BEAUTIFUL andthe DAMMED

[Anita Jane Dearly]

and i talk to absolutely no one
COULDN'T KEEP TO MYSELF ENOUGH AND THE THINGS BOTTLED
INSIDE HAVE FINALY BEGUN TO CREATE SO MUCH PRESSURE
THAT I'LL SOON BLOW UP-----------------------------------------------

The day was cool, crisp, and just perfect. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and Perdita wasn't fussing about walking around town all day. Anita only had to stop in by the office for a moment to turn in her latest designs for a Spring line. Now she was doing what she always did on days off, stop by the book store and pick a book using the old routine of asking the store clerk to tell her what book was good and pick the one just next to it. It was an odd way to go about things, but it was a routine Anita kept up with. Then after the bookstore she always passed by the tea shop and got a cup. Lemon Zinger was the usual, but today she decided she should step out of her box and try something new. So book, check, tea, check, all that is left is to go to the park and sit and read. Was it mentioned that her Dalmatian Perdita followed her along her entire journey? Well she did, she does. Everywhere Anita goes, Perdita is not far behind.

Anita's nude pumps clicked softly on the park's sidewalk. Her most recent book sitting in her hands with her reading glasses propped on the edge of her nose. A nose buried deep in The Beautiful and the Dammed. She was moving slowly through the park with Perdy's powder blue leash resting loosely on her small wrist. It probably is not the wisest decision, walking about the park without looking where she was going. But Anita was a fairly graceful girl who knew the park like the back of her had,oh, and that Perdy should keep her away from any obstacles... like rocks, people, birds, you know. The usual. Her mind was already set on the one bench that was her absolute favorite. It was perfect, right next to the fountain in the middle of the park. The trees provided shade from the sun when there was sun to be saved from. Today was a bit chilly though, it was winter after all. The foliage was usually bright a lively in warm summer air, but most of the flowers had been switched to ones that could withstand the chill of winter. Still, it was better than looking out at her concrete jungle. Everything was moving along nicely and there was that sweet scent of... allergies in the air.

Perdita had stopped walking so it was a cue for Anita to do the same, she did so and sat down lightly on one of the four the wooden park benches that ringed the lively fountain. There wasn't much going on around the park this afternoon. There were a few other people walking through the middle of the park and by the fountain. Some in a hurry, some in couples, and others like her. Just strolling to enjoy their time away from the busy world. Anita looked up every now and again from her book to glance at the people strolling by since the book was not the happiest one she could have picked. "Perdita. Remind me to read the synopsis before I buy books. This is downright depressing. Doesn't quite match the day's mood." Anita's light English accent was laced into every word that she spoke to her spotted friend. She held the book in her hand as she reached down and scratched Perdy behind the ears. The Dalmatian happily wagged her tail as Anita leaned back onto her bench and sighed in contentment. Closing her eyes for just a moment, letting the sun warm her eyelids for just a moment, as the cold tried to seep through her vivd trench coat and cloth gloves. As her mind started to drift into sleepy land her book fell to the gravel bellow her feet, her legs clothed in sheer black stockings slowly stretched out in front of her and a soft snore started. Not quite the picture of ladylike elegance Anita tries to show.
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tag: open! - words:671 - outfit: click - lyrics: Who I Am Hates Who I've Been , Relient K - notes: blah, this'll get better!

[jasmine]

life is always hard for the [purple]belle of the boulevard[/purple]

It was quite the regular morning in Walten City. Jasmine could see people walking animals past her house in the little gated community, good citizens heading on their way to work as well. Some walked, some drove. Some took the expensive way out and caught a cab. Jasmine didn’t see much of a point in that. If you owned your own car, you wouldn’t even need to pay a cabby. And if your destination was in walking distance, what was the point in paying to get there when you could get fresh air and exercise? But she supposed that was where their society was going-- people were taking the easy way out. Jasmine had the option of getting her own car; her father could afford to buy her three brand new ones, as a matter of fact. But she chose to walk. She had her license, but hated using it and avoided driving whenever she could. Her father didn’t like it, because walking everywhere wasn’t exactly safe. He’d listed several worries off to her on her sixteenth birthday, about why a young woman should have a sensible car. But she refused. Too much trouble, and a car wasn’t worth it if she didn’t plan on using it. “Robbers, rapists, kidnappers… so many things a young woman should look out for!” His wise, warning words echoed in her brain in that thick Arabic accent of his. She rolled her eyes, fastening a necklace behind her neck.

Jasmine always felt like she was trying to defy her dad in one way or another. While she wanted to make him proud, some of his rules were ridiculous. And it just wasn’t in her personality to sit by and let someone tell her what to do, even if it was her father. She found herself rebelling more and more each day-- she was an adult now. Twenty one years young. Old enough to rent her own apartment (even though she’d been legally old enough for that for a few years), pay her own taxes, and buy margaritas… if she ever went anywhere that served margaritas. She made a mental note to go somewhere that did. Not some dinky restaurant though, she wanted a real bar.

Today, she was doing something that her father would most likely object to. She was going job hunting. Her father wanted her to take over his company, when he wasn’t able to tend to it any longer. Therefore, he insisted on making her take business classes and eventually learn to care for his oil company. The idea disgusted her. She refused the business classes at the local college, even if she was craving to go there. She just wanted to learn something that was relevant to what she wanted to do someday… what was that? She didn’t know. She hadn’t figured herself out yet. Jasmine didn’t even know what she wanted out of life, and that left her unsatisfied. Antsy. She wanted to do something with her life, not just end up as the pretty privileged girl that had everything handed to her on a silver platter.

Which was exactly the reason she was getting a job. Well, she hoped so, anyway. Not many business owners were jumping out of their seats to hire a twenty-one year old that had no experience whatsoever. She couldn’t really blame them for that, and the pessimist in her mind bashed her. She was going nowhere. She might as well stay home that morning, because no one was going to hire her. She shook her head; the optimist in her head fought back. Someone would give her a chance, they just had to. She bit her bottom lip as she went down the spiral staircase in her home. She stopped by her dad’s office, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Where are you going, love?” He asked, not turning away from the stack of papers he faced on his desk. That was something Jasmine hadn’t thought about. What was she supposed to tell him? “Nowhere, just… out.” The old man with salt and pepper hair adjusted his glasses. He wasn’t used to giving Jasmine so much freedom; after all, he mainly kept her inside her entire life. This was such a stretch, and he wasn’t used to it. She waited for him to object, but he looked down again to the stack of papers. “Alright. Be careful.”

She took a shortcut through the park in the gated community, where most people walking their dogs every morning went. She wasn’t sure where to start. There were plenty of businesses on Main Street, but most of the owners didn’t seem too friendly.

The sun leaked through the trees, and Jasmine glanced up through the cracks of the branches. Until she felt the feeling of paws. Paws? On her legs… she looked down, only to see a pretty Dalmatian, coming to her lap and drooling all over her. … Gross. It had a blue collar and a leash, so it had to belong to someone. “Ew… hi there.” She said, taking the dog’s leash in her hand pulling herself away. While she loved dogs, she wasn’t a lover of drool. “Now where did you come from?” No one seemed to be frantic, searching for a beloved pet-- in fact, the park was rather quiet. One might even say it was almost empty. “Well, let’s find who you belong to…” She bent down to the dog’s collar, taking a look at her name tag. Perdita. How cute. “… girl.”

They walked for quite a while, but the dog seemed to know where she was going. Like she’d been here before, and knew exactly where to find her owner. As soon as they came upon a woman with red hair, a book dropped to the ground in front of her, eyes closed and legs spread apart, Jasmine figured this was who owned the pretty dog. But she wasn’t sure. As much as she hated to wake sleeping beauty, she didn’t want to take the chance that this was her dog. She’d be frantic once she woke up, if the dog belonged to her. “Uh… excuse me?” She nudged her shoulder gently. “Is this your dog?” She nudged again when she got no response. Was she… breathing at all? Jasmine was almost afraid to touch her.

Tagged ;; Anita.
Outfit ;; here
Words ;; 1059
Lyrics ;; Belle of the Boulevard by Dashboard Confessional.
Notes ;; Morning, sunshine. xD