Her Gaze Was Focused On An Older Calico Cat As Sade Spoke. The Other's Comment Raised Excitement In Salem's

closed- for @hntedhouse // drew location - casa dragones

"so like, every time i play can i keep being these cute ethereal elf characters? or do i have to switch out every once in a while? i saw in a reddit thread that using the same character in different campaigns is obnoxious ." salem was virtually clueless when it came to d&d. she'd been dabbling in it only for a short while but she was already having a hard time keeping up with everything, luckily for her that's where drew and birdie came in to help. "you and birdie are like my guru's when it comes to this. i'm trusting you not to make me look like a complete idiot when i'm officially ready to do my first campaign." she said with a laugh.

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.  " 

salem playfully rolled her eyes at his comment. "it's not a matter of being weak they're just disgusting." she says while pushing the raisins off to the side of the plate. as the two sat there quietly while the jazz music played in the background salem thought about how the night was going perfectly. having dinner with leon and their playful banter was reminiscent of how things were back when they were just friends and sometimes she missed the simplicity of that. looking over at him as he spoke she gave him a small smile, knowing the inevitable talk about things was about to happen made her anxious but she knew it needed to happen. "what am i afraid of? well..." salem thought for a moment. knowing exactly what she was afraid of when it came to her relationship always felt silly when she said it out loud. it wasn't like leon had never really given her any reason to be fearful of committing to him fully. "truthfully? you're the only stable thing in my life. with how i grew up going back and forth between places and being on tv i've never really had anything that i've felt completely secure in." pausing for a moment, she ran her fingers through her hair. "it just scares me to have finally have the stability that i've always needed but in a person. that's really the only way i can put it." it felt nice to be open with leon about why the relationship was so scary to her, her only regret being not doing it sooner. "also, me leaving had nothing to do with you. this last time everything got so hectic with trying to plan this next album that i felt like i wasn't being the girlfriend you needed. it was just all so much and i had a hard time juggling everything. i got in my head and figured you'd be better off with someone a little more put together than i am. with you being here and me being back home my insecurities were raging. i'm sorry for doing that in general, especially over the phone like that."

"well, i guess i have the right connections," he teases. the look on her face makes his heart warm. that look used to be reserved for him alone. when they went on vacation together to cape may. the beautiful sights that made her eyes light up. and he treasures those moments still. when she says she misses him, he can't help but fall for her even more. what is wrong with him? "raisins aren't for the weak," he jokes as he takes a bite of his own dish, quickly taking the raisins off her plate and adding them to his own. he stays quiet for a moment, the jazz music playing in the distance. "you know..." he says as he puts the fork down. he stares at the waves crashing in front of them. "i really wanted this time to be special. for both of us. and i know you don't like to talk about this. because it's hard. i know that." leon sighs and takes a sip of the beer he'd brought along with the food. "but... we have to talk about it," he finally says, now looking at her, looking for her eyes. looking for the love in her eyes. the worst part of it all, is that he sees it there. he knows she loves him. why is she so scared then? "what are you so afraid of?" there's no anger or anguish in his voice. not this time. he's genuinely curious. and he wants to know what goes through her head. maybe he'll understand her better. maybe things aren't doomed for them.

"yeah, you are an asshole actually." salem replied, only half serious. she looked down at their hands as he grabbed hers and listened to him speak. his reasoning made sense, sort of...but she knew how bad his mental health could get and had seem him through bad times in the past. she couldn't really understand why this time would be any different. "well you hurt me anyways so..." her voice trailing off for a moment before continuing. "we've been through so much. i know you believe that you were sparing me a lot of pain by ending things but you did the opposite. i felt like shit about myself when you left me and i was in a really horrible place. i guess i just figured after everything we'd been through we truly could get through anything. i would have seen it through with everything you dealt with but you really didn't give us a chance to at least try." she started getting emotional as she spoke, there was so much hurt coming to the surface from the past couple of months. could she really just forget about all of that and move forward with him? salem was a little surprised when he said he hadn't slept with anyone else while they were apart --unfortunately she couldn't say the same but that was another conversation for another time. "i believe you when you say that." her eyes met his when he cupped her face in his hands. leon looked so defeated from it all it broke her heart. if anything she was more upset that he didn't let her be there for him. "that wasn't your decision to make for me though. i get you didn't want me to feel trapped or whatever but it wasn't fair of you to decide that for me. i would have stuck around, we could have worked it out somehow." letting out a sigh she pulled back as his thumbs grazed her cheek. she missed him terribly and felt way too vulnerable in this moment to his affection. "I love you and i'm sorry you were having such a hard time, i really am but...." her nerves starting to get the best of her. "i'm just tired of breaking up and i really need to think about things. we're gonna go through plenty other hard times and we'll be apart for long periods of time with the both of us being musicians and i wanna feel secure with you but i don't right now."

leon nods his head, everything she's saying is totally valid right now. "yeah, i'm an asshole," he sighs with the littlest nervous grin. the only thing keeping him together right now is knowing that he really did have the best intentions and it was all a miscommunication problem. "listen, sal," the blond runs a hand through his hair before getting a hold of her own hands. they're cold and he hates it, it hurts. "what i meant was that i didn't trust myself, or my mental health, not to hurt you, you know? exhibit a," he shrugs his shoulders, hoping she would understand. "imagine how shitty i would've made you feel if we kept in touch while i was dealing with all of that. i didn't trust myself enough to be an adult and not lash out at you if i was feeling particularly stressed or depressed one day. i never, ever," he emphasizes the word and holds her hand tightly so she can feel how sorry he is, "meant to hurt you. i never meant to make you feel like i wanted to, i don't know, fuck someone else because my dick thinks on its own. i didn't, alright? i didn't fuck anyone else. i need you to believe me, sal. please." leon makes a bold decision and runs his hand up to cup her face. "and i honestly didn't think she would've died so soon. i've heard stories about people with alzheimer that live on for more than five, ten years. and i didn't want you to feel trapped in that. you don't deserve that." his voice shakes, he needs her to know where he's coming from and how sorry he is. "i really do apologize. it's no excuse but i guess the fear of you leaving me because i turned into such a stranger, a cruel one, would be too much. maybe it's one of those rip-the-bandaid things before you'd do it for me. i guess i would've rather hurt you first so you didn't have to put with my shit. i know it's not... it's not fair and it maybe doesn't make much sense to you right now, but sal," he looks into her eyes and grazes the pad of his thumbs along her cheekbones. so fucking pretty. "i swear you would've hated my guts. i wasn't my best self. i'm only my best self, or i try to be, when i'm with you." leon falls silent for a few seconds. "i'm sorry i didn't trust myself enough to do it alone. i love you. i understand if you don't wanna see me again. i just needed you to know everything"

salem, what's your dream date?

“why? do you know someone who wants to take me on one?”

the last couple of hours between the two had been spent sharing laughter and chaotically figuring out hair and makeup options. salem hadn't been out partying since becoming newly single. going to club divine with leia was the perfect remedy for getting back into the swing of normalcy. after going through what seemed like every outfit in her closet she finally settled on a dress she'd come across at secondhand style. it was just short enough to make her feel good about herself without feeling like she was doing too much. she looked over at leia and have her a reassuring nod. "you look amazing! i don't think it's too much. plus blush tends to disappear after like an hour anyways." she said with an enthusiastic grin. "but you should do a little extra highlight." salem added a final touch of lipgloss and turned to the other. "we're definitely going to be the cutest duo. we need to take lots of pictures tonight too. we look to way too good to not be seen online."

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀໑ ⠀ closed stater for @cybermuses ! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀໑ ⠀ location ⌲ salem's apartment.

⠀⠀⠀⠀it was finally the weekend , and leia and salem had agreed to head over to club divine to enjoy a much - needed night to let loose . she had made her way over to salem's about two hours ago and they were still getting ready , as leia was not one to be satisfied with her outfit until it was perfect . the girls were yapping about anything and everything that came to mind , salem's spotify playing on shuffle in the background for the perfect getting ready vibe . ❝ does this look okay ? not too much ? ❞ she asked , as if she wasn't still blending more blush on her face . ❝ maybe it'll look okay in the low - light indoors . . . ❞ she muttered , finally putting the brush down . her eyes moved over to the other , her gaze admiring how pretty salem looked . ❝ i think we're gonna be the cutest duo there tonight . ❞

salem didn't expect luna to be so upset about parting ways with stevie after a month of being together. she loved that luna enjoyed their time cat sitting and the sadness her friend felt about having to bring stevie back home gave her reassurance that it wasn't too much of a bother for luna. "you can have her anytime you want for sleepovers! she loves you, i think she's secretly disappointed i'm back home so soon. hopefully drew didn't sneak her any gummy worms." salem teased while stevie climbed into her lap. it wouldn't be the first custody agreement she had with someone else and a cat after all. "you know i'm forever grateful that you were able to do this for me by the way?" pausing for a moment she picked up the gift bag she made for while she was in la that consisted of a couple of souvenirs from the museum of death in hollywood. a black dahlia enamel pin and a hoodie with a bed of skulls printed on it might be morbid for some, but for luna she knew it would be perfect. "which is why i got you some presents for being such a huge help." a smile stretched across her lips as she handed the bag over to her friend.

status / closed , ( @cybermuses ) location / salem's place !

               despite   the   month   luna   had   spent   with   stevie,   there   was   still   an   ache   in   their   heart   knowing   when   they   left   salem's   apartment   the   cat   wouldn't   be   coming   with   her.   it   was   enough   to   bring   tears   to   their   eyes   as   they   sat   on   the   floor   watching   salem   reunite   with   her   daughter.   crying   because   she   was   happy   salem   and   stevie   looked   so   at pace to   have   each   other   again,   but   also   crying   because   when   they   would   go   to   sleep   that   night,   there   would   be   one   less   kitty   keeping   her   and   drew   company.   "   do   you   think   i   could   take   her   on   weekends   ?   "   luna   questioned,   wiping   her   tears   for   the   fourth   time.   "   i'm   kidding.   "   the   laugh   was   forced.   "   no   i'm   not.   we   could   work   out   a   schedule   ?   "   a   sniffle   later   and   she   was   shaking   their   head.   "   no,   i'm   sorry.   i'm   being   insensitive.   "

KIANA LEDÉ via instagram

status: open! @valpostart location: casablanca blooms & coffee

it had been a while since salem left the house, she'd been recluse lately for a couple reasons. she was finally to the point where being home was starting to get old and she needed to get out of her head and be around other people. after spending some time out and about (which included spending money on things she didn't need at secondhand style) she found herself at casablanca blooms and coffee. what was supposed to be a quick coffee run turned into an hour of her being scribbling in her journal at one of the empty tables. "if you wanna join me you can, i really could use the company." she said with a smile to the familiar face a few feet away.