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It didn't seem to dawn on Ember that he fit inside her home like someone trying to stick a teddybear in a doll house, too busy fluttering about her kitchen. By the time they were both seated with their coffees, he didn't seem all that much taller than she besides the fact that she had to use the small rod that spaced out the stool legs to actually get herself onto it's seat. "It's real pretty here. I thought 'Bama was green, but this place takes the cake."

Laughter bubbled up freely and uninhibited at his description of most coffee drinkers, her head nodding in enthusiastic agreement. "That is exactly right! What's the point'a drinkin coffee if you ain't even gunna taste it. Them are just caffeinated desserts. Thought puttin' it like that makes it sound delicious." Mouth opening to speak more, Ember's attention was stolen by the sound of tiny hooves on the hardwood floors, a tiny pink flash skidding around the corner and into the kitchen, snorting excitedly as the piglet came over to inspect their company. "Oh my goodness... Well, at least now you get'ta meet Wilbur."

Mr Tommy. There's something about that name that feels so much more like him than Mr Browning. He has a fleeting wonder if a normal person could remove their last name. Become the cities version of 'Madonna', 'Cher' and 'Prince'. He's just Tommy, they'd say, and he'd be more than happy over it. Pushing his thoughts aside Tommy falls into step behind Ember.

Inside, he has a feeling of being too big to be there, like he was taking up too much space. Maybe that had more to do with the boxes surrounding them than the size of man in the cabin. Following her direction he sits, his eyes scanning the structure around them wondering what restoring she had in mind. "Are you enjoying Merrock?" he asks, rather than why she moved here. With a 'thank you' he collects the mug of coffee, taking a sip before he shares his theory on coffee drinkers. "I think a lot of people just like warm milk more than they want to admit. They use coffee as an excuse to drink some. Why else would lattes exist?"

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"Oh I would never think'a doin' somethin' so egregious." Grinning up at him playfully, she nodded her head in appreciation of his thoughtfulness. Truly the task she had waiting for her at home was a monumental one, but at least she could look forward to setting up her kitchen. "As fresh as it gets. I got the job at the school and here I am. You're really gettin'ta see my first steps here... or at least some'a them."

Watching him absolutely light up at the idea of just holding Wilbur had Ember's stomach fluttering, though did her best to force them down but in the end decide to ignore the pesky butterflies. "For some reason, I already trust you. I think it's that smile." Oh boy, did she just say that? Out loud? Face absolutely tomato red, thought thankfully hidden by the low light, Ember stepped forward to slip the little piglet into his jacket, curled up against his stomach. "Ah, pigs are real hardy, but he mostly likes bein' held like a baby." After a little shift of his own, Wilbur seemed to settle in and get right back to snoozing. A real good sign. She'd always thought that pigs had an even better sense of people than dogs did.

Shifting on her feet so she could take a step toward the back of the bike, she eyed the seat of it for a moment before swinging a leg over. Eyes on his back, and face somehow feeling even hotter than it had before, Ember hesitated just a beat before wrapping her arms around his chest to ensure a good hold. "I think I'm ready."

Vitus didn't notice her disappointment; he only smiled down at her as she offered her number. "Oh, I won't let you forget it. I'm gonna hold you to this cup of coffee. You can't just promise me something like that and then let me down, Ember. I'll be so hurt," he said dramatically, hand over his heart. "I wouldn't want to crowd you while you're unpacking, anyway. I know what a nightmare that can be. But does that mean you just arrived today, then? You really are fresh out of Alabama, huh?" he asked, his tone amused and not judgmental in the slightest.

Vitus's entire face lit up at the mention of getting to hold Wilbur. He couldn't help it; he'd been sneaking glances at the piglet the entire time they walked. He did a little bounce on his toes, halfway into a laugh as he said, "I... this is the best news I've heard in weeks. No, really, I've been wanting to hold the little guy since I spotted him. Oh my god. Yes, yes, please. I'll tuck him right into my jacket. I'll keep him super safe, I promise." Vitus unzipped his jacket and tugged the leather away from his torso a bit to make room for the animal. "I don't really know how to handle a pig, so why don't you get him situated and then zip me up here?"

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emilyjanebrowning: soft relaunch

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"Goodness, I do hope so. I went'n got myself one'a them portable phone charger things, just in case my phone ever dies on me. I just know I'm gunna end up lost more yet." Then again, it seemed like being lost and finding her way home was the best way to learn her surroundings. Despite the lack of time efficiency to it.

Looking down her piglet as he started to wriggle furiously to get free, Ember set him down, chuckling to herself as he instantly ran out the distance that the extendable leash would allow him to. "He's real excited. He ain't been on a farm since I brought him with me. His Mama rejected him as the runt, and so now he's got himself a new Mama... and man is he spoiled." Letting her attention be drawn from her pig son, Ember drank in the ranch with a deep breath. "This is the first time I feel like home since arrivin' here. I think it's the smell."

Livvy let out a laugh as Ember explained that the GPS had done the navigating, knowing that she would never hold that against her. Could it be easy to get lost, even in a small town? Absolutely. Take one wrong turn out in the countryside, and who honestly knew where you were going to end up, or how you were going to get back to where you needed to be, for that matter. "It'll take you some time to adjust, I don't doubt," she offered her a reassuring smile, "but then you'll be cruising around this place like everyone else, knowing every road like the back of your hand."

"Good to meet you, too, Ember!" she reached for the woman's hand, giving it a firm, warm shake, and then broke into a grin at the sight of the little piggy. "And it's so nice to meet you, too, Wilbur! I'm sure he's excited to see all the open space out here," nothing was better than going back to your roots, even if your roots were on a farm. "Thanks! I grew up riding here, so it's kind of full circle to work with the program at the ranch, you know?"

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This man might as well have been a giant, but considering the height of some of her brothers, it didn't phase her much. Being as short as she was meant most people towered over to her some extent. "Oh, why thank you right kindle, Mr. Tommy. I literally just moved in and there is so much'ta do. I'm pretty handy, but there's more'n a little that I definitely wouldn't be able'ta do myself. It's more 'bout restorin' it than renovatin', though." Giving a way of his hand for him to follow her into the little house, the front door opened onto the tiny but cozy living room, which they had to pass through to the kitchen.

The rest of the house was still laden with unpacked boxes, but the kitchen itself was already fully unpacked, and smelled of the fresh coffee that sat waiting in a french press. Waving a hand once more, this time for him to choose a stool at the island, it only took a few seconds before she was setting down two mugs of coffee and joining him there. "Nice'ta see I ain't the only one who likes my coffee black."

@tommybrowning Location: Ember's countryside cabin

“Oh! Oh hello! Tommy, right?” Seeing the gentleman coming up her drive, Ember gave him a bright wave and closed her mailbox before making her way down the drive to meet him in the middle. “Let me tell you, I was so thankful when one’a the neighbors gave me your number. Thank you so much for agreein’ta come out, I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it.” Holding out a hand for a shake, she was all but bursting with excitement at the prospect of finally getting to start work on a little house that was all her own to with what she pleased. “September Grant, but please call me Ember. Can I get’cha anythin’ before we start the tour? I got some coffee on right now, actually.”

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@vitusxaydin cont from: Here

"I s'pose it could be. To me it was just home, and was what it was." That most likely being a side effect of hardly having stepped foot out of Brantley her entire life until moving to Merrock. Eyes dropping to her piglet, the burst of a belly laugh of chuckle forced it's way out into the late evening air as she nodded. "You know, you're real sight 'bout that. He's definitely gunna be a real good ice breaker. Good thing he's a lil ol' charmer, this one."

"Well, I'll have'ta remember'ta give you my number when we get back'ta my house. That way whenever you're havin' a inklin' for some good caffeine I can right there at service." Had just offered a handsome stranger her phone number? Who even had she become already? Mentally patting herself on the back for her bravery, Ember did her best not to let her tiny hint of disappoint read on her face. "Oh no, that's quite alright. To be honest, I ain't really even got nowhere'ta sit yet, I think all my chairs are full'a boxes. I literally said goodbye'ta the movers and then took Wilbur for his walk. I'm kinda dreadin' seein' what I'm gunna be up against for unpackin'" But there was nothing but good-natured humor in her tone.

When they finally made their approach to his bike, Ember glanced down at Wilbur when she realized that she'd have to hug herself to his back to hold on, and Wilbur was currently cradled in her arms. "I think you might need'ta hold this little oinker while we ride... would it be alright maybe if you held him for the ride? It's really just a matter'a zippin' him up into your jacket. He'll just curl up in there snug as a bug."

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Oh yeah, I know how that is. Knowin' everyone for your whole life can makes things like that a little more complicated. Boys get so cocky when they think they already know everythin' bout you.

That actually sounds so perfect. To be honest, I could definitely use the help. Back home I had a big ol' family to help with stuff like unpackin'. That's so nice'a you'ta offer.

Aw, well thank you. Probably has something to do with the fact that I went to elementary school with most of them…

Ember, that would be perfect. But don’t run yourself too ragged with the unpacking! I’d always be happy to help you with the boxes, too. And then we can reward ourselves with pizza and romcoms.

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@tommybrowning Location: Ember's countryside cabin

“Oh! Oh hello! Tommy, right?” Seeing the gentleman coming up her drive, Ember gave him a bright wave and closed her mailbox before making her way down the drive to meet him in the middle. “Let me tell you, I was so thankful when one’a the neighbors gave me your number. Thank you so much for agreein’ta come out, I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it.” Holding out a hand for a shake, she was all but bursting with excitement at the prospect of finally getting to start work on a little house that was all her own to with what she pleased. “September Grant, but please call me Ember. Can I get’cha anythin’ before we start the tour? I got some coffee on right now, actually.”

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Thankful for the lower lighting of the falling dusk that hid the blush that crept up her neck and enveloped her ears on it’s way to her cheeks, even if it did little to hide the brightening of her smile at his compliment. “Me? Oh, Alabama born’n raised. Tiniest little ol’ farmin’ town you ever would see, called Brantley. Bout two hours inland north from the coast... I have noticed there ain’t much by twangs round these parts. I must stick out little a sore thumb, huh?”

Falling into step beside him, Ember was decidedly charmed by his insistence on concern, she shot him a playfully prideful look. “Well, coffee would be the best thing for repayin’ debts... s’pecially mine... but... let’s call it a show of my ‘ppreciation. I take coffee real seriously. I think it might be my only real vice.” Even over smoking, which she did do, but usually only when stressed or with a drink. Coffee was vital to her continued existence as far she was concerned. “I apologize in advance for the state’a my house. I ain’t even opened a single box yet, but I do know exactly which one my french press is in.”

“September, huh?” he repeated, as if trying the name out. “I don’t think I’ve ever met someone with your name. And Ember’s a nice nickname, too.” He also hadn’t spent much time with people with twangs quite as deep as hers; he’d lived in the South, but never the deep South, and almost always in cities where dialects were a bit different. Her idiom about ducks sealed the deal, as did the sweet laugh that bubbled up. He shot her a crooked grin and said, “Mind if I ask where you’re from? Your accent is as interesting as your name. Not many people around here sound like you do.”

He slipped his phone back into his jacket pocket and waved away her protests. “Don’t worry about it. You’re not putting me out. If anything, you’re saving me the trouble of spending half the night worrying if you made it home or not. C'mon, my bike’s this way.” Still smiling, Vitus added, “Though, as long as you’re not doing it out of a sense of debt, I’ll never turn down a good cup of coffee.”

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I'm real surprised bout that. I mean you're prettier than any picture I ever saw. I'd be thinkin' you'd have all the princes knockin' down your door.

Really?! Well then how 'bout this Saturday? I can make us a whole sleep over spread, and it'll definitely be the motivation I need to actually start unpackin'. I think I got like two boxes done so far.

Oh, I know exactly what you mean. Merrock does kind of fit the bill as well... Although, as a local Merrockit who left for the big city and has since returned, I'm disappointed that no princes or princesses have yet shown me the Christmas spirit.

Well, you're in luck, because drinking beer and watching girlie movies happen to be two of my favorite activities.

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Oh it really is. ‘Bout as small town America as it gets. My Mama liked’ta say that it was like a Hallmark movie town. You know, where the closed off business woman meets her country boy prince charmin’ and finds the Christmas spirit? Though... in my opinion Merrock seems much more like that. 

I might definitely have’ta take you up on that one’a these days. Maybe one’a these days we can have a girls night or somethin’. Been a long time since I had me a friend’ta drink a beer and watch a girlie movie with. 

Brantley sounds like it was a good, old-fashioned small town. I can tell you loved it there.

If there's one thing Merrock has, it's plenty of nice people to meet! But I remember I felt similarly when I moved to New York. After my whole life in Merrock, surrounded by people who had known me since I was born, it was a little intimidating to suddenly be an anonymous person in the middle of a city. If you ever need any help finding your way or with a recommendation or anything, feel free to let me know! I'd be happy to help.

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@viviennefaye cont from: Here

“It was quite the journey, but it wasn’t too too bad. Bout two days with lots’a stops for sight seein’ and meals’n all that. To be honest, I was mostly worried ‘bout my car makin’ it that far. I tuned her up before I left but she’s an old VW beetle and sometimes she can be a little ornery.” Reaching out to accept the offered hand, Ember gave it a firm shake, smile brightening at the friendliness of her new acquaintance.  

“It’s real nice’ta meet’cha! I’m September, but most people just end up callin’ me Ember. Well, my property backs onto the creek... I think I got the address written down here... would you be okay holdin’ Wilbur here so I can get to my pockets? He’s real tired so he’ll just snuggle inta you.” 

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@vitusxaydin​ Cont from: Here

“It is! September, actually. That’s just kinda a mouth full, so Ember is generally the route most people go.” Trailing off a little at the expression he wore when he realized she had no working phone, and for the first time it dawned on her how dangerous that could be. It’d never really been a problem back home where strangers had to go well off the beaten path just to stumble across it. “Wouldn’t be my first night under the stars, but bein’ lost out here doin’ it rather’n in a field by choice are two different ducks, I s’pose.” Doing her best to chuckle off her embarrassment at her own silliness, Ember slid her phone away as if she was hiding the evidence of it. 

It was her turn to look shocked, though, when he told her just how far out she’d managed to get. “An hour?! Goodness me, ain’t no wonder Mr. Wilbur here is so tuckered out.” Giving a scratch to the top of the piglet’s head, the movement paused as he made his offer. “A ride? Well that would be alright, ‘specially if you’re goin’ slow. I been on plenty’a dirt bikes and four wheeler’s in my time, but not usually with a piglet in my arms.” Unable to help herself, a giggle forced it’s way up, propelled by the imagery of trying to ride her brother’s dirt bike with Wilbur hugged to her chest.

 “Probably lot easier when I got someone else doin’ the drivin’, though. I mean... as long as you’re sure it ain’t too far out’a your way, I wouldn’t wanna be inconveniencin’ you anymore’n I already am. I would be willin’ta pay ya back with a beer... or the best dang cup’a coffee you ever had.”