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[withfires]

JUN​E THIRD, THE WRECK — @ofyates​​

“thank you, val,” thalia says as she pulls the basket of beer-battered onion rings across the table, toward where she’s sitting. the wreck is an outer banks institution — it’s only fitting that she come here almost immediately after touching down on the east coast. and of course, she’s with charlie, because home wouldn’t be home without him. although adam isn’t around to whip up her favorite strawberry-chocolate milkshake the way she likes it, she’s still content just hearing the still-sizzling oil lining the onion rings. 

lia turns back to face charlie. “and then i told him i got into duke, and he totally didn’t care, which was kind of perfect, because. well, you know. i’m not doing the whole commitment thing right now,” she narrates as she stuffs her mouth with an onion ring. “so, yeah. that’s the tale of my not-really-boyfriend boyfriend.” she’s been going on about this for at least four minutes, but it’s hard not to get lost in her stories when she’s missed charlie so much and just wants to share everything that’s happened this semester with him. when she was in california, sure, they’d talk every day on the phone, and thalia’s proud to believe that not an ounce of their friendship was lost, but still. not everything can be squeezed into video calls. and they haven’t spoken that regularly the past couple of weeks, with the craziness of graduation and everything. “that’s enough about me, though — i wanna know what you’ve been up to, my little engineer man. how’s work been? have you taken over the place yet?”

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alina

          she can’t help the smirk that pulls at her lips, the flash across her eyes; she’s almost flattered. “that might be an issue with your detergent. maybe your sustainable crap isn’t effective enough?” having a conversation with thalia is like a game of table tennis: their insults bounce back and forth with riveting precision. that isn’t the exciting part, though; no, that’s coming up right now. she’s still watching thalia, so she notices the falter in her step, easily registers the surprise in her voice. oh, how ali loves to get exactly what she wants. “that’s who the letters were written to, right? the ones you just picked up?” she’s showing more of her cards than she would normally, but the look on thalia’s face is worth it. “the name’s not really ringing a bell though. i didn’t realize you were exploring other avenues.” of course, she’s not just trying to inflict as much misery in thalia as she can; there’s a part of her that’s genuinely curious, otherwise alina would have left thalia to her devices two or three insults back.

alina must think she’s so funny. the never-ending quips, the poking of the bear. it should feel exhausting participating in any sort of exchange with her, and yet, some sinister piece of thalia actually enjoys this. it’s sharp—or, at least, the opposite of dull. it’s also a reminder of why she’s so much better off having the friends she does. her words aren’t cold like alina’s. they’re filled with fire. she rolls her eyes at ali’s comment on her ‘sustainable crap,’ but doesn’t let it irk her. instead, what gets to her is this sudden interest in claudio morales. “i’m not,” she says quickly, a little too fast, “exploring other avenues.” if this were adam, she’d have a harder time lying about it. but it’s not like she’s hoping to find anything through this. “just wanted to get some closure. that’s it. it seems like claudio knew adam’s dad, and—” thalia pauses. “it might be nice to hear about it. for adam.” it’s not a complete lie. it’s more of a half truth. not that alina is deserving of any sliver of the truth.

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“lia, this fucking sucks so much.” he heaves a deep sigh. “you honestly might have to drag me through this.”

“i know,” she says. “i know.” lia smiles. “we’ll make it out the other end okay, though. we always do.”

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every joey potter outfit» 1x03

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alina

          ali shrugs, unbothered by thalia’s rejection. “probably not. i’ve been meaning to ask, do you have something against other women? that’s a bit anti feminist, don’t you think?” a grin splits her lips. though, despite all of alina’s talk, she’s been paying them more attention than thalia would expect. so she understands with painful awareness that their friendship has a certain equilibrium that shouldn’t be interrupted, that thalia fits in with charlie, adam, and rome seamlessly. she’s only ever thought that about her own friends. her hand reaches up to fix her hair. “no thanks, i like my expensive shit. nice to know you’re concerned about the state of my hair though. perhaps i’ll take a few bars then.”

she can never leave well enough alone, so she takes a seat across from lia, leaning forward. “you know, you keep saying that, but you guys have been doing a pretty bad job keeping me out of it.” with thalia so adamant about excluding her, alina amuses herself endlessly by constantly reminding thalia of her involvement. her features twist in disdain as she pulls back. “come on, you have to go for my face? that’s cold. it’s my only asset.” she watches as thalia moves through the room, deliberating with herself for a moment. “what do you want with that claudio guy anyway?” as i said, ali’s been paying attention.

it’s a tale as old as time. her moms would always ask her growing up — why didn’t she have more female friends? they had never particularly liked adam, or charlie, or rome. but when girls like alina winthrop were the alternative, thalia always answered, she was better off with them. “not all women, just you,” she says flatly, not letting ali’s words throw her. she doesn’t satisfy alina’s next jab with a full-fledged response, she just sighs — it’s virtually impossible to get through to her. not that she wants to have an actual conversation, or anything. she just wants to leave. to gather these documents and never come back.

“you’re like a stain, alina. impossible to get out,” thalia says as she finds exactly what she’s looking for — an empty folder — on the desk on the other side of the room. a lot of things about their little adventure this summer would be different if anyone actually listened to her. she wouldn’t be having this conversation deep inside of enemy territory, for example. thalia pauses before heading back over to the coffee table, almost having to stop herself from saying you have a nice body, too. she freezes in the middle of sliding the correspondences inside of the folder, as soon as she mentions claudio by name. “what?” she says, genuinely surprised alina knows a single thing about what’s going on. “who said anything about claudio?” she asks, trying to play it off like this isn’t the sole reason she’s here. she can’t have this getting back to adam, getting his hopes up again. 

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alina

“yeah, aren’t you proud?” alina laughs again and the sound is as light as a knife slicing through the air. it’s funny — the hostility in their conversation, how their laughs are laced with venom. “i think it might be all the time i’m spending with you, thalia,” she pauses, cocking her head as her gaze settles on the other. “maybe we can make it a regular thing, huh?” there’s a wicked glint in her eyes. she doesn���t mean a word that she says. 

she’s not surprised about what thalia says about adam. “just doesn’t know when to quit, huh,” she scoffs. it was typical of him, really, always the noble one, would rather go down with the ship than save himself sort of guy. and she’s pretty sure that the rest of them will go diving after him — one of those tragedies you can’t tear your eyes away from. alina twirls a lock of hair around her fingers absently, but she doesn’t miss when thalia cuts herself off. “for what?” although ali doesn’t expect an answer. she’s pretty sure that, if it was up to thalia, she wouldn’t be within five feet of this. “oh? and what’ll you do if i don’t?”

perhaps they could have been friends, in a time before pogues and kooks, before hail mary treasure hunts, before all thalia knew were her boys. alina does have a particular wit to her, a sense of awareness that’s hard to come by in others. but knowing everything she does now, thalia pham understands that she and alina winthrop are just utterly, grossly, wildly incompatible. “pass. i don’t think we’ll be having sleepovers, braiding each other’s hair, and swapping beauty secrets any time soon,” she says, brushing past alina to start collecting things. as much as adam and rome would probably love to entertain that idea. “although, i can loan you some shampoo bars, if you want. they’re much more sustainable than whatever expensive shit you use. probably even better for your,” thalia turns to flick a strand of ali’s long, silky locks as she passes by, “hair.”

lia sits down as she looks over some of the documents left scattered across the coffee table near the couch. if she remembers correctly, this is where she saw the letters between claudio and thomas. buried under a plethora of other correspondences and photographs. “for something that’s none of your business,” she answers without looking up from the papers. when alina challenges her, finally, she glances back up. “what do you want me to say, alina? i’ll punch you in the face?” it’s partly a joke, but there’s some truth in it. there’s truth in everything she says. lia rises from her spot on the couch to search the room for an empty manila folder, a home for her findings. “i don’t know, i guess i’ll just have to leave you to your ice kingdom.” 

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LANA CONDOR photographed for Coveteur Magazine, april 2022

[withfires]

polaroids of pogues in paradise <3

ft. henri rousseau, ali winthrop, don bailey, lia pham, adam griffin, and rome keating

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adam

chewing on the inside of his cheek, adam steels his expression, gaze fixed on the sea as thalia speaks. he’s not intentionally trying to shut her out, but he doesn’t know what emotions will take over if he looks at her. maybe it’s their location, or he’s had enough time now to cool down, but her words land much differently than they have thus far. reckless as he knows it is, adam’s own safety is the last thing on his mind. hellbent on finding his father, adam’s own morality slipped his mind. he’s always had a bad habit of rushing into things without proper planning; blind faith in the kindness of the universe would guide him to the other side. but clearly, the world is no longer looking on him quite so kindly. maybe the rest of them were right to urge him to rethink his methods. “right, because what would you guys do without me? i get why you’d be worried about trying to find someone cute and charming enough to replace me.” his tone is more genuine this time, he sounds more like himself even to his own ears. and finally, he reaches for her, taking her hand in his and giving it a squeeze. “lia, this fucking sucks so much.” he heaves a deep sigh. “you honestly might have to drag me through this.” and he knows that even if he didn’t say that, she would, no questions asked.

adam and lia don’t find themselves alone together that often, especially not when her and don are practically joined at the hip, and wherever adam goes rome isn’t too far behind. and it’s nice when it’s the four of them, all together, like it’s always been. cracking open a few cold ones, dangling their legs off the side of the orion, laughing at something stupid one of them did the day before. it’s nice, really. but lia also savors moments like these, where it’s just the two of them. family. because no matter how hard adam hits the ground after running headfirst into something, thalia will always be there to pick up the pieces. that is, if she can’t get him to avoid the impulsive act in the first place. “right, because obviously we’d be lacking in that department without you,” she laughs, shaking her head. it’s good to hear him sound like himself again. she sinks her toes into the sand in front of her, but her attention snaps back to adam as soon as he takes her hand. thalia presses her lips together, feeling his pain. "i know,” she says. “i know.” lia smiles. “we’ll make it out the other end okay, though. we always do.” she scoots closer, resting her head on his shoulder. “i know how hard it is to have someone ripped from your life. it’s important to you lean on what you can right now. and that’s us—we’re your family, too.” she scrunches her nose. “we might have to temporarily refocus our energies on taking down the kooks, though. tad needs to be knocked down a couple hundred pegs.”

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alina

thalia’s buttons have always been easy to push, and, sure, alina likes a challenge from time to time but she’ll always go for the easy kill. and thalia never fails to amuse her. “when have i ever been a decent person?” alina laughs and it comes out like a breath. she’s looking down, examining her nails. she really needs to go and get a manicure soon. 

still, as detached from the conversation that she is, she understands quickly what thalia is implying. her fingers curl into a loose fist as she looks up and meets thalia’s gaze. “i didn’t think it would be so easy to scare you guys off.” it is maybe just a shade too insensitive. after all, even she is still grappling with the aftermath of the break in. sometimes, she can still hear the shot ring in her ears, adam’s heart pounding in his chest as she gripped onto him. still. “thank god,” she says, almost like an afterthought. “is someone gonna come by and make sure to clean everything out? i can get someone to do it, but i’m assuming someone wants to keep all this junk?”

thalia still can’t believe that alina almost died with them. near death experiences are supposed to be intimate, aren’t they ? she even found a way to ruin that. typical. she shifts her weight from one foot to another as alina replies, clearly not wanting to keep their conversation going. but lia can’t help but laugh at her question. “it’s amazing, you’re so self aware.” not once has she seen alina even look apologetic or guilty. and it’s not the kind of stubborn thalia is, either—it’s indifference. the quality she hates most.

“well, it didn’t scare adam off, that’s for sure.” she sighs. the words come out of her mouth before she can think to just shut down their conversation and retrieve what she needs from the guesthouse. she feels guilty just hearing them, knowing that adam is only doing this for a chance at getting his dad back. “i guess i’m someone, for now. i’m just grabbing a few things right now for—” thalia stops herself before she can reveal any of her plans with henri. alina doesn’t get to know that. “some stuff i have to do today. i’ll get the rest of it tomorrow. for free. if you promise to stay out of my way.”

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OBX VERSE MUSES  +  PERSONALITY TYPES   —  what  a  well  rounded  squad   !

[withfires]

adam

adam’s laugh is slightly forced. though he’s well acquainted with and never offended by thalia’s teasing, he’s not exactly in the mood for it. “sorry we can’t all be duke law students.” it’s a half-hearted attempt at normalcy; one he knows lia will see through. he feels bad, knowing that it will do nothing to ease the awkward tension that has settled between them, but he’s too distracted to make more of an effort. 

guilt twists in his gut as she admits she sought him out, abandoning the pretense that her arrival was coincidental. “no.” he lets out a sigh. “you don’t have to be sorry. i’m not upset.” his feet push under the sand as he reconsiders, knowing his location is enough of a giveaway that he absolutely is upset. “i’m not upset with you. any of you.” truth be told, adam is still trying to untangle the way he feels. but he doesn’t want to be upset with his friends, so he won’t let himself be. “i know you are.” he isn’t just saying it for her sake; adam knows lia would go to the end of the earth for him, they all would. so why does he feel so alone? his arms wrap around his knees at a time when when one would usually drape around her shoulders. “and i don’t expect you to risk your lives for this shit.”

thalia knows what it’s like to lose a parent. she remembers feeling so lost, feeling like she’d do anything and more just to get them back. she understands what adam’s going through. he needs family right now, and that’s exactly what she’s going to give him. it’s just hard to see him like this, pushing all of them away when he needs them most.

she chuckles at his half-hearted reply. it’s clear that he’s putting on a somewhat of a front right now, one that thalia’s seen enough times to be able to tell that he really is upset. the way they handled things certainly wasn’t ideal, and she feels awful about how it went down. “honestly, it isn’t even about that for me. i just don’t want you putting your life on the line like that. i prefer my adam griffin to be alive, you know.” she gently nudges him with her elbow. “and i don’t think your dad would want that either.” lia makes sure to keep things in the preset tense—she doesn’t want to crush all of his hope right now. she wants to build him back up. “but everything you’re going through right now—we’re gonna get through it. together. and i know that sounds corny as hell, but it’s true.”

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roman

he’s trudging home after a long and hellish mandatory family dinner. despite being replete with its usual heavy silences aside from forks shrieking across porcelain, rome didn’t feel relieved after leaving the keating household. for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out why his brother was so adamant about gathering a family who was anything but that together. however, it was more normal than whatever he would’ve had to deal if he hadn’t gone. maybe that’s what roman needed — predictable. after the last three weeks, the idea of a mundane summer wasn’t sounding terrible at all. he was thankful that near-death experiences were out of the picture. turning the corner and nearing the driveway to the griffin house, thalia enters his line of sight. coming to a halt, a soft groan emits from him, his head tilting back. the last thing he wanted to do is engage in small talk with his ex-girlfriend. “hey,” he greets, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “here for adam?” / @withfires​

thalia’s practically tearing apart the outer banks, hellbent on finding adam and giving him the heart to heart he so desperately needs. it reminds her of when they were all in high school—driving around town with no destination in mind, just to be together. sometimes she wishes they could all just go back to that time, when things were easier, when adam’s dad was still around, when they were all in the same state. but that’s long gone, and adam needs her now, in the present. she’s on his porch, sending a text to don while she waits for someone to answer the door. and when no one comes—which isn’t much of a surprise, knowing both of the boys currently living there—thalia stands on her toes to get a glimpse inside of one of the windows. before she can start banging on it with her fists, she notices rome approaching. thalia sighs. “uh, yes,” she says, turning to face him. “have you seen him? and don’t lie to cover for him, if you have.” lia’s gaze softens as she looks up at his face, knowing that it’s roughed up more than usual. “and what about you? are you okay?”

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henri​

the look on adam’s face when they’d broke the news about dropping the treasure hunt has haunted him in the days since. maybe that’s why — whenever don’s out of the house — he has been looking a little more into the history of the town to try to find out just why adam’s dad would even direct them to a crazy lady’s house.or trying to. snippets of articles published online by claudio morales, whose name he had seen scribbled onto the back of letters, documenting the town’s history behind a paywall. so, naturally he seeks out lia. their moral compass (and someone who he’s sure could take on a journalist/historian/whatever if need be).

“she does?” he quirks a brow, mouth pulling down at the corners to demonstrate that he’s impressed by alexa’s connections. “no, i have not told don,” he scoffs, stepping out of the car after her. henri had considered it, though. at least four times. two of those just so happened to be in the car on the way over. “so relax, i don’t know how far the reaches of outer banks bystander gossip extends, but it totally won’t be on my part that he finds out. don’t get me wrong, though! i don’t break my unspoken cousin code of conduct for just anything. mainly just… because i can’t stand seeing adam looking hurt, to be honest.” just like a sad, grouchy, adam-shaped puppy. a frown tugs at his lips at the thought as he looks up at the building that houses the local newspaper, adjusting the cap on his head as if he needs to make a better impression on the guy when they head inside. “y’know, i don’t know much about historians. other than like… that quote that says they’re gossips who tease the dead. which, heh, newspaper… kinda fitting, huh?”

this type of amateur nancy drew investigation is starting to grow on thalia. she doesn’t not like going around to various people and demanding answers from them, but she also knows that it’s probably not the best experience to be on the receiving end of it. last time they sought someone out like this, they left a giant hole in the middle of the floor of his lighthouse. well, that was mainly alina’s fault—at least she isn’t here with them, now. henri’s always the best of company, so lia doesn’t even mind going back on her word and flipping back to a chapter they had all agreed to close. 

“yeah, she’s always trying to bring together the obx latine community,” thalia says, beaming. she nods as henri goes on, in complete understanding of his feelings. “i hate lying to don, too, but we both know he’ll probably freak, and like,” she sighs. “watching adam like this is killing me, too. but if we do this right, we may be able to get him some closure.” she tries to comfort herself with a smile, but there’s still a pang of guilt in her chest just thinking about adam. lia laughs at his joke, like she always does, her heart full again. “always looking for some dirt,” she plays back. “that actually sounds kind of fun. maybe he’ll be cool.” the main office of the building is pretty sparse, but there are a few doors with names printed on them in gold lettering. she spots c. morales on one of the doors on the other side of he room. thalia nods her head in that direction before moving forward, a woman on a mission. she knocks twice, unsure of if he’s even there. “mr. morales?”

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adam

adam stares at the sea like he’s waiting for it to speak. he’s not used to things being difficult for him, or experiencing emotions as negative as the ones he has felt for the past two months. though he’s willing to go to the ends of the earth to find out what happened to his dad, part of him still thinks that an easy answer will fall into his lap. or wash up on shore. his stomach churns and he takes a deep breath, pushing that thought out of his mind. 

even as he hears footsteps approach, he doesn’t look away. he knows it’s thalia before he confirms it with a glance. there aren’t many people that would know to look for him there, and he doesn’t need to see any of the three to tell them apart. despite retreating to his spot with the goal to be alone, he’s immediately comforted by thalia’s presence. he wasn’t built to be alone, and apparently that remained the case even when he was upset with his friends. after she sits, he tilts sideways far enough to gently tap his shoulder against hers. “hey,” he says as he straightens again. “just. y’know, contemplating.” somewhere within him, adam knows he should be apologizing to thalia. he’s well aware that they were only trying to look out for him and his snapping was unwarranted. but it has been less than twenty-four hours and the wounds are still too fresh. his spine straightens slightly as he runs back through the events of the bonfire, he hopes thalia wasn’t there to try and convince him to give up again; he has made up his mind and she isn’t going to change it. “what about you? were you in the neighborhood?”

it’s hard to watch a silence that was once so comfortable become awkward. and part of it’s her fault—for leaving, for not being there to smooth things over for four years. it feels like coming back only made things worse, after everything that’s happened. but it’s this moment that reminds her why she’s here, why this place is her home. the waves rolling up, just nearly missing their toes. the summer sun fanned across their backs. family, again. she would do anything for him, he knows that. she just won’t let him collapse like this. 

she smiles to herself when he nudges her. “careful, i think you might be doing a little too much thinking for someone with such a small brain,” she says, starting to laugh at her own joke. “nah, i knew you’d be here. wanted to check up on you.” thalia sighs. she doesn’t want to tell him to stop chasing ghosts. she knows she’d probably be doing the same if she were in his position, that if her parents had mysteriously disappeared instead of what actually happened, she would be just as stubborn. “sorry about the bonfire. we really can’t do anything right.” lia shudders at the idea of them having to put together an actual intervention. it would be a shitshow. “you know how i feel about all of this stuff. i’m on your side, i promise.” 

[withfires]

how many centuries deep is your wound?

obx verse supremacy <3

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alina

they’ve really never gotten along in their lives, but alina suspects that some of the venom is because of everything that happened at the bonfire. she’s not sure what thalia expected from her. if she was meant to put herself in the middle of a fight that wasn’t any of her business. besides, as far as she was concerned, adam punched brax first. brax is as insufferable as they come, but adam already knew that. it doesn’t do well for anyone to entertain him.

”that doesn’t change the fact that you and your friends are using it though, does it?” the comment doesn’t have any impact on alina. she’s always been content with the fact that she was born luckier than most. “yeah?” alina smirks, regarding thalia from where she’s standing. “and what would you call me? the one who gave you access to the archives? i can live with that label too.” a part of her is pleased that she’s been able to help out like this, but only because she knows that it kills thalia to ask for anything from her, of all people. “your stuff? so you guys finally gave up then?” she’s surprised, but she manages to keep any hint of that out of her tone.

she can’t understand how any of the others put up with alina, even for the few short days they spent together. pretty people get away with whatever they want, she supposes. pretty, rich people especially. sure, alina’s hot—but thalia’s convinced she doesn’t have a soul. and that’s the more important quality, in her book.

lia rolls her eyes as hard as she possibly can as the other girl goes on. alina’s always looking for a way to bother her, and the sad truth is, she has a one hundred percent success rate. it’s a miracle that thalia hasn’t broken her nose, or something. she wouldn’t want to give rome the cat fight he so desperately wants to watch. “yeah, that’s called using your privilege for the greater good, aka being a decent person 101.” she grips the keychain on her car keys in her pocket. thalia really doesn’t want to share anything with alina, but she should probably know that they’re abandoning her guesthouse for a shot at normalcy this summer. “we literally got shot at. what do you think?” lia narrows her eyes. “lucky you. you don’t have to pretend like you have any actual investment in this thing anymore.”