ofedwrds

[ofedwrds]

nico.

“ excuse me? ” nico hisses, trying his best to contain his anger. the image of conor and anya was enough trauma to last a lifetime, but cecilia … no. she has standards. she’s an artist – that has got to count for something. “ what are you trying to achieve here, connor? is it a reaction you’re after? do you want me to EXPLODE? ” he suddenly yells the last word, bursting from the belly, voice echoing throughout the dining hall, hands in the air mimicking a volcano eruption. “ because i’m trying my best to keep it together- ” voice rapidly rises, you know, like he’s exploding, “ -but using my sisters against me is crossing !! the !! line !! why even bother to act like you care if you’re going to do this? what is it you want? do you want to tussle and scuffle and fight to the death like a pair of brutes in ancient rome?! ” he catches his breath, and then in a less ear-piercing tone: “  i am a modern man, conor, but i will channel my ancestors’ barbaric ways if i have to. ”

     looking back on it, conor shouldn’t have said that, he knows that. but nico casiraghi is potentially the most annoying person to have walked on the earth, and maybe he did want a reaction. but he just sits there and blinks as nico throws a tantrum. he can’t even remember his little sister behaving this way, which is saying something because sinead can lose her temper at the easiest things. he leans back in his chair, chin resting in one of his palms as he judges nico, not even bothering to hide it. “nico, you’re embarrassing yourself.” conor says flatly, finally rising. he’s sure people all over the dining hall are looking over to them now. “but i am glad to know that you are still the childish idiot you always were.” he’s never this brash with anyone, but when nico plays stupid games, he should expect stupid prizes. “it’s frankly none of your fuckin’ business, so go find someone else to scream at like a two year old.” and then he pats nico on the shoulder as he walks past him, hoping to all things holy that he’ll never have to speak to him again. 

[ofedwrds]

cecilia​.

        “ SORRY, I SHOULDN’T GET MUSHY, ”   she jokes with a small smile when she’s met with his warm blue eyes, because cecilia can see her own sadness reflected back at her through him. arms staying tucked around him, she huffs dramatically, trying to lighten the mood.   “ is tomorrow too soon ? ”   she asks, before her lips break out into a wider smile.   “ i’m kidding. i’m sure your mum and sinead are excited to see you, and i have to figure out where i’m bloody staying for the summer. ”   by now parker’s already offered to buy her a house, but she’ll choose to leave that little fact out.   “ but maybe in a few weeks ?   before july. ”   she doesn’t want to go too long without seeing him, if it’s possible. cecilia wishes she had the money to travel right now, because she’d love to have their greek vacation, or even get to see his family.   “ did you tell your family about me ? ”   the thought only just occurs to her that people beyond gallagher’s walls might know what she’s done.

     her joke makes him smile even wider, but there is still a feeling of sadness that washes over him. he knows that he’ll be able to see her during the summer, however short it may be, but that still doesn’t mean he’s already going to miss seeing her around the halls next year. conor lets out a laugh at that, and he knows that he’d probably never hear the end of it from his family if he chose to see someone else that wasn’t them within the first month of the break. “a few weeks sounds perfect,” conor nods his head, and even though he doesn’t exactly know where they’ll be or what they’ll be doing, he doesn’t care as long as he gets to see her again. his face falls for a moment at her question before shaking his head. “no, i didn’t.” a small part of him probably not wanting it to say it aloud when he first found out about everything. “figured it’s not my business to tell.”

[ofedwrds]

Okay. Okay.

[ofedwrds]

nico.

there’s a hard roll of the eyes at conor’s response. he’s over it, for the most part. because anya had told him that conor was seeing someone else which meant he wasn’t involved with either of his sisters. “ for lying, ” he says in a clipped tone, a sharp gaze landing on conor. “ you lied. that evening. when we were playing that game. ” he sounds like a seven year old but whatever. “ anya told me the truth. ”

     conor doesn’t think he’s ever known anyone that makes him want to punch them as nico casiraghi does. he’s childish and annoying, and if it wasn’t for his friendship with anya and whatever he is with cecilia, he probably would have done it before. his brows furrow together at the accusation. conor knows he can be a lot of things, but he doesn’t think a liar is one of them. “i never said it was anya.”

[ofedwrds]

cecilia​.

           IT WASN’T A SMALL THING TO TELL CONOR THE TRUTH ABOUT HER PARENTS, because while she hadn’t done anything completely incriminating while working for caledonia  ( no burn book, no leaked tapes ) ,   THIS is something that can paint her as a villain. she didn’t have reason to screw her parents over other than seventeen years worth of hostility, and the desire to get the last laugh – and she hadn’t just screwed them over, but her three older siblings as well. so for conor to smile at her as if it means nothing is more validating than cecilia cares to admit, especially when he tells her that he can’t BLAME her for doing for it. she had only blamed herself in the most recent weeks, feeling guilty because of nico and anya, so for conor to put those fears to rest means more than he could ever probably understand. she’s not sure what to really say either, so instead she wraps her arms around him and presses herself against him, resting her chin against his shoulder. words of how much she cares about him – how much she loves him – are on the tip of her tongue, but they’re not words that come out easily for her, so instead they die there.   “ i’m going to miss you so much, ”   she whispers instead, eyes squeezing tight until she pulls away a little to look up at him.   “ you’ll come visit, won’t you ? ”

     conor looks at cecilia, wondering where exactly her mind is after he tells her his thoughts about it. he wants to ask her, but she’s already been through so much and doesn’t want to push her. so instead, when she leans into him, his arms wrap around her instantly. he finds himself feeling a little more at peace whenever they’re close like this. he sighs at her statement, and suddenly the reality of them having to leave and cecilia not coming back hits him. conor considers not making a big deal about it, but he knows he’ll miss her just as much, if not more. “i’m going to miss you too,” he says softly, his expression somewhat sad as she pulls away and he looks down at her. conor nods his head, not even giving it a second thought. “of course, i will.” conor offers her a small smile, hand going up to tuck a piece of stray hair behind her ear. “just let me know when, and i’ll come see you.”

[ofedwrds]

cecilia​.

         “ YOU’RE SORRY ? ”   she laughs, because conor always have a habit of apologizing when she’s the one at fault.   “ there’s nothing to be sorry about. i mean, i’m sorry for laying this on you. i just… i had to tell someone, ”   cecilia admits, tugging on her bottom lip with her teeth.   “ i don’t think there’s any way they could find out, no. i’m not completely sure. ”   it’s not like caledonia wasn’t shady, apparently. if gallagher spies are still going through caledonia’s records, part of her is afraid her parents’ arrest will get traced back to them too. she’s still watching him, trying to figure out how he feels about it all – if he’s tired of her continually doing shady things.

     he’s a little embarrassed, knowing that he should probably work on that— apologizing when he doesn’t have anything else to say. normally he’s somewhat okay with helping people when they’re going through something, but when it comes to cecilia, he’s fully aware that his brain short circuits more than usual. conor shakes his head when she starts apologizing, “no, you don’t need to apologize either. i’m glad that you told me.” he offers a small smile, meaning that he’s glad she feels like she could trust him with something like this. his gaze meets hers, wondering if she’s just waiting for him to react in a negative way. “i don’t think i can blame you for doing it,” he says bluntly. and it’s not like he’s blinded for his feelings for cecilia to not understand why she feels guilty about this, probably feeling like a horrible person. but conor just thinks her parents were worse.

[ofedwrds]

ria.

“Liar, if I told you that no one would care if you left early, you’d be out of here in a second.” But people did care. She cared, and she was going to make everyone in her circle stay for the party. “Rude. I’m not five.” Stuck her tongue out at him, “I don’t trust a single person here to not bump into me.” The shattered glasses kicked to the sides of the ballroom proved her point. “Wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want to, I do… I mean it.” She’d suffer through the accents and everything. “Italy…? You’ve never mentioned Italy, and your Italian sucks.” No it didn’t. “Ohmigosh, because of your date?” A dramatic, very non-hushed whisper.

     “of course. but that doesn’t mean i’m not fun. maybe we just have different definitions of fun.” there’s no maybe about it, they obviously do. conor can’t help but laugh, shaking his head at ria’s reaction. it’s probably the first time their whole conversation where conor actually seems to relax a little. “that’s fair. plenty of people are taking advantage of the open bar when they shouldn’t be.” just based on their tolerance. as the evening goes on, too many people are getting more and more drunk. “alright then. i’ll have to warn my sister, but you know you’re welcome any time.” he’ll take a mental note to make sure he has plenty of alcohol just because he knows his sister and ria will more than likely bond over how much of a stick in the mud conor is. “my italian’s perfect,” he defends and while it isn’t, he knows he’s just trying to distract from what she’s about to say. he sighs, rolling his eyes. “we’re friends, but yeah. i’m just going to visit cecilia for a little.”

[ofedwrds]

nico.

“ no, conor, i don’t know that. your previous actions prove otherwise. ” obviously he remembers the events from their drinking game a lot more dramatically than what actually happened. as if conor had sipped to something much worse than sleeping with one of his sisters. he doesn’t think it’s cecilia, rather that conor had lied. “ don’t you think you should apologise? ”

     conor bites his tongue, figuring that bringing up how nico had thrown napkins at him as a dramatic exit wouldn’t be wise. he looks down at his watch to see the time, far too early to start drinking and it be socially acceptable. a brow raises at nico’s statement. but then again, conor’s under the impression that everyone knows how insufferable nico is. “apologize for what?”

[ofedwrds]

ria.

“One day I’m going to get you to be fun Conor and you will enjoy it.” Was that a threat or a promise? The blonde decided he wasn’t going to take the appetizer and ate it herself. “Well, pasta is delicious but then you have to worry about stains, and god, bloating. Not for an event. Post-party pasta though… That sounds amazing.” Her mood was definitely elevated from most of the times she’d seen him lately. “Can I come visit you this summer?”

     “i’m already fun conor,” he replies, and he knows that’s pretty close to a lie. he knows that he could easily be more fun, but when he’s around people in a big crowd like this, he finds it a little daunting. “worry about stains? do you not know how to eat correctly?” it’s meant as a joke, his lips spreading into a smile. but she does have a point with the bloating. “yeah, if you want to.” conor already knows the hell that’s about to happen once ria and sinead get together. “just let me know when, i’ll probably spend some time in italy at some point.”

[ofedwrds]

cecilia​.

        HIS WORDS ARE MEANT TO BE COMFORTING, and cecilia offers him a small smile because of it – but she wonders what he’d say if she say that she’ll NEVER be ready for it. they’re in similar positions with parents in prison, but there’s one teensy detail that makes it completely different.   “ my parents were arrested because caledonia tipped the feds off. ”   her voice is quiet, gaze straight ahead, feeling the weight of the secret finally slip off her shoulders.   “ and i tipped caledonia off. it was part of how they recruited me. they wanted what i wanted, and i had wanted revenge. ”   cecilia takes a deep breath.   “ i don’t regret it either, except… well, i wasn’t really thinking about the consequences for the others. ”   she had a little bit, but it hadn’t been more than the satisfaction in knowing that she could still interrupt their lives without even being there. never did she expect to be heading back to italy with them, having to see their financial struggles. now being a part of that struggle.   “ they’d never forgive me if they knew. ”   which is why they’ll never know, but she didn’t want to carry this secret alone. cecilia finally glances up at him, braving herself to see his reaction.

     holy shit, he thinks to himself, not saying it aloud. he can’t say he necessarily blames her for doing it, not when he knows how awful her parents were. conor looks at her as she finally confesses, and while he’s a little shocked by the gravity of this, he’s still worried about what it’s done to cecilia herself, having to keep that in all this time. conor nods as she continues, knowing that she has to be talking about the consequences that are affecting her siblings now, or at least anya. “i’m sorry.” it’s out of his mouth before he even realizes, but he feels bad that cecilia’s had to carry this for so long on her own, that she even had to do it in the first place. “well, no one can find out right?” he asks, wanting to make sure that this can’t come back to her when she just seems to have gotten better relationships with two of her siblings. 

[ofedwrds]

aileen.

“i don’t think it’s the first time someone used this theme,” she pointed out, her own eyes taking in the decor and moving around to those dressed up around them until they found conor again. “but after a year like we had, i don’t know if it would have been the theme i chose. it’s a little touchy.” she scrunched her nose in slight distaste. 

     “it seems just like a really random theme,” conor says, brows knitting together. he thinks there could have been something a little better, but there’s free booze and apparently beyonce, so he guesses it could be worse. “it’s definitely not what i would have chosen. but honestly, i would have chosen to not do it at all if it had been me.”

[ofedwrds]

calypso.

      “Hey, stranger.” // @ofedwrds

     conor turns at the voice, pausing for a moment because he doesn’t think he’s seen her this evening yet. “oh, hey,” he finally says once he realizes that he’s probably staring, offering her a smile. “have you been having a good night so far?”

[ofedwrds]

kassandra.

         “ CONOR, YOU LOOK SO GOOD. ”   blame the alcohol for the way her arms throw themselves around his shoulder, bringing him in for their first cousin hug. who knows when she’ll get to do it again ?    “ i’m going to miss you. but have a good summer, okay ?   and stay in touch. i still want to meet your sister and mom ! ”   pulling away, she offers him a small smile.   “ no, that’s okay, ”   she sniffs, shaking her head with a laugh.   “ but i appreciate the attempt. i’m okay, really. ”

      he laughs a little as his cousin brings him in for a hug, completely caught off guard because of it. plus, it’s not like conor is a very touchy person to begin with besides a select few. “yeah, of course,” he says, figuring a little bit of alcohol is the reason why she seems so talkative. “if you ever come back next year, sinead and i will be around.” because he can’t see her being able to going over to ireland during the summer, but he doesn’t think his family would mind her visiting either way. “right, i guess spending practically your whole life here and having to leave is emotional. but at least there’s beyonce.”

[ofedwrds]

cecilia​.

         “ YES, FOR NOW. seeing sal will be interesting, and nico will be working for the family business, and part of me wonders if he’s going to ask me to be a part of it. ”   since she won’t have a job or anything when she returns.   “ and i just… i don’t want to get guilted into having to visit my parents. and it’s obvious at gallagher how shit the casiraghi reputation is – i can only imagine it’s worse in italy. ”   it’s hard to ignore that she’s the one responsible for it as well, and for the first time it affects her life. cecilia isn’t worried about distance ;   she’s worried about them finding out something that will make them look at her differently. and after the truth about caledonia, she’s already on thin ice. cecilia watches his smile, lips pressing together before saying,   “ i have to tell you something. but you can’t tell anyone, especially not anya – and it might make you think less of me. ”   it probably will.

     conor listens as cecilia speaks, letting her get her worries off her chest. he’s better at listening anyways, at least until he knows the other person is done. he reaches for her hand, knowing the feeling of not wanting to see a parent all too well. “you don’t have to unless you’re ready,” he says to her softly, it’s not like he’s gone to see his own dad; he can’t even bring himself to open the letters his dad continues to send him without conor ever sending him one. his forehead creases at her words, and for a moment, he thinks that she has to be joking. she had been a double agent, and despite their short interaction in the sublevels, it’s not like conor had held a grudge against her. he was the one to apologize once she came back from caledonia. “yeah, of course not. what’s going on?”

[ofedwrds]

ria.

“But would you really want to have to sit down and focus on eating a plate of food? That’s so distracting.” Picking up a tiny crostini, she held it out towards him, “Here. See, food.” Maybe she was already a little drunk, “Like pregame with food? That sounds fun. What food would you eat?”

     “distracting from what? do you think i want to dance or anything?” the questions make him laugh at just the thought, it’s not like conor really wants to talk or dance with anyone else besides a fair amount of people. conor shrugs, figuring that ria is already a little tipsy, he’s not surprised. “i dunno, i’d probably kill for a plate of pasta right now.”

[ofedwrds]

cecilia​.

         SHE CAN ALWAYS COUNT ON CONOR TO WANT TO LEAVE THE PARTY, cecilia thinks, though lately the gallagher student body has felt more suffocating than ever, so she can understand why he prefers it. letting go of his tie, instead she loops her arm around his and heads towards the exit, pushing her bangs out of her eyes when the wind attempts to whip them around.   “ yeah, i’m fine, ”   she tells him, before realizing she’s trying to be more honest.   “ well, i don’t know. i think i’m just getting a little nervous for going back to italy, to be honest. it’s not something i ever really thought i’d do, and… it kind of feels like i’m backsliding. ”   cecilia wants anya and nico back in her life – maybe even sal – but going back to her home is a giant leap to take.   “ you must be excited to go home, though, ”   she adds, looking up at him with a small smile, trying not to think about how she’ll miss him. 

     he’s a little nervous to go out of the party, just because he doesn’t know where this is exactly going. his brows furrow as she begins, but it makes sense if she’s feeling a little off because of her family. “but it’ll just be your siblings, right?” he knows there’s no just about it. anya’s alright to him, but nico still gets under his skin. “maybe you can still distance yourself if you need to,” conor suggests, but he knows that if she’s going back to their home, there’s some memories that she probably doesn’t want to remember or get thrown back into. “but yeah, it’ll be nice to be back over there for the summer,” he says, a smile appearing across his features just thinking about going home. conor looks over to her, considering that he should invite her to his home, or that maybe he can come visit her if she needs reinforcements, but he holds himself back for a little.

[ofedwrds]

orion​.

@gallagherstart​

“That one tastes like what I imagine a wet sock would taste like.” Orion motions towards one of the punch bowls. “Just so you’re aware.” 

     he cringes a little, nose scrunching up at that description. “and that’s why i’d rather just stick to regular whiskey, at least i know what i’m getting into with it.”