#jadenigel

THE FLATMATES AU 📦 An AMBITION universe created by Maggie and Ellie ( @jadenigel )

Sure, a performing arts high school sounds like a wild ride... but for anyone who has been to university -- any university -- they know that college is a rollercoaster all its own. That is the magic, misery, and mischief that attending Adams University will inevitably bring, no singing, dancing, or performing hallucinations required. And as anyone who has survived a housing situation knows, nothing can make or break your life experience more than who you get stuck living with for any stretch of time... put more simply, who your roommates might be (or your FLATMATES, as the kiwis and Brits say across the pond).

The rule of thumb is true as ever for Jade Beamon and Riley Matthews, both unassuming gals who find themselves sharing space with an interesting collection of characters (and their equally colorful cast of friends). All seven residents of suite 314 have their work cut out for them, facing challenges and adventures that range from coursework to chores-work to connections platonic or romantic... that is, if they can make it through the semester first!

To my dear pal Ellie: though it wasn’t my initial plan to make a gift for you as well this SS, I am so pleased I got the chance to! You mentioned on your list at the very bottom that you were open to “AU,” and I figured what better way to meet that suggestion than by bringing back a beloved AU we created together that is just begging to be resurrected... while sharing some fun music along the way! I love you so much friend, please enjoy this sonic journey through the world of FLATMATES... and perhaps it’ll give us the inspiration to jump back in come 2022! 💖🎀

Below, meet the seven residents of suite 314 by exploring a handful of the music you might hear when passing by their room... and bop along to the full Flatmates Aesthetic here! ✨

Jade Beamon ( 314, Room 1A ) 🎶 || Jade is the everyman who takes us into the world of suite 314, and suffice to say she is just trying to keep her head above water. Getting into the competitive and creative-intensive design program at Adams University was no easy feat, and she is determined not to mess it up. Still, she doesn’t want to entirely miss out on the social scene of her new school and even her new flat... even if she doesn’t totally get the vibes of some of her new flatmates. Do we need to have friends over every single day (Dylan)? On the flip side, isn’t it kind of rude to never come out of your room (Charlie)? And where the hell even is her own roommate, Maya Hart, who never seems to be around? Then there’s Nigel, the cute acting major who lives just across the suite... but no, no, Jade can’t get distracted. Friendship is just fine. Who has time for crushes, anyway...

Riley Matthews ( 314, Room 2A ) 🎶 || For Riley, university is going to be her fresh start. She wasn’t very popular in high school -- okay, she wasn’t popular at all -- but nobody knows her here at Adams, and she’s determined to spread her wings and blossom into the social butterfly she knows she can be. If that means that she has to be the one bringing everyone together, so be it... though might be easier said than done, since her flat is a bizarre amalgamation of personalities. Trying to win over her own roommate, Isadora, might be a challenge, since they seem blunt and busy and maybe far cooler than her... and she has to avoid getting spooked and sidetracked by Isa’s good friend, LJ, who is equal parts intimidating and unbelievably attractive.

Isadora De La Cruz ( 314, Room 2B ) 🎶 || Whatever socializing suitemate bullshit Riley and Dylan keep peddling, Isa doesn’t have time for it. They’ve got things to do, films to storyboard, stages to manage, and wasting any precious time trying to “bond” as a flat just seems like a waste of time considering a third of them seem to never be around, and the rest of them are so different, Isa doesn’t see how they could come together. Bonding with Riley seems hard enough, since she’s sweet and optimistic and had to have been the most popular girl in school wherever she came from. So what if part of it is that Isa has never been very good at making friends... whatever. They don’t care. It’s fine.

Dylan Orlando ( 314, Room 3A ) 🎶 || How the hell does Dylan Orlando already have friends? Seriously, he’s barely been here six hours, and already he’s bringing around new friends (some dudes named Dave and Nate -- loud dudes, Isa and Jade care to note) while the rest of the flat is still unpacking. He seems nice enough, social and friendly and keen to talk any time. About anything. But no one can seem to figure out what he’s studying -- even himself. And what’s the point of trying to be his friend when he clearly already has plenty to spare? Surely, he’s not worried about getting left behind... although Jade better watch out, because Dylan does appear to be strangely not busy and hanging around any time her new friend from design Asher comes around to study...

Nigel Chey ( 314, Room 3B ) 🎶 || If there’s one thing Nigel might have in common with Isa, it’s that he, too, is determined to focus on academics. He got into the prestigious acting program, and that’s his dream, so he isn’t going to let anything affect his chances to get everything out of the school he can. He has to be especially careful, since he’s on scholarship, and one misstep might send everything crumbling down... that makes rooming with Dylan Orlando tricky, because it’s nearly impossible to study lines and dig into plays when all his roommate wants to do is talk. He’s nice, and everything, but how is Nigel supposed to get anything done? Guess he’ll just go seek refuge in Jade’s room... she always lets him hang in there, she’s a good study partner, and Maya is never around anyway... he’s certainly not just ending up in there with her for any other reason...

Charlie Gardner ( 314, Room 4 ) 🎶 || If you saw Charlie, no you didn’t. Some of the flatmate friends don’t even believe he exists. It was no mistake that Charlie ended up with the single room -- it was a strategic survival instinct, because it gives him the perfect place to study and the best place to hide. It’s not that he doesn’t want to make friends, especially considering college is the first place he’s planning not to hide his sexuality, but how does anyone socialize and not make a complete embarrassment of themselves? I mean, he’s an education major. What’s he supposed to talk about? Lesson plans? No one wants to casually talk about English literature. And it’s a miracle if Charlie can even speak at all half the time, let alone when everyone else in his suite seems to be perfectly sociable and talkative and have it all under control. Who needs his input anyway... and God forbid they bring friends over, or even worse, cute friends, like Nigel’s new friend Zay... no, no, it’s better to hunker down and hide. No one probably even notices he’s gone.

LOL i would love to see it... everyone sound off in the replies (or reblogs or asks whatever tickles ur fancy) if you got Emotional this go around... ellie i know you said you teared up 3 times which is none too shabby

i will share that in writing the episode, i was most emotional writing two of the performances (the last part of the aaa setlist and the CRJ number). for the last part of the setlist, it just felt very powerful bc it felt like this culmination of appreciation for the a class and all they’ve achieved in the last three seasons, like it very much felt like a moment of acknowledging their growth -- tho i’ll say what surprised me in how much i enjoyed writing it was the first song in their set, that just came together flawlessly somehow. then with the CRJ sequence... i just really really love it. i love the growth it represents for that character, i love the visual aesthetic, i love the free feeling of it... in both cases it’s just so much about reaching these places that maybe we never thought we’d get to, and i’m so proud of these characters and how far they’ve come.

and while i managed to write all of that without spoilers, SPOILER ALERT for 308: the actual scene that made me the most emotional objectively was when riley met grace + the subsequent rl scene in the car afterwards. second / tie goes to the zc one in the diner (y’all know if you kno)

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Hey, it's absolutely no bother no need to apologize!

Hi! Yes, it can be a bit confusing. Basically, German primary school is age 6 to 10 (grade 1 to 4), and secondary school is age 11 to 18 (grade 5 to grade 12/13, depending on the state). “Secondary school” is split into Mittelstufe and Oberstufe, which is comparable to American middle school and high school, but it’s all part of the same physical school building.

When Ava said she was in the same class as the instas for 4 years, I assume she meant grade 5 to 9, or age 11 to 15. Then in grade 10, when she was 15 or 16, she went to Alaska for a year.

At the start of s5, they all began “Oberstufe”, which is the German term for the last two years of high school (so grade 11 and 12, or age 16 to 18). It might seem like they were starting a new school because Ava had only just returned from Alaska, and none of the girls really knew each other well. I think they said Josh was new to the school that year too? But basically they’re all still going to the same school as before, they just have more or different exams and a different class structure etc, to prepare for graduation.

I believe the Cashqueens, Josh, Yara, etc are all 16 or 17 years old right now. Zoe is 18 because she had to repeat a year, and I’m honestly not sure how old the instas are (but probably around 16 or 17 too). They’re all in the same year (grade 11), and are going to graduate high school in the summer of 2022, or in one and a half years.

YOU ARE WELCOME! sorry about the delay on answering this like a whole ep later LOL but i’m very glad you enjoyed it and are enjoying the season!!!