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 Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2026 6:28 pm
Vivian was so tired. Between evening patrols not quite every night, but often enough, taking care of her grandparents, and work? She was exhausted. Thankfully her brother could help sometimes, but he had a pregnant wife to worry about, she didn't want to add more to his plate than she needed to. Maybe she should've stayed in New York. If she'd stayed in New York this whole... senshi business wouldn't have been put upon her. If she'd stayed in New York she could spend all her time at the studio. Training. Rehearsing. Getting closer with colleagues. Instead she joined the company and not even three years in she had to take a hiatus to come to this city. Vivian let out a heavy sigh as she leaned down and laid her head down on the table. She'd chosen to spend her day off checking out this cafe she'd heard had good cakes, and she wanted to see if any of it could be inspiring to her. And hey, to their credit it was really good and really pretty! But she was just so tired. She lazily unlocked her phone to open up the video album and begin scrolling through it, quietly playing videos that had been sent to her from friends in New York. Well wishes, I'll miss you's, come back soons, typical things you'd expect with a temporary goodbye. Videos captured in Times Square, on Broadway, Central Park, in the company studio. All places she missed already. If only Nan and Papa didn't need her...
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Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2026 1:25 am
It had been ten months since Kylian had given up his life in New York to come to Destiny City and get his latest inheritance. Which was sort of a ******** up situation to be in, all things considered, but at least the city was nice. He hadn't run into too much of the rumored weird s**t that was supposed to haunt the place, and thank goodness for that, and business at the inn wasn't...so bad.
At least it left him plenty of time to paint, between guests.
And plenty of time to do things like take walks in the middle of the day because no one needed him, his current painting wasn't coming together, and if he stayed alone with his thoughts he would be alone with his thoughts and that was terrible.
Of course, taking a walk just meant being alone with his thoughts but also he could window shop a little, but hey. At least the window shopping was a distraction, and he found himself drawn into a cute little cafe, because grabbing a little cake sounded like a nice way to continue to ignore all the ways he felt awful about...everything.
And lo, a distraction was thoroughly provided, because he swore he recognized the redhead girl sitting at a table and staring at her phone.
"Vivian? Vivian Little, is that you?" If someone he'd known from the City was here, Kylian was going to feel a lot less miserable about his entire situation. Perhaps they hadn't been besties so much as vaguely arts-connected acquaintances, but still, a familiar face was a familiar face.
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Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2026 9:43 pm
A vaguely familiar voice called her name and Vivian sat up straight, looking up and over until she laid eyes on the man approaching her table. Her eyes were wide at first as she looked him up and down. The rainbow hair, she recognized him. How did she know him again? Something about a show, right? His name was... ... Kyle? No. No, that didn't feel right. She smiled brightly, waving a hand in greeting. " Hey! Yeah, it's me. I see I'm not the only one that had to make a departure to Destiny City. Wanna join me? I was just trying some of the new cakes here." And maybe if he sat with her it would jog her memory a bit. Kai? No.
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Posted: Wed Sep 02, 2026 1:31 pm
Oh, good, Vivian recognized him, and he wasn't going to look either creepy or insane. Win!
"Yeah, there were some...circumstances. I might be going back in a few months," he said, moving to sit down at the table across from her. "Still here for now, though. Cakes sound great, I've seen this place online."
He wasn't due back at the inn for a while, so he definitely had time. "So are you in Destiny City long term, then? Or just down here visiting?"Eight i just didn't get the notice for this tag, i am so sorry orz
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Posted: Wed Sep 02, 2026 4:03 pm
Oh huge. This also gave her time to think over what his name was without looking too awkward. She had, for now, four small cakes in front of her all shaped like fruits, bright and colorful and while not uncanny valley levels or hyper realistic, they definitely looked really good. For now there was a large raspberry, a peach, an apple, and a blueberry. " Long term-ish. My Papa hurt his hip and Nan needs help taking care of him while he recovers." Though now she did feel somewhat anchored here after what happened. Her smile persisted through the thought. " So, no like official go back date but not forever, you know?" Vivian took a moment to look over the cake options, humming thoughtfully before gently tapping the peach one with her spoon. " Feel free, I can eat a lot but I definitely don't think I can eat all four of these in one sitting. What're you doing while you're here?" She pressed the side of the spoon down to cut into the peach, surprising herself just a little when there was a crack. Ohhhh were they coated to hold their shape? Made sense, made sense. Note that for later. But the peach was easily cut into and a piece was scooped and eaten, which from the way she nodded and made a happy little sound, it was pretty good.
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Posted: Fri Sep 04, 2026 11:01 pm
Kylian nodded. "Not forever" was probably promising, all things considered, given that Destiny City was nothing like New York. Kylian knew he missed home terribly--but maybe it was different for Vivian, sicne she was here for living family and supporting them. He suspected he'd feel different if he was here because Aunt Marjolane had oh-so-dramatically declared that she absolutely needed a second set of hands and it was going to be him.
"Lucky they have you to help, then," he said, "and I hope his recovery is swift and easy." It was sort of just what you said, he supposed. And with the open offer, he picked up a spoon and broke off a bite oft he raspberry one, enjoying the satisfying crack as it came apart.
It was so nice to eat someone else's fancy pastries.
"Thank you," he said, because again, it was what you said. "I..." He sighed. "My aunt died last year. Per her will, I'm running her inn for a year before I can accept my inheritance, in the most Hallmark movie plot it is possible to be in. Tragically, I have yet to have a handsome guest sweep in and carry me off into romantic bliss, but there's time yet."
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2026 9:54 pm
His aunt died last year? Vivian immediately looked sympathetic, and before she could even say anything realization hit her. Kylian. His name was Kylian. " I'm so sorry for your loss." Another one for him, right? That was why she remembered his name. He was like her, he'd also lost his parents. " I think the reason you haven't met them is because in the Hallmark movies it's always a holiday. So like Christmas or Halloween. So your whimsical hottie is going to either run a Christmas Tree farm or a Halloween store that's only open seasonally and you can't figure out what he does the rest of the year to sustain himself." There was no use dwelling on the sad news unless he wanted to. If anyone understood, it was Vivian. " Running an inn, how's that been? I imagine it's not as fast-paced as we're used to." She took another spoonful of the peach pastry before she moved on to crack open the blueberry.
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Posted: Thu Sep 10, 2026 10:42 pm
Kylian nodded. Sometimes, the loss felt almost numb, like he might be over it. Other times, he'd find himself curled up with the knitted blanket she'd left in a little bag with his name for it, sobbing his eyes out.
Today was one of the better days.
"That is a really solid theory. I missed him last Christmas because I was too new to the city and too busy with things at the inn, so surely this year I will fall into his arms," he said, with a laugh. As if. He was not the Hallmark type. True love was not coming for Kylian Delafontaine.
"It's been interesting," he said. "But, like, customer service is customer service, you know? It's all dealing with people." He paused, briefly. "Also, doing the meals is honestly pretty fun."
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Posted: Sun Sep 13, 2026 8:20 am
" Keep an eye out for spooky hotties or handsome lumberjack-y guys who need help carrying something they've just dropped half of, or a combination of both, whichever is your preference," Vivian advised like a fortune cookie. This was totally going to be Kylian's year. She was finally trying the blueberry pastry as he explained Inn Life to her. This one was all right, it wasn't bad, she just liked peaches better. This was almost too blueberry. " Meals? Is it like a bed and breakfast type place?" Oh that sounded like a lot of fun.
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Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2026 10:54 pm
Kylian nodded, in a very serious sort of way. "Honestly, either option sounds fun." He could have himself a cute little Hallmark romance fling, and then when he got bored, the way he always did, he could move on. And if the other guy thought it was more than that...that would be his problem.
There was, however, an undeniable sense of pride when she asked about the inn. "Yeah, I do breakfasts for all the guests, and lunches and afternoon teas by reservation." He took another bite of the raspberry pastry. "I've always liked cooking, so this means I get to push my skills, some."
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Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2026 1:59 pm
Vivian listened with a smile while she cracked into the apple. She'd eat all of them, but she had to try each one and decide which was her favorite first. Gotta eat them in order. " I love that for you, it does sound really nice. I've been doing less cooking since coming back, since Nan does really love to cook, but I've been trying to keep baking. Maybe not every day, but at least once or twice a week." To be honest even that was sometimes a little much. Maybe she should ask Totoro if his mother wanted help at her bakery... " It is nice to see someone from New York though. It's like, yeah I'm seeing people I grew up with and that's nice and all, but it did kind of suck to leave behind the life and career I've been building up. Even if only temporarily." Temporarily. Yup. Nothing had definitely happened to make her question just how temporary her stay here was now. Her gaze drifted off for a moment, the corner of her mouth twitching, before she quickly brought herself back to the present with a brand new smile.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2026 9:07 pm
Kylian twirled one of the loose strands of hair framing his face around a finger, smiling in the way of someone who was trying to pretend he wasn't pleased with himself.
"It's not what I ever pictured myself doing, but it's fun anyway," he said. "And it's a chance to use some skills I only ever really used for myself before." He was sure plenty of the people he'd known back in New York wouldn't have believed he was capable, but independence was hard-won and he might have been idle rich in plenty of ways, but he wasn't useless.
"I'd love to trade treats sometime," he offered.
They hadn't exactly been super close before, but Kylian supposed that there were some opportunities to start over here. And maybe she was less aware of his catty-little-slut reputation (that he had carefully cultivated, sure, but that was starting to cause him problems back home).
"No, that's kind of how I feel. The inn is nice and everything, but New York is home." He sighed. "It was really nice running into you."
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Posted: Sat Sep 26, 2026 11:39 pm
The idea of trading treats looked to have Vivian excited, and she even perked up a bit with a sudden idea. " Oh! I've been keeping up with my channel even while here, actually. What if we did something together in your kitchen? We could trade treats then!" It could be so much fun! Gears were already spinning in her head of how they could even make it happen, and what they could do. Her smile brightened as she nodded. " It is. I even still have a hold of my apartment, paying rent even if I'm not staying in it... which is a little painful, but... it kind of forces me to remember that this is temporary. Plus, it's a really nice apartment within my budget and I kind of don't want to lose it." The pain of having to give up the place had been real. She'd actually cried. Vivian wasn't like Kylian, she didn't have seemingly unlimited wealth; she was a freshly graduated college student with a moderately decent paying job and some assistance from a meager parental inheritance. Her parents were only in their early 30s when they passed away, after all. They didn't have any crazy savings or will preparations, it had just kind of been decided what went where and how they'd pay off debts. Thankfully she'd been too young to be stressed about that part. " It was really nice running into you, too. Did you have any other plans for the day?" Maybe they could hang out a bit! They'd never really been more than passing acquaintances before. Maybe this was a chance to build an actual friendship.
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