Devil's Nest | Thursday Evening

[defenderofdesmoines]

Annie still had that song stuck in her head that she'd woken up with yesterday, because last night's dream about Alex had been even more vivid than Tuesday's.

"I first saw you in my study hall, that's right," she sang under her breath as she got set up today, making herself a virgin margarita to kick things off.

But there was no accounting for taste, clearly, because while some people might find it funny to have the words, "I wanna love you just like Brad loves Jen; Like Megan Fox, you're my perfect ten," sung to them with what Annie felt was sort of hilariously intense boy-band eye contact -- millions of teenage girls had loved that, like, ten years ago, you know -- Tiny was weirdly not one of them.

Whatever, his loss. 'Rock My Kiss' continued to be a (bizarrely, heavily dated) bop.

~*Specials*~
Strawberry Margarita
Strawberry Mojito
Strawberry Bellini

[the OCD is still on vacation. open!]

Comments

[scarlet_chaos]

Was it the call of red drinks that had Wanda breaking her rule to not go into Annie's spaces? Or was it the fact she and Annie had been on kind of good ground lately and she missed her friend? Or was it because it was a million degrees out and a mojito sounded good?

For whatever reason, Wanda walked into the bar, her hair piled up in a messy bun because she absolutely could not deal with hair on her neck when it was this hot outside.

"Hey, Annie," Wanda greeted, fully prepared to walk the hell out at Annie's request.

[defenderofdesmoines]

If things had been just the slightest, slightest bit more repaired, Wanda would have likely been greeted with an invitation to be front page news with Annie, like Katie Holmes loves Cruise, you know?

(These lyrics were amazing, thank you.)

But simply because this was the first time Annie had seen Wanda here, at the Nest during her shift, she was surprised enough to be knocked just a little out of her playful, singing orbit. But not so surprised that she couldn't offer a, "Hey Wanda," and a small smile.

She definitely wasn't telling anyone to get out. (And the voice that had taken to reminding her that Tiny was here, too, and the bar was full of electricity, and she'd be fine? Well, that was quieter, too. It was getting quieter every time.)

"I hope you're feeling strawberries."

[scarlet_chaos]

"I'm feeling anything cold," she said, taking that as her okay to sit down. "But I do like strawberries, yes. The mojito sounds pretty good, actually."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Dude, I feel like my brain resets every year and I somehow forget how bad summer is here," Annie told her, wide-eyed as she started grabbing ingredients. "In case you were curious: being pregnant does not help."

Weirdly! So strange! What an accurate thing to say and not at all a vast understatement.

[scarlet_chaos]

"I had my suspicions being pregnant in a heatwave would be bad," she said with a wry smile. "Maybe there's a palm leaf in here Tiny can use to fan you with or something."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Tiny would probably quit on the spot," Annie told her with a very put-upon sigh and a glance back towards where Tiny had decided to retreat to check on kegs, like he so often seemed to do on Thursdays! "But that's not a bad idea for home."

She was much more confident in her ability to get Diego to fan her with a palm leaf.

"How's it going?"

[sword_chocobro]

Gladio really felt as though he'd really had a day, not necessarily bad, not necessarily good, but undeniably full, and so winding up at the Devil's Nest at the end of it just felt like the exactly right way to end it. He belatedly seemed to realize there was a bit of foliage in his hair from his traipse through the woods a bit earlier, and he plucked it out and seemed to think twice about just tossing it as he found his spot at the bar. Set it down almost reverently instead, followed by a small box that he shoved a little forward toward Annie, then took his seat with a nod.

"Annie. How's it going?"

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Better than it was, because Gladio, that sure looks like it might be for me," Annie replied with a smile as she glanced towards that box.

The foliage was less interesting than maybe-a-present, of course, but it was still amusing. (And also made Annie kind of glad that she'd decided not to actually take that team-building class, as interesting as it had seemed to her! MM would have probably appreciated some extra insight from her corner, these days, but it also did not seem like a great class for one's second-into-third trimester.)

[sword_chocobro]

The foliage was entirely unrelated to the class, actually, and had entirely to do with some other, separate urge to go scavenging through the woods for..something. He still wasn't quite sure what, which was driving him, an avid scavenger, a little bit crazy.

She'd actually have done great in today's class, probably, but subsequent classes? Yeah, probably a good call there.

"Wouldn't you know it?" he said, his faint grin pleased and pretty proud of himself. "That's exactly what it is. Not much. Just some of Nell's teas that she says might help. I figured you're probably having a helluva a time with things right now, between the weather and just generally everything."

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Oh my God, that's so nice of you." Annie's eyes were wide as she opened the box to peek (and sniff, because tea usually smelled great.) "Yeah, the weather is making everything, like...way worse, and the kids are mobile now, and...."

Annie just kind of made a, 'and so on,' gesture, still smiling widely at the gift. "But thank you. Both of you. Nell's such a sweetheart."

Hinty hinty hint-hint, la la la. Not that Annie, like, suspected anything there.

[sword_chocobro]

Why, what in the world could there possibly be there to suspect?

"No argument there," Gladio agreed readily; you'd have better luck arguing that water was dry, really. "And mobile? I guess at least you don't have to worry about them straying too far, at least?"

Was someone getting a brief memory of constantly chasing after Iris not being able to stand still? And an even more, sudden, ridiculously vivid image of the time Noctis has been the one to bring her back, with a little clench in his chest as the thought of the little fist-bump between them and how everything changed for them after that?

[pocketpretzels]

“Annie, good evening,” Watts said, looking a little subdued as he made his way into the bar.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Hey, Llewellyn," Annie greeted him, taking stock of that subdued greeting and tamping down on her natural effusiveness in response. "How's it going?"

Quietly, apparently.

[pocketpretzels]

“It is- certainly going,” Watts agreed. In what direction, he wasn’t sure. It was too bad, really, because he’d had a great weekend. “How are you?”

[defenderofdesmoines]

"I feel like I'm going to boil alive in my own skin," Annie told him, not feeling like she was exaggerating at all. "But otherwise mostly fine."

Save for the weird dreams, which weren't really a detractor so much as just...odd.

"Get you a drink?"

[pocketpretzels]

“What a- vivid- mental image,” Watts said, face scrunching up in mild disgust.

“I’ll give the strawberry margarita a try,” he said. He may be feeling a little off, but not so off that he’d turn down seasonal fruits, come on.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc gave Watts a questioning look. Happy to leave the guy alone if he wanted, but checking in all the same.

[pocketpretzels]

Watts gave Marc a somewhat tired if genuine smile and raised his glass in acknowledgment. “Evening, Marc.”

[hasaknightjob]

"Watts," Marc replied, raising his own glass in kind. "Doing okay?"

He wasn't expecting a totally honest answer but he asked all the same.

[pocketpretzels]

Watts shrugged one shoulder. “Better than before.”

It helped that the dreams had shifted in tone somewhat. They still featured Constable Jackson, but his death was no longer the focal point.

[hasaknightjob]

Stopping by the diner meant Marc came in later than what might be called his usual, but he was there all the same. When he spotted Annie he said, "Hey."

He was the master of greetings today.

[defenderofdesmoines]

"Aloha," Annie greeted him, just to be sort of adorable in the face of all that enthusiasm, and look at how fast she was getting that cocktail napkin down for his whiskey. "How's it going, Marc?"

[hasaknightjob]

Marc gave a quirk of his eyebrows to indicate he acknowledged her effort there. "Doing okay. You? Not going on maternity leave yet, are you?"

Who would serve him his whiskey when she did, Annie. Who?

[defenderofdesmoines]

...Tiny? Maybe?

"I think I'll probably be here up until mid-October?" Annie replied with a shake of her head as she snagged bottle. "I should actually talk to Eric about that, hm."

Legit though, would Eric even notice if she didn't show for work for, like, three months straight? Maybe. Tiny might complain about all that solo whiskey-pouring eventually.

[hasaknightjob]

"Not going to teach the kids flair bartending?" Marc asked.

He was hilarious sometimes.