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Alchemist
#101 Old 2nd Apr 2010 at 1:50 PM
Default Lavinia, Danny and Rio - The VIP Lounge



Cornered by a fan while you were trying to unwind with some friends...in the eyes of many, a downright nuisance, a reason to be annoyed even. Lavinia, though, took a somewhat different approach to the whole thing: to her, there wasn't a world of difference between a fan and a new acquaintance, just like her "rockstar" persona blended casually into that of Lavinia Sinclair, the private person. She considered herself fairly adept at telling the "fad" fans, the ones fawning over this or that celebrity because they happened to be popular, apart from those who had more substance to them, though she appreciated all of them, in their ways. There was a sense of pride and accomplishment at seeing the crowd get bigger and bigger with each performance, and at such times all that mattered was giving people a good show. Who could say they were unaffected by the sight of an entire mass of people chanting along to their every word, cheering with abandon? Not Lavinia, for sure.

Even though time spent with friends was considered private time, free of most standards and expectations imposed by her status as a public person, she was well used to making new acquaintances, since everyone tended to bring along a girlfriend or boyfriend or a friend of a friend and so on, who needed to be integrated into the group. Lavinia tended to go with the flow, switching her attention back and forth until a conversation struck, and whether the person in question might also have been a fan or not, no longer made much difference. It helped weed out those with nothing interesting to say quite effortlessly. As far as Emo Boy was concerned, she'd yet to form a definite opinion, so she didn't dismiss him yet.

"Rio Vance", he introduced himself, then indicated his companion, "Brad Dreyer. He's with Tears of Andromeda."

Lavinia's brows arched in contemplation, nodding: she'd never heard of the band, and made a mental note to check it out; she liked to keep herself in the know.

"Wait", Arnold interrupted, causing a few brows to furrow in confusion, including Rio's own "Didn't you say your last name was something else before?"

Lavinia, too, aimed an expectant look his way, somewhat curious to see what his explanation would be. Aliases were quite common in their line of work, and fans were just as fond of them as their idols.

"Uhh...", Rio hesitated, "Yeah, that was my real name. I go by 'Vance' too. For work."

Work, huh? Lavinia thought. She wondered what exactly that work entailed; he'd indicated Brad was in a band, but said nothing about himself being in one. Apparently on the same wavelength, Arnold countered with: "What do you do?"

"I... model... sort of" the young man replied with some reluctance, causing Lavinia to lean back in her chair, a sly sort of grin emerging on her face: that comment had piqued her interest. Rio, however, didn't elaborate, and instead turned to her:

"You're in Deus Ex Machina, right? I'm a friend of Lara, Dominic's girlfriend?" he asked.


Ah, so his presence there wasn't quite so random after all
. Lavinia's eyes widened slightly, a flash of surprise mingling with another thought: oh shit, Nicky! He'd been gone for a while, she couldn't help but wonder how the talk with Lara was going, and if he was missing any vital bodyparts yet.

"Small world," she commented. "Yep, I'm the keyboardist and resident female member of Deus Ex Machina."

She paused a moment, thought about it, then leaned with her elbows upon the table as she let her inquisitive gaze sweep over him:

"So, what kind of modelling do you do? I've done a bit of it myself, it's a sort of hobby of mine."

Several chuckles erupted around the table at the sound of that comment, and knowing glances were exchanged.

"I love the dominatrix one," Arnold commented at her side, smirking openly. "Meow!"

Lavinia quirked a brow, challenged him with it, then punched him playfully in the side.

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
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#102 Old 4th Apr 2010 at 2:10 PM Last edited by AtropaMandragora : 4th Apr 2010 at 4:59 PM. Reason: spelling
Default Rio with Lavinia and Daniel - VIP lounge


When it came to the line of business he was in, to help put himself through college, Rio wasn't ashamed. Not in the least. It was good money, he didn't have to do anything he didn't want to do, and what he did do, he had a lot of fun doing. In more ways than one. Yes, there were of course times when even a teenaged guy wasn't in the mood for sex - although they did tend to be rare - or when he wasn't feeling particularly sexy, but that was usually fairly easily solved, since there didn't exactly tend to be a lack of willingness to help once he was on the set. Heck, Rio himself had done it with others when they'd been either nervous or having a bit of a bad day, the former having even resulted in what was supposed to be one guy's solo shoot, turning into an impromptu duo shoot instead. And boy, what a rush that one had been. It had been even more real than the other shoots, because there hadn't been a given scenario or anything, and so rather than the 95% genuine shoots they usually did, had been a perfect 100% genuine, and frankly, one of the shoots that Rio had enjoyed the most, so far.

So, no indeed, Rio himself wasn't ashamed of what he did to put himself through college. It was just that most others, when they found out, tended to seem to think that he should be. Unsurprisingly, the adult business wasn't one people looked upon favourably, and it still wasn't socially, politically nor morally acceptable for someone, especially a young man still in his teens, to partake in "lewd acts" for money. And with people of his own gender at that. For shame!

Though none of this was why he'd first hesitated when Arnold had asked about his profession, or why he'd kind of sugar-coated his initial reply. That, he'd done because while there might be a little exhibitionist hiding within him, he wasn't one to just shove his career in people's faces. He had no need for going around and announcing it first chance he got, just to provoke or shock people. The fact that he got intimate with other young men for the enjoyment of others - and, obviously, both himself and his partner as well - didn't concern everyone he met. In fact, there might even be those who'd prefer not to know, and Rio respected that, because at least it was honest and, in a way, even admirable. There were plenty of haters, judgemental hypocrites, and chaste goody two-shoes who couldn't wait to get up on their soapbox as soon as they came face to face with something they didn't like or approve of, and that rather than focusing on the good in their life, or at least accomplishing something through positive effort, preferred to attack, accuse and condemn.

Furthermore, in this particular case, one of the people present was his half sister. At least that's what all his research had lead him to believe. Lavinia herself didn't know it yet, and so Rio wanted to play his cards right here, in order to get off to a good start with her. He hadn't at all been planning to tell her about his career, for that very reason. But, now that it had sort of almost come up anyway, he had to wonder... Maybe it was better for her to find out about his career before she found out about him being her brother? That way, whatever reaction it caused, would be as objective as it could be, without it being affected by something as likely to make things far more subjective, as knowing that it was your brother. He'd get to see what her actual unbiased (whether good bias or bad) reaction would be. For yes, even though he'd dodged the subject, and done it in a rather blatant way, Rio didn't expect his change of topic to last eternally. He was very well aware that sooner or later, it was likely to come back around again. If for no other reason, than because with a table full of musicians that had been made to model themselves in photoshoots for articles and interviews written about them in magazines, there was the chance that what Rio had just said, would lead to the sharing of these experiences, and that sooner or later, a question might be aimed his way.

And what do you know; after having confirmed that she was indeed "the keyboardist and resident female member of Deus Ex Machina", Lavinia then leaned a little closer on the table, with curiosity in her eyes as she looked at him.

"So, what kind of modelling do you do?", she asked. "I've done a bit of it myself, it's a sort of hobby of mine."

Ah, yeah, having spent quite some time looking her up on the internet, in his attempt to try and find some piece of evidence or useful information in establishing whether or not she could really be his half sister, Rio had come across quite a few images of her. Some clearly just from the aforementioned interviews and articles about her or the band, but also some that... had clearly not been meant for the mainstream media. Suggestive ones, nudes even, but nudes of the artistic kind. As opposed to the rather salacious kind that Rio himself did. And judging by the reactions that her comment got from the others around the table, he wasn't the only one to have seen them.

"I love the dominatrix one", Arnold leered mischievously at her. "Meow!"

The comment earned him a few more chuckles from around the table, along with an amused smile from Rio, a somewhat more coy one from Daniel, and, after a challenging look from Lavinia, a quick playful jab to the ribs to top it all off. Though that in turn set off a brief session of a few of the other guys chiming in to voice their appreciation for Lavinia's art, and so it was only a couple of seconds later, when Lavinia's attention returned to Rio in wait for his response, that he gave another faint, casual smile, along with his reply;

"Adult", he said. "I do adult modelling."

A beat. A split second of surprised silence among the few that had heard him, as though they thought they might have heard him wrong. He even saw Daniel's eyes widen in unexpected shock.

"Wait, what?", Arnold then said. "You mean porn?"

Rio's lips parted in a grin of amusement at his reaction, which was one of the two he'd come to expect these days.

"I guess that's one word for it, yeah", he confirmed, and turned his gaze back to Lavinia, since it was mainly her reaction he was interested in. Yet, since he at the same time wanted to give her an easy out, should she feel she wanted or needed one, he went on to add; "And yeah, I think I've seen a couple of shots. Really nice work. I read somewhere that the concepts were your own ideas?"


(((ooc: Hope it works?)))

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Alchemist
#103 Old 12th Apr 2010 at 5:45 PM Last edited by Ghanima Atreides : 13th Apr 2010 at 10:47 AM.
Default Lavinia, Danny and Rio - The VIP Lounge



There wasn't much that could shock Lavinia Sinclair. Between her, the guys, and the rest of the people they've come across over the years they'd played together as a band, they'd explored taboos, indulged in vices and revelled in what many would consider outrageous excesses. It came with the territory, and if you were the type of person who could handle the lifestyle you weren't particularly prudish to begin with.

For Lavinia, it all dated back before her rockstar days, in her wild teen years, when she was comparatively even less inhibited than nowadays. Now she didn't need to get completely wasted every night to enjoy herself, a comfortable buzz was often enough, nor did she absolutely need to bed every guy she had a chance with – if it felt right and things lead that way, sure; if not, flirting and dancing were also great fun on their own. Back then however, it had been about making a statement, proving a point: that she was on par with the baddest boys in the group and pretending she didn't give a fuck about what others thought of her when, in fact, it was precisely what she did. One of the things which used to rile her up most was the "daddy issues" jibe sometimes aimed her way, and she would have argued against it to death. In hindsight, Lavinia didn't think her father's complete absence from her life affected her most, it was the pity she got from others and the expectation that she should be devastated because of it. What they didn't get was that she'd never even met the guy, nor seen as much as a picture – there had always been a kind of mutual understanding between Lavinia and her mother, that he was topic best left dead and buried, though there used to be some anger over the principle of abandoning your daughter before she was even born. The rejection stung. Lately, there was mostly indifference.

Lavinia was glad to have outgrown that period of her life. She was glad she had enough confidence and self-esteem to be who she was, this time without trying to prove anything to anyone, even if that meant doing things mainstream society frowned upon. It was liberating, and she felt respect for those who followed the same principle, even when it entailed something she'd do herself. She also knew that being entirely open about it before a bunch of strangers could sometimes be intimidating, so when Rio just straight-out admitted it was adult modelling he did, without the attitude of someone looking to provoke, he earned himself a brownie point from her. Not to say she was unsurprised – on the contrary, because it wasn't the answer she'd expected and even in her circle people doing Rio's line of work were rare. No, it was a surprise alright, obvious in the way her eyes widened slightly and her brows shot upwards, but it wasn't followed by a look of rejection or distaste. Instead, she gave a slow nod of acknowledgement, much like she would've done if he'd told her he was a door-to-door salesman. She studied him in this new light, because once again he proved himself to be not what she'd expected, the tiniest of smirks touching her lips as she was unable to keep certain naughty thoughts from entering her mind – hey, he was cute!

"Wait, what?", Arnold cut in. "You mean porn?"

Lavinia chuckled; trust Arnold to be blunt about it. Rio however didn't shrink back in embarrassment, nor did he flare up in indignation – another point, because it suggested he was comfortable with it, and instead admitted:

"I guess that's one word for it, yeah", then turned back to her: "And yeah, I think I've seen a couple of shots. Really nice work. I read somewhere that the concepts were your own ideas?"

Lavinia leaned back and gazed at him with interest: he'd done his homework alright. Not unusual if he was a fan, but she was starting to suspect that was only part of the story – after all, being friends with Lara as well and just happening to come across her table...too many coincidences. Though soon, her lips pulled apart into a wide grin: Lavinia loved discussing her modelling, especially the concepts.

"Thanks", she said brightly, "Yeah, most of them are my own concepts actually. Because of that I've had to fund quite a few myself but the freedom of expression and creativity were worth it. That's really the reason why I do it, to try and convey a certain vision, or inspire a certain feeling...and because it's great fun."

That was certainly true; it was her pet project, her hobby, not a primary moneymaker. As for the fact that most of the people at that table had technically seen her naked, it didn't bother Lavinia; to her, the human body wasn't inherently sexual, and while there was certainly allure to those particular photos, she actually didn't consider them to be her most provocative ones. Yes, she was nude, and they were meant to be seductive, but delicate and ethereal rather than blatantly erotic. She had others where she thought were more suggestive though she wore clothes, and that was the idea: provocative without being pornographic. That, however, was simply what she wanted to do. Rio doing something different was ok with her, and as it turned out everyone else at the table as well, judging by the way the flow of conversation was soon restored following that momentary pause, and nobody seemed fazed. Just to make sure Danny wasn't feeling overwhelmed or ignored, Lavinia extended her arm over the backrest and technically his shoulders, giving him a quick, but encouraging grin.

"It amuses me to read some of the comments on my message board though– nudity and implied sado-masochism, I must be a pervert! But I guess you must get that a lot too, huh?"

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
Scholar
Original Poster
#104 Old 13th Apr 2010 at 7:21 PM
Default Lara and Dominic - Outside


“I love you.”

Some people hear it all the time, and others are unfortunate enough to never really have it said to them. Lara was glad she wasn’t in the second group, because the thing about love is that it made you a better person to give it and to receive it. Familial love, for Lara, was always there. It was unconditional, and yes, like everyone, there were times she took it for granted, but she’d learned to treasure and appreciate it even at a young age. Regardless of what happened, they were her family, she’d shared her entire life with them, and she loved them with all her heart, just how they loved her.

But Lara wasn’t of the belief that love made everything better, because she knew Dominic’s family, and despite the love and waxing and waning affection between the four of them, she knew love didn’t fix all the problems and seal all the cracks once they’d been made. As much as she wished that it did solve everything, it just didn’t.
So, she didn’t believe in the miracle powers of love, but it didn’t stop her from sincerely giving it.

Like to Dominic. It was a foolish ideal to assume that a high school romance would last forever, and that he’d be the only one for her. Lara might not have accepted that, but she did know it, because everyone said it, time and again. The spiteful girls at school had said it, Luke had said it, her college friends had said it... she’d heard it over and over again. And she saw the logic behind it; at 22, you’re not the same person you were when you were 16, and neither is the other person. That is the point in your life that you change the most and so, it was natural to grow up and grow apart. Especially if you lead as different lives as she and Dominic did. It made sense.
But it felt wrong to believe in that, to buy into that cynical logic. Because it felt right when she was with him, it felt like they belonged, it felt like home. Down beneath all the fire and energy of Dominic’s presence, there was peace for her share with him. Of course she’d grown to believe that yes, they’d grown, but they’d grown together.
She was wrong.

Lara knew better than to accept that love excused everything. Yes, she was shy and retiring and probably a little too nice for her own good, but she was level-headed enough underneath her own romantic idealism. Him saying he loved her didn’t fix all of it, it didn’t excuse any of it, and it didn’t make it hurt any less. He cheated. He betrayed her trust and God, it hurt so bad that it felt like someone’s icy hand was slowly crushing her heart from the inside.
Him telling her he loved her didn’t make it do away.
It made it worse. Because it’d have made sense if he just didn’t love her or want her anymore, that he just didn’t care.

"What it means...?" he began, the abstractness of the question throwing him as much as his revelation had thrown her. "It means... the same as it's always meant?”
That he’d never let her down? That she was the only one for him?
No.
“It means that I love you, as much as I always have. That I want to be with you, that I can't imagine my life without you. That... I'm really, really sorry. I've just..."

Hot tears shut her eyes involuntarily and it was her turn to look away, teeth gently digging into the soft flesh of her lower lip as she held back the threatening sob that lingered in her throat, her resolve wavering as his touch slid so tenderly up her arm to hold her cheek and she hated that she’d forgive him almost anything.

"You know what playing does to me,” he spoke again, and she didn’t dare look back up at him. "Right? There's all this raw, exhiLarating energy raging inside of me, and it's just so hard to act like there isn't. You know? And I need an outlet for it. I'm a guy, I need sex, and....”
And she didn’t? He didn’t know how much she wanted him? She knew of Dominic’s appetite, and she knew how hers paled in comparison, but she wanted him, in every way.
“Lara, I'm sorry. I really am. I won't do it again. Okay?"
She was sorry. She was sorry at how much she wanted to believe him, and how much she already did, and how stupid she felt for it, but... how do you say no when almost every fibre of your being, when your wounded heart screams yes?
You can’t.
She didn’t even think about it when she tiptoed slightly, her lips gently and fleetingly pushing against his before pulling away, eyes intently baring into his.

“I need to trust you again,” she spoke slowly, her dry throat moistening as she swallowed to make her stance. “For us. Tell me how I can do that... because I want to.”

"Life is just a chance to grow a soul" - A. Powell Davies
Retired Moderator
retired moderator
#105 Old 15th Apr 2010 at 9:03 PM
Default Rio with Lavinia and Daniel


Despite the controversy surrounding his line of work, and such controversy usually being enough for any target to make the matter a huge part of their life, Rio didn't consider himself mainly an adult model/actor. That was only secondary, if even that. First and foremost, he considered himself a college student, and he found it both amusing and sad, how when other people found out about his studies first, and then his work, the student part of him often vanished from their minds, and the work part of him started dominating their idea of him. All of a sudden, he was no longer a fairly carefree, easy-going young man in his late teens, with a good sense of humour and a knack for photography. Oh no, all of a sudden he was perverted and immoral, sick even, and had most likely been sexually abused as a child. He had to be an addict who only did what he did for money to support his habit. There was no end to their flow of absurd theories. Rio had literally seen the U-turn their minds had made, when they'd found out. The few people that had. Most still knew him only as one or the other; friend and student, or online adult model. Rarely had the two been combined, though it had of course happened. And when it did, that was usually the reaction he got, and those who'd found out ended up either condemning him, or pitying him.

Though by now, he'd gotten used to it, and he didn't let it hamper him when getting to know new people. He wouldn't let them pigeonhole him, but instead would go about the conversation as the person that he was, rather than the one they thought him to be, or were trying to make him into, in order to fit their preconceived notions. Hence his interest in and knowledge of Lavinia's own work as a model; as an aspiring photographer, he'd of course paid extra attention to the photoshoot pictures he'd seen of her, and had been excited when coming across the more artistic ones, and the tidbit mentioning how many of them were her own ideas, concepts and creations. It piqued his curiosity with her even more, and gladdened him, because that meant they had a big interest in common, and thus something to talk about and explore, should all go well. Like her, he enjoyed talking about the subject of photography and everything it entailed, and he absolutely loved to discuss it with others who shared his passion for it, and exchange tips and experiences.

Thus, it was with enthusiasm coming alive in his dark eyes, that he listened to her reply to his question, having registered with great relief that her reaction to his revelation didn't seem to be in any way bad, but instead that of calm albeit thoughtful acceptance, following an initial moment of surprise. (As opposed to the young gentleman next to her, who looked mostly like a kid who'd just walked in on his parents in the bedroom or something; traumatized.)

"Thanks", Lavinia said as her face lit up with a grin. "Yeah, most of them are my own concepts actually. Because that I've had to fund quite a few myself but the freedom of expression and creativity were worth it. That's really the reason why I do it, to try and convey a certain vision, or inspire a certain feeling...and because it's great fun."

Oh, how he could relate to that. It was exactly why he himself had fallen in love with photography; because it was such a versatile way of expressing oneself, by portraying your own feelings, or those of others, or even invoking them yourself. You could tell a story, whether truth or fantasy, with a series of pictures, or just a single one. The possibilities were endless.
And, in a way, what she'd just said about it all could also be said about the kind of shoots that Rio himself did. Kind of. Although in his case, the concepts weren't really his own (not until he made them so, anyway), and the feelings and visions they were meant to inspire were very, very different from what he assumed Lavinia meant.
But still, he understood perfectly what she was talking about, because he could relate.

"It amuses me to read some of the comments on my message board though", Lavinia added, after shooting her young companion a smile as if to say she hadn't forgotten about him, "... – nudity and implied sado-masochism, I must be a pervert! But I guess you must get that a lot too, huh?"

At that, a soft laugh emitted from Rio's slender frame. Ah yes, the aforementioned crowd of bigots, and their precious dogmas and prejudice. Yup, he'd had to witness his fair share of their reactions, and much like Lavinia had indicated, it could be amusing at times.
Yet, even so, when came time for his reply moments later, it was delivered with a light shaking of his head;

"Not as much as you'd think", he said with a smile. "At least not online. Face to face, that's another matter, but the site I work for requires paid memberships, and as zealous as the right-wingers and Bible-thumpers are, most of them just won't cough up the doe to get access. Though I'll admit, we all do still get our fair share of hate mail, both because it's adult, and because it's gay-oriented;" - his eyes widened slightly in mock amazement - "there's so much debauchery and sin to condemn!"

Around the table, those who were listening in on the conversation chuckled as well, since as members of rock bands or their crews, they too were familiar with people who seemed to have no bigger hobby in life, than criticizing others, sometimes even going so far as to claim that they were sinners and would burn in Hell for playing "the Devil's music", or some such.

"Speaking of sado-masochism though", Rio then continued, with the hint of a naughtily intrigued grin reflected in his eyes. "You did a shoot like that with Nicky, right? That must've been... interesting."

And despite the rather innocent choice of phrasing, there was no mistaking the innuendo in his voice and eyes. After all, before knowing Dominic was Lara's boyfriend, Rio had labelled the young man most 'do-able', and while his tendencies to try his luck had changed the moment he had learned that Dominic and Lara were together, not to mention even more so after getting together with Brad, it didn't change the fact that Dominic was still hot as Hell.
However, harmless though his curiosity might be in essence, it apparently wasn't seen as such by all;

"Hey!", came Brad's offended protest at his boyfriend's apparent interest in Dominic, though not without a grin, and he jabbed his finger into Rio's side.

Flinching and laughing, Rio turned his attention to him.

"Sorry", he grinned, but as he saw the look on Brad's face, he tilted his head slightly in curiosity. "Wait, are you jealous?"

"A little, yeah", Brad admitted, even though the amused smile never left his lips.

"Aww, I didn't mean it like that", Rio assured him as he slipped a hand lovingly into Brad's hair from behind.

"Yeah you did."

Rio grinned.

"Yeah, okay, maybe I did", he said, and then went on to assume the proper guiltily repentant expression. "I'm sorry. Forgive me?"

Brad peered up at him in playful contemplation, as though he was considering whether he should believe his darling boyfriend or not, and forgive him, or take the opportunity to demand that he'd make up for his somewhat wandering eye. He knew Rio had been eagerly anticipating a chance to talk to Lavinia, but he figured that with the first contact now made, a second one wouldn't be all too difficult to arrange, and that he thus was entitled to some private time with the boyfriend he'd been away from quite a lot lately.

"Buy me a beer, and I'll think about it", he thus eventually decided.

"Deal", Rio announced.

As he then stood from Brad's lap, slipping his hand into Brad's in the process, to pull him with him as he prepared to depart for the bar, he turned his attention back to Lavinia.

"Hey, it was really nice meeting you. All of you. I'll see you around?"


(((ooc: Hope it works. Feel free to just have him leave with Brad.)))

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Alchemist
#106 Old 21st Apr 2010 at 12:47 PM Last edited by Ghanima Atreides : 21st Apr 2010 at 2:41 PM.
Default Lavinia, Danny and Rio - The VIP Lounge


There were no limits to the general population's compulsion to fit everything and everyone into neat little boxes. Anything different, anything that couldn't be defined by just one generic label seemed to scare them, and they tried to find a suitable stamp anyway, leading to unfair generalizations and prejudice. Lavinia had seen it plenty of times in her life, perhaps more often than others as a consequences of her profession. Was she a skilled musician, or was she just another emerging "rockstar", as if the two were somehow mutually exclusive? Was her photography art, or shameless self-promotion? Were her performances real, or just an act? There was no end to that sort of questions, valid on their own she supposed, except that in general people tended to be rather dismissive in forming an opinion, choosing the explanation that fit their existing theories without trying to look at what actually lay beneath the surface. The amount of black vs white reasoning she'd observed over the years kind of saddened Lavinia, but like so many other things, it came with the territory.

While her image and musical skills had been the object of quite a few debates by that point, them being was she was best known for, the fact that Lavinia also dabbled in modelling was not exactly common knowledge yet. Finding people wanting to talk about her music and band was engaging if not uncommon, but finding those who not only knew about her photography but could also relate through personal experience was a different kind of treat. It was no wonder, then, that she welcomed the discussion with Rio, regardless of the fairly major differences in the type of photography they did, and at the same time referring to what she believed to be a shared experience.

Rio's knowing laughter seemed to confirm that he had, indeed, been faced with his own share of prejudice from various sources, though when he did reply, it was with a slight shaking of his head:

"Not as much as you'd think", he explained "At least not online. Face to face, that's another matter, but the site I work for requires paid memberships, and as zealous as the right-wingers and Bible-thumpers are, most of them just won't cough up the doe to get access."

Lavinia nodded, thinking it made sense, at the same time finding it interesting how matters were pretty much reversed in her case. The most flak she'd gotten from the "zealous right-wingers and Bible-thumpers" Rio mentioned had been online, where she chose to display her photos, whereas in real life, as previously mentioned, receiving comments on her modelling was rather less common, particularly from prudes like that. In fact, Lavinia couldn't even recall such an instance, because the people she associated with tended to be relatively open minded, and frankly one of the quickest ways to lose her interest was to play the "immoral" card. Morality was such a cherry picked concept she wouldn't even know where to begin.

"Though I'll admit,", Rio continued, "we all do still get our fair share of hate mail, both because it's adult, and because it's gay-oriented; there's so much debauchery and sin to condemn!"

Lavinia chuckled openly along with the others: oh, he was a fun one! She'd once considered putting up a "Wall of Shame" type page on her site where she could display some of the funniest hate mail she'd received, and was ready to bet Rio's version would be just as entertaining, if not more. Gay porn done by barely legal guys was probably as close to Hell as you could get without getting fried according to some.

"Speaking of sado-masochism though" Rio then added in a slight change of subject and a mischievous glint in his eyes Lavinia knew so well, "You did a shoot like that with Nicky, right? That must've been... interesting."

She didn't bother conceal her grin; interesting, that was...one way to describe it, yes. Nicky's personal brand of magnetism combined with a few rounds of the most outrageous banter they'd ever exchanged had made for an incredibly fun, if challenging experience...and not just in the artistic sense. They had been tied together, half naked, posed suggestively, practically required to tap into that chemistry that existed between them, and, well...the temptation had been there, closer to the surface than usual. Remembering it, Lavinia glanced at Rio in realization that she wasn't the only one of the two tempted by Nicky in that way. Nicky...they were on "Nicky" terms, too, huh? She couldn't wait to probe him for details and tease him a bit, wondering how it was he'd never mentioned Rio before. If Lara left him in once piece of course...and they had been gone a while, hadn't they?

Lavinia didn't get to answer however, because almost immediately Brad reacted to his boyfriend's interest in Dominic with a half-joking protest and a playful jab in his side. She watched the exchange between them with a slightly wistful expression: aw, they were cute. It actually made her a bit jealous, emphasising her current, manless status: casual sex was good and all, but what Lavinia actually wanted was a committed relationship. Reconciling it with her career and lifestyle was the tough part; Rio was a lucky guy and so was that brat, Nicky.

One thing leading to another, it was soon made obvious that the conversation had come to an end, at least for the moment, Brad successfully claiming his boyfriend for himself.

"Buy me a beer, and I'll think about it", he told him, Rio's agreement following shortly.

"Hey, it was really nice meeting you." he ended as he got to his feet "All of you. I'll see you around?"

"Absolutely", said Lavinia with a parting smile and a lift of her brows. "Have fun, kids!"

She waited until they were lost into the crowd, and catching no sign of either Nicky or Lara, she was finally free to devote her attention entirely to Danny.

"Well, that was interesting. Are you OK? I hope you weren't put off or anything."

She studied him for a few moments, wanting to see how he was recovering from the minor trauma of being faced with a guy of about his age who did gay porn. Lavinia had seen him shyly avert his eyes from the sight or Rio and Brad kissing, an telling predecessor of his reaction to the whole "adult modelling" conversation. She really didn't want him to feel overwhelmed or uncomfortable. As it turned out, her intentions weren't lost on a few of their companions, specifically Arnold who gave a long, suggestive whistle followed by a brief chuckle:

"Listen to her sweet talking" he teased, glancing sideways at them, "Not sure if she's going maternal on you man, " he told Danny, "or if you're tonight's lucky guy."

Along with Lavinia's, he was immediately made the target of a few curious glances, though unlike the rest, hers did not sparkle with the same brand of amusement. Instead, her gaze silently cautioned him, an unspoken request to go easy on Danny. While she recognized it as a sign he was getting integrated into the group, she suspected he wasn't up for their level of banter, especially at that moment and...although she lacked even a single maternal bone in her body and she wasn't planning on getting Danny into bed, she discovered that she did feel a bit protective of him.

"Do I detect a hint of bitterness?" questioned another voice from right across the table: Rick, whose lips were also curled into a smirk. Some laughter ensued, Arnold brushing it off with "It's all in your head, man." Rick didn't look convinced though, and Lavinia thought about it, remembering that she and Arnold had been getting quite cozy earlier. Nicky getting caught red-handed by Lara then having Danny more or less left in her charge had meant she'd placed that particular plan aside for the timebeing; she couldn't just leave him there and hook up with Arnold, plus with everything going on, the right mood had been lost. Maybe some other time, the half-tempting, mysterious smile she aimed at him may or may not have suggested, before turning back to Danny for the second time:

"Ignore them, they're idiots" she told him and laughed briefly. "The cardinal rule around here is don't take anything too seriously."

"I thought it was 'what happens backstage, stays backstage'?", Jim chimed in amidst a few more chuckles and a couple of affirmative grunts. Lavinia said nothing, giving Danny only a "see what I mean?" kind of look and a crooked smile to match.

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
Retired Moderator
retired moderator
#107 Old 23rd Apr 2010 at 12:35 AM
Default Dominic and Lara - outside the VIP lounge


For once in his life, Dominic felt as though he was at a total loss. He didn't know what to do, and he didn't know what to say, to explain himself to Lara and try to make her understand. To make things right with her. He didn't even know if he could. The revelation of his infidelity had hit her hard, that much he could tell just by looking at her, just by knowing her, but he didn't know if the damage done would end up proving too much for the two of them to work through. She was so very hurt, on the verge of tears, because she loved him so much. He knew she did, there had never been any doubt in his mind about it. What he didn't know, was whether it was a good thing or a bad one that she loved him like she did, because he didn't know if it meant she would be willing to eventually forgive him and work through it, or if he had hurt her too badly for her to be able to do so.

He'd never really thought of it before, when he'd been with those other girls, he'd just found excuses and a damper on his guilty conscience, by telling himself she wouldn't ever find out. For some stupid reason, that had made him feel like it was far less of a big deal for him, and would be one for her as well, and so he'd never really reflected on how she truly would feel about it, and the consequences it would have on their relationship if she did end up finding out. And now here they were, with her having found out and gotten hurt and upset, and him not knowing if there was any way of ever making things right. But he'd try, dammit. The look in her eyes and the way that they welled up with tears, the way that she looked away from him, as though she didn't want him to see it, or perhaps felt that if she kept looking at him, she wouldn't be able to hold back the tears... She even bit her lip, like you do when you know that if you don't, you're going to cry. And it all hit Dominic right in the gut. He felt so bad, so rotten, knowing he was the cause of her torment. Just like he always did whenever he'd upset her and made her cry, only this time it was ten times worse. He almost wished she would have just slapped him instead, or yelled at him, because it wouldn't have made him feel so cruel.

However, none of this was about making him feel better. This was about Lara, about getting through to her and make her understand that what he had done, he hadn't done because he didn't care about her, or didn't respect her, or was taking her for granted. Although... in all honesty, maybe he did a little - take her for granted, that is - because really, would he have done what he'd done, had he thought of the possibility of losing her? No.
God, what a mess...

He really didn't know what he'd do if it turned out that he had screwed things up beyond repair. He couldn't imagine his life without Lara, just like he'd said. It felt like it had always been the two of them, and that it always would be. They'd had their rough times, sure, but there was a reason why they were still together after all this time. And it wasn't simply because it was convenient. Dominic wasn't one to cling to something from which the passion had faded, just because it was comfortable. On the contrary. Once the passion had gone, he tended to move on. And the passion had far from gone, where his feelings for Lara were concerned.
As would it seem that her feelings for him still remained, at least partly, when suddenly, in response to his attempt to explain what his "I love you" meant to him, she reached for her lips to brush against his again in a fleeting kiss, much like the first one she had given him, before she had learned the truth of what he had been up to.

At first, it sparked a heart-tightening fear in him that it was to be the prelude of her goodbye
, a gentle and loving way for her to say that she just couldn't stay with him after this, but that only a split-second later, before she had fully withdrawn, had a wave of relief washing over him, when he realized that it wasn't. It was, if not the opposite, then at least the closest thing to it. Thank God.
Still, make no mistake; it in no way meant that the matter had been resolved, and that everything was once again fine between them: A fact that Lara went on to establish, even if she did so in that soft voice of hers. It still carried the weight of her heavy heart in her serious but hopeful tone:

"I need to trust you again", she said, uttering the words slowly as though she was feeling her way. "For us. Tell me how I can do that... because I want to."

Having followed ever so slightly in the motion when she'd pulled back, enticed by the kiss and reluctant to let her withdraw, Dominic's eyes flew open and he blinked with surprise at her request. Not because he didn't understand the need to earn her trust again, but... He tell her how she should do it? What did she mean by that? It was her trust in him that had been lost, only she would know what he could do to rebuild it. Yet again she had posed him with a question that threw him, and rendered him at a loss for what to say, how to respond.

"Me...?", he questioned slowly, as his hand and the arm he had begun to coil around her waist during the all too brief kiss sank away from her in confusion.

Bewildered, he kept turning the question over in his mind, kept trying to find an answer, despite not understanding why she was asking him, when she would be the one to know better than him what would earn him her trust again. Most women in her position, if they hadn't dumped him, would have been more likely to make demands for him to follow. Like not hanging out with other women and not partying and stuff. Although, now that he thought about it, that did seem to have very little to do with earning trust, and more to do with submitting to being controlled, whereas Lara's request really did deal a lot more with actual trust.
And that's when it hit him.

"Marry me."

It simply slipped out of him, like the instant, spontaneous utterance of a split-second idea, before you had time to think it through, or even think at all. And for the second that followed, pure shock claimed his youthful features. He looked almost like a deer caught in the headlights, as though his words had come as a complete surprise even to himself.
But then, as a couple of more seconds followed, and he slowly began to digest the idea, the thought started to slowly root itself in him.

"No, no...", he said, nodding several times - slowly at first, but ending with a few rapid ones - as much to himself as for her, as if to affirm that he really did mean what he'd said, and his intense blue eyes locked firmly on her. "I mean it: Marry me."

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Retired Moderator
retired moderator
#108 Old 25th Apr 2010 at 10:39 PM
Default Daniel, with Lavinia - VIP lounge


If before, Daniel had felt somewhat out of place in the group of pepole that Dominic and Lara had left him with, the arrival of Rio Vance and his boyfriend to the gathering around the table hadn't done much to alleviate that feeling. Most of the others, while baffled by Rio's revelations at first, had seemed to think it was no big deal, and had kept talking as though none of it was the least bit out of the ordinary for them. But to Daniel, finding himself in the company of a guy around his own age, who just unceremoniously divulged that he did gay porn for some online site, was... surreal, to say the least. It felt almost as though he'd run head first into a brick wall of reality. Only, it wasn't his own reality, but some alternate reality that you, on a logical level, always knew existed, but that still had never seemed real. Imagining a life where you had sex with strangers in front of a camera, was just... mind-boggling to Daniel. And as openminded as he wished that he was, it all just made him feel uncomfortable. To him, sex was something very private, not something you flaunted for the enjoyment of others, or something you did for money, and while he was far from homophobic, he still had that idea of sex and general TLC between homosexual couples - men and women alike - was just more private. Which, as he thought about it, he had to admit probably had to do with the fact that heterosexual relationships were seen everywhere, whereas homosexual ones might be on the rise, but were still not seen as often.

Then again, it wasn't really even the gay thing that was the bigger issue to him, the thing that affected him the most about it all. He would have probably reacted much the same way, had Rio claimed to be a straight porn actor. He would have still felt awkward and uncomfortable, and as though he was taking part of something that really wasn't his business. Even though Rio himself pretty much invited the whole gang to make it their business (sort of... to a point), Daniel simply felt the matter was too private, and thus ended up feeling intrusive.

Thankfully, however, the conversation only briefly touched on that very specific topic, ending up focusing more on the issues surrounding it, and so Daniel was granted a chance to digest it all, as best he could, even before Rio and his boyfriend took their leave. Though once they did, he couldn't help but to feel a little relieved. Especially since the last topic to have been discussed, was Rio's apparent interest in Dominic, which Daniel didn't really know how to react to. Part of him felt slightly weirded out about it, while another felt incredibly amused by it. Just like most of the others around the table seemed to do. Except, of course, Rio's boyfriend, who after objecting to Rio's fascination with another guy, eventually prompted their departure.

"Well, that was interesting", was apparently Lavinia's verdict of the encounter, once Rio and Brad had disappeared off towards the bar, and she turned to Daniel. "Are you OK? I hope you weren't put off or anything."

However, Daniel, who was just in the process of taking another sip from his beer, as though the gulp of golden liquid would help wash away the awkwardness that the encounter had left him with, didn't get much of a chance to respond. For which he was actually somewhat grateful.

"Listen to her sweet talking", came Arnold's teasing voice from next to them. "Not sure if she's going maternal on you man, or if you're tonight's lucky guy."

And it was right about there that Daniel's gratitude ran dry, since both scenarios carried with them their fair share of embarrassment for him. Indicated to being viewed by Lavinia as either a little kid, or a potential partner in the sack... Two vastly different possibilities, and neither of which he was comfortable with. He'd been glad to discover that he hadn't been treated like someone's little brother up until now, and so wasn't particularly eager to be put in that box. And as for the other scenario... It was one he doubted very much to hold a grain of truth, and even if it did, it so wasn't something he wanted discussed among the guys here. The thought alone, of her being interested in him like that, made him blush.

But no, he realized that was not it. If for no other reason than his common sense, not to mention the look he saw exchanged between Arnold and Lavinia following Rick's comment, and the smile that she shot him. The two of them had something going on then?
Great. Just great. Not only was he probably holding Lavinia back from partying the way she wanted to, free of responsibility for anyone but herself - for even though Daniel insisted that he could take care of himself, he knew Dominic hadn't left him with this lot, without knowing they'd keep an eye on him - he was apparently getting in the way of other pursuits as well. Splendid...
Damn Dominic.

"Ignore them, they're idiots", Lavinia told him however, being a surprisingly good sport about it all, never lacking a smile to offer, and managing to draw a small one from Daniel in the process. "The cardinal rule around here is don't take anything too seriously."

Though again her comment didn't pass without the others having something to interject;

"I thought it was 'what happens backstage, stays backstage'?", quipped the guy that upon Daniel's arrival earlier had introduced himself as Jim, and a couple of chuckles of both agreement and amusement could be heard from the others.

Lavinia, however, in light of her latest statement, didn't dignify his comment with an answer, but instead only shot Daniel a telltale look, indicating that Jim had just done an excellent job in proving her point. Thus, the reply that did come, was delivered by Daniel instead, partly as a way for him to shift the topic away from himself and whatever intentions the others thought he and Lavinia had towards one another, and partly as a way of getting back at Dominic for doing this to him (and to Lavinia, too), even though he wasn't there;

"If that's a rule", he said, "someone better tell Dominic, cuz with him, there's no end to all the backstage anecdotes he tells."

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Alchemist
#109 Old 10th May 2010 at 12:43 PM
Default Lavinia & Danny - VIP Lounge



Subtlety had never been a virtue among Lavinia's usual crowd. With a more than significant majority of guys (not counting girlfriends and groupies), conversations ended up in the gutter fairly quickly, touching the sort of topics which many women (and quite a few men) would find uncomfortable, even offensive: open discussion of sexual pursuits, imagined or otherwise, direct remarks regarding the attractiveness of females present, even when those females happened to be in the company of their own boyfriends, and all manner of coarse, sometimes even rude jokes were the norm. It was no wonder that Rio Vance's revelation had barely caused a stir around the table; most of those present weren't easily shocked.

Danny was different. He was young, somewhat demure, but most of all he lacked familiarity with the group he was currently part of, whether he liked it or not. And the group made sure he knew it, perhaps forgetting that Dominic's brother wasn't Dominic himself, and blurring the subtle line between reality and jest. Arnold's comment had been fairly light compared to some of the banter exchanged between them in the past, and Lavinia recognized the humour in it, but there had been a grain of truth there as well: Arnold wasn't thrilled by this turn of events as far as his and Lavinia's possible hook-up went, that was plain to see. Initially, Lavinia had shared that feeling, though being interrupted early on had made for a quick recovery. Since then, plenty of other distractions had cropped up, and she was quite content with postponing the whole thing for another day, which of course she didn't outright indicate to Arnold. Let him simmer a little, it wasn't bad for the male ego, she smirked to herself.

As far as Danny was concerned, he had seemed a little put off at first, but as Lavinia smoothly brushed off the teasing comments made by the other guys, she was glad to see a smile, albeit a tiny one, back on his lips. Then, much to her amusement, he delivered a prompt comeback worthy of a de Vere:

"If that's a rule, someone better tell Dominic, cuz with him, there's no end to all the backstage anecdotes he tells."

A few knowing grunts sounded around the table, Lavinia included: as if Dominic could ever resist! It did, however, bring a different matter back to the front of her awareness, so with a sly grin she slid closer to Danny and placed her right elbow upon the table , supporting her chin in the palm of her hand:

“Why am I not surprised?” she chuckled, “Two can play that game though, right?” she ended with a suggestive wiggle of her brows.

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
Scholar
Original Poster
#110 Old 14th May 2010 at 11:30 PM
Default Lara and Dominic - Outside
There are a few things you see coming in life, and you prepare and you know how to respond and your mind has had the time to adapt to the idea, all of which prevent you from not really dealing with it entirely. As a family, Louisa’s condition was one of them. Well, rather dealing with Louisa’s condition, in case she had an attack of hyperglycaemia or hypoglycaemia or something, because an active, vibrant girl like her... it was a little tougher to keep tabs on her. But, knowing that it could happen, and knowing what to do if it did happen made it all the better. Yet they say anticipation is worse than death.
There are other things you certainly don’t see coming. Like Dominic cheating. Lara had never really departed from the idea that he was out of her league. He was a rock star, for God’s sake, and even before that, he’d had that magic to him, even when he’d been in his depths as a teenager. She knew that of the two of them, she was the lucky one, because while he had all that glitz and glamour for her and everyone to be infatuated with, all she had was herself, and he fell in love with that. It was a perk of being somewhat ordinary, attainable; when someone falls for you, you know they’ve fallen for you. And she believed he had. And so did he. But that wasn’t the be all and end all of things.
She hadn’t seen that one coming. She’d always thought that was the most important thing, somehow. And now... now, the most important thing was trust, it was to figure out where to go from now, because being here was horrible. She didn’t want this hanging in the air, thick and suffocating, and she wanted him to find that way out. Rather, she needed him to.

"Me...?" his voice drifted away in bewilderment as he withdrew from her slightly, leaving the cool breeze to fill the void that his waning warmth left around her, and she stood her ground, eyes imploring and form as still as stone.

"Marry me."
...Okay. She hadn’t seen that coming.
What?!
He didn’t mean it. ...Did he? Her widened eyes caught the look of utter shock upon his features, mirroring her own feelings and no... he didn’t mean it.
...What if he had? What would she have said? Yes? Yes. Yes, she wanted to be with him for as long as they were still in love, but... no. Not for this reason. She didn’t want it for this.
Just as well, then.

"No, no...,” he said, his head nodding in affirmation and her heart stood still in the vacant moments of trying to decipher what was going on in his head, her breath hitching as those ocean blue orbs locked her in place. "I mean it: Marry me."
She wasn’t sure how many seconds passed while she simply stared in shock and surprise, and she wasn’t sure she’d kept track of all the thoughts that whispered and hollered through her mind in response and contemplation.
“Yes,” she breathed it out, her thundering heart speaking before her mind did, though soon her shoulders sank in rationality, delivering the rest of her reply; “...But no.”
A small hand caressed the side of his cheek before cupping his jaw gently, almost solemnly.
“I don’t want our marriage to be based on guilt, Nicky.... It’s not fair to either of us.”

"Life is just a chance to grow a soul" - A. Powell Davies
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#111 Old 17th May 2010 at 9:18 PM
Default Daniel and Lavinia - VIP lounge


Thank God, it worked. His strategy worked. Say what you want about Dominic de Vere, but... Yes, that was the thing; there was always something to say about him. Conversation tended to never run dry when it was about him, and even less so when he was one of the participants. In which case the conversation didn't have to be about him (although knowing him, he probably preferred it when it was), since being charismatic and engaging, he had a talent for keeping it going, and going, and going regardless. Whether the topic was jokes or anecdotes from one's life, or something of a more serious nature, the conversation never really ground to a halt when Dominic was somehow concerned. He was perfect in that regard. Had Daniel not been certain of that before, he'd been made a believer just now, when the effect of his bringing up Dominic in order to aim the attention away from himself, turned out to be most successful; chuckles and some humming confirmed that the group around the table knew exactly what he was talking about, and just like that, most of them seemed to have forgotten about Daniel as a target for teasing, and turned their attention to other matters.

But not Lavinia.
Judging by the devilish look on her face, and the way that she slipped a little bit closer to him, all conspiratorial-like, what he'd said had given her ideas.

"Why am I not surprised?", she said with a light laugh, resting her chin in her hand as she looked at him. "Two can play that game though, right?"

Somewhat caught off-guard by suddenly having her that close again - was he ever going to get used to it? - with her warmth and the smell of her perfume imposing themselves on his senses, it took Daniel a moment to register what she'd said, and for that moment, he hesitated.

Wait, did she mean him, or herself? Did she have something she was tempted to share in order to get back at Dominic, for all he'd shared about her and the others (although it was almost always in a story that he himself was involved in; Nicky was an egomaniac, so apparently, if it didn't concern him, it just wasn't worth telling).
A mere hour ago, Daniel wouldn't have thought that there was much going on backstage that Dominic didn't spill in his blog, or over the phone - like Daniel had told his present company; there usually was no end to all the stories Dominic would tell, and of course most of them included himself in one way or another - but after what he'd seen as he and Lara had been approaching the table... Obviously, there were still things going on backstage that not even Dominic would openly share with the world, and everyone in it.

However, just as all this was passing through his head, he caught the way that her eyebrows danced ever so slightly in indication of what she meant, and the true implications of her words dawned on him.
Ooooh, she meant that!
An amused smile emerged on his lips.

"He'll kill me", he said, though didn't seem all to worried when the next moment, he shrugged and cheerily announced; "Okay."

From there, he then adopted a tone much reminiscent of a salesman;

"So, what do you want? I've got childhood stories, I've got teenage stories, I've got early songs, I've got pics of him in a dress. You name it, I've got it."

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
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#112 Old 27th May 2010 at 12:33 AM
Default Dominic and Lara - outside VIP lounge, backstage area


If Dominic had taken himself by surprise with what he'd said, it had shocked Lara even more. He saw her eyes widen at his words, as though mirroring his own, but unlike his, they remained wide as saucers even after he'd realized what he'd said, and that he'd meant it. From the very depth of his heart, he meant it. Yes, he was known for acting on impulse, for taking the plunge before thinking things through - Dominic de Vere was all about the fun and the thrill, and where was the thrill in doing something that had been planned or even thought through? - but when he did, he often acted on what was in his heart. Often. Not always. Sometimes, it was his loins doing the talking, as proven by the reason why he and Lara were having this conversation in the first place. But, while his libido was the cause of the discussion, his heart had since taken over, and he'd blurted out the two words for what was in it; 'marry me'.

For a moment, time itself seemed as though it had been suspended in the air. Lara simply stared at him, rendered speechless by his hasty and, for the both of them, unexpected proposal, and Dominic could feel his chest being hammered at from the inside by his pounding heart, and a small gulp worked it's way down his dry throat, in dreading anticipation of her reply. Usually, he confidence personified, but right now, he was more nervous than he'd ever been before. At least that's what it felt like. He'd bared his heart and soul to Lara time and time again in the past, but never like this. Never with her being so angry or disappointed with him, never when she'd had every right to slap him silly for something he'd done to her. He'd never felt so vulnerable and exposed to her. On the contrary, she had always been the one who'd offered the warmth and the comfort whenever he'd felt that way, she'd been the one to shelter him from it, and from all his inner demons.
This, this was different. So very different. While it was still in her power to soothe his anxiety, this time, soothing him had very little to do with the matter at hand. This wasn't about her being there for him when he needed it. It was part of it, in the long-run, but it was far from all of it. It was about her feelings for him, after he'd hurt her, it was about whether or not she still felt the same way about him as he did about her. And that scared him. It was almost enough to make him, the heedless Dominic de Vere, loose his nerve, and go 'Just kidding!', just to dispel the tension, and have them both laugh it off, and continue on as though it had been just a joke, just another one of his antics.
But he didn't.
And at long last, came her answer;

"Yes", she said in an exhale, as though she, like him, had been holding her breath.

At the sound of that, the air pressing in Dominic's lungs burst from his lips as well in a sigh of relief, mirrored in the expression that washed over his face. But only for a second. His joy was to short-lived indeed, because in the next moment, he saw Lara's shoulders sag in dejection, and froze.
What now...?

"...But no", Lara added.

Dominic blinked.
What?!
In a split second, fear, horror, hurt and confusion all clashed together on the canvas of his features, where before relief and delight had been. What did she mean?! Her reply left him so bewildered, that he didn't even feel her touch at first, until her fingers came to rest against his jaw, as though meant to keep him looking at her as she explained;

"I don't want our marriage to be based on guilt, Nicky...", she said, with as much sadness in her voice as there was gravity. "It's not fair to either of us."

For the few seconds that then followed, Dominic simply looked at her, his mind churning with the effort of trying to process what she'd just said, and what it meant. For a moment, he almost even withdrew from her touch, in confusion and the sting of her rejection, but ultimately ended up not moving more than a fragment of an inch.

"But...", he started, helplessly at first, sounding almost lost, but with ever growing conviction as he then continued; "But baby... It wouldn't be like that. It wouldn't. It's not guilt. It's my commitment to you. It's how serious I am about the two of us. It's how badly I want you in my life. Don't you see that?"


(((ooc: Sorry, was rushed.)))

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Alchemist
#113 Old 27th May 2010 at 4:59 PM
Default Lavinia & Danny - VIP Lounge



Having known Dominic since college, Lavinia could have spent hours talking about all the funny, weird and downright outrageous things they'd gotten up to over the years. Little mystery could survive between people who practically lived together for weeks on end, to the point where going home felt more like visiting those days, not to mention the fact that Dominic thrived on attention, ever attempting to make himself the center of it.

Yes, Lavinia sat on a veritable treasure cove of Dominic-related trivia, but there was a period of his life she knew less about, his pre-DEM years. She knew there had to have been a time Nicky was less of the charismatic smart-ass he was today, and if anyone was able to tell her more about it, it had to be his brother. Before Lavinia's eyes flashed images of herself as a child of four or five, wearing a frilly pink lace dress and pigtails, and had to suppress a snort at the thought. Dominic would have such a field day with that picture, a realization which instantly evaporated any hint of guilt she might have felt towards probing Danny for information while Nicky wasn't there. Not that Lavinia meant harm, and was fairly certain Danny knew it; she just wanted to satisfy her curiosity and be entertained in the process. Did she intend to tease Nicky about it later? Oh yes, although it depended a bit on the outcome of his talk with Lara, which Lavinia genuinely hope was going all right; having had it coming or not, it would crush Dominic if his girlfriend left him. One could only hope it was a wake-up call for him.

Watching Danny intently to see whether he got her drift or not, Lavinia immediately caught the amused smile emerging on his lips and matched it, half-suppressing a devilish giggle.

"He'll kill me" the young man commented without showing much concern, before adding: “Okay.”

Rubbing her hands together with glee, Lavinia settled in comfortable as gave her attention to Danny's sales pitch:

"So, what do you want? I've got childhood stories, I've got teenage stories, I've got early songs, I've got pics of him in a dress. You name it, I've got it."


Wow, she really hit the motherlode, hadn't she?
Lavinia mused, growing contemplative for a couple of moments. Soon enough however the choice seemed obvious.

Nicky in a dress?” she snickered. “This I gotta see, let's start with that one!”

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
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retired moderator
#114 Old 7th Jun 2010 at 10:55 PM
Default Daniel and Lavinia - VIP lounge, backstage


Daniel wasn't one to kiss and tell, he wasn't one to sell out his friends and loved ones. Nor did he sell out his enemies, for that matter (not that he had any... though it was the principle of the matter that counted, no?). He respected people's privacy to the point where even if he knew they themselves would be okay with sharing a particular story with others, he often left it for them to do so themselves, rather than having him do it for them. And while he was sometimes probed for information and stories about his increasingly famous big brother, he would remain tight-lipped on the matter, and was more likely to just change the subject, or downright explain that he didn't want to talk about it, than he was likely to give the people probing him what they wanted. He would never, ever share any personal stories about Dominic with just anyone, just to get attention and appear to "be somebody" for a couple of measly minutes, like some other people did the minute they had something to share that they hoped would make them special.

However, as every other rule in existence on this earth, this too of course had exceptions, and one such exception went by the name of Lavinia Sinclair. With her, and with the others in the band, things were different. Although it would probably be a bit of a lie to say that Daniel made no difference between her and the guys, because... well... They were guys, not dark-haired vixens featured half naked on the wall of Daniel's room, and so needless to say, they didn't have quite the same effect on him as Lavinia did. If the young man was to be perfectly honest with himself, he'd even have to admit that maybe, just maybe, he wanted to share stuff with her. Not in order to be the center of attention, but to have her attention. He wasn't some star-struck fan, desperately craving a few minutes of her time no matter what the cost, but he was still rather taken by her, and did enjoy her company, not to mention the fact that talking to her was in a way a little liberating; she was a friend of Dominic's and so Daniel didn't have to keep his guard up the same way he usually did with people, strangers especially. She knew Dominic already, and, Daniel suspected, had been the target of quite a bit of teasing from him a well over the years. It was just Dominic's way of getting along with people, a part of his (sometimes) irresistible charm. And part of what made it so irresistible and enigmatic in the first place, was the fact that unlike some, he could take it as good as he himself dished it out. Which was why, when Lavinia tempted Daniel to share what usually he kept to himself, his initial hesitation was mostly just for show, before he practically served up the various goodies on a silver platter, for her to pick and choose from.
Though despite the buffet of possibilities, it took her only a moment or two to decide;

"Nicky in a dress?", she said with a mischievous giggle at the thought, before enthusiastically announcing; "This I gotta see, let's start with that one!"

Daniel shot her a toothy grin.

"An excellent choice, Madame", he declared, as though had he been a waiter, and she his guest, completely unaware that just an hour or so earlier, Dominic had used the exact same title for her.

And it really was a great choice, at least in Daniel's mind, because what he was about to show her, as he reached into his pocket for his cell phone, and started thumbing away to find the right file, was one of his own very favorite Dominic moments, ever; a video shot years ago, while Dominic had been a senior in high school, and he and his band at the time - Dissonance, with Nicky on lead vocals and guitar - had performed at the Halloween ball in school. Not only had Dominic come on stage wearing a girly, white dress, presumably Lara's, black fishnets and black, untied army boots, with the front of his then natural, dark brown hair gathered into a small tuft on his head, but the song that the band had kicked off with, was none other than a noisy hard rock cover of No Doubt's "Just a Girl".
Oh, the sight... It was one that anyone who'd seen it, wouldn't soon forget.

"Enjoy", Daniel grinned at Lavinia, once he'd found the right file, and handed her his cell phone for her to watch.

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Alchemist
#115 Old 14th Jun 2010 at 8:27 PM Last edited by Ghanima Atreides : 18th Jun 2010 at 3:16 PM.
Default Danny and Lavinia - VIP lounge



She wasn’t sure what exactly did it: whether it was the exceptionally girly white dress, with its lacy ruffles and the halter top, obviously meant to accommodate a pair of breasts, but in this case stretched to the extreme over Dominic’s wider male torso, or the comical way that silly tuft of hair kept bouncing up and down the front of his head, or maybe the fact that Nicky was rocking out to a “Just a Girl” cover…but a series of chuckles began sounding from Lavinia’s direction mere seconds into the clip, slowly but surely mounting into increasingly loud giggling that had her shoulders bouncing up and down with the effort it took to keep it in check. It was only at the very end that Lavinia allowed herself a moment of unrestrained laughter, swinging her head backwards as one hand caught the single tear drawn from the corner of one eye by all this amusement.

That was…brilliant!

Sighing deeply as she recollected herself, Lavinia couldn’t resist glancing back at the screen where a teenaged Dominic stood frozen in a particularly hilarious pose, so fierce in his Gwen Stefani impersonation that the chuckles began once more, but this time Lavinia was quicker in silencing them. Dominic de Vere, goth rock god, if only your fans could see you now, she thought, grinning widely to herself…Danny wasn’t kidding when he’d called it “an excellent choice.” This was one to cherish…and use to tease mercilessly.

“Thanks, that was freakin' hysterical!” Lavinia began fervently, her hand beginning the motion of handing the phone back to its owner, but stopping halfway in order for her to have one last look, a curiously attentive expression suddenly on her face: “You know, it’s just not fair. Nicky manages to look hot even in a dress!”

Though the joking overtones were loud and clear, Lavinia’s comment did not go entirely unnoticed, particularly by Arnold at her right, who’d been sneaking a couple of glimpses at the screen as well.

“Is it true about you two, then?” he probed slyly, keeping his own tone light and not all too serious. Promptly, Lavinia aimed a coy pout his way:

“Do I look like the kind of girl who likes to kiss and tell?” she quipped back, enjoying the irony because she knew she totally did, which was the interesting thing: despite her reputation as a “bad girl”, Lavinia wasn’t known for detailing her romantic exploits for anyone who’d listen. In turn, that only made people assume the most outrageous things, something she found amusing. That was also part of the reason she and Dominic had yet to debunk the myth of their often suggested fling, allowing the rumours to persist for their own entertainment and of course the publicity it brought them. Only the other band members were in on the joke, and other close friends – Debbie, Lavinia’s best female friend, certainly knew. In light what had happened however, Lavinia suddenly had to wonder: did Lara know the truth? For that matter…did Danny? And with that thought in mind she turned to him, uncertainty gathering in her eyes: she didn’t care what most people believed, but Danny had seemed close to Lara, and was Dominic’s brother.

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
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#116 Old 21st Jun 2010 at 12:44 PM
Default Daniel and Lavinia - VIP lounge


No matter how many times over the years Daniel had watched that clip of Dominic and Dissonance at the Halloween dance in high school, he never tired of it. Ever. Nor did he think that he ever would. It was just such a pure moment of classic Dominic, a perfect merger of everything that he was, in equal amounts; crazy, wild, charming, attention-seeking, talented, and funny as all hell. He was so vain, even at that age - though perhaps back then, it'd had more to do with his awakening awareness of his actual charisma, than these days - yet had no qualms whatsoever about pulling off a semi-transvestite act like that, and let people laugh at him. Vain or not, he didn't take himself too seriously, and even when the reason for people laughing at him wasn't as orchestrated as in the clip, but instead something embarrassing that he hadn't planned, Dominic was almost always the first person to laugh at himself.
Daniel would have never shown Lavinia that clip, had he not known that. Nor would he have shown it to her, had he not known that odds were that she'd get a real kick out of seeing it.

Yet even so, it was with a widening grin on his face that he watched her watch the clip, and try to keep her amusement limited to just giggles, before finally surrendering to her amusement and bursting out laughing, with the wiping of a tear there for even further emphasis. Daniel couldn't even help but to laugh a little himself as well, partly because he'd seen the clip so many times he knew it's details by heart, and partly because not being infected by Lavinia's melodic and hearty laughter, was darned near impossible.

"Thanks, that was freakin' hysterical!", she said enthusiastically once the video had played all the way through to the end, and started handing the phone back to Daniel, but momentarily paused in the middle of the motion, to cast one last glance at the screen as something seemed to hit her; "You know", she added, "it’s just not fair. Nicky manages to look hot even in a dress!"

Ah, yeah. Hot. Daniel didn't quite see it, for obvious reasons, but "hot" had apparently been the general consensus among the rock chicks that had attended the ball back then, if he recalled correctly. He remembered having stood next to these two girls during the performance, and while he'd been focused on filming it with his cell phone, bits and pieces of their conversation had ended up being heard his way. Some of it had even ended up on the video itself - "Who's that guy, the singer?", "That's Nicky de Vere. Gorgeous, right?", muffled sound of agreement, "... girlfriend though" - which had made Dominic's day, when a few hours after the performance, Daniel had shown him the clip.

"Is it true about you two, then?", came Arnold's voice from Lavinia's other side, and Daniel, who was in the process of stuffing the cell phone back into his pocket, glanced up, just in time to catch the suggestive expression on the guy's face.

Had he not, the equally suggestive tone in Arnold's voice, and the implications thereof, might have passed him by, but as it were, together they paved way for realization to strike in the young man.
Right... The rumours about her and Nicky... For some reason, despite having asked Lara about it only a few hours earlier, not to mention having caught Dominic in the act of being far more friendly than he was supposed to be with another girl, the rumours concerning him and Lavinia had slipped Daniel's mind. Until now.
For a moment his movements slowed, as his gaze shot over to Lavinia to catch her reaction.

"Do I look like the kind of girl who likes to kiss and tell?", she told Arnold with a coquettish look on her face.

A second later, however, it seemed as though it suddenly occurred to her what Daniel must be thinking - she'd seen his reaction to the discovery, after all, and had been there to witness the deep impact it'd had on him - and the smile slowly melted away from her face, as she turned back to look at him, and apprehension took the stage in her eyes instead.

At first, Daniel merely looked back at her, not knowing what to say, at once uncomfortable with the unexpected turn of the conversation. He did have to admit that he was wondering the same thing as Arnold, now that the subject had been brought back to his mind, but he couldn't ask. He wasn't even sure he'd want to know. He liked Lavinia, and knowing that she and Dominic had fooled around wasn't something he was sure he could bear, and still remain perfectly and genuinely friendly with her. Between her and Lara, his loyalties lay a hundred percent with Lara, and so even though it essentially wasn't up to Lavinia to see to it that nothing happened between her and Dominic, it would still make her a rival if it had, or at the very least a painful and constant reminder to Lara. And as such, Daniel just wouldn't be able to bring himself to hang out with her. As unfair as it might be of him, he wasn't sure he himself wouldn't feel any kind of resentment towards her, for being part of messing up what to him had been a perfect relationship between two people he loved and looked up to, and that was meant to last forever.
He didn't want that. Nor did he want to pry.

"So... uh...", he thus started, trying frantically to think of something to say that would steer them away from a possible confession, even though he wasn't quite sure why he thought she might end up telling him when she clearly wasn't telling others, who in addition seemed closer to her than him. "Don't tell Nicky you said that. You'll never hear the end of it."

Attempting a smile as the last words left his lips, and having it come out a fairly successful one, if a little pale, Daniel then indicated the beer bottle he'd been sipping from for the few minutes Lavinia had been busy with his cell phone, and that thus was now nearly empty.

"I think I'm gonna go get another beer", he said, and scooted a little to the side, so that he'd be able to stand up. "You want one?"

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Scholar
Original Poster
#117 Old 27th Jun 2010 at 3:40 PM Last edited by AtropaMandragora : 5th Jul 2010 at 9:30 PM. Reason: Added Dominic
Default Lara and Dominic - Outside
For once, Lara was stopping herself from following her heart. It wasn’t so much that she was the wild type, to live life fast and with a fiery soul; she was just someone who listened to her heart in making her decisions, in a way that wasn’t even deliberate. She didn’t quite understand the people who objectively – coldly – peeled the situation and circumstances apart to it’s basics, she felt that it robbed it of its complexity, it’s depth and it’s wholeness. Like Keats once said; deciphering the rainbow robbed it of its beauty. Furthermore, it just seemed entirely insensitive to discount feelings.
Right now, however, that way of thinking seemed to be a luxury because it wasn’t just about her. It was about Nicky too, and it was about the unborn child she could be carrying, and it was about any other children they may have. And it suddenly seemed irresponsible to think with her heart.

She had no doubt that Dominic would still be involved in their child’s life, she knew he wouldn’t just walk away; she knew him well enough to give him the benefit of that doubt. Fidelity was the one called into question, and she no longer had that previous certainty that he was hers and hers alone. And she couldn’t introduce someone vulnerable and entirely naive to that life, where his or her parents’ relationship was on shaky grounds anyway, because Lara knew she would leave him if his infidelity continued, but she wasn’t sure she could if there was another person involved. She’d had a happy family, she’d had both her parents and so, she couldn’t bring herself to put her own child in a position where that could be taken away. She didn’t want to trap herself in an unhappy marriage either.
The only solution was to be honest about that, and hope she was wrong.

She simply watched him, eyes awash with hope strangling in vines of desolation, as the thoughts flitted across the features that had stolen her young heart and kept it captive through all these years, only to then break it.
"But...,” he started as if at a loss for words, mirroring her loss for options, a way to do what she both wanted to do and had to do. She almost dropped her gaze away in defeat, heart heavy with the oncoming loss.
"But baby... It wouldn't be like that,” he promised with mounting faith and Lara could but look at him with growing breathlessness that inched into her chest. “It wouldn't. It's not guilt. It's my commitment to you.”
At that, she did look away, but with her glossy eyes filling with salty tears as the slight smile blossomed tersely at hearing him say what she needed him to say.
“It's how serious I am about the two of us. It's how badly I want you in my life,” he assured and she found herself giving a small nod in agreement. “Don't you see that?"

“I know,” she nodded again, watery eyes meeting him with unsteady certainty before she leaned forward, their lips locking with saturated affection before she pulled back a little, breath barely a whisper. “I just wasn’t sure what to think....”


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -




Dominic de Vere had never made himself known for his eloquence, or for his sensitive approach to delicate matters. Granted, he was hardly known for being a simpleton or a bumbling fool either, but he did have a tendency to be blunt to the point of being rude, and had probably left a trail of hurt feelings and bruised egos behind him over the past couple of years. If nothing else, his conversation with Asher earlier this evening was proof of that. And even though it was rarely truly intentional, he often didn't care to repair the damage done either. Mostly because five minutes later, he'd forgotten all about it. It wasn't that he was in any way callous or cold-hearted - anyone who was truly close to him knew that he could be both sensitive and vulnerable, that he did indeed have inner demons haunting him - he was just so focused on the present and the next big thrill that he sometimes forgot about the past, even if "the past" was just five minutes ago, and he was simply too impulsive to always think before he spoke. Hence why his proposal to Lara came as unexpected to him as it did to her, and why when he tried to explain his reasons, what came shooting out of him was the exact same thing that shot through his head at the time, so fast and jumbled that he almost tripped over the words. Though while it probably wasn't the world's most eloquent explanation, it was heartfelt, and Lara knew her boyfriend well enough to understand that for every sentence that he did manage to produce, there were probably two more that he just couldn't get out.
If not evident before, it became that way, when her eyes welled up with tears as a tiny smile crept over her lips at the sound of his words, and she gave a nod in understanding.

"I know", she said softly as those eyes locked with his blue ones, pleading for her to realize how much she truly meant to him, and how desperate he was to keep her.

And when she leaned forward to plant yet another gentle kiss on his lips, his arms tightened around her, as though he wanted to reassure himself that she was still there, and not about to walk away, and reassure her as well, of everything he hadn't been able to say, leaving it to his actions to speak for him. And what that firm and slightly alarmed grip around her waist had to say, was that he wasn't ready to accept the idea of a life without her. Her "no" just now had not only woken him up to that fact, but driven the point all the way home, and beyond. Though while his embrace was tight, it wasn't the embrace of someone clinging to her for dear life, and so he did still loosen his grip when a few seconds later, she pulled back from him ever so slightly, to look at him again.

"I just wasn't sure what to think..."

For the second time in less than a minute, a gust of air filtered out of Dominic's lungs in a big sigh of relief, mirrored in the expression that washed over his face as the tension seeped out of his body.

"Jesus, woman!", he exclaimed, and hugged her tight for another few moments, before looking down at her, with the hint of a relaxed smile almost breaking through on his lips. "You scared me to death! Don't ever do that again!"

However, while his relief had been instant, the situation still remained too serious even for him to lose sight of that fact, and so only a moment later, gravity claimed his features once more, and the intensity of his eyes bore into her.

"So... You will marry me then?", he asked, as though he wasn't a hundred percent sure where her latest statement left them. "Right?"

"Life is just a chance to grow a soul" - A. Powell Davies
Alchemist
#118 Old 2nd Jul 2010 at 11:56 AM Last edited by Ghanima Atreides : 3rd Jul 2010 at 9:24 PM.
Default Danny and Lavinia - VIP Lounge



In addition to the publicity and amusement, Lavinia had a rather more personal reason for allowing the various rumours concerning her and Nicky to persist. Amusing though it was to hear about every new twist and interpretation, it was also disappointing to see how quickly people in general jumped to conclusions. About everything: not only appearances but also behaviour. It was as though she and Dominic were almost expected to hook up at one time or another, because of who they were: young, reasonably famous and filled to the brim with sexual energy. For many, that constituted proof enough. All that gossip, the insinuations, existed because people had an appetite for drama, and to that end furnished reality to reflect their own wishes and expectations. No reporter had ever caught Lavinia and Dominic being anything more than friendly (although perhaps stretching the term in its strictest traditional sense, but this was the 21st century, right?) and having a grand ol' time doing it, but of course, it had to mean something more, didn't it? A more mundane explanation simply wasn't enough, oh no: there had to be a secret liaison, betrayals, all that stuff tabloids knew the populace lapped up. So, in general, Lavinia was utterly unapologetic about it: keep them guessing, give them a show, and laugh at their prejudices. It was good fun.

That wasn't to say however there were none whose opinion mattered to her. There were a few, such as close friends, whom she simply preferred to be honest with, out of principle. Not that Lavinia had ever found herself in the position to really enlighten someone; her friends knew her well enough to at least suspect the gossip was just that: gossip. The eventual confirmation tended to produce a variation of “Ah...thought as much”; in fact, Debbie had said those exact same words back when her presumed fling with Nicky first made it into the press.

Surely Dominic would've done the same? Lavinia chewed on this as she studied Danny, but the rapidly spreading discomfort he showed told a different story altogether. He hadn't. Damn.


"So... uh..." he began awkwardly, "Don't tell Nicky you said that. You'll never hear the end of it."

The fizz was gone from his voice however, and Lavinia wasn't fooled. He was trying to change the subject, a fact made even more obvious a moment later when he prepared to stand, claiming to want another beer.

Lavinia was unsure what to do; if she let him go, the moment would have passed and she knew how these things went: the suspicion would linger and fester and lead to more awkwardness, or worse. She didn't want that; Danny wasn't part of the game, or at least shouldn't be. Dominic should've told him, though granted, perhaps the topic never came up between them. Now it had, but it was Lavinia who had to deal with it, and technically it wasn't her responsibility. At the same time, Danny was different: he was Nicky's family and she was becoming fond of the kid: there was no need to play the game with him.

That whole thought spanned mere heartbeats; Lavinia was quick in her decision making process: once a decision was reached, execution followed. So, just as Danny was about to get up, she, too scooted closer to the edge of the booth.

“Yeah, hold on, I'll come with. I need to stretch my legs a little. Anyone else want anything?”

Since the rest shook their heads and waved her away, Lavinia turned followed Danny out of the booth, then towards the bar. When they were sufficiently far from the table and she caught sight of an opening in the crowd milling about, she placed a steadying hand on the young man's shoulder, bending forward to speak in his ear:

“Wait, Danny. I need to tell you something.”

When she'd gotten his attention, Lavinia steered them both to one side where there was more room and stopped in front of him, arms folded and a rather serious expression on her face:

“Look...the stuff about me and Nicky...it isn't true. We're just friends, always have been. The gossip's for the papers, and we sometimes fuel it a bit for fun, but that's all it is. I wanted you to know that.”

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
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#119 Old 7th Jul 2010 at 11:57 AM
Default Daniel and Lavinia - VIP lounge


He knew he was being rather obvious, when claiming to want another beer and preparing to head off to the bar, even though it wasn't a complete lie. He did want one, but it wasn't something that couldn't have waited a few minutes, had the conversation not taken a nosedive into a territory he wasn't comfortable exploring. Not as used as Dominic and the others to having to handle himself in big gatherings and under scrutiny of people so very unlike him, Daniel knew he didn't have the same ability to roll with the punches and maintain an outward cool when he really wasn't feeling it, and so also knew that right now, he was being really transparent. But really, what else could he do? He really did feel like he needed a little breather in order to distance himself from the subject that he supposed had been bound to come up, especially in light of the compromising postion he and Lara had found Dominic in earlier, but that he really wasn't too keen on being a part of, because it just made things all kinds of complicated; he liked Lavinia and wanted to keep on doing so, Lara was his friend and the big sister he never had, and Dominic was his brother. He was an asshole at times, especially now, but he was his brother, and Daniel wouldn't have been able to neither support nor reproach him or his actions in front of these people. Or anyone not involved in the situation, for that matter.
So, he fled the field. So to speak. Only, he sort of misjudged Lavinia's character on that one, because while he thought she would have been as relieved to have him go as he would have been to get out of there - she didn't seem too willing to talk about herself and Dominic, and had Daniel stayed, the look on his face would have made it most awkward if she didn't - she decided to follow him instead.

"Yeah, hold on", she said as she too scooted towards the edge of the booth in order to stand, "I'll come with. I want to stretch my legs a little. Anyone else want anything?"

Though while she waited for the others to reply, Daniel merely gave them a glance before heading off towards the bar, knowing that with Lavinia having decided to join him, there was a chance she would actually bring up the subject of her and Dominic - hey, he had already misjudged her once, so there was nothing to suggest he hadn't been wrong in assuming she'd want to keep the truth to herself too - and that thus, he'd better try and brace himself first, and prepare for the worst, rather than risk having every single emotion show on his face, should she end up telling him that she and Dominic were indeed having an affair.
Then again, would she really be eager enough to follow him, just to tell him that? If they were having an affair, shouldn't she be more interested in letting him go, without following, whereas if they weren't, she'd be more prone to wanting the truth to come out? So, maybe they weren't fooling around after all? Maybe it was just rumours? Or maybe she really just did want to stretch her legs, and her following him had nothing whatsoever to do with things between her and Dominic?
Whichever it was, it would seem that much like he had part expected, part dreaded, he was about to find out, because as he started nearing the bar, he felt a hand on his shoulder, silently asking him to stop.

"Wait, Danny", Lavinia's voice joined the request by his ear. "I need to tell you something."

Slowly turning around to face her, Daniel most of all wanted to just intercept her by telling her that she didn't have to, that it wasn't any of his business. Because it wasn't. But when he saw the earnest and serious look on her face, he couldn't deny her the right to say what she wanted to say, and so instead just let himself be guided over to a temporary opening in the crowd, while his gut filled with mixed emotions. He both did want to know, and didn't want to know, both at the same time, and dread of having the rumours confirmed mingled with the anticipation of having her say they were nothing more than just that; rumours.

"Look...", she started once they stood face to face, and she folded her arms across her chest, the look in her eyes making him shift ever so slightly in discomfort, "... the stuff about me and Nicky... it isn't true. We're just friends, always have been. The gossip's for the papers, and we sometimes fuel it a bit for fun, but that's all it is. I wanted you to know that."

Though while her words were exactly what Daniel wanted to hear, the young man still took a moment to guardedly observe her, making an extra effort to make sure that she did indeed seem genuine, rather than letting his good faith in people turn him blind or naive, and easily fooled.
But no. No, she did seem to be perfectly sincere, the gravity of her whole demeanour too strong for it to be anything less, like a joke, or a little white lie. She meant what she said. She and Dominic may have quite a bit of sizzling chemistry between them, and Dominic may have been cheating on Lara for God knows how long, but not with her.

What a relief...

"Thanks...", Daniel said at length, and a tiny smile made it's way onto his lips as he started to relax. "I appreciate it."

Because he did, in both senses of the word; he appreciated that Lavinia apparently cared enough about what he thought to tell him what she had just refused to tell one of her friends, and he appreciated that desite their chemistry and how tight they were, she hadn't messed around with his big brother. He would have really hated it if she had, because as far as he was concerned, Dominic and Lara belonged together, and while him apparently fooling around with other girls was in no way a small matter, him fooling around with a girl he spent so much of his time with - sometimes even more than he spent with Lara and the rest of his family combined, like now, when on tour - would have been far, far worse.

Though speaking of Dominic and Lara...

"They've been gone for quite a while...", Daniel said, casting a glance towards the exit as though it might reveal where they'd gone off to, or what had happened between them. "I think I'm gonna go look for them, see if they're okay."


(((ooc: Also added Dominic's post to the reserve one we made for him and Lara above, in order to be able to catch up. )))

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Forum Resident
#120 Old 11th Jul 2010 at 4:15 PM
Application

1. Name: Harper Richardson
2. Age:19
4. Type of visitor (artist/groupie/staff etc):Artist (A Taste Of Vice)
3. Occupation:Procrastinating (college student)
4. Bio: Harper Richardson, named after Ben Harper because as her mother love to narrate to everyone, she'd been conceived during a Ben Harper concert, has got quite an unusual life.

Harper is the 7th daughter of a big and boisterous family of 12 people ran loosely by her mother, Lydia, an energetic woman in her forties, featuring seven kids (in order of birth: Devon, Myra, Roy, Blaze, Jonah, Phoenix and last but not least Harper), and 4 fathers. The coolest was without contest Myra and Phoenix's father, Angelo, a biker who let them ride his bike, and bring them to road trips. Roman, Roy's father, is an environmental lawyer who settled down in the suburbs with Karl and loves to bicker about the lack of rules. Kenneth, Blaze's father, is a painter and is really whimsical and things can get really wild with him. Jonah's and Phoenix's father, Gary, is the actual life companion of their mother. He's a lovable and down-to-earth guy, like a big teddy bear, always ready to hug everyone and loves everyone. Since Devon his the result of high school parties, he's got no real father but several probable ones. And finally, Harper's father, Arman, is a roadie that her mother met while she was on her 25th break up with Gary.

Despite what the self-righteous people thought about the fact that growing up in such a “unethical” environment would be an incentive for becoming a troubled child, her childhood had been golden and cushioned from the outside world. Home-schooled until she was 12, Harper grew into a healthful, passionate, uncompromising young teenager who speaks her mind whether you like it or not. Used to be the youngest member of the family and as such, the one wrapped with everyone else's loving care and surrounded by her protective brothers, sisters and fathers, she can be sometimes capricious.

It had been quite a shock when she'd finally joined school and modern and consumerist society with all its rules while she'd been raised to free herself from societal restrictions, to choose your own ways, to go where the flow takes you, freely. That open-mindedness had drove her during her teenage years to experience male and female relationships before settling on the fact that she must be straight. Occasional user of recreational drugs she's also spiritual but not religious, she tried almost every religion and spirituality and kept several elements from these various experiences that she felt to be hers. If her family hadn't been enough to grant her a room with the other outcasts, her strong nature would have done it. She could be blunt, brutally honest and spoke and acted her mind even if it could shock, not for the sake of creating an outrage, just because at that time it was what she was thinking and what she felt like doing.

Everyone knows that when you come from a big family, each one develop his thing, to stand out, get your own identity and Harper chose music. Although, despite her name, she didn't turned to guitar but to violin, an instrument that seemed to fit perfectly her heightened sensibility. Her love of music grew from all these hours that she shared with her father when he'd let her access backstage of some artists he was working for and the hours they spent jamming with him on the guitar and Phoenix, her closest brother, with body drums, playing Russian folk song that her father cared to transmit as a cultural inheritance of his Russian origins.

She joined an high-school band, Mad Raw as the singer's girlfriend and an occasional violin player first but she gained in importance little by little, becoming the song writer of the band and finally even the co-singer but it's only with college that she started to think seriously of doing something into the music department. She met Faith , lead guitarist of the indie rock band A Taste Of Vice while they were looking for a singer and musical harmony had been immediate. After a few gigs, Harper had been scouted by a major label but turned down their offer, not only because it meant letting down the rest of the band but also because she didn't agreed about the musical and commercial aspect that they wanted her to bind to. They still managed to get a breakthrough by signing with an indie record label that allowed them to keep their musical integrity and their recent hit, Rise and sink, had recently granted them a wider recognizance and led them to join the Syrinx Music Festival.

5: Picture:

Questionnaire:

Name:Harper
Nickname: Sveta (russian family nickname), Harpy
Instrument: Voice, Violin.
Previous bands: Mad Raw
Siblings: Devon, Myra, Roy, Blaze, Jonah and Phoenix.
Food of choice: Organic food
Drink of choice: Tea
Weapon of choice: Someone else.
Accessory of choice: None.
Movie of choice: Volver
Most inspirational artist (musician or not): Björk
Never goes on stage without: Her lucky charm.
Lucky charm: Her grandmother's ring.
Preferred time of day and why: Morning, nothing beats the excitement of a new day.
If in an emergency, the one person you'd first think to call, and why: Mum and if unavailable, one of my siblings. Family is the most important thing in my life and I would be lost without them.
Personal quote: Never take anything for granted.

(((OOC: I'll eventually add more info and correct it. As usual, open to storylines and plotting happily )))

Scholar
Original Poster
#121 Old 13th Jul 2010 at 5:15 PM
Default Lara and Dominic - Outside
Lara watched as the tension in the moment drained away with the breath of relief that escaped Dominic’s soft lips, and she was caught in a meridian. The air filtered out of her with the tightness in her chest, but the cast around her gut tightened just a little more in a flurry of shock and excitement. Did she just say yes?
What was she going to be? Mrs de Vere? Ms Abbott? Lara Abbott-de Vere? De Vere-Abbott? No, the double barrelling made it sound silly. Lara de Vere?
Oh, God.
She was getting married. To Dominic. She was getting married to Dominic. She didn’t care what she was going to be called; she was getting married to Dominic!

"Jesus, woman!" Dominic spoke of his own relief as his arms enveloped her to him, her smaller form surrendering to his as her head drank the information in again, or for the first time. She wasn’t sure whether it seemed real yet; it was just so... much. She found herself captive to those Caribbean ocean eyes again, and the flooding of her thoughts suddenly slipped away. "You scared me to death! Don't ever do that again!"

A small laugh escaped her as she found the humour of the situation, realising that she’d been a little all over the place. Hormonal, in fact. Oh, God... there was that... how was she going to bring that up? “Great, we’re getting married! How about we start a family? Immediately.”
Oh, God! What if she was a terrible wife? Or a terrible mother? Or a terrible both?!

"So... You will marry me then?" he asked tentatively as his eyes burned into the depths of her being. "Right?"

A moment passed as Lara wasn’t sure how to express the zeal that set her heartbeat free to it’s wild rhythm, feeling something in her give way against the flood of doubts and hesitations.
“Yes!” the exclamation bore out before she’d had a chance to take in another breath to voice herself. “Yes. Yes, of course I’ll marry you. I’d marry you right now, with those poles as witness and that... can ring. Of course I’ll marry you....,” the last words brought with them a sense of calm, a descent from the high rush of excitement and fervour as she moved closer into his warmth, eyes locking sincerely, before a hint of suggestiveness crept in; “And if we do that... we can consummate right away....”

(((OOC: Welcome, Lana! :D)))

"Life is just a chance to grow a soul" - A. Powell Davies
Alchemist
#122 Old 13th Jul 2010 at 7:23 PM
Default Lavinia - VIP Lounge with Danny, then Outside



Lavinia Sinclair wasn't exactly the noblest person around. She didn't always set out to do the right thing, and sometimes even did if not the opposite, then close enough to be considered questionable. Sometimes it was just more convenient to lie, or pretend it wasn't her business. She made mistakes -she was human.

What she wasn't in the habit of doing however was purposely hurt those she cared about, or look the other way when something obviously uncomfortable was taking place and she was in the position to set things straight. She didn't get her kicks out of other people's discomfort, unless they had it coming. In the end, Lavinia didn't only choose to follow Danny for Danny's sake, but Dominic's as well; he was no saint, and certainly not without reproach when it came to affairs, but at least their affair was only a rumour: if there was any good moment to debunk it, it was then. At least for the people who mattered.

That particular decision was cemented the moment Danny turned around and Lavinia noticed his expression: cautious, yet not unwilling, and to her relief he allowed himself to be guided towards a less congested area of the lounge. The young man's expression changed to a more guarded one as she explained matters, the tension in his body a sign that he wasn't about to immediately take her word for it. Which, Lavinia thought, was fair enough: anyone with half a brain would be asking themselves questions, starting with why she was telling him this when she could just as easily let it slide. She could only hope he eventually understood it was as simple as clearing the air between them.

Then, after several moments of suspended silence, Daniel seemed to relax, and cracked a smile.

"Thanks...", he said thoughtfully. "I appreciate it."

Lavinia returned the smile, feeling herself relax as well. He believed her, as far as she could tell the reaction seemed genuine, and it was a relief; it would have left a rather bitter taste in her mouth to have her attempt at being open and honest thrown back in her face which, she realized, could have happened. She was just about to slip back into her usual carefree mode and suggest they did go get themselves those beers, when Danny changed his mind:

"They've been gone for quite a while...", he pointed out, shooting a glance towards the exit, "I think I'm gonna go look for them, see if they're okay."

Ah, yes...Nicky and Lara. They had been gone a while indeed, probably more than an hour. She figured Dominic and his girlfriend had a lot to talk about, and she took it as a good sign that they were taking their time. It meant she was hadn't just dumped his ass. For a moment, Lavinia considered going with Danny, but quickly decided against it: if Nicky and Lara were immersed in some deep and meaningful conversation regarding their relationship, her presence would probably not help, and if Danny wanted a private word with them, she'd still get in the way. So, no.

“All right, you go ahead”, she told him with a light nod of her head, “And we'll have that beer together when you get back, yeah?”

Once Danny had departed, Lavinia went and procured herself a beer regardless, but when time came to return to the table, she veered abruptly in the opposite direction, seized by the sudden desire for some fresh air and a cigarette. Making her way out of the lounge, Lavinia followed the path along the outer wall until she had sufficiently distanced herself from the noisy groups loitering around the entrance, shadows gathering in her wake. There she stopped, and began rummaging inside her pockets for her pack of Malboros and the lighter she always carried, lighting one and inhaling deeply. Silence, for once, made for a welcome change.


((Lana - welcome aboard! ))

If wishes were fishes we'd all cast nets
Scholar
Original Poster
#123 Old 14th Jul 2010 at 10:00 AM Last edited by Alissa888 : 26th Aug 2010 at 10:11 PM.
Default Applications - Amelia (Amy/Leia) Claussen
Due to a lack of action/interest in this RP, this character is now withdrawn. Sorry.

"Life is just a chance to grow a soul" - A. Powell Davies
Retired Moderator
retired moderator
#124 Old 17th Jul 2010 at 1:15 PM
Default Dominic and Lara - outside VIP lounge


Had someone told Dominic last night that he would spend his life with his Lara, his girlfriend and high school sweetheart, he probably wouldn't have objected to the idea in any way. It wasn't a future he himself thought much about, but when he did think about the future, he always pictured Lara in it, sometimes even downright subconsciously.
Had someone told him last night however, that within twentyfour hours, he would be actually proposing marriage to her, he would have simply laughed and called them crazy. If the future was something he rarely thought much about, on a domestic level anyway, a future as a married man hadn't ever really been on the map. He was still young, and fickle, and regardless of picturing himself with Lara, he hadn't imagined himself getting married and starting a family until he was well into his thirties, or at the very least nearing them. Settling down with wife and kids was just such a big, responsible, grown up undertaking, and quite frankly, Dominic was far from feeling like a grown-up. Adult, yes, but grown-up; no.

Yet, as unexpected and impulsive as his proposal was, now that he'd made it, it felt right. It had felt right the very second he uttered it. Natural even. He had screwed up, royally, and although he hadn't actually admitted his crime even to himself until just half an hour or so ago, when seeing the shocked and hurt look on Lara's face, now that he had started seeing it for what it was, he wanted to make things right again. He wanted to assure Lara of how much he loved her, and of how badly he wanted her around. He wanted some way of proving his love for her, and of not only assuring her that he wasn't going anywhere, but ensuring that she wouldn't go anywhere either. That it was going to be the two of them.

Knowing Dominic, however, the vehemence and the intensity of his passion and his conviction, as always, stood a fair chance of being fleeting. It had happened before; there had been times when he'd been so utterly consumed by an idea one minute, willing to give his all to see it through to completion, no matter what the cost, only to have his interest waver as soon as some time had passed, and other things that tickled his fancy had come along. His fire always burned the brightest when it had just been lit, and so had others witnessed what had just happened, there were those that would have been sceptical at best, and claimed that he would forget his conviction soon enough, and revert back to his cheating ways as soon as he'd been away from Lara long enough for his libido to drown out his common sense, along with his memories of the intensity he currently felt. The moment the intensity faded, so would the conviction, they would say. Dominic was fickle. Not dishonest, just fickle, and should never be expected to be anything less. They would say.
Dominic himself would beg to differ. Especially after an eye-opener such as the one he'd experienced tonight. It wouldn't have felt so very right, and he wouldn't have been so very relieved when Lara indicated her agreement, had he not meant all of it for the long-run. And he most certainly wouldn't have been worried that he'd misunderstood that indication, enough to ask for confirmation the way he did, nor lit up like he did, when came Lara's reply;

"Yes!", she burst out ardently at first, as though she just couldn't hold back her eagerness, but then gradually calmed herself, though still intoned her answer a couple of times more; "Yes. Yes, of course I'll marry you. I'd marry you right now, with those poles as witness and that... can ring. Of course I'll marry you..."

That said, and with Dominic grinning widely at her from the crest of his own wave of relief and excitement, she slipped back further into his embrace, with an impish glint in her eyes;

"And if we do that... we can consummate right away..."

Needless to say, Dominic hardly missed the invitation in that rather obvious hint, and to him, there had probably never been more ample reason for an impromptu wedding. With raw, sexual tension having been building in him over the past couple of days, and not exactly been thwarted by having Lara, the person he'd yarned for the most, in his arms, his playing along was immediate;

"Well...", he started slowly, while another grin spread on his lips, with enough mischief to match the look in Lara's eyes, as he seemed to ponder a solution. "You do deserve better than a can ring, and mom would literally kill us both if we didn't invite her. But... There's always like a rehearsal dinner, right? So, who's to say we can't rehearse the consummation too?"

Wrapping his arm more tightly around her waist, he pulled her closer for a quick yet undeniably hungry kiss, before taking her by the hand, and setting off towards the tour bus parking lot.

"Come on", he said. "I think the bus is empty. Everyone else is in the lounge."

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
Retired Moderator
retired moderator
#125 Old 19th Jul 2010 at 10:04 PM
Default Rio, approaching Lavinia outside the VIP lounge


"Rio, for God's sake, relax. Stop obsessing."

Over by the bar in the VIP lounge, Brad just took a firm hold of his young boyfriend's chin with one hand, to force eye contact and stress his words. Ever since leaving the table where had sat Lavinia, the young woman whom Rio had reason to believe himself to be related to, the darkhaired youth had peppered Brad with questions about how he thought it had gone: Had he been too obvious? Should he really have mentioned what kind of modelling he did? Should he even have mentioned modelling at all? Did she seem like a really sweet person to Brad as well? How did he think she would react if Rio told her of his suspicions? Should he tell her now or should he try to get to know her a little better first? When did Brad think Rio might get the chance to talk to her again? Should he go for it now, or should he wait and see if an opportunity presented itself? What if the band left before he got a chance?

Needless to say, after having waited months for the chance to come face to face with the person he believed to be his sister, the encounter had ruffled quite a few nerves in Rio, and stirred both ponderings, hopes and fears, to the point where he was now unable to let it go, even for a minute, and unwind enough for his mind, not to mention Brad, to catch up. Rio usually wasn't the most excitable person, he usually managed to keep a certain calm, but this was all simply too big a deal for him, for that calm to prevail; he might have just met his sister, for the very first time. He could feel his heart racing in his chest, in the immediate aftermath of coming face to face with her, and when he looked down at his hands, he could swear they were shaking. It felt pathetic, but it was a very human reaction, the result of months of anticipation slowly building, and then being poured into only a few minutes of conversation, that hadn't even begun to scratch the surface of what he wished to address with her.

"I can't!", he claimed in response to Brad's attempt to calm him and make him slow down, yet did still manage a deep, cleansing breath when the other young man's gaze held his still.

"You'll get your chance", Brad intoned. "They're not playing until the day after tomorrow, right? So they'll be around until then, don't worry."

That was true. To be perfectly honest, with his nerves currently in such an uproar, Rio had almost forgotten about the show Deus Ex Machina were scheduled to play at the festival, and so the reminder did manage to calm him a little, and he gave a slight nod - as best he could in Brad's firm grip - before his lips parted slightly in a smile when from there, Brad went on to give him a quick kiss, before finally letting him go.

"You're right", Rio said with another nod, and curled his fingers around the neck of one of the two beer bottles he actually had still managed to order for himself and Brad upon arriving at the bar, despite the distracted state he'd been in.

"'Course I'm right", Brad grinned. "Always am."

At that, Rio simply stuck out his tongue at him, before giving a light laugh. Brad always had been good at helping him unwind whenever he needed it, like when he was drowning in assignments and school work and freaking out about it - which, up until now, had been pretty much the only times that would see him in this state of distress - regardless of whether it was in person or just over the phone. And the best thing was that it was a mutual ability, since Rio had always been able to offer comfort and a shoulder to lean on as well, when things like touring or playing a bad show or getting bad reviews were getting tough on Brad. It was one of the reasons why despite all the issues that came with both their lines of work, they still managed an actual, functional relationship; it was one of equal giving and taking, with neither one demanding more attention and reassurance than the other. Whatever tension there was between them usually wasn't in any way of the detrimental, damaging sort, and the tension caused by sources outside of the relationship tended to be addressed and given an outlet through talking, or just being close to one another.
Such as now.
By being understanding and reasonably indulgent, until he figured Rio really wasn't making matters better on himself by obsessing, and put a mild but firm end to it, Brad successfully made the most pressing tension seep out of his boyfriend's frame, and got him to finally relax a little. Before long, they were immersed in conversation regarding other matters, along with the occasional burst of laughter at some funny story or a joke, to the point where Rio didn't even notice that Lavinia got up from the table she and the others had been occupying and started heading towards the bar. It was Brad that had to bring his attention to the fact, by giving him an indicative glance and a nod in Lavinia's general direction. Only then, when Rio turned his head to look, did his eyes latch onto Lavinia's apparently single frame, and his voice slowly faded mid-sentence, as his focus instantly snapped away from the current subject matter.

"Now might be your chance?", Brad suggested.

"Yeah...", Rio said distractedly, but then turned back to him, with a somewhat uncertain look on his face. "You wouldn't mind?"

Brad offered a calm, rueful smile.

"No, of course I don't mind. Go ahead. And good luck."

"Thanks", Rio shot back a quick smile, and then slipped down from the bar stool, grabbing his beer in the process.

Weaving through the crowd, and being a head shorter than the taller people in there, he had to stop every now and then to stretch and catch his bearings, as well as make sure he didn't loose sight of Lavinia; something that proved more difficult than he'd hoped, when he saw her suddenly change her course and head towards the exit instead, away from him.

"Crap", Rio cursed to himself, yet at the same time felt even more determined to catch up with her; his chances of talking to her privately and without being interrupted were greater outside, than in a lounge filled with friends and other people in party mode.

Though her change of route did still leaving him falling behind, and so while he did manage to ever so slightly narrow the distance separating them, by the time he pushed himself through the door, he was afraid she'd had time to vanish from sight. Thankfully, as he stood there searching for her, his head whipping around to look in all directions, he caught sight of her curvy frame to the left, moving along the wall of the lounge towards a dark spot away from the busiest parts of the backstage area. Tentatively, he started following her, wanting to watch and see whether she intended to stop, or if she was heading someplace else, though halted when he realized that she was indeed stopping to have a smoke. And since he didn't want it to be bleeding obvious that he'd followed her, rather than leave room for the possibility that he came across her simply through coincidence, he lingered where he was for almost a minute, taking a couple of deep breaths to battle the butterflies in his stomach at the thought of what he was just about to do.
Then; here goes nothing...

Taking a swig of the beer in his hand, he turned his gaze back to her, and started slowly towards her, almost hesitantly, since he wasn't oblivious to the fact that she might have decided to come out here to be alone, and thus might not be too eager to have him disturb the peace.

"Hey", he said once he was within earshot without having to shout. "Mind some company?"

Much to his relief, the look in her eyes when she looked up at him was neither defensive nor annoyed, and the answer she gave was a casual;

"Yeah, why the hell not?"

At that, Rio eliminated the last couple of yards that remained between them to come stand next to her, and gave her a quick glance as he tried to decide on the best way to go about all this. Since he figured that despite his attempt to be subtle, both here and back at the table when he'd first been watching her, she had to suspect that he was up to something, he finally went with the perfectly honest approach;

"Alright," he said and turned to her, "I guess you're on to me by now, aren't you?"

~ * ~ Volition ~ * ~
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