Once settled in at the B&B, Luna FaceTimes Colson. Casie's already in bed. They talk about her flight and the upcoming tour.
Colson tells her about dinner before asking what she's doing tonight. Unsure, Luna tells him she doesn't know, that she may hit up Mackenzie. Colson then tells Luna to be safe before they exchange GoodByes and I Love Yous.
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"He's so fucking weird sometimes. What the fuck do I need to be safe from?" She wonders, having a different perspective of The City.
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Colson stares at his blank phone. "I wish she wasn't always leaving... " He thinks, not used to wanting someone who's not always available.
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Luna texts Mackenzie asking if she wants to grab drinks and food. Mack hits her back immediately with a yes. Happy that Luna's in town. They meet up at The Swell. A dive bar they both know and cherish.
Luna going straight for their barbacoa tacos and a Modelo. Mackenzie grabbing the same but fish tacos instead. The two friends catch up with each other. Luna asking about James, Mack asking about her and Colson. Luna tells her why she's in town. Mackenzie asks her about her next move. Luna tells her she doesn't know as wheels start turning.
They eat and drink, stepping out to smoke occasionally. Closing out at midnight, they grab a 6pack. Keeping the Modelo train rolling as they walk the streets of Brooklyn. Luna hasn't even been out of NY for 3mnths but she can feel the gentrification of her neighborhood. HARD. Complaining to Mackenzie about it, she about loses her shit when they walk passed her favorite record store. It was bought out by Walgreens while she's been gone.
"This is fucking bullshit. Why didn't anyone tell me. Where's Ben? When did this happen??" Luna fires off a thousand questions.
Mack can only answer so many. Telling Luna that she'll have to hit Ben up herself if she wants details. Luna can't believe how quickly the neighborhood is changing.
Cracking their last beer together, hugging and kissing each other GoodBye, they split up at Irving Ave. They're both a block in the opposite direction. Kinda like the old days.
Luna walks down the street, drinking her beer. She lights a cigarette as she strolls. It's passed 2A but The City is still alive. She loves it's buzz. Nostalgia lingers in the air as she reluctantly closes the front door of the rented brownstone.
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Colson drops Casie off at school before he heads DownTown. He's going to check out the progress of his upcoming coffee lounge The 27 Club. Pulling in, Colson Snaps Luna before putting out his joint and going inside.
"Holy SHIT!! THIS IS NICE AS FUCK!!" He exclaims once he enters.
Ashleigh and Johnny, their business partner, walk over to him. "It turned out great, hunh?" Ashleigh agrees excitedly as he hugs her.
"Yeah, Man. This shit is dope. Exactly what we envisioned!" Colson responds as he let's her go. Running his hand over the countertops, he continues. "Let's get to tasting some coffee." Laughing, he heads towards the back with Ashleigh and Johnny in tow.
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Sitting on the stoop in the morning sun while smoking her last cigarette, Luna checks her phone. There's a Snap from Colson. It's her favorite kind of Snap to get.
Luna tries to call him but it rings straight through. She Snaps him back before finishing her cigarette. Heading back inside the rented brownstone to get dressed.
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Luna pops two 30s for her shoulder and smokes a joint. Along the way she showers and digs through her bag. Searching for something to wear as she burns another one. Throwing her hair up and pulling on a white tank over jeans and her Docs.
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Luna had thrown a white T, flannel and her jean jacket in her bag. Grabbing sunglasses, she headed out the door. Down the block, she stops at a bodega for cigarettes and coffee.
Waiting in line, she looks over at the cooler, studying what she wants first. Grabbing a water, she sees a flyer for a show tonight. Shoving it into her back pocket, she gets back into line without looking at it.
Luna pays and is out on the street again. It's a bright May afternoon. Strolling for a good bit, she sips her coffee and smokes another cigarette. Field stripping it, she catches a cab to MidTown. It's a short ride to her lable, Riot Records. She pulls on the T she has stashed and ties the flannel around her waist before walking in.
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"Hey girl!!" Tanya, the receptionist greets her warmly.
Luna laughs as she leans against the counter. "What's up? How you been?" She asks.
"Girl, you know. Same shit, different day." Luna laughs with her. "I heard you gotta maaaaan though... " She goes on to tease Luna.
"Yeeeeah... I locked some solid shit down." Luna responds with a cocky smile and light shrug.
"Girl, you ba... " Tanya's cut off by an opening door.
It's Charles. Nervous, little, demanding, buttfuck Charles. Luna's main nemesis at the moment.
"Oh! You're here! Come on in." He smiles in false gratitude to Luna, gesturing towards the door.
Looking at Tanya, she rolls her eyes as she sips on her coffee. "Bye, Girl." She smirks before heading towards Charles and the Room of Doom.
"Byyyeee... " Tanya replies lightly.
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The Room of Doom is Peter's office. He stands to greet Luna with a hug as she enters. Sitting down, Peter dives right into it.
"What's it going to take to renew your contact?" He asks Luna directly.
"Nothing. I already told Chuckie over there that I'm walking. I don't wanna be on a lable. And I sure as hell don't want him as my fucking manger any longer." She jerks her thumb at Charles.
"But you're just about to explode Luna. Nightmare's #1. You're playing SNL this week, THAT Type is... "
"See, that's where you're wrong on so many levels about me, Peter." Luna cuts him off, becoming frustrated. "I'm not your cash cow. I don't want to be fucking famous. I want to do what I've always done. Put out what I want, when I want."
"We don't give you that here?" Peter questions her.
"No!" She exclaims, whipping her head over to glare at Charles. She looks back. "Do you know how and why Nightmare happened?" She leans up, asking Peter. He fumbles as she continues without a pause. "That asshat over there extorted it from me for my rights to Bad Things." Talking with her hands, she turns to Charles. "What was it exactly? I couldn't have my Top 40 unless I gave you one of your own?" Luna's pissed as she continues raging on, turning back to Peter. Hands still going. "And he didn't even fucking promote it. He has NOTHING to do with any of that record. That song climbed because of the way Ashley and I dropped it and the people WE involved."
"We paid all expenses on it though. A lot. Can you do that on your own?" Peter tests her.
Luna squares her shoulders while looking at him sternly. "Don't underestimate me, Peter. YOU may have paid for APPEARANCES but Nightmare worked because of what it was created out of. Unity. You know I didn't need Beyoncé. I've got my own connects. SHIITTT... Between me and Ash." Luna scoffs at the idea. "You wanna talk what I'm capable of? Let's talk about THAT Type... I dropped that motherfucker on my own too. Video and all. Could've done it for free but I'm on a lable so FUCK it. My friends billed YOUUUUUUU." Luna kicks out a wicked grin. "Bedsides, who's to say that, IF I ever wanted to be famous, I would have even NEEDED your fucking help." Luna pushes back in her seat, scowl on her face. Cocking her lip, she snottily let's out the truth they all know. Yet, has always tried to avoid. "I. AM. LUUUNA FUCKING SSMIIITTHHH." She hisses out her heritage. "THAT Brooklyn FUCKING Bitch." She continues, reiterating her own credentials. "Don't sit here silly, Peter. I respect you too much." Not one to be intimated, she warns him of her own personal strength.
Peter's glaring at Charles, he didn't know about this Top 40 bullshit; taking a breath as he turns back to Luna. "You know your grandmother wants you on a lable."
THAT does it and Luna explodes. "Are you fucking drunk!??" She asks Peter in wild disbelief. "I don't give a FUCK what my grandmother wants. I love and respect her but this is MY fucking career." She looks him in the eyes with disgust. "You must have lost your motherfucking mind, Peter. I would have thought that you knew me well enough for some stupid shit like that to ever fall out of your mouth. You wanna talk about my GRANDMOTHER. How about we talk about my fucking DOWERY. " Luna throws up air quotes. "It's paid and I'm done." Luna pulls her pen out and hits it.
"You can't smoke... " Charles finally speaks.
"Shut the fuck up, Chuckie." She barks.
Luna knows he hates being called that and is using it purposefully. She hits her pen again just to be a fucking cunt. She truly dislikes him.
"Luna, I get that you're pissed." Peter sighs, trying to calm her down. He's going to rip Charles dick off when this meeting is over. "But can't we... "
"No, Peter. I'm sorry but no. I already gave up the three albums I owed you. Like I said, my dowery is paid. Consider what you catch off of Nightmare and THAT Type as a severance bonus. I'll have Monica contact you to go over the final details." She's shaking her head as she stands up. "And don't even think about fucking calling my MomMom, either." She states firmly as Peter stands with her and comes around the desk.
Giving Luna another hug, he promises he won't. Along with his regrets of her leaving. She hugs him back, telling him no hard feelings.
As she heads out of the room, she stops at the door. "Word of advice. Fire this fuckwad." She declares, jerking her thumb towards Charles again before walking out the door.
"I might as well start my own lable." The wheels start turning so quickly in Luna's head, she doesn't even hear Tanya tell her GoodBye.
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Colson is busy at The 27 Club all day. As he walks to the car to get Casie from school, he checks his phone. There's a missed call and Snap from Luna.
He calls Luna as he gets in the car. She's irritated on the other line. They talk about her snapping on Peter over Charles, how it's final that's she's gonna be an unsigned artist. She mentions the idea of starting a lable to which he excitedly supports. They kick around ideas until Colson gets to the pick up line.
Once Casie's in the car, he hands her the phone. Casie and Luna chat about Casie's day. Luna asking her the three dinner questions to Casie's excitement. They exchange I Love Yous before she hands the phone back to her dad.
Luna tells Colson she's on her way to meet Pete at 30Rock. He comments that they're headed to grab ice cream before going home to pack and chill for the night. They're all excited to be reunited tomorrow night. Colson and Luna exchange I Love Yous before hanging up.
"You pumped for this weekend?" He asks Casie as he looks at her through the rearview.
"SUPER PUMPED!!" She exclaims happily. "I already know what I wanna draw." She states proudly.
"What is it?" Her dad asks.
"It's a secret I can only tell Luna." She replies with sass.
Laughing, Colson says "I see how it is, we got secrets now." He teases Casie as they pull in for ice cream.
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Luna's puffing on her pen as she walks through MidTown. Knowing she got what she wanted, she's still REALLY irritated with them making money off of her. Hating the idea of anyone owning any piece of her for any second.
"They don't own any of your rights." She reminds herself as she pulls the huge door open.
"What's going on, Loons?" Pete greets Luna with a giant hug once she hits the 9th floor.
"Hey!" Luna turns out of Pete's hug to see Ashley.
"HEY!!" She shouts back as the two friends excitedly hug. "What are you doing here?" Luna asks.
"Rehearsing a few skits... And HOSTING." She says with a proud smile.
Luna grins back. "That's FUCKING awesome!" She tells Ashley; looking at Pete, Luna asks if she can sit in.
"Absolutely!!" He replies as they both follow Ashley back to set and Pete grabs Luna a chair.
They run through for another hour. Ashley's naturally funny, pulling out her NJ accent. Watching her, Luna can't help but laugh.
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Once Pete and Ashley wrap up, they all head to the Dream Hotel. There's a roof top bar Ashley wants to check out. Luna doesn't care. She hasn't eaten all day and wants a drink.
PDH Terrace is beautiful. The three friends crack jokes, laugh, drink and eat as music flows through the air. Luna digs that she can smoke but it's a little boujie for her taste. Teasing Ashley, she asks how she heard about this place. Ashley tells her because she's staying at the hotel to Luna's laughter.
It's around 7ish when they decide to seperate. Ashley having a Skype date with Dom, Pete a real one with Kate. Luna sticks her tongue out at them both, telling them a playful Fuck You with a laugh.
Hopping in the elevator, Ashley's gone first with hugs and see you tomorrows. Pete and Luna ride it to the ground, he asks her what she's gonna do now. Feeling tipsy, Luna pulls the flyer out of her back pocket. There's a punk band playing in Queens she's probably gonna go see, she tells him.
Once on the pavement, they hug also. Going their separate ways down the street. Luna pulls on her jean jacket and calls Colson as she heads to the subway. She needs a little dirt. The rooftop was too clean for her. Grabbing a Pepsi, the call rings right through as she heads underground.
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Colson and Casie are playing Fortnite when Luna calls. He misses it over their competitiveness. Calling her back a bit later, it goes straight to voicemail. This confuses him, not knowing she's in the subway.
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Luna leans next to the door of the C train. She's kinda drunk. Feeling the familiarity of Home wrap around her.
Thinking about her day, she sips her Pepsi. Luna closes her eyes, enjoying the rocking of the train. She hops off in Bed-Stuy, heading to the brownstone. It's a short couple blocks. Luna smokes a cigarette as she walks.
"I smoke a lot more in The City... " She notices.
Inside, she showers, gets stoned and dresses for The Show. Popping a couple 30s, she throws on skinnies with a crop top and a fishnet slip on. Luna's stoked to find one of her leathers stashed in her bag. She pairs them with a deep red lip and blonde hair flowing.
Hopping into a cab, she doesn't know Colson called. Her phone never picked it up in the subway. Luna carrying on into the night without a thought.
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Sitting at the bar at Gussy's, Luna's sipping on an Old Fashioned waiting for the show to start. Minding her own business. Not bothering with anyone.
"Of all the Gin Joints... " A specific voice laughs as it's hand moves her hair to kiss the back of her neck.
Luna's breath catches as her body flushes. She recognizes his smell, voice and touch instantly. Her stomach drops as she swallows hard. "OH FUCK!!!!" Her brain screams as she turns around.
Taking a shallow breath, she meets his emerald green eyes and light smirk. "Hi Tommy." She says lowly to the handsome man standing dangerously close her.
Touching her Lover's padlock around her neck, Luna's never been more fucking terrified in her Life. Turns out Colson was right. The City is a dangerous place.