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“yeah, easier than this whole bullshit of waiting around to make everything look perfect. when everyone already knows that it isn’t.” matty said with a small shrug. he never liked to play nice, or to act like he was a nice guy. he’d never been it, though he wasn’t bad, he wasn’t nice, he was the guy who went for what he wanted, he was the guy that didn’t play by the rules, so something as normal as getting married shouldn’t be that much of a big deal to him. it only was because of renata and it annoyed him to no end that he, suddenly, didn’t feel like enough for her anymore. “we had a disagreement about life decisions. it’s complicated, but she’s not supporting something that i want for myself. i don’t know how to take that.”

that was the thing about treeville– the town as a whole, including everyone in it, desired for everything to appear perfect when it wasn’t and wouldn’t ever be. whether they liked to admit it or not, that was the truth of each of their lives. a viewpoint that jenna fully understood. setting down her coffee cup on the table between them, she turned to face him with her full attention, waiting as if he was about to continue on rather than leaving her with little pieces of the story to work with. “nothing’s perfect. it won’t be, never will be. you’d thinl people would accept that eventually.” leaving her own answer bland, jenna let out a light sigh as she tilted her head in thought. “how big exactly is this life decision? like is it something that if you didn’t do you’d regret for the rest of your life or is it something that you’ll forget about in a years time? ‘cause like for example, if it’s somethin’ like you wanna skydive or whatever and she doesn’t want you to, you pick your battles, you know? but if this ‘skydiving’ thing is gonna have you in regret for years then again, you pick your battles and figure out does she matter more or does the decision?”

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The second Dimitri’s name was uttered Vivian had felt tense. If not for any reason other than the memory of their last conversation. How much better it should have been handled had she not let her emotions take the lead. “He told you.” It wasn’t a quesiton. Before she responded Vivian took a pack of cigarettes from her purse, offered one to Jenna before taking one for herself. “If he took it as someone was stalking you? Yes.” Jenna in danger would be one of Dimitri’s biggest triggers. No question. “Most things could be. He went through a lot.”

her eyes flickered down to the pack of cigarettes in vivian’s hands, pausing before she took one to easily place between her lips. the topic of herself was long forgotten as jenna chose to focus specifically on dimitri. “i thought he was doing pretty well with this job.” she spoke lightly, but the underlying air of bitterness that jenna could not let go of remained and each time she caught herself doing it she attempted her best to stop it but this time there was no holding it back. “there’s no danger,” she began with, “well except that one time. but overall there isn’t much. he’s got chris there. and he’s got an entire force to back him. if need be.”

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dimitri shrugged again. maybe he didn’t know. was he simply not a fan because he knew vivian wasn’t now? it was hard to tell. he valued her opinion perhaps the most alongside jenna’s, so it really wasn’t a shock. “if i quit here,” dimitri began, his eyebrows furrowing slightly, “then what? what the hell am i gonna do, jenna?” he didn’t sound upset or angry, just genuinely concerned above all else.

if jenna couldn’t figure out her own life how in the hell was she supposed to figure out dimitri’s? he was the one who had always figured things out, for the both of them. the one pulling her out of the darkness and aiding her in fixing everything she had broken. now, the one chance she had to provide that same support back, jenna was dumbfounded. out of anxiety, her fingers laced within and let go of one another periodically before she let out a deep sigh. “you could work with rescue dogs.” it was the first thought that came to mind, probably due to the fact that elton crossed her mind more often than not. and if that backfired, at least it added some humour to the conversation.

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dimitri ran a hand over his short dark hair, huffing gently. he didn’t know what the hell to do anymore. at this point, he was beyond desperate for someone to come along and tell him exactly what he needed to do – whatever that was. he couldn’t do this one by himself. not in the current mental state that he was currently in. no fucking way. he took a deep breath, mirroring her shrug after her words. “i feel like it’s always one step forward, ten steps back.” he breathed out honestly, sounding defeated. he was exhausted.

“so that’s a no?” the question was more of a dag at herself than anything else, really. had she been so preoccupied with her own feelings and deprecations that jenna hadn’t taken the time to see dimitri truly was struggling? that not everything was as good as it seemed to be? “then i guess-” with the next words came a deep breath from jenna’s mouth before she continued, “maybe she’s right.”

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“What could I possibly gain from this?” Vivian’s sigh was as exaggerated as she felt Jenna’s response had just been. “Well, other than bragging rights.” Because Jenna had never failed to call Vivian out, because of the rough interactions they’d both experienced, these kinds of jokes between them felt natural. Like an evolution for them. “And the fact that I can now go tell Dimitri,” the last part was more of a tease to hold over Jenna. Saying random guys are staring at your sister on the street. might do more to trigger a paranoia response from Dimitri than anything positive. At least on a bad day & vivian was trying to watch her words.

“there’s always somethin’ you could find to gain.” though her words were lighthearted, there was an underlying truth to them. there was no doubt in jenna’s mind that vivian of all people could spin almost any circumstance in her favor. something jenna was continuing to figure out every day. the moment dimitri’s name slipped from vivian’s lips her steps slowed down, taking it all in. perhaps this wasn’t the best moment to discuss it but jenna couldn’t hold it in much longer. “y’think that would be a trigger for him too? or just his job?”

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closed starter for @ofjenncs !

“i am for real when i say…like, engagements and marriage? overrated.” matty let out a loud sigh as he smoked his cigar and sat on the table at the park. he was always one to pester and jenna was no exception, he enjoyed talking to her because she didn’t really expect anything out of him aside from being who he was, just like renata. “you move in with someone, talk about your future and then…it’s like everything goes to hell, you know what i mean? ren and i fight like cats and dogs, but it’s never about serious shit, not until now.” he whispered as he let out some smoke.

at first, jenna was chuckling lightly at his words. every man about to get married was bound to complain and pester and matty was clearly no different. it always did seem that marriage and weddings were more a thing for women and families. “you sound like you’d prefer one of those married in vegas one and done kinda things.” jenna commented with a laugh before bringing the coffee cup in her hand to her lips for a sip. though his next words shifted the conversation into more seriousness. for a moment, she hesitated. “how serious we talking here?” matty and renata were two extremely private people, if the two of them weren’t always together half the town might not even know they were together. “i know it’s not really my place but you know if you gotta talk about anything, i’m here.” 

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“it’s not even things like that,” dimitri assured her, taking a moment to think about it before he nodded. “actually, you’re right about the speeding tickets.” he huffed out with a slight shake of the head. those were his least favorite. dimitri’s gaze dropped as soon as he understood where her sentence was going,hating that it was something everyone felt the need to tip toe around. it was what it was. her question sounded so simple and yet, it was so damn complicated. dimitri had seemingly lost the ability to think for himself through trying to convince everyone else that it was all okay. that he was okay. he shrugged his shoulders slightly. “i don’t know,” he shared honestly.

clearly she wasn’t missing out on much, or perhaps she was and had absolutely no idea. the small town of treeville might have to be the perfect cover up for a mob after all; it was a thought that often did cross jenna’s mind every so often since dimitri’s incident no matter how much she tried to push those away. maybe it was her way of dismissing the whole thing or thinking she was okay with it. whatever it was, it still had jenna’s lips pressing into a line in an attempt to hide all. “how triggering can speeding tickets really be?” she asked with an airy laugh. jenna would take every chance, even the smallest, dumbest of them, to lighten his mood. “i mean, unless you were in like- a million car chases. give or take.” her shoulder lifted and fell lazily before she pulled her bottom lip in and shook her head. “i thought you’ve gotten better working here.”

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a small smile tugged at the ends of his lips at that. “you know i could care less about any of that, but believe me.. it’s not even worth looking at.” he assured her. she wasn’t missing out on much. it was no secret to dimitri that treeville had a habit of keeping things so under wraps anyways, everything on the surface was just… dull. dimitri had to avoid her gaze when he saw her features shift, shrugging his shoulders slightly. “viv thinks that it’s,” he paused, trying to find the right word, “like, a trigger for me, or something. same job, different environment, i guess.”

the hint of a smile mirrored onto jenna’s own lips as it always did around dimitri. “you’re saying speeding tickets and indecent exposure aren’t the most exciting cases to look over?” sarcasm dripping from her words as she made a show of picking up the first file that was in her reach to wave in front of him for a moment before letting it drop from her fingers back onto the desk. “except this one doesn’t get you taken for––” that was when jenna cut herself off before starting something that didn’t at all need to be brought up. her gaze dropped to the files, away from him as if it hid her emotions in any way. “look, you’re the only one who can answer if this triggers you or not. not me, not viv. so, does it?”

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“No, I’m touched. Really.” Vivian’s hands moved over her chest. Overdoing it that much more, just to get a reaction out of Jenna really. Sort of like old times. Her feet continuing to carry her backward and towards the man in question. She flashed Jenna a final smile before she walked up to him. Spilling words that really didn’t have anything to do with the accusations. Vivian would have asked if Jenna had come along, but this was like having all the fun without having to deal with the actual conversation. And it gave her an excuse to walk away before he’d even finished talking. “Told you.” Was declared when she made her way back to Jenna. “It was you.”

vivian always had been one with a flare for the dramatics, and it was quite possibly the full reason that left jenna standing on the walkway while the blonde made her way towards the man despite her objections. at least she was consistent. but that didn’t stop the aggressive rolling of jenna’s eyes. she had two options, really–– one of which was to follow vivian’s lead, go up and interrupt their conversation with something far more embarrassing or to turn her back and continue on the way they were once headed. before she had even moved from her place, the blonde was back at her side. “oh, and i should believe that because...?” was asked with a raise of her brow. just like old times, minus the rough tone that was once the only way jenna had communicated with vivian. now it was seemed to be a joke between the two. something that was kept up from habit rather than actual disdain. 

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dimitri nodded his head a little, taking a deep breath and forcing himself to relax back against his seat. relaxation never came easy to him, not since everything had gone south to the extent that it had. he took a deep breath, raking a hand through his raven hair until until his hands came to settle on the back of his head. “i can finish up.” even though the words were uttered, dimitri sat there for a moment before he finally moved. he began packing up his things – up until he stopped abruptly and looked over at her. “do you think this job is… good for me?”

had dimitri not offered to finish things up jenna might have continued on her rant of whichever television series she was currently binging, but the words out of his mouth prompted her to sit up straighter in her seat across from him-eagerly watching as he packed his things though still, a small smile remained on her lips. “need any help? or am i not allowed to see the top secret cop stuff?” the joking came to an end, however, with the question directed at her. that alone had jenna’s smile fading to a near pout. “w-what do you mean? are you starting to second guess it?”

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dimitri showed her an apologetic look as soon as he heard her question. he took a deep breath, his fingers hovering over the keyboard as he dared to type something – anything, but fell short before he could even get started. “um, just one more time. i’m sorry. you said…” he trailed off, eyes flickering over to her.

since they were children jenna was keen on playing along with jokes, good or bad, for as long as it had to pertain, though this time specifically she let the act fall with a soft sympathetic smile sent in dimitri’s way. “don’t be, i know you’re busy and i’m just here annoying you but hey it could be a lot worse than me talking about all the reality tv i’ve been so fortunate to catch up on. i won’t bore you with it a second time. i nearly bored myself with it, really. how much longer s’this gonna take?”

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“Jenna Mcneil,” Vivian gasped, exaggerating the shock she was actually feeling. “did you just compliment me?” Of course, it was linked with the disapproval of this new idea. But Vivian didn’t let that fact stop her. “Now I’m sure he was staring at you. Is that why you don’t want to go talk to him? Are you scared I’m right?” A taunting brow raised, Vivian took a step back then a couple more. Walking backwards towards the man in question all the while giving Jenna a chance to come along.

matching the exaggeration to the tee, jenna’s eyes rolled to the back of her head dramatically as if the entire conversation was getting the best of her. “look i was simply giving credit where credit was due, y’didn’t have to overdo it so much.” when the blonde began to step away, jenna’s feet remained planted in place while she watched her. “now ok that idea right there––another not so stellar. you’re already making me regret it.” she called out to her though jenna was almost sure that vivian was blocking out her voice at this point.

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ever since vivian had expressed her distaste for dimitri’s job, it made the days excruciating. maybe she was right. maybe he did need an out. somehow, instead of being rewarded for finishing his work early it seemed as though he were being punished for it – he was doomed to taking police reports for the day. it was a task that should have been easy. however, given that dimitri’s mind seemed to be everywhere but the police station, it was easier said than done. he realized he’d spaced out after several moments, causing him to turn to who was sitting across from him with slightly furrowed brows. “i’m sorry. can you uh, can you describe what happened again? sorry.”

the only thing quite possibly worse than sitting in her apartment with absolutely nothing to do was watching dimitri go through the current police report on his desk all while jenna sat across from him in her own hope of finding some outlet of entertainment from this visit. “are you kidding?” she asked in exaggeration with wide eyes. “have you not heard a word i said?”

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“the wedding is just because we love a good party, honestly.” matty replied with a soft laugh. it was true though, the last thing that they were thinking about was genuinely a huge wedding. especially matty, all he wanted was to make it official once and for all and if there was partying involved, it would be great. “that’s ridiculous, please.”

that answer alone had jenna’s smile widening even more. her party days were long behind her but that didn’t mean she couldn’t still appreciate the whole thing. especially considering this was their wedding they were talking about. “you sound really excited about it, i’m sure you two will be able to make it a party with or without the wedding,” she joked with a laugh before shaking her head at him. “no c’mon, makes total sense. but i’ll let you win this one as long as we can get some of those churros on our way back.”

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“thank you, jen.” matty offered her an easy smile. “yeah, i’m just excited. it’s been a long time coming and honestly, neither of us really cares a lot about being married, feels like we’ve been it for each other for a long time so it’s really about making it legal now.” he admitted with a small shrug. matty didn’t want to marry ren because of what society expected from them, it was just about them making each other happy. “i’m taller than you, how is that your logic right now?”

the smile on her face remained bright as matty spoke about his fiance, but jenna would be lying if she said there hadn’t been a twinge of jealousy in her stomach at the love the two of them shared. despite it though, there was no two people more perfect for one another than matty and renata, at least from what jenna had seen so far. “i mean marriage really is just a basic legal document, its sorta breath of fresh air to see you guys not obsessed with the wedding,” she replied jokingly before her eyes were rolling at his question. “yeah, so it takes longer to check you out than me ‘cause more ground to cover or whatever the saying is. get it?”

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“I suppose.” In response, Vivian shrugged, unsure of the whole ordeal. Was it a good thing or bad? Either way, that didn’t stop it from being true. “I have an idea,” vivian announced as soon as it came. It was her turn for the corners of her mouth to hint a smile was coming. “Let’s ask him. Neither of us will be more embarrassed than him. It’ll give us a good laugh.”

not giving the comment much thought, jenna continued walking in the direction they were heading. not daring to look back and have to actually go through with vivian’s idea of confrontation. “you’re kidding right?” she called out with a quick glance over her shoulder to prompt the blonde to continue walking with her. “you’ve usually got a bunch of stellar ideas up in that head of yours but that one isn’t my favorite, i’ll be honest.”