#bsco.event002

[bishan-tur]

Bishanpal wasn’t sure about this whole cowboy thing - he figured it was a cowboy thing - and he had gladly sat out the whole thing in his house, not going into town aside from getting groceries. Maybe just order in for several days straight, till he got to know the delivery people well. 

Instead, he had heard about a Chili Cook-Off - and had to look it up on google to see what that actually meant - and decided: this was a good way to do something he liked, throw himself out there, and overcome his fear of crowds. 

Of course, he was only about fifty percent sure he was doing what he was supposed to do. He had a collection of bamboo plates, and offered the extremely spicy chili (using some recipe he had found online together with whatever spices he felt like he needed to add in order to actually bring out any flavour) to the first person to walk past. “You look like you might be interested in burning your throat.” 

[dylandunsmore]

At the rodeo. Pre-Kenzie.

@danny--anderson All week Dylan had been looking forward to this one night where everyone was planning to catch up together. The boys the girls and everyone else just pile in at the rodeo, drunk and have a good time. She'd put all the money she could aside just to be able to get drinks - though many were supplying them to her for free - and ride rides with her friends and shithead brothers. They'd all congregated in the rodeos bar where jugs were full of beer and there were not enough seats for everyone around the table. Everyone was talking at once; some catching up after days apart others sticking to their closest out of habit. Dylan found herself in the middle of it all playing a game, something she's rather familiar with. "DARE!" Dylan declares her choice as she stands at the table, hands slamming down on the wood. "Do me dirty" she flirts with one of the girls, waiting for her dare to be handed out. "I dare you to ride the bull for a minute without falling off." Dylan's face transforms into a wide smile as she is given her quest. Oh she had planned to ride the bull any way so this was perfect. "Deal." Dylan gets some encouraging noises as she parts from the table to find someone who will get her onto the bull. Staff who were probably sick of the crowd around the table already. She practically bounces around feeling like a champion before she's even sat on the mechanic device. With no reason other than confidence because damn she would not make a fool of herself. On her way she spots a familiar tattooed face. "Oi!" She points at him, ignoring the looks of people around them thinking she was calling for them. "Don't forget you owe me a drink still." She gives him a smug look, fairly sure she won their bet given she was certainly flirted with first. By him. At least that's how she remembers it. "But after I got things to do" she points towards the bull explaining her latest plan of action.

[riverpatel]

when: august 20th, afternoon location: near the midway availability: open

They sat on top of a picnic table, staring out at all the lights of the carnival thinking about how amazing they were going to look when it got darker out. The County Fair aesthetic reminded them of a hillbilly Mardis Gras. Though they probably would not say that out loud in fear some cowboy would come stomp their face in. Just then, their stomach rumbled and they hopped off the table to move closer to the food area. Standing back in what appeared to be deep contemplation, River tapped their finger on their lips while they thought. 

“Let’s see, fried food or fried food, or perhaps fried food. This place has so very many options.” River said to the company near them, hands on their hips. “What are you thinking?” 

[angeloconnor]

Status: closed @finn-oconnor​

Location: fairgrounds, near midnight 

Angel overdid it. She lost track. She knows that, but god, she feels so fucking good. Too good actually, because now, she can’t tell which way is up, which way is down. Her left from her right. She can’t function, can’t hide right there in plain sight. But the twinkling lights from the carnival rides, they’re so pretty. They make her feel so warm and happy and loved. All the sounds, the incessant drone of people living life around her – it feels so much bigger than her, and it’s beautiful. At same time, the offbeat rhythm of her heart rings amplified in her ears, accompanied by the sound of her hitched breath working overtime. 

Somewhere underneath it all is the whisper of the words find Dylan. It’s a quiet repetition, one that’s propelling her forward. Find Dylan. Find Dylan. Find Dylan. But Angel’s phone is dead, and it’s hard to stay focused when it feels like the world is shifting, as if the ground beneath her feet is titling. Find Dylan. 

She just needs to go home. That’s what she needs. There, she will be safe and sound and Finn won’t be mad at her because she will be in her bed when everything in her system decides to settle. Then, everything will be fine. She just needs to find Dylan to help her get there, but suddenly, the world is falling. Or is she the one falling? 

Fuck, Angel thinks, or maybe she says it aloud. She isn’t sure. The grass is soft, inviting. It tickles her arms, wrapping her in a hug and inviting her to stay. A few slow blinks, a few even slower breaths, she thinks she might just stay in this spot forever, sink into the earth and become one with it. But she can’t. The stars are so much prettier here than they were in Chicago. She has to find Dylan. Life is so beautiful. She needs to get up. There really is no better feeling in the entire world, is there? Where’s Dylan? 

Angel’s body is moving before she can register it, her brain playing catch up as she makes her way to her hands and knees. “Okay,” She sighs, trying to balance enough to make it up to her feet when she sees a familiar pair of shoes seemingly coming straight towards her. She tilts her heavy head back just enough to look up and see Finn. “You are not Dylan,” She laughs, words undoubtedly slurring as she reaches for her brother and uses him to pull herself up.

[finn-oconnor]

when: saturday, august 27th, 2022 location: fairgrounds - demolition derby availability: closed | @dylandunsmore​​

“You want a beer?” He asked Dylan, glancing over while he waited at the concession stand. The demolition derby was set to start soon and nachos and beer were a necessity to have at these things. Then again, when was beer not a necessity? Finn finished ordering and handed Dylan her half. The demolition derby was fun to watch, but it also was a good source of income for Shamrock Junk Ranch. Those broken down, torn apart cars had to go somewhere and he had the unique privilege of being the only junk yard in a hundred mile radius. “A’ight young blood, go pick the best seats in the house.” He motioned once they got out to the bleachers. Not that there were any bad seats in the arena but he didn’t care where he sat and though he wouldn’t say it aloud, he was happy to have the company of someone he didn’t hate to watch the derby. 

[junebugcoleman]

when: sunday, august 28th, 2022 location: county fair midway availability: closed | @jettxcoleman​

“Dante, hold your sister’s hand.” June gave the gentle suggestion while juggling four lemonades, a bag of cotton candy, and a bag of popcorn. Despite her efforts, Jocelyn protested with all the sass a four year old can offer. Don’t want to hold hands, I’m a big girl. It was a phrase she remembered saying quite often when she was younger, being forced to stick close to Jasper or Jett and hold their hand. “Listen baby girl, let Dante do his job and be nice. He’s the only brother you have and brothers are special.” A reminder she would continue to give her niece until she understood the meaning behind her words. Then she would go on to tell her that she knew better than anyone, because June had the best brothers and she wouldn’t trade them for the world.

They finally reached the table she’d told Jett to hold when she spotted it and she set down the lemonade in the four respective spots. The cotton candy she moved quick before Jocelyn snatched it from her. “Take this and give it out at your own risk, she’s been eyeing it since I bought it.” She looked to her niece with an expression that spelled out ‘yes I’m talking about you.’ While there was a time June would give in to anything the little ones wanted, she tried harder to say no once and a while. Just to make sure they did not turn out to be wild heathens with no direction. On the flip side, she also did not want them to feel like they had to be perfect all the time or fall into the Windy Hills Ranch way of life. “You should also tell her that I had to hold yours and Jaspers hand all the time when I was little in crowded places,” she went on. “Until I was at least eight or nine years old. They didn’t care how much of a ‘big girl’ I was.”

[angeloconnor]

celestextorres​:

Why was she going on about this memory from her childhood? A memory that made all the difference to a young Celeste, but obviously meant nothing to her mother. If it did, she wouldn’t have left, would she? A wave of sadness washed over her briefly until she glanced over at Angel beside her. 

“Is that right?” An eyebrow quirked up as she replied, glancing downward at her cleavage. “This top must be working. …Or it’s faulty since it’s apparently attracted you of all people around here.” She teased, making a cringing face in Angel’s direction. 

-

Angel finds her gaze following Celeste’s again, shamelessly glancing down at the cleavage spilling from her shirt. This time she smiles, a helpless grin tugging at her lips as she looks away. A fond memory or two definitely surfaces now, a recollection for things that are better left unsaid amongst the ears of the public. And so Angel bites her tongue, keeping her thought to herself as a family falls nearly into step with them. “You know me. Like a moth to a flame,” She shrugs playfully. “Anyway, as if you’d want it to attract anybody else,” Angel says as she reaches over, stealing a piece of Celeste’s funnel cake and popping it into her mouth. “Which, you don’t seem too broken up about me being here,” She points out.

[dylandunsmore]

Some people might walk through life able to afford things without ever having to look at their bank account. Then there were people like Dylan who had to budget for weeks just to enjoy one event. Each paycheck she’d put away a few dollars so she didn’t have to miss out on the rodeo again. She’d purposely put most of the money aside for the weekend when her and her friends would go drinking and ride a million rides together. Then she left a little for each day to eat and go on at least one ride. She’d mainly enjoy the shows and the company of her friends littered amongst the crowd. It was like a reward for going to work all day, a way to treat herself instead of sitting in front of a TV or going straight to bed.

Standing in front of a food truck she looked at the many options she could devour, trying to work out what sounded the most delicious. It would be so easy to buy something sweat but a classic like the corn dog. She let people order before her as she pondered her choice until a figure stopped beside her and didn’t seem to move on. “Go ahead,” she waves her hand then looks to her side. And then up. And up. Dawson Young, a sight she did not expect to see. "Sweet or savoury?” 

@dawson-x-young

[angeloconnor]

Status: closed @axel-mathis​

Location: fairgrounds 

Angel tells them she’ll be right back, she just has to use the restroom real quick. Of course that’s not true. It’s just a dumb excuse to get away for a minute or two, just an enough time to feed a need without any added, extra judgement. She’ll be fast, she tells herself. 

“Goddamnit,” She grumbles under her breath, met with an occupied sign for each and every porta potty she passes. Her simple plan isn’t going so smoothly, so now what? Angel improvises, glancing over her shoulder to ensure the coast is clear as she ducks behind the side of the rented restrooms. As she digs into her pocket, retrieving the little dime bag and her house keys, she surveys her surroundings again just to be safe. With the coast clear, she goes through the motions - opening the baggie, scooping a bit of the contents up on her key, bringing it up to her nose, and inhaling. Did she just do a line with friends? Yes, but she needed more. 

Angel drops the bag and her keys back into her pocket, blinking a few times and rubbing under her nose. “Okay,” She nods, sighing to herself as she turns, jumping at the sudden company that joins her. “Fuck,” She says, clearly and naturally startled. The initial fear, however, quickly turns into annoyance. “Can I fucking helping you?” She asks. 

[angeloconnor]

Status: closed @dylandunsmore​

Location: the carnival 

Angel has the munchies, which is multiplied by a million now that alcohol has been thrown into the equation. There’s no point in pretending that the hunger suddenly consuming her is anything different, but what better place to have the munchies than at a carnival? At the moment, she’s a bottomless pit with an abyss for a stomach, and she has deep fried anything and everything at her fingertips. If there’s a god, then goddamn this must be heaven. 

She’s methodical as she lays the spread out on the table, flowing with excitement as she swings her long legs across the bench of the picnic table and takes a seat across from Dylan. A little shimmy touches her shoulders as she slides her beer out of the way, getting in position to fuck up this food. But then she glances up, immediately squinting when the weird fog seemingly hanging over her friend finally registers. “What’s wrong with you?” Angel asks plainly as she reaches for a fried pickle spear, dipping it in ranch before taking a bite. “You look like you’ve seen a fucking ghost.” 

[angeloconnor]

Status: closed @coltonwright​

Location: somewhere in the fairgrounds 

Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. 

The word echoes in her head as she runs, trying to get as far away from the scene as possible while only hoping Colt is keeping a close distance behind her. She dodges people, just barely missing a child or two as she shouts her half-hearted apologies in passing. 

Honestly, it’s not that she meant to knock over the gigantic pot of potentially award winning chili before the judges could get to it. Accidents, they happen, though the person who’s been preparing all year for this moment certainly did not see it that way. And between the dime bag of coke in her pocket and the cop who took a sudden interest in all the commotion, the only choice she had was to run. It’s only when there’s a sufficient amount of space between them and the chili cook-off she finally slows down.

“Goddamn, I’m out of shape. Fuck,” Angel huffs, trying to catch her breath as she stands bent over with her hands resting on her knees. And then she chuckles to herself, and it grows into a genuine and breathless laugh. “Did you see his face?” She asks, unable to contain herself as she drops down into a squat and laughs harder.

[angeloconnor]

Status: closed @riverpatel​

Location: barn dance

The molly River gave Angel is finally hitting, and the timing could not be more perfect. Honestly, under sober circumstances, she’d have to be high to even be caught dead at the barn dance. Now that she is, in fact, proper high and then some, she’s having the time of her fucking life. The lights, the music, they’re radiating inside of her, vibrating in her veins and coursing through her entire body, tingling her brain and moving right down to the soles of her feet. Honestly, Angel swears she’s floating in the middle of the makeshift dance floor with River. 

“Gonna have a little fun, gonna get me some,” Angel happily sings along to the words of the country chorus she’s finally picking up on, blending right in to say this isn’t her usual scene. She blinks heavily trying to get her eyes to focus in on River as her smile grows wider and wider. She leans into them, her lips close enough to brush against their ear. “I didn’t know they could party like this,” Angel admits, speaking just loud enough for them to hear her before laughing at her own amusement.

[bishan-tur]

Bishanpal had fallen right into the festivities when he landed in Bradford after 36 hours straight of travelling. And he had holed himself up in his house for a good amount of time as well, not sure he wanted to be among people just yet. But so far, people hadn’t been as bad as he thought. He was almost invisible to most of them. A very nice and lonely feeling. 

And now he was sitting at the back of some seats looking at a rodeo, already deciding that he didn’t like this much. Probably culture. Something he didn’t think he’d ever learn to understand. He looked to his left, finding another person sitting in the back, shying away from the crowds. “Do you know the rules to this game?” he asked, staring at the strangers so she knew he was addressing her. ( @beckymorrisxn​ )

[finn-oconnor]

when: wednesday, august 24th, 2022 location: county fair beer garden availability: closed | @mattycosta​

It didn’t take much to set Finn off. He tried to keep his head on right when he was at more crowded places like the county fair, but there was only so much one man could take. At least in this instance,  he would not be considered too much of an asshole for stepping in. The other man was drunk, too drunk, and he could not seem to figure out what the word ‘no’ meant while talking to an ex-bartender from Restricted Access. At first they were just talking, she was telling Finn about her new job in Denver and how she was just back in Bradford Springs for the county fair. Then out of nowhere Mr. God’s Gift to Women drunk on what smelled like cheap beer to match his cheap cologne came over to interrupt. Finn warned him, but he’s the type of man to only give one warning so on the second attempt the blonde shoved the other man away. They were persistent however and came back swinging. Unfortunately for them, Finn was fairly sober and after tanking one hit to the chest, he laid the other man out in three precise hits.

“Stupid fuck,” he muttered as he walked back toward the bar shaking his hand. That familiar ache in his hand that reminded him to get ice if he wanted to use it the next day. Tracy left, as one usually did when they were uncomfortable. His mouth opened to ask the man behind the bar for some ice when yet another familiar face was already handing him a towel with some in it. “Uh, hey,” he started not normally caught off guard like that. Finn remembered him, kind of. It had been about a year but that week stood out in his brain in a very haunting way. It was the week he almost lost Angel. They’d met on some dating app Dylan insisted on signing him up for and they ‘matched’. While he did not know what that meant at first, it led to them chatting and going out on a date. A real date which was something Finn had not done in a very long time, if ever. Things went well, but the next night he was driving to New Mexico and there was no real way to explain that to someone. So, as one does, he just never spoke to him again. “Mi-Matty, right?” He asked hoping he didn’t call him by the wrong name. Ignoring the ice altogether, he asked the bartender for a double jamey ginger and ran his tongue over his teeth trying to think of what to say. “Long time since I seen you around.” Dumb, but true nonetheless.

[dylandunsmore]

Dylan was actually doing okay. Which was far better than this time last year. Emotionally and physically probably not but financially? She was on the up and up. A working class girl. Had actual pay checks rolling in regularly and even paid her bills on time. Sure, she wasn’t anywhere near what she’d call rich but she did get to shove her face full of food at the rodeo and even allow herself a treat from the market. Such a dangerous place. They always made it seem like a bargain with signs that read ‘2 for $10′ instead of ‘$5 each’. Tricking the patrons into thinking you’re actually getting a bargain. But then she spots a cute leather bag and logic goes out the window, want replacing it. She reaches to pick it up just as another hand does, both of them grabbing the bag at the same time. “Oi!” she reacts before she’s even seen who it is. 

@lizwright​

[finn-oconnor]

when: monday, august 22nd, 2022 evening location: fairgrounds - beer garden availability: closed | @elenaalvarez​

The music in the beer garden was not the kind of thing Finn listened to, but it wasn’t horrible either. Something to listen to rather than the overly bitchy waiter he’d made the mistake of taking home a couple months before. He would rather listen to some shitty high pitched pop artist sing loudly in his face than one more minute of this other dude. Finn leaned over to the woman nearby when he was distracted. "Listen, I will give you a hundred dollars right now if you pretend to be my girlfriend, jealous ex, angry sister in law- anything to get me away from this guy." Finn normally didn't have a problem scaring someone off, but this one wouldn't shake and he wasn't one to resort to violence without the other hitting first. Or if he was getting paid for it. "I know it sounds fucking weird but I swear if you can't help I'm fixin' to gag him."