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Post by Madison Benson on Aug 17, 2015 15:06:33 GMT
It could be said that Madison was a planner. Or rather, that she didn't know how to stop planning. When she was younger she had these elaborate ideas for stories that she would write, filling pages and pages of her notebook with character biographies, timelines of their lives, entire plots pieced out and settings beaten into her memory. Hours would be spent making sure she knew exactly what her characters looked like, how they talked, and she knew who they were as much as she knew who she was. And then once all of the planning had been completed, she had lost the desire to move forward. She probably had half a dozen notebooks filled with stories that she would probably never write, because the planning of them was the really exciting part. Stories turned to birthday parties, birthday parties turned into studying sessions in college, and as an adult she kept extensive to do lists at her desk to be sure she knew exactly what needed to be done and when. Unfortunately for Riley, girl's night were not an exception to the over-planning. She had purchased three bottles of wine - just in case they were feeling a white, red or rose, and had already ordered more take-out than any two women could possibly consume. Her justifcation was that everything sounded good, and if worst came to worst, she would have lunches and dinner good to go for the rest of the week. With a stack of cheesy movies set out on the coffee table, ready for her friend to make the final call, she poured herself a glass of wine. She had just taken the first sip when she heard Riley buzz the intercom. Opening the door in her pajamas, she smiled brightly at her friend. "Hi! Wine? I have red, white, and pink." |
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Post by Riley Tyler on Aug 17, 2015 16:31:31 GMT
Riley was eager to see her friend after the time she’d spent helping to organize the fundraiser. Granted, she technically on paper hadn’t organized the fundraiser. But Riley was very good at having people do things the way she wanted them to be done. After all, Cooper Barnes had mentioned his idea for his daughter’s birthday party while she’d discussed using the hotel as a venue for the evening with him and she’d been careful to make sure she introduced him to Maddy and mentioned her job. Because Cooper Barnes was a decent guy and he would connect the dots all on his own. And she’d felt the project would be fun for her friend. Some people might call that meddling.
When she arrived at Madison’s she was just about done with the day. She’d let go of a campaign worker and had gotten into quite the argument with Garrett before he left, once again for Washington D.C., with a layover somewhere she was unsure of to see his ‘friend.’
Madison opening the door and greeting her with an offer of wine was exactly what she needed. She stepped inside, dropping her tote bag that had all of her work things and a pair of sweatpants for her to change into on the floor and grinned broadly. “Let’s start with white,” she nodded. “But really, wine in general sounds fantastic.”
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Post by Madison Benson on Aug 17, 2015 16:39:44 GMT
She nodded understandingly and went to go pour Riley a glass of white wine. She couldn't imagine being in a job like Riley's. Having seen it first hand, it seemed like it was a 24/7 type of job where at the end of the day you could barely unwind long enough to get ready to do it all again tomorrow. The good thing about being a bit further down on the totem pole was that she didn't have to worry about bringing anything home with her; the moment the clock displayed 5:00pm, she was free to turn the work portion of her brain off.
In reality that just equated to nights filled with lots of recreational reading, binge watching television shows, and girl's nights like these.
Bringing the wine glass over to Riley, she took a sip of her own drink. "Long day? You're welcome to change, if you'd like. I have take-out on the way and I pulled out a bunch of movies for us too. Or we can chat - it's up to you. I feel like we haven't caught up about your life outside of the campaign in a while... How are you?"
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Post by Riley Tyler on Aug 17, 2015 19:35:04 GMT
Riley smiled at Maddy, kicking off her shoes and deciding she would change in a little bit. "They're all long days now. Garrett is on his way to D.C so that lightens my load considerably. While he's on a plane I have no need to worry what he might say to the press," she laughed as she gratefully took the wine and a long sip before sitting on Maddy's couch.
She sighed taking a moment to relax. "Did you have fun the other night? I know most of the people there were a drag and then Queen Bitch showed up, but it went well. Plus, I got to introduce you to Cooper Benson. Total prick when we were growing up, great guy now. He's got that reformed bad boy, single dad, tormented soul thing going on," Riley pointed out. "Actually you should let me give him your number."
Riley grinned a bit, taking a sip of wine.
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Post by Madison Benson on Aug 17, 2015 19:48:53 GMT
Sitting down in the chair next to the couch so that she could face her friend, she took another drink from her glass before setting it down on the coffee table in front of them. When she had inherited the brownstone from her grandmother after she passed, she had opted to swap out some of the more worn pieces of furniture for something newer, but the coffee table was one thing she had never bothered with. It was a sturdy old thing, and was perfect for holding too many books, wine glasses, and acting as a make-shift dinner table.
Curling her feet under her she gave a little shrug, "It was fine. Better than I expected, I guess, so that was a positive."
She could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks at the mention of giving her phone number out to Cooper and she inwardly cursed herself for her adversion to the sun. Sometimes she felt like it was such a give-away of how she was feeling, the sheer speed it took for color to rise to her cheeks. "Actually, he uh... he called my office. He wants to do something special for his daughter's birthday with book donations and all that jazz so I offered to help him with that."
Picking up her wine glass again she took another sip, "And I might have given him my cell phone number, too."
It was admittedly odd to be in a situation when her friend was teasing her about this man that she just met, a man that she was excited to help out for his daughter's birthday, when the night of the fundraiser she had an entirely different man on her mind. She wondered if she should have given Parker a call too - seen if he wanted to catch up again.
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Post by Riley Tyler on Aug 17, 2015 22:31:12 GMT
Riley grinned at Madison, she placed her wine glass down and clapped her hands together. "That's great. I think he's a nice guy and at least would make a good friend," she nodded, emphasizing the words 'at least'. "Really though, Maddy, I need you to find a great guy so I can live vicariously through you. I will never go through the excitement of dating and a new relationship again," she laughed for a moment before reaching for her wine to take another large sip.
"But no pressure," she added with a small grin. Hearing her blackberry chime, she reached into her bag for it only to switch it off. "Whatever it is can wait until tomorrow. The senior staffers on the campaign have my personal number, the younger ones just call me any time we rise or fall in the polls by a point, like the sky if falling or the Promised Land is on the horizon."
Tilting her head at Maddy, she reclined back a bit, sliding her fingers through her hair and pausing. "Mind if I ask what's going on with you and Parker Blye?"
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Post by Madison Benson on Aug 17, 2015 22:43:12 GMT
Madison laughed, "Live vicariously through me? I'm supposed to be living through you, remember?"
Besides, she tried to convince herself, it wasn't as though she was doing anymore than just helping Cooper out with his daughter's birthday present. She admitted that she had tried to flirt, in whatever horrible way she was able to accomplish. Riley was right, he was a nice guy and she was sure that they could be great friends some day. But she wasn't sure that he had any interest in anything more - she wasn't sure that she was ready for anything more. At least not while she still held whatever one might call her feelings for Parker.
Concentrating on her wine glass a little too intensely, she bit at her lip trying to find the words to describe exactly what was going on between her and Parker. "I don't really know what's going on," she confessed. "He confuses me so much. It's like all of these stupid high school feelings come rushing back around him but then he just - I don't know. We had dinner the other night and I even tried to flirt but ... Nothing."
She sighed, silencing herself with another drink. "And then there's his whole thing with Olivia which is even more confusing."
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Post by Riley Tyler on Aug 17, 2015 23:08:19 GMT
Riley pursed her lips, shifting forward so that she could lean closer to her friend. "Hey, Mads, look at me for a second," she urged. "Listen, since he's been back in New York, I've dealt a bit with Parker Blye - and I vetted him too, because he wants a sit down with Garrett. I think he's not the same jackass he was in high school. I think he's smart and I think he's helping to run a pretty decent company," she admitted. "So if you want to give him a chance you should, but don't let yourself get treated the way you were when you were a kid, and definitely don't act one way just because you think he might like it."
"And what's more, be careful. Because when it comes to Olivia Warren, I think that girl is always going to try to sink her claws into him and it'll get messy and it'll drag you down. And if that starts to happen, I will be there to take her down and to have your back, but I think you've got to figure out if he's worth all of that drama. There are some guys that are worth making sacrifices for, and there are some that aren't and no one notices it until it's too late." Riley sighed, thinking briefly about just everything she was giving up to be with Garrett, but she pushed the thoughts aside. "But you're a smart girl, and you'll figure it out. And even if you end up making a not-so-great choice, I'll be here to kick his ass for you after. Because honestly, since I was fifteen, I've want to kick his ass."
She grinned before reaching for her bag again and pulling out her sweatpants. "I'm going to change into these before the food gets here."
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Post by Madison Benson on Aug 17, 2015 23:24:09 GMT
Maddy stood up and retrieved the open wine bottle from the kitchen. She topped off Riley's glass and her own before sitting back down in her chair. Hearing Riley's words replay over and over in her head she pressed her face into the cushion on the back of the chair. This would be so much easier if it came with an instruction manual, something that said that this was the right thing to do or this was the wrong thing to do. Instead it seemed like a "choose-your-own-adventure" story. It seemed risky, and it seemed stupid. So stupid that she suddenly just wanted to retreat from it all and forget that there ever was a stupid Parker. When she heard Riley come back into the room she pulled her face from the cushion.
"What would you do?" She asked looking for some sort of advice. "I mean - it's not like he's exactly knocking down my door asking me out. So does that mean I should just get over it and move on?"
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Post by Riley Tyler on Aug 17, 2015 23:54:29 GMT
Riley walked back out, sighing with relief as she emerged from the rest room, in comfortable clothes. Campaign trails required conservative dress, but she felt it was even more so as a woman on a Republican campaign. When Maddy addressed her, she looked at her friend and took note of the cushion her face had just been against. "I don't know what I'd do exactly, because I don't know him the way you do. And I have some strong opinions on him, even though I support any decision you make." She nodded and then took her wine glass, swirling its contents and taking a sip. "But if you think he could make you happy, then go for it and fight for it. But if you think that it's not worth it, that you won't be happy, that he won't love you the way you should be loved or that he'll hold you back in anyway - then move on and find someone else. Because I can tell you, there is nothing worse than knowing you could have had something better if you'd just fought for it a bit harder."
Riley smiled softly, reaching over and squeezing her friend's hand. "I've got your back though, you know that, right?"
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Post by Madison Benson on Aug 18, 2015 0:09:54 GMT
It was so nice to have someone like Riley on her side. She truly believed that no matter what decision she made next that her friend would be there to support her. Madison squeezed her hand back in response and shook the thought from her head, sipping on her wine. "And you know I have yours, right?"
She didn't know Garrett very well as he wasn't necessarily always a welcome member of their little girl's nights, but she felt like she knew him at least a little from everything she had heard from Riley and seen through all of the press coverage. Madison hoped that he made Riley as happy as the redhead had hoped someone would make her. "But enough about me - what about you? I know you said that you haven't given it any thought but you're engaged, lady," she smiled brightly at her friend. "Are you at least excited for it? I'm sure there's so much planning to do."
She did love her planning.
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Post by Riley Tyler on Aug 18, 2015 0:22:34 GMT
Riley took a breath when her engagement and pending marriage came up. "Oh, I...there's a campaign to run. I really haven't given it much thought to it. I never really wanted a big wedding or anything, so I'm sure when the election is over we'll try to figure out something simple and then it'll be wedded bliss til' death do us part." She took a large sip of wine and flashed a grin at Maddy. "Besides, Dad still wants to pay for the wedding and he can't really afford...Garrett's family will try to insist otherwise, but I don't really want..." To marry him, she thought to herself. "I don't need much to be happy."
"But I promise that when I am ready to tackle it, you'll be the first person I call in to help," she nodded and offered her friend a wink.
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Post by Madison Benson on Aug 18, 2015 0:42:13 GMT
She grinned. "Good. You know I'm going to come at you with spreadsheets at the ready so be prepared for that."
Leaning back into her chair she sighed softly. When had it gotten to the point where they were trying to figure out what had made them happy? As a kid it had seemed so simple. Maddy just wanted to grow up and do something where she got paid to read about princesses and knights in shining armor, dragons being slain and happily ever afters. But the reality of the publishing world was that things weren't that simple, nor was everything that black and white. She hadn't expected the ruthlessness of the industry, and she hadn't expected to have to peruse countless manuscripts which could have been written by children. She wanted to go back to her childhood when the world was her oyster and she could choose to do anything that she wanted to.
She couldn't even make up her own mind about what she was going to do next in her own personal life. On the one had, she wanted to call Parker so badly. She wanted him to be in her life, even if it was only for enough time for her to realize her true feelings for him. But she also wanted to be strong enough to move on, because Parker came with baggage. And part of that baggage was Olivia Warren. She wasn't sure if she was strong enough to deal with it.
The intercom finally buzzed and she let the take-out guy up to accept her ridiculously large order. After paying and thanking the man she brought the food into the kitchen and pulled down plates and set out silverware.
"So, what should we do first?" She questioned, realizing that she had already made an embarrassingly large dent in the bottle of white wine on the coffee table in front of them. "We can eat, we can pick a cheesy movie to watch, or we can keep chatting and I can keep hogging all of the wine. Sorry about that."
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Post by Riley Tyler on Aug 18, 2015 0:48:28 GMT
Riley had grown up and had wanted to change the world. She'd seen the difference of how the other half lived, and more than that she'd known that many people had it much worse than she did. So she worked her entire educational career to do the best she could to make a difference. She'd tried meaningful cases with the District Attorney and she believed that Garrett could be used to incite some desperately needed change. But she didn't know when she had sacrificed her personal happiness for the greater good. Garrett had originally been a doting fiance, compensating for the fact that they were very far from a couple. He paid attention to her, listened to her, and spent time with her. But with the election heating up, he was more irritable and whoever he confided in now, it wasn't her. She'd been telling herself for a while now that she could do this if it meant she could use her position as Garrett's wife and partner to continue doing good, but she wasn't so sure anymore.
Riley laughed at Madison's , her stomach rumbling once she smelled the food. She hadn't realized how hungry she was, how often she spent most of her day running around and was lucky if she remembered to eat three solid meals a day. "I say we eat, and maybe watch a cheesy movie. And open the red wine, because I need to catch up with you!"
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