#wp.intro

THREE POSITIVE TRAITS: Outgoing, funny, intelligent

THREE NEGATIVE TRAITS: immature, absent minded, unreliable 

Biography: tw: divorce, cancer

Matt grew up in Florida with his younger sister. He has a pretty normal childhood. He was close with his sister, who he was always over protective of. His mom was a dental hygienist and his father worked a boring office job and they fought constantly, but didn’t get a divorce until their kids were grown and out of college.

Matt was a smart kid, too smart for his own good. From a young age, he was bored and started acting out in class just to entertain himself. He was constantly getting in trouble in elementary school for trying to crack jokes and disrupting the class. He was labeled a problem child until the third grade when a teacher even considered that he wasn’t a dumb kid, he was just bored and couldn’t sit still. He ended up getting tested and being diagnosed with ADHD. After that, he was still the class clown, but at least he was able to sit still.

He excelled in high school, when he was finally able to take classes that challenged him enough to keep his brain occupied. And it was in his sophomore year honors english class that he met his first girlfriend. Despite Matt being the class clown that was friends with everyone, he was still awkward as hell when it came to girls. He asked her to go to the homecoming game with him, which was awkward and uncomfortable, considering neither of them knew anything about football, nor did they care about it. Thankfully, neither of them knew how to admit they didn’t want a second date, so they went on another one. This time it was to a bookstore, a place they were both comfortable in. What was only supposed to be an hour, turned into hours of them browsing the aisles of the bookstore, laughing and talking.

When it was time to go to college, Matt got into the University of Pennsylvania, with the plan to go premed. His girlfriend went to school in New York, and despite the fact that most high school couples didn’t make it past Thanksgiving break, the pair managed to make it work. It wasn’t uncommon for them to find the cheapest bus they could and see each other every few weekends, even if they spent the majority of the weekend studying together.

In college, Matt was a social butterfly, joining clubs and going out on weekends. He made friends everywhere he went, something that is still true today.

After graduating with honors, Matt took a year off to apply to medical school, and to focus on getting married to his high school sweetheart. They had a small wedding, promising each other they would have a bigger wedding to renew their vows once they both finished their schooling and had some money. Unfortunately their marriage didn’t last. Matt went to medical school in Massachusetts, and his wife wanted to stay in New York for grad school. They weren’t in a place where they could put their relationship first, unfortunately. And despite how much they loved each other, it wasn’t enough and they filed for divorce before their first anniversary.

Heartbroken from his divorce, he made his way through his first year of medical school. He was experiencing health issues, but he assumed it was stress from school and divorce, and told himself it would all clear up once his break rolled around. Unfortunately it didn’t and his sister forced him to go to a doctor to get checked out. After a whole slew of tests, he was diagnosed with lymphoma. As a result, he took a year off of medical school to undergo treatment and recover. Thankfully, he has been in remission ever since.

CHARACTER BASICS.

FULL NAME: Manon Alexstrasza Movska.

NICKNAME(S): Manny ( to those that she's close with ).

FACECLAIM: Olivia Cooke.

GENDER & PRONOUNS: Cis-female, she + her

AGE & BIRTHDAY: 32 & December 4th.

BIRTHPLACE: Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union ( now Saint Petersburg, Russia ).

OCCUPATION:  Soloist / Prima Ballerina at Joffery Ballet Company.

SEXUALITY: Pansexual ( female preference ).

RESIDENCE: The Loft District, The Ironworks Loft, Unit #10A.

SPOKEN LANGUAGES: Russian, English, French, Spanish, Italian ( conversationally ).

CHARACTER BUILDING.

THREE POSITIVE TRAITS: Passionate, Uninhibited, Resilient.

THREE NEGATIVE TRAITS: Recklessly Hedonistic, Restless, Defiantly Arrogant.

STORY.

Manon  Movska  was  born  in  the  swirling,  frostbitten  splendor  of  Leningrad,  Russian  SFSR,  Soviet  Union  —  before  the  city's  grand  transformation  into  Saint  Petersburg.  Raised  amidst  opulent  chandeliers  and  the  unrelenting  discipline  of  the  Mariinsky  Theatre,  she  was  the  daughter  of  privilege,  but  she  never  once  coasted  on  the  weight  of  her  family  name.  Ballet  was  not  just  her  inheritance;  it  was  her  obsession.  The  sacred  burn  of  muscle,  the  exhilaration  of  velocity,  the  whispered  ecstasy  of  a  perfect  arabesque  —  Manon  did  not  simply  dance,  she  devoured  movement.

She  was  beautiful  in  the  way  that  nightshade  is  mesmerizing,  or  poison  is  sweet.  Born  to  a  prominent  family  in  St.  Petersburg,  there  was  never  a  time  in  which  Manon  was  anything  but  lovely,  with  her  doe  eyes  and  intense  glances,  the  drape  of  furs  across  slim,  pale  shoulders.  There  were  the  dolls,  the  flowers,  the  dresses  of  silk  and  lace,  but  more  so  —  the  dance,  the  opera,  all  that  which  made  Russia  unique,  all  that  which  had  built  her  legacy.  Manon’s  early  life  was  a  series  of  quick  sketches,  days  spent  training  her  craft,  perfecting  her  physique  and  mind  to  morph  into  that  which  she  admired.  She  saw  Giselle  in  Chelyabinsk  when  she  was  five,  and  was  struck  by  the  fact  that  it  felt  just  like  a  fairytale:  something  refined,  elegant,  and  distant;  something  untouchable  —  and  she  wished  to  be  that  untouchable  figure  upon  the  stage,  a  ghost  of  impressions  and  techniques,  modern  goddess  of  blood  and  snow.  It  was  in  those  moments  of  decision  that  her  childhood  fled  from  her  before  it  had  even  begun  and  her  cheeks  lost  their  rosiness,  beginning  instead  to  frost  like  ice  —  like  a  girl  who  would  rise,  and  rise,  until  she  was  so  high  that  nothing  else  mattered.

Her  choices  pleased  her  parents.  Her  parents  tossed  their  heads  triumphantly  at  having  produced  such  a  wonderful  spirit,  calm  and  seemingly demure,  graceful  in  all  things.  Manon,  true  to  the  Movska  tradition,  did  not  ever  act  as  other  children  did:  there  was  never  an  instance  in  which  she  was  completely  ordinary.  To  be  a  dancer,  a  ballerina,   a  weaver  of  dreams,  one  must  sacrifice  all:  and  she  understood  the  word  well.  Sacrifice,  to  trade  one  valuable  thing  (  her  childhood  )  for  something  more  precious  (  her  ambitions  ).

She  endured  it  all  with  dignity,  a  degree  of  careful  humility  innate  only  to  the  best  ballerinas,  and  as  the  hours  of  dancing  alone  before  the  television  became  the  sole  priority  of  her  waking  hours,  her  parents  piled  their  wealth  behind  her,  an  initiative  for  greatness.  And  so  she  became  a  ballerina  in  training  attending  an  academy  for  the  most  gifted.  While  the  worker’s  children  ran  laughing  through  the  streets,  red  hats  and  black  shoes,  she  sat  in  the  backseat  of  her  father’s  chauffeured  cars,  watching  the  world  pass  by,  her  aching,  bleeding  feet  resting…  waiting  for  another  day  at  the  bars,  small  face  staring  into  her  own  eyes  in  the  mirror.  Arabesque,  plié,  grande  jeté  —  repeat  and  repeat,  until  perfection  shone  in  the  sweat  of  her  brow  and  the  bruises  on  her  feet.

Triumf,  malenkaya  koroleva.

From  the  moment  she  could  stand,  her  feet  were  shaped  into  exquisite  instruments  of  precision.  Every  morning  began  with  grueling  barre  exercises,  every  evening  ended  with  exhaustion,  her  young  limbs  trembling  with  both  torment  and  triumph.  Under  the  iron  tutelage  of  Russia’s  finest,  she  ascended  from  promising  student  to  prodigious  soloist,  her  talents  eclipsing  even  the  highest  expectations.  By  her  late  teens,  she  had  already  danced  across  the  great  stages  of  Europe,  moving  from  Moscow  to  Paris  to  Vienna,  her  name  murmured  in  hushed,  reverent  tones  among  ballet’s  elite.

Those  years  are  a  blur.  Every  great  dancer  remembers  most  vividly  not  the  pain,  but  the  glory,  and  when  she  was  picked  up  by  the  Mariinsky  Ballet  immediately  after  her  graceful  reign  at  Vaganova,  every  moment  of  blood,  sweat,  and  tears  was  worth  it.  One  year,  two  years,   five  years  —  she  was  a  prima  ballerina  of  the  world’s  greatest  stage;  half  queen  and  half  goddess,  fully  ethereal  in  her  allegros,  her  pirouettes.   She  commanded  the  stage  in  a  manner  that  very  few  had  ever  before;  bold  yet  delicate,  striking  yet  subtle  —  and  from  all  over  the  world  her  admirers  flocked,  to  see  her  another  time  on  that  imperial  stage  framed  in  gold  and  ash.  She  was  Juliette  dancing  to  die,  Odette  dancing  to  live,  every  dream  that  men and women  could  have  had,  she  could  capture  for  them  in  a  series  of  adagios.  And  so  she  did,  and  as  she  became  more  famous  and  more  beautiful,  her  ambition  only  grew,  and  grew,  until  she  believed  that  she  could  go  down  in  history  as  Russia’s  most  prolific  prima  ballerina.

Even  with  her  reign  at  the  Mariinsky  secure,  with  the  world  at  her  feet  and  Russia  singing  her  praises,  Manon  found  herself  restless.  She  had  danced  through  Moscow’s  grandeur,  twirled  beneath  the  Parisian  moon,  spun  through  Vienna’s  hallowed  halls,  and  yet,  it  was  not  enough.  She  craved  the  unknown,  the  thrill  of  fresh  audiences  and  untamed  stages.  Europe,  America  —  these  were  not  merely  destinations,  but  new  frontiers  of  adventure,  challenges  to  conquer,  theaters  to  command.  And  so,  when  the  opportunity  arose,  she  seized  it  with  the  hunger  of  an  artist  who  knew  that  even  the  most  glittering  cages  were  still  cages.  She  was  ready  to  set  the  world  ablaze  with  the  fire  of  her  movement.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE.

face claim: callum turner. hair color: dark brown. eye color: blue. height: 6'2". weight: 176 lbs. build: ruairi is fairly lanky as things go but he's recently taken to hitting the gym regularly and has managed, against all odds, to bulk up a bit. tattoos: he has a tattoo of a baby owlbear holding a d20― it's inspired by baldur's gate 3 and on the inside of his right bicep ( here ); he has a tattoo of his favorite character from baldur's gate 3 ( shadowheart ) on the back of his left calf ( here ); he has a legend of zelda themed tattoo on his left forearm ( here ). piercings: he has a helix piercing in his left ear that he got when he was seventeen and hardly remembers enough to think to remove it. he wears a basic silver ring there. distinguishing characteristics: the level of energy he has on any given day, his accent, the fact that he always seems to be in seven places at once in any conversation, his smile.

PERSONALITY.

label: the avid gamer. positive traits: adaptable, charming, clever, compassionate, empathetic, flirtatious, independent, methodical, passionate, persuasive, resourceful. negative traits: anxious, impatient, impulsive, mischievous, needy, obsessive, perfectionist, reckless sarcastic, self-deprecating, self-sabotaging, shy, stubborn. goals/desires: to continue to make games he can be proud of, to be a good father to his son, to fall in love again. fears: autophobia ( fear of being alone ). hobbies: playing video games, streaming on twitch, writing in his spare time, cooking, baking, building computers, learning new things, finding new games to play, playing dungeons & dragons with his friends, reading, spending time with his son, playing with his dog, programming, spending time with his friends, listening to music, playing guitar. he notoriously will try anything at least once and he's prone to doing some chaotic things if they look fun or interesting. quirks: he very nearly always talks with her hands to some extent when he’s speaking, he gets obscenely excited over animals of just about any sort, he always seems to have some kind of sweet on his person, he tends to look like he needs to sleep for the next three days even when he's full of energy. he always seems to have coffee or an energy drink with him ( his mother is very concerned for his kidneys ). likes: disney movies, cute people, flirting with said cute people, spending time with his friends and family, taking naps with his son and his dog, strong coffee, food of any kind, trying new things if his friends will try them with him, watching documentaries, watching foreign TV shows, watching anime, fantasy novels, queer romance novels, jigsaw puzzles, crafts of any sort ( knitting, especially ), video games of all sorts, finding new rpg style games to play, streaming, baking, going out with his friends, milkshakes ( he developed a love for them once he moved to the states ). dislikes: being bad at things on the first try, people who don’t listen, anyone who has something negative to say about his being a single parent, black licorice, the amount he throws himself into work sometimes, people who are unnecessarily rude, most hard liquor that isn't whiskey ( he'll legitimately fight someone if they make a joke about it, though ).

FAMILY.

father: ciarán macarthy. mother: maebh macarthy. sibling(s): eoghan macarthy ( older brother ), lorcan macarthy ( older brother ), conor macarthy ( younger brother ). pet(s): a three year old belgian malinois named jaina ( after his favorite world of warcraft character ). financial status: upper middle class.

BIOGRAPHY.

Born in Dublin, Ireland - the third of what would eventually total four Macarthy sons - Ruairi ( 'Rory' he'd stressed time and again throughout school, eager to help anyone who cared to listen understand how to make at least a passing effort at not butchering his name ) - was a rambunctious and energetic boy seemingly from the moment he knew enough about anything to get into trouble. And, as luck would have it, he had a particular knack for getting into trouble that was only matched by his apparent gift in talking himself right out of it. He was genuinely sweet when he interacted with most people and between his good manners and even better grades, well, it was difficult for his parents to find a reason to discipline him too severely for his boyish shenanigans.

Being nearly the youngest of his brothers certainly never seemed to help matters - though he wasn't lacking in attention by any means, Ruairi seemed determined to get that much more in any and every way he possibly could - whether that involved placing first in a science fair in primary school with a robot he'd built from scratch or getting in trouble for getting into fights with local boys for picking on his siblings mattered little in his eyes. Attention was attention. His parents disciplined him as best they could and hoped that he'd grow out of that particular habit as he got older and, much to their relief, he seemed to the moment he was ready to attend University. They hadn't quite expected him to follow so closely upon the heels of his brother Lorcan who'd enrolled at Trinity College two years before Ruairi himself darkened its doors.

University was a delight for someone as insatiably curious as Ruairi had always been and he delighted in every experience he could take in - his courses, making new friends, enjoying everything that being away from home had to offer. He had some measure of supervision if he decided he wanted to spend any significant time with his brother but thankfully, in his mind, the elder Macarthy wasn't one to ride him too hard about what he was getting up to. When his brother graduated and Ruairi found himself left up to his own devices more often than not he began to spend time with an exchange student who would eventually become his girlfriend - Margaret Rourke. She was American, in the same engineering courses as Ruairi and he was head over heels for her just as soon as they met.

It was a whirlwind romance in every imaginable way and Ruairi was determined to enjoy every possible second of it. Though, he thought, perhaps his enjoyment went too far afield when Maggie told him she was pregnant a few weeks after they'd celebrated their first anniversary together. Ruairi was equal parts terrified and determined to be a proper father for his child and stepped up in the way he did just about everything else - with laser focus and the utmost effort. The prospect of fatherhood seemed to settle him down even more and shortly before they graduated from University, Maggie gave birth to their son Fionn. Another year passed that involved raising Fionn with Maggie, nurturing their relationship and debating the merits of enrolling in graduate school - something Ruairi finally committed to when he agreed to move back to the United States with Maggie - to be nearer to her family in her hometown of Chicago, Illinois.

Living in the US was something of a novelty for Ruairi for at least two or three months but he was perfectly happy to balance raising their son, attending school, and working on developing an indie RPG video game with his best friend in his graduate program while he did so. Everything felt rather perfect and he made the quiet decision to buy Maggie an engagement ring as their second anniversary approached. As most things seemed to do when they felt all but perfect - they shattered in a fraction of a second when Maggie walked out on him and their son one night - explaining little more than the fact that she wasn't certain she wanted a family after all. Ruairi was heartbroken, to say the least, and tried his best to pick up the pieces and carry on as he always had. He couldn't very well fall apart when he had a child to look after and, much to his surprise, his ex-girlfriend's family still seemed more than happy to support him. When he finished his graduate program as class valedictorian he made sure to thank them first and foremost alongside his own family and his son.

APPEARANCE

Hair: Brunette with honey-blonde undertones, shoulder length

Eyes: Blue

Skin Tone: Fair

Height: 5"4

Weight: 115lbs

Dominant Hand: Right

Distinguishing Features: A cacophony of freckles across her skin

FAMILY

Mother: Ellen Lewis

Father: Adam Lewis

Sibling(s): Madison Lewis ( older sister )

RELATIONSHIPS

Partner: Jonah Montgomery ( fiancé )

Other: Liam Baker ( ex-husband )

A BRIEF BACKGROUND

(tw: illness, death, divorce, bullying, panic attacks / mental health struggles)

Mackenzie was born in Chicago as the youngest child and second daughter to Adam and Ellen Lewis

From a young age, was told she could be anything she wanted to be and do whatever she set her mind to

When she was five, her grandfather got sick and she was confused why he wasn't getting better despite the medicine he was being given. It was the moment that set off her pursuit of becoming a pharmaceutical biologist: to make a miracle medication that would eradicate terrible diseases

A nerdy kid, she often kept her head down and in her books, and would get teased for her interests and smarts, but otherwise left alone

In high school, a mean popular girl named Katelyn Sturges befriended her, after working on a school project together

Mackenzie thought her and Katelyn were good friends, and told her about her crush on popular boy Callum Gibson

Callum got in contact seemingly out of nowhere one night, and arranged a date with Mackenzie. However, he proceeded to stand her up

When back in school, she confronted him publicly, only to discover it was a cruel prank orchestrated by Katelyn for no other reason than because it was "fun"

It made Mackenzie crawl back into her shell, and determined to get as far away from her past as possible, enrolling in the University of Houston, Texas

She felt at one with her peers, until she met Liam Baker, who she thought was a stereotypical jock and class clown, and instantly disliked him

After he managed to become part of her study group however, they became close, and eventually fell in love, dating all the way through college

After graduation, Liam was told the tragic news of his sister's death, and moved back to his hometown, where Mackenzie joined him for moral support, finishing her master's online

She became his rock through his sister's death, his father's depression, and his brother skipping town, building a life in the small town despite missing city life

They got married at twenty six years old with close family in attendance and had desires of starting a family after realizing how much of her own she missed

Once Liam's brother came back home, and his dad was doing better, Mackenzie suggested they moved to Chicago, to which he enthusiastically agreed, working at an animal hospital whilst she completed her doctorate and became a research assistant

Their marriage seemed to not survive the move, for a multitude of reasons, and eventually got divorced

After a few years, Mackenzie met Jonah Montgomery, a tech guru from Silicon Valley. She was initially attracted to him for being as different to Liam in both looks and personality

After they got engaged, she found out there had been some issues with her and Liam's divorce paperwork and would have to re-sign

Kept putting it off until she and Jonah moved into the Willow Peak neighborhood to be closer to his offices, and stumbled upon Liam's vet clinic, realizing time was too late

If she was going to be divorced from the love of her life at thirty-six, Mackenzie is determined to do it properly, even if he's not ready to

FULL BIO

CHAPTER TWO     :         SOUNDTRACK .

01.         she's my religion — pale waves .         02.         god of wine — third eye blind .         03.         be kind — halsey .         04.         play destroy — poppy .         05.         mars — yungblud .        

CHAPTER THREE     :         STORY .

𝓲. vale  was  the  second  adopted  child  of  her  parents,  two  mothers  that  were  so  in  love  that  all  they  wanted  in  life  was  a  little  bundle  of  joy  to  complete  the  family.  her  brother  before  her  had  filled  her  parents’  lives  with  so  much  love,  but  that  little  sweet  thing  —  with  wide,  dark  eyes  and  freckles  across  her  nose  —  was  a  dream  come  true.  saying  that  she  was  cherished  was  an  understatement  ;  she  was  solid  gold  to  the  women  that  raised  her,  but  that  doesn’t  always  mean  the  best  for  a  child  that  wants  to  spread  her  wings,  to  explore,  to  find  a  place  in  the  world  that  feels  so  far  away  when  she  was  wrapped  in  cotton  wool.  𝓲𝓲. her  friends  were  allowed  to  play  out,  to  drink  ( so  long  as  they  were  safe ) ,  to  attend  parties  and  enjoy  their  youth,  but  vale  didn’t  know  any  of  that.  instead,  her  life  was  experienced  as  though  she  was  watching  through  a  window,  speaking  with  no  sound  coming  out.  chicago  was  painted  in  sepia  tones,  and  the  same  journeys  to  and  from  school,  and  then  to  work,  felt  as  though  she  was  in  her  own  version  of  groundhog  day.  the  same  postboxes,  the  same  crack  in  the  concrete,  the  same  crossings  that  never  seemed  to  turn  green.  when  her  parents  suggested  looking  at  colleges,  she  jumped  at  the  chance  ;  not  only  could  she  study  something  she  was  passionate  in,  but  she  could  break  away.  there  was  only  one  problem.  vale  wasn’t  passionate  about  much  at  all.  𝓲𝓲𝓲. and  so  she  applied  to  the  university  of  chicago.  she  took  up  a  few  minor  classes,  but  was  never  able  to  find  something  that  truly  stuck  —  a  student  home  in  willow  peak  was  the  only  reassurance  that  she  had  made  the  right  decision  when  she  started  unpacking  her  life,  from  a  cardboard  box.  every  night  was  spent  on  facetime  to  her  family  back  home,  and  vale  had  to  grin  and  lie  through  her  teeth  in  order  to  convince  them  that  things  were  going  okay,  that  she  was  loving  her  studies,  her  journey  to  become  a  doctor,  or  a  veterinarian,  or  a  lawyer  …  whatever  she  could  pull  out  of  her  imagination.  none  of  it  felt  truly  right.  when  she  could,  she  took  the  first  job  that  seemed  to  be  hiring  lonely,  clueless,  inexperienced  college  attendees  ;  morning  glory. 𝓲𝒗. that  was  it.  the  smell  of  freshly  roasted  beans  in  the  morning,  the  swirl  of  baking  pastries  that  enticed  even  the  hardest  shelled  businessmen.  vale  learned  on  the  job  quickly,  and  was  soon  inscribing  everything  you  could  think  of  onto  the  top  of  cappuccinos  —  hearts,  fruits,  little  animal  faces  —  all  to  brighten  the  days  of  the  regulars.  she  started  experimenting  with  flavours,  mixing  syrups  and  researching  different  roasts  online  from  ecuador  and  europe  and  the  deepest  depths  of  the  world.  whatever  had  captured  her  was  more  than  just  caffeine.  it  was  the  opportunity  to  speak  to  people  every  day,  to  exist  in  the  world  of  another  for  just  one  second,  to  learn  of  the  greatness  of  the  real  world,  the  color,  the  joy.  𝒗. vale  deferred  her  place  at  the  university  and,  although  she  continues  to  insist  that  she’s  going  to  go  back,  some  day,  the  reality  seems  to  be  slipping  further  and  further  out  of  her  grasp.  instead,  coffee  cups  fill  it,  and  she  spends  most  of  her  time  on  shift  at  morning  glory  speaking  to  the  regulars  or  trying  to  coax  newcomers  to  try  the  updated  house  blends.  the  real  world  still  feels  big,  scary,  unfamiliar  but,  now  that  she  is  settled  in  willow  peak,  there  is  an  abundance  of  opportunity  to  explore,  latte  in  hand.

CHAPTER FOUR     :         CONNECTIONS .

CHAPTER TWO     :         SOUNDTRACK .

01.         jumper — third eye blind .         02.         the noose — a perfect circle .         03.         eat your young — hozier .         04.         seven devils — florence + the machine .         05.         halo — boston manor .        

CHAPTER THREE     :         STORY .

𝓲. as  a  first  born  son,  there  are  certain  responsibilities  to  uphold.  as  a  first  born  catholic  son,  calahan's  expectations  were  tenfold.  from  a  young  age,  the  eldest  macarthy  brother  was  backed  into  a  corner.  he  would  stay  in  line  even  if  he  felt  like  his  back  was  breaking,  in  order  to  keep  a  smile  on  their  mother's  face,  to  earn  a  pat  on  the  back  from  the  pastor  and  some  new  clothes  for  his  sunday  best.  the  slow  dissolve  of  communion  wafers  on  his  tongue  was  a  reminder  that  jesus  was  a  force  that  was  inescapable,  that  had  penetrated  his  body  like  a  sickness.  𝓲𝓲. in  spite  of  his  desires,  calahan  stayed  in  line.  he  took  his  brothers  to  school  and  church,  he  prayed  and  studied  hard  and  kept  his  head  down,  and  by  all  accounts  grew  into  the  perfect  catholic  boy.  but  soon  he  was  watching  lorcan  attend  university,  then  ruairi,  and  it  became  clear  to  him  that  he  was  stuck.  watching  his  little  brothers  find  freedom,  love,  and  even  bringing  beautiful  boys  of  their  own  into  the  world only  intensified  that  heaviness.  a  sick  feeling  somewhere  between  pride,  envy  and  regret.  it  was  no  longer  enough  to  stay  at  home  and  help  their  mother  with  the  chores,  or  to  spend  time  with  the  pastor  learning  the  ropes  in  the  hope  that,  someday,  he  would  wear  his  own  stiff - collar  and  stand  at  the  pulpit.  there  was  more  out  there,  and  all  calahan  had  to  do  was  reach  out  and  touch  it — that  was,  if  he  could  muster  the  courage  to  do  so.  𝓲𝓲𝓲. ireland  was  home,  but  it  had  grown  as  stagnant  as  a  motionless  pond,  and  so — to  make  the  decision  more  palatable  for  maebh — calahan  used  the  excuse  of  his  younger  brother  to  break  free.  he  had  to  support  ruairi,  he  insisted,  to  move  over  to  chicago  and  offer  a  helping  hand  with  fionn,  keeping  his  sibling  on  his  feet.  of  course,  ruairi  didn't  need  any  of  that,  but  it  was  beyond  their  mother's  knowledge.  as  far  as  maebh  maccarthy  knew,  her  boys  were  thick  as  thieves,  an  unbreakable  blood  bond  that  led  calahan  to  drop  everything  in  a  selfless  act,  pack  his  things,  and  leave  the  world  he  knew  behind.  illinois  awaited.  life  awaited.  𝓲𝒗. there  is  still  a  knife  in  his  heart  from  leaving  their  family  behind.  there  is  a  meaninglessness  that  follows  calahan  around  like  a  cloud  tethered  to  his  head;  the  remains  of  his  irish  lilt  serves  as  a  permanent  reminder  of  how  different  he  is.  he  was  meant  to  support  ruairi,  to  be  a  shoulder  for  his  brother  to  cry  on,  to  be  an  immovable  pillar  in  the  lives  of  his  siblings.  instead,  at  times,  it  feels  as  though  the  younger  of  the  pair  is  the  one  that  has  things  figured  out,  that  knows  the  ropes  and  can  offer  a  steady  hand.  𝒗. a  comfortable  loan  from  their  parents  meant  that  calahan  was  able  to  purchase  sharkey's from their  previous  owner.  calahan  has  every  intention  of  injecting  some  charm  into  the  dive ;  the  low,  orange-cast  lights  and  sticky  bar  tops  hold  a  certain  reputation,  but  the  eldest  maccarthy  has  great  plans  to  turn  the  bar  into  something  that  satisfies  old  punters  and  new  blood  alike.  whenever  he  sees  a  crucifix,  or  a  portrait  of  jesus,  or  rosary  beads  at  a  market  stall,  a  needle  of  ice  shoots  down  his  spine  and  he  remembers  that  part  of  himself  that  he  forcibly  severed.  there  is  a  circling  reminder  in  his  head,  an  ode  to  never  returning — god  loves  you,  but  not  enough  to  save  you.

CHAPTER FOUR     :         CONNECTIONS .

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

face claim: william moseley. hair color: blond. eye color: blue. height: 5′10″. weight: 170 lbs. build: fit. tattoos: he has sleeve tattoos on each arm - though each arm has an individual theme ( here ) ( here ) & the initials ‘LB’ on the inside of his left ring finger in honor of his late fiancé.  piercings: he has his nose pierced on the right side ( he usually wears a silver hoop there ).  distinguishing characteristics: the moments when he’s genuinely outgoing, his penchant for flirting with every pretty person he meets even if he’s not thinking about it, the fact that he’ll rattle off swears in any foreign language he knows when he’s having a bad day and doesn’t do much to contain it.  

PERSONALITY

label: the tortured artist. positive traits: capable, clever, compassionate, considerate, creative, curious, daring, dedicated, earnest, empathetic, generous, independent, loyal, observant, passionate, protective, reliable, selfless, warm.  negative traits: competitive, irreverent, sarcastic, self-conscious. aloof, anxious, crude, haughty, hedonistic, impulsive, timid.  goals/desires: to make art he’ll be remembered for long after he’s gone, to find a way to be happy again, to find love again ( even if that’s something he rarely admits to himself ). fears: autophobia ( fear of being alone ). hobbies: going for walks, people watching for art references, sketching, playing with his cat, taking naps in the sun, playing video games, reading, listening to music, playing piano, painting, learning new things, teaching himself how to use photoshop, practicing new art styles, listening to podcasts, pestering his sisters, tracking down interesting documentaries to watch, collecting old records and piano sheet music, doing anything that involves working with his hands.  quirks: when he’s having a crisis he'll almost always talk himself through it out loud even if it occasionally makes people look at him like he's a little odd, he remembers people’s names and faces after meeting them even if he only interacted with them for a few seconds, he has a working knowledge of current popular children’s shows because of his nieces and nephews, he gives the contacts in his phone their names in scots.  likes: whiskey ( he doesn’t drink anymore but it was his favorite when he did ), cute girls, cute boys, sci-fi films, historical dramas, most foreign films, bob ross, trivia shows, horror movies, compliments from cute folks, his sisters, being an uncle, the anonymity of living in big cities, getting new tattoos, making friends, making someone laugh, jazz, classical piano pieces, his cat, indiana jones movies.    dislikes: people who treat him with kid gloves because of his life experiences, relapsing, people who don’t take him seriously, blueberries, most sports, bigots, having to deal with loud noises and crowds for an excessive period of time, feeling like he's hurt someone, making mistakes of any kind, being referred to as 'crazy' because of his mental health diagnosis. 

FAMILY

father: colin faulkner. mother: moira faulkner ( née darrow ). sibling(s): tallulah, aileen, catriona & ainsley. pet(s): he has a six month old blue maine coon named indy.  financial status: upper middle class.

BIOGRAPHY

( TW: mentions of death, drug & alcohol abuse, rehab )

In a small, cozy neighborhood in Edinburgh– Colin Faulkner and Moira Darrow met, for the first time either of them could remember, on a rainy afternoon when they were five years old. Their parents had been friends since long before either of the children had even been a thought in anyone’s mind and it seemed only natural that Colin and Moira would follow in the footsteps of their parents where friendship was concerned. Though it had been expected it seemed to take no time at all for them to become the best of friends and throughout their childhoods and well into their teenage years they were joined at the hip. It was no real surprise to anyone when they began to date or when they got engaged and it was no surprise but an incredible delight to their families when they got married shortly after they both moved to London to attend university– each of them hell bent on becoming physicians. From the moment they enrolled at university their lives seemed to progress at a breakneck pace— they finished university with top marks, Moira had their eldest daughter nine months after their graduation and still managed to juggle being a mother and attending medical school.

When their third son was born the ever-growing Faulkner family packed up their belongings in London and moved to New York where Colin had been offered a promising position and Moira’s very own offer seemed poised to follow shortly thereafter. It was during their first summer in the United States that their son— Charles— was born and the delight his birth brought to both his parents and his sisters could not be measured in any way. He was a perpetually rambunctious child - curious almost to a fault and quick to learn things he hadn’t known sometimes only hours previous. He began walking and talking far more quickly than any of his sisters had and even as a child his parents were aware that he would go on to do incredible things— even if his route towards some of those things might cause no shortage of headaches for those around him. For his part Charlie– as he much preferred to be called– delighted in getting into everything he possibly could for the sake of what his mother often called his ‘little adventures’.

Charlie’s little adventures were often conducted with his best friends at his side— Levi Blum and Katie Marsden— children who lived in his neighborhood who Charlie met shortly after they moved to New York and got to know given the fact that they were the same age and attended the same school. It was no surprise to anyone at all that they did nearly everything together and when they were fourteen and Charlie quietly admitted to his parents that he was almost certain he was in love with Levi– well, his parents– who had been able to see the adoration in their son’s eyes long before he seemed to understand it himself– weren’t surprised and wholeheartedly supported Charlie being happy above all other things. With his parents’ support bolstering his courage it took Charlie only a week or two following his coming out to make whatever feelings he could articulate known to his best friend. He considered it the happiest day of his life when they began to date– a day that was only eclipsed by Levi accepting his proposal when they were eighteen and planning to move to California for college.

As far as Charlie was concerned his life was absolutely perfect— he was attending art school as he’d always wanted, he was living with his fiancé with their best friend only a few blocks away because none of them had been able to attend college without one another. It remained perfect until the end of their junior year at UCLA when Charlie received a call from a local hospital that gave him the worst news he’d ever imagined receiving in his life: Levi had been involved in a violent mugging when he was walking home from a lecture and by the time he had arrived at the hospital it had been too late to save him. Charlie was crushed— devastated seemed a better word for it. He only managed to continue his course work for another two weeks before he dropped out of school entirely– turning to drinking in a quantity he’d never embraced prior and drugs in a way he’d never even thought of in his life. Ultimately it was Katie who pulled him out of it– Katie who encouraged him to get help: to check himself into rehab, to attend therapy and a variety of other things that– a year and a half later made Charlie feel almost himself again.

Leyla Polat and Ahmet Demir were two people who weren’t cut out to reproduce, but one chilly night in November, they were given their only daughter, Emira. Her mother was a socialite and her father was a high-powered lawyer. On paper, they were the perfect family. Behind closed doors told a different story, and Leyla and Ahmet were the proof that sexual chemistry wasn’t a good basis for a marriage. They divorced when Emira was four and their custody battle was messy. Leyla had full custody and Ahmet all too happily paid alimony and child support. Their custody arrangement entailed every other weekend and every other holiday, but Ahmet never had time for his daughter. Any time spent together was a photo op or to prove he was a ‘family’ man.

The only time Emira ever had Ahmet’s attention was when she did something he wanted or achieved something that reflected well on him. When she was accepted into some of the country’s top universities from prep school, it was the first time he gave her options. And despite all of her anger towards him, having his attention and approval had felt…good. Emira graduated at the top of her class from Yale with honors and she had her pick of law schools, from Harvard to Stanford. She had a near perfect LSAT score, but she ultimately selected Stanford University. She picked criminal defense as her specialty and it was there that her life took another hard turn, this time for the better. With her grades, family’s name, and strategic, chess-like mind, she had her pick of internships and potential jobs in any law firm she came across.