[PRP] The Heartbreak Club [Blind Love x Barley Pop x Expired Expectations]

[Nym]

The cure to a broken heart was work -- at least to Blind Love. Work, and her children, although Blind did her best to ensure her own sadness didn't impede on them, either. They had other things to do, like playing with their friends or trying out new hobbies. Things that didn't mean she could depend on them for her happiness all the time. So, work received most of her time when her kids were busy. The restaurant had flourished and been redecorated, menus redone and events hosted. She had extended herself to helping the community, also, lending a hoof in hosting speed-dates in local bars and inns. Work had been bustling, but as time went on the familiar ache came back.

Especially whenever she saw singles hit it off with one another.

The other night had plummeted her mood especially. A new pair had thanked her for introducing them to one another and Blind felt a pang she had ignored before. She missed him, the pain swallowing her whole in one vicious and unrelenting bite. He had been everything. Her everything. Their love had brought together three beautiful children and Blind Love had only seen before her -- a future where they ended up in one another's arms. She had let herself be consumed by his love, and now she starved without it. She had stayed strong for their children; stayed strong for everyone who needed her or wanted from her. It was growing tiring, and Blind Love found herself fraying at the edges.

It hurt.

Tonight had been another kick in the gut -- another night where she hosted a speed-dating event at a nearby bar. As the workers began packing up her decorations neatly she waited at the bar, spent and hollow. She hadn't meant to say yes to a drink, but she did. Sparkling cider slipped down her throat and she sighed heavily, a hoof tussling a messy braid. The babysitter was tending to the sleeping kids until the wee hours of the morning -- she had plenty of time. Time for what? Wallowing silently? Pretending she was okay? Signing herself up for another obligation in the form of work?

Ugh, she didn't know. She just knew she needed another drink.
@Tristam @Yasha

[Yasha]

Exp let his head rest against the padded booth he was sitting in. 'Fresh. Leather. Soft.' He let his mind wander, finding words that helped him focus on his work.

Another day. Another restaurant. Honestly he wasn't completely sure where he was. This was the one with a major revamp, right? It felt familiar so he had probably been here before. Oh yeah, it was the one with the speed dating games. He scoffed. 'Bitter. Forced. Tired.' Tired. He sighed as he thought of the word. He was exhausted. The best way to deal with his emotions was to overwhelm them with work. If he didn't have the time to feel then he wouldn't have to admit that his heart was broken. The noises and light of the restaurant around him seemed to blur. He blinked away the moisture building up in his eyes and looked back down. In front of him he had a tall glass filled with ice and a sweet amber liquid. 'Balanced. Punchy. Numbing...'

He stopped for a moment and it hit him like a truck. This drink was the same sickeningly sweet color of her eyes... He stared back at it for too long before pushing the drink away. Perhaps this was a sign from her to not drink tonight. He couldn't remember the last night he had gone to bed with a clear mind. He slumped back in defeat. Tonight's menu was filled with misery and loneliness.

@Nym @Tristam

[Tristam]

Barley sat at one end of the bar, glaring holes in back of one of the bartender's head. She didn't want a drink, one was already sitting in front of her, a beer of her own making. No, what she wanted was the manager to be called and signed the clipboard also sitting in front of her, she done her part. The bar had called to expedite a shipment when they saw how popular the day's event had turn out to be. She had only caught the tail end of the event, but that was perhaps the worse part. The goo goo eyes, the loud chatter, couples walking off for a brisk walk to the park. She could had done without the money, she thought, but her ego wouldn't let her reputation take the hit. If she had to endure this little love fest, then she will. She was fine. Everything was fine.

....She threw the straw's ball up paper at the bartender's head, miss by a mile and sighed.

@Yasha @Nym

[Nym]

Call her distracted but she hadn't noticed the other lonely hearts approaching the bar. Really, she just wanted to go back to her restaurant, but Blind Love refused to admit it. No, she was set to return to her own establishment once her decorations and chairs were packed up by this place, and they had insisted she take the time to rest while they did so. So, she did, just with a glass of cider.

Which was now finished.
And quickly refilled by the bartender.

A second drink couldn't hurt.

Movement startled her, causing her to jolt as if she expected to be caught in a nefarious act. It was just a balled up piece of paper, chucked at the bartender, but it didn't stop the glass from toppling over, spilling every which way and that. Blind Love gasped, reached for napkins to damp at her mess.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry - so so sorry. I'll clean this right up, don't even worry about it."

@Yasha @Tristam