#tabitha. 008

[annelim]

@smallstabs the hastings house, bayview

It made sense, given the nature of her pregnancy and the nature of Charlie's birth, that the infant had turned out to be a considerably difficult baby. Plagued by colic that everyone prayed she'd outgrow, she didn't sleep for any extended periods of time, instead forcing Benji and Annie and Candace to take shifts holding her to their chests at all hours, with Benji proving to be the only one able to calm her down for a long enough time that Annie could take a nap.

Well, and, now it would seem, Tabitha.

Annie, eyes perpetually heavy with sleep, watched awestruck as little Charlotte laid peacefully within the confines of Tabitha's arms, her large, dark eyes blinking up at the woman. Annie took a sip of the latte Tabitha had so graciously brought her, caffeine turning out to be the thing she missed the most.

"I think she's in love with you," Annie murmured gently, joy at the very notion curling her lips upward. "She's never done that for anyone but Benji. I read that there's something in the timbre of his voice that can get babies to relax, but I think she just prefers him," she said, trying desperately to hide her disappointment in this fact. She'd admitted this belief to Benji, who assured her that was in no way the case, but she secretly suspected they both knew the truth. Her spirits perked, though, when she watched Tabitha's uneasy smile. "You're a natural. But if you're done, you can just tell me. Please don't feel obligated to hold my baby."

[keolalagaaia]

"Hm?" Keo says as he glances up from the menu he's had a keen interest in despite having read it before and it rarely changing. The intricacies of exactly which kinds of birria tacos versus what kind of fajitas interested him far less than Tabitha did, but he was having a harder time looking at the latter due to the feeling of apprehension that was weighing on him.

( Not a total outlier, sometimes he feels like she's almost too pretty to look at. )

"I'm thinking lots of things," He says then, a pretty standard Keo-brand evasive answer that's easier shared than the actual thoughts he's having.

One's of road trips and mixed signals and things he's not sure how he would react to if he was in her shoes.

"I'm going tacos though," He announces definitively, shutting the menu and placing it in front of him on the table, "What are you feeling?"

@tabithaxking

who: @keolalagaaia where: tejas cantina when: mid-march

"Can't tell if I'm just starving but everything sounds fucking delicious," Tabitha's eyes are glued to the Tejas Cantina menu, weighing up all her options. It was nice to finally have something to focus on besides the anxious feeling that brewed inside her.

She was nervous. Gravely so. The idea of a real date sounded much better in theory, a fabulous idea until it became a reality. Now she felt like it was one wrong turn away from disaster.

It took a lot of energy to remain nonchalant, to act unaffected by everything he did. From the moment he'd picked her up from her grandparent's place, held the door open for her, the whole Van Morrison ride to the restaurant; Tabitha had hoped that the fluttering feeling would die down, but it every time he looked at her.. it only multiplied.

"What were you thinking?" She asks, although the question takes one a double meaning when casts a glance towards him. A worried crease between his brow that didn't quite suit him.

[xnothero]

ALL MUSES.

 — ALL  OCS.

001.  adrian  elliot,  sebastian  stan.  /  28   —  35.  the  bodyguard.

002.  alejandro  diaz,  sean  teale  /  25 �� —  30.  the  second  grade  teacher.

003.  alexandra  hale,  phoebe  tonkin.  /  18  —  21.  the  freelance  photographer.

004.  alison  warren,  kaylee bryant.  /  18   —  23.  the  influencer.

005.  aliyah  scott,  jessica  parker  kennedy.  /  25  —  30.  the  bartender.

006.  anastasia  king,  marie avgeropoulos.  /  1100+.  the  broken  hero.

007.  andrew  dunbar,  justin  hartley.  /  30   —  35.  the  surf  instructor.

008.  antonio  rivera,  oscar  isaac.  /  35   —  40.  the  physical  therapist.

009. benji warren, tyler hoechlin. /  30   —  35.  the  baseball  coach.

010. catalina martinez,  eiza gonzalez.  /  verse  dependent,  the  police  officer.

011.  christopher  lawson,  daniel  gillies  /  35   —  40,  the  mafia  affiliate. 

012.  cruz  salazar,  ryan  guzman.  /  28   —  32.  the  personal  trainer.

013.  daniel  park,  tom  hardy.  /  30   —  35.  the  english  teacher.

014.  elizabeth  dane,  katie  mccgrath.  /  30   —  35.  the  vigilante.

015.  esperanza  salgado,  lindsey  morgan.  /  21   —  25.  the  college  student.

016.  francesca  brooks,  melissa  benoist.  /  25   —  30.  the  receptionist. 

019.  javier  montero,  manny  montana.  /  27   —  33.  the  freelance  artist.

020.  jaylin  ruiz,  diane  guerrero.  /  24   —  27.  the  vigilante.

021.  jeffrey  winston,  charlie  hunnam.  /  27   —  35.  the  mechanic.

022.  joseph  winston,  chris  hemsworth.  /  35   —  40.  the  mercenary.

023.  jordyn  richardson,  candice  patton.  /  25  —  30.  the  paranormal  investigator.

024.  juliana  warren,  camila  morrone.  /  24   —  27.  the  ‘runs  a  flower  shop.’

025. karisa,  astrid  berges  frisbey.  /  immortal.  the  unemployed.

026.  lauren  grace,  crystal  reed.  /  delayed  aging.   the  former  SHIELD  agent.

027.  liliana  danvers,  virginia  gardner.  /  18   —  21.  the  college  student.

030.  marshall  bernard,  JDM.  /  48   —  54.  the  mechanic.

031.  melanie  mccarthy,  danielle  rose  russell.  /  18   —  21.  the  ‘taking  a  gap  year.’

032.  melissa  ramsey,  odessa  a’zion.  /  18   —  21.  the  swim  instructor.

033.  mia  thomas,  bianca  lawson.  /  27   —  35.  the  hunter.

034.  michael  oakley,  brandon  flynn.  /  18   —  21.  the  college  student.

035.  nicole  miller,   lauren  german.  /  27   —  35.  the  emt.

036.  remy  king,  lakeith  stanfield.  /  24   —  27.  the  tattoo  artist.

037.  richard  warren,  joe  manganiello.  /  37   —   42.  the  firefighter.

038.  roman  warren,  casey  deidrick.  /  27  —   35.  the  overnight  stocker.  

039.  ryan  reeves,  odette  annable.  /  27   —  35.  the  hunter.

040.  santiago  martinez,  michael  trevino.  /  18   —  21.  the  athlete.

043.  seraphina  warren,  adelaide  kane.  /  21   —  24.  the  paranormal  investigator.

044.  siobhan  averell,  lesley-ann  brandt.  /  27   —  35.  the  bodyguard.

045.  tabitha  kyle,  olivia  holt.  /  21   —  24.  the  thief.

046.  tommy  cohen,  jon  bernthal.  /  37  —  42.  the  hunter.

047.  valentine  warren,  ben barnes.  /  21   —  24.  the  paranormal  investigator.

048.  venus  hathaway,  jessica  alba.  /  32  —  37.  the  detective.

049.  veronica  creed,  shelley  hennig.  /  delayed  aging.  the  vigilante.

[avery-grayson-blog]

001. The House That Built Me // “I thought if I could touch this place or feel it, this brokenness inside me might start healing. Out here it's like I'm someone else, I thought that maybe I could find myself.”

Technically the Grayson family still owns their original home back in Charleston, so this isn’t COMPLETELY accurate, but the idea of it holds true. One of the main selling points to moving to Atlanta (and returning to South Carolina each year) is that it’s helped her feel more in touch with her “roots” and who she used to be as Avery Grayson, the girl, before she became Nikita Grayson, the actress. Although she never voices it much, there’s a large part of her that feels a disconnect between who she is on the inside and the image she often has to portray.

 002. Stars // “All those times we looked up at the sky, looking out so far, we felt like we could fly. And now I'm all alone in the dark of night, the moon is shining, but I can't see the light”

This song is dedicated to her mother. When Avery was twelve she lost her mother in a car accident during a hurricane that hit the eastern coast. It was an event that would literally shape the rest of her life and the way she viewed or reacted to specific situations. Upon entering the entertainment industry she decided to use the professional alias ‘Nikita’--- a play on her middle name, Nicole, and her mother’s first name, Tabitha.

003. Drown // “What doesn't destroy you, leaves you broken instead. Got a hole in my soul growing deeper and deeper, and I can't take one more moment of this silence, the loneliness is haunting me.”

After her mother’s passing Avery went through an extremely dark and difficult time. She’d been far too young to cope on her own while old enough to recognize what a loss it truly was. As time went on her grief turned to periods of rage and destruction as she tried to sort through the mess that had become her mind. Most notably during this period of her life was the feud that began with her father, Nathaniel, that still remains today.

004. Cop Car  // “But there was somethin' 'bout the way the blue lights were shinin', bringing out the freedom in your eyes, I was too busy watching you going wild child to be worried about going to jail.”

Theo Hawkins and Avery Grayson went hand in hand growing up. It wasn’t until an incident the summer after her 17th birthday that their dynamic changed from best friends to more. It was a young summer love doomed from the start but she credits it as her first real romance. (tag later after acceptances)

005. Sorry // “'Cause I can sometimes treat the people that I love like jewelry, 'Cause I can change my mind each day, I didn't mean to try you on, but I still know your birthday, and your mother's favorite song.”

In most cases Nikita’s never felt regret for the way she’s rapidly ended relationships because she never took them seriously. However, one relationship in her past was different than the rest and reconnecting with him in Atlanta has made her reevaluate her previous ways. ( @mranthonywilliams )

006. Kindly Calm Me Down // “When my world gets loud, could you make it quiet down? When my head, it pounds, could you turn down all the sound? If I lay in pain, by my side would you stay? If I need you now, would you kindly calm me down?”

Despite the fact that over a decade has passed since her mother’s death the lingering affects that it’s had on her life still remain. To the public she’s the ‘American Sweetheart’, a true southern belle with a million dollar smile and a heart of gold. While that might be true to an extent, there is so much of Nikita that is never seen outside of her closest circle of friends (the nightmares that still plague her, the crippling fear she holds inside about losing somebody again). Thankfully she’s found herself those true few that have seen what goes on behind closed doors and have always been there to help her through the dark times. ( @annabelle-grayson, @zachgrayson, @brettgoldstein, @finnsta, @lipreese )

007. Tee Shirt // “When I saw you, everyone knew I liked the effect that you had on my eyes, but no one else heard the weight of your words or felt the effect that they have on my mind.”

Nikita never expected her arranged engagement to actually work. What completely caught her off guard about Colt, however, was the way she actually felt herself drawn to him from the start. It wasn’t just his outward appearance, although she likes that just fine, but something in the way he carried himself and seemed determined to always keep her on her toes. He’s shown her a considerate and sincere side that has made her stop looking at it all as an obligation and instead as something she wants for herself and no other reason.  ( @coltcandler )

008. I Got You // “I'd do the time for you, Tell a lie for you, Yeah, baby, that's what I'd do. I'd walk the line for you, take a shot for you, yeah, baby, that's what I'd do. 'Cause I got you, it's true, I'd die for you.”

If there’s one thing that could be said about Nikita it’s that she's been fiercely loyal to the people she loves her entire life. There literally isn’t a single thing she wouldn’t do for any one of them and she will always have their back whenever they need her. Friendship and loyalty have always been two of the most important things to her so, in this case, she absolutely believes in ‘do for others what you would want them to do for you’. (y’all know who you are I’m not tagging the world in this one lmao)

009. Tattoos On This Town // “It sure left its mark on us, we sure left our mark on it. We let the world know we were here with everything we did--- We laid a lot of memories down, like tattoos on this town.”

This song basically goes out to every single place she’s ever lived from Charleston to New York City, Los Angeles to Atlanta. Her life has taken her all over (mostly due to her acting career) but each place (and the memories made there) has laid its own mark on her, making her the person she is today. Likewise, Nikita would like to think that she’s left an impression everywhere she’s went, even if it was only on one person.