open | i'm with the party rock crew

[vaccination]

WHO: You, Jesse Pinkman, and some party people.
WHERE: A conveniently located park in Heropa.
WHEN: Saturday.
WHAT: Jesse's birthday! Turning 12. Feel free to tag in wherever or make your own sections.
WARNINGS: God only knows.

NOTE!!! Anyone is welcome to come, whether they replied to Skye's post or not. Stumble into a party, assume they saw the invite, whatever!

[For a last minute thing thrown by a two people who don't have much experience with birthday parties, it's all come together pretty well. Nevermind that they actually didn't have a place to hold the party until not too long ago (minor detail), but hey, that's what public parks are for. Covered seating, a hearty amount of streamers and cheap, brightly colored table cloths, food scattered around the tables--this is probably what a birthday party for a younger kid would look like.

Whatever, it's charming.

There's a man made lake and a few fire pits for cooking nearby, though it looks like meat was probably forgotten in favor of baked goods, chips, dip, pizza, soda, and beer.

If one pays attention, they may catch sight of Ellie and Skye exchanging high fives throughout the party. Well done, ladies.]

Comments

leading Jesse to the party

[hackitude]

[Skye's trying to keep her nervous energy and her grin under wraps as she changes into her clothes for the day in Jesse's room-- though it's closer to noon than to morning. We'll leave it up the audience's imagination as to why.]

Hey. Let's go to the park. I heard there's been some rad street art on the walkway lately.

[hostage]

[He's been sort of expecting the girls to throw a surprise party at him ever since they started asking about his birthday, but Skye staying in bed with him all morning threw him off. (Not that a whole day of sex sounds bad to him, if that's all she had in mind.)

This sudden suggestion, though, reignites his suspicion. "Rad street art", huh.

He sits up and starts searching around the side of the bed for his boxers.]

Mmm. Sounds pretty sweet.

[hackitude]

[The truly great thing, Skye thinks, about having a tech super power is that she can send text messages to other people from her phone without actually needing to type them. Grabbing her phone and putting it in her back jeans pocket, that's all she needs to send a text message to Ellie.

Leaving soon. it reads.]

Maybe we can get some food on the way back. My stomach's starting to remind me that humans have needs other than sex.

SURPRISE! - greet the birthday boy upon his arrival

[hostage]

[When Jesse walks around the bend in the path and catches sight of the streamers and party goods set up ahead, his face lights up. This is beyond what he imagined when he suspected Skye and Ellie might be up to something, far beyond anything his own parents even did for his birthday as a child, and he might be a little misty-eyed by the time he reaches the picnic area and lets go of Skye.]

[vaccination]

[Yesterday's birthday disaster (and learning about what happened on this day so many years ago) has cast a gloom over Jesse's birthday that Ellie can't quite shake off. Even as she slips off the table she'd be sitting on, she has to scrounge up the smile and enthusiasm and remind herself that this was for Jesse, and Jesse was going to love it.

Yesterday was just so bad. The lead weight in her chest comes out as awkward hesitance as she greets Jesse.

Don't think about dead daughters. Don't think about anything.]

Hey. Happy birthday.

[hostage]

[He's a bit too distracted to notice something's up with Ellie, so overwhelmed with happiness that his first response is to duck down and give her a hug.]

Ellie! This is amazing! I can't believe you guys!

[earnedmystripes]

[The easy part of all this was offering to help out with hanging the streamers and such. He and Jesse couldn't be described as anything approaching close, but once he knew about the younger man's birthday, he'd wanted to do something.

It had seemed uncomplicated enough at the time--help set up at the party, get him a gift, and then slip away unnoticed so he didn't intrude on the actual celebration and Jesse's time with the people he probably didn't constantly have uncomfortable conversations with.

The problem was that he had literally no idea what kind of things Jesse liked, and this time Blue Rose wasn't even here to offer suggestions. What he ends up with is honestly absurd, and several times he considers just throwing it in the trash and leaving, with no evidence that he'd ever actually been there.

He sighs, leaving the shoddily-wrapped package on the table behind one of the other boxes. Maybe Jesse will laugh at how stupid it is.

(Maybe he'll chuck it at his head the next time he sees him)

Escaping unnoticed, however, is interrupted by nearly crashing into the birthday boy himself. Excuse the vaguely deer-in-headlights stare.]

Uh.

[. . .]

Happy birthday.

[hostage]

[Jesse hasn't gotten around to the presents yet, so he has no idea what's in store for him there. But he is in an exceptionally good mood - you know, since people here actually give enough of a shit about him to throw him a birthday party. So when he sees that Kotetsu's one of the guests, he flashes the guy a grin and gives him a friendly slap on the chest.]

Hey, man. Didn't expect to see you here.

[hackitude]

[A little bit later, after everyone's said their Happy Birthday's to Jesse, Skye slides in next to him again.]

Sooo, I'm going to need to turn your attention back to the table, birthday boy.

[There's something on it that looks SUSPICIOUSLY like a cake cover in the middle of said table. Hmm. I wonder what could be underneath it. So mysterious!]

[hostage]

[He is happy to be captured by Skye, putting an arm around her as she turns his attention to the table. When his eyes land on the cake cover, he looks to her in disbelief.]

No way. Did you...?

[agog]

Surprise? [ Person she doesn't know very well but knows is having sex with Skye. He seems nice enough even if he... well, he's not the most eloquent of men. Still Skye clearly likes him so... here Simmons is. And here she is offering him a wrapped gift because yes, that's what every guy needs, a set of 'gag' salt and pepper shakers. But come on, she is SO proud of herself for finding them.]

[hostage]

Jemma! Hey!

[Considering that the traditional attendants of Jesse's parties are homeless smack addicts he's never met who are only looking for a free score, Simmons is practically family by comparison. He smiles at her like they've been friends for years and takes the gift.]

Should I open this now?

[lurings]

[ after a while, abigail approaches jesse with a hesitant, somewhat awkward smile. ]

Hi. [ her hands jerk out to all but shove his gift at him, neatly wrapped in newspaper. it's a book about chester arthur and a card game. there's a theme and it's apparently fabulous facial hair? she sucks at gifts, ok. ]

Happy birthday.

[hostage]

Abigail!

[He didn't expect to see her here, but it's a pleasant surprise. He lights up at the sight of her and hurries to take the gift. He can tell she's feeling a little shy, but that's okay. He'll try to make her feel at home.]

Thanks for coming. How you been?

[5055034455]

[This is not what Saul imagined when he imagined a birthday party for Jesse, but Skye doesn't really seem the type to run out and buy booze and drugs and hire strippers and —

And so on.

But this is kind of nice in a way Saul also isn't expecting, and he finds himself feeling a little heart-warmed over it. He figures Jesse'll love it, and sure enough, when he catches sight of the kid's face...]

Hey, birthday boy.

[He's already unloaded the supplies he brought: chips, hot dogs and buns, a cooler full of alcohol that's being kept out of sight of the younger ones. Hopefully. But there's something in his hands, something he's already offering Jesse: a box, wrapped in simple blue paper, containing a large pair of stereo headphones. Like the ones DJs wear.

He figures Skye probably isn't into the same kind of music Jesse is, so it's really a gift for both of them.]

greeting the birthday boy when joel turns up like, half an hour late

[shittybirthday]

[ Well, Joel has been here about ten minutes so far. He looks pretty out of place, loitering around kind of awkwardly. Soon, though, he approaches Jesse and gives him an assessing look that borders on grouchy looking before he reluctantly relents, breaking eye contact, and shoves something wrapped in brown paper bag out at Jesse with a gruff: ]

Here.

[hackitude]

[If for any reason anyone wants to talk to Skye at some point, she'll be milling about the party and serving cake, once the candles have been blown out. It looks terrible but it TASTES DELICIOUS.]

[vaccination]

[Ellie waves her down. She wants cake... but she's also stuffing some chips down her throat.]

I'm so full.

[valr]

[Kara is here because she is, sort of, Jesse's friend. But mostly she's here because Skye kind of expected her to and it seems like it'd cause a fuss to not show up, so this is easier. She didn't exactly dress up for the occasion, but at least she left the alcohol at home for a day, knowing this party is slightly more 'all ages' than the usual type she attends.

That's fine, though, there's food and at least a few people that she doesn't mind talking to, so she's sociable enough, for her. And if she sneaks off to smoke occasionally, hopefully on one will hold it against her.]

[hackitude]

[Skye waves when she spots Kara]

Hey. I'm glad you came.

[ex_question191]

[ stiles got an invite from abigail, but he's quietly anxious about coming to a party for someone he doesn't know that well. he's not really hugely into huge crowds of people. but hey, if there's a cute girl, and maybe he can sneak some beer, that's all he needs. ]

[ he does actually manage to snag a gift, since his dad told him never to go to a birthday party without one. but he picked it up on the way over so it's literally just a gift voucher for a local grocery store and a two-for-a-dollar card. happy birthday... ]

[lurings]

[ abigail is similarly not into crowds. the park was a huge selling feature to this party because nature is gr8 and it is easy to run away in a park. she probably would have still come because making friends is important and skye is will's friend and jesse is nice. she is bad at this. but being bad at it prompted her to ask stiles to come with so... win?

her approach is quiet, the way a hunter tries not to disturb their surroundings, but she speaks up before she reaches stiles so she's not all WHAT UP right next to his head. ] Hi.

[ she has her favorite blue scarf on and a hesitant smile, tugging the sleeves of her blue bird printed sweater over her knuckles. ]

[hackitude]

[Skye gives Stiles an odd look when she spots him on the approach, but then she sees him with Abigail and everything clicks into place. She had mentioned wanting to bring a friend. She waves him over.]

... Hey. Thanks for coming.

[shittybirthday]

[ Joel turns up late to the party. He's missed the whole surprise part, anyway; everyone seems kinda settled in and enjoying themselves as Joel heads for the covered seating area.

It was his birthday yesterday. His birthday always does a number on him, but yesterday - yesterday was bad. Yesterday was full of memories of Sarah and of his little dying in his arms, and today - well, today is full of memories of the aftermath of losing Sarah. To anyone else who doesn't know Joel well, he just looks like his usual surly self. To anyone who knows him well enough, the pronounced haggardness in his hard, world-weary face perhaps reveals that maybe there's something more going on.

In any case, he's decided to bring himself to the party because as much as he dislikes how fond Ellie is of Jesse, she did help put this thing together and apparently, according to Skye, she made a cake. Joel knows Ellie more than well enough to know how happy she'd be even if he just told her she did a good job. And Joel did promise Ellie that he would at least try to make a little more of a conscientious effort with her friends, even if he despises them. Not that he despises Jesse, but it will forever rub Joel the wrong way how close Ellie and Jesse are.

And as much as Joel would prefer to be left alone, maybe at least making an appearance at this thing will in some way help take his mind of stuff he no longer has the energy to dwell on.

So, here Joel is, dressed in nothing particularly special and approaching the party area looking kinda hesitant and like he's not especially thrilled to be there. He comes to a slow stop just at the entrance of the covered seating area and glances around awkwardly.

He is actually clutching a present in his hand for Jesse, though. It's half-heartedly wrapped in a brown paper bag, like Joel had just grabbed whatever and stuffed it in there. No card or anything, of course. Just a crude paper bag. ]

[vaccination]

Hey, you made it. [Ellie is absolutely thrilled to see Joel here, even though she stressed that he didn't have to come if he didn't feel like it. Things are rough for him right now, and though Ellie wanted him to be there, she wasn't going to force him. She'd been planning on ducking out soon to go back and check on Joel, but him being here means she can stick around for a little longer and make sure he's alright.

She approaches him with a measured smile. No need to bounce all over him like Lucy.]

Hungry? C'mon, you gotta try the cake.