Lesley Maria Ward (15) is the next door neighbor of the Bentons. She is smart, generous, shy, and compassionate. She lives in the neighborhood with her mother and her two sisters, who are 19 and 13. Her dad left when she was 5. She is in 10th grade, and attends the same high school as Flynn Benton (18), who is graduating soon, and Austin Benton (15).
She has only a few friends, so she spends her free time doing crossword puzzles and playing lacrosse. She has also recently taken an interest in journaling her day to day experiences in her diary, so that she can remember her teenage when she is older.
She is currently in a relationship with Evie Umbridge, who is one year older than her. Lesley isn’t quite sure of her sexuality, yet, although, she know she has some sort of attraction to girls, and Evie is completely open and accepting of this.
Evangelia ‘Evie’ Corrine Umbridge (15) is Tasia and Illyria’s sister. Evie’s favourite thing is climbing, be it rocks or trees, with parkour being something she’s recently also began trying out. She’s bubbly, energetic and a little scatterbrained sometimes, always hosting sleepovers - and sometimes commandeering the tree house for privacy. Most mornings, Evie tries to go for a run with the family’s younger dog, Ferdie - a whippet, so she feels less bad about the biscuits she always buys at school.
[name_f]Suzanne[/name_f] [name_f]Lynda[/name_f] [name_m]Benton[/name_m] [née Flannigan] (52) is the mother of [name_m]Flynn[/name_m], [name_m]Austin[/name_m], and [name_f]Sabrina[/name_f]. She knows [name_u]Lesley[/name_u] by being her neighbour and knows [name_f]Sabrina[/name_f] treats her like a big sister along with [name_u]Austin[/name_u] [name_u]Flynn[/name_u] going to her school. In addition, she is the first daughter of [name_f]Beulah[/name_f] and [name_u]Walter[/name_u] and the aunt of her brother’s children [name_m]Ozzy[/name_m], [name_f]Eliana[/name_f], and [name_f]Kira[/name_f] and her sister’s children [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] and [name_m]Nick[/name_m]. Despite being the oldest of the three siblings, she was the last to marry and last to have her first child [name_u]Flynn[/name_u], who is the fourth grandchild of [name_f]Beulah[/name_f] and [name_u]Walter[/name_u]. In addition, she is jealous and finds it “untraditional” that her younger sister (also her youngest sibling) was the first to marry and have children and that she moved to Manchester with them. She is the most traditionalist of her siblings and family.
While she is apprehensive about stuff she believes isn’t “traditional”, she is an open and caring person, protecting her family from hate even if it is religion-based. She knows [name_u]Lesley[/name_u] is attracted to girls and knows [name_f]Eliana[/name_f] is trans and supports them both but does not know [name_u]Flynn[/name_u] is pansexual or that [name_u]Austin[/name_u]’s girlfriend [name_f]Rosie[/name_f] is transgender. She respects her family and wishes them the best and while she believes [name_u]Flynn[/name_u] can get too caught up in daydreams, she has a secret of her own she hasn’t told her family or friends - she thinks her Christianity has taken over too much of her life and secretly wishes nobody else would let it take over their lives. She has bonded closer with [name_u]Lesley[/name_u]‘s family because she feels they would be the ones best understanding.
[name_m]Frederick[/name_m] [name_u]Sonny[/name_u] [name_m]Benton[/name_m] (53) is the Father of [name_u]Flynn[/name_u], [name_u]Austin[/name_u] and [name_f]Sabrina[/name_f]. He is closest with [name_u]Flynn[/name_u], seeing as they both play guitar, [name_m]Fred[/name_m] is [name_u]Christian[/name_u], but not deeply religious. He is into sport and a healthy lifestyle.
[name_f]Gwyneth[/name_f] [name_f]Ava[/name_f] “Gwen” [name_m]Benton[/name_m] (20) is Fred’s niece. She’s an aspiring bartender and currently lives with her girlfriend. Her mother hates that she’s going into a field like this, but [name_f]Gwen[/name_f] kind of doesn’t care.
Bianca Marie Diaz (20) is Gwen’s girlfriend. She is bisexual and had a baby boy with her ex boyfriend. Gwen is a great stepmom to her son, and Bianca and Gwen want to get pregnant together in the future.
[name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] [name_f]Reena[/name_f] [name_m]Piers[/name_m] (27) is a co-worker of [name_f]Bianca[/name_f], older sister of [name_m]Nick[/name_m]. She was already an adult and moved out at the time her family moved to Manchester and she decided not to go with them. She is a niece of [name_f]Suzanne[/name_f] and [name_u]Fred[/name_u] and she and [name_f]Gwen[/name_f] feel like cousins but are technically not blood-related since [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] is only blood-related to [name_f]Suzanne[/name_f] and [name_f]Gwen[/name_f] is only blood-related to [name_u]Fred[/name_u].
[name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] and [name_f]Bianca[/name_f] are both co-workers at a local small business boutique. However [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] is pregnant and about to go on maternity leave. Like [name_f]Bianca[/name_f], she is also bisexual and has also broken up with the baby’s father. She learned a lot about pregnancy from [name_f]Bianca[/name_f] and takes maternity classes. [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] has expressed interest in girls but is not romantically attracted to [name_f]Gwen[/name_f] or [name_f]Bianca[/name_f] and would rather date someone her own age who is single. Unlike her ex-boyfriend, who cheated on her with a 20-year-old woman who was in a relationship with someone else…
[name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] was born with a heart defect that no one else in her family had. When she was just a week old, she had her first heart surgery. She has had three other heart surgeries and some blood transfusions to treat the condition until she got a heart transplant from her deceased maternal cousin [name_m]Ozzy[/name_m] in late 2017. She has lived a much healthier life and hasn’t had any complications since, but fears she may pass it down to her unborn baby. Her foetus’s heart appears fine on ultrasounds and has a 90% chance of not having the defect, but [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] is still scared about the possible 10%. [name_f]Bianca[/name_f] and [name_f]Gwen[/name_f] have helped her through her worries, much like [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f]'s other co-workers at the boutique.
Etta Valerie Corazon Piers is now three years old, and her mama Vivienne couldn’t be happier. Etta’s heart did have a minor defect, but she pushed through every time things got tough, just like her name suggests: Valerie means brave/strong and Corazon means heart in Spanish. At her birthday party, Etta shows all of the guests her homemade fairy houses around the yard and tells vibrant, compelling stories about each of them. She loves meeting new people, singing at the top of her lungs, and cooking/baking.
[name_f]Savannah[/name_f] " Sav " [name_u]Sage[/name_u] [name_m]Pierce[/name_m] (24) is a co-worker of [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] and [name_f]Bianca[/name_f]. She’s not related by blood to [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f], but offered to babysit once for her and now is a doting pseudo-aunt to Vivienne’s daughter, [name_f]Etta[/name_f].
Sav graduated with a degree in [name_m]Art[/name_m] [name_m]History[/name_m] and Visual [name_m]Art[/name_m], and is working on putting an exhibition soon. To make ends meet, however, she’s working at the boutique. She doesn’t hate her job, per se, she just wishes she was doing something else. Life at the boutique has been turbulent recently, as Sav was the one who caught Vivienne’s ex cheating and told her out of good will.
She lives with her girlfriend and her girlfriend’s sister, also she’s almost a hundred percent sure that her girlfriend’s sister has a crush on her. Sav also has a pet white cat named [name_u]Winter[/name_u], who loves her very much.
[name_f]Naomi[/name_f] [name_f]Rebecca[/name_f] [name_m]Fischer[/name_m] (26) is Sav’s girlfriend. They met in college, where they took some of the same art classes (and went out for coffee a lot). [name_f]Naomi[/name_f] works as a freelance photographer and can’t wait to see Sav’s exhibition one day. She is also very protective of her younger sister, who is living with them after some big argument with their parents, which her sister won’t open up about.
[name_f]Amelia[/name_f] " [name_f]Mia[/name_f] " [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] [name_m]Fischer[/name_m] (20) is Naomi’s younger sister who’s practically a ghost in the house right now. Unbeknownst to her sister and Sav, the origins of the explosive argument are the fact that [name_f]Mia[/name_f] is in fact pregnant and has dropped out of college due to the ongoing stress, angering her parents who were furious at their daughter for being ‘irresponsible and thoughtless’. [name_f]Mia[/name_f] is terrified of what’s going to happen next and although she has a plan to get back in their parents good graces, it hinges on [name_f]Naomi[/name_f] and Sav who she doesn’t want to hurt.
The father of Mia’s baby - who’s made it clear he won’t be involved in their life - has a striking resemblance to Sav, and she’s considering asking if they’ll adopt the child and pass it off as their own. The problem? [name_f]Mia[/name_f] doesn’t honestly want to give away her child, never mind bring two people she dearly loves into this mess and lie so Mr and Mrs [name_m]Fischer[/name_m] can exist in a narrow minded world. Only her best friend knows what’s going on and is trying to give her advice, which [name_f]Mia[/name_f] deeply appreciates, even if she’s still in turmoil.
[name_f]Genevieve[/name_f] " [name_f]Genna[/name_f] " [name_f]Alice[/name_f] [name_u]Wilson[/name_u] (20) is Mia’s best friend and in the middle of the pregnancy crisis. [name_f]Genna[/name_f] didn’t care that [name_f]Mia[/name_f] was pregnant— what [name_f]Genna[/name_f] was concerned about was who the hell was the father that shirked off all responsibility like he had no involvement in the pregnancy. It was later found out that Genna’s cousin, [name_u]William[/name_u], was the one who impregnated her best friend, and she’s tempted to use it as leverage so at least [name_f]Mia[/name_f] can weasel child support out of him.
In the meantime, though, [name_f]Genna[/name_f] makes sure to give [name_f]Mia[/name_f] the undivided support that she needs. Mia’s parents were of absolutely no help, so she’s going to make sure that [name_f]Mia[/name_f] comes out relatively alright after this. Recently, though, Genna’s realised that she might have feelings for [name_f]Mia[/name_f], which will further complicate things.
Bailey Xiomara Fischer (10 months) is Mia’s daughter. She has a close-knit, loving family at home made up of her mother, her aunt Naomi and her now-wife Sav, and Mia’s best friend and maybe future partner Genna, who doesn’t live there but comes over almost every day. It has been a bumpy road since Mia revealed her pregnancy and discussed all the different options with Sav and Naomi (and tried to make amends with their parents; they’re still working on that). Mia decided to keep Bailey rather than have Naomi and Sav adopt her. They agreed, and now they all raise Bailey together.
This little bean loves to laugh and make mischief, especially if it means chasing Winter the cat. She likes playing with books rather than having them read to her, and she loves to make art with her food instead of eating it. Perhaps she’ll take after her aunts someday. She’s already starred in a couple of photo shoots, and a few paintings for Sav’s upcoming exhibition!
Asher Isaiah (newborn) is Bianca’s baby boy. He loves his mama and will definitely be a mama’s boy when he gets older. He’s a very peaceful baby and only cries when he is hungry or sleepy.
Wendy Giovanna Vasquez (67) is the owner of the boutique where Sav, Vivienne, and Bianca work. She adores the babies Asher and Bailey and buys them plenty of clothes and toys and even helped her carpenter husband build cribs for them.
Wendy is a curious, adventurous soul, but in a quiet way. She changed her major four times in college and has tried every job she ever grew interested in, so her skills include poetry, biology, architecture, carpentry, hiking, gourmet cooking, wind-surfing, cross-country skiing, accounting, plumbing, volcanology, and finally, fashion design. She makes about half of the products in her boutique by herself, and the other half come from people in the community. If someone were to ask her, she would say her biggest flaw is not being able to keep still. She always has to have her hands or mind busy, and she loves learning new things and connecting with other humans–or animals. She has five pets, all rescues, and she plans to adopt even more.
[name_f]Catalina[/name_f] " [name_f]Cat[/name_f] " [name_f]Isabel[/name_f] Vasquez (17) is the granddaughter of [name_f]Wendy[/name_f]. She’s acquaintances with Sav, [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f], and [name_f]Bianca[/name_f] through her grandmother, although their connection ends right about there.
[name_f]Cat[/name_f] is a varsity soccer player and aspiring theatre major, loving the feeling on stage and the way storytelling moves people. It seems that she’s inherited her grandmother’s pursuit of knowledge, because she’s extremely good at time management and making time for everything she wants to do. A recent hobby [name_f]Cat[/name_f] has picked up is crocheting, and she’s made a lot of sweaters for friends and family.
Usually Cat’s good at avoiding trouble, but she just caught her best friend kissing someone that’s not his girlfriend— and she doesn’t know what to do about it.
[name_f]Selene[/name_f] [name_f]Isabela[/name_f] Vasquez (16) is the younger sister of [name_f]Cat[/name_f], and granddaughter of [name_f]Wendy[/name_f]. Her and [name_f]Cat[/name_f] have one older sister, [name_u]Mal[/name_u] and two younger brothers [name_m]Jacques[/name_m] and [name_u]Idris[/name_u]. She is a perfectionist, a little bit of a control freak and loves to play basketball due to her tallness. She is a content creator and likes to post instagram photos a lot.
[name_m]Jacques[/name_m] [name_m]Nathan[/name_m] Vasquez (14) is the second-youngest sibling of their family. He is someone who works very hard in school but is a C student, something he greatly despises and hates that he doesn’t always pass tests even when he studies. He sometimes doesn’t get along with [name_f]Selene[/name_f] because he feels she is “too good” and feels he will never live up to her but also admires her skill in basketball and content creating and knows she puts valuable effort in what she does rather than simply being “born perfect”. He knows she faces the pressure of perfection, something he faces as well but doesn’t do as well as she does. [name_m]Jacques[/name_m] hates people who are effortlessly goody-two-shoes and lucky in everything and finds them very obnoxious. He feels people don’t take him seriously and is glad not to be the youngest sibling but also hopes [name_u]Idris[/name_u] doesn’t deal with that same pressure anytime. He also agrees [name_f]Cat[/name_f] and [name_u]Mal[/name_u] are also very talented and great at their hobbies and likes that both of them contribute their skills to their friends as well.
[name_f]Lilly[/name_f] Xinyuan Zhou (17) lives down the road from [name_m]Jacques[/name_m], [name_f]Selene[/name_f], and [name_f]Cat[/name_f]. She is also a member of Cat’s friend group. [name_f]Lilly[/name_f] heard from [name_f]Cat[/name_f] herself about the kissing, which made her lose a lot of respect for [name_u]Julian[/name_u], the boy who did it. [name_u]Julian[/name_u] always made a fuss about being loyal to one’s significant other, only to find out that he’s a giant hypocrite.
[name_f]Lilly[/name_f] doesn’t do any sports— opting for more sedentary work such as working on the school literary magazine. The magazine, titled Stained Ink, is her pride and joy: she’s editor-in-chief and strives for the best work to be printed within it.
She lives with her older sister and younger brother. She has a pet cat named [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f] whom she got from a shelter. [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f] is actually a boy, but the name stuck.
[name_f]Malorie[/name_f] ‘Mal’ [name_f]Jasmina[/name_f] Vasquez (21) is the eldest of the Vasquez bunch. She has formed a sisterly friendship with [name_f]Lilly[/name_f] and often hangs out with [name_f]Cat[/name_f] and her. [name_u]Mal[/name_u] and the youngest brother, [name_u]Idris[/name_u], are very alike, but hate do admit it. [name_u]Mal[/name_u] is trustworthy and quiet, yet with a passion for drama and attends the Jennings-McGill school for art (Credit: @kidpix21) [name_u]Mal[/name_u] is in a long-term relationship with [name_u]Joe[/name_u], a non-binary person who is in teacher training and is known as ‘Mx Hayes’ to her students.
Idris Matteo Vasquez (12) is the youngest sibling in the Vasquez family. People constantly say he looks younger than he is, so he’s always looking for a way to impress people–or prank them; whatever suits his fancy. For example, he has soaked up all the drama about Cat catching her friend Julian cheating on his girlfriend, and since no one is doing anything about it, he’s busy concocting a plan to reveal “how much Julian sucks”, as he puts it, to the entire school.
