"listen, Compared To All The Others I'm Seeing This Is Objectively Bad. It's Okay To Laugh." Salem Chuckled

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"well paying for it wasn't really apart of the plan. i just figured i could like...subtly walk out with one you know?" it was technically stealing but salem saw it as rescuing a stray animal. "i'm gonna be honest but i don't even know where the owner is. you notice how empty it is in here? they probably wouldn't even realize if i took one." salem teased while rubbing the chin of a grey tabby that jumped into her lap. "let me buy you a coffee first and we can discuss theft afterwards. its the least i could do for dragging you along."

without a beat, her infamous catchphrase comes out as soon as she hears salem. "why not? i mean if you pay for it, that shouldn't be a problem, no?" jackie has no idea if any of these cats are for purchase, but she believes when there's a will there's a way, and if not, she's pretty sure they could work something out. "i guess you can talk to the owner about it or something," she suggests, a playful smile toying on her lips when an idea suddenly pops into her head. "or don't. it's not like you can get arrested for stealing a cat," then a pause. "can you?" she's unsure. well, now that the realization begins to hit her, maybe they should just abort that mission. "you did say you want to pay for it. i think that works."

salem let out a small laugh, they were both in the same boat. she had almost no impulse control when it came to treating herself and seemed to be everyone's go to shopping partner back home and with everything she had going on in her personal life currently the retail therapy served as a good distraction. "you put me in a thrift store or a street market this one and i could do actual damage. so unfortunately i'm not going to be the friend to steer you away from spending a little too much." she teased before giving jamie a smile. "i'm kidding don't be sorry, but if you want we can go grab something?i'm pretty flexible when it comes to dining out. i actually wouldn't mind some coffee." salem said reassuringly.

jamie’s  always  been  the  time  of  person  who  enjoys  exploring  whenever  he’s  on  vacation  or  at  a  new  place.  his  mother  was  the  complete  opposite,  always  having  an  itinerary  of  places  she  wanted  to  visit  or  dine  at,  and  while  jamie  can  see  the  appeal,  nothing  beats  just  wandering  around  to  see  what  a  city  has  to  offer.  that’s  how  he  came  across  the  street  market  one  day  and  it’s  become  a  staple  for  him  to  visit  and  meander  about.  it’s  even  better  when  you  come  along  with  a  friend  who  can  point  out  things  he  may  have  originally  missed.  ❝  i  always  end  up  walking  out  here  spending  more  than  i  probably  should  have,  ❞  jamie  admits  with  a  slight  chuckle  as  he  unconsciously  twists  one  of  the  rings  around  his  finger.  what’s  said  next  has  chocolate  hues  widen  and  blink  over.  ❝  oh,  shit.  do  i  not  seem  excited  ??  sorry.  i  bet  your  place  is  gonna  look  awesome.  my  stomach  is  kinda  raging  war  on  me  right  now  i  was  just  thinking  about  what  i  was  gonna  eat  for  lunch.  ❞

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as salem plucked a few grapes off the vine she chuckled at solana. the age difference between the two of them seemed to slip her mind until it was mentioned. solana always reminded salem of a big sister no more than a few years older than herself. "you talk as if you're like....prehistoric babe. you're still pretty young. there's no real reason why you can't go on a bar crawl with me or be backstage at a concert." giving the other a playful nudge. she didn't have many older friends but it was refreshing to be around new people with different hobbies than hers. "i'm just now getting into it really and the most i know is that i hate those dry bitter red wines." she scrunches her face up at the thought. "i just don't have the taste palette for it honestly. whats your favorite?"

the joy radiating off of salem was infectious, and the slight ache in solana's cheeks from smiling so much was proof of that. " oh, super believable. " the comment accompanied by a soft bout of laughter. " now don't get me wrong, that's not a dig about who you are as a person. " she told her, plucking a few more grapes from the vine before tossing them into her basket. " you're young, there are way more fun things to do at your age. " truthfully, she would have been more surprised if she was a wine connoisseur. " i know i didn't do my first wine tasting until i was at least your ago. i just didn't have the palate for it back then. " now having a glass at the end of a long day was one of sol's preferred ways to unwind. at the admission, she rested a hand on salem's forearm, giving her a faint shake of her head. " i would never. "

@KianaLede: Glam me daddy

"wait...you're serious?" salem whispered before looking around for a moment; there weren't any other people in sight so they technically could get away with it. would it be bad karma though? "i love the universe and it's creatures but a tarantula is completely out of the question." the suggestion quickly snapping her out of her deep thought. she chuckled as she watched drew struggle with the poor animal. "here, give it to me-" reaching for the cat she smiled while placing gentle pats along it's fur. "i see you didn't learn anything the whole month stevie was with luna. speaking of which, you think they'll be mad about us stealing it? what if we get caught and she has to bail us out of jail?" the potential consequences raced through her mind.

drew scoops up the cat with great effort, grimacing as the creature struggles and squirms within his awkward grasp. "open your bag," he instructs anyway. pets who couldn't be confined to a tank or a cage, shed often, made noise, emitted an odor, or all of the above were strictly forbidden by his mother, so he has little experience with wrangling common household animals. "excuse me," drew inevitably huffs as the cat continues fidgeting. "okay, are you sure that you don't want a tarantula instead ? i can recommended a few different species that are great to start out with," he offers, glancing anxiously at salem as the animal continues to wiggle around in his hands.

the reaction didn't surprise her but salem couldn't help but laugh at her response. "milani stop!" she said before playfully rolling her eyes. "not too much okay? he's actually great. i'm just starting to feel like he may be better off without me and my bullshit." salem didn't have the best track record with men, her last relationship was an absolute dumpster fire. traumatizing would be an understatement. "this is going to disgust you but i'm actually so in love with him it makes me want to run away from him you know?" it sounded crazy but it was the truth. she flashed milani a smile at her compliment, "you're sweet. i'm not even sure if i'm in the place to hook up with anyone truthfully but it may be nice to meet some new people while im here."

               those   were   always   such   great   words   to   start   a   conversation.   milani   wished   she   was   sitting   in   a   swivel   chair   so   that   her   turn   towards   salem   had   a   much   more   ominous   affect.   she   settled   for   clutching   her   luke   warm   cup   of   coffee   up   to   her   chest   as   she   watched   salem.   milani   didn't   even   need   to   hear   the   rest   of   the   question   to   give   out   her   very   sound,   thought   out,   and   unbiased   opinion:   "   HELL   yes.   "   there   was   plenty   of   emphasis   on   the   hell.   "   are   you   joking   ?   easiest   answer   i   ever   could've   given.   i   never   understood   what   you   saw   in   him.   or   why.   just   know   that   you   should   get   out   while   you   can.   "   she   concluded,   eyeing   the   dress.   "   honestly   ?   you   could   walk   into   divine   in   a   trash   bag   and   hooves   and   still   get   attention   with   a   face   card   like   yours.   "   milani   said,   playfully   taking   salem's   chin   between   her   thumb   and   index   finger   for   a   brief   moment.   "   but   i   would   go   for   something   shorter   and   boobier.   "

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salem frowned a bit when noticing the grape juice splatter all over his shirt. poor drew was kind of a mess at the moment and she couldn't help but laugh a bit. after drew spewed out his rapid fire questions salem stood up while offering a helping hand. "depends on the vampire film. obviously yes to queen of the damned. i think a shirtless vampire in leather pants that became rockstar is such a realistic storyline." she continued on after helping drew up. "the original fright night is great also, though i don't think you're a twilight guy if we're getting a little more modern." she didn't' really see drew as team edward or jacob. "i love kettle corn but i've never had the sriracha. if you hate it maybe your roommate may like it."

drew sits up and accepts the napkins, thanking salem as he begins to scrub the stickiness off of his hands. he waves a dismissive hand in response to her question, though it's with a grimace as he notices the fresh stain on his shirt ( boldly proclaiming him ' corpse of the month at family fun funeral home ' although with the grape juice splattered all over the front it looks like he's just some lame-o corpse with no special superlative ). "being immortal renders one immune to death," he points out, "not the tilt - a - whirl. do we need to have a vampire movie marathon ? do you like kettle corn ? do you want any flavoring for it ? did you know they make flavoring for kettle corn ? i have spicy sriracha at home, but i haven't tried it yet because what if it's too spicy ? have you ever tried it ? " it isn't until after posing his last question that he affords salem any time to answer him.