Salem, Do You Believe In Ghosts? Do You Think You've Ever Seen One?

status: closed location: @hecticlife place

as salem approached leon's apartment food in hand she wondered why she was feeling butterflies in her stomach. things had been rocky between the two of them for a while now and it seemed like every encounter they had since salem's arrival in valpo resulted in some sort of conflict. the least she could do was try to smooth things over and apologize. she knocked on the door three times before he answered and realized it probably would have been smart ahead of time to let him know she was coming over but out of habit she figured it would be fine. a smile came across her face as he opened the door. "i bought a peace offering, pastel de choclo to be exact." salem knew it was his favorite dish. "please tell me you haven't eaten already?"

as salem stepped out on the balcony she was taken back by the view. the breeze from the ocean and smell of the beach had her in awe. "i can't believe you get to have this view everyday." she said in disbelief as she sat down and placed her plate on the table. the sound of leon humming to the jazz music was comforting in a way, she'd missed so many little things about him. "i've missed you so much, truly." salem blushed a bit while looking over at him. "i'm just really happy we could do this. i really miss being able to do everything with you." there was a lot she wanted to say but her nerves were starting to get the best of her again. she decided to turn her attention back to the dish and proceeded to eat a forkful. "okay, this is actually pretty good.." nodding a bit before continuing to eat, "but i think i could do without the raisins. the texture is just weird and i've never really liked them anyways."

leon chuckles at her words. he's always liked that she can drink as much as him, and party as much as him. "i'm not gonna quiz you right now, but beware because i might later," he teases back. after she's plated the food, the blond nods and they make their way to the balcony. "if you hate it, there's more for me, so it's a win-win situation," he chuckles and sits down on one of the chairs. the night is beautiful and the ocean waves crash no far from them. there's a jazz song playing in the beach restaurant across the street and leon immediately recognizes it as a duke ellington one. he softly hums as he sets his plate on the table. "i've missed you, sal," the man finally says, looking over at her. she's the person he wants to see every day. the one person he trusts with all his joy and all his darkness. it makes him sad that she could just decide one day to end things and leave him a mess. he hopes this time she won't leave. not again. not a third time.

as salem plucked a few grapes off the vine she chuckled at solana. the age difference between the two of them seemed to slip her mind until it was mentioned. solana always reminded salem of a big sister no more than a few years older than herself. "you talk as if you're like....prehistoric babe. you're still pretty young. there's no real reason why you can't go on a bar crawl with me or be backstage at a concert." giving the other a playful nudge. she didn't have many older friends but it was refreshing to be around new people with different hobbies than hers. "i'm just now getting into it really and the most i know is that i hate those dry bitter red wines." she scrunches her face up at the thought. "i just don't have the taste palette for it honestly. whats your favorite?"

the joy radiating off of salem was infectious, and the slight ache in solana's cheeks from smiling so much was proof of that. " oh, super believable. " the comment accompanied by a soft bout of laughter. " now don't get me wrong, that's not a dig about who you are as a person. " she told her, plucking a few more grapes from the vine before tossing them into her basket. " you're young, there are way more fun things to do at your age. " truthfully, she would have been more surprised if she was a wine connoisseur. " i know i didn't do my first wine tasting until i was at least your ago. i just didn't have the palate for it back then. " now having a glass at the end of a long day was one of sol's preferred ways to unwind. at the admission, she rested a hand on salem's forearm, giving her a faint shake of her head. " i would never. "

Kate Chopin, from The Awakening

salem giggled at luna's response. most of the time luna was in some sort of platform boot and after a while the different styles kind of meshed together in a way. "unfortunately for me i didn't inherit my mom's eye for the little details in fashion but those shoes are super cute." she said reassuringly. "you should see if you can get a brand deal with demonia or something." luna fit the brand's aesthetic perfectly. a big smile stretched across salem's face at luna's reaction. she'd been missing all her close friends terribly the past couple of weeks and was just happy everyone had been giving her the space to be by herself for a bit. "i've been good! i'm working on new music and trying to just hone in on creating again so i've been in a better headspace. a more creative one, finally." she sipped on her coffee and nodded. "i found a cool place here where i can record which is perfect." valpo had become like a second home to salem and truthfully she had no intentions on going back to new york anytime soon. "i really want to work on the whole album here from start to finish if i can. speaking of which i desperately need some luna magic on it." she exclaimed trying her best to contain her excitement about the possibilties. "but enough about that, how have you been? anything interesting going on lately?"

               maybe   if   her   wardrobe   varied   in   color   or   style,   the   black   platform   boots   with   the   broken   heart   buckles   and   chains   hanging   from   the   sides   would   be   recognizable   as   being   new.   though,   she   guessed,   the   pout   on   their   features   would   work   to   serve   the   same   purpose.   "   what   do   you   mean   ?   i've   never   worn   these   out   before   today.   "   they   looked   down   at   them   briefly,   before   releasing   a   sigh   and   making   a   mental   note   to   go   shopping   for   some   more   boots   later.   the   shoes   resting   at   their   side   were   soon   forgotten   at   the   sound   of   salem's   sweet   words.   a   slut   for   reassurance,   it   always   make   luna   light   up   when   they   heard   they   were   missed,   or   thought   of,   or   even   just   someone   they   were   happy   to   see.   "   ay   que   amoroso   !   "   she   nearly   squealed,   her   hand   coming   across   the   table   to   take   hold   of   salem   with   a   small   giggle.   "   nothing   dramatic   about   missing   someone   !   especially   if   the   someone   is   me   because   i've   missed   you   too   !   "   they   explained   scooting   the   chair   more   under   the   table   and   leaning   forward   on   it   to   give   salem   their   full   attention.   "   how   have   you   been   ?   where   have   you   been   ?   don't   leave   any   details   out,   i   feel   like   i've   missed   an   entire   lifetime   !   "

salem had enough on her plate with her album release looming over her head slated for later this month. her talk with leon allowed her to get everything off her chest but she still was feeling really confused about it all. she hadn't seen him since that night at her place and though she appreciated him giving her the time she needed sort through things she missed him terribly. she'd been sending emails from her phone to her manager and label when she heard a familiar voice. "hey blondie." salem replied with a small smile. "you can sit if you want." gesturing toward the empty chair across from her. she took a sip of her latte and sent off the email she'd been focused on before setting her phone down on the table. "sorry, i'm dealing with all this album release stuff. originally i was just gonna drop it with no announcement or anything but they're telling me i should build anticipation on the internet about it." leaning back in her chair she shrugged a bit. "anyways, how are you?"

he didn't expect to see her as soon as he stepped back out of his godmother's place. well, he had done it before to buy groceries and shit, but he never ran into her. and now he's at a coffee shop in line when he turns around for whatever reason, and she's here. she's sitting on a table by herself and leon wonders if he should approach her. he's missed her terribly, but he knew he had to give her space to sort out her thoughts and feelings after everything he put her through. he wouldn't blame her if she still hates him and never wants to see him again. the man really hopes that scenario isn't true. after getting a tall americano, leon walks over to salem and clears his throat so she can look up and find him looking at her with a shy smile. "hi, sal." his voice is soft and his eyes are kind.

@cybermuses

kianalede: Somebody fix my strap pls

status: closed for @acosmicdisappointment // mallory

"you know, in retrospect this probably wasn't the best idea." salem let out a small giggle before finishing off her fourth cocktail from one of the food trucks. when mallory suggested a pre-show pregame salem agreed without hesitation. now the two were drunk, or at least salem was, an hour before mallory's set. "we can either keep going or we can stop and try to sober up before you go on. either way im happy, i just need to be a little coherent for leon's set at least." she teased before pulling her phone out to check a text. "by the way, i am kinda pissed you aren't performing tummy hurts."

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 ? "

cybermuses by mar. she/her. 29. est. dependent muse for VALPOHQ.

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