#kali rambles

Boyfriend Material: Hassan Richardson - Hassan was the first kiddo of gen 2 who's story that I told (over on insta), and even though he used to be extremely afraid of dating & intimacy and wasn't very confident and had poor mental health as a young kid/teen - he's grown into a handsome, charming, more confident young adult (and may have a s/o he's gonna bring to Harvestfest down the line 👀) And even though he's 19, he's still my little baby boy who I watched grow up in this story from an infant to a young adult, and I love him so much!

Expected to like you more: Destiny Jackson - Now I don’t dislike Destiny at all, and even though I literally introduced her to be the messiest friend for Eden, I went in with the intent to make her the friend who always kept it real with Eden, who was loyal to Eden always. And though she's still that friend, she's the friend who loves drama and I don't care for friends who love drama.

We could be besties: Amina and Skylar Richardson - I put the moms here because they're the ones who are raising my beloved Leyla & Hassan, and even though Amina is a lot more extroverted than me and Skylar is very uptight and rigid at times, I feel like I would vibe with them! Skylar, because we both are loners, and Amina because we both love to cook!

Love the attitudes: Zeke Dupont - Zeke, like Destiny, is a messy messy friend, but he's the realest friend in Leyla's friend group. He severely lacks a filter and always speaks his mind (to a fault), and I can't lie when I say I kinda like that about him lol.

Would watch all the edits at 3am: Leyla Richardson - I feel like this was a given to me. Babygirl is addicted to her phone (same girl) and has the worst sleep schedule (same girl), so she definitely belongs here lol.

Deserves Better: Eden Reynolds - Eden isn't perfect, but she's perfect to me and I feel horrible that she is getting wacked the most by my plotline simply because she's dealing with mess and drama from every angle in her life (Jada, her dad, CJ, her friends and even Leyla at times lol), and I wish I didn't give her character so much bullshit to deal with, but I do really love her and I feel like she deserves better than how the plot treats her (my fault, I know) but w/o spoilers, just know that she's gonna come out of this arc in a better place than she is now!

My gorgeous cutie pie: Eden - No explanation needed.

Comfort character: Leyla and Eden - They're both here because Leyla is such a fun and flawed and wonderful character to write and I love her with all of my heart. Eden is also here because she's also a complicated, complex character and she's very similar to me in a lot of ways. A somewhat quiet, introverted theatre kid, who loves cats, our alone time and the idea of romance. I just love them both so much! 🥹

Expected to like you less: Willow Tyler - Even though she is also another messy friend and initially had a crush on Leyla after meeting her... she's the sweeter, more understanding friend in Eden's circle. She's always there to uplift and encourage Eden and anytime she's in a scene, I find myself liking her a little bit more!

No one can make me hate you: CJ Asato - SORRY to all the CJ haters out there... but I love my little pipsqueak/menace to society lmao. CJ started off with the saddest backstory ever in my story and was first introduced (over on my insta) to challenge Leyla and her ideals as a kid: That she couldn't have more than one (1) friend and that Sophia didn't have to be her whole world. As kids, CJ was always there for Leyla when she needed them and has brought Leyla out of her comfort zone on countless occasions. And though CJ is very messy and annoying as a teenager now, I still really love them and always will feel protective over that little kid that I first introduced in the first part of Leyla's story. At the end of the day, I want them to be happy and feel like they still have a chance at redemption!

Underrated: Sophia Davis-Greene - Even though she is lowkey Leyla's enabler at times, she is the most down to earth and grounded friend in their friend group. She doesn't get much screentime, but she never wastes the screentime I give her! She always is there to stick up for what's right, she always tells Leyla exactly what she needs to hear, and she's the most solid, most loyal friend that Leyla has. I feel bad that she's not more central of a character cuz she's the best 🩷

No one can make me love you: Jada Carter and Emmanuel Reynolds - They are both here because they're a constant thorn in Eden's side. Jada is not only the reason Eden has major trust issues, but also the reason that Eden is both very excited but simultaneously terrified to be in a relationship with Leyla (but more excited, dw!). Emmanuel needs no explanation as to why he's here and even though he's literally only been in one (1) scene so far, he sucks. Period.

Girlfriend material: Kennedy Jones - Kennedy isn't afraid of going after what she wants, whether it's with romance, her friendships, her life and passions, etc. it doesn't matter. From the moment she met CJ; she wasn't afraid to express her attraction to them and was immediately determined to get to know them. I think that everyone deserves a partner/romantic interest that isn't afraid to say: "Hey, I like you and I'm going to pursue you and show you that I'm into you!" and that's Kennedy. She's stylish, cool, super pretty and super confident! 100% girlfriend material!

My baby: Leyla - Leyla is quite the flawed, ambitious, stubborn, dramatic character that I love with all my heart and soul. She is the heartbeat of my story and the reason I've been loving writing this story and generation for so long. She has grown so much and though she has wayyy more growing to do, she is my baby angel who's always trying her best to do the right thing (except following her moms rules lol).

Javi had never been heartless before. Never been cruel before. Now, as you pointedly hunched over your desk in an effort to ignore the chortles and cheap jokes that kept sounding from the men crowded around his desk as they all stood around a nameless note someone -you- had slipped onto his desk. 

He laughed boisterously with them, before crumpling the paper in his fist and dropping it into the bin next to his chair. You refused to so much as raise your head and look his way, feeling the crushing wave of heartbreak sweeping through you. It wasn’t until you felt a tear on your cheek that you realised that you had started crying, and so you muttered an excuse about getting some coffee before rushing to the bathroom and sobbing in a closed stall. So much for Valentine’s day. 

It wasn’t until the end of the day, when you saw him walking your way in the parking lot, that you met his eyes. And you could see, with the set of his jaw; the arch of his brows, that he knew. Before you could scramble into your car, he was yelling after you. 

“Is your new hobby being extended to everyone or did I win the lucky draw? Cute note.” 

Oh, that bastard. 

You scoffed, looking him straight in the eye. “Call it a moment of weakness, Peña. Thought I felt something for you, and it was Valentine’s day. Pretty sure all I feel now is rage, you asshole.” 

A laugh from him. “Don’t be like that, hermosa. Let me know if you feel something between your legs for me, alright?”

Scowling, you turned from him and got into your car. You could have sworn he looked like a kicked puppy as you pulled out of the parking. These past few weeks, you had caught him looking at you more often. Finding excuses to touch you more often, too. A hand on your back, fingers accidentally grazing yours, his knee pressed against your thigh in Murphy’s backseat. Fucking idiot. You didn’t even know if you were madder at him or yourself. You know him. All of fucking Bogota knows him. God knows how you were foolish enough to think he felt anything except for between his legs. 

A few months go by, excruciatingly slowly. It’s as if time itself has decided to fuck with you. You miss his gaze on you, his hands, his smile, him. You’ve been avoiding him like the plague. Stopped looking at him even when he was in the same room, hardly spoke to him even if it was in the middle of a raid, declined Connie’s many many invitations to parties you knew he’d be at. It was just easier to pretend that February the 14th had been a completely normal day. You’re just tired of all of it. It would have been easier not to have said anything at all. 

What you were completely unaware of, however, was that you had a sneaky little shit for a partner. The fact that he had clocked what was going on immediately was completely unbeknownst to you. Both of you pining silently with what Steve dubbed “moony heart eyes”, the radio silence, and the fact that you had stopped talking to Connie just so you didn’t have to show up to her parties? Something had gone wrong. Initially, Steve thought that maybe Javi had made an unwanted move on you - and had damn near scuffed him to death - until he saw Javi’s eyes the next day. Haunted. It seemed that you had managed to take more out of the man than Escobar had. But you weren’t faring much better, either. Irritated and tired and grumbly all the time, refusing to so much as look in Javi’s direction. But you both were pretty much just staying out of each other’s ways, not causing any trouble, so he let it go. For now. 

But then Steve and Javi had to chase a lead down together, and Javi introduced him to an informant who - with a little imagination - looked like your spitting image. The same hair, terrifying similar voice, and a lopsided grin, just like yours. And it clicked. The day that had started it all, and the “anonymous” note Javi had gotten. The idiocy with which you both had handled the situation made him want to run unarmed into a sicario’s den, but he came up with another idea instead. 

Just before a weekend he knew on good authority that you had no plans except for lounging in bed, he started nudging and hinting to Javi the randomest shit about you. Just to reignite the interest. Almost like, you know - bait. 

“Man, her hair looks good. I wonder if she got it done?”

“Hey Peña, d’ya reckon that’s a new skirt? Connie’d kill me if I didn’t ask where from”

“Javi - look - she got her nails done. Before an op? Doesn’t that get a bit…impractical? Hey, I’m jus’ asking.” 

Each time, Steve was met with an irritated eyeroll, scoff, or just flat-out ignored. But around midnight on Friday, he ‘bust out the big guns’, so to speak, making an offhanded comment while jutting his chin out in the direction of your chair. 

“Good thing she left early. Never woulda made it to the date tomorrow mornin’ otherwise.”

Which, instead of being met with the usual options, was met with Javi’s brain almost short circuiting. The sight of his friend, gaping like a fish as his eyes practically bulged out of his head while he stammered out the easiest one-syllable word in the English language is one Steve can never forget. Or let Javi forget, either. 

“W-wha-what?”

And so, like the most devious matchmaker on the planet, Steve proceeded to make up some utter bullshit about a boy he’d supposedly seen you around with, one that had apparently asked you out tonight to meet him for ‘brunch’ tomorrow. Just to fuck with Javi, he made the guy from LA, and a tourist. And white. And the kinda hippie who did yoga and spoke about his newly-discovered chakras all the time. 

Javier could feel the blind panic clawing at his chest, his heart threatening to burst. He didn’t know exactly why, but he had hated every single second you hadn’t spoken to him. Laughed at his jokes. Flashed him your smile, even the sarcastic one. He missed your quips and the way you groaned and swore at him when he pissed you off. He’d convinced himself he could live with that. But this? A date with some idiot he knew wouldn’t treat you right? He couldn’t understand his own feelings compelling him to pack up in a frenzy, ignore Steve’s pointed laugh, scramble into his car and drive straight to your apartment. He didn’t even stop to smooth his hair back, or fix the wrinkles in his shirt from slumping in it all day. No, all that mattered to him in that moment was you. Who was he kidding? He knew exactly why he felt the way he did. He’d just been under the illusion that ignoring it would make it go away, but it hadn’t. He had to fix this now. 

Standing on your doorstep, Javi blinked for a second while marveling at how fast that drive had been - he’d barely registered doing anything since he heard the word date come out of Steve’s mouth. Hesitation clamped a hand over his mouth, his body, and he stood frozen, unsure of whether to knock or just turn around. But if not now, never, right? And who knew how long he would live? Wasn’t this a time he should be getting what he wants, spending time with the people he…loves? 

Before he could overthink himself out of doing it, Javi raised his fist and rapped it against your door, twice. And when you opened the door, rubbing your eyes and standing there in your sleep shorts and an oversized shirt, it took a second for his brain to catch up. It wasn’t until you were squinting at him, then stumbling over nothing as your eyes widened that he realised where he was. The hurt on your face in the split second before you moved to close the door had him jamming his foot in the doorframe. 

“Just hear me out, hermosa. I promise if you want me to fuck off after that, I will.” 

After waiting for you to nod and open your door wordlessly, he stalked after you, further into your apartment, stunned by how homely it was. The walls had pictures of you and other people laughing, of art and paintings and sketches that seemed to all have been done by the same person; the sofa was a rich brown leather and the fluffy throw on it just a shade lighter. Everything was carefully coordinated, in color and texture, and he couldn’t help but note the contrast. Some of his stuff was still in boxes. He’d been in Colombia for longer than you, and his stuff was still in boxes. The difference was laughable. 

But when he heard a sniffle from ahead, he found himself walking faster - practically walking into you - before he was planting his hands on your shoulders to turn you around to him, and then gripping the sides of your arms as if they were his salvation. His eyes searched yours, and the heartbreak he found as you tried to look away threatened to make his knees buckle. So he hooked an index finger under your chin to tilt your head up to him, resting his forehead against yours. Moving his thumb to smooth out the furrow in your brow, he huffed at the stubborn frown that refused to budge. 

“I am sorry. I truly am. I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t know how to react. I want you, and I did then, too. But I just…didn’t think it was real. I swear I thought you were joking at first. It’s why I let the guys see. Then I saw you in the parking lot, and you were actually sad, and I just panicked. I just don’t think I was ready back then. But I swear to God, I can’t bear another six months of the cold shoulder. I love you, you know. I’ve just been too much of an idiot to realise it.” 

For a whole minute, you just stare at him unblinkingly. Then, suddenly, your face crumples, limbs slackening in his grip. He holds you through it, letting you sob into his chest as he coos reassurances and apologies to you until you pull back from his embrace to look at him questioningly once more. 

“Why now?” Your words make Javi smile, and he cocks a brow at you. 

“You really thought I’d let that idiot take you out before I told you how I feel?” 

You look even more confused now, which is confusing him in turn. 

“Wait, what idiot?” There’s no twinkle in your eye - no smirk tugging at your lips. Not a joke. 

“The one who…asked you out?” Javi cocks his head at you, watching your frown deepen. 

“Who?” The absolute befuddlement on your face is on the verge of making him snigger, and he feels his lips twitching already. 

“The-does Murphy know? That you weren’t busy tonight?” His overworked mind supplies the answer to him, and he has never more in his life wanted to punch and hug his other partner simultaneously. 

“Oh, yeah. He asked cause Connie wanted to know if she could come over? I guess she must have gotten caught- oh. Oh.” Javi gives you a moment to reach the same conclusion he did, and both of you end up bursting out in laughter at the same time. 

But Steve was the one with the biggest grin when, come Monday morning, a bottle of premium whiskey and a brand new watch sat on his desk with a little note: 

Well played, motherfucker. 

What is it they say about couples adopting each other’s habits when they get into a relationship? Javi’d picked up your so-called hobbies within a weekend. 

You ended up spending enough time with each other to pick up everything else, too. Call it cliché, but atleast you weren’t boring. Or, you know, going on dates with imaginary guys that existed only in Steve’s extremely limited imagination. Win-win. 

First of all, yes, I am aware that the Trivia section on Amity Park on the wiki says that Amity Park's name came directly from Amityville, New York.

I call bullshit.

Amityville is a village. It's got less than ten thousand people living in it, and it has nowhere near the skyline that we're shown on panoramic views of Amity Park. Amity Park's skyline has much more in common with the skyline of a medium sized city such as Anchorage, Alaska.

Amity park has large office buildings. It has a penitentiary for everything's sake! It has five newspapers. These are not features of small towns, and certainly not features of villages.

The american definition of a medium sized city, (which would make the skyline we see make sense,) is 75,000-500,000 people. If we average it out, we get a city of about 287,000 people. That's a lot of people. More than enough to justify a penitentiary, five newspapers, and several high schools (giving the football team at Casper High other schools to play against, rather than having to travel to other towns every game, or vice versa).

If we use Anchorage as our measuring stick, that means that Amity Park has an Under 18 demographic of around 24% (68,880 people) and 22 or so high schools. It *also* means that Amity Park could have a footprint of over or about 1000 square miles. Granted, it's in the middle of Illinois (according to fandom) so let's scale that back a bit.

Illinois' largest municipality is Chicago, with a footprint of about 227 square miles. Its smallest municipality is Irwin, at .045 square miles. Most of the mid-sized cities seem to have footprints of around 20 square miles, so let's go with that. 20 square miles.

Now.

Pariah Fucking Dark

Look. The dude is the Ghost King. He's supposed to be the Most Powerful Ghost. Pulling a mid-sized city into the GZ is fully within his capabilities, imo. If you look closely at the scene where you see Amity Park in the Ghost zone, you can faintly see larger buildings inside the shield, indicating that at the very least, Pariah pulled a large portion of the city into the GZ.

So how didn't this get noticed?

20 Square Miles of city just fucking vanishing?

Desiree.

At some point during or immediately after the Pariah Dark incident, someone wished that everyone could just 'forget the whole thing'.

And Lo, They Did.