#phe:threads

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closed starter // @urbnlgnds location // back of the net bar and grill

phe hasn't been sleeping well and it's evident to anyone that witnesses them falling asleep at the net bar top . upon waking up , the place is mostly dim , the bar is backlit , their burger is cold , and the only person in phe's direct line of vision is calla . the brunette looks around the room as if to double check they're not still asleep , and then upon determining they aren't , ask , ' hey , did I pay for this yet ? '

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closed starter // @hauntcdtales elixir of life apothecary

after an impromptu what are you doing with your life talk at breakfast with their father , phe is in desperate need of a distraction . usually phe is one to walk past elixir with just a glance into the window for childlike amusement — today they charge right in , the bell above their head dinging loudly to announce them . god , how they hated being announced .

whatever bothered phe on a good day was going to bother them ten times more today . hopefully that would be true about all of the witchy things that usually made them chuckle . nothing is funny as they scan the shelves , but phe does notice that the flowers aren't ones you can find at my little peony , the cups didn't come from come clay with us , and they had never seen playing cards placed beside burning incense or a skeleton hand or astrological teacups , let alone all of them at the same time . they take in each exponent and feel a chuckle brewing in their chest , lips tugging at the corners .

their direct stare at the cards is interrupted by hands picking them up . phe looks up at the face that belongs to the hands and the pancake from breakfast does a fully - formed flip in their stomach as a response . phe lets out a big , involuntary laugh in discomfort . it had been building up and finally come out , like a long awaited burp ... but this burp felt more like a hiccup . phe clears their throat and turns their attention off to the most random object available , picking it up in mock interest and turning it over in their hand as an excuse to cower away from the cardholder's eye .

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' denny — got it . ' phe says as a filler to consider if they are really thinking what they think they are thinking . ' uh yeah , i'm getting something ... but i have really great plugs ... and my internet isn't being hogged by busy bodies... ' phe realizes they said a whole lot of nothing and try again . ' i mean , i'm not staying . so if you want to come over and work from my apartment you can . you know , since i just fucked you up . or gave you an excuse or whatever . '

"well, i was midway through editing a video for denny. he's my boss, kind of... well, is he more of a client?" dark eyes glanced at the ceiling as they pondered; clementine supposed he was a bit of both and, simultaneously, neither. "but we're friends. so if this all goes to shit at least i can explain to him why his newest upload is going to be pushed back a few hours. if i could just get this thing to work..." but no amount of hopeless, lost clicks or crossed fingers seemed to be bringing the blank screen back from the brink. "gives me time to enjoy another pastry while i wait. are you getting anything?"

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in the aftermath of dampening blair's desired mood, he dampens phe's mood right back — more than the aforementioned text message already had. "I will be in whatever fucking mood I want to be in thank you very much," phe mutters almost loud enough but not quite. while blair goes off to fetch the drink, phe looks around the room. one person's vibe couldn't change a room like this, phe thinks. no one seems to notice her. it is all the validation phe needs. when blair gets back, the small please he had offered out of politeness had worn off, not that it had done much in the first place. in another life, phe throws the drink in blair's face. after all there's no alcohol, what's a little wasted cranberry? however, that might actually ruin the mood and that was more attention than phe is willing to sign up for. phe takes the drink and immediately drops that hand to the side, taking a step to close the gap between blair and themself. using their soft voice to be direct phe asks, "did you come back with a hand picked mood for me too?" phe asks, looking blair in the eye. a smile was hinting on their expression ever so slightly, maybe just so that blair can't say phe's not having fun. that's what coincidences are for, right?

❝ are you dead serious right now ? no, like, for real ? wow. ❞ the grin that illuminates his features at the exchange of love across the room falls flat the moment phe speaks up, and he turns to face them with brows raised, arms crossed over the breezy, screen-printed cotton covering his chest. ❝ as if it weren't bad enough you're souring up the entire vibe of those lovely ladies' engagement right now with your nose in your phone, but i know you did not just confuse me for waitstaff. ❞ blair pouts, sucking his teeth as he glances between phe and the bar and weighs his options. ❝ fine, whatever. i'll go get you a cranberry juice over ice, but like, can you at least try to find yourself a better mood before i get back ? please ? for me ? i know it's just coincidence that we're both here but that doesn't mean you can't have fun.❞

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a sense of accomplishment comes from the hug as well as the agreement . mostly because levi is a lot of things , but agreeable isn't on the top of that list . even though ophir is joking , it is nice to know that if she isn't entirely joking that her brother is there for them regardless .

phe turns back to the snack they had made themselves and realize that they had done just that: only made one for themself . they turn to their brother with a sheepish grin and ready to slide the dish over ask , ' pb & j ? '

"I know," Levi gently reassured his youngest sibling, pausing only for a moment before wrapping his arms around Phe. His mental health was something he tried to keep hidden from most people, partly because he was embarrassed, but mostly because he didn't want his younger siblings worrying about him at every turn. Joking about it was easier, but then on occasion he'd drop a little too much information.

"I knew it - you always gave off feral basement child vibes." he teased the youngest Spiegel, doing his best not to ruffle their hair. "Alright, I'll get my best lawyer drafting up the best, contingency filled rent contract I can get."

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phe would much rather watch extreme sports than partake . watching other people almost - kill - themselves trying to achieve the impossible somehow balanced phe , and their lack - of - trying , out . phe is completely checked out of reality , food going cold while eyes glue to the screen . owen's commentary brings them back to reality . or maybe it's phe's nosiness . either way , they watch as the bar - goer waits impatiently — then watches as the bartender walks by multiple times like they don't even see the customer — then phe watches owen watch , reaction stretching across his face as quickly as the next bike flies across the track . once they break the fourth wall though , eyes meeting owens , they feel caught . a shrug and raise of the eyebrows as if toagree , yeah reeeeaaal professional , and then turns back to the tv .

for: @nottinghillstarters ( open! ) location: back of the net bar and grill

Owen had been there for a while, biding his time, sipping on a beer as he idly watched what was going on, on one of the TV's. Motocross wasn't exactly his thing, but for tonight it worked —- sport was sport when it came to this place. As someone approached the bar, he cast a glance to the bartender, who was clearly too busy with their own stuff. "They've been like this all night," he commented casually. "Real professional, like."

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the mumble and grumble of coffee goers grows louder stirring phe from their daze . arms stretch . they become aware of voices , but can't make out one in particular . on the way down lanky arms overshoot their welcome . phe accidentally knocks one of clementine's chargers off their adjacent table . if phe had heard clementine's rants , maybe they would be on the floor picking up the wires , but instead they register it moments too late . mouth slightly ajar in recognition , phe takes a beat , but all they muster up to say is , " oh — hey , sorry . "

bluebird cafe !

admittedly, clementine’s apartment didn’t always have the best wifi. it would have made sense for her to upgrade, given that her entire career was tied to the soft whirs of wires, yet she was still sat in one of the corner tables with a tepid cup of coffee and a half-nibbled pastry. “i swear, if i lose this project…” they mumbled under their breath, directed at nobody in particular, “oh, you piece of—for the amount apple charges for these things, you’d think they’d actually work when you want them to. at least half the time anyway.” @nottinghillstarters

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perhaps a testament to the stress levels in the spiegel bloodline, ophir is amazed by how calm clementine is in the face of technical difficulty. in school, fights would break out in libraries over a clumsy act like phe's just now. clementine on the other hand didn't even flinch. maybe the type to believe in the stars? they thought. "are you sure?" phe asks. and unaware that curiosity killed the cat, continued— "what's on it?"

there was a moment where clementine simply sat, and stared, in silence. she had assumed the other had just been relaxing, perhaps trying to ignore the clamouring of early coffee addicts or screaming children wanting a cake pop, but the blind sweep of cables and plug-ins had them assuming the sandman had struck their unlikely companion. "you've probably saved me, actually." clementine sighed, leaning back in their seat, fixing the sweep of fringe over her forehead, "my laptop just doesn't want to compute, wires or no wires. i was just saying that apple does this on purpose." maybe phe had it right—clementine was long overdue a good sleep.

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pursed lips become unpursed in the face of a brother who wipes the sugar coating from his words like a health conscious person does with their candy indulgence. phe's eyebrows raise. depression is only a state of mind. they fear the regret of staying silent, so before the moment could pass, "I wouldn't say that," phe admits. at some point a lump had formed in their throat. phe swallows it and says confidently, "I would never say that." a sigh later, phe takes a step forward and puts arms around levi in a hug. they stay there for a moment, like maybe they aren't hugging levi because he needs it but because maybe they do too.

when phe takes a step back, they wipe the eye of accumulated wetness they refuse to call a tear. "yes," phe replies with defiant nature. "I am the freeky-ass-murderer in the basement, levi. where else would I stay?" a smile is tugging at the corners of their mouth now. "I promise not to murder you... but mom and dad would say you should include all the contingencies in the contract, so do with that what you will. also my lease shouldn't be more than one dollar. i'm not kidding."

It was uncanny, how similar Levi and Ophir was, and it was a wonder their parents didn't try to pitch one of them out of the family sooner. They both tended to lean into the realism, the pessimistic side of life. What was the point of sugar coating things? Levi found out the hard way though that sometimes those walls can crush you - and he didn't want the same thing happening to Ophir.

"And I consider that a win for the day," Levi teased, gently ribbing them. "If you start telling me my depression is only a state of mind too, I'm billing you for my next therapy appointment, you know." He knew they wouldn't say that however - it was just another jab, the easiest love language they had. "Yeah? You wanna live in the freaky ass murder basement of the apartments or flats or whatever I'm staying in? You gonna turn into a spider lady?"

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' not really , no , ' phe replies , ' i wouldn't want your drawer to be short . ' if calla isn't worried about it , though , neither is phe who shrugs and picks up their burger biting into it . admittedly , phe's face winces a bit at the cold patty as she chewed , but that didn't stop them from taking another bite — not until after she broke the silence with , ' so , how was your night ? '

even on a slow night like this, calla is busy enough that things slip her mind. she's letting phe do whatever phe is doing, hardly minding even as people ask what's happening. but now that the bar is closed and calla is trying to add up every receipt she's collected, her attention quickly moving to them as they spoke. "i'm gonna be honest with you, i'm not sure." a half-chuckle leaves her then, fingers still shuffling through those paper slips. "does it help if i tell you i'm not worried about it?"

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maybe it was supposed to be nice . maybe levi has phe's best interests at heart . maybe . ophir spiegel has never gotten much out of maybe's , so she stays living in the hypotheticals and their hypotheticals are always disappointing . ' i didn't realize you're such an expert now , ' phe spews . there is almost an eye roll , but phe is saving it , like there is always something right around the corner that could be more annoying , more nauseating . and to think ... they left the comfort of their own bed for this hang out .

the truth is phe appreciates levi , missed him even . he certainly didn't go out of his way to say things like that in their youth and he certainly has less time these days to be saying it to phe , so they count their blessings and try not to be too much of an ass ... just the right amount of ass . the amount that lets your family still love you and want to talk to you . ' you have love now . who needs friends ? ' not that phe is a romantic — ' i mean , hanging out with one person seems time consuming enough . plus , mom and dad are already overbearing , zibby and i can be a bit of a handful ... ' if levi spiegel is asking out of concern for his sister , the thought never crosses phe's mind .

closed starter for @pheisms location: levi's apartment

Levi almost felt bad, how much Phe seemed to take after him. His icy personality wasn't exactly what one would call desirable, and now that he was finding happiness in the world, that was what he wanted for the youngest Spiegel.

"We need to get out more." It was easier to approach the topic as if it was a problem they both suffered with (and they did). "Has someone already invented speed dating but for friends?"