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Post by Melanie Benson on Dec 13, 2015 18:46:44 GMT
Melanie Benson stood beside Brody Finn, her now ex-boyfriend. She'd taken a car service up to Ithaca from the city upon his request that she join him for some sort of new student and alumni mixer and she'd agreed to go along as his friend. Despite the fact that they were no longer romantically involved, they had separated amiably - always knowing their relationship would go south. She was surprised he'd invited her to see him and not some petite redhead. She, of course, had her own motives for attending. "So, lets find my future first husband," she announced as she took a sip of her drink, laughing softly. Glancing around at those in attendance, she pointed out a much older man - portly and balding. "I bet he travels for work often," she mused.
Smoothing out her dress she tilted her head at him. "So I'm confused about why you invited me. You've been here in the boondocks for at least twenty-four hours, you should be knee deep in Freshman skanks. Or I'm sure there's someone back home you would have preferred to have join you here."
She wasn't really complaining though, pleased to see her friend again, even as she glanced around the event and tried to find someone who might strike her fancy. Melanie had always assumed that marriage was something in the cards for her, but figured that it wouldn't be for love - it would be for sustainability. Without a job or a degree, her father still paid her bills and she lived in one of his properties - she knew that could only be kept up for so long. So she figured she'd marry some old poor sap, live comfortably - maybe have one kid for the sake of appearances. So while she joked about needing to find a future husband, part of her thought maybe she should start prioritizing that more.
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Post by Brody Finn on Dec 13, 2015 19:42:00 GMT
It hadn't really sunk in that things were much different now. Brody had assumed that the moment that he had arrived in Ithaca for school that things would have been much different than they had been before. He had thought that he would have felt different; that there would have been something about being away from home that would have instinctively caused a change in his life. Maybe even just something where he was able to put his past and his friends at home aside for long enough to grow up and move on. The problem was he wasn't sure if he wanted to give up on all of that just yet. And while he kept trying to convince himself that maybe a little distance was good for everyone, he knew that the only person he meant was really Morgan. And even then he wasn't convinced that distance was something either of them really wanted. The thought of calling her, even sending her a quick text message, was far more intimidating than it had any right to be, however, so he had done nothing. Instead, when an invitation had come his way to attend a mixer, the only person he could think to invite had been Melanie. Her friendship had become oddly comforting over the last several months and it had only seemed like the right thing to do - it was not only someone he knew that he would have an enjoyable time with, but there wasn't any expectation or assumption about what they were meant to be like together anymore. He supposed that was one nice thing about remaining friends with your ex-girlfriend.
He smiled at her, shaking his head, "I know what you're trying to do," he told her. He was coming to realize she knew a lot more about his feelings for Morgan than she let on. "You know why I invited you - because you're my friend and I thought that you wouldn't mind an excuse to come up here and keep me company."
He surveyed the room for a moment, recognizing a lot of the faces that they had already been forced to make polite introductions with, but for the life of him he couldn't remember who half of the people here were. Sometimes it could be really unfortunate to be part of the families they were part of, he had to admit, especially as a freshman in college. There were dozens of things that he was sure he would have rather been doing than having to rub elbows with other privileged freshman and distinguished alumni. "What makes you think you'd want to meet your future husband here, anyway?"
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Post by Tripp VanderMill on Dec 13, 2015 19:42:09 GMT
Having graduated from Cornell University a little more than seven years ago, Tripp VanderMill had sometimes found a comfortable sense of nostalgia about returning to his alma mater. Between attending football games in the fall and the handful of alumni mixers thrown in for good measure, sometimes it even felt like he hadn't entirely left the school at all. Though, for all the fond memories and the profitable business connections he had been able to make over the last several years, there were times where he wondered why he bothered at all. This particular function always seemed to be a toss up as to whether it was going to provide business opportuntities, either for now or in the future, or if it was just going to be a waste of a particularly long drive up here. It seemed, at the moment, like it was still too soon to tell for sure what this year held in store. Several of the same former classmates and respected alumni figures were in attendance, making it easy to make polite conversation about whatever had passed in the timeframe since they had last seen each other. He had complimented several men's wives on their appearance and teased them for their decision making skills in remaining with their husbands. It was that charm and witty banter that had kept him entertained for the moment.
There were, however, several new faces in the crowd this year, leading him to believe that the incoming class of freshmen had gained some reputation worth his time and effort in continuing to make both business and social contacts. There were a handful of students that he had been familiar with based on family connections and elder siblings, and so he had done his due dilligence in greeting them and providing some vague advice over what life at Cornell was going to be like over the next four years. He had excused himself to grab a drink and move on to another acquaintance when he had spotted her. Smiling at the attractive brunette standing beside the student he had been informed was Brandon Finn's son, he made his way to the bar and ordered himself a drink.
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Post by Melanie Benson on Dec 13, 2015 20:01:01 GMT
Melanie laughed at Brody, shaking her head at him. "I still can't believe you didn't talk to Little Red before you left for school," she shook her head. "I should be gagging over your disgusting cuteness by now, and instead here I am - miles and miles away from real civilization." She grinned at Brody and nudged him a bit. She took another sip of her drink and shook her head. "You hardly want to be here to begin with, you invited me because I happen to be the life of every party - and since this is so boring I could probably cry, we're going to find me a potential husband." She grinned, "Jackie O was wrong, you know. She said that the first time you marry for love, the second for money, and the third for companionship. But I don't know if I believe in the first," she explained easily. "Besides, look around, a bunch of old men reliving the glory days of college - if they had a wife that could keep their interests over the weekend, they wouldn't be here."
She glanced around, taking a sip of her drink and shaking her head. "They put too much ice in these," she lamented. Her eyes fell on a handsome man as he passed on his way to the bar and her eyebrow ticked up. "Oh, well,"she said under her breath, tilting her head as she toyed with her hair. "I think I need a new drink," she told Brody gently. "Do you mind?"
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Post by Brody Finn on Dec 13, 2015 20:20:01 GMT
Another thing that Brody wasn't terribly fond of about this party was that he hadn't been able to steal a drink from the bar for himself. It would have been nice to have had a glass of something that he could have used as an excuse to hide behind, or as some sort of numbing agent to keep him from feeling the lurch of guilt in his stomach at the reminder that he hadn't spoken to Morgan either. He smiled down at Melanie, giving her a shrug. "You have no idea that anything I would have said would have changed anything," he protested, admitted that it was probably more for his own benefit than it had been for her. "But to show my appreciation for you coming all of this way to save me, I will absolutely help you find a future husband if that's what would make you happy. It's probably better if you start your search here instead of one of your nightclubs anyway."
When she asked if it would be okay if she excused herself for a moment, he nodded, "I should probably go introduce myself to a few more people, anyway. Just come and find me when you're done. I'm sure I'm going to need you to save me from whoever I end up talking to."
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Post by Melanie Benson on Dec 13, 2015 20:25:46 GMT
Melanie smiled at Brody, leaning over, she pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Go make some friends and connections, maybe find yourself a cougar here. Can't hurt." she suggested with a soft laugh. She grinned at him, "I promise to come save you later," she told him, making her way over to the bar, making sure to put a considerable amount of space between herself and the man she'd noticed earlier. Leaning over the bar, she ordered herself a vodka martini, flirting a bit with the bartender. She glanced up, eying the other man again briefly. She thought perhaps, she could put her search for a husband on hold for one more night of play anyway.
The portly older gentleman from before sidled up to her and introduced himself though, and for the sake of her own amusement, she smiled at him, introducing herself and laughing at his horrible attempt at charming humor.
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Post by Tripp VanderMill on Dec 13, 2015 21:08:03 GMT
Thanking the bartender for his drink, he spotted the attractive brunette approach further down the bar, ordering a drink for herself before an older man decided to try and capture her attention. Amused by the interaction that she had suddenly found herself part of, Tripp watched them for a moment. After deciding that he couldn't continue to let her suffer the advances of the other man, he decided that it would have only been fair to intervene. He knew the other man, mostly by name, but he figured that it would have only been fair to politely force himself into the conversation. The benefit, he supposed, would be that hopefully his presence would drive the older man away and he would get an opportunity to properly introduce himself to the young woman.
"John, how are you?" he greeted the man with a kind smile. "I'm sorry," he said turning to the brunette, "We haven't met. Tripp VanderMill," he extended his hand to her in introduction.
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Post by Melanie Benson on Dec 13, 2015 21:14:55 GMT
Melanie looked up as Tripp seemed to step in, intervening as she chuckled at another bad joke. She tilted her head at him, taking his hand. "Melanie. It's nice to meet you, unfortunately you've just missed the most charming story from John here," she replied simply, taking a sip of her drink. She watched as John seemed to greet Tripp VanderMill and then excuse himself and she sighed a soft sigh of relief. "Thank you, Mr. VanderMill. In all honesty, his story was a bit incoherent and possibly racist," she laughed, taking another sip of her drink.
She smirked up at him, eyes appraising him briefly before she glanced around again. The event itself was far too stuffy for her own tastes, designed for networking and that sense of Ivy League pride that a girl who'd dropped out of business school halfway through sophomore year didn't have must of a taste for herself.
"So, you attended Cornell and love the school so much you simply couldn't resist this incredible party this weekend?" she asked teasingly.
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Post by Tripp VanderMill on Dec 13, 2015 21:31:15 GMT
Tripp waited until his fellow Cornell alumnus has excused himself before he smiled at Melanie, nodding his agreement that there were times where he was sure that several of the men in the room were capable of telling stories a little beyond what he might have considered appropriate conversation for these sort of events. "Tripp," he corrected easily. "I'm glad I wasn't interrupting anything that shouldn't have been interrupted then, but I do have to admit - you do appear to be well beyond his league." It was all too easy to slip into casual flirtation with her, and he did owe that largely in part to how attractive he found her to be.
He smiled at her, giving a small shrug before taking a drink from his glass. "The part about attending Cornell was at least true. Though, given the opportunity to talk with you, I might be more inclined to think favorably of this mixer." Smirking at her, he wondered briefly what the likelihood of this conversation ending with the two of them in his hotel room was. "I have to ask, what brings a beautiful woman to an event like this? You're not an incoming freshman, are you?" he said the latter part teasingly, not sure that it would have made any difference if she were or not.
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Post by Melanie Benson on Dec 13, 2015 21:42:12 GMT
Melanie smirked, amused by his compliments. When he asked if she was a freshman, she tilted her head back and laughed softly. "No, no - I have virtually no affiliation with the school." She glanced around, looking for Brody. "I'm here with someone," she admitted. "He's a freshman and didn't necessarily want to attend something like this alone, so out of the goodness of my heart I trekked up here to keep him company." She shrugged her shoulder easily and smiled back at Tripp.
She licked her lips as her eyes met his. She had to admit that he was quite handsome, different than the kind of men she usually associated with. There was also something to be said about his confidence that had her wondering if he knew someplace they could slip away to that was more private. She reminded herself, again, that she'd come to accompany Brody, though. Plus, she had a feeling that, somewhere along the line, someone like Tripp VanderMill could spell trouble for her.
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Post by Tripp VanderMill on Dec 13, 2015 22:09:09 GMT
The statement that she had been brought to this event by someone did give any indication that she necessarily intended to leave with that same person, though he supposed that he could have been making assumptions about that part as well. Though, if that had been the case, she very easily could have excused herself from his company to return to the freshman that had invited her to be his date. Recalling that he had first seen her standing with who he had assumed to be the youngest Finn, he couldn't help but wonder exactly who Melanie was. Tripp knew Brandon Finn through various business connections and they had been part of the same lunch meeting and business functions enough times that he knew that he probably should have paid better attention to the other man's company at the time. Especially now that it appeared that his son was going to be part of the Cornell social circle. And while he wondered exactly what role this beautiful woman played in the freshman Finn's life, he wasn't even sure that it necessarily mattered.
"That was very kind of you," he told her. "And is your companion keeping you company as well?" He knew that these events weren't the most lively to attend, particularly when a person had no affiliation with the school. Depending on whether or not she was trying to make it back to her date, Tripp knew that it was going to be too easy to offer to keep her company instead.
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Post by Melanie Benson on Dec 13, 2015 22:27:19 GMT
Melanie shrugged her shoulder up. "Personally, I think the entire thing is a bit silly, don't you? He's barely even figured out where all of his classes are held, and he's been invited to rub elbows with a bunch of graduates of the school - most of whom are old enough to be his father - hoping they can shed some light on what it is to go to this school now, as a freshman?" She waved her hand dismissively. "I think he should probably be off drinking at some frat house, making bad choices and having a good time. But that's just me. Brody tends to like to follow rules," she grinned. "I think my mission before I go back home is to make sure he makes new friends so that I don't have to keep making the trip up here to keep him company."
She tilted her head at him. "What about you? Is there someone here that you're supposed to be keeping company?" she asked curiously. "Or someone you should be getting home to?" She ran her finger along the edge of her glass. If Tripp had been there with someone else or was otherwise involved with another woman, she wasn't sure that that would stop her from pursuing his company for the evening. He wouldn't have been the first involved man she'd enjoyed a torrid weekend with and, as far as she was concerned, wouldn't be the last either.
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Post by Tripp VanderMill on Dec 13, 2015 23:46:30 GMT
Tripp smiled at her, amused by her description of what the first week of college should have been like for her young friend. Truthfully, he couldn't remember much about his first week but he had assumed that maybe he had a point. Eighteen or nineteen year old boys were often fond of spending time at these sort of events, it was too difficult to see the benefit of them when you hadn't really begun your career at that point. Though, even now that he had, he could still see a certain dryness to the entire situation. "I'm sure your friend still has plenty of time for visits to frat houses and making bad choices," he told her, still smiling in amusement. Based on her ideas alone, he was wagering that it wasn't a romantic relationship that she was currently involved in with Brody Finn, and he could feel himself becoming more invested in the idea that he could entice her with the offer of better drinks and his company after they were done here.
At her questions of him, he shook his head. "No, there isn't." At least there hadn't been anything serious for some time now. He hadn't dated anyone seriously for a few years now and the only relationships he had been involved in were ones out of convenience. He had been able to enjoy a few nights with them, both physically and as dates, before moving on to other things more interesting. Tripp had figured that when the right woman came along, one who challenged him, then he would be much more enticed to become involved, but he hadn't met that person just yet.
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Post by Melanie Benson on Dec 13, 2015 23:56:52 GMT
Melanie tilted her head at him. It was rare to find a good single man. She wondered idly what might be wrong with him. Still, she couldn't help but be intrigued. She nodded, "Well then, you'll probably have to keep me company while Brody networks. Unless you've somewhere else you need to be," she nodded. "In which case I'm sure I can find someway to entertain myself around here."
Finishing her drink, she tucked her hair behind her ear, smoothing out her dress before flashing a bright grin at Tripp.
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Post by Tripp VanderMill on Dec 14, 2015 0:14:07 GMT
He couldn't help but let his gaze roam over her body appreciatively as she drew attention to it by smoothing out her dress. For what it was worth, as long as she was willing to keep him company at this event, he was ore than willing to do the same for her. "I'm sure at this point I've said hello to anyone worth speaking to," he told her with a smirk. If he was being entirely honest, if she were the last person he spoke to for the evening, he would still consider it a success. Of course, he added, it also entirely depended on what happened from this point forward. The thought began crossing his mind seriously that they should get out of the mixer. Even just from a conversation standpoint, however, he didn't know how much they could really say to each other standing in a room full of people whose entire purpose for being there was to meet new people and say hello to those that were familiar. From a conversation standpoint, as well as for other reasons, he wasn't sure that he really wanted to share her at the moment either.
"Do you need to stay close by your friend, just in case he needs you for anything?" he questioned.
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