#cascadeintro

— 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝚰𝐂𝐒.

full name. arden reece bennett. nicknames. ardy, the other bennett by high school school peers. date of birth & age. february 21st 1997 / twenty-nine. zodiac. pisces. gender & pronouns. cis woman & she/her. orientation. bisexual/biromantic though she has a strong preference for women. relationship status. single. place of birth. cascade, ca. occupation. radio host at sasquatch 94.9 & podcaster.

— 𝐇𝚰𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘.

they say parents don't have a favorite child. and if you were to ask mike and jennifer bennett, they would agree. though arden surprised them a little sooner than they would have preferred, they had no problem sharing the immense amount of love fairly between the two. proud of both of their daughters, just in different ways. but not amount of love could stop arden from constantly feeling like second best to her older sister. through no one's fault, really, because who was really to blame if briar had more accolades to commemorate and sporting events to attend. perhaps it was other aspects bleeding into home life.

everyone at *insert cascade high school name here* knew the bennett sisters. briar bennett, older by 2 years, was impossible to ignore. captain of the cheer squad, honor roll student, front and center at any fundraiser and just as funny as she was gorgeous. teachers loved her, and students either wanted to be her or be with her. it was easy for arden to live in briar's shadow. not unpopular per say, she did have her close-knit friend group.. but to the general public, she was just the other bennett. (cue john tucker must die; "i'll let you in on a little secret, though. my mom says i'm special on the inside").

arden can't really recall a time in her life where she competed with her sister. there was never really a point in competing. the two were complete opposites, she always preferred not being the center of attention. if anything, she avoided any attention at all (still does). nose buried in a book or headphones blasting the oldies or the newest true crime podcast she'd stumbled upon. saturday nights spent binge watching movies rather than being at pep rallies.

fast forward to university, and things were a little different. bigger pool of people rather than just cascade locals, and arden was finally able to be her own person. with briar gone to pursue studies and dreams states away, conversations no longer started with "no way, that's your sister?". though she missed her deeply and was somewhat envious she'd left their dead end town, she'd be lying if she said she didn't enjoy being seen for once.

arden joined the campus radio station on a whim. something she could tack onto a resume to embellish it. she didn't expect to love it so much. crowds had never been a thing, neither had public speaking. but behind a mic and an alias? that was different. after graduation, she landed a job at sasquatch 94.9, cascade's local station which just so happened to be right up her alley. mixing music with community stories, the kind of dry humor she excelled at, and late-night paranormal segments about haunted sites around town. it wasn't glamorous, and it certainly wasn't famous, but arden couldn't imagine doing anything else.

with years of practice of being in her sister's shadow, she loved the anonymity that came with radio. listeners could recognized her laugh before they'd recognize her face. she loved the emails they'd send thanking her for keeping them company during long commutes or overnight shifts. for the first time in her life, it felt like people truly liked her because of who she was and what she had to offer. not because of who she was related to.

the thought of leaving cascade, moving to a bigger city and working at a bigger radio station crossed her mind daily. but as the years passed by and her parents got older, guilt of who would be there to take care of them settled in. so she stayed and has making the most of what cascade has to offer.

TBA VERY SOON !!

— 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒.

her sister pretty pretty please !! will also be posting a w/c on the main (and obviously most of the details will be UTP) but in my mind her sister has just returned to cascade after being away for years. i'm truly picturing a retired dallas cowboys cheerleader who came back home to figure out what to do next with her life !!

sandbox besties. both born and raised in cascade and inseparable from the get. the weirdo artsy kids who didn't really fit in with the jocks, not that they wanted to. true ride or dies. (can be multiple)

unrequited love. though she'll never say it, arden loves love. as much as she enjoys being alone, she craaaves that intimacy. this could have been the one time she opened up about her feelings and your muse was just like "awww, i love you too. but not like that." maybe they stayed friends afterwards but it was never the same? or maybe they had a slow falling out?

podcast co-host. mostly true-crime and local haunts related. but i'm totally open to them having a separate podcast where they just talk about anything. personal lives, unfiltered drama.

next door neighbour !! arden moved out of out her parents house and into a cute & cozy apartment downtown a few years ago. would love a friends-type scenario.

BASICS

Full Name: Gianna Elizabeth Monroe

Nicknames: Gigi, Geeg, Gi

Age: 25 Years Old

Birthday: June 22, 2001

Sexual Orientation: Pansexual Baddie

Nationality: Caucasian

BACKGROUND

Place of Birth: Detroit, Michigan

Hometown: Cascade, California

Education: Graduated high school in 2019 and U Cas last year.

STATS

Gianna Elizabeth Monroe was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan as the eldest child of Jessica & Kyle Monroe on June 22, 2001.

Growing up, the household was always a pretty empty one with how busy her parents were due to Kyle being the mayor of Detroit since the mid 90s until right before covid hit and Jessica being a famous musician, similar to Stevie Nicks. Due to this, both Monroe children, Gigi and her siblings were always left with the nanny.

Due to this, Gigi started to see the nanny as more of her family than her own and to this day whenever she needs advice on boys, school drama, etc., their former nanny is always the one that she calls. Lowkey think how the Ross kids always went to Jessie for almost everything, making their parents jealous when they realized.

Due to her mom being a well-known musician, it was no surprise to many that the eldest Monroe child decided to follow in her mother's footsteps. Although due to her upbringing, she promised herself that if she were to ever have kids that they would always come first over her music. Voiceclaim wise, Gianna's voice claim is very much Kelly Clarkson pop vibes mixed with Carrie Underwood country vibes.

Before moving to Cascade, Gianna was struggling to make a name for herself back home as she tried to book gigs at multiple different dive bars with little to no luck and was getting yelled at by her parents for taking a gap year from university as she did this. It's one of the reasons as to why when she couldn't find shit, she decided to move as far away from her parents as she could and enrolled at U Cas to get her degree in music theory, as she tried her best to find more gigs here.

Lucky for her, she played one of her original songs at the U Cas theater her first few days at U Cas and the owner of the Blue Ox was there, watching their own kid performing. It was then after she had performed that they offered her a job as one of their newest musicians, but knowing that she won't be able to make ends meet with it, she also works part-time at Sirens.

basics.

full  name:  silas  rohan  sellier 

nicknames:  si  or  sy

date  of  birth:  november  18th,  1997 

birthplace:  point  pleasant,  west  virginia 

pronouns:  he/him 

orientation:  pansexual

religion:  tba

languages: english,  spanish

personality.

positive  traits:  curious,  warm,  imaginative,  perceptive,  enthusiastic

negative  traits:  nosy,  impulsive,  obsessive,  impractical,  suggestible

star  signs:  scorpio  ☼,  pisces  ↑,  aquarius  ☾

mbti:  enfp,  the  campaigner

enneagram:  7w6,  the  enthusiast

love  languages:  quality  time,  acts  of  service

desires:  to  make  something  of  his  own  preferably  without  disappointing  his  family,  have  people  take  his  ideas  seriously  even  when  those  ideas  involve  fog  and  questionable  business  models 

fears:  he's  quietly  scared  that  one  day  the  weirdness  will  stop  feeling  magical  and  start  feeling  like  a  gimmick,  which  would  be  devastating  for  both  his  soul  and  his  future  branding

interests:  local  legends,  old  movies,  bad  sci-fi,  changing  his  hair  colour  on  a  whim  (trust  that  every  time  you  see  him  it  will  probably  be  different),  night  drives,  stargazing,  thrift  stores,  amateur  photography,  roadside  diners,  gift  shop  rocks  and  postcards

inspo: ryan  bergara  (buzzfeed  unsolved  /  ghost  files),  wirt  (over  the  garden  wall),  dale  cooper  (twin  peaks),  robin  buckley  (stranger  things)

backstory.

triggers:  parental  death

before  cascade,  there  was  point  pleasant,  west  virginia,  and  a  family  that  was  probably  always  going  to  produce  at  least  one  little  freak  with  a  flashlight.  silas  was  the  younger  of  the  sellier  brothers,  which  suited  him  fine  when  he  was  small  because  being  the  baby  meant  he  could  ask  a  million  questions  and  someone  would  usually  answer  the  first  seven  before  getting  tired.  curious  to  a  fault,  always  poking  at  things,  always  wanting  to  know  what  made  people  believe  what  they  believed.  why  did  people  whisper  about  certain  stretches  of  woods?  why  did  every  town  have  at  least  one  road  you  were  not  supposed  to  take  after  dark,  and  why  would  anyone  tell  a  child  that  if  they  did  not  want  the  child  to  immediately  become  interested?  his  mother  never  made  him  feel  silly  for  it,  which  may  have  been  her  first  mistake.  while  his  father,  duke,  was  the  odd  one  with  volume,  always  dragging  the  boys  into  projects  that  almost  ended  with  somebody  needing  a  tetanus  shot.

then  his  mother  died,  and  the  house  did  not  fall  apart  so  much  as  tilt.  his  father  had  always  been  eccentric,  but  after  their  mother  passed,  he  coped  by  doing  the  most  duke  sellier  thing  available:  the  mothman  obsession  became  something  more  than  a  hobby.  it  was  not  that  he  stopped  being  a  father,  because  he  didn’t,  but  the  motel  and  the  whole  local  legend  of  it  all  became  this  place  for  his  sadness  to  go  when  there  was  nowhere  better  to  put  it.  he  moved  the  family  closer  to  the  woods  and  opened  a  mothman-themed  motel. silas  noticed  more  than  people  probably  thought  he  did  and  instead  of  pulling  away  from  it,  he  leaned  in  and  helped  with  guests,  listened  to  stories,  learned  which  details  made  tourists  lean  closer  and  which  ones  made  them  tip  better.  it  probably  didn't  help  that  silas  already  liked  the  weird  stuff.  ominous  woods,  old  alien  specials,  people  swearing  they  saw  something  with  glowing  eyes  by  the  treeline.  he  wasn't  completely  gullible,  but  he  was  interested  which  is  almost  worse.  by  high  school,  silas  had  already  accepted  he  was  going  to  be  the  guy  who  knew  too  much  about  local  hauntings  and  said  things  like  “statistically  speaking,  a  body  could  fit  in  there”  without  realizing  that  it  wasn't  a  normal  thing  to  say  out  loud

when  linus  moved  in,  silas  was  thrilled  in  a  way  he  tried  not  to  make  embarrassing  for  everyone  involved.  he  had  spent  his  whole  life  as  someone’s  younger  brother,  which  meant  being  corrected,  redirected,  protected  and  occasionally  shoved  out  of  the  way  for  his  own  safety,  so  having  a  younger  cousin  around  felt  like  a  promotion.  finally,  someone  he  could  guide.  someone  he  could  impress.  someone  who  might  look  at  him  and  think,  wow  …  silas  really  knows  what  he’s  doing.  this  lasted  maybe  a  week.  still,  he  loved  having  him  there.  the  house  felt  fuller  with  another  kid  in  it  and  the  woods  felt  less  haunted  by  what  was  missing.

school  was  school,  which  is  to  say  silas  was  friendly  enough  to  get  by  and  weird  enough  to  be  remembered.  by  the  time  he  was  old  enough  to  think  about  leaving,  he  already  knew  he  didn't  want  to  leave  the  family  business  behind  so  much  as  make  it  bigger.  his  dad  had  built  something  out  of  grief,  but  silas  wanted  to  believe  it  could  become  legacy.  maybe  that  sounds  too  grand  for  a  mothman  motel,  but  please  be  serious,  people  build  family  empires  out  of  worse!  eventually,  the  idea  of  taking  the  sellier  method  elsewhere  started  sounding  less  like  a  passing  thought  and  more  like  a  plan,  which  is  how  he  and  linus  ended  up  heading  west.

sawyer’s  end  was  meant  to  be  a  stepping  stone  and  has  instead  become  a  very  charming  trap.  ten  months  in,  he  is  still  in  tule  bay,  still  living  with  more  fog  than  any  person  reasonably  needs,  and  still  telling  himself  that  his  bigger  plan  is  simply  taking  time  to  reveal  itself.  the  bigfoot  thing  interested  him  immediately,  because  silas  has  never  been  the  type  to  pretend  he  is  too  cool  for  a  local  legend,  especially  not  one  with  that  many  witnesses  and  deeply  questionable  sketches  attached  to  it.  he's  having  a  wonderful  time,  which  is  probably  the  first  warning  sign.  curious,  helpful,  more  ambitious  than  he  looks  and  far  too  willing  to  treat  an  unsettling  noise  like  the  beginning  of  a  side  quest.  his  father  gave  him  the  mothman,  his  mother  gave  him  the  soft  place  that  made  wonder  feel  safe  and  cascade  has  unfortunately  given  him  a  whole  new  set  of  stories  to  stick  his  hands  into.  good  luck  getting  him  to  stop!

connections.

basics.

full  name:  clive  elmer  sebastian 

nicknames:  baz,  picked  up  in  high  school  and  dragged  all  the  way  into  adulthood.  depending  on  who  says  it,  it  can  be  fond,  insulting  or  both  at  once.  clive  is  mostly  reserved  for  family,  childhood  friends  and  anyone  who  knew  him  before  his  big  move  to  cascade,  definitely  more  personal

date  of  birth:  may  22nd,  1972 

birthplace:  portland,  oregon 

pronouns:  he/him 

orientation:  unlabelled  (probably  pan  or  poly) 

religion:  somewhere  between  polytheist  and  pantheist  (recognizing  a  pattern…)

languages: english,  spanish,  italian

personality.

positive  traits:  ambitious,  audacious,  gregarious,  munificent,  resilient

negative  traits:  hedonistic,  manipulative,  sanctimonious,  self-centered,  tactless

star  signs:  gemini  ☼,  libra  ↑,  gemini  ☾  #whatdatmean

mbti:  estj,  the  executive

enneagram:  3w4,  the  expert

love  languages:  words of affirmation,  gifts

desires:  to  feel  valuable,  admirable  and  successful.  equates  his  entire  self-worth  with  his  professional  success

fears:  regression,  irrelevance,  losing  the  room,  not  being  admired  once  he's  no  longer  impressive  enough  to  distract  from  how  awful  he  can  be.  also,  embarrassingly,  scary  things.  the  bigfoot  situation  gives  him  the  creeps  in  a  way  he  finds  deeply  undignified,  so  naturally  he's  decided  it  doesn't  exist

interests:  travelling  !!  whenever  time  allows,  experimenting  with  ingredients  and  films.  #cinephile  in  the  most  insufferable  way  where  three  stars  is  a  generous  rating.  he  also  has  a  thing  for  houses,  meaning  he  owns  a  few  properties  in  different  places,  rents  them  out  when  he  is  away  and  uses  them  whenever  he’s  passing  through  because  of  course  he  does

inspo: adam  jones  (burnt),  jay  gatsby  (the  great  gatsby),  tom  ripley  +  dickie  greenleaf  (the  talented  mr.  ripley)  and  maybe  a  little  don  draper

backstory.

triggers:  classism,  alcoholism,  infidelity,  parental  neglect,  s*icide  attempt,  hospitalization,  dysfunctional  family  dynamics.  (#damn…)

clive  sebastian  was  born  in  portland,  oregon,  the  middle  of  three  in  a  family  that  worked  hard  and  still  never  seemed  to  have  much  left  over.  he  wouldn't  call  his  childhood  tragic  because  it  wasn’t,  and  because  he  would  rather  die  than  sound  like  he  was  asking  for  pity.  his  father  worked  warehouse  shifts,  while  his  mother  picked  up  diner  work  whenever  she  could.  food  was  always  around  him  and  his  siblings,  only  it  came  more  through  staff  meals,  bruised  fruit,  diner  scraps  and  whatever  could  be  brought  home.  very  glamorous  origin  story  for  a  man  who  would  later  become  unbearable  about  tasting  notes.  he  was  not  starving,  but  he  knew  what  it  felt  like  to  be  the  kid  without  the  nicer  clothes  or  the  family  trips  other  people  talked  about.  getting  made  fun  of  for  it  did  not  make  him  humble,  obviously,  and  he  was  always  trying  to  get  ahead  of  the  joke  before  anyone  could  make  him  the  punchline.

being  the  middle  child  mostly  made  baz  allergic  to  being  overlooked.  no  one  ignored  him  but  he  hated  feeling  ordinary  in  a  house  where  everyone  already  had  their  role,  so  he  started  turning  himself  into  the  one  people  noticed.  charming  when  it  worked,  impossible  when  it  didn’t. by  high  school,  he  had  made  a  whole  personality  out  of  it.  charming,  competitive,  mouthy,  and  annoying  in  a  way  people  eventually  decided  was  entertaining.  he  started  working  at  a  small  restaurant  while  still  juggling  school which  started  as  a  money  thing  but,  the  kitchen  got  under  his  skin  quickly.  he  was  not  some  legendary  athlete,  but  he  was  good  enough  to  be  noticed. he  got  into  college  partly  through  baseball.  the  plan  was  something  sensible  like  business  or  hospitality,  while  cooking  stayed  the  job  that  paid  for  everything,  except  baz  is  baz  and  once  he  cared  about  something  too  much,  it  was  over  for  everyone  involved.  sorry  to  the  practical  degree,  you  were  never  making  it  out  alive.

he  met  his  wife  while  he  was  still  trying  to  become  someone.  she  knew  him  before  the  money,  before  sebastian’s.  she  saw  the  hungry,  messy  version  of  him  underneath  all  the  charm,  which  he  loved  at  first,  right  up  until  being  seen  started  feeling  a  little  too  close  to  being  held  accountable.  micah  came  along  in  his  final  year,  and  baz  had  no  idea  what  to  do  with  being  someone’s  father  at  first.  he  was  young,  broke,  scared  and  pretended  that  none  of  those  things  were  true,  then  she  was  there  and  suddenly  he  loved  her  in  a  way  that  caught  him  completely  off  guard.  his  first  real  achievement,  probably,  but  you  didn't  hear  that  from  me. he  really  did  try  to  be  a  good  father,  with  try  doing  a  lot  of  work  there.  he  showed  up  through  providing,  buying  things,  fixing  problems  and  making  sure  the  child  had  more  than  he  ever  did.  the  emotional  part  was  harder,  but  he  convinced  himself  that  giving  his  family  a  better  life  counted  for  most  of  it.  eventually,  he  and  his  wife  moved  to  cascade,  where  he  started  over  through  better  connections  and  bigger  plans.  sebastian’s  began  as  a  restaurant  and  slowly  became  proof  that  he  had  made  something  of  himself,  which  sounds  inspiring  until  you  remember  this  is  clive  sebastian.

his  wife  was  there  through  the  ugly  years  and  every  promise  that  it  would  all  pay  off  one  day.  then  it  actually  did  pay  off,  and  somehow  that  made  him  worse.  the  parties,  drinking  and  flirting  aka  networking,  were  easy  enough  for  him  to  excuse  as  part  of  the  job.  while  his  wife  was  home  with  his  daughter,  holding  the  actual  household  together,  he  was  out  convincing  himself  that  everything  he  did  was  for  them.  not  fully  a  lie,  but  not  fully  enough  either.  when  he  was  home,  he  could  be  affectionate,  but  he  was  also  distracted,  hungover  or  already  thinking  about  the  restaurant  again.  fights  became  flowers,  apologies  became  gifts  and  real  conversations  became  something  he  could  delay  as  long  as  money  kept  showing  up  #BIGPROVIDER  …  i  guess. she  tried  with  him  for  years,  first  with  patience,  then  honesty,  then  despair. 

things  between  them  had  been  getting  worse  for  a  while,  though  he  dealt  with  it  the  way  he  dealt  with  anything  he  could  not  charm,  control  or  pay  his  way  out  of.  after  her  attempt,  the  family  cracked  in  a  way  even  he  could  no  longer  dress  up  as  manageable.  it  scared  him  badly,  even  if  he  still  handled  it  in  the  baz  way,  by  trying  to  be  useful  after  already  being  too  late.  after  that,  his  relationship  with  his  wife  and  daughter  only  worsened,  especially  when  he  slipped  back  into  work  and  routine  instead  of  actually  dealing  with  it.  it  all  ended  eventually  and  she  left  cascade  to  stay  with  her  sister.  baz  let  himself  believe  the  distance  was  better  for  everyone  because  the  alternative  was  admitting  he  had  failed  at  the  one  thing  he  kept  claiming  all  of  this  was  for.

a  few  years  ago,  his  body  started  making  its  complaints  impossible  to  ignore.  a  night  of  too  much  drinking  turned  into  hospital  lights,  a  doctor  looking  entirely  too  unimpressed  with  him  and  a  very  pointed  conversation  about  habits,  stress  and  the  fact  that  he  was  not  thirty  anymore.  deeply  offensive,  honestly.  after  that,  he  started  trying  to  tone  it  down,  more  out  of  vanity  and  self-preservation  than  any  sudden  moral  awakening.  he  still  loves  pleasure,  attention,  control  and  being  admired  more  than  any  grown  man  should,  but  now  there's  at  least  some  awareness  that  he  cannot  keep  living  like  that.  still,  baz  has  the  career,  the  money,  the  name,  the  restaurant  and  all  the  proof  he  used  to  think  would  make  him  feel  secure.  naturally,  none  of  it  is  enough,  so  he  has  decided  another  michelin  star  will  fix  him.  surely.  definitely.

connections.

basics:

full name:  Winston Arthur Clarke

nicknames:  wyn

pronouns:  he/him

sexuality:  heterosexual

age:  35

date of birth:  december 27th

zodiac sign:  capricorn

occupation: candy maker at salty's

personality type: TBD

face claim: lakeith stanfield

backstory:

Born and raised in Cascade, Winston Clarke is just as much a part of the town as it is a part of him. He's lived every day of his life walking the streets, shopping the local markets, and getting to know the kooky people who call this place home. Staying in Cascade hadn't always been the plan for Wyn. As a teenager, he dreamed of moving to a bigger city for college and ultimately finding work as a mechanical engineer. He'd always loved taking things apart to see how they worked. Clocks, radios, computers... anything with moving parts, he was fascinated by. Winston graduated high school with good enough grades to get into the college of his choice, and at eighteen years old he finally set foot outside of Cascade for longer than a vacation.

Halfway through his freshman year, his father suffered a disabling stroke. Winston had always been close to his family, and he knew he couldn't let his mom and younger siblings go through this alone. So, he quietly left school to help support his family. He took as many odd jobs as he could manage without burning himself out. One of them being a dish washer and candy wrapper at Salty's, the local and beloved candy shop. Unfortunately, while alive, his dad was never the same, and the lives of the Clarke family revolved around making the head of their family as comfortable as possible.

At Salty's, what started as a job he'd only taken for the money, turned into a genuine passion. Winston discovered candy-making was engineering in disguise. The temperatures had to be exact, timing mattered down to the second, and every batch was a puzzle waiting to be solved. Over the years he became Salty's master confectioner, known for creating flavors inspired by Cascade itself. He came up with honey lavender taffy, cedar-smoked caramel, blackberry cream fudge, and a slew of other flavors that quickly became local favorites.

Because his entire life revolved around working and taking care of his family, Winston became a more reserved version of the outgoing kid he'd always been. He was constantly tired and didn't have the energy for going out and making friends. He tried to form meaningful relationships with people, but his family always came first so things didn't last.

A few weeks before Winston's 28th birthday, his father suffered another stroke that ultimately took his life. While truly devastated, the family knew that their beloved father and husband's suffering had ended. Despite no longer needing to take care of his disabled father, Winston knew he wouldn't leave Cascade. His mother was getting older and had just lost her husband of many decades. He promised that as long as she was still around, he would be too. Plus, Winston really enjoyed the work he was doing at Salty's. His greatest weakness is that he's always putting other people first. Years spent caring for his family taught him responsibility but also left him hesitant to chase his own dreams. And now, he's convinced himself that chasing dreams is meant to be done by people much younger than he is.

Vanessa Jean Gates was born on the 7th day of the honey-hazed month of July as the sky was rearranging itself into the auspicious sign of the crab, a Cancerian baby born a week past her mom's due date. Late to the party (literally, as people were still picking up firework remnants off the ground) but nonetheless very much loved, the first two years of her life were relatively idyllic. Strolls in the park, Sundays at Sutter’s Market with her mama, and playtime with her six year old brother who was curious about the baby alien interloper. The idyll didn’t last long as the house soon became an amphitheater for her parents’ shouting matches, weekly and constantly. By the time Nessa was ten, she was witnessing her mom packing her bags, a traumatic experience to this day unrivaled for her, her brother apathetic about it the way only teenagers can be. Left Care Of their unpredictable, alcoholic dad, life quickly went south before Aunt Jen thankfully stepped in to pick up the pieces. Things were never the same though, Nessa and Caleb both bearing the scars of their upbringing for years to come. 

Nessa’s anxieties about her home life manifested as perfectionism: excelling in ballet, dance, gymnastics. She began in gymnastics competitions, so good at it that coaches contemplated putting her on the Elite track — the path forward to the U.S. national team and even the Olympics. But something else caught her eye before that could pan out: the glint of bedazzled scrunchies and the swish of colorful pom poms. Cheer became the focal point of her life after gymnastics, starting in junior high and continuing on through high school. Participating in both competitive and game day cheers, her life was like a 2010’s edition of Bring It On. Taking on other extracurriculars as well as occasionally helping tutor kids for extra money, Nessa did not have a minute spare in her teens. She hit 5’0 at fourteen and never grew taller, much to her great irritation. But it came in handy in the sport of her choice and she became a skilled flyer, always front and center in home games, twirling through the air. Thanks to cheer, she felt truly free for the first time, and shined at it. It was a no brainer for the University of Cascade to accept her.

If Nessa was a love-her-or-hate-her personality in high school, in college she became a certified sweetheart and her star began to rise. Documenting her life on Cas U’s cheer squad, at home and away games with the Cryptids, Nessa became a minor local celebrity and collegiate sports fixture on tiktok and instagram. She even found ways to monetize this, taking on sponsorships that would come her way. For a brief while, you could see a billboard downtown with Nessa’s beaming face on it, advertising an electrolyte drink in four neon colors. Sports blogs were doing write-ups about her and a life in the limelight seemed very well within reach (think Livvy Dunne lol). Nessa enjoyed all of the fame, but a harassment incident at an away game in San Jose quickly put on a damper on that: she learned that fame came with a steep, bitter price.

Stepping back from social media and even cheer for a time, Nessa found college hard going. The academic side of things no longer interested her, but dropping out felt like admitting the ultimate failure. She took an academic break, which translated to mornings with her latte from Bigfoot Beans, notebook out, attempting to chart a new path forward. The money from her sponsorships and brand deals had dried up, once they realized Nessa would not return to posting. She got some designer rags out of it at least, paid off her car (a much beloved pink Thunderbird convertible named Rizzo), and the rest went to her dad’s debts or her brother’s medical school bills. She was back to working jobs in hospitality, a far cry from her life just six months ago. Sometimes, she can’t help but feel like something that slipped through the cracks; the family failure who let everybody down. 

Never a quitter, Nessa felt determined to find some kind of joy in her life again, the same joy she felt when on the competition mat, her body cutting through the air before snapping into a perfect double full. She found it by accident one booze-soaked night at a speakeasy with friends. A burlesque dancer eerily reminiscent of Rita Hayworth put her under a spell, and she began to see herself up on the stage before the woman's number was done. The art combined so many things she loved: dance, sparkly outfits, a bygone era escapism, fun and a little touch of ingenuity. Before long she was reading the Art of the Teese, collecting fabric scraps at the Sunday market, and plotting out her own little routine. 

Today, Nessa does her burlesque act on the side as her burlesque alter ego, May Cherry. It does not pay very much, so you’ll find her teaching kids ballet at Studio Jupiter, and behind the counter at Pink Elephant, advising customers which Tiffany lamp would look best in their living room. A far cry from that little girl who was once drowning in helplessness, she has taken her life into her own hands. And most days, it is pretty good. Could it be better? Sure. But she always hopes the future has something brighter in store. 

headcanons

mentally a little old lady, 24 going on 60: loves to be in bed by ten with a book, tucked in. crochets scarves for friends in her spare time, never misses a wordle.

has never tried a banana. the texture and smell repulse her too much.

her and miss maple are like this 🤞

spent a day on the set of the original Saw when she was little thanks to her mom's job at the time. has a photo of herself cheesing next to blood covered Leigh Whannell and Tobin Bell and it's one of her favorite possessions ever.

when she absolutely can't resist, she'll be found stalking her mom on facebook, admiring her glamorous life married to a wealthy man in arizona on a sprawling ranch.

has a separate instagram and personality for her burlesque, performing as May Cherry. she has a small following here, not even 10k. that's how she likes it though, since her past experience has taught her too much fame comes with a price.

patriotic to the point it's embarrassing. loves her country, thanks vets for their service, and genuinely thinks it is the best place on earth. well, maybe except for Paris, but she's never been there yet.

Betty Boop irl. do not ask her to do simple math, she will cry. 

obsessed with vintage cars and has some experience restoring them, just about the one thing her deadbeat dad ever taught her. when the car expo is in town, nessa always makes sure to attend.

new tattoo idea every week, but she's never been able to commit to one yet. belly button pierced since she was 14.

has a Bad Bunny votive candle she consults sometimes in times of need.

potential connections

feel free to establish one of these connections without asking me, unless marked otherwise! *=message to iron out details.

clients. Maybe your character or their child has a dance class with her.

high school friends. her fellow class of 2019's, or maybe they're a year younger or older. nessa had friends of all ages in HS.

university of cascade alums. she dropped out in her sophomore year, but she could have run into your character.

exes, hookups, other.* another serial monogamist perpetual romantic at heart, nessa has had a few of these.

burlesque fan. this would be an interesting connection to explore! perhaps they know her from seeing her perform and nothing else.

i knew you in another life. maybe they followed collegiate sports and remember her brief run as a Cas U cheerleader.

other. i'm open to more ideas!!! sky's the limit!

full  name:  lucy  josephine  russo.  nickname(s):  luce,  russo,  lucy jo.  age:  twenty  five  .  date  of  birth:  october  31st.  zodiac  sign:  scorpio.  birthplace:  chicago,  illinois.  current  residence:  cascade , ca.  gender:  cis  woman.  pronouns:  she/her.  sexuality:  unlabeled.  occupation:  record  store  sales  associate.

faceclaim:  sophie  thatcher.  height:  5’5”  .  eye  color:  blue.  hair  color/style:  dark brown hair,  long  with  a  shag  cut  with  curtain  bangs. scar(s):  one  above  her  eyebrow  and  upper  lip  from  a  car  accident.  tattoo(s):  one  grey  cat   on  her  left  wrist,  one  black  cat  on  her  right  wrist.  

alignment:  chaotic  good. positive  traits:  intelligent,  authentic,  reliable,  resilient.  negative  traits:  pessimistic,  cynical,  judgmental,  insecure. likes:  collecting  vinyls,  long  walks  in  the  cold,  skipping  rocks  at  the  pond,  indulging  in  cigarettes,  interior  decorating,  cats,  shakespeare,  difficult tasks,  ripping up old newspapers,  stargazing,  dancing  in  the  rain,  forehead  kisses. dislikes:  driving,  cracks  in  the  pavement,  people  who  interrupt,   country  music,  surface  level  conversations,  unscented  lipgloss. fears:  blood,  needles,  being  forgotten  about.   hobbies:  reading  shitty  romance  novels,  collecting  and  maintaining  vinyls,  working  at  the  record  store,  frequenting  bars,  analyzing  films,  thrifting,  indulging  in  coffee  and  croissants,  rolling  her  eyes,  painting,  puzzles. 

⋆⁺₊⋆ ━━━━⊱༒︎ • ༒︎⊰━━━━ ⋆⁺₊⋆

tw:  (parental)  death,  murder,  drugs,  negligence 

biography:  born  and  raised  in  chicago,  lucy  russo  never  understood  how  families  could  be  loving.  she  noticed  it  between  others,  a  longing  for  a  nurturing  environment  lingering  in  the  pit  of  her  stomach,  but  never  with  her  own  flesh  and  blood.  late  nights  spent  tucked  away  in  her  bedroom,  records  spinning  while  her  parents  argued  in  the  background.  plates  smashed,  complaints  from  neighbors  and  booming  voices  was  enough  for  lucy  to  learn  that  the  entirety  of  her  neighborhood  was  aware  of  her  parents  failing  marriage.  hanging  on  by  a  thread,  lucy  is  the  glue  that  holds  them  together,  thus  resulting  in  a  heart  torn  in  two.  instead  of  feeding  into  academic  pressure  or  the  need  to  be  perfect,  lucy  became  the  opposite.  she  caved  in  on  herself,  stowed  away  her  emotions  in  the  back  of  her  mind  between  deep  scars  from  her  childhood,  reminded  herself  over  how  cruel  and  cynical  the  world  could  be.  she  could  never  risk  love  or  happiness  knowing  what  the  future  held  for  her;  she  witnessed  it  every  day  at  the  hands  and  mouths  of  her  parents. 

the  reality  of  her  world  came  crashing  down  the  moment  her  mother  died  right  before  her  very  eyes,  inches  away,  the  young  girl  stuffed  in  a  closet.  a  break  in  to  her  house,  lucy  heard  her  mother  at  the  hands  of  a  gunshot  wound  to  the  head,  a  scene  that  lucy  had  to  hear  at  the  ripe  age  of  ten.  scarring  her  for  life.  leaving  her  without  her  mother,  and  her  father  never  returning  that  night.  an  act  of  child  neglect  led  lucy  to  her  aunt  and  uncle’s  home  on  the  north  side  of  chicago,  allowing  lucy  to  grow  up  with  a  handful  of  cousins  and  a  decent  life.  however,  she  never  truly  got  over  the  death  of  her  mother.  it  hung  in  the  air,  scratched  at  her  skin,  invited  her  to  overthink  about  the  outcome  of  trust.  years  of  therapy  hardly  healed  the  open  wounds,  every  year  seemingly  growing  harder  to  manage.  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  her  aunt  and  uncle  decided  to  tell  the  truth  regarding  her  father:  he  had  run  away  from  chicago  after  a  failed  drug  deal  in  which  he  forgot  to  pay  back  his  dealer.  the  result  ended  in  her  mother’s  death,  and  lucy  had  learned  of  the  foundation  of  her  parents  troubles.  a  hard  pill  to  swallow,  lucy  continued  to  shove  it  down,  distracting  herself. 

college  came  and  went,  her  heart  barely  in  it  as  she  learned  to  love  shakespeare  and  her  literature  classes,  graduating  with  a  major  in  english  literature.  lucy  worked  throughout  college,  cooped  up  in  a  record  store  down  the  street  from  campus,  surrounded  by  the  very  thing  she  loved  the  most:  music.  since  she  was  a  child,  it  was  the  only  thing  that  calmed  her  down.  brought  her  back  down  to  earth.  reminded  her  that  life  was  worth  something  if  music  was  around.  her  headphones  remained  in  at  all  times,  vinyls  spun  on  her  record  player,  music  blasted  through  the  speakers  at  work.  a  safe  space  curated  to  lucy  and  only  lucy:  that  was  until  her  aunt  and  uncle  had  told  her  news  of  her  father  potentially  being  in cascade ,  ca  while forget  her by  jeff  buckley  played  on  her  phone.  the  idea  of  knowing  her  father  was  still  out  there,  hiding  out  in  a  small  town,  only  made  lucy  want  to  search  for  him.  find  him.  approach  him.  kick  him.  hit  him.  unleash  every  and  all  emotions  onto  him. 

and  that’s  what  she  sought  out  to  do.  discover  a  new  place.  leave  behind  her  home  and  every  painful  memory  associated  with  it.  chase  after  a  father  who  wants  nothing  to  do  with  her.  dive  deep  into  california  just  to  see  if  she’d  even  catch  a  glimpse  of  her  father.  see  if  he’d  recognize  her  and  want  to  know  the  girl  he  left  behind  and  got  her  mother  killed  for.  the  move  to  cascade  had  been  easy:  nothing  but  lucy  and  her  chevy  cruze  packed  to  the  brim.  the  hardest  part  came  with  adjusting.  change.  city  life  to  a  calmer  lifestyle,  settling  her  roots  in  an  area  that  seemed  to  thrive  off  the  quiet  and  calm.  but,  lucy  would  suck  it  up.  she’d  do  anything  just  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  her  father. 

bold which habits your muse has