cw: deadbeat dad, relationship breakdown
[name_m]Kanoa[/name_m] [name_f]Ellen[/name_f] Penrhys (35) is Lisette’s best friend and a good friend of Ridgen. A single parent herself, the birth of Kanoa’s daughter was something she actually planned with her then-fiance, however things deteriorated when she was 7 months pregnant. Kanoa’s fiance began getting cold feet about the responsibility of parenting, having been offered a chance to pursue his career abroad, and he got into his head that bringing along a wife and child would place limitations on his opportunities.
Upon him revealing this, [name_m]Kanoa[/name_m] was furious. The pair got into a vicious row, which ended with their engagement dissolving and Kanoa’s ex moved back in with his parents in preparation for his career advancement. His total rejection of fatherhood was a shock to the then-27 year old though, as while they were in a bad spot, she never imagined he’d actually be able to ignore their daughter - an opinion she’s never been happy to have undermined. [name_m]Kanoa[/name_m] received a lot of support from [name_f]Lisette[/name_f] in the aftermath of this, as while financially she was stable and settled, the toll of the abandonment was devastating, in part as she felt she’d failed her daughter.
Last year, the two did have a proper conversation about the absence of Kanoa’s ex in their lives, and while her daughter handled it with strength, Kanoa’s talented at reading people, something that helps in her career as a psychiatric nurse. For someone who appears blunt on a surface level, she always has a great sense of humour, which is a defense mechanism she’s cultivated over the years to help protect her child. Of Polynesian heritage, Kanoa’s ensured her daughter always feels connected to her routes, choosing a first name to mirror her own in origin.