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Carolina returned home from her husbands funeral with tears still in her eyes. Her daughter Baylee was sitting on the sofa still confused over what had happened. "Mommy, why are you still crying." Carolina walked over to the sofa and picked up her two and a half year old daughter. "Mommy is okay sweety." She wiped the tears from her eyes and walked to her room that she used to share with her husband to change into some more comfortable clothes. After she put Baylee down on the bed with a stuffed animal she took off her black heels and her black stockings following her black skirt and top. She looked like your typical widow. Once she had wiped the mascara from her face that was running down her cheeks she went over to the dresser and picked out a pair of gym shorts and a tank top walking into the bathroom and changing after putting her hair up into a pony tail. When she was done she walked into the main part of her room and laid her wedding picture face down. Carolina was 24 years old, this shouldn't have happened to hair. Finally she quit crying and began packing up her clothes and the things she would need for the next few weeks. She was leaving her California home and going back to North Carolina to spend some time with her mother.

When Carolina was a senior, she decided she would go to college in California at the University of California at Santa Barbra to become a Medical Assistant and that is where she met her husband who was a Firefighter. She married Scott after they had dated for two years. They had been married five years when he was killed in the line of duty.

Once all of her things were packed up she picked up Baylee and held up close. "We are going on a trip to visit Grandma. Okay?" Baylee gave an excited look to Carolina. "Yay! Grammmma house." Carolina couldn't stand being in the house, it just wasn't the same without him. Carolina walked to Baylee's room and began packing the clothes she would need and the toys that would satisfy her for the duration of their stay. Her mother had opened their home to them for as long as they needed following Scott's death. Carolina had never criticized his profession and she knew the risks it was what he loved doing so she never said anything against it. It was 6pm now and they were almost finished packing, it had been six days since his death. A whole six days.

Carolina began thinking to herself. 'How am I going to raise her by myself? What if she asks about him? What do I say? What do I do?' She was so immersed in the own thoughts she didn't notice that Baylee had fallen asleep on the bed in her dress. Carolina had been 22 when Baylee was born. Scott was 27 when he had died. While Baylee slept she moved the bags into the living room and then walked over to the mantle and looked at another picture of the happy couple. Carolina placed two fingers to her lips and then to the part of the picture that Scott occupied. "I love you Scott. I miss you." Carolina walked around the living room looking at all the things he had left laying around. His boots were by the door where he kept them if he was leaving from home, his hat was on the coffee table. The fire chief had driven his truck home from the station, she didn't know what to do with any of this stuff now. "I can't be like the others. I can't take it out on God, I can't blame it on anyone." When she figured Baylee wasn't waking up she went to her room after turning off the lights and fell asleep on her side of the bed. His scent was still there.

The following morning when she woke up at 7am, Baylee was sitting in her room playing with her stuffed animals that weren't packed up. Carolina walked into her room and looked at the young girl. Smiling she saw every feature that reminded her of her husband and she told herself she couldn't cry. She walked out of the childs room and into kitchen fixing breakfast for the two of them, when they had ate and everything was cleaned up, they called a cab and went to the airport where they boarded a plane and headed to North Carolina. Upon arrival, she rented a car and drove to her mother's house. When she drove down the long driveway she parked where she used to many years ago. She unbuckled Baylee from her carseat and walked to the front door ringing the bell a few times waiting for her mother to answer.

Joel was laying down on a length of cardboard, finishing up some maintenance work one a customer's vehicle. As he performed the last of his duties, he crawled out from underneath and wiped his hands off on a rag. Walking toward the office, he set his tools in their box then hollared to the employee at the desk, "The green Camry's done!" Joel looked up at the clock, and saw it was nearly 1:30 pm. 'Damn, I'm defineatly late for my lunch.' Joel found the co-manager, Mike, on the other side of the bay. "Hey Mike, I'm takin' my lunch, that cool?" Mike just looked at him and said, "Wow, haven't had lunch yet?" Joel just shrugged and said, "Eh, got caught up with all the customers, lost track of time." Mike nodded and said, "No problem bud, go ahead and take a little bit longer if you want. We're slowing down, and if we get really busy I'll just call you." Mike said, "Alright, see ya in a while." As he headed toward his locker to hang up his over-alls.

After changing out of his work suit, Joel hopped in his car and left the parking lot. Joel was the other co-manager of 'Speedy's Auto', an auto shop that did everything from oil changes to major repair. Him and Mike had been friends for years, and when Mike said he needed someone else to manage the business when he started it up, Joel jumped on the opportunity. Joel made his way through the afternoon traffic in downtown; not that bad, but sometimes you'd come across an idiot driver. "Fuckin' idiot, MOVE!" Joel yelled at a guy that was taking WAY too long to make a turn. Finally, he was out of his way, and Joel made his way down the block and parked outside of one of his favorite delis.

He made his way inside. 'Ah, Rachel's, how I LOVE this place!' Joel thought to himself, perhaps a little too excited about getting a sandwich from here. Lilly, one of the girls Joel saw here nearly every day because she worked afternoon til evening, waved and said, "Hey you, how's the day goin'?" Joel smiled as he made his way to the counter and said, "Can't complain. Havin' a late lunch, but it's Friday so I can deal with it." Lilly smirked and said, "Right on right on, what can I get for you?" Joel looked at the menu of popular items behind her and said, "Hmm, I think a six inch Meat Lover's hoagie on wheat, with uh, a twenty ounce raspberry chai tea, hot." Lilly smiled and said, "Comin' right up! Your total's six fifty-three." Joel handed her a ten, got his change, then stood off to the side while he waited for his food...

When her mother came to the door she broke down in tears again.
"Sweety, whats wrong?"

Carolina looked at her quickly wiping away the tears. "Nothing Mom. I'm fine. We need some place to stay for a while, I can't be in our house right now. Sleeping in our bed is too hard."

Her mother took Baylee from her and tried to comfort her grown daughter who was taller than she was. "You know you are welcome to stay here as long as you like."

Cari hugged her mother and smiled. "Thank you. I brought all the stuff we would need."

Baylee wrapped her arms lovingly around her grandmothers neck. The child was very shy and didn't speak to many people aside from her mother and father.

Carolina unlatched herself from her mom and walked to the car and brought the things she had packed in several trips onto the front porch. "This is our clothes and some toys for Baylee."

They walked inside and spent a few hours getting everything settled in like new again. "Baylee, Mommy used to live here when she was a little girl, just like you." Baylee smiled and giggled. "Mommy was little?" Cari smiled at the little girl and couldn't help but giggle along with her daughter. "Yes, Mommy was little too. I've haven't always been big." She picked Baylee up and flew her around like an airplane while her mother stood back and admired the scene, it was picture perfect. The one thing that made Cari happy aside from Scott was her daughter.

Cari was wearing a pair of L.E.I. jeans and an American Eagle shirt along with her new balance tennis shoes. Baylee was wearing a Hannah Montana outfit Scott had picked out for her a few weeks ago.

A few hours later around 8:00pm after eating a dinner of mac 'n cheese, mashed potatoes, green beans, and chicken nuggets; Cari put Baylee down to sleep in her new bed. She kissed the young child on the forehead who was now wearing Barney pjs. "Mom, it's Friday night.. I'm going to go down to one of the bars and see if I know anyone or make some new friends."

Her mother smiled and nodded as she brushed through her hair and went outside and started the car which was a 2008 Honda Civic. Driving down HWY 74 she eventually reached Charlotte, driving into Uptown where all the bars were she slowed looking to see which one looked the best. She eventually pulled into the parking lot for Bar Charlotte and walked inside. It was a club and bar all in one so there was a lot of fun to be had.

Cari sighed at the amount of people and walked to some empty seats at the bar and sat down ordering a Smirnoff. She sat there drinking it waiting to see if anyone else would show up.

(wow nice story line if its ok with u could I had to it)

[[Thanks, what part would you be interested in playing?]]

ooc:I would want to play as the bartender

[[Sure]]

Joel ate his sandwich and drank his chai, then went down the block and perused through a few shops. After about an hour had gone by since he'd left the shop, he decided to head back and finish off the day. A few short hours and even fewer customers later, it was Five PM, Joel's quitting time. He hung up his over alls once more, clocked out and said bye to everyone before driving home.

Joel unlocked the door to his apartment, and walked inside. He set his keys on the counter and made a bee line for his fridge. He grabbed some left overs, put them on a plate and microwaved them. As he waited for them to heat up, he grabbed a Coke from the fridge and put it in a cup with some ice. Finally, the food was heated, and Joel took the plate and his drink over to his recliner, sitting down and turning on the TV.

Joel ate, and watched TV until 7:30. Nothing else that Joel really enjoyed would be on that night, so he sat there thinking for a minute. 'Hmm, why should I sit home on a friday night?.. I should go out, haven't shot pool in a few weeks..' Joel then grinned and made up his mind. He was going to go have fun tonight, so he took his dishes to his sink and set them in there. 'Fuck it, I'll clean up later.' He thought, as he went to his shower. He cleaned himself off, getting the grease and work feeling out of his skin, then shaved and went to his room. He picked out a nice pair of jeans, a pair of his nicer tennis shoes, and a black button up shirt with very very thin white lines adorning it.

After dressing up and everything, Joel sprayed on a little bit of Avatar cologne and made his way out to his front room. He grabbed his keys, made sure he had his wallet, phone, and all the other essentials, then went out the door, locking it behind himself. He hopped in his car and headed out, figuring Bar Charlette would be a good place to hit up.

Joel was there in just a little while, and as he pulled into the parking lot saw that it was just past 8:30. "Eh, a little early but it'll pick up soon." Joel said to himself as he walked inside. He sidled up to the bar, and took a seat out of a group of empty ones, and ordered a beer. "Bud Lite my man." Joel said to the bartender.

Ashelyn,Cari`s younger sister had just stopped in to say hello and have a few beers when she saw her sister seated at one of the stools."Cari?I didn`t know you hung out at bars,what a pleasant surprise!"Ashe was known for going to bars,as she was very rebelious and irresponsible.She ordered a beer and drank along side her sister."I`m sorry about your hubby,he was a nice guy."She said,a small frown on her face.

Ashe downed two more beers and went to check out guys.Ashe had no shame.The only reason she was still wild was because she hadn`t met the special type of guy needed to calm her down.Once she settled down though,she thought that she might be a good wife and mother.Ashe really did feel sorry for her sister though.Twenty-four was too young to be a widow,especially with a young daughter like Baylee.

She flirted for a while but her heart just wasn`t in it.Truthfully she was getting tired of her current lifestyle.She wasn`t a slut,she just liked to have company.None of the guys she met clicked right though.She gave her sister a hug,and sat back down next to her.She ordered another beer,"Meh,no really hot guys tonight."She sighed,sipping her fourth beer.

Carolina watched as her sister drank and flirted. "Thanks, I am too. I am sad for Baylee. I'm staying with mom for right now. It was too hard to stay in California by ourselves. No one but some of our friends and the fire dept. showed up at the funeral." She slowly drank her drink and then ordered a water. Cari didn't approve of the way her sister acted but there was no changing her. She looked to her left and saw that a young man who looked familar sat down at the bar and ordered a Bud Lite. Cari remembered the night she met her husband, he had been coming home from a fire at a bar where ten people had been killed.

Her own father had been killed the same way she had when she was about the same age as Baylee, fighting a fire-doing what he loved. When she was almost three, her mother quickly remarried Ashe's father. "Ashe, you know we don't have the same dad right? My dad died the same way Scott did when I was Baylee's age." Her voice trailed off. Cari thought about the way she grew up with Mike, her mom's new husband acting like he was her real father to avoid the sadness she really felt. Mike died of cancer when when Cari was 19. "I don't think Baylee has grasped the concept that Scott is gone forever. She tries to cheer me up and it's really cute. I see the same actions in her that I saw in myself." It was now around 9:15 when Cari looked at her watch. "Don't worry about driving home, I'll take you. You drank way more than me, you don't need to drive."

Ashe didn`t quite grasp the fact she and Cari were only half sisters in her slightly drunken state,"You mean I`ve been lied to my whole life? Well it could be worse." She said,shrugging it off.
She gave her address and phone number to the bartender and asked him if he could have someone drop her car off at her house tomorrow. "Its a piece of shit anyways, no one will steal it." She said, tossing her keys to the bartender.

She now didn`t have to worry about driving home or leaving her car here. She finished off her beer and this time ordered a mudslide. She drank this in sips, as it was way more potent than beer. "Genetics don`t mean anything,you`re still my sis." She said, her voice a thick drunken slur. "I`d better quit now before I pass out." She slurred, she didn`t puke or anything was she was drunk, she just passed out. After she finished the mudslide, she asked for water.

Joel drank his beer, watching the TV half the time, the other half watching two women just a few stools down from him. One was drinking like a champ, downing several beers and a mudslide in a very short time. 'Haha, wow, hope she doesn't pass out or puke.' Joel thought to himself, as he turned back to the TV and finished his beer. "Scuse me, can I get another Bud, and a shot of vodka please?" Joel asked the bartender. He was handed his beer then had the shot poured in front of him. "Thanks bud!" Joel said pleasantly, downing the shot.

Joel looked over at the girls again, and there was something about one of them that seemed familiar. 'Hmm... She looks really familiar, like I should know her...' Joel thought to himself, thinking hard for a second as he sipped his beer. Joel considered just walking up to her and talking to her. 'But shit, what am I gonna say? "You look familiar, do I look familiar to you too?" Haha, sounds like the beginning of some cheap pick-up line...' Joel mused to himself, continuing to sip his beer. Finally though, his curiousity won, and he decided to be bold. 'What's the worst that'll happen? She'll say no, I'll feel like a moron, and I can continue to drink!' Joel thought to himself, as he stood and walked over toward them. He gently got the woman's attention and said, "Excuse me miss.. I know this is gonna sound weird, but I've got to ask you; do I look familiar to you?? Because I swear, I know you from somewhere, but I can't put my finger on it.. Name's Joel Thompson, ring a bell?"

Cari looked at her sister. "We are half-sisters instead of full sisters. You need to stop." She couldn't believe how much her sister drank. When she finished her first drink she smiled at the guy at the other end of the bar and ordered a water. She decided she might order another drink later but not this early. Cari had never been a heavy drinker. She was interrupted by Joel who stated his name. Cari turned around on her stool to face him. "Oh my gosh, yes. I went to high school with you at Sun Valley. I'm Carolina Starnes, well I was Carolina Tyson before I got married. You would know me as that. We were in a couple of classes together." Cari watched her sister to make sure she didn't drink anymore.

"Do you want to go sit at one of the tables and talk? I told my sister I would take her home later but she is too drunk to notice what time it is anyways." She smiled at Joel and remembered a few of their group projects that they had worked together on. "I saw you earlier and noticed you looked familiar but I didn't know if I should come talk to you or not." Cari carefully stood up facing him.

"Holy shit!" Joel said as he gently hugged Carolina. Indeed he remembered her now, they'd been pretty good friends back in the day; he remembered one choice incident at school, where they nearly filled the science room with smoke due to an experiment gone bad. "Yeah, that'd be great, I'd love to catch up!" Joel said, as Carolina nudged her sister, letting her know they were moving to a table. 'Ah, drinking champ girl.' Joel recognized her as that girl, and assisted Carolina in making sure her sister didn't stumble and fall on their way to a table.

They found an empty table, in a slightly quieter section of the club. Joel sat down, and waved a waiter over. "Yeah, can I get a Coke please?" Joel asked, as the waiter said, "Right away sir." He was then off, and Joel turned to Carolina. "So yeah, how've you been? I haven't seen you around here in forever, heard you moved away to Cali and got married or something like that? What brings you back here?" Joel hoped he wasn't intruding too much, but he was so excited to see her again, his words just flew out his mouth...

Cari nodded at him and walked with him to the table and returned his hug. "Yeah, I moved to California to go to college and then I met Scott and got married. Then we had Baylee, she is going to be three in November. I am staying with my mom right now, I just flew in today. My husband was killed a week ago and I couldn't stand to be in our house any longer so I came to stay with my mom." She looked at the floor and then back at him. "I will be 25 next month. I can't believe it. Drink champ over here just turned 22." Cari wasn't sure what to say next. She looked down at her wedding ring that she had yet to take off. "How have you been? What is new with you?"

Ashe just sat there with her head down, occasionally taking drinks of her water. She noticed Cari going to another table with some cute guy that she apparently knew back in the day. 'Good for her, she deserves to be happy.' She thought before lightly dozing off.

Ashe`s dream was filled with strange little garden gnomes that followed her wherever she went. She was always surrounded by a horde of gnomes. The gnomes mocked her with their cute little gnome faces. She woke up in a light sweat, "Damn I hate Garden gnomes..."She said to herself.

"Jeez, I'm so sorry Cari.." Joel said, feeling her pain. He patter her hand and said, "Well hey, you'll get through this I know you will. You've got good family, and for what it's worth I'll be there for ya." Joel said, smiling. She asked him what'd been new with him, so he figured he'd give her a run-down. "Well, after high school, basically worked and played for a few months, then I got into a mechanic's engineering course. After that, well I was nineteen, so I just worked at a small lube shop here in town for about a year. Then, when I was just over twenty, my buddy Mike said he was opening his own full blown auto care, service and repair shop. He knew I had alot of knowledge, due to the courses I took, and offered to let me be the co-manager of the place. I jumped at the chance, and since then I've been doing pretty good." Joel took a sip of his Coke, which had arrived earlier, then continued.

"Yeah, my love life's been much less successful than yours.. Only 2 serious relationships since high school, which both ended with them cheating on me. Other than that, short term girlfriends that either turn out to be idiots, bitches, or very controlling. So, yeah, get rid of them and start searching the pond again!" Joel grinned, and took a drink of his Coke. He wasn't sure what to say, so he just blurted out, "Your sis is pretty drunk!"

Cari looked at her sister and sighed. "Yeah, she is. Apparently, she does this a lot." She looked at him and then at the ground and back up again. "I remember when I liked you in Science. You never would notice me though, I didn't know why." She stood up quickly. "Excuse me for a minute." Cari walked over to the bartender and whispered a few words and then came back. "I'm sorry. I had to make sure he wasn't giving my sister anything else. I haven't seen her since I got married so I wasn't really expecting this." She reached over and took hold of his hand hoping he didn't mind.

Ashe stumbled around the bar looking for Cari,"Cari!Where the hell did you go?!"She didn`t seem to notice she was standing right in front of Cari and Joel,so she kept shouting for Cari.People yelled at her to shut up and go home,but she continued to look for her sister in her drunken stupor.