asking. You might like it! When have I ever let you down!" She didn't even open her mouth when he interjected. "Don't answer that!"

Johari chewed on the inside of her cheek in thought before throwing her hands up. "Two hours, been!"

"That's what I'm talking about!" He exclaims, laughing as he heads to the entrance with her. He walks up to the door with Johari in tow, smiling over to a group women that walk in, slyly winking as he steps in. "Just watch, bit later from now you're gonna look back on this and laugh real hard. You're been like, "Man I'm real glad I let my cool as friend Ben take me that party that one time." And I'll be like "Hell yeah! I told you I wouldn't let you down!" Then you'll be like-

"How often do you have these conversations between us in your head? A lot? Not a lot right?"

"More often then I should to be honest."

She rolls her eyes as they slip in, Ben starting to dance again as soon as he gets inside, eyes scanning the crowd for someone he wanted to approach. She's was never the dancing type, and found herself maneuvering through the crowd of pulsing bodies in search of a drink.

 

[Aato]

Kinipela Masoli & An Vinh Phan

After the brief call, Kinni managed to put her phone down in her lap which almost immediately was disturbed by a vibration as Vinh had responded to the group text. Confirming that she was definitely coming, but mainly to Odi. She couldn’t wait to see her friend as she couldn’t remember the last time they had hung out since they both dealt with jobs that required a lot of traveling.

She took a deep breath as the Uber Select pulled up in front of Vinh’s home building and she saw her friend and opened the door for her.

It seems she had been right on time. Vinh’s face lit instantly as the car pulled up, making out Kinni’s figure in the backseat through the darkened glass. The car door popped open, prompting her to enter, and she readily obliged all while holding back small squeals now that her friend was fully in view.

“It’s great to see you!” She leaned in to offer a greeting hug.”And you’re looking good as always.”

Of course Kinni could not help but to oblige to her friend’s embrace, perhaps even beating her to it. There was something she felt special about Vinh that she just couldn’t quite pinpoint. She had disdain for so many people and manipulated so many of the souls she came in contact with but never Vinh.

“It’s great to see you too!” she exclaimed almost in a squeal, a bit giddy,” Me? You’re always so effortless with your beauty. Gorgeous as always.” She said with a bit a tilt of the head and a snap of the neck.

She took her phone out, ”But let’s go, Odi’s getting impatient.”

At the returned compliment, Vinh’s eyes looked off momentarily and she couldn’t help making a cross between a chuckle and scoff yet a toothy grin remained. It wasn’t that she thought of the other woman’s words as a lie, she just didn’t have as much faith in her abilities. Being around most of her female friends always made her a little self-conscious, as if looking at a prime example of what her parents wanted her to be, and she’d start noting obvious differences... However, now was no time for letting her mind trail off into insecurities. Tonight’s focus was friends and fun.

“Odi? Impatient?” She gasped, feigning shock with her expression before breaking into laughter. “He’ll be fine… But I guess we shouldn’t be too fashionably late. Let ‘im know we’re on our way now.” She nodded toward the phone in Kinni’s hands.

“Will do,” she mentioned typing up a text to the athlete letting him know that he could calm his tits, his favorite ladies were on the way. She smiled as she finished up the text before glancing to her friend. As the vehicle moved she took a deep breath before groaning, “I forgot my ex-husband is going to be there.”

Vinh reached a hand over to pat the other woman's knee in consolation. "Don't worry, I'm sure there will be enough going on that you two will barely have to cross paths."

AkuTheWolfOkami & Aato ​

 

[lonecoyote]

Maui Valenzuela and Justin Ha
​

Maui looked around as she put up her purse and looked up at Justin, smiling softly, looking at the decor that she had helped Ailyn pick out for she and Odi. “I’ve always loved those curtains.” she said softly and before she heard and saw Ailyn and Aiden come down the stairs. Her face lit up and she stepped forward to meet them, kissing Ailyn on the cheek and lifting Aiden from her arms and kissing his face all over. “Looking beautiful as always, Ailyn.” she winked at her best friend and looked at Aiden. “Did you help mama get ready? Is that why she looks so good?” she teased and looked at her boyfriend before walking to him with Aiden in her arms.

“Babe, isn’t he just the cutest? I can’t wait until we have one.” her features softened before she heard Ailyn’s heels clicking away and she grabbed Justin’s hand, pulling him along as they went to the kitchen. When they reached the kitchen she saw Jordan and smiled, watching as he left and took a seat in a chair and moved Aiden so he was facing her and playing with him. Maui was preoccupied with Aiden that she hadn’t realized when Jordan and Odi came into the kitchen and the music began to play. “Babe, will you pour me a drink, please?”

Justin took in a slow breath as he got out the car and moved with Maui, her excitement not matched by his. He seemed a bit more uneasy than she, for whatever reason that was. He moved with her as they went inside and smiled looking to Ailyn and giving her a bit of a head nod as he fiddled with something in his coat pocket.

He waved to Aiden before he was dragged along to the kitchen greeting everyone around him, Odi, Jordan kind of lingering on the fact that she made a comment about them having a child. It sort of brought a smile to his face, but also took him completely out of the zone. His trance was snapped when she asked for a drink and nodded heading to where Odi’s bar was, since they always had permission to use it, because her favorite drink took a little more work than the average.

He took a metal cocktail shaker, pouring the coconut rum and pineapple juice in, shaking it, before setting it down. He took a cocktail glass and put a couple of ice cubes in, before pouring the mix in. Then grabbing the grenadine, he poured it on the side of the glass to make the bottom layer. He looked to see if they had masharino cherries still, and they did, and plopped a couple on top before returning the drink to her, “Here you go.”

Maui smiled brightly and held Aiden in one arm as she took a sip of the drink, closing her eyes and savoring the taste. “Thank you.” she then sat the glass down and slid it out of reach of Aiden, looking at him and kissing his cheeks and looking at the two males. “It’s been awhile Jordan. How’ve you been?” After speaking, she looked over at Justin and could tell how tense he was but she didn’t understand why. ‘Are you okay?’ She mouthed when she caught his eyes.

Interactions:
Melanin-Gxdess

 

[Aato]

Brice Tang & Lee Tan

Outside, the air was noticeably more brisk than earlier and Brice flipped up the collar to his peacoat and tucked his chin in an attempt to shield the exposed skin. The cold was a minor discrepancy that he typically wouldn’t bother to respond to given the short distance between the warmth of his home and his car, but he hadn’t thought about the fact that he’d showered, let alone leaving his hair wet, causing more sensitivity to the weather. He imagined the ice chips already forming on the tips of his hair and the scolding voice of his mother warning that he’d get sick played in his head.

Aside from a few passing cars and the crunch of snow beneath his shoes, the winter night was fairly quiet. However, the sound of crunching snow ceased and was replaced by the smooth roar of a powerful engine and a voice homely to the young Eurasian’s ears.

Without even looking up to the driver’s face, a smirkish smile crossed Brice’s lips as he swiftly dipped into the car that had stopped in front of him.

“Tan,” he gave a curt nod in greeting before extending his hand for a coded handshake. “What’s going down that I need to know about?”

There wasn’t any wasted motion as Lee returned the handshake and as soon as the two’s hands parted, the car moved in a hurry.

His hands gripped the wheel loosely as he looked to the road and off into the distance, “I mean nothing that you specifically need to know about, not like you do anything anyways.” The Mandarin was sharp, but the tone was still somewhat friendly. The kind of tone that you hear from a sibling when they’re teasing you, “Nothing spectacular, just a deal gone wrong and I had to take care of business. Seems like the Russians are trying to encroach on our territory.”

There was a moment of silence as he took a long look before looking to the side to his brother, “But I’m not here to talk business, we have a party to get to brother.”

Brice rolled his eyes at the jab, though Lee hadn’t exactly been wrong... “Touché.” He said with a shrug as he looked out the passenger window. A scoff left him as he went on listening. “Russians, huh? That’s not too concerning... Keep me posted, though.”

He shifted in his seat again to look ahead, meanwhile steadying the paperbagged bottle in his lap. At the mention of the party, Brice hiked an eyebrow before looking to meet Lee’s gaze with a brief snicker. “Who invited the riff-raff?” Although jesting, part of him was curious and somehow he instantly knew this private party, or rather “get together”, would be fairly large. “But I guess I should be thanking you for the unexpected taxi service. Quite impressive timing.”

Lee rolled his eyes, “Being the Boss’s kid must be an easy life…” Lee mentioned as he turned the wheel around a corner. Though the two had grown up together, they basically lived two separate lives. Despite a lot of the benefits he got, Lee still had to do everything a regular member had to do. Despite being the boss’s ‘adopted’ son. Lee went through the trials and tribulations of everyone else. He had the scars to prove a lot of his work.

Though that meant he got to sit pretty now, even getting to basically run Chinatown (their alliance with the triads still holding up), it wasn’t like he still didn’t have to put in work every now and then...like this morning.

The car pulled up in a garage about a block down from the get together location, “What’s a gathering without the riff-raff? And I just happened to be in the neighborhood, didn’t want the pretty boy messing up his shoes. Come on shot.” he stated gently, the last sentence in perfect American English.

He got out the car and tossed the keys to the valet attendant, “Don’t scratch it, it’s for my cousin. Hey brother, I’ll meet you in there, go ahead got a phone call.”

Stepping out, Brice adjusted his clothes then grabbed the bottle. His free hand gave Lee’s shoulder a couple of genial pats. “Sounds great, Winner. ‘Been a while since we’ve had a drink.” He then nodded toward the building, gesturing that he was taking his leave.

AkuTheWolfOkami & Aato ​

 

[lonecoyote]

Imani Everest and Saruh Austin
​

Imani strode up to the door confidently, her eyes set on the door as she knocked on it. When no one opened the door, she twisted the door knob and found that it was unlocked. She peeked her head inside and looked around and heard voices, but came back outside to look at Saruh. “So, it’s open and I hear people talking. Should we just….?” she motioned to the door and imitated them just barging inside. She didn’t want to be weird about it and ya know, get charged for breaking and entering? How awkward would that be?


Saruh rose a brow at the woman before her before shaking her head, and moving next to her. She glanced at the now open door and to the woman doing a mime imitation. “First of all, you already illegally went into the house so that ship has sailed. Second of all, if you don’t bring your skinny behind on..” she stated gently playfully patting her on the butt before entering in the home, “HEY GUYS YOUR FAVORITE UNICORN HAS ARRIVED.”

“Wait, Saruh-!” Imani didn’t have time to finish what she was going to say when Saruh went inside and gave her rear end a pat. Imani took a breath and walked after her best friend, smiling and the sounds of heels clicking against the floor following her. “The unicorn and her best friend.” she added with a light laugh, shaking her short honey blonde curls. Tonight she was going all natural for the night and mainly because she didn’t feel like straightening the curled mess. Her eyes looked over the place as she followed Saruh to the voices and for some reason she was feeling a little less self confident than she usually was. “No, you’re Imani. You don’t get self conscious.” she spoke softly under her breath, taking a deep breath and standing tall, her back straight and her head held high. Once she entered the kitchen she waved to everyone with a bright smile. Thank God for charcoal toothpaste.

 

[copacetic]

Sierra Saunders

It wasn't long before Sierra arrived at the party. She spent the car ride scrolling through her social media and responding to fans. Once she was there, she made her way to the door where two other women were. They let themselves in, so Sierra followed suit. She hung up her jacket and made her way into the party. She wasn't sure who else was supposed to be there, but she did hope that there would be more people she knew. She knew she would be fine if there wasn't, she'd just take the opportunity to meet the others that she will be working with.

She looked for the bar and put the champagne she brought with the rest of the cold drinks so she didn't have to carry it any longer. Plus, she didn't want to get caught in conversation and have it get warm. She returned to the area everyone else was milling about in. So far, she only recognized Imani, who turned out to be one of the women in front of her when she arrived, and Brice, though she was only acquaintances with each of them. She gave each a smile and a nod as a greeting.

 

[Melanin-Gxdess]

For the next few hours, the participants would drink and eat and mingle in Ailyn and Odi's apartment. Before the party really kicked off, she had taken Aidan to their neighbors home where he would spend the night. The old woman there loved the little family as if they were her own and would often offer to watch him for free. Of course, Ailyn would never do that so if she saw something in the apartment the woman lacked, she would buy it and send it to her as a gift. Once Ailyn returned to her apartment, she drank and mingled some more making sure to stay away from those who were going to cause her nothing but issues. This was her night and she wasn't going to let certain people ruin that for her. It wasn't too much longer before her models showed up and she excused herself, making her way upstairs. There were 5 models in total, all-female. Her show consisted of 30 different outfits, but she was only going to give them a small taste with 5 of her favorites.

The MUA and hairstylist were working while Ailyn put the girls in their outfits. Some weren't completely done but done enough to give someone an idea of what it would look like complete. There were a lot of apologies being expressed as the fashion designer's shaky hands kept pricking the girls with safety pins. It wasn't bad enough she already had bad nerves, but it seemed like it was amplified with the nervousness. Even though she wasn't going to tell anyone this, this was one of her biggest projects yet and she needed it to be a success. Her work defined her and her life and if this project was a bust then it meant all of her hard work was for nothing. Once the last model was dressed, makeup is done, and hair finished she walked back downstairs. Her hair was no longer down, but instead in a ponytail with strands of hair missed. She made the messy ponytail look quite nice. "Ladies and gentlemen," she started at the top of the stairs. "Thank you, planning committee, for joining us here today. I just know we're all going to be stressed in the upcoming months, which is why we hosted this little party. Now, to thank you for your hard work, here are a few pieces from the 'Untitled Winter Wonderland Project'." Walking down the rest of the stairs, she started the music lineup. Now, during the actual show, she was going to have the singer of the group actually perform but for now, they would have to settle for their radio system.

Of the 5 outfits, one was an actual formal dress, 2 of them were more so winter wonderland wedding. The last two were more of the over-the-topgala fits. The whole time, she was biting her thumb, knowing her nail tech was going to yell at her for doing so. She couldn't help if it was a nervous habit. The wine she had in her glass wasn't doing anything for her at the moment and a portion of her couldn't wait for it all to be over.

​

Jordan spent most of his night flirting with Tia and talking to his nerdy friends. Since he saw Ailyn on an almost regular, he felt he should get out and mingle with other people. Every time he drifted from Tia, he somehow made his way back to her. There was something about the woman, that was for sure, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Maybe it was the fact that she was sort of complicated that he liked, which was strange since he didn't like complications. She was a sweetheart also, which could be the reason he was overlooking that fact. While Ailyn was upstairs, Jordan secured himself a seat and pulled Tia over to join him. It seemed like the flirting between the two of them wasn't going to stop until his friend started her small reveal. Jordan liked a lot of the outfits that were shown and leaned over to Tia. "Now, which one of those do you want me to bid on during the Gala?"

 

[AkuTheWolfOkami]

LTJG Kortia Deneka Valentino

She hadn't expected to be able to successfully avoid Brice most of the night, and to be quite honest she probably wasn't able to. That was thing about being intoxicated. Things didn't always happen as you remembered. Otherwise the night had gone very smoothly, spending most of her time with Jordan and a cup of something. Drinking enough that she wouldn't be able to feel the emotions she was out running, but not drinking too much she couldn't control herself. After all, the last thing she wanted to do was embarrass herself in front of Jordan. Their flirting seemed to be non-stop, even managing to slip some in when they should have been paying more attention to what was going on.

Which was their friend showing off some of her new styles which did catch her eye a bit. She did after all, moonlight as a model when she was on leave and one of the businesses she owned was a fashion company with different labels. It was always neat to see other works though, especially when they were good. Her attention was drawn away from the simulated show when Jordan had spoken about which outfit she wanted him to bid on. She smiled with a chuckle as she looked back to the show.

She took a moment's pause before leaning back towards him, "That blue dress. I'm almost certain that anyone who wears that becomes Elsa." she joked a bit with a bright smile. She leaned back away from him before catching a glimpse of Brice and looking back to her feet and taking another swig of her drink. She ran her hand through her hair and looked at her nails. As long as this investigation was going to take, she would have the chance to get them done.


Direct Interactions: Jordan Aato

 

[Aster Sapphire]

It didn't take much for Ben to lose himself on the dance floor. A couple shots, a good song, and the woman who'd been eyeing from across the room all night made for the perfect. He even managed to get Jo to join him for a song. He wasn't sure how much time had passed before the heat began to get to him. He pushed through the pulsating bodies on the floor and back towards the bar where he chugged a club soda. "Having fun yet?"

Jo's lips didn't part from the straw of her Mai Tai as she raises a brow. She propped her chin on her fist and smiled. "Loads. Watching you try to stay on beat was grand ol time."

"Sounds like something a HATER would say but whatever. I'm all good. I'm cool." He laughed and wiped sweat from his brow. "speaking of cool I need to step out from some air. You all good?"

"If by good you mean one drink away from trying to imitate you, then I'm great"

"That's what I like to hear! Save me a dance aight? I'll be back." He gave her shoulder a genial pay before heading, picturing the relief of cold air in his skin. He stopped in his tracks when he caught sight of a familiar face. Jaw tightening as he sobered slightly. He swallowed thickly and approached his cousin, with his hands in his pockets to hide his twiddling fingers. "Hey," he called out as caught up to Lee. He searched him for any signs of a recent fight. "What's going on?" He asked as causally as he could but was hard to hide his disdain for Lee's profession.

"Here for business or pleasure?"

Direct interaction: Lee AkuTheWolfOkami

 

[AkuTheWolfOkami]

Detective Sergeant Alessia Torres

Her job had never gotten easier over the years, but days like this are the times that she sometimes wondered if she had made the right choice in college. The pursuit to become a detective, a special victims detective, instead of continue to chase her budding music career. She would have made it too. They were still circulating her older singles and sometimes some of the newer ones the label forced her to put or they threatened to sue. Yet today, the day after Christmas as she sat in her 1967 red candy painted chevelle outside of the residence of Odi Beckham Jr., she wondered if she was making the right decision.

In search of her own mother's files, she had come across some things about the Police Commissioner's history here in New York. She would be lying if she said she didn't peak at them, and she'd be lying if she didn't say she kept reading because it mirrored her own. Yet, there were some details that seemed to be blacked out that confused Lessi, causing her to dig deeper into things. Persons of interest, including a dead one. She followed that thread, but didn't get much into it and when she started asking questions she was turned away by everyone which only grew her suspicions.

So now, she was watching outside of the get together which was a who's who of popular people in the City. It was curious that the commissioner would attend and event like this, but she was the youngest ever to be put in this position, so perhaps it wasn't too strange to see her still act her age. She glanced to her phone, seeing her wife mention she had just picked up their son Gabriel, and wondering what time she'd be home. She bit her lip trying to think about it, before texting back, "shouldn't be long." When the message noted it was delivered she heard a smack on the roof of her car causing her to jump, as a familiar voice spoke.

"Evening Detective Torres, you missed me that much," came the voice of Lee as he leaned on her car.

Lessi rolled the window down and glanced to the man before her and sighed, "Mr. Tan, why am I not surprised you're here. You attending the party too?" she questioned before leaning back in the seat and shaking her head, "But no, for once I'm not here for you, though I feel like I should arrest you just because you're here."

Lee smiled rubbing his nose with the back of his hand as he leaned off the car. He laughed a bit, "Latinas are always spicy, huh? Was that stereotyping?"

"The word you're looking for is racist...."

"Latina isn't a race," he said with a sly smile, "Let's meet halfway and call it prejudice. Anyways, if you're not here for me then who are you here for? Nothing but goody good goods in there. You're SVU, yeah? Odi beating his fiancee? Gotta be that CTE man." he clicked his tongue twice and pointed to his head. Another chuckle slipped out, "I mean even so he ain't no Aaron Hernandez, so why are you here."

"You're so annoying, I'm not on duty so it doesn't even matter, " she stated gently before taking a bit a long sigh, "I have friends in there too you know."

"You have friends? I didn't think workaholics had those. Look, I'd love to chat with you on your off-duty probably not approved by your boss stakeout, but I have to go be apart of the place you're staking out, don't stay up too late, yeah?" with that he smacked the top of her car again and she rolled her eyes as he walked away.

She took in a deep breath before starting the car and pulling off....

Meanwhile, Tan was turning to head inside when he was stopped by his cousin and he rose a brow, before tilting his head, "Did you get shorter?" He held his hand up and waved off the question,"Business is my pleasure, but I'm here for the get together just like you, compadre. Amigo. Primo. Sorry about the Spanish, that latina detective just has me thinking about tacos for some reason. Anyways. What was your question again? "












interactions: Ben Melanin-Gxdess