And the band played on... [len]

[marlene helen hamilton]

Rolling her eyes a bit at him, she shook her head slowly, wondering what kind of flawed notion of rich people he had; as though they didn't come from the same planet. "My favourite food is pizza and quite possibly lasagne. I force myself to eat caviar each time it's served not to offend the hosts, but I find it quite honestly disgusting. Just like oysters. And don't get me started on patè de foie gras. " Smiling at him, she leaned forward, over the table, her head tilted to the side. "Did I just shock you?" Pulling away, she focused back on the menu, trying to find something she liked; truth was, Len disliked most food seen as 'luxurious', but that didn't mean she liked just every other thing under the sun. A picky eater, you could have called her, very keen on the quality of the raw material of whatever she ate. "A ham and cheddar omelette and...a French toast with powdered sugar. You don't think they happen to have Italian Parmesan ham and fair trade organic brown sugar, do you?" Giving him another glance, the brunette couldn't help but smirk at his comment on how cute she'd have looked; at least he had decent tastes in women looks. "Of course I would have. Though I look adorable no matter what, don't I? How was it...a tanned angel. Yep, I was called this. Cheesiest pick up line ever, am I right?"

Waffles were a nice choice according to her as well; they always made her think of either USA or Canada, for some reason. As she parted her lips to say just that, she felt her breath taken away from her lungs for the second time that day; it was the same feeling from before. Marlene recognized it clearly as she stared wide eyed at his face, not framed by the hideous glasses anymore; it was so...painfully familiar, it hit too close to home for comfort. Swallowing, she looked away quickly, shifting in her seat as she tried to regain some control over herself; breathing deeply, this time it seemed like the pain was less intense, more easy to get over. "Yes." The brunette managed to say dryly, wondering what it was about him that made her ache; asking him to put the glasses back on was an option, but she didn't want to expose herself nor to miss the chance at understanding what was happening to her. For these reasons, she decided to avoid looking at him again until she had had some food and thus felt more relaxed. "There's no such thing as Prince charming, by the way." She added, remembering the words he had said a few minutes before, in front of his car. "That's just a childish illusion society feeds on girls to make them feel like they are incomplete without a man and that therefore their aim should be only to get with the right guy, all the while raising their expectations so high that automatically sets them up for disappointment." She wasn't exactly the most romantic person on Earth at the time; life had destroyed her rose coloured illusions, just like it had probably done with him, judging by the little bit of family history he had told her. Len couldn't have helped but feeling bad for the poor guy, though she doubted he would have wanted to see pity in her eyes, so she settled for not saying anything about the subject.

[braeden ryan baker]

It was surprising to see a normal girl trapped in a rich world. Brey smiled, noting her likes and dislikes. Len was a very interesting young lady and he wouldn’t doubt that hanging out with her would be educating. Brey had to admit that he had several misconceptions about the wealthy group of people and it was nice to be proven wrong for once. It was true that he knew very little about the person sitting across from him, but he knew that she was intelligent and had good tastes so that was enough for now. He wasn’t going to press his luck by asking for every infinitesimal detail about her life, besides today was supposed to be about his life. She would have her turn soon enough. Thank goodness that you’re a little bit normal. I was afraid I was going to have to go to the ends of the earth to find something that you would eat. He smirked to himself and glanced over the menu some more, why did everything have to look so good? Hmm, no. I don’t think you’d be that lucky. I’m sorry. Brey couldn’t help but to make a face at her. Geeze, confident much? Girls who were too confident were often those who had ugly personalities but he didn’t take it to heart, she was probably just joking around. It wasn’t that big of a deal anyway and he had to give it to her; she was pretty adorable the way she tried to be a fancy pants sometimes. Brey couldn’t blame her parents, he’d probably spoil her too if he had the money and if they were in a relationship, which they weren’t and probably wouldn’t be – ever.

As he looked up at her, he saw something change in her face, the same kind of something that happened before. Assuming it was the lack of sugar once again plaguing her he waved over the waitress and ordered for them both. He told her to hurry up and then turned his attention back to Len. Her change of subject made him chuckle softly. She was incredibly right in her insights about unrealistic expectations of love but she sounded a bit bitter when she discussed it. Perhaps she knew from personal experiences and if that was true, he could relate. However, no matter how much he hurt over girls or misfortune in his life, he refused to think that there wasn’t someone out there for him. Love was too amazing to give up on and so he wouldn’t. True Braeden wasn’t going to actively look for his princess, he was going to live his life normally and let everything that was supposed to happen happen, while keeping the possibility of someone perfect for him in the back of his mind. My dear, I think you are right on some level. I don’t think that one should put all of their effort into looking for that perfect someone. Instead, people should work on bettering themselves to become the best person they could be and then possibly start dating to find someone compatible with you intellectually. I don’t think that girls should put all of their eggs in one basket so to speak. But you cannot tell me that you don’t enjoy the occasional love story. You studied literature, you must be as fond of Wuthering Heights and Pride & Prejudice as I am. He was unbelievably fond of those classics which was weird for a male. Those books were so heart wrenching and he loved books that could make him feel something…. Some emotional connection with the characters that made him feel a part of the book… as if he were living it.

[/blockquote][/justify]

[marlene helen hamilton]

Trying to look normal was easier now; at least, now she was prepared to get that feeling when he looked at his face. Why was that? Furrowing her brows as cautiously she kept her eyes on the menu to avoid the dangerous eye contact, Len once more told herself that was not the time nor the place for her in depth consideration about the guy; she was to do this on her own, in a place where no one would have stared at her if she suddenly seemed to be gasping for air. Surely he had noticed her state again, as he had seemed eager to order; it had been a good excuse for the time being, but what would she have come up with after they actually ate? "And why would you have cared so much about me skipping a meal? I may be really thin, but not that worringly thin. Trust me, I have some friends who are models, I know what I'm talking about." Nodding slowly as he told her he wouldn't have found such high quality ingredients there, Len tried not to think what kind of oil was used in the diner's kitchen, how many times they re-used it, how clean it was..."Yeah."

"On some level?" A brow arched, she caught herself halfway through raising her head to stare at him, reminding herself that was off limits, at least until she figured the whole matter out. "Bettering yourself? Sounds...noble, if you will, but quite unlikely in today's world. Almost a dated concept, if you will; not necessarily bad, but people sleep casually with other people or date for the fun of it or because they're afraid to be alone." Afterall, wasn't she doing the same? Harlow had asked her a couple of times if she had wished to be set up on a blind date with someone and whilst the first time she had refused, the second one Len had pretty much accepted, after having made it clear how it would have been just to break the monotony of her life and not for relationship seeking purposes. The next sentence he used made her shiver and grip the hem of her shirt tightly; 'not put all my eggs in your basket' was exactly what she had written in a letter to him, as she tried to persuade the guy who had told her he was finally free without her with a smile on his face and in his voice that he could have kept her around, because she was fine. Fine! She hadn't been fine since, it was all a lie, something she had been trying to persuade herself of. Why did this Braeden guy seem to be able to provoke her pain so often? "Love is amazing when it's unconditionsl and everlasting. Too bad that kind of love only exists in books, which is why I enjoy them so much. They feel so wholeheartedly for each other and you get to know what the character feels and thinks much more easily than you do with people in real life. You just mentioned a couple of my favourite books, by the way."

[braeden ryan baker]

Nodding, he was happy they could agree on the deeper things and disagree about shallow ones. The deeper ones were the things that mattered and it was nice to have a conversation with someone who wasn’t a complete airhead and who understood exactly what he was saying. He loved that he didn’t have to explain himself further and that she understood very easily his insight. She was a lot more than a pretty face and he enjoyed that way much more than he probably should. There was nothing more attractive than an intelligent girl and although his thoughts were “outdated” he didn’t particularly mind. It really just made him more noticeable and made him stand out in a crowd of guys. He wouldn’t dream of casually sleeping around or running a girl’s emotions through the dirt. It really just wasn’t something that he would find pleasure in. Brey thought it would be fun to show people just exactly how powerful love is and how amazing it could be… if you were with the right person of course. Len was a nice girl, she deserved a fair shot at happiness and he found himself hoping that someday she would get exactly what she was looking for. Such a pretty girl shouldn’t be crying over some guy who decided he was better than everyone else. Toolbags didn’t deserve nice girls and it seemed that all nice girls were attracted to the wrong type of guy. Of course he knew nothing about her history but if she was this nice around him…. it made him assume that she got her heart broken once or twice given her previous description and bitterness towards love.

I have to agree. It is very dated, but refreshing nonetheless. I’m not all that into the party scene, getting wrecked and blacking out, or using people for personal gain. It’s not my style. He shrugged lightly and gazed out the window a bit. The way he carried himself made him incredibly lonely. People weren’t interested in being respectable so it alienated him. They didn’t give him a shot if they knew they weren’t going to get action from him. Society made him depressed in that it was so very flawed, as she had pointed out. Why couldn’t he have been born in a different time period? Why did he have to stick out so much? I wish I could live in a book. he smirked and gazed back at her. All girls love those books ‘cause they’re sappy. But don’t worry, they’re a few of my favorites too. I guess books fuel those unrealistic expectations just as much as movies do huh? Just then the food arrived and it was a good thing too, he was beginning to feel his stomach ache with hunger, begging to be fed. He smirked as his giant pile of waffles topped with strawberries and whipped cream with a side of sausage. Oh man, I love food. Brey was a big eater; he could probably eat for hours but luckily he couldn’t afford to so it kept him thin and a rather healthy weight. Let me know if you need anything else… even though you’re supposed to be roughing it by hanging out with me.

[/blockquote][/justify]

[marlene helen hamilton]

She could tell he was a nice guy already; the way he carried himself, his car, what he had said about his family, how nice he was being to someone who he should have in the very least envied if not disliked...Still, nice guys were the more dangerous ones; from someone who acts like a manwhore openly, you don't expect anything else. From someone who could possibly be the very infamous Prince Charming, on the other hand, you risk to be deceived into believing his words about deep feelings much more easily. If Alex could have been easily labelled as a dangerous guy, she'd have never trusted him with his heart; instead, he had always been so kind, so caring, so sweetly endearing and nearly clingy that she had felt safe with him. Then again, it probably wasn't his fault; she was the wrong one, the stupid one for having let him fool her. "Not much into the party scene, mhm? You're not going to love my world then. Alcohol, drugs..." She even still had that e-pill Lena had given her, somewhere in her purse; how silly of her to keep it still, she'd have to flush it as soon as she got home.

Smirking to herself, Len couldn't help but agree; living in certain books could have been amazing. "It depends on the book. Think how terrifying it would be to live in 1984, for instance or in Brave New World." Reading those ones made her feel nearly claustrophobic for how accurate they seemed to be in depicting the direction their society seemed to be headed to. "In a book such as Pride and prejudice though...I'd love a Darcy. Even Gone with the wind, though Scarlett has it a lot harder, but Rhett is a keeper, honestly, despite all his flaws." Inhaling deeply, as she had just talked for nearly five minutes, the brunette inwardly reminded herself not to turn a conversation into a monologue as she watched the food she had just been served. Inspecting it closely, being the picky eater she always was, she poked the omelette with her fork first, wanting to make sure it was cooked evenly on both side and then glanced at the French toast, thinking it looked more gummy than she'd have liked. "Oh well." She whispered to herself before starting to eat: the taste wasn't half bad, fairly good actually, even if she could tell too much oil and butter had been used to make the food more tasty and probably to cover up the lack of good raw materials."I like it too, depending on the company. It's bothersome, people always assume I starve myself because I'm skinny when I really don't. I've had a few calling me anorexic to my face, too. As though it's an insult instead of a disorder." She shook her head slightly as she talked, nodding at his next words, half confused about why he'd bother being so caring.

[braeden ryan baker]

As the saying goes, “nice guys finish last.” It took him a while to fully understand what that meant and now that he did, it was absolutely true. Braeden accepted the fact that he would most likely be alone for the rest of his life mostly because he wasn’t the social norm. He was the exception and not the rule. It probably would have been much easier on his life if he was just a whore like everyone else that way he wasn’t held to a high social standard when being compared to someone else. However, it was a cruel thing to do and his big heart wouldn’t let him. We shall see. He didn’t put much thought into that part of her world. Drugs? What was a pretty girl like her doing with drugs? Inwardly, Brey sighed. It had reminded him of his train wreck sister and he wished to express his concern about delving into that part of her life but a deal was a deal and there wouldn’t be any exclusions. Why did people think that drugs were fun? It didn’t make any sense to him and he wished that he didn’t have to wrestle his sister every day to prevent her from doing something stupid. It was sad to think that he was the glue of their family… the only thing keeping them together but he wasn’t going to give up that easily. Someday, he hoped that things would be a little bit more normal for his mother’s sake. She wouldn’t have wanted this and he was bound to fix it sooner or later. He just hoped that it wouldn’t be too late.

Crinkling his nose he disapproved of those titles. He didn’t enjoy sci-fi or anything other than romance. He was a sucker for romance and he would be the first to admit that. Ah, Darcy. If only he knew how many admirers he really has. It would be a shame for him to settle for Elizabeth, so hard headed and stubborn… the epitome of a typical woman. He smirked and watched her pick at her food. Len was probably used to things of finer quality but oh well; her omelet would have to do for today’s lunch. She probably felt as if she were on fear factor having to eat something so disgusting but so delicious in Brey’s mind. He shook his head as he began eating. Good because if you were one of those salad eaters or bingers I wouldn’t be able to be friends with you without trying to help and you’d probably find me very annoying… you probably already do. He added once he finished chewing. In that case I’m truly sorry you chose to deal with me. Of course she didn’t have to, she could very easily walked out and went on her little way in her cute heels with her beautiful dark locks. But of course, she was probably too stubborn for that. Typical woman. A sly smirk crossed his face once more, silly girl.

[/blockquote][/justify]

[marlene helen hamilton]

She could tell the topic didn't thrill him; it was written all over his face and surely she couldn't blame him for that. It's not as though she was big on drugs; as a matter of fact, she had never used any, nor smoked and wasn't even a heavy drinker. "I don't take them. I also think cigarettes smell horribly and I'm a lightweight when it comes to alcohol. Just so you know." Len added, unsure about why she felt the need to tell him such things; it wasn't as though it mattered to him anyway. According to what she had heard, he had much more serious matters to think about, rather than worrying about her well being as though they were actually friends or anything. Still, she had a strong feeling he'd hate her world by the next 48 hours; until then, she had to worry about getting through this day without letting any other odd feelings interfere, reason for which she was currently keeping her eyes on her plate.

His next words made her brows furrow though; how did he dare badmouthing Elizabeth? "She's not typical by any mean! She thinks outside of the box, doesn't obsess over marriage like every other girl her age at the time, isn't willing to settle with someone she despises just for money. She's strong, smart, opinionated and isn't afraid to let it known to anyone around her, which is why she's so frowned upon. Sure, she was too proud and stubborn in the beginning, naive if you will, but she overcomes these flaws when she is willing to give him another chance." Cutting her French toast nearly angrily, a frown on her face, Marlene shook her head slowly, glad she was done with the omelette at least; sipping her water, she nearly choked on it as she started laughing when he mentioned the chance of her being a salad eater. "I hate most vegetables on the face of Earth. I know, it's unhealthy, I know they're good for me with vitamins, minerals and everything else, but I just can't stand them, so me being a salad eater specifically is nothing you have to worry about. This and we're not friends anyway, so why would you bother fixing me?" Almost risking a glance at him after she uttered her words, she caught herself once more before doing it, wondering why looking at him seemed to be such a frequent instict for her. He was easy on the eyes, surely, but maybe there was something else; perhaps that odd reaction she had to it didn't just scare her, but intrigued her as well. That, or she was just a masochist. "You're not that annoying, least not so far." Persuaded he wanted just to be complimented, the girl then focused back on her food, being thankfully halfway through her toast as well.

[braeden ryan baker]

Braeden was probably more old fashioned than she would ever believe. He never took any drugs, ever not even to try them and he limited his alcohol intake to wine on special occasions. There hadn’t been any special occasions for the past two years and so he had been completely clean and devoid of any toxins flowing though his bloodstream. It was something he was proud of but he didn’t brag about it because it was yet another thing that set him aside from everyone else. Sure he enjoyed coffee just as much as the next person but he doubted that coffee was hardcore enough to count. Plus, he didn’t walk around on a high horse thinking that he was better because he didn’t feel as if he was qualified enough to make that assessment. Len did enough to keep him humble even by the looks he received…. Or lack thereof. She must have found him hideous or something but he wasn’t going to press it. He chuckled softly as she soon became very defensive about the drug and alcohol issue. He hadn’t meant to upset her at all by dismissing it but if she felt she needed to explain… he couldn’t stop that. What are you trying to hide, Len? I didn’t call you an addict so calm down. He shook his head lightly. Besides, I know what an addict looks like and you care too much about yourself to be one. This of course was judging by the way she was dressed and the way she carried herself butt he could always be wrong.

He found it incredibly comical that Len was trying to defend someone who didn’t even exist. But Elizabeth was pretty amazing even if she was a bit foolish at times. Hm, let’s see. She’s a tease because she doesn’t give anybody a fair chance, she doesn’t tend to see what is so blatantly obvious, Darcy’s love, and she’s much too proud for her own good. If someone truly loves you and are willing to make you happy, then why not give them a chance? You may come to find later on that you made a mistake by not trying in the first place. That’s just my opinion. He shrugged and finished his meal before sitting back to relax. I don’t really know. It’s sort of a habit I suppose. I like to help people and it’s a curse because not very many want to be helped to begin with so I often have to bite back and that’s hard. Yet another smirk. We will see, darling. You’re going to love me. And yet another false attempt at being confident. It was getting old this much he knew but it was very hard to stop. It was fun pushing Len’s buttons and half the things he said were just because he wanted to see her reaction to them. She was very easy to bother and frustrate but he supposed that they were even. Waving down the waitress, he paid for their meal with cash and exact change. So anywhere in particular you want to go now?

[/blockquote][/justify]

[marlene helen hamilton]

Hiding? She was hiding nothing; she was one of the most straight edge people you'd ever find, rich or not. Sure, the thought of that pill in her purse burned slightly in her mind now, but truthfully it was still there only because she had completely forgotten about it. "I wouldn't still be sitting at this table if you had." The brunette didn't struggle in making her reply sounding more charming and almost flirty than angry or seriously offended; she had a way with both words and tones, indeed. "I know addicts who wear designer clothes and hundred dollars lipsticks, actually." A couple of people came to her mind, her head shaking slowly as she thought about them; it had been so easy to judge them before, to think they were just weak and powerless people who ran away from their issues instead of facing them. Granted, Marlene still did think so, but it was a lot less difficult to get why they would want to run away from reality, now that her life seemed so empty all the time. "And by the way, Braeden, I'm hiding a number of secrets. One I told you already, I hate caviar. Two, I am Scarlett O'Hara stuck in another century." Smirking widely, she played a bit with the last bit of her French toast as she leaned her back against the leather seat. "This would at least explain my love for corsets."

Next thing she knew, Len couldn't help but laugh out loud at his words about Elizabeth; was he even for real? "If you think she is a tease, you've never been around a real one, trust me on this. Also, she fails to notice his love because human beings only see what they want to. They ignore something that is right in front of them and make up lies and deceive themselves about something else that may have never been there in the first place; it's just human nature, trying to shield people from pain and disappointment." Biting her lip, her chocolate eyes then focused outside the window, unable to overlook the fact she had been guilty of that as well. It couldn't be helped, it always did come back to him; his next words didn't help either, to the point the woman was starting to wonder if his words were hitting her every weak spot on purpose or if her mind managed to make everything revolve around her broken heart."Because you don't choose who to fall in love with, it just happens. Most of the times it can't be explained either; you can come up with a thousand adjectives that try and describe the person you love, but truth is you'll never be able to really say what about them makes you feel the way you do. Because it's not rational. No one in their right coldly rational mind would ever put themselves up for it." Swallowing hard, she was now resorting to play with her necklace again, somehow regretting not having access to any alcohol at the moment, even if she hated its taste. "Bad habit. You can't help someone if they aren't willing to help themselves in the first place." A cross between a jaded and sad smirk then appeared on her face, as she got up swiftly, her hand on the edge of the table still. "I'd rather not. I don't want to love anyone. And you choose where to go, you're leading today. I'll wait for you outside." Already walking to the door, she found herself waiting, wishing for some fresh air; it was too painfully warm in there.

[braeden ryan baker]

Plenty of people had their secrets and Brey didn’t expect Len to tell him everything… not on their first meeting and not on their second (if there was one). Truth was, Brey was holding a lot of secrets within his mind and he wouldn’t tell anyone all of them either so he couldn’t blame her. As she kept talking, he couldn’t find the will to concentrate on her words. Instead, his mind slipped and gave way to his thoughts. He thought about how he was being dishonest if he was saying that he was okay with everything. The drug topic was slightly making him uneasy and he couldn’t bear to talk about it any longer. No, it didn’t matter what someone looked like since addicts came in all shapes and sizes. It was something he knew very well and there was no need to over confirm it or “beat a dead horse.” Brey hated that saying and it made him shiver as if a wind had blown through the diner when in fact it hadn’t. Looking up he tuned in in time for her declaration. Corsets? Well, that would certainly fuel his imagination later. The boy might be respectable but he was still a guy and therefore would think about things and it would be all her fault for bringing it up in the first place. Thank you for the imagery. It would be put to good use for one of his novels.

Elizabeth was just a silly girl. A silly girl who didn’t know what was good for her because no woman truly ever knew what they really wanted. It was always a mind game… always. Dating women were always a hassle and perhaps that was the reason why he didn’t. Brey didn’t have the patience to deal with anyone who wasn’t on his same level of intellect but also he wasn’t a mind reader and he wasn’t going to put up with a girl who didn’t know what she wanted. While he was with Rosie, he could never really do anything right. If he went to go hang out with her, he’d get yelled at for not hanging out with his friends and if he hung out with his friends, he’d get yelled at for not hanging out with her. It was very exhausting and Brey couldn’t really keep up with her. Why couldn’t she just be happy that he wanted to be with her? Apparently, he was “suffocating” her because he hung out with her three times a week. In his opinion that wasn’t suffocating but whatever. If he hung out with her less, he’d still get yelled at. It made him frown as he thought about how much of a failure he was. Yeah, I can agree with that. For years he told himself that his relationship with his ex was real but now he wasn’t so sure. It was a shame that it took her death and several depressed years for him to realize that.

Brey’s brow furrowed as she got up swiftly. She could say she didn’t want to love anyone all that she wanted but she had just explained that you can’t choose who you love and that love just happens. Was she being a hypocrite? Maybe, but she was just being a girl and that was fine. He watched her rush out of the diner before he slowly composed himself and went after her; taking his time so that she can get a few moments to herself. He didn’t know what it had been that he had said or done but he didn’t expect an explanation either… he wouldn’t get one. Are you alright? he questioned, as he reached his car and leaned against it. She seemed fragile… breakable the way that she was fainting and running away. There was something just below the surface and he wanted to scratch at it but he didn’t want to push. It would come out… eventually. Until then he would wait, patiently because everyone needed someone and he was short on friends.

[/blockquote][/justify]

[marlene helen hamilton]

This was ridiculous; she was being ridiculous. Leaning on the car handle, Marlene wetted her lips, trying to realize exactly what was happening to her. It wasn't as though this was the first time she had got out in months, after the break up; she hadn't been a social butterfly, sure, but the brunette had been to dinners, parties, dinner parties, clubs, shopping...Why was it that going clubbing with Lena or grabbing a coffee/tea with Travy was not hurtful but hanging out with this stranger caused her such mood swings? Furrowing her brows, she frustratedly got her hair out of the way, cursing the wind for throwing it in her face, trying to grasp just why; was it because he made her think? Most of the people she kept around her were fun, entertaining in either a harmless or a dangerous way, but none of them were particularly insightful; Braeden instead seemed so keen on awakening every demon asleep in her numb soul, which brought her inner turmoil to the surface. So many times she had wished she could have just stopped thinking over the past few months; it was almost ironic, since her sharp mind had always been one of the things she was most proud of. That combined with the odd feeling that he provoked didn't make him the easiest person to be around for Len; sure, she could have walked out on him, but a deal was a deal, right? Marlene always did keep her word.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It was just getting stuffy in there, that's all. I'm a little restless now, hyper rather. Must be all the sugar in my lunch." Regaining her composure she turned around slowly, flashing him a persuading smile; she was that used to pretending she was okay that it was easy for her. No one wanted to be around a girl who still moped over the loss of her boyfriend after months, right? She didn't want to be pitied either, so the brunette mostly acted as though she was fairly alright; people could always be counted on not trying to get past the surface anyway. "How about we just get to wherever our next location is? Bowling or the movies or getting mugged. Though I do warn you, with these heels, if we have to run to get away from thieves you will have to carry me. Put those muscles to use at least." The girl was usually as good at being charming if she wanted to; considering what he had just said about her in a corset, she figured she could at least return the favour. "Though I'm not wearing a corset today. Sorry to disappoint you. Now, would you mind opening the car? I'm kind of freezing."

[braeden ryan baker]

Braeden nodded his head, pretending to believe her. Stuffy, right. Len was full of excuses but it would be embarrassing to call her out on them. He wasn’t going to be a douche and do that to her. If she said it was stuffy in there, then it was stuffy in there. If she said the sky was green, it was green. One thing that he learned many years ago was that girls were always right. Always, about everything. He smirked as she gave him her current mood update. Hyper, hyper was good, hopefully his reserved behavior would be able to keep up with her. Now that he actually thought about it, Brey couldn’t really remember a time he was hyper, jumping for joy. It just wasn’t something that he did, emotions weren’t typically worn on his sleeves and he was incredibly guarded. People were more self centered these days so if he kept asking about the other person, they would keep talking about themselves and not give him a second thought. It was sad, but that was just the way society works. Everyone wanted to talk about themselves and not really care about what someone else had to say. Brey didn’t have a problem with it, really.

Carrying you won’t be a problem. I’ll just throw you over my shoulder and take you away. Damned those romance novels he read. Why did everything he said come out like he was going to whisk her away to some romantic setting and devour her heart? Brey didn’t want that, he just wanted them to have a good time so it would be a bit more bearable for her to tolerate him. unlocking the car, he climbed in and started it, pointing the heat at her. Bowling will be quite the experience for you. Used shoes and old balls, gum under every surface. I’m surprised your father doesn’t have you in a little bubble protecting you from everything. He frowned, if he ever had a daughter, he would have tried to protect her from everything as impossible as it was to protect from every single disappointment the world had to offer. Within about ten minutes or so he pulled up to the ramshackle building. Are you tired of me yet? It had only been a few hours but still, most found him painfully boring. She had to understand he wasn’t fishing for compliments; he wanted her honest opinion no matter how painful it was.

[/blockquote][/justify]

[marlene helen hamilton]

Thankful for his quickly opening the car, she got inside, shivering slightly; despite the fact the coldness had been yet another one of her excuses, it actually happened to be true. She did have a tendency to never lie completely, but to say half truths rather; honesty had been something she just had been huge on for the previous two years, but judging to where that had led her, the girl didn't care about it all that much. She didn't trust people's words anymore; moreso, she tried to make it so they wouldn't have mattered anymore to her, to the point where whether people lied to her or not wouldn't have touched her anymore. "Used shoes..." A clear look of disgust made its way on her face; brows arches, she tilted her head slightly toward him. "I suppose buying new ones would be against the deal." Restraining a sigh, the brunette looked out of the window, reminding herself a promise was a promise, despite how much the thought of literally putting herself in someone else shoes' could have repulsed her. His comment on carrying her away went unanswered for the sheer fact she didn't think of it as anything more than the truth; surely carrying such a light weight as she was wouldn't have been an issue for him at all. Instead, it was that statement of his about her father that caught her attention; at that, Marlene couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"My father wouldn't have time to protect me from anything. He's constantly busy, constantly immersed in his job, meetings and everything else." Obviously, being an ambassador was demanding and tiring, she was throughly aware of this; relationship between countries depended also on him. "And I like it this way. He's had a heart attack when I was little and had to stay at home for several months to recover; I found out there how much tougher it is to be ignored by someone who's in the room next to yours rather than by someone who's attending important tasks in some embassy or office in general." Speaking casually, the brunette turned to him fully this time, thankful for his having put the glasses back on, and smiled at him calmly, just so he know she didn't intend on being pitied. "Don't get me wrong, he loves me, I know this well. He wasn't shown much love when he grew up, so he's unable to show his now; love is fairly useless when it can't warm the heart of its object. This, and he loves himself more than he could ever love anyone else." Her hands went back to messing around with her hair, pulling them into a loose ponytail on her shoulder now. "Not that I blame him for it; that's the only way to survive in this world, being your own sun, moon and stars. Someone like him should have never had a family, much less a child, though."

[braeden ryan baker]

The cold didn’t seem to bother him that much. He had lived in colder places and thought this weather to be quite mild for this time of year even though it was probably in the forties. His parent’s professions kept him from really settling down in one singular place but it was nice to see other places and not be stuck to one boring town. Braeden never really got attached to anyone so he didn’t have to worry about losing his friends or falling out of touch with people. After all, he was just the quiet kid who sat in the back of the classroom that never studied and always got A’s. It was a nice little arrangement and he couldn’t complain at all about his childhood since he had lived a very happy life until two years ago. The turmoil had only made him stronger as a person but it did make him grow up a bit quicker than he would have liked. At twenty two, he was more like thirty eight having to worry about paying bills, insurance, food, utilities, and everything else. His father was rendered useless since in this economy no one was buying property so that made his architectural skills unneeded. The small fortune his mother had left behind from her interior designing had already been spent to cover a few months of the mortgage and now things were getting harder. It was hard enough just to survive but with two extra habits affecting the household it was nearly impossible.

He chuckled at her disgust. Used shoes were the least of the poor kid’s problems. Yes, it would be. I’m sorry rules are rules. Braeden knew that she would get him back for this probably by making him eat something that tasted disgusting and was terribly raw. Having an open mind for new experiences, he’d be up for it though and try not to complain so much. He enjoyed spending time traveling to other countries and made it as far as France, where he spent a few semesters learning the culture. He nodded as he listened to her about her father. Briefly, he wondered about her mother since she hadn’t spoke of her yet but he wasn’t going to ask. Some people are like that though. No matter where you go, there will always be people who are not as emotionally attached to their family or friends and I can’t say that I blame those people either because of all the hurt in the world. However, I think that if you don’t ever really get to love someone in that “oh my god this is amazing” kind of love then you don’t really get to live… just merely existing. But I’m just a sap and that’s how I think. He shrugged absently as he got out of the car, and made his way to her side to repeat his chivalrous actions. Once inside, he asked for her shoe size in order to get them a lane.

[/blockquote][/justify]

[marlene helen hamilton]

Her eyes narrowed slightly at him as his chuckle reached her ears, a childlike pout appearing on her lips in the meanwhile. "Fine, rules are rules. I'll remember this inflexibility of yours tomorrow." Arms folded over her chest slightly, she glanced outside of the window, seeing a row of modest houses compared to the Buganski mansion, but decent ones nevertheless; normal, to sum them up nicely. "You know, it doesn't seem like anything I haven't seen before so far. Your side, I mean." Flashing him a brief smile, she nodded to herself, knowing she had seen a lot worse when walking through a couple of infamous London areas. "I have a feeling tomorrow will be a lot more shocking for you than today for me." His next words had her nodding slightly, but frowning as well; they really needed to stop talking about goddamn feelings and just stick to light subjects, because anything beneath the surface had her aching. "Indeed, being head over heels is wonderful; point is, what happens when the enchantment wears off? It will, it always does; it's simply a matter of time. A few weeks or months for most people up to a few years if you're lucky." Or not; surely, now she'd have preferred for things with Alex not to have lasted for two whole years; had he ended their relationship when it was just a few months old, it wouldn't have turned her world upside down as it had.

Thankfully, their having arrived to their destination made their conversation end; letting out a sigh of relief, she furrowed her brows again at his chivarlous behaviour and actually did thank him this time. Inside, the brunette looked around a couple of times, thinking the place seemed filled with middle aged men whose beer bellies were rounder than the balls themselves; whilst this did not exactly thrill her, she was alright with not having young guys around, since they tended to bother her more often than not. "Right. I buy mostly Italian and French shoes, I'm a size 36 for those, which is a 3.5 in the UK, so...supposedly a 6, 6.5 here in the US?" Glancing at the pair of shoes exhibited there, she took a step back, her eyes searching his; she knew right well she couldn't play with any other shoes, let alone her 5 inch heels, but..."Look, I'm fairly sure I suck at bowling, sports aren't really my thing, so why don't I just sit and watch you? I'll cheer, I've been something similar to a cheerleader for a couple of months, and I'll drink Coke and note down the score." She did have quite the feeling he would have never let her do it, which made her sigh in anticipation. "I know, I know, against the deal and everything." Snatching a pair of shoes that supposedly were her size and didn't look too bad, Len scoffed uncomfortably as she turned around. "Pick a...whatever these things are called and let's start, so I can kick your ass." Well, that was unlikely. "Or at least let my frustration out somewhat."