what're you in for, love? (closed, o/o with @Dances_with_Shadows)

Tessa tipped her head back to look up at the sky, walking next to Nik with the hand closest to him dangling at her side while the other one absentmindedly played with the collar of her dress. She suddenly curled her nose and paused to take off her shoes, opting to go barefoot instead of wearing her heels. She hooked the straps around her pinky finger, smoothly coming up beside Nik once again.

Connor twisted around in his seat to look, and sure enough, Nik and Tessa were gone. A small smile ghosted over his lips as he looked back over to Alex, folding his arms over the table and sliding forward so his chin rested on them. "So it would seem. I don't have any plans, so why not?"

Tessa let out a breathy chuckle, falling into the old habit of carefully placing her feet on the ground so she didn't get too cut up. "You can say that again. I just want to change into some comfy clothes and crash after all of that. But I think I can hang around for a little bit longer," she added as she looked over at Nik with a quick wink and smile.

Connor took the paper, eyes scanning it for a brief moment as he ran his thumb along his bottom lip. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm a slut for the stars and know a great place for stargazing. If that's not your style, then I don't really have anything else in mind."

Tessa smiled over at him, shrugging. "Nah, I wanna stick around with you for a bit. Why waste the opportunity for you to be with all of this?" she dramatically gestured to herself, a cocky smirk on her lips, then broke into soft laughter, unable to stay serious.

Nikolas grinned and nodded. "Alright! C'mon, I know just where to go." He stood up and held a hand out for Alex, offering to help him up.

"Parking lot roof is the most romantic place you could ever take a girl," Tessa said after making sure Nik was okay, her brows still slightly worried as she looked over at him with a fond smile.

Nikolas only grinned mischievously and pulled Alex out of the seat and at his side, keeping his grip semi-loose should Alex want to let go. "No promises," he said with a wink, then led him outside of the cafe and in the opposite direction that Nik and Tessa went in, heading for a more secluded and wild side of the city, trees more prevalent.

Tessa grabbed his offered hand without hesitation, gesturing lazily with a smile. "Lead the way, good sir."

"We weren't doing anything else," Nikolas said with a raised brow, looking down at Alex, "And not a lot of people go here. Not 'city' enough, I guess. How good are you at climbing?"

Tessa shook her head and dropped her shoes, not really caring if someone stole them—she was tempted to burn them anyway. "Nah, I wanna climb." She bounced from foot to foot as if in excitement, used to climbing and walking barefoot.

Nikolas smiled at the grin on Alex's face. "Sweet! We gotta climb a tree, so just making sure I don't gotta pull you up." He guided Alex further into the trees, counting under his breath. They were close.

Tessa grinned and rubbed her hands together. "It's been forever since I've climbed. This should be fun." She reached up and began to pull herself up while also waiting for Nik to make sure he was coming too.

"I've been here quite a few times," Connor murmured, ducking beneath a low branch and holding it up for Alex, "Still never stops being amazing."

((sorry, I've been surprisingly busy as of late and slowly picking at my roleplays))

Tessa smiled as she followed Nik, coming up beside him and resting her chin on his shoulder as she gazed out at the city. It was pretty, for the slums, but just the height made her happy and gave the illusion of beauty.

Connor ushered Alex into a clearing, jerking his chin in the direction of where he was taking them.
There was a treehouse perched in a great tree, the rounded deck on the opposite side overlooking a lake perfectly reflecting the clear and starry night above. Owls chanted their songs, bats chittered and fluttered about, fireflies floated around like little moving lanterns. Real lanterns hung from multiple branches of the giant tree, as well as some of the neighboring trees. Deer paused in their grazing to bound away into the trees, snorting and huffing their annoyance.
Connor strode over to the clearing right before the staircase, head tipped back to look up at the brilliant moon above, his silver and fog-free eyes seemingly glowing. Out of any place, this is where he looked at home, in the wild, in the light of the moon's gaze. His thumbs hooked into the belt loops of his jeans, his eyes darting around to silently identify each cluster of stars.

"It's crazy, seeing this dump look so nice," Tessa murmured, "Maybe it's just the height. I've always liked being up so high."

Connor smiled and came up to the staircase with Alex, leading them up the steps. "The balcony is the best spot. You get the lake and the sky to look at. It's almost like there's nothing but the stars, because it's so nicely mirrored."

"Unless you're afraid of heights," Tess pointed out with a slight chuckle, tilting her head to look over at Nik with a soft smile.

Connor led Alex into the treehouse, which had a cozy feel to it thanks to the warm decorations and furniture. He didn't draw attention to that, however, as he gestured for Alex to follow him up the second set of winding stairs, leading to the second floor. Up there was only a bedroom, which is what housed the balcony overlooking the small lake.