About.

KIANA LEDÉ via instagram

"i guess i just figured the person who owned the cafe actually owned the cats as well. maybe they're just loaning their cats to us to distract from the terrible coffee." salem teased while petting a smaller black cat that resembled stevie. "im almost sure im like a cat whisperer because i haven't come across a single one that doesn't like me." chuckling at spencer's comment she looked over at the other for a brief moment. "you could pretend to pass out or something. i'll stash two in my bag while you create a diversion. i just hope you're a cat person because you're definitely taking one of them."

spencer lifted an eyebrow, shrugging at salem, "i mean, what can they do to you? complain because you're giving them a good home? call the cat police? there's probably too many cats to keep track of here anyway." they looked around, a cat perched on the table adjacent to them, "plus, i dunno, they seem drawn to you, they should let you have one free of charge." they stated, "ask the staff which one they like the least, bet they'd let you have that one." they joked, scratching one of the smaller cats behind the ears, "if you decided to opt for stealing one instead of asking, i'll create a distraction for you." they half-teased.

salem, what's your ideal first date? would you agree to a kiss by the end of it?

“i like to leave that up to whoever is asking me on a date but ideally it would be something super fun. i hate the pressure of first dates so the less stress the better. but if the person wanted to be extra that’s okay too i just hope both teams have fun. as far as a kiss i guess it depends on how well the date went but can’t i just kiss the person mid date if the vibe is right?”

KIANA LEDÉ via instagram

salem didn't know the person throwing the party too well but the invite was extended after meeting a couple nights ago at one of the local bars. she didn't think about this person possibly knowing her ex or him being in attendance either, that was the first mistake she made that night. she'd been drinking and mingling throughout the night with strangers trying her best to take advantage of being in a new place. most of her time in valpo so far consisted of meeting new people and doing things she normally didn't get a chance to do. she started chatting with this guy about music and the two were seemingly hitting it off until a familiar voice interrupted the conversation. unsurprisingly it was leon and he was pissed. "fantastic." she said sarcastically while the other walked off leaving the two alone. "well, i was flirting with that guy and trying to have a conversation. please don't make me hire security in a completely different country."

house parties. house parties are great when you're trying to forget about the girl who keeps breaking your heart. and so leon took a shower, put on his black pants and tight tank top and left the apartment to go party at one of those houses up in the hills. it was all fine, he was a little drunk and a little high and he was honestly having a good time. but then, he saw her. he tried to avoid her, and it worked for a while. and now that he goes outside for a cigarette, leon sees salem all over some other guy he doesn't know. just flirting and laughing. this makes him so mad. "excuse me," he says as he approaches the pair. his stare is so apparently intimidating that the other guy leaves. "what are you doing?" he asks salem.

@cybermuses

salem followed leon over to the couch and sat down with him. her nerves were getting the best of her, not being sure what he was going to say or what his reasoning was for leaving her the way he did gave her a bit of anxiety. she decided to let him speak first and state his reasons ( or excuses ) and she'd vent after the fact to him about what was on her mind. as he told her the story about what was going on with his family she nodded and listened, salem was always empathetic and understanding of the situation he'd been dealing with for a while. the details about everything broke her heart and knowing he was dealing with that much back home made her feel a little guilty about being so angry at him but there was still something that was bothering her. "i'm really sorry you had to deal with all of that alone and you had so much on your plate...." salem let out a sigh before continuing on. "...but like the issue wasn't about you leaving and me not coming with you. the issue was you not wanting to be long distance with me. i mean, you said you couldn't do it and you know i was so understanding about you having to go back home but like you said you didn't trust yourself? i need to know what you meant by that part. if it wasn't about you potentially cheating on me then what was it about?" the question had been eating at her for a couple weeks and truthfully it sounded like complete bullshit to her but she knew given their history the least she could do is give him the benefit of the doubt.

leon lets her talk, even if it breaks his heart. she's so right about everything, but he genuinely thought this was a good idea at the time. the man nods, twisting his lips, anxious as every word that leaves salem's mouth stab him in the chest. he feels so dumb. such a fucking idiot for thinking he knew what was best for the relationship without taking her into consideration. such an asshole. again. he knows he still has to grow up, but things take time. therapy takes time. he wishes he could fast-forward to the time of his life when he's happy with his girl. with a sigh, leon shakes his head almost imperceptibly before gathering the courage to be a good person to salem. "yeah, okay," the blond leads her to the couch to sit down. "i know i told you my grandma has alzheimer. and i knew i had to go back home to take care of her and mostly my mother, she and my grandma never had a healthy relationship, you know? she could be such a bitch to my mom, to be honest." sometimes context is needed to tell the whole story. some details are so damn personal that he hesitates to share them. but he does. "and well, you know how it is with my mom. i'd feel upset and she would yell at me. she wouldn't validate my feelings, at all. and everything started going smoothly between us when i moved out. i was so fucking afraid of what i could become going back there. i obviously didn't want to bring you because i didn't want you to freak out. so i flew back to seattle, my grandma was yelling all day and eating things she shouldn't because she also has diabetes, you know. so i had to keep an eye on her, and also on my mom because she was drinking a lot. like, almost two bottles of espumante every night." the words slide out of his tongue and his heart is beating faster and he's scared to keep going. but he does. "i really didn't want to put you through that. because of course i got depressed too. it was just a really toxic dynamic back there. and i really really didn't want to bring you into it."

"you can never have too many crops! i practically live in them when the weather is warmer plus you can make them work with almost anything." salem nodded in agreement. it was typically the most normal day to day things like a shopping trip with a friend that made her feel content. though she was slightly distracted from her own personal relationship drama she truly was enjoying astrids company. "a crop top with low rise jeans and a faux fur coat is very it girl of you...look at you turning into an insta baddie on me!" she let out a giggle at the thought. "actually, i think it's criminal we have to do brat summer in the freezing cold but props to you for keeping it alive." salem could feel astrid's slight judgement from the sweaters but she couldn't blame her. truthfully she needed to put something slutty on and hit the club. "it's just leon he'll be fine." she replied dismissively before changing the subject. "this is more important anyways. i should ditch the sweaters shouldn't i?"

                 ⋆.˚ ❝  ok…  on-trend  is  always  a  plus..  i  don’t  know..  i’m  already  pretty  fond  of  crops  —  my  ass  does  look  great  though.  ❞  she  trusts  salem’s  taste,  it  was  impossible  not  to  when  the  woman  looked  and  dressed  as  well  as  she  did.  with  one  that  spent  most  time  prioritizing  comfort  over  necessarily  looking  her  best  these  trips  always  felt  just  a  bit  wasted  on  astrid  but  she  did  love  finding  club  outfits  that  toed  the  line  of  being  just  a  bit  too  much.  was  this  so  different?  it  was  just  a  little  brighter  out.  ❝  y’know  what  !  screw  it.  i’m  getting  these  jeans  if  nothing  else  these  would  kill  at  the  club.  a  faux  fur  coat…  i  just  got  this  new  crop  that’s  practically  a  bra  at  this  point…  i’ve  been  streaming  365.  whatever  !  ❞  she  tosses  a  shrug  at  salem,  grabbing  the  additional  pants  hanging  in  the  changing  room  and  shuffling  out  as  she  riffled  through  the  clothes  she’d  already  tried  on  —  picking  among  the  tops  she  was  surely  going  to  keep;  her  eyes  falling  on  salem’s  collection.  ❝  ok  your  turn  !  what  are  we  looking  at…  are  those  all  sweaters  ?  and  please  feel  free  to  pick  up,  well  unless  it  was  a  scammer  i  guess.  ❞ ─ ✶⋆.˚

status: closed for @vroyales // leia

after spending some time on the tilt-a-whirl and wandering around the grape maze salem convinced leia to tag along with her to the petting zoo. she was shamelessly enjoying every moment of it despite all the kids running around and crowding the area. "there's no way i can leave here without taking one home with me. it isn't fair." salem said while holding the piglet in her arms and gently petting it. "i mean, i could literally just put her in my tote bag right now and go home. do you think anyone would notice?"

the thought of everclear made salem shudder a bit in disgust. "everclear? is that even legal to serve inside a bar to actual living people?" she said with confusion before shrugging. truthfully she'd take anything at this point. "i trust whatever concoction you come up with. i just need to not feel how i'm feeling right now which is a lot of guilt and a just a little bit of shame." she wasn't proud at leaving the way she did that morning but she was a little embarrassed that she had to get absolutely wasted to talk to him. salem listened to esme and nodded. she was right at it being different considering leon was her ex-whater. "i have no idea what i'm going to do about it.." pausing for a moment before taking the drink from esme. "but i do think it'll be smart to stay far far away from him until i figure it out right?"

             oh,  okay,  they're  starting  off  strong  today. esme  blinks  for  a  moment  before  nodding,  turning  to  look  at  the  various  bottles  of  alcohol  behind  her  and  cringing  a  bit,  "  i  could  give  you  just  straight  everclear,  but  i  would  think  you'd  want  to  ...  enjoy  it,  no ? "  an  everclear  cocktail  sounds  disgusting,  so  esme  decides  she'll  put  some  flavored  moonshine  in  something  pretty  and  get  salem  fucked  up  the respectable way.  her  eyebrows  raise  a  bit  at  the  start,  though  by  the  end  of  salem's  sentence  she's  shrugging,  "  i  mean  –  no ? i  don't  stay  longer  than,  like,  seven  am  with  any  hookup  i  have.  that's  weird.  "  a  pause.  she  shouldn't  be  the  pinnacle  of  advice  for  this,  "  it  ... might be  different  when  it's  your  ex-boyfriend-it's-complicated-weird-thing,  though.  what're  you  gonna  do  about  it ? "

she pouted briefly after realizing she'd have to wait a little longer to be reunited with her child but seeing boat cat was an added bonus. the orange creature had become like a second child to her. "luna was right with doing that you know. i mean the only reason why we're besties is because you're a negligent cat parent towards boat cat." salem knew referring to the two as besties would make rohan shudder and she couldn't help that she found amusement in getting on his nerves ( it was pretty simple after all ) and she had to admit she did enjoy their back and forth. as he toted the luggage into the car she rolled her eyes at his comment. "i don't need luggage that expensive no, but i can't help that i have nice things." climbing into the passenger seat in an attempt to get out of the cold she continued on. "i was just talking shit really, you know i'm not one to really flex my wealth but it obviously annoyed you and that's enough for me." a laugh falling from her lips. salem knew she should have probably thanked him first before getting on his nerves but it wasn't in her nature to be nice to rohan immediately. she looked over at him as he got into the drivers seat and gave him a small smile. "thanks by the way. i appreciate you offering to bring me home. i got you a really obnoxious gift for the boat also."

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-ˋˏ ‏‏‎ ‎꒰ ‏‏‎ ‎🐚 ‏‏‎ ‎꒱‏‏‎ ‎ ──‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎ ‎“  yeah  exactly.  you  know.  airports :  those  places  people  notoriously  pick  up  women  and  hate  reading.  that’s  what  all  the  bookstores  inside  are  for.  “  rohan  knows  he  can  be  a  bit  abrasive.  he  knows  he’s  hard  to  talk  to.  he  can’t  help  it,  especially  when  it  comes  to  salem.  she's  so  quick  with  her  own  quips  that  the  back  and  forth  comes  naturally──  and  manages  to  avoid  how  itchy  he  gets  every  time  he  thinks  he's  starting  to  become  friends  with  someone.  his  gaze  follows  her  as  she  peers  expectantly  into  the  back  of  the  cab,  and  rohan  tosses  the  little  paperback  he  was  holding  through  the  open  window  of  the  driver's  side  door.  "  sorry,  i  was  talking  about  boat  cat.  luna  wouldn't  let  me  take  stevie.  "  he  did  try  to  argue  that  it  made  sense  to  get  both  salem  and  stevie  from  valpo  to  viña  del  mar  in  one  trip  ;  unfortunately,  that  did  not  sway  their  opinion.  "  apparently  i  can't  be  trusted.  my  track  record  is  too  poor  with  boat  cat,  whatever  that  means.  "  a  beat  passes  as  he  looks  between  salem  and  her  bags,  an  eyebrow  raised,  but  he  gives  in  easily,  moving  to  pull  open  the  back  door  of  the  cab  so  he  could  put  them  there──  unfortunately  for  him,  rohan  tends  to  be  more  bark  than  bite.  "  do  you  really  need  luggage  that  expensive  ?  i  spent  like,  half  my  life  savings  on  that  boat. unless that was your attempt at a subtle brag ? it doesn't impress me how much money you have, you know.  "