City of Light | Open

[borahae.]

xxxx▬▬▬𝐉𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒 "𝐁𝐄𝐂𝐊" 𝐁𝐄𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐓𝐓
xxxxcismale • twenty-four • bisexual • tags: darcy • location: bookshop

Listening calmly as his companion spoke of her hometown and of how she was still so far from being a part of the French culture, able to understand to a small extent and allowing a smile to peak on his face, James tried to let himself loosen up and not think so much as he bravely inquired more "Norway... That's quite far. What're you here in Paris for?" Leaning his slender body up against the counter, resting his hip against the side of it with his arms folded across his chest, James' moment of courage ended and he raised one hand up as if to surrender his words "Ah, you don't have to answer that, of course! I'm just a curious mind, I guess"

Standing in momentary silence after his words echoed through the shop, a solemn look on his face as his eyes wandered across the shop and tried to place his ex wife among the shelves, James didn't have too much time to mourn before an gentle hand reached out to comfort him and left him to shiver against the touch. Turning his attention to Darcy, offering a toothy smile and a slight blush, the male rested one of his own hands on the spot where the female had just touched on his forearm and let out a nostalgic response "Yeah...Thank you, Darcy. It's just...it's hard some days, sure, but I try my best to keep busy and keep positive. I don't think she'd want to see anyone feeling sad, so I try not to be."

Watching as the Norwegian girl set the money down on the counter, admittedly confused as to why she'd even put it down in the first place, James looked back up at her eyes and let out a breathy chuckle "You're right, I won't be taking that...Just consider it a gift of sorts, in return for your company- even if it was just for today." Speaking to her as she drifted to the doorway, the male could feel his loneliness settle back in and hurriedly grabbed for the money on the counter, making his way over to her and handing it back with a shy smile "Ah, wait, here!" Hesitating, as if questioning what to do next, the boy sought after that confidence from before and reached down into the front pocket of his apron to pull out a pad of paper and a pen, scribbling down his phone number and name before tearing the page out and handing it off as well "Here, take this, too...I know we just met, but if you need anything, don't hesitate to reach out; Any friend of Emma's is a friend of mine."

[Graveyard_Melodies]

𝒟𝑜𝓂𝒾𝓃𝒾𝒸 𝐿𝑒𝓌𝒾𝓈
male-21-bi-sexual
tags; Lennon

Dominic listened to Lennon talk, the coy grin melting into a rather warm smile. His heart seemed to swell as Lennon began talking about how passionate he was about painting. What was up with him? Why was he feeling all giddy? This didn't usually happen with other people he'd casually flirt with. But, then again; this time it wasn't all that casual. Dom couldn't put his finger on it, but something about Lennon made every bone in his body scream stay with him.

He parted his lips a bit, intending to answer, but was interrupted by the waitress approaching. This made him purse his lips, sliding the closed menu away from him a bit. Dominic seemed to be a little entranced with his thoughts; until Lennon broke him out of it by calling him 'Nicci'.

"Hm? Oh, lemonade; and I second the waffles choice," Dominic chuckled a bit. "However- Lose the blueberries, smother it in peanut butter," He clicked his tongue, doing finger guns at the Waitress. "Please and thank you,". He felt a little kiddish asking for peanut butter; but despite the eyebrow raise from the waitress, she seemed to write it down. So that was a bit more relief on his part. He always had his waffles with peanut butter, thank goodness this place was willing to do that.

"Anyway," Dom cleared his throat, looking at Lennon. "I think it's amazing how you view painting," He commented, smiling genuinely at the other. "I was kind of dealt with the same cards; Mom and Dad didn't quite like that I wanted to be a photographer..." He bit the inside of his cheek a bit. "Didn't think it was a 'real' job...so I kinda hitched a ride with my sister here." he breathed, his eyes leaving Lennon for a brief moment. He usually didn't talk about this kind of stuff with a lot of people...especially ones he'd only met moments ago; but he just felt so...open with Lennon.


𝒜𝓃𝓉𝑜𝒾𝓃𝑒𝓉𝓉𝑒 𝐿𝑒𝓌𝒾𝓈

Female-20-demisexual
tags;Jesica Roberts

"Oh, gosh, I'm sorry!" Anny felt quite embarrassed mis-gendering the canine. Her cheeks flushed a considerable amount of red as she turned a bit, hiding behind her hair. "Ah, yeah," she nodded at the girl's response, looking down at her feet. She felt a little more relieved as her curiosity was dismissed.

"Sorry If I'm...awkward..." She admitted, giving a small sigh. "I'm not really good at this whole communicating thing." She gave a small chuckle, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. Ever since Anny was a kid, she'd always had trouble speaking to other people. Old habits die hard.

[jj735]

Darcy Olsen|female|22|heterosexual|tag(s): James Beckett|

I

Although Darcy hated having the attention of the conversation thrown back at her, she answered James, calm and collected, even as her mind was running free...
"I don't mind answering your question -
I moved here when I was 20 because I was awarded a scholarship place at the IFA Paris fashion school course. A bit of a mouthful, that one."
Here, she almost chuckled.
It was certainly odd for Darcy, talking so much...yet could not deny she enjoyed James' company.
She was really quite intrigued by one fact;
she could never seem to talk to anyone, but suddenly she was so...so comfortable.

"Oh, I'll probably drop by tomorrow as well - I'd like to buy a copy of 'Wuthering Heights' for my little sister, Emilie.
I persuaded her into reading a novel by at least one of the Brontë sisters.
They really are quite fantastic, don't you think?"
Now, this wasn't exactly true... Emilie had never agreed to read the book.
Darcy was going to send it to Norway all the same, though.
Part of the young woman knew that she was just making an excuse to drop by tomorrow, too.

II
Darcy smiled and shook her head when James gave her the money back, as she had known he would.
On one hand, it was courteous...on the other, it was frustrating.
A gift, he had said.
The young lady had an idea then.
"Here, I've also a 'gift' for you,"

"please, take a biscuit, I've not much a taste for them myself."
Quietly, she spoke again, almost out of earshot, "Kept 'em from a poorly old woman."
Oops, he may have heard that..."Erm, nothing, just ignore me."
She let out a giggle, and, to her relief, they were both laughing.

III
Suddenly, the moment was over, and the two of them were standing in silence once more.
When James handed her his number, she noticed something.
It was scrawled in a style close to the handwriting Darcy's father often used in his letters from Norway.
Careless, yet neat - free but legible.
Thankful and rather content, Darcy took the slip of paper.

Darcy was unsure of how to say goodbye, adieu.
She stood a little taller and gave him a tiny kiss on the cheek, overwhelmed by how natural it felt.
Often, when she would watch the French do this, she had imagined it to be more awkward.
Ah, the awkwardness hits afterwards, she thought. Crap.
"I'm still not getting used to how touch-y feel-y the French are, I must admit."

[Consulting_Angel]

Kendall Howard|Nonbinary|22|bisexual|tag(s): Maggie

They watched as Magnolia searched through the racks of dresses, rather drawn in by the way she searched. At each dress - that was promptly placed back on the rack - they were tempted to say that it would be fine. They didn't want the dressmaker to do too much, but they did very much appreciate it. A mere acknowledgement would surely not be enough, but they struggled to think of anything else that they could do. A monetary payment would likely not be accepted - they got that sort of vibe from Magnolia. Something else... they would ponder it for a while, until, finally, one dress was pulled out

Kendall looked over the dress carefully. Yes, it was perfect... it fit their vision well, and they could already imagine how they would translate the image into words. Although... even as Magnolia had mentioned something was missing, they couldn't help but silently agree. "Oh. I couldn't ask you to do that." Kendall said, but they doubted that would sway her from making the changes anyway. However, it would mean that they'd be able to see each other again... and they could definitely see it with crystals and beading - fine work, and they always liked a challenge when it came to writing, to create intricate images in the reader's mind. "Well..." Kendall said, "if you insist, then I will have to pay you back somehow," they decided, an idea coming to mind. "Allow me to take you to lunch at some point. Wherever you want to go. I'll pay."

Merrick Pearce|Transmale|20|bisexual|tag(s): William

He grinned. "Oh, it is. I don't use it much, but it has been quite useful." Merrick replied. After all, he thought, he had to be focused on ballet, considering that was the focus of the school he was attending, and he did prefer the discipline and precision that ballet required. It was difficult, but elegant, and worth every effort he put into it. And he was definitely aiming to get the role of the male lead again this year. He just had to keep working at it...

Having just realised the artist had introduced himself, Merrick quickly refocused. "It's nice to meet you as well, William." he replied. Then, he nodded slightly when he had answered the question Merrick had. "Oh that's nice. I hear both can be interesting to work with." He commented, then he raised an eyebrow. "What brings you to Paris, then? To paint?"

[Spiritstar3]

Jesica Roberts- f- 25- pan- tags: Antoinette

“Oh no; it’s fine” she said with a small smile. She glanced down to the black dog, smiling at him. She chose not to say anything about the blush, or her hiding like that. “If you care to know...He’s got Japanese roots. One or both grandparents were from Japan,” she said with another sweet and gentle smile.

“Its fine; you must be lucky if I’m talking to you; I’m...shy,” she said with a small nod. She meant like super shy, considering she’d always had trouble making friends...She shook her head back and forth a few times.

William T Speare- m- 18 or 19- bi, guys more- tags: Merrick

He said “That sounds amazing; that it’s useful I mean, even if you use it little.” He nodded his head a few times then, before stopping himself. He then began to hum quietly again, wondering if he could paint him...He’d ask permission, of course. He hummed and nodded to himself, deciding to try asking soon.

He hummed and noticed the other male then looking at him again. “Thank you very much then Merrick,” he said, though wasn’t sure why he thanked him...He nodded again, saying “Yes, they are quite unique and both serve their purpose. I like them both.” He nodded to him, then tilted his head a bit. “Oh, there was an, um...an opportunity from my school; to come here.”

[A m n e s i a]

Red hair... by menard_mickael, on Flickr

full name→ Charlotte 'Lottie' Quinn
date of birth→ May 12th, 1997
place of birth→ Northside Dublin, Ireland
gender→ Female
s.o./sexuality→ Pansexual
job→ Bartender

hobbies→ Videogames, drawing/animating, reading, and..."Does sleeping count?"
likes→ Cats, spiders, telling stories from her job, watching cartoons, and playing with her cat at home(named her Rayla)
dislikes→ Dogs(stems from being attacked by one at a young age), wearing dresses(likes looking at them though), and needing to deal with rowdy customers.

+ traits→ Precise, Clever & Observant
= traits→ Stubborn & Skeptical
- traits→ Abrasive, Opinionated & Blunt

Lottie lived in Dublin for most of her life and something that always interested her was cartoons. She originally came to Paris for college, as she had gotten into one for animation, but eventually she dropped out. Feeling ashamed, she didn't want to go back to her family and decided to get a job as a bartender since she has worked as one before. However, a part of her still wants to become an animator but another part of her tells her she doesn't stand a chance.

[borahae.]

xxxx▬▬▬𝐉𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒 "𝐁𝐄𝐂𝐊" 𝐁𝐄𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐓𝐓
xxxxcismale • twenty-four • bisexual • tags: darcy • location: bookshop

Relieved when Darcy responded to his inquiry, glad to see that such a personal question wasn't going to end the abrupt friendship, James returned his companion's amused banter with a laugh of his own, nodding in agreement "Yeah, it is, isn't it?" Allowing his light laughter to settle, the male pushed a few curls from his face before returning to the previous topic "So...fashion, huh? By the title, I assume the school is pretty prestige...it's impressive. Your scholarship, I mean."

While James was undoubtedly an introvert, easily hiding away from the world in the shelves of his bookshop, he found talking with the brunette to be easy- enjoyable, even. He expected that was due to the fact that Darcy had known his wife when she was still alive, and that he had finally found someone who could understand the difficulties of loosing someone so important in your life, but even that seemed stretched. Maybe it was just a momentary sort of thing; a boost of confidence given to him through the bright sun, brisk paris wind, and caffeine.

As if he'd then realized the reason why Darcy was able to help the male crawl out of his shell, the talk of her returning with a book in mind leaving him with a wide smile etched on his face, James beamed and enthusiastically agreed with her question "Their novels are almost lyrical, weaving you through these incredible plots and attaching you to these characters with little effort; honestly, when I was a teenager, Wuthering Heights was my favorite novel. I had this copy of it that was torn nearly to shreds, and when I was sitting beside this huge fountain in the middle of the city, I had accidentally dropped it in and it completely fell apart, the pages floating about in the water. It was terrible, having to go and fetch them all just to throw them out." A bit nostalgic, James laughed at the memory before shyly moving on, not realizing how much he'd just rambled "A-anyways, I'll be looking forward to it! I'll set a copy aside for you, or well, your sister; I'm sure that she'll love it."

As if accepting his own stubbornness as the female shook her head, smiling nonetheless, James chuckled and couldn't help but to raise a brow as she said she had a gift to give as well. Only then noticing the basket she had in hand, James watched as she opened the lid and hesitantly obliged, reaching a slender hand forward and grabbing a biscuit from it before offering his appreciation "Ah, are you sure?...well, thank you, regardless. I've got a bit of a sweet tooth, always have." Turning around, James reached across to the back of the counter and grabbed a napkin from underneath, setting the French dessert down on it before returning his attention back to Darcy and laughing along as she quietly muttered about keeping the basket to herself.

Feeling awkward once again as the silence enclosed the two of them, his posture again tense as the oncoming goodbye lingered over them, James was about to brave breaking the tension but was stunned silent when the female reached upwards and kissed his cheek. Absolutely certain that he'd turned as red as a tomato, not used to such open affection, James barely heard Darcy's words but still managed to stutter a response out "O-oh, yeah...In Chicago, the most you'll get is a 'get moving'...I-its different, for sure."

[jj735]

(Accepted )

[jj735]

Darcy Olsen|female|22|heterosexual|tag(s): James Beckett|

I

Darcy felt she shouldn't leave the store without answering James; "yeah, it's a really great opportunity.".
She listened intently to the flow of James' words, captivated by and agreeing with each point he made.
"Oh my goodness, that must have been quite sad!" She commented about his story.
Something about him made her want to share the world - living her life, she was alone.

When he mentioned the book for Emilie, she turned quite red.
Of course, James wouldn't have known that she was fibbing about her 18 year old sister randomly taking to reading 'Wuthering Heights', but she still felt bad.
She watched as his curly hair slightly shifted as he moved his head.
Darcy would have liked curly hair - she was stuck with slightly wavy chestnut hair instead.
Hmph.
II
She was surprised when James accepted the biscuit, seeing as they were near strangers.
What had their mothers taught them?
She grinned, placing the cover back over the small basket.
"Yes, I do get spoilt in France - so many lovely pastries!"

Darcy could still feel a slight...tingling feeling - she still was a little uneasy after kissing a total stranger, even if it was only a 'peck on the cheek'. What odd things they did in France...
If she was honest with herself, Darcy didn't actually know where Chicago was.
She knew it wasn't in Norway, she doubted it was in France.
Maybe England? Or was it America?

III
As she strolled through the crowded streets, she did not feel the same as usual.
She was not annoyed or afraid, not anxious or irritated. She felt like an extra piece had been added to her jigsaw puzzle of life.
Maybe the puzzle was near complete.
Or maybe it was just getting started..?

The air smelled even more welcoming than Darcy remembered.
Suddenly, she could smell the savoury dishes served in French cafe's, the sweet aroma of market stall foods in the bay -
she could even smell her own perfume, Chanel No.5.
It was as if her senses had heightened.

She danced up each step of the unnecessarily long staircase that led to the IFA design school building.
The clerk at the counter eyed her up before asking her name.
"Darcy Olsen - Je suis étudiant ici.""épelé; O L S E N." She added, still smiling.

"Ah, tu es Darcy...pourquoi si heureux?" came the reply.
Of course, they both could guess why. It was the 'city of romance', after all.
Darcy gave a small nod and entered the building.
She was bright red in the cheeks, grinning like a madman... and for once, she felt good.


(*Darcy said to the woman at the counter:
"Darcy Olsen - I'm a student here." "Spelled 'O L S E N'."
**The woman behind the counter replied:
"Ah, you are Darcy ... why so happy?")

[Empress Coven]

Coven Grim-Blood|female|21|bisexual|tag(s): Open

Coven had just left the daycare she worked at, deciding it would be a good idea for her to stop at her favorite coffee shop for her eight times a day coffee. She loved the atmosphere of the shop and the workers were always so nice, she walked in and as if on cue they already had her coffee prepared. The female paid and chatted for a few minutes with the workers before starting to head back to her studio apartment,