cuddlecity | EVENT: LIFE'S A BEACH

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EVENT: LIFE'S A BEACH

Is it hot in here, cuddlers, or is it just us? No, it's definitely hot — the end of summer is here, and a few miles out from the city, on the beach, the scene is set: if you’ve been able to follow’s Baby’s clues, they led you here.

The dress code is — surprise, surprise — beachwear, but do think of bringing some layers to cover up these beautiful bikinis and all, because the night could get a little chilly if you stray too far from that bonfire. And, of course, if you don’t want to be that exposed, it’s not like the dress code is a mandatory thing, either. (Just don't be surprised if you hear a few disappointed groans from the audience if you come all covered up.)

The first thing that can be seen is a BAR, with a large poster advertising CriminALES at its front. Like any good beach bar, beers and cocktails with tiny little umbrellas in them can be obtained for a small price — or for free, if you're suave enough to impress the bartender on duty. Nearby, SNACK TABLES feature a veritable buffet of edibles, ranging from chips to brownies to crudites and dips (all courtesy of Kimberly and Clary, thank you!). However, if you felt like bringing your own food and alcohol to the party, you won’t be turned away.

Further down the beach, dry wood has been piled up in what looks like an imminent BONFIRE; if you're a little too delicate to rest on the sand, don't worry — there are plenty of bean bags, cushions, and blankets. Feel free to cuddle up to someone familiar, or maybe a new friend, and enjoy the roaring fire once the sun sets.

Beyond the obvious entertainment of the sun, surf, and sand, your party planners have gone to great lengths to ensure everyone is ready to have a great time. Near the bar, inflated beach balls and other toys are strewn around, and the beach's VOLLEYBALL COURT is no stranger to a game or two. As the night goes on, there just might be a few DRINKING GAMES started — "spin the bottle", anyone?

Of course, a party hosted by Baby himself wouldn't be the same without the all-important KILLER TUNES. Nestled directly to the side of the seating area, a makeshift DJ booth flanked by tiki torches serves as the beating heart of the party, and marks the start of a large square expanse of sand, a DIY DANCE FLOOR cordoned off by a large speaker in each of the four corners, all connected by links of colorful bunting.

As promised, the MUSIC will be blasting until the morning, ranging from massive party tunes (no, but seriously) to romantic ballads for those who feel like a slow dance. There are also, strewn around, some serious dancing jams because what’s a party without some exquisitely cheesy songs? Later on, when there is less dancing and more lounging around, quieter, softer classics will be put on as background music. Feel free to MAKE A REQUEST (or ten), or even steal the mic and sing a little song yourself!

Come on down, Cadelle, and give the summer one last hurrah before it goes away. As the unimitable Ella Fitzgerald would say, "it's summertime, and the livin' is easy."

The mod team is so excited to post our first PLAYER-HOSTED EVENT! If your character has the desire to host an event of some kind, be it a party, a grand opening for their business, or something else all together, please don't hesitate to let us know via our EVENT SUGGESTIONS POST!

For help with this, or for any other concerns, please feel free to reach out to us via our GENERAL INBOX (or SCREENED INBOX, if you prefer). Have fun, cuddlers, and don't forget your SPF!

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( she's met with a grin and she can't help but to trace it with eyes alone, the gleam of his teeth and once more the note that when he smiles there's no hesitation to the way every bit of him gives in to it, how it takes him over. it disheartens her, at times, the way those that know little of person perceive her— mistake her confidence for arrogance, the fact that she's spent so many years learning herself as a woman who jutted her chin to others.

never once has isabelle considered another lesser to her, no one, at least, other than valentine and those equally as absorbed with hate. such was not the boy before her, finally bringing the hand that wasn't taken by his up to hold at the nape of his neck, thumb scoring against it's warmth slowly. )

I didn't... ever expect coming here would bring me something like this. I've been so focused, so hellbent on telling myself it wasn't a time to be selfish. ( a little shrug, expelling a breath and searching betwixt his eyes. )

I can't help it. Being near you.

[ Her touch, such a simple touch, her finger against his neck, her nail just brushing his skin, is enough to make him shiver, his eyes closing for a second longer than a blink would take. His hand on her waist moves to the small of her back, pressing her even closer, a leg fitting snugly between hers. ]

I came here for selfish reasons. And yet I didn't think... [ He looks down again, lips parting. ] I'm just - so attracted to you.

[ He pauses, once more trying to find the right words. ] But it's not just - your looks. I want to know you.

[ Inside and out. He is endlessly fascinated by the infinity of layers that make up Isabelle, and want to peel them all off, one by one. ] This isn't a game for me.

( undoubtedly, izzy was a woman who knew full and well what her looks could accomplish, that she had to of held some sort of appeal given the amount of missions she'd tackle with initial responsibility being to distract. but that knowing isn't something she outwardly carries as anything more than a defense, perhaps even at times a means of suggesting everything tucked beneath the surface wasn't suffering as it was.

so compliments, genuine compliments from another she'd begun to care about... they thread themselves about the most vital parts of her, made home in little pulls between her ribs as if to declare they were here to stay; and maybe he was, too. )

I don't think it's necessary for me to say that I'll let you in, Baby. ( it's already been clear, hasn't it? he was the first person she'd told as to why she was here, what'd happened back in brooklyn. there are endless nooks of her to learn just as there are of him, but for once, she's open. for him only. )

And I don't know what that means, that I'm willing to do that. That I can push aside the fact that eventually we'll be leaving this place... but I'm up for figuring that out, if you are.

I want to let you in, too. [ He says it in a rush of breath, looking straight into her eyes. His hand feels big over the small of her back, keeping her close, and the ocean breeze keeps on throwing wafts of her shampoo up to his nose, putting all of his senses on high alert. ]

I don't think about leaving - I don't think about home, when I'm with you. But, before you... [ Licking his lips, he swallows hard, his fingers squeezing hers gently. ]

Before you make a decision like this, you ought to know. The reason I'm here - back home, I'm a wanted man. I was going to go to prison.

[ He feels like he owes her this; the truth, ugly and selfish. She gave him her reasons to be here, and she might not want to keep seeing him after knowing what he is, truly. He wouldn't blame her. ]

( i want to let you in, and she's waiting for that lingering 'but' that seems to always fall close behind. would she be upset with him, if he couldn't? if maybe he found it unwise, just as she'd been telling herself from the moment she'd stepped foot into cadelle? she wouldn't; couldn't hold that against him. they all had their own lives to return to, it wouldn't be realistic of either of them to hold something that glared to be temporary over the other's head.

and when he proceeds with it, when he tells her exactly why he'd been hesitant to talk about his wish up at the mountains, she doesn't pause their movements nor make any efforts to shift away from him. if anything, she looks closer. there was a vast difference between the intent to murder, and being placed under inhumane circumstance.

all she has is what he has told her; that he'd worked for someone, that the man wouldn't take no for an answer. for a long moment, she is quiet, but her gaze isn't. and when she finally speaks it's almost a sigh. )

Were you wanted, Baby? Or was it association? ( in other words: did he act under his own free will, or was there something at stake? ) When I look at you... spend time with you, I don't... ( she shakes her head, hair rustling. ) I don't believe you're capable of anything horrible unless you didn't have a choice. And maybe I'm wrong, but- I'd think you'd tell me if I was.

[ He tries to keep himself open, looking at her even as the thoughts and feelings rush through him at her questions. They're fair, but he still takes some time to answer. For a moment, he's searching for the ringing in his ears, the usual noise of it, and doesn't stop until he can hear it, faintly, under the music, under her breaths and the steady beat of her heart. For all that he can't deal with it, it reminds him of who he is. ]

I was. For a lot of different crimes, Izzy. I didn't have much of a choice when it all started - I was just a kid. I didn't know any better, and I had a debt to pay. But everything that happened just before I came here, I chose to do. To end it all. To be free of it.

[ Gently, he pulls the hand he's holding in his to his heart, her palm against the cotton of his shirt. ]

I don't want you to think I'm someone I'm not. I've done bad things, and I've made bad decisions. All I've ever wanted was to be free, and for my loved ones to be safe, and that is why I did what I did.

( she listens, because she knows this isn't anything light to him, knows it's really not something that should be; and maybe it's foolish of her, maybe even a little naive that she isn't a bit more cold about it, a bit more inquisitive in ways others would be—while she may not have known the extent to why he was here, there was never a moment with him in which she felt he wasn't being honest. what she felt, what she was beginning to feel, it wasn't constructed on anything but the man he was, who he made her when she was around him.

as hand is pulled to the centre of his chest she's softly closing fingers about the edge of his palm, glancing down to the sight. for a moment, she questions as to whether or not he truly wishes to get close to her, if he's capable of it given what he's been through, the debt he's still paying unto himself for what he's done. )

The way you think of yourself isn't always going to be how others see you. ( voice light, hidden just between the two of them. ) I can't say that the things you've done weren't wrong. I can see that they were, what it's done to you. ( she looks to him again, now, brows met in a tuft of concern. )

You're here, though. Trying to fix them. Trying to fix something, no? ( that doesn't mean nothing, in her book. )

I'm trying to fix what can still be fixed. [ He wants to pull her hand up to his lips, kiss the center of her palm - just because - but he resists; he has more to say, more to admit. It won't assuage his guilt, but she'll be able to decide whether or not she truly wants to be around him, knowing everything there is to know. ]

I don't mind, really, if I go home and end up in prison. People died, because of me, and I have to pay for it. But my family, the people I love - they don't deserve to be caught in the crossfire.

[ His thumb brush her knuckles. They're not really dancing anymore, now, just standing on the dancefloor, sand under their feet, a party going on behind them. Baby's only got eyes for Isabelle. ]

So, there you have it. I understand, if it's a dealbreaker.

( it says something, doesn't it? that the lives that were lost weren't the reason he was here, but the reason he was guilty. if they were good people, if they were lives that deserved to be led like the hundreds of downworlders that'd lost their place in brooklyn, he'd speak for them. maybe even ask for them back, just as she was—but he's here for those that were left intermixed. those that loved him just as so, and in consequence got wrapped into something they didn't want to be a part of, just as he didn't.

whether it's her place to or not, she believes him, when he says he wants to fix things. that maybe there were those that, even if had been what'd landed him a wanted man, he wouldn't take back, but pay the price for. there was some kind of nobility, letting nothing get in the way of who he cared for. all isabelle really has are his words, and what she feels from them.

and she's betting on that. so she'll let that hand at the nape of his neck drift back, let her thumb score beneath the fuller swell of his lower lip- more a means to soothe than taunt. )

You're not a bad man, Baby. And I can see you already are paying for it. ( she isn't here to add to that. )

It's a little more difficult to get rid of me, I'm afraid. ( however silly she may sound in saying so, given the magnitude of his words. she doesn't say it to lessen them, however, just to assure. )

[ He, genuinely, didn't give thought to wish to bring Buddy and Darling back. Maybe they deserved it, but they'd killed so many, themselves, and hurt a lot more. What Buddy had been capable of was terrifying and Baby didn't even see the full extent of it, and so, no. No, he'd wished for Joe to be well and safe, and for Debbie to avoid being seen as an accessory, and for himself to be free. His own way of fixing it. ]

I don't want to be rid of you, [ He replies seriously, even if she was teasing. He is sincere about it, too - he would be perfectly fine to just spend the rest of his time in Cadelle in her arms, just like this; he can't imagine he would regret a moment of it. ]

I wasn't lying, I really do want to see where this leads. With you. But you deserved to know the truth about me.

[ This time, he does bring her hand up to his lips, and kisses the heel of her palm, ever so softly. ]

Edited 2017-09-09 22:28 (UTC)

( not once has she ever doubted his sincerity, and that doubt certainly hasn't shown itself here. the rest of the party has dwindled behind them, no longer able to hear the soft murmurings around a crackling fire, just the steady rush of the waves pushing and curling themselves about the shore, the low octaves of his voice soothing in with them. )

Thank you for telling me. ( she means it, knows it wasn't something that was easy for him, because if it was he'd of gotten it out the first evening they'd truly spent time with one another. the fact that he'd hesitated was every bit a testament to his fear on how she may have looked at him, how anyone may look at him once they know. when izzy feels, though, she feels to a devastating degree, and maybe she feels she owes it to herself, to see what happens. to feel something good, for a change.

eyes follow the way he purses lips to her palm, a faint smile hinting across her lips, though that brief tinge of sadness still lingered in her gaze. he was like her, if anything. punishment in it's worse form could only come from oneself. )

Looks like we've got some time to figure it out. ( where we'll go. )

Edited 2017-09-09 22:42 (UTC)

Yeah. We do.

[ He nods, smiling against her palm before he turns his cheek into her hand, and then releases it, only to pull her fully into a hug, resuming their light swaying. The music swells in his ears again, having switched from Percy Sledge to Kings Of Leon, which feels appropriate.

He lets her go after another moment, hand brushing some hair off of her forehead as he looks at her. ]

So, what would you say to another date?

[ He smiles, a little crooked. ]

( she revels in it, the way long arms ravel around her and tuck her in to his chest, the way his pulse echoes against her temple, her ear as he does. it feels as if he's no more or less, just then, than an attachment of herself; something she didn't believe would do anything but bloom all the more in their favor. regardless of the hour, something she's keeping little track of, she isn't ready to give the night up with him just yet.

even if there are plenty more to come. )

You mean you plan on topping the mountains? ( a playful, dubious look when she's pulled back enough for them to obtain sight of one another once more, biting into the smile that breaks itself wider. )

I would say that's a definite yes.

I'm not sure how I'm going to manage that one, but I'm going to try. How are you on roller skates?

[ He imagines Isabelle, in a tight shirt, daisy dukes and knee-high socks, rollerblading at Good Times, and the mere thought makes the red climb to his cheeks. It wouldn't be as romantic as a sunset and an incredible view, but it would probably be a lot of fun for her to watch him look exactly like Bambi on ice. ]

( a purse of her lips in consideration—when was the last time she had even been rollerskating? )

I think my equilibrium rune may give me a little bit of an unfair advantage. ( though for the most part, she's excelled at balance to begin with. for her, a date didn't necessarily need to be some means of sweeping her away somewhere remote- of course, there'd be times when she favored that above all else, but those suggestions light-hearted enough did just as much to win her over. )

Better question might be how are you on skates?

[ His gaze falls onto the rune between her breasts, and he licks his lips before looking away, embarrassed at how obvious he was about it. ]

One day, I'd like to know more about these runes of yours. [ Trace them with his fingers, with his lips; know every single one of them, even those hidden underneath her clothes. Especially those. ]

I'm terrible. You're going to have to hold my hand the whole time to keep me from falling.

There's a good amount of them. It could take awhile.

( but she would.

and she notices, the way he looks at her; a woman having been trained to be adept to detail, observing targets from both near and far. of course, he wasn't something to treat as a mission, but habit was habit, and he wasn't exactly discreet about it, either. she won't call him on it, though, however it does little to lessen the smile that aches to tug at each dimpled crevice of her mouth. )

So that's what this is about- an excuse to hold my hand for an evening.

I'm okay with that. [ Anything to spend more time with her anyway. The idea of being able to explore her body... to look at her unbidden, allowed, it's exhilarating. And, in a way, that is what she's putting on the table here.

In answer, he has to offer something, too. ] I could show you my scars, in return.

[ Far from being as sexy or intriguing, but probably as numerous. ]

Looks like I'm not as subtle as I like to think I am, huh?

Not even slightly. ( the words proceed red lips revealing a set of pearled teeth, giving him a look that may suggest she may not only be referring to his hidden wishes to keep her hand in his for a night. there were far worse things she could think of.

the physical was never something she'd been uncomfortable with, incredibly attuned to her body, her sexuality, the desires that rested at the tip of her tongue; however they didn't control her. she knew how to hold off if it was in their better interest- sex had never been the focus of her pursuit on another, and even then such chases were slim. she'd even been willing to give up the thought of it, mutual pleasure, such a sacred part of a relationship, for raphael.

it doesn't mean that she isn't tempted. the plump bow of his lips, how his large hands fit against her and hold her to him; she was only one woman, of course she thought of how they might feel should they get a bit more possessive, needy. but she could wait, however long it took. a mere murmur, then: )

I think that's a fair trade.

[ If he was any other man, he would lean down and kiss her. Try to claim her, in a way; dig in and make his home against her lips for the time being. But he is not just any other man, and Isabelle isn't something to stake a claim on. As much as he wants to haul her up and kiss her senseless, there's also the fact that he doesn't want to push too far, too fast, and lose everything in the process.

He can be patient. ]

Then, it's a date.

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EVENT: LIFE'S A BEACH

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