rhysbradley

[rhysbradley]

Rhys had always made sure that his relationship with Gwen had been one that he refused to let fade away, especially as time went on. But Gwen held a special place within his heart, she was a gentle reminder that not everything in his childhood had been cruel and harsh. She was good, and that wasn't something he was going to let slip away. But naturally, navigating a friendship when they both held busy lifestyles was difficult, especially with Gwen being the Chief of Police and possibly drowning in questions about the current speculations of the town.

"I uh, actually do have a complaint to make." Rhys called out, hoping his voice would refrain her from taking another step. He quickened his pace, even stepping into a light jog to catch up to her. "To whoever your boss is. When was the last time they gave you a night off?" he pestered, reaching forwards to hold the door open for her so they could go inside.

❛ ☾ ◟━ LOCATION: outside the police precinct

❛ ☾ ◟━ TIME: afternoon

❛ ☾ ◟━ STATUS: open to everyone

Sometimes Gwendolyn wondered if it were best to just pack up and disappear without a care in the world. However, the idea of being on the run seemed too good to be true as she was certain that the Wades wouldn't dare to let that happen. It was evident that the current events around Wilmington were draining the life out of her as she struggled to comprehend how one place can be filled with so much complexities in its people and history. It was a mystery she was still struggling to solve.

Taking a long drag of her cigarette, the Chief of Police stood at a corner outside the precinct in hopes of having a quiet break from all the chatter and requests. However, she heard someone approaching and immediately blew out the smoke, before crushing the stick underneath her foot and making her way back inside. "Any questions, concerns or complaints, please file it at the front desk. If you're the media, I'm not taking any interviews at this time."

[rhysbradley]

"Good, the last thing we needed that night was even more fatalities." he sighed gently, knowing that the kidnapping of Benji and Kimberly was already enough trauma for one night. "My bartender? No, no-" Rhys exhaled a chuckle. "She's on serving duty only, at least until her hand heals and I can trust her around anything sharp again." their names were called out, and Rhys stepped forwards to grab his drink before turning to Falak. "You wanna grab a table somewhere?" he glanced down at his watch. "I've got time."

A grin was on her face as they moved to the end of the line together. His words had her smiling before she managed a shrug. “There was no sense in overreacting especially at the hospital staff who were probably even more stressed out than all of us," she admitted before nodding at his recollection. "She's doing better. Luckily there was no internal bleeding so while she’s hobbling around the house with her hurt hip, at least she's got no internal injuries…but hey, how about your bartender? Hopefully no other incidents with sharp knifes?” 

[rhysbradley]

Rhys followed Samira's footsteps into her house, carefully carrying the canvas and then tentatively resting it against the wall in the hallway. He paused there for a moment, looking around the big open space before him. The house was spacious, as expected, but he could see that Samira had already put her own personal stamp on it to make it feel like home to Maya. The sound of Samira's question snapped Rhys from his thoughts, and he followed her into the kitchen. "Uh, yeah just a water will do, thanks." his eyes drifted around the kitchen in distraction, noticing the ways the house looked entirely lived in, notes of Samira and Maya dotted about in every corner.

"So uh," Rhys began, clearing his throat gently as he leaned against the kitchen counter. "You remember when we saw each other at the Springtide Bash?" the conversation they shared still lingered within his thoughts. "I went to the art gallery and found an artist whose work I thought you'd actually really love. Anyway, I spoke to them about commissioning a painting for you... You don't have to open it right now." he rushed to add, not wanting her to feel pressured to even accept his gift, never mind open it in front of him. "But I wanted to drop it off myself, at least. I thought you could put it up somewhere, make Wilmington feel a little more like... Home." he knew that starting over again couldn't have been easy for her, and even less so for Maya, especially when moving to a town where the ghost of her past lived.

She could not imagine how that conversation would’ve gone with Kian when Rhys asked for her address but she didn't comment on it. She was trying her best not to let her emotions rule her interactions and so far it was working out well for her…or maybe that was wishful thinking because she'd be lying if she didn’t admit to how her heart had sped up when she'd spotted him standing there on her doorstep. She made her way up the few steps to be on the same level as he was before nodding at his words, unlocking her door before pushing it open and turning when he spoke about that being a gift for her. Samira hadn't been expecting to see him, let alone be receiving a gift from him that looked to be quite the gesture. 

“You didn't need to get me anything, but I am very intrigued now.” She told him with a smile before gesturing for him to enter the home as she kicked off her heels and quickly sunk her feet into comfortable slippers and walked into the large house she'd managed to turn into a home that Maya was in love with. Of course while it was tastefully decorated, some of the space was still empty because Samira wasn't yet sure how long they'd be staying in town and didn’t want to devote too much time to make it perfect. “Did you want something to drink?” She had walked into the open kitchen to get herself a bottle of water but turned back to look at him before she opened the fridge, not wanting to assume he was going to leave after she opened the gift but not wanting to assume he'd be there for awhile either.

Why was this such a messy situation? A huge part of her was still hurt at how things had gone down between them because while they'd both been aware of what it had started as—she'd stupidly started to wonder if maybe they could go the distance and when he'd upped and left--she'd been heartbroken but she couldn't hold it against him. He hadn’t betrayed her in any way and so while she was upset, she also knew it wasn’t fair to hold onto that anger anymore.

[rhysbradley]

"I get bored when I'm stuck in my office looking at numbers - that's what my accountant is for." Rhys grumbled as he washed his hands ready to prep fruit for their cocktails. He had always been a hands-on kind of guy when it came to work, he was restless and preferred being active or on-the-go. "If I wanted to avoid talking to you, I would have avoided your ugly ass from the very beginning and yet here I am." he reminded Arnav with a teasing smile. "Both you and I know that I use you as a hassle-free walking and talking dating app. You do all the hard work for me, all I have to do is show up." Rhys smiled proudly. Of course there was far more to their friendship than that, but if Arnav was so insistent on Rhys meeting a woman, the least he could do was oblige.

"Picky?" he repeated, arching an eyebrow upwards. "I'll go on a date to meet my future wife when you do the same." Rhys challenged jokingly. "It's like me running a bar but having no idea how to make cocktails." he teased, although it was always all in light-hearted jest. Rhys could hardly talk, he himself had been single for years and in truth, most of the time he preferred it that way.

“You have bartenders for a reason…don’t they handle all these things?" He stared at his friend with a knowing look before shaking his head. "You're just trying to avoid talking to me. But you and I both know that I'll end up getting my way sooner or later," he warned his friend before grinning at his words before shaking his head. “I mean--you're the one who thinks I’d do such a great job at setting you up that you’d be married but hey that vote of confidence is good for me.” He chuckled before shrugging and giving the other a smile, "just meet her and see where things go—it may surprise you.” 

Arnav was about to say it was a job well done when the other man decided to hit him where it hurt. His lack of a lovelife. “I’m just picky,” except they both knew that wasn't the case. Most woman heard what he did and didn't think he would be ever looking for someone himself and that was what led him to this point in life where he hadn’t been in a serious relationship in ages and honestly—he was really beginning to miss that companionship. “Listen the clients have no idea I don't have a wife that I just don’t talk about and so I let them believe what they want. But don’t you try to turn the table on me again--we're talking about you and your lovelife right now.” 

[rhysbradley]

"I'm not hiding, I'm working." Rhys was quick to correct, his hands busy with work as he restocked the glasses. Although Arnav was one of the few who understood that Rhys used work partly as a distraction from whatever it was he was dealing with at the time. Right now, it was avoiding his friend from setting him up on one of his promised blind dates. Rhys paused, at least giving Arnav an ounce of his attention. "The worst that could happen is that I end up with a wife." he reminded him with an amused chuckle from his chest. "I'll meet her, but I don't know if it'll end with marriage." Rhys teased with a quiet smirk. "Where's your Parisian wife, huh?" he pushed. "A matchmaker without a life partner? You're practically a walking oxymoron."

closed for @rhysbradley location: TRIC

"Please don't tell me that you think hiding out at your own bar is going to make me leave you alone, because that's the dumbest idea you've had and let's be honest--you've had a lot of them in the time I've known you." Which was a considerably long time seeing as the two had become friends from the very first time Arnav had met the other when he'd first moved to Wilmington at age 8. The man had been a best friend to Arnav since then and while Arnav wouldn't say it often--he appreciated the other man in his life quite a bit. "Anyways--I'm telling you, there's this woman you should meet. She's from Paris, and I think you'd hit it off. Only issue is...she's looking for marriage and while I know you're not going there--I feel like you need to just give it a try." He took a sip from the beer in front of him before looking at Rhys expectantly. "C'mon--just give it a try? You never know. What's the worst that could happen?"

[rhysbradley]

Rhys immediately spun around at the sound of her voice, his expression clearly showing that she had caught him off guard. "Oh uh, I asked Kian. He owed me a favour." he explained briefly. He had realised that by showing up at her door unannounced was probably a little too close for comfort, considering how he had abruptly walked out of her life. But, Rhys figured a personal delivery would work in his favour, if Samira was ever going to accept his apology. "Can I come inside?" Rhys took a step towards her. "I got this as a gift for you," he glanced downwards at the wrapped canvas. "It'll make more sense once you open it." Rhys had a whole explanation as to why he had chosen the particular view to be painted, but standing outside on Samira's porch made him realise just how exposed he was out there and how quick he would be able to clam up and stumble through his apology.

If she wasn't dropping Maya off for summer camp, then she was dropping her off at school. It was a neverending cycle at this point. But she was thankful for it. Maya had setlled in pretty well at the end of last year and was looking forward to school starting which was a relief to Samira for sure. She'd just turned into the neighborhood and was about to pull up to the house when she spotted another vehicle in her driveway and a very familiar profile standing at the front door. This was strange and not at all expected, she thought as she pulled to a stop on the sidewalk instead. Stepping out of her vehicle she made her way to the front steps, coming up behind him as he raised his hand to knock. "You're not needing to supplement your income as a delivery driver now, are you?" She said with a teasing smile on her face and a glance down at the large wrapped canvas that was by his side.

A big part of her was surprised to see him there, especially since she had no idea how he'd have gotten her address unless he'd asked around for it, which--seemed a bit interesting to her given how they'd left things the last time they'd met. However she'd be lying if she said she hadn't been thinking about him in the last couple of days, especially post the blackout, wondering how he was doing and such but reaching out wouldn't have been right and so she'd refrained from it. "So--you going to tell me how you got my address if you're not a delivery driver?"

[rhysbradley]

Rhys shrugged lightly with a smile, quickly placing his own order so the two of them could wait at the end of the line together. "Take it as my thank you for being one of the very few people who showed a little patience and kindness during the blackout, rather than losing it at the nurses station." besides, kind gestures never hurt anyone, and Rhys could do with harbouring some good karma for himself. "Hey- how's your mom, by the way? I remember you telling me you were at the hospital with her."

Falak had just met with a potential client at their home and luckily it was looking like a great project.  With the ideas all swirling around in her mind, she'd walked into the coffee shop, eager to get her caffeine fix of the day. She'd just stepped up to the counter and placed her order for a 16oz americano. She’d just been about to pull out her card before noticing an arm coming from one side of her to pay for her order which had her turning to refuse when she noted that it was the same man she'd met in the hospital on the night of the blackout. “Rhys, it’s nice to meet you," she nodded as the barista processed the payment and nodded at his mimicking of the reason he'd been in the hiospital that night. “Yeah I definitely remember. We didn't get a chance to introduce ourselvers that night in all the chaos, but I’m Falak, it’s nice to meet you again, but you really dind't have to do that,” she gestured towards the barista who was handing him his card back. 

[rhysbradley]

"Good job you fell for Amos' sister and not mine 'cause if you did, I'd seriously have to get you sectioned." Rhys joked with a mischievous chuckle. Some may say it was an intense emotion to have, but the man truly loathed his half siblings. "Well you've got the girl, you've got the dog... I think we all know what comes next." he suggested, his eyes widening as he continued to pick at his fries. "No I fucking can't." Rhys confessed with airy laughter. "But you know what, ironically I feel like it came at the right time for him, you know? Obviously her conception would've been a better time to find out but, better late than never I guess." he shrugged his shoulders lightly. Rhys' nose scrunched at Kian's sentiment, knowing that he was partly right because the one good thing Rhys had going for him was his bar. "The only good thing I've got from sticking around is learning that someone doesn't have it out just for my dad, but the whole mayoral office - past and present, apparently."

Kian’s mind had been all over the place following the night of the blackout. After all, he’d murdered a man for his girlfriend and proceeded to let her stab the man on repeat. No remorse at all. "Yeah, I guess things have been moving pretty fast around here." he admitted, reaching for his own beer and taking a swig. It was all surreal, the fact that he was in love with one of his best friend’s sister. "Trust me, it wasn't exactly planned. One minute I'm just running the store, the next I'm adopting a dog and falling for Armi." They were all growing up. Even Amos, the Peter Pan of the bunch. "Can you believe Amos is a dad?" he added with a laugh, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "But you know what? He’s doing a great job with Cece. I’m proud of him. Maybe it's not about the water, but about sticking around long enough to let good things happen."

[rhysbradley]

LOCATION: TRIC

WITH: @noadeleon

Since the blackout, Rhys had started to take extra measures in case anything like that were to happen again and he wasn't around. He would often get asked why he would obsess over work so much, and he would say this is the exact reason. He should've been prepared, he should've been able to do more. And so his first step had been to check in with his team to make sure they were okay, and to see if there was anything he could do.

He had worked his way through the list of employees, his eyes lingering on her name but then swiftly moving on because he knew she would present as a distraction. If he didn't call her into his office, that itself would be suspicious. And so after many minutes of clicking his pen, Rhys finally rose from his desk and bounced down the staircase that lead from his office to the bar floor.

The floor was busy with prep for opening, and it took Rhys a few minutes before he found her, jostling about in the store room. "Noa-" he wrapped his knuckles upon the doorframe to get her attention. "You got a minute to come up to my office?" dear god he needed it to be a minute, the bar was far too busy downstairs for the two of them to lose track of time.

[rhysbradley]

"Well it seems college doesn't always hand you everything in life... Shocker." Rhys quipped with a tight smile, knowing that he knew better than to let his aged bitterness slip through but he couldn't seem to help it. Something about seeing his ex majorly derailed his good morning. So from that moment on, Rhys worked in silence. He had found the jack quick enough, and swiftly bounced her spare tyre from the back of her trunk, rolling it round to the flat tyre. With the jack in hand, Rhys paused, his head turning to the left so he could finally look at Nicole. "I'm not that much of a dick." he reminded her. In a matter of seconds, he had shimmied his arm under her car, winding the jack just enough to give a couple inches underneath the tyre. "Do you think I'm a dick?" Rhys pondered, a gentle frown upon his forehead as he worked to loosen the nuts.

“Unfortunately for me, biochemistry didn’t include a lesson on pit stops for tire replacement.” Decades later and yet, Nicole remained accustomed to his sarcastic remarks, repeating the same tone easily. It was quick to be replaced by a trace of disbelief playing over her features as he set his coffee down and began to search for the tool. Nicole was unsure what she had expected. The question was simply the first thing out of her mouth. A common clumsy slip of her tongue. She hadn’t considered this resulting in Rhys entirely willing to stop his day and help her. The one and only question she truly wanted to ask him was: what are you even doing here? Brown eyes remained on his face as she moved to his side, as if studying the changes and constants over the years. “You're not actually going to...change it, are you?"

[rhysbradley]

LOCATION: Fanzone Sports Grille

WITH: @amosdeleon

"Alright, you gotta tell me... How's life as a first time dad?" Rhys wasted no time in prodding the question. He had no doubt that Amos had been pestered with that question a million times over, but the pair had been in each other's lives like glue ever since high school, and surely that deserved honesty over all. "And I don't want any of the bullshit you give other people. Tell me straight." because he hoped that Amos knew that if whatever he was carrying grew too heavy, or he grew too tired, that he would have Rhys and Kian there to help me out no matter what he asked of them.

[rhysbradley]

LOCATION: Smoked To Perfection

WITH: @kianlawson

It suddenly felt like things were changing at a rapid pace, and Rhys was somehow still stood on the side lines watching it all unfold. He had never been the kind of man to make commitments, so he was hardly surprised when he was the only one left in the trio to make such a commitment. "Seriously man," Rhys put his beer down on the table, his hand quickly reaching for his fries. "I leave town for a little R&R," or race and runaway, as Rhys seemed to be so good at it. "And I come back to you dating someone and Amos with a kid. Is there something in the water? 'Cause you guys seriously gotta stop drinking from the tap." he teased Kian with an amused chuckle from within.

[rhysbradley]

LOCATION: The Cozy Cup

WITH: @falakxsiddiqui

With his hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket, Rhys' mind was running a hundred miles an hour and placing itself just about anywhere that wasn't Wilmington. But the voice of the woman ordering coffee stood in front of him lulled him back to reality, his eyes drifting forwards to the back of her head. She was the woman from the hospital, right? The woman whose name he hadn't managed to catch...

"I'll get this one." he quickly dove forwards, his hand already outstretched with his card ready to pay for her coffee. "Hey stranger." Rhys smiled widely as he turned to face the woman. "Rhys, from the hospital the night of the blackout." he quickly explained. "My bartender-" he mimicked his finger getting cut by a knife. "Remember?" please tell me you remember or I'm going to look like a real idiot.

[rhysbradley]

LOCATION: Sienna's House

WITH: @siennachavcz

Rhys groaned loudly, his eyes tightly closed as he stretched himself out along the couch. One hand was busy petting Buster, the other focused on delicately balancing his glass of whiskey upon his forehead - although his heavy frown wasn't helping much.

"I left Wilmington for a couple weeks hoping this mayor bullshit would blow over, that it was bunch of kids dicking around or just a coincidence. And then I come back and within a matter of days, there's a city wide blackout and two people are kidnapped at the Mayoral Ball." Rhys groaned again, opening his eyes and swinging his legs onto the floor as he rose up. "Tell me, am I a self centred prick to think I have a target on my back?" he didn't even wait for Sienna to reply before he took a heavy gulp of his whiskey.

[rhysbradley]

LOCATION: Samira's House

WITH: @samiraxiyer

Rhys nervously paced back and forth, his steps short and quick as he glanced at the wrapped canvas he had brought with him. He hadn't planned on what he was going to say, he had never particularly been a man of many words, and Samira all of people knew that. But he knew that she deserved an apology, at the very least.

Finally, he paused and huffed a heavy sigh. Rhys had chosen the middle of the day in particular because he knew it meant Maya would be at school and avoiding her meant one less complication. "Alright," he readied himself, his hand reaching outwards to lay three heavy knocks upon the door.

[rhysbradley]

"That's where you're wrong, everyone needs to get laid." Rhys was quick to remind his friend. Getting laid could be a distraction, a brief pause in time, a grand display of love - point was it could be anything you wanted it to be, and that was what Olifer had forgotten since the betrayal of his ex. "Trust me, I don't have to worry about getting my dick sucked." an immediate smirk burst upon Rhys' lips. "Look at what I created." he held his hands out with a proud grin, as if to say that owning a successful bar was enough to get the women begging for his number, or just a moment of his time.

The pair eventually made it outside to the smoking area, Rhys following Olifer in tow. "Alright, alright. Fuckin' junkie." he teased under his breath as he scrambled for the packet of cigarettes wedged into his back pocket. He first took a cigarette for himself before tossing the packet to Olifer. "Y'know," Rhys began, the cigarette hanging loosely between his lips as he flicked the lighter. "Running away with your tail between your legs in my bar isn't exactly showing her you're winning this break up." he reminded Olifer tentatively, swiftly tossing him the lighter too.

"See, what you're forgetting is — I don't need to get laid," a grunt forming on his whiskey-wet lips. It was a lie, and he knew it. And he was pretty sure Rhys knew it, too. Even as he tried to convince himself that he was better off alone. There was no use bringing someone into the mess that was Olifer Brooks' life. But that deep-seated part of him, the one that craved the need for touch, for connection...that part of him begged to lighten up. To attempt to enjoy the moment, or whatever. However, knowing that she was here. Somewhere. It stiffened those shoulders a fraction of a second later. "You're the one worrying about getting your dick sucked."

The noise, the lights, the suffocating press of too-warm bodies—all of it grated on his nerves. Setting his teeth on edge. He usually loved this shit, would've been five shots deep. Olifer hadn't really had a chance tonight. He'd seen her the second he walked over the threshold. Normally, a night out at TRIC was his kind of scene, a chance to blow off steam. Especially with Rhys in tow. But tonight, everything seemed to claw at his skin like freshly sharpened nails on a chalkboard. Maybe it was the too-few drinks he'd consumed, but he was starting to feel more trapped than buzzed.

The second he walked outside, leaving the crash of guitar chords on the inside, he felt like he could breathe...somewhat. He took no time to find his usual spot, eyeing Rhys with a cheeky grin. He needed that smoke. And for that reason, it might've been the first time he'd smiled the whole evening. Leaning against the side of the building, his fingers already reaching towards him. "Please sir, may I have a cigarette?" a mocking of Oliver Twist. "Be the reason I smile one more time." Now he was simply mocking.

[rhysbradley]

Rhys sighed heavily, slapping the palms of his hands against his knees. "Y'know, that one doesn't sound as fun, but a lot more likely." the idea of a Purge was actually terrifying, but Rhys himself had a small list of names in mind if the occasion ever did arise. "I got a new bartender who has particularly slippy fingers and just-" his hands mimicked the way she had cut her hand whilst slicing the fruit in preparation for the cocktails that were to be served. "I know basic first aid but it looked pretty deep so, here I am." his lips pressed into a thin line. "What about you? The hospital isn't exactly the rager on a Saturday night." Rhys airily joked.

Falak should've been bothered by his comment, she should've just not even bothered to engage in conversation but a small smile was on her face as she shook her head instead. She could make out an empty seat next to him and took it before letting out a sigh. "Okay so that's one possibility of what the hell is happening here tonight. Another one--that our lovely local government has run out of money and could've even afford to pay the bills for basic needs like the hospital." Falak wasn't trying to be funny--she really wasn't all that humorous anyways but this conversation was certainly helping keep her mind off her mother for now. "So what brought you here tonight?"