XAVIER - CLIFTON

Location: Leaving Penn Station
Dialogue Color: #087dad

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Xavier normally hated carrying around large amounts of drugs. He normally had no problem carrying around a few pills, or enough weed that would only warrant a ticket if he was caught with it. Anything over that, especially if it was an amount that could catch him an "intent to sell" charge scared him. There weren't many things that Zay would admit to being scared of, but he would readily admit to that. Despite being just as white as he was black, when it came to his genetic makeup, he looked more black than white by the eye. Or at least, he looked black enough that he felt like he would be a more preferred target over a white kid to be picked on by a cop looking to make an arrest. The last thing that he needed was a charge like that on his record. Xavier knew that dealing drugs was illegal, but at the same time, he had to do what he had to do. He wasn't interested in picking up a normal job like most teenagers did, because his situation was different than most teenagers. He had to support himself when it came to rent, food, clothes, and anything else he needed, and making eleven dollars at CVS wasn't going to help him. Selling drugs was what worked for him. He worked his own hours, made good money, and filled a need that society had. He didn't sell things like heroin or meth, and he was able to ration to himself that the things he did sell: mainly marijuana, coke, and pills, weren't as bad. Even if they were, he wasn't holding a gun to anyone's head making them buy it. Their addictions were their own problems, not his.

Regardless of his fear of carrying large amounts of drugs, that was exactly what he was doing today as he sat on the Long Island Rail Road train, heading out to Southampton. Parties like Jameson's were perfect opportunities for Zay to make a ton of money in a short period of time, and because of that, it seemed worth it to risk carrying so much. Since he was leaving before the rush-hour rush, the train was on the emptier side, and he had done a good job at packaging everything in his backpack to minimize the smell or chance of anyone noticing. In addition to his backpack, he had a bag with a change of clothes and some toiletries. Though he hadn't been invited to sleep over anyone's Hampton house, since none of his close friends were that wealthy where they owned one, he knew that one of the rich kids would end up getting wasted on the boat and ask him to come back to their house so they could smoke his weed, and though the ingenuity of it would make him want to roll his eyes, it would give him a couch to crash on, and that was a good enough deal. He was planning on going to one of their house's beforehand anyway, since one of his basketball teammates, who he wasn't particularly close with, but friendly enough, had invited him over to pregame. It would be easy for him to leave his bag there and later in the night, when everyone was drunk, ration that he needed to go back to the guy's house to pick up his stuff, and then just end up staying. It wasn't like he was unliked to a point where anyone would say no if he asked to stay over; it just wasn't in Xavier's character to ask. He didn't like feeling like his fate was in someone else's hand. He didn't care that much.

The train ride was two hours, but given that that was how long it took to get to the Hamptons by car, and Xavier sure as hell didn't have $200 to blow on an Uber, he wasn't upset with the commute time. Instead he turned his music on and sent out a few texts to confirm that he was going to sell everything he had brought with him tonight. Of course, he had to send an unrelated one to Sydney too. Even if she didn't answer, he knew (or hoped) he could get her to make up for it later that night when it was dark and everyone had had one too many drinks.

To: Sydney
You gonna play the i don't know you game tonight or u gonna be real?

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V a l e n t i n o | | A r i a s

Hex Color: #228B22
Outfit: Here

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Valentino's summer had not been overly eventful, but he preferred it that way. He spent two weeks in Buenos Aires with his family, visiting both sets of his grandparents and the rest of his parents' families who still lived there. He spent a few days in Los Angeles with some friends, and a weekend in Miami too, but other than that, most of his time was spent in the city. He found a two week shadowing opportunity at NYU Langone Medical Center where he was able to shadow physicians in a couple of different fields, but that was the most of his accomplishments. Being fairly inactive didn't bother him though. He was happy to have free time to spend with his daughter, Ariana, and to have a break from the stress of the school year. Everyone always said that junior year was the most stressful year of high school, and Tino believed them. Last year had taken a toll on him, but then again, part of that was because of the social conflicts he was facing with his once good friend Jaxon sleeping with his ex-girlfriend, Alexis, and a sex tape coming out from that. That in itself was hurtful enough for him, but even though he was hurt by Alexis sleeping with Jax too, he also hurt for her. He knew how much her social life meant to her, and how hard she had worked to get to where she was, and to watch it all fall apart over one stupid choice was heart-breaking. He felt bad for her, he truly did, but he was also at a point in his life where he didn't think that he had time to get caught up in such messy, childish behavior. He had a daughter to take care of, and continuing to invest hope in regaining a relationship with a girl who had apparently changed from the one he had once loved was futile, and maybe even harmful to his mental health.

This summer was just what he needed: relaxation. It seemed like it was destined to end on a good note too, with tonight's yacht party that James was throwing, combined with a few other activities that he had planned over the next week. Although the party didn't start for another few hours, Tino was already in the Hamptons. Unlike many of his peers, his family didn't own a house on Long Island. It was hard to use the "it's too expensive" excuse when they owned a townhouse in Manhattan, but his parents weren't the type to spend money on things just to keep up with the crowd. The had found an area just outside of Miami that they liked better, and that was where their summer house was. Today, Valentino was spending the day at his friend Jake's house, where they had spent the morning and early afternoon surfing and hanging out at the beach. He had just finished showering in the private bathroom off of a guest bedroom when he texted a few friends, including Alaina and Dinah, whose whereabouts and plans he was curious about. Additionally, he sent out a text to his parents to check on Ari, since they had taken her down to Florida for the weekend.

To: Alaina
Wya and what's your plan for tonight? I feel like I haven't seen you in forever lol

To: Dinah
Are you going to James's party tonight?

Somehow, luck was on her side because like Alaina, Katherine managed to slip out of the session without being caught by Anna. She didn't even glance in the woman's direction to see if she was going to attempt to stop her, because she didn't even want to risk it. Not only did she feel like she did not have the time to deal with any unnecessary lectures, but since Alaina was gone, being stopped now would only infuriate her all the more, since she would feel like she was the only one getting in trouble for something that she was convinced was 95% Alaina's fault. She would take responsibility for 5% of it, but only because she knew that declaring that Alaina had to be bulimic was inappropriate, even though she was still certain that it was true. That was the least of her worries now, though, she told herself as she slid into the back of the black SUV that was waiting for her outside. She had bigger things to worry about than a girl whose name would not be known to a single soul had her cousin not been relevant.

Said cousin was one of those "bigger things" that Kat had to worry about, actually. While Katherine had learned to act civil towards Jameson, only because Sydney demanded it, she disliked him. Strongly. Could anyone blame her? While James had not wronged Katherine personally, and in recent times, had actually made attempts to befriend her in ways that were nicer than she deserved, she still didn't like him. He had been the one to nearly destroy her friend group (before it destroyed itself) when he cheated on Sydney with Alexis. Sure, Alexis was to blame there too, but since Katherine still wanted to be friends with her, and for a moment, Sydney claimed that she forgave Alexis for it, Kat found it easiest to blame James. He was the one who should have known better, whether the logic was there to back it up or not. So, while she acted civil towards him, and could make conversation when it was absolutely necessary, it was no secret to those in their inner circle that Katherine preferred to not be around him. It was impossible to ignore him completely given how closely their social circles ran, but that didn't mean that she didn't try. She didn't understand why Sydney was still dating him, and she also didn't understand what was so alluring about him that Alexis had slept with him when she and Sydney were still on good terms, but she did know that he was trouble. Trouble and drama, and those were two things that Katherine had enough of from other sources.

To: Sydney
I should be there in 45!!!

To: Dinah
Ofc!!! You are?!

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V a l e n t i n o | | A r i a s

Hex Color: #228B22
Outfit: Here

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Although Tino smiled at the quick response that Dinah sent him, he had to decline. He recalled James mentioning earlier in the week that he would likely spend most of the day with Sydney before his party, so even if Dinah was going to be there too, he figured that if James had actually wanted him there, he would have invited him himself. He guessed that the three of them hanging out had something to do with Sydney and Dinah being related, so that being an easy option for James, and that his presence might force their easy and relaxing day to be less casual than James intended it to be. Plus, since Tino was with Jake, at least until they figured out their pregame plans, he wasn't just going to bail on him, and he also wasn't going to invite Jake along too, when he himself was already Dinah's plus-one invite. Unknowingly to Tino, it was a good thing that he had declined Dinah's offer too, because he definitely would have had a few choice words for James, even if he didn't know that he purposely ghosted Dinah, and assumed, like Dinah, that he had invited her over and then thoughtlessly left and didn't tell her that. He didn't know Dinah to any extent where he felt an inherent need to protect her, like best friends would, but she seemed like a really cool and nice girl, and any person knew that what James was doing wasn't cool. While he and James were good friends, even with their differences, something like that easily could have led to a rift in their friendship because Valentino was at a point in his life where he wasn't afraid to call people out on their shit. He was comfortable with who he was, and though his upbringing and youthful behavior left him with many friends in that "A-list crowd", he was no longer interested in following trends and doing things just to be cool or fit in. His goals and interests no longer aligned with that. He had matured in a good way, and he wasn't ashamed of it, even if his friends liked to tease him about it.

To: Dinah
Gonna have to pass on that one lol I can only take so much Airth in one day and tonight will meet that quota. Excited to see you later though!

Jake called out to him that he and their other friend, Blake, were heading out to the car since they were all getting ready to get lunch at La Parmigiana, a nearby Italian restaurant. Tino yelled back to let them know that he was coming down too, and as he slowly made his way downstairs and outside, where he slid into the back of Jake's Jeep, he texted Alaina back.

To: Alaina
Always trying to get me wasted so you can finally have an opportunity to take advantage of me, Clarke. Don't think I don't see your motives. Despite what everyone wants to say, I know I haven't lost my charm

To: Alaina
Unfortunately no amount of alcohol will get you out of the friend zone

To: Alaina
But lol really no shots for me. I'm gonna stick to beer like always. Or maybe I'll be classy and have wine. I know your aunt always keeps any party under her name stocked with the good stuff.