Log: So take off the mask so I can see your face.
Who: Mercedes and Tina
When: Wednesday, October 27, 2018
Where: Halloween Adventure Shop in New York
What: A costume hunt and a Tina!rant
Tina and Mercedes found themselves browsing through the racks of Halloween costumes in a random store in the city. Since Tina wasn’t going to Lima anymore, her roommate, Yvette, had invited them out to a club on Saturday. While Tina was usually content with simply watching horror movies at home, it had been a long time since they had time to do anything of the sort and she knew Mercedes would probably enjoy going out.
The past few days with Mercedes had been wonderful. Even if she had probably blushed more than she had in the past few years. And they had carefully avoided mentioning the drama back in Lima. Other than that, It was just like old times, and she loved that their friendship itself hadn’t really changed.
“How about this one?” Tina asked, holding up what appeared to be a circus lion trainer costume. She took a moment to inspect the gold tassels that hung from a sequined thong. She put it back. “Okay, never mind. I’d like a costume that actually attempts to cover my lady parts.” She looked around the store.
“If such a costume exists.”
Tina had always enjoyed dressing up in costumes, but she didn’t think that meant she had to show New York City what she looked like in her underwear.
Mercedes started laughing the second Tina held up the costume, the thought of Tina in that? Yeah, not gonna happen. Girl had some pretty interesting clothing choices but they were never that crazy. She dug through the racks to see if there was anything else that would be a better fit for Tina.
"You should be a Disney princess," she joked, tossing aside a slutty policewoman uniform.
Tina scrunched up her nose in distaste. “Yeah, and relive the year Mike’s mom made us dress up as Mulan and Shang? I’ll pass,” she laughed, shaking her head. “But I guess Mulan doesn’t even count as a princess.”
Mercedes stopped what she was doing and turned to give Tina a incredulous look. “You’re kiddin’ right?”
“I wish I was. I don’t think Mama Chang will ever give up on her dream to see us get married.” She shuddered at the thought before pushing a mermaid costume along the rack. She came across a Wonder Woman costume, and grabbed the hanger to present it to her friend. “You know, Eli suggested this for me. I actually brainstormed ideas with Quinn and she thought a superhero would be cool,” she said absently as she looked at the red material of the corset. “I wasn’t sure about the star-spangled granny panties. Although these seem to be booty shorts.” She looked back at her friend. “I don’t know what’s worse.”
Realizing she had casually brought up Quinn, Tina lowered the costume and frowned a little. Amid her loyalty to Mike, she had to admit she was a bit disappointed; at some point in time they were actually pretty good friends, and she had been looking forward to spending time with her and Abby. She shook her head and started to put the costume back. “I probably don’t have the legs for it anyway,” she murmured, attempting to laugh it off and move on.
Mercedes shook her head and pulled it out again. “I think you could rock it.” She scanned the shelf that the costume came from and pulled something else out, “Or maybe you could do this.” It was a Catwoman suit. “That way you can still be a superhero.”
The Quinn thing made Mercedes kind of nervous, she didn’t sound too happy about things getting spread around and lying made Mercedes feel uncomfortable.
Tina stiffened a little the Catwoman suggestion. That had been one of Quinn’s ideas. “Maybe I’ll just stick with Wonder Woman,” she said, glancing at the costume again.
“So have you talked to Quinn since?” Mercedes asked casually.
Tina bit her lip at that question. “Oh. Um...not really. Unless you count tweets. She said Abby was sick and I just told her I hoped she felt better soon.” She shrugged, tucking a piece of hair that had escaped her ponytail behind her ear. “I mean, any real conversation we’d have would probably be awkward or ragey...or both.” She looked up at Mercedes, a hesitant look on her face. “Have you heard from her?”
"I called her, yeah." Mercedes said putting the costume back, "She sounded stressed."
Tina merely nodded, considering that for a moment. She stopped herself from adding some snide comment agreeing that having an affair and breaking Mike’s heart would probably take its toll on a person. The strange part, though, was that she didn’t feel some all-consuming desire to kill her anymore. Guess that was progress. “So I guess she told you her side of everything.”
Mercedes nodded, "Yeah," She said solemnly, and then thought about the details of the conversation, she sighed a little before admitting "I fucked up."
Tina’s expression furrowed, unsure of what Mercedes was talking about. “What do you mean?”
“I brought Rachel up before she did.” Mercedes said looking down, “And Quinn, she got a little...well, she suspects somethin’. She kept asking if you told me and I lied.”
Tina’s hand stilled on the hanger she was holding as she let the words sink in for a moment. “'Suspects'? She’s mad that I told you?”
She already knew the answer to that. Mercedes wouldn’t lie unless it was to prevent something bad. Suddenly, Tina felt her frown deepen as her anger rose to the surface.
“I mean, she’s the one who cheated; she’s the reason there’s something to tell you in the first place. It’s not like I shouted this out to the world. You’re the only person I even discussed this with besides Mike and Tommy. You know me, I don’t go blabbing to just anyone. And Mike is basically my brother. She hurt my family. Why shouldn’t I be able to talk about it? If someone like...hurt Finn, I’m sure she wouldn’t keep quiet. How could she expect to be granted some sort of supreme immunity bullshit when I’m pretty sure she'd...” She trailed off as she studied Mercedes’ demeanor. She knew how her friend felt both about Quinn and being truthful, and felt bad for shoving this tangent in her face. She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself.
So much for progress.
“I’m sorry you had to lie for me, Mercedes,” she murmured, her eyes the ones downcast now. “And I know you’re Quinn’s friend, too. It isn’t fair to rant to you and drag you into anything.” She knew deep down that she understood where Quinn was coming from. She wouldn’t like her personal situation being discussed either, but what made Tina even angrier, was that Quinn was defensive about her telling Mercedes. This was Mercedes. A friend they've both had for a long time. Why would Tina hide anything from her? Quinn had hurt someone she deeply cared about. Why should she be forced to keep her mouth shut about it to a close friend? Tina believed herself to be, for the most part, a kind and civil person, but she didn’t owe Quinn anything. She wasn’t going to be immature and pay some kids back in Lima to egg her and Rachel's houses or tell Eli to hold her earrings while she kicked some Quinn ass, but she also wasn’t Tommy; she wasn’t about to go out of her way to be all loyal and chummy with someone who had hurt Mike.
“It’s okay, girl,” Mercedes said after listening to Tina’s rant. She was actually really glad that her friend had finally let off some steam. The past few days had been a little weird because the topic seemed taboo, but now everything was out in the open and Mercedes definitely liked this a hell of a lot better. “You know you can’t drag me into anythin’ I didn’t already stick my nose in.”
She wanted to get involved, so she did, and this was her deal, not Tina’s. “Don’t blame yourself for stickin’ me in the middle of things. Ever. I wanted to be here.”
Tina nodded, then exhaled as she calmed down, relieved at Mercedes’ reaction. The corner of her mouth quirked up in a signature half-smile. “Well, isn't that the truth. You kind of are the nosiest person I know,” Tina teased, smirking fondly at her friend. She sobered and added a bit more seriously, “I’m really glad you’re here, you know.”
"Only kinda?" Mercedes gasped melodramatically, "I think I'm offended." And then she fell into a fit of giggles, moving over to crush her Asian sister in a hug. "I love yah too, girl."
“I can’t breathe!” Tina laughed, practically wheezing as she wrapped her arms around her in return. She pulled back, still giggling. She was glad she was able to be honest with Mercedes; it felt good to be open with each other. “I guess I should already know that considering you show your affection through playing ‘How Red Can I Turn Tina Today?'’”
Mercedes grinned innocently at her friend. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she insisted, before running off to hide behind another rack.
“Yeah, yeah. You’re lucky I love you back.” Tina waved her off, shaking her head in amusement as she watched Mercedes dart across the room. She grabbed the Wonder Woman costume and followed her. “Hey, get back here. We still have to find a slutty costume for you!”
When: Wednesday, October 27, 2018
Where: Halloween Adventure Shop in New York
What: A costume hunt and a Tina!rant
Tina and Mercedes found themselves browsing through the racks of Halloween costumes in a random store in the city. Since Tina wasn’t going to Lima anymore, her roommate, Yvette, had invited them out to a club on Saturday. While Tina was usually content with simply watching horror movies at home, it had been a long time since they had time to do anything of the sort and she knew Mercedes would probably enjoy going out.
The past few days with Mercedes had been wonderful. Even if she had probably blushed more than she had in the past few years. And they had carefully avoided mentioning the drama back in Lima. Other than that, It was just like old times, and she loved that their friendship itself hadn’t really changed.
“How about this one?” Tina asked, holding up what appeared to be a circus lion trainer costume. She took a moment to inspect the gold tassels that hung from a sequined thong. She put it back. “Okay, never mind. I’d like a costume that actually attempts to cover my lady parts.” She looked around the store.
“If such a costume exists.”
Tina had always enjoyed dressing up in costumes, but she didn’t think that meant she had to show New York City what she looked like in her underwear.
Mercedes started laughing the second Tina held up the costume, the thought of Tina in that? Yeah, not gonna happen. Girl had some pretty interesting clothing choices but they were never that crazy. She dug through the racks to see if there was anything else that would be a better fit for Tina.
"You should be a Disney princess," she joked, tossing aside a slutty policewoman uniform.
Tina scrunched up her nose in distaste. “Yeah, and relive the year Mike’s mom made us dress up as Mulan and Shang? I’ll pass,” she laughed, shaking her head. “But I guess Mulan doesn’t even count as a princess.”
Mercedes stopped what she was doing and turned to give Tina a incredulous look. “You’re kiddin’ right?”
“I wish I was. I don’t think Mama Chang will ever give up on her dream to see us get married.” She shuddered at the thought before pushing a mermaid costume along the rack. She came across a Wonder Woman costume, and grabbed the hanger to present it to her friend. “You know, Eli suggested this for me. I actually brainstormed ideas with Quinn and she thought a superhero would be cool,” she said absently as she looked at the red material of the corset. “I wasn’t sure about the star-spangled granny panties. Although these seem to be booty shorts.” She looked back at her friend. “I don’t know what’s worse.”
Realizing she had casually brought up Quinn, Tina lowered the costume and frowned a little. Amid her loyalty to Mike, she had to admit she was a bit disappointed; at some point in time they were actually pretty good friends, and she had been looking forward to spending time with her and Abby. She shook her head and started to put the costume back. “I probably don’t have the legs for it anyway,” she murmured, attempting to laugh it off and move on.
Mercedes shook her head and pulled it out again. “I think you could rock it.” She scanned the shelf that the costume came from and pulled something else out, “Or maybe you could do this.” It was a Catwoman suit. “That way you can still be a superhero.”
The Quinn thing made Mercedes kind of nervous, she didn’t sound too happy about things getting spread around and lying made Mercedes feel uncomfortable.
Tina stiffened a little the Catwoman suggestion. That had been one of Quinn’s ideas. “Maybe I’ll just stick with Wonder Woman,” she said, glancing at the costume again.
“So have you talked to Quinn since?” Mercedes asked casually.
Tina bit her lip at that question. “Oh. Um...not really. Unless you count tweets. She said Abby was sick and I just told her I hoped she felt better soon.” She shrugged, tucking a piece of hair that had escaped her ponytail behind her ear. “I mean, any real conversation we’d have would probably be awkward or ragey...or both.” She looked up at Mercedes, a hesitant look on her face. “Have you heard from her?”
"I called her, yeah." Mercedes said putting the costume back, "She sounded stressed."
Tina merely nodded, considering that for a moment. She stopped herself from adding some snide comment agreeing that having an affair and breaking Mike’s heart would probably take its toll on a person. The strange part, though, was that she didn’t feel some all-consuming desire to kill her anymore. Guess that was progress. “So I guess she told you her side of everything.”
Mercedes nodded, "Yeah," She said solemnly, and then thought about the details of the conversation, she sighed a little before admitting "I fucked up."
Tina’s expression furrowed, unsure of what Mercedes was talking about. “What do you mean?”
“I brought Rachel up before she did.” Mercedes said looking down, “And Quinn, she got a little...well, she suspects somethin’. She kept asking if you told me and I lied.”
Tina’s hand stilled on the hanger she was holding as she let the words sink in for a moment. “'Suspects'? She’s mad that I told you?”
She already knew the answer to that. Mercedes wouldn’t lie unless it was to prevent something bad. Suddenly, Tina felt her frown deepen as her anger rose to the surface.
“I mean, she’s the one who cheated; she’s the reason there’s something to tell you in the first place. It’s not like I shouted this out to the world. You’re the only person I even discussed this with besides Mike and Tommy. You know me, I don’t go blabbing to just anyone. And Mike is basically my brother. She hurt my family. Why shouldn’t I be able to talk about it? If someone like...hurt Finn, I’m sure she wouldn’t keep quiet. How could she expect to be granted some sort of supreme immunity bullshit when I’m pretty sure she'd...” She trailed off as she studied Mercedes’ demeanor. She knew how her friend felt both about Quinn and being truthful, and felt bad for shoving this tangent in her face. She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself.
So much for progress.
“I’m sorry you had to lie for me, Mercedes,” she murmured, her eyes the ones downcast now. “And I know you’re Quinn’s friend, too. It isn’t fair to rant to you and drag you into anything.” She knew deep down that she understood where Quinn was coming from. She wouldn’t like her personal situation being discussed either, but what made Tina even angrier, was that Quinn was defensive about her telling Mercedes. This was Mercedes. A friend they've both had for a long time. Why would Tina hide anything from her? Quinn had hurt someone she deeply cared about. Why should she be forced to keep her mouth shut about it to a close friend? Tina believed herself to be, for the most part, a kind and civil person, but she didn’t owe Quinn anything. She wasn’t going to be immature and pay some kids back in Lima to egg her and Rachel's houses or tell Eli to hold her earrings while she kicked some Quinn ass, but she also wasn’t Tommy; she wasn’t about to go out of her way to be all loyal and chummy with someone who had hurt Mike.
“It’s okay, girl,” Mercedes said after listening to Tina’s rant. She was actually really glad that her friend had finally let off some steam. The past few days had been a little weird because the topic seemed taboo, but now everything was out in the open and Mercedes definitely liked this a hell of a lot better. “You know you can’t drag me into anythin’ I didn’t already stick my nose in.”
She wanted to get involved, so she did, and this was her deal, not Tina’s. “Don’t blame yourself for stickin’ me in the middle of things. Ever. I wanted to be here.”
Tina nodded, then exhaled as she calmed down, relieved at Mercedes’ reaction. The corner of her mouth quirked up in a signature half-smile. “Well, isn't that the truth. You kind of are the nosiest person I know,” Tina teased, smirking fondly at her friend. She sobered and added a bit more seriously, “I’m really glad you’re here, you know.”
"Only kinda?" Mercedes gasped melodramatically, "I think I'm offended." And then she fell into a fit of giggles, moving over to crush her Asian sister in a hug. "I love yah too, girl."
“I can’t breathe!” Tina laughed, practically wheezing as she wrapped her arms around her in return. She pulled back, still giggling. She was glad she was able to be honest with Mercedes; it felt good to be open with each other. “I guess I should already know that considering you show your affection through playing ‘How Red Can I Turn Tina Today?'’”
Mercedes grinned innocently at her friend. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she insisted, before running off to hide behind another rack.
“Yeah, yeah. You’re lucky I love you back.” Tina waved her off, shaking her head in amusement as she watched Mercedes dart across the room. She grabbed the Wonder Woman costume and followed her. “Hey, get back here. We still have to find a slutty costume for you!”