"Alright, I better let you get back to work and stop distracting you," Mina said with a laugh, her arms finally breaking from her boyfriend's neck, just as Danny Sumner managed one more kiss by the side of the Pirate's Bounty food and drink booth.

Danny merely rolled his eyes, "Fine. If you say so."

"I know so - I can feel Zola rolling her eyes at us," Mina replied, grinning before glancing over at the young woman now, "I'm sure you'll keep him in line while I go look at flower crowns, yeah?" She doubted that Zola would give her much of an answer besides a grunt. The young woman, while very nice, tended to be one of a few words and rather direct. No wonder she and Danny got a long as coworkers. Truth be told, Mina often preferred running into Zola over her older sister Grace. Her chocolate brown eyes glanced back to Danny now, offering a warm smile as always, "I'll be back in a bit." And with that, her hand broke from his as she ran off now into the crowds.

Mina had been looking forward to the summer faire - she had been excited about the booths as well as the various shows invovling the animals. It honesetly had been tempting to throw on some fairy wings and really get into it, but the young woman couldn't tell if there had been much of a theme or not despite there being jousting. Still, her flowy golden dress was certainly on point, and no doubt one of Dahlia Baker's bouquet of flowers would pull it off once Mina reshaped them into a crown for her head. She had been so deep in her thought that she hadn't been looking where she had been going, and slammed right into someone, "Oh I am so -" but before she could finish, her gaze caught sight of the tall and lanky man looking down at her now, and Mina nearly stammered, "Ivan?"

Yeah, yeah. I'm Fine. I'm just having an allergic reaction to the universe

It was a little funny to hear her friend grouse that he was certain that his parents were planning something behind his back, "Oh? Does your family intend to play matchmaker for you?" Mina asked with a laugh now, "You may have to keep me in the loop on how that goes." The young woman couldn't imagine that working out well for Casper - over 100 years of Disney magic suggested that parents could never pick the proper match for their offspring. Besides, Mina was certain that her awkward friend needed someone special in order to bring him out of his shell. As for his offer to be a date whenever she may need him though, Mina merely grinned, "Deal. You can fill in for whenever Danny is unavailable."

They seemed to be at an impasse though after her crass comment about free food. Well, it wasn't crass per say, but perhaps it wasn't something that she should have just been blurting about. Brown eyes stared at her friend for a moment before it moved to the cup coffee that had been placed before her by Molly along with Casper's coffee as well. Thank goodness. Mina quickly grabbed it to busy herself as Casper finally recovered and promptly asked her about Danny: "Oh, he's wonderful," she gushed now, "Sweet. Sensitive. Mellow as far as I can tell. Plays guitar. I swear, it's like he walked out of a hallmark card. He also likes comics, so he's a bit of a nerd too." The young woman was certain she could go on and go, but Casper was a guy, he didn't need to hear all of that. She took a sip of her coffee now, mainly to shut herself up until the young man asked her another question, "Oh! The app will track everyone for you until you widdle them down to the one." At least, that had been how she did it and Mina felt like it worked out pretty well, "As for the legos. Don't worry about it. They're expensive but if you ever want to try and build something from scratch, let me know!"

The notion of Ivan possibly wanting to date her made Mina unceremoniously spew out her latte, "Date me?!" The young woman couldn't even comprehend - although, that was what ten year old Mina Cohen had wanted in the fifth grade, "No. No no no no no. It's not going to be that. As for if he wants to get to know me again...well...maybe...just maybe I can handle that. But no promises." Mina knew she was probably being mildly immature about it all - okay, majorly immature - but it was hard to not be. At least, in her mind. She really wanted to shove this whole conversation under a rug - Ivan, her friends looking out for her, the works. Thankfully, it came in the form of Gideon's lack of a life, and Mina just ran with it: "You know. I don't think he is seeing anyone. Gideon's an enigma anyways. I can never get a read on the man." Brown eyes burrowed into Casper now, "You know, maybe he can give you the dating advice from a guy's perspective."

Yeah, yeah. I'm Fine. I'm just having an allergic reaction to the universe

Dinner date? Now that was truly quite the proposal - mainly because socializing, but Mina was willing to handle any crowds if that meant being one of her best friend's wingman for the evening, not to mention, the free food, "Of course! Friendship is magic," the young woman said with a grin, "Tell me the date and I will be there. Although if you find a real date date, I will have no hurt feelings. I will just require all of the details of the lucky lady." Mina supposed she wasn't surprised when the man ended the conversation by simply stating that he had no romance gossip, Casper was above that. Still, it was hard to not poke him. She managed to hold back though.

Mina laughed awkwardly at Casper's question, of course the free food would be the statement of hers that he would notice - since it was a jerk thing to say, "No! Its not always about the free food, its just a perk!" She defended herself now, "And yes, I have gone of three or four dates now with a guy named Danny. He's sweet, and seems to put up with me." The young woman knew she wasn't always the easiest - she had epic tangents and could come off as self absorbed when having a meltdown, but she wasn't mean, she was just...easily overwhelmed. In fact everything with Danny was going quite well which was what made her Ivan Park situation all the more infuriating, "AH! Well I met Danny on bantr, but I've also used bumble and hinge. There's many more though."

Since when did she build lego? Mina felt a little embarrassed now, "Man, have I been hiding that fact from you?" That seemed silly to fret over though when there were bigger things at play: like literally her mini rant about Ivan Park just then. Casper was asking her all sorts of questions now, honest ones and giving her honest advice, but Mina Cohen wasn't sure if she exactly...liked it. Talking about her feelings to a major crush? Hashing out everything over the last twenty something years? No, she didn't like that at all, and as Gideon had brought up and even Mina just now: wasn't everything going perfectly well with Danny? The whole thing was hardly the perfect situation.

She just smiled at the young girl now as she scurried off and her friend apologized for her, and then promptly followed after Casper as he brought up something important: "Like I said, just talk to him and see. It's better than living in the shadows." A loud groan escaped Mina as she slid into a chair now, and she pulled on her hair in two big chunks, "I know I knowwwww but.....I don't want to. I feel like ignoring the situation is a way more solid plan." And she would just keep on spinning her wheels as such until either Danny or Ivan prompted her otherwise, "I swear, its like you coordinated with Gideon on how to tackle this topic. This is the only reason why I need you two to get significant others, so I can annoy you."

Yeah, yeah. I'm Fine. I'm just having an allergic reaction to the universe

It felt a little weird admitting to a police officer that she liked to people watch, since Mina supposed technically that might as well be their job. But the young woman did it because her mind wandered and her imagination got the best of her, not for anything else. It was also hard to concentrate on a rather plain, boring piece of jewelry - line a single princess cut diamond slapped on a plain platinum band, when there was much more interesting things going on outside of the shop window. Serenity's smile calmed her though, there was no judgement to be found in her eyes when she admitted that she too liked to do it, "And if anybody says they don't, they're clearly lying." Now, that was just a plain ole fact.

If the older woman had been annoyed with Mina's questioning words over speaking candles, she certainly did not show it. Serenity merely smiled at her, the warmth behind it seeming almost 'all knowing' to a degree as Mina herself worked through the mystery behind them. It would seem as she had caught onto something though as the other woman pointed out to her that Mina worked with metal and stones almost on a daily basis, and likely no longer needed any direction when she worked. The young woman's jaw dropped, gawking almost, "Holy cow, I didn't even think about that," and yet it made perfect sense, "You are right. So candles are to you as designing jewelry is to me." Completely legit as far as she was concerned.

As far as the candles went though, Mina wasn't sure on how to really remove human emotion entirely from them, but maybe that was just because she generally tended to be overstuffed in the emotion department, "Right," she said, closing her eyes hard again and grasped again for the candles in her brain. Right or left? Where was the draw? Now the young woman wasn't too concerned, but mainly because the conversation was pulling towards another topic she loved. Books. Brown eyes opened again, Serenity's words clicking in her brain, "Ah yes! That was it. And I can neither confirm nor deny that I got the box set specifically for the spells." Otherwise, meaning yes. She cocked her head, "I haven't heard of that series. I'll have to check out...so, rounding back. Are you saying that you're a Sabrina Spellman then? We should see if our cats get along."

Yeah, yeah. I'm Fine. I'm just having an allergic reaction to the universe

The look that Casper shot her nearly made her burst into laughter, but the young woman managed to keep it together. After all, had the situations been reversed, she knew very well that she would be behaving just like her friend. Either that, or just dramatically whine about her whole situation - which, as Gideon Alcott could attest, Mina was very prone to doing, "Take it the wrong way? Never. I am quite proud you're suggesting I rank above your sisters for that sort of context," she replied with a grin now, chocolate brown eyes watching as he fidgeted just slightly by running his hand through his hair. It was probably way too early for this sort of talk. Mina figured she better rein it in before he went running for the hills as soon as he got his black coffee, "Well let me know when you hear anything of awkward people taking over the world. What on Earth is Bantr?" She simply smiled, "I will," she stated matter-o-factly, "And Bantr is a dating app. No pictures, just words."

They shuffled forward, getting closer to their tasty snacks. Mina could see one Molly Mac'Intosh running around behind the counter and manning the cashier like a one person show. For a second, the young woman wondered if she should spare the teenager her order of a flavorful latte but then decided against it, the look of determination on Molly's face said she would not be cheated out of any order, "I said the exact same thing, though they weren't happy with me. Come the Spring, they'll need me more most likely. I don't want to know how many vacation days I have." Mina could not help but to shoot her friend a slightly exasperated look, "Casper, please do not tell me you actually called your employees rude for making you take time off?" After all, she had been joking, sarcastically yes, but maybe that had been lost on him. It was kind of funny how seriously he took the farm work though, but everyone had their niches, and Casper clearly felt most at home when working, "Regardless though, I am sure building those garden beds will keep you preoccupied until the spring!"

When Casper noted he was usually up early enough to not catch his family before going to work, it beame clear that him having the day off really was the only reason why she caught him his morning with her late text. Otherwise, he certainly wouldn't have seen it. Or at least, seen it and had to reply with a whole 'sorry mina, i'm at work' sort of thing. She took another step now, the smell of coffee and sweets starting to waft in the air as her friend questioned her over her work remarks, "OH...well," Mina turned slightly now, craning a little to look up at Casper, "I think I may have been frightening the customers? I've managed to chill out, but since earlier in the month, every time that door bell chimed, I went sprinting out onto sales floor like a crazy cat to see who it was," she commented, "And then, when it wasn't who I thought it was, I'd sorta deflate and sulk back, ignoring the customers."

It was funny, for as awkward as she could be, Mina also knew that she could be a dramatically, self centered person. But it was hard to not be when you thought that the universe had it out for you on a daily basis. Or at least, that was how the young woman viewed her current standings. Maybe thinking Carroll would fire her was also a bit dramatic, but he hadn't been pleased, "Carroll Alcott didn't care for my antics, however, Gideon appeared to find them effin' hilarious and was laughing at me the whole time." It probably helped her other friend's understanding that since he was locked in the shop with her for eight hours in the day that he got the full load of Mina Cohen's self absorbed whiny rants and crazy ideas. And then came Casper's innocent invite: "Oh? Do tell me more if you'd like." Well, did she ever!

"Ughs, it's Ivan Park. I was absolutely madly in love with him the second he moved in next door. I think he wow'd me in the fifth grade when he gave some poem about being an ice skater or something like that," she started now, "But. I never told him. Cause I was his best friend, so best friends can't like, confess feelings right? And then college came anyways, and we sorta lost touch. And yet, I kept pinning after him." God, this was getting sad, "But then, I moved on, did the whole self discovery thing and began adulting. And now, just out of no where, I see him in the grocery store. And what do I do? Do I go talk to him? No. I turn around and collide into the avocado stand, spilling them everywhere. And...I didn't even pick them up." Mina might have continued her harrowing tale if it weren't for the fact that there was a giggle of laughter. Apparently they were at the front now, with Molly the Cashier, who looked like she was keeping herself together by mere seems, "Anything I can help you and Casper with Mina?"

Damn, the girl was good if she already had the local cliental memorized, "Give me my Rose Chai Latte, Molly, or give me death!" And for dramatic effect, she slammed her palm down on the counter. She was all fired up now, although, talking about Ivan always seemed to do that, "And an orange vanilla scone, plus whatever Casper would like here." She added on now, nodding to her friend besides her. The slam had made Molly's eyes go wide, but she still looked like she was doing her best to not laugh as the teenager simply looked to Casper now, waiting.

Yeah, yeah. I'm Fine. I'm just having an allergic reaction to the universe

Despite the initial awkwardness of it all, or at least, despite all the awkwardness on Mina's part, it would appear that the woman before her would not go running for the hills. Instead, she gave her a soft smile which seemed encouraging, "I'm Serenity," the woman introduced herself before adding on, "No, I don't work here." Dang, then why did she look so familiar to her then? Knowing her luck, it would hit Mina at 1 am in the morning and she won't be able to sleep after the realization. She must have been lost in her thoughts far too long since Serenity then added, "If I didn't have a job elsewhere, I'd love to be able to work in a place like this!"

Right, she should probably say something. Mina beamed now, "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Serenity! I'll be honest, you certainly had me fooled on not working here with your thoughts." They were even more on point than Mina's when it came to candles, "I have to say, you do look familiar to me though. I sit over at Alcott's Jewelry and Design...admittingly I do a lot of window watching, so I guess that must be it." Wow, could she sound any more odd and weird to this nice lady? For a moment, it looked like Serenity was studying her and she had wondered if she crossed a line before the older woman offered, "I like using candles to send out intentions, too."

Mina laughed, "Glad it's not just me, although I have to say, you seem much more knowledgeable than myself." She commented now, figuring she better own up, "To be honest...I uh...kinda just pull candle knowledge from the internet and possibly a young adult series I've read. I know the author did some serious research on it." Wow, she kinda felt like a childish dork now, and yet, Mina could not seem to find the ability to shut the heck up, "And I feel like I need it. My brain is like all over the place because of someone and it's got me rattled. So I was hoping the candles can help. I mean....I think my sibling called me obsessive like it was a bad thing." And then, she laughed again, nervous laughter now as she looked away. Man, why couldn't she be normal adult when frazzled?

Yeah, yeah. I'm Fine. I'm just having an allergic reaction to the universe