Say hello toΒ Angel Wallace, a 35 year old tattoo artist born in New Orleans and raised in LA.
Name:Β Angel Wallace
Age:Β 35
Faceclaim:Β Nathalie Emmanuel
Neighborhood:Β Deer Park
Occupation:Β Tattoo artist & Owner of Skinfinity Tattoos
Time in Blue Harbor: 5 years
Biography:
As a child, Angel caught the sight of southern, small town America through the window of the backseat of her motherβs beat up Honda as they made the move from New Orleans, Louisiana to Los Angeles. She was captivated by the expanse of the land, dreamed of what it would be like to be a nomad of these spaces and towns of character. Like her mother, Angel Wallace had always been drawn to life and itβs mysteries. Her wayward father made the trip with them, though once they had unpacked the car and piled into a one bedroom apartment in Southern California his presence dwindled to an occasional visit. Bonnie was a writer, freelance, and felt as though a place like the City of Angels was destiny. Not only was she a superstitious woman, she believed the sprawling city was fated for her. It all surrounded a mysterious sign Angelβs mother had seen flipping through a magazine while at the salon one day, one that sheβd never uncover, for her life to no longer grow in the south. Though, no matter where it led her, Angel always felt the Bayou was apart of her.
The girl came about her name due to being a miracle baby, as Bonnie called her. Angelβs first title in life was savior, one that plagued her youth with the bearing of itβs responsibility. She saved her mother. When Bonnie had become pregnant with her it turned her motherβs life around, pulled her away from all of the negative temptations and grounded her into the pursuit of a better life. It was a past that Bonnie spoke of in a guarded way, most of the truths Angel wouldnβt uncover until she was in the early stages of adulthood. Given that her mother didnβt want to look back and always had her eyes forward on a brighter more adventurous future, Angel never really pushed for all the whyβs nor dug too deep when her mother would trail off into something else. By the time she was a teenager, it instilled in her that the past was meant to simply be what it was: the past. It was in the rearview mirror, not the direction ahead.
In Los Angeles, no matter how long she had resided there, Angel always felt a bit like an outsider. She fit in easily with the artsy crowds; the painters, the musicians, the writers and creatives alike. Though, despite countless sketchbooks full of drawings and doodles, she never quite felt like she was one of them. She was popular, did well in school, had a band that performed at whatever small clubs and venues they could get a gig at, and was pretty happy with her life. A rarity to most fellow teenagers she knew at the time. It was just that as her motherβs success and prominence grew, the more distant she felt. Bonnie loved her fiercely, but she loved her career and life as a writer just as much. The experiences and people sheβd meet and have pulled mother and daughter apart, so rather than spend time alone in whatever upgraded apartment theyβd had, Angel filled the void in crashing with other people.
The distance that had been created and had grown between mother and daughter was, for a long time, an unknown reason for Angelβs disconnect. Because of it, she saw people and connections, even the strongest relationships as fleeting. They would all end or pull apart some day no matter the emotion held in her heart. So, Angel treated all her connections and relationships, no matter the type, as loosely as possible. Always afraid to hold onto someone too tight. Even, or perhaps especially, in university with finding love for the first time and actually stepping into a long-term relationship Angel fumbled too much in trying to understand it, respect it, and see the longevity in it. For she felt that if her mother could find a life away from her that so could this person too.
For too long she went through the world emotionally stunted, though eventually she found people that were a little more likeminded in keeping relationships loose. Angel had a fling with someone sheβd met after university when she had spent some time on the east coast, loving the vibe of New York City. They were someone that had added to her tattoo collection, someone sheβd bonded with through conversation and a few hangout sessions. For her they were the first to take a special interest in her drawings, or what Angel referred to as βdoodlingβ and told her she should do something with that talent. She told them to teach her how to tattoo and from that first session itβs become her career. Once again, Angel was good, popular, and sought after. Finding herself being featured in a magazine here and there or showcased on social media. But, she didnβt take that too seriously either.
In finding her way to Blue Harbor, Angel made the move five years prior and took up ownership of Skinfinity Tattoos after a phone call from her mostly absentee father. She found out then that it had been where he had ended up some years after the family had first moved into Southern California. While he hadnβt tried all that hard to keep in touch or be around, when he did make an effort to connect with Angel it always came with an outpouring of love. Her family had always simply beenβ¦ different. The news she had received on that phone call had been that he was sick and on the precipice of facing a long battle. Eddie hadnβt asked her to come, hadnβt asked for help, there was something that had been left unsaid that pulled Angel half way across the country and to find a place close to her father. Just so she could be there in case he needed someone, and maybe there was also a little hope that they could get to know one another.
