[name_f]Jessamine[/name_f] ‘Jess’ [name_f]Helena[/name_f] [name_f]Sommers[/name_f] (5) is the second eldest of [name_f]Victoria[/name_f] and Shanti’s children, the consumate girly girl who loves nothing more than pretty dresses, flower fairies and playing pretend princess games. One of her uncle’s jokingly calls her ‘Lulu’s Lieutenant’ as [name_u]Jess[/name_u] is very much happy being a follower to her bold big sister, having quite a shy demeanor around most people and is very much most content with those she knows well. When in environments she’s more comfortable in, she’s very sweet, openly affectionate and has a great imagination, making up stories to entertain the other kids in the family with ease.
Cooking doesn’t interest [name_u]Jess[/name_u] as much as eating treats does, so when her closest companion’s busy with these tasks she tends to preoccupy herself reading or drawing. She’s excelling with the latter and her comprehension is noted as being high for her age, something [name_u]Jess[/name_u] takes a lot of pride in, although it doesn’t stop her from loving having [name_f]Shanti[/name_f] read to her as she thinks her mom’s the absolute best at capturing the characters with her special ‘voices’ for them all. [name_u]Jess[/name_u] has a best friend who lives on the same street as her family and recently has started having proper sleepovers with them: something she initially found scary but now absolutely loves.
[name_u]Kirby[/name_u] [name_u]Rain[/name_u] [name_f]Sommers[/name_f] (3) is the only son of the [name_f]Sommers[/name_f]. He is born in the summer and often pet-named “[name_u]Sonny[/name_u] [name_f]Sommers[/name_f]” by family and friends of [name_f]Victoria[/name_f] and [name_f]Shanti[/name_f] for being the only son of the couple and for its connection to sunny summers, a nickname he enjoys because he finds being the only boy is “so cool” and that he says “he needs to be the only one” although he still prefers to be called by his name.
He is a fan of games with small toys like jacks and he loves building with Legos. He is just learning how to play “Hide and Seek” but is already somewhat of a cheater, locking himself in the bathroom every game so people can’t open the door and find him. After getting trapped in the bathroom because he forgot how to unlock the bathroom door, he stopped cheating, much to everyone’s delight and now there is a house rule that people can’t lock themselves to hide. He is very ecstatic and loves daycare and also enjoys playing with his siblings and seeing his cousins.
[name_u]Dione[/name_u] [name_f]Sara[/name_f] Jenwith (17) is the main babysitter of the Sommers’ children when their mom’s are having a date night. Living on the same street as the family made [name_u]Dione[/name_u] a prime choice when compared with her experience in looking after children, having began her mini-business when she was just 15 and wanting to earn some extra money. Thanks to her experiences working, [name_u]Dione[/name_u] knows she wants to study child development or psychology with an intention on entering the world of therapy: inspired by being adopted herself. She doesn’t know much about her birth family but admittedly doesn’t want to, feeling it’ll only cause more trauma and confusion on top of the fact [name_u]Dione[/name_u] struggled to settle when she was first taken in by her parents, fearing she’d once more be returned to the foster care system.
Now a level-headed, kindhearted young woman, Dione’s got a lot of patience and understanding when it comes to the children she looks after - having a firm-but-fair approach if she needs to send someone to bed or put them on time out. At school she’s fairly popular and has a large network of friends, belonging to the Debate Club and enjoys travelling to participate in competitions, even if she isn’t the most win-focused person. Currently [name_u]Dione[/name_u] does have a boyfriend but they’re still quite casual and in the early stages of a relationship, with her not wanting anything to be too intense given her aspirations and busy schedule. She’s focused on getting her drivers license as soon as possible too, hoping to further her babysitting opportunities with added mobility.
Daniel Patrick “Dan” Jenwith (19) is Dione’s adopted brother. He was adopted by the Jenwith’s as an 8-year-old, and he loves his adopted family very much, including Dione, although they do fight sometimes. He is smart, shy, and compassionate. He is currently attending his freshman year of college, where is majoring in chemistry and French. He has been able to make friends with his college roommate, who has been pretty kind to Dan, despite his shyness.
Dan identifies as bisexual, and is currently dating a girl who goes to his college. Outside of college, he likes yoga. He also owns a YouTube channel, where he critiques movies.
[name_f]Clara[/name_f] [name_f]Estella[/name_f] Barillas (19) is Dan’s girlfriend, who met him through the college they’re both attending. She’s a trans woman who came out just under four years ago and has faced some turbulence in the wake of being open about her gender identity, namely from her paternal family who are extremely conservative and disapprove of anything unconventional. This caused a lot of stress and shame for [name_f]Clara[/name_f] who felt her dad was being forced to choose between his parents and her, in spite of him doing his best to reassure [name_f]Clara[/name_f] this decision was his to make and as his daughter, she’ll always come first. Having been raised in Los [name_u]Angeles[/name_u], campus seems positively quite, but it’s a change she’s happy to have experienced, enjoying the simpler environment where she goes for coffee at the same cosy shops and hangs out in neatly trimmed parks with her group of friends. When given a choice, Clara’s favourite place to go on dates with [name_m]Dan[/name_m] is the local museums and art galleries as she enjoys hearing his thoughts on the works there, knowing it’s also a good means of helping him practice for the videos on his channel (which she watches consistently, but hasn’t properly introduced her friends to as she knows her boyfriend would feel uncomfortable).
She’s majoring in [name_m]History[/name_m] and has a love of international matters, specifically [name_u]Peru[/name_u] where her father’s from, and [name_f]Bolivia[/name_f] where her mother grew up. Cultural heritage means a great deal to [name_f]Clara[/name_f] and she’s always eager to introduce it to others, cooking lots of [name_u]South[/name_u] American dishes for her flatmates - although she tames the spice down a little for one of them, in spite of being an open chilli addict. Clara’s favourite pastimes are making jewelry and watching documentaries on a variety of subjects, having a very curious personality and is forever seeking out knowledge. She can be quite introverted around new people, having experienced a bit of transphobia at school when she came ouf that impacted her confidence a lot until she met [name_m]Dan[/name_m] who completely accepted her. Naturallt sentimental, Clara’s love language is writing him notes and creating small gifts, including a necklace she spent weeks designing and then assembling for his birthday. Yoga is something she really doesn’t enjoy though, having absolutely no flexibility and one lesson with [name_m]Dan[/name_m] proved more than enough experience for her.
[name_m]Giles[/name_m] [name_m]Roland[/name_m] Masters (20) is Dan’s roommate, who introduced him to [name_f]Clara[/name_f], and is known for his gregariousness around campus, being able to talk to and befriend just about everyone. [name_m]Giles[/name_m] chose to wait a year before coming to uni - where he’s majoring in [name_f]English[/name_f] Language - thanks to not feeling able to make that step yet, something he confided in his mom about mostly; having been raised by her alone after his dad walked out on the family: him, her and his two sisters. A talented musician (having chosen to pursue saxophone in tribute to his grandpa, who helped the family as much as possible), [name_m]Giles[/name_m] belongs to a jazz rock band called Fiddlesticks and this is how he first encountered [name_f]Clara[/name_f], who’d been invited to the event by a mutual friend of the pair.
Although he’s an avid matchmaker and loves cheering and encouraging others, [name_m]Giles[/name_m] is asexual himself - something that helped him initially bond with [name_m]Dan[/name_m] - and currently is happiest with platonic relationships over romantic. He’s always inviting his sisters’ to visit him (with Dan’s permission) and knows the entire university scene like the back of his hand, frequently finding new spots due to the band searching for new venues. Like [name_f]Clara[/name_f] he isn’t that much into yoga but does have a passion for climbing and basketball, having promised to take [name_m]Dan[/name_m] to the indoor rock center he frequents along with his band’s lead guitarist, where they have joking races to the top of the walls. The one thing [name_m]Giles[/name_m] cannot do is cook - pretty infamously so - and he often jokes about relying on Dan’s kindness to keep himself fed.
Mackenzie Chad Denver (19) is Giles’s friend and lead guitarist for Fiddlesticks who resides in the dorm next to Giles and Dan. He moved out of No. 3 Alling Terrace to attend college. He has one full-sibling, a sister named Bailey Alyssa, a half-sister named Lisa Suri, and a stepsister named Jessica Akiko. His mom remarried to his stepfather and had their shared child 6 years ago. He finds Giles’ story tough but finds Giles and smart and mature person from it. While he was technically “adopted” by his stepfather at age 13, he has never known what it was like to be adopted by both parents due to birth parents being unable to take care, and finds Dan’s story fascinating as well. He likes to hang out with Giles’ sisters as well.
He is considering studying finance in school to learn how to run a business since his biological father was a business owner, although a small locally-owned business rather than a billion-dollar company. Mackenzie is also a supporter of small local businesses and anti-corporate, but wants to be great at finance to keep a small business running for a long time like his father’s. He is newly dating a girl his age who is a fellow finance student. Mackenzie’s girlfriend is a casual tomboy but definitely wants to be taken seriously with her passion for being successful in finance. She had been enjoying the band for some time before dating Mackenzie.
[name_f]Natalia[/name_f] “Nat” [name_f]Cecile[/name_f] Markova (20) is Mackenzie’s girlfriend and dedicated tomboy. The most [name_u]Nat[/name_u] pays attention to is her hair which she spends a great deal of time dying and styling, having been inspired by her own father who started changing the colour of his beard to raise money for charity. Coming from a Russian-American family, [name_u]Nat[/name_u] speaks her father’s native tongue fluently and has begun teaching [name_u]Mackenzie[/name_u] some Russian herself - enjoying this element of their relationship as she feels it lets them develop their own little code. The opposite of him, she’s practically an only child due to her brother being 11 years her senior, her parents having chosen to not have another baby until they finished the moving process to be closer to her maternal family, who reside in [name_m]Washington[/name_m].
[name_u]Nat[/name_u] is very close to her brother now they’re both older though and dotes on his son - her nephew - who thinks her dating a musician is the most amazing thing in the world. She does some accountancy on the side for her parents business - supplying rental vehicles for large events - and this only increases her desire to be taken seriously as it’s clear Nat’s going to be the one to inherit the company when she’s older, as her brother’s happily working as an EMT and won’t trade it for anything. Living in a small house close to the university campus, [name_u]Nat[/name_u] was allowed by her landlord to purchase two rescue guinea pigs - Marzipan and [name_f]Sugar[/name_f] [name_f]Plum[/name_f] - who she absolutely adores, treating them as highly precious. She’s considered offering to help [name_u]Mackenzie[/name_u] with the bands finances too but doesn’t want to intrude as she knows the group are tight knit and have a lot of faith in one another.
[name_f]Margarita[/name_f] ‘Rita’ [name_f]Alina[/name_f] Markova is Natalia’s paternal cousin, who lives with her only child [name_f]Olga[/name_f], and her non-binary partner who is of Swedish descent. She does not see [name_u]Nat[/name_u] much, seeing as they live in different parts of the world. [name_f]Rita[/name_f] works as a barista in her partner’s coffee business, but is looking into branching into a cosmetics business, something she has enjoyed since she was small.
[name_f]Adhira[/name_f] Prakash (25) is a fellow barista at the Rita’s partner’s coffee shop. She’s working her way through art school part time. Her particular interest is in modernizing Madhubani Style art and she has had her work in a local arts show. She is outgoing and creative but sometimes can be a bit bossy at work. She is dating a friend of hers but it’s just to satisfy their parents and keep them from bugging them about getting married- she’s not interested in a serious relationship while she’s in school and her friend is gay. She lives with her roommate and 2 cats in a town house close enough to walk to school.
[name_u]Estlin[/name_u] [name_m]Sigmund[/name_m] Cederquist (25) is Rita’s partner. They’ve been openly non-binary since the age of 17 and base their business around catering to, employing and uplifting the queer community, which has given them a respectable profile and great deal of accolades in Linköping - where the family lives. [name_u]Estlin[/name_u] grew up in the foster care system and has never made contact with their birth family out of personal preference, feeling it wouldn’t end happily for any of the involved parties, as they’re aware the circumstances regarding their birth weren’t the happiest. Instead, it’s been their long-term social worker - [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f] - who helped them deal with ongoing identity and personal issues throughout their life, coming to view her as their true mother in every emotional sense.
Thanks to their business success, [name_u]Estlin[/name_u] currently has an American business partner, who they met thanks to [name_f]Rita[/name_f] asking [name_u]Nat[/name_u] for assistance, and they’ve just debut a new shop in the college town where Nat’s studying. They’re also considering talking to a few of the staff - including [name_f]Adhira[/name_f] - about the possibility of a transfer over to the new site, as they’re very aware the prospect of travel might appeal to the adventurously inclined staff members. [name_u]Estlin[/name_u] has considered speaking to [name_f]Rita[/name_f] about the possibility of moving the family too, although they don’t entirely have their heart in this place, loving their native Sweden; especially the scenery which they indulge in by going for long hikes when they want time to think, usually accompanied by the family dog, a Great Pyrenees named [name_f]Maja[/name_f].
Ingrid Kirsty Yngvi (51) is Estlin’s social worker and mother figure. She has no children of her own due to issues with her fertility, making her want to help out the community. She has also mentored another motherly figure, Andrea Yellowbird. Ingrid is a native Swede and still retains a thick Swedish accent but also speaks English very well and has learned bits of Cree from Andrea. Ingrid has a friend who has recently come out as genderfluid and uses xe/xir/xirself pronouns. Ingrid loves Estlin’s coffee and enjoys the people there as well.
[name_m]Göran[/name_m] [name_u]David[/name_u] [name_m]Yngvi[/name_m] (55) is Ingrid’s older brother and arguably her biggest supporter in all endeavors. Working as a human rights lawyer, he relocated to [name_u]Calgary[/name_u] after meeting his wife - a decision [name_m]Göran[/name_m] found difficult initially, due to his closeness with his sister, but ultimately knew it was the right choice as his then-girlfriend was a full time carer for her terminally ill mother and couldn’t move to [name_u]Sweden[/name_u] thanks to these responsibilities. Now, 31 years later, they’ve just welcomed their first grandchild and Göran’s forever sending photos to [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f], having invited her to visit him as soon as possible to meet the latest edition to their family - having had 5 kids with his wife.
Culture is important to him too and all of his children are bilingual - speaking Swedish and [name_f]English[/name_f], with
2 of them also speaking [name_u]French[/name_u] fluently too thanks to its prominence in [name_f]Canada[/name_f]. Göran’s also working as a mentor to Ingrid’s good friend, as xirself is interested in pursuing law and he’s mentored numerous people in the field, sharing his sister’s kindness and generosity, although it’s accompanied by a plethora of dad jokes - arguably most prominent in the name of the family cat, Snö, which must be spelled in the appropriate Swedish language.
[name_f]Vera[/name_f] [name_u]Merle[/name_u] [name_m]Yngvi[/name_m] (15 and a half) is [name_m]Goran[/name_m] and his wife’s 2nd youngest child, being very close in age to her elder sister [name_f]Freja[/name_f], who is 1 year her senior. Her younger brother, the youngest child, [name_m]Mateo[/name_m], is 12 and is the baby of the family. [name_f]Vera[/name_f] was supposed to be the last child, but [name_m]Mateo[/name_m] happened and the whole family is glad he’s here. [name_f]Vera[/name_f] is the mother of the first grandchild, a beautiful baby girl. This was an unplanned teen pregnancy with Vera’s boyfriend [name_m]Wayne[/name_m].
Freja Sigrid Yngvi (16 and a half) is Göran and his wife’s middle child and older sister of Vera and Mateo, Vera whom she is closest to. Unlike Vera, Freja is single and wants to stay single and child-free but is very close to Vera and is there for her and Wayne and will do her best to support the couple and their child. She used to not get along with Wayne and believe he and Vera were going too far too fast but she really got to know him from her sister and had some good times seeing him at their house, finding Wayne to be a funny but very responsible boy and great boyfriend for Vera. Freja also has a best friend who also had an unplanned teen pregnancy and just had her baby 3 months earlier, so she is understanding about teenage pregnancies.
[name_f]Yara[/name_f] [name_f]Johanne[/name_f] Yvgni (19) is [name_m]Goran[/name_m] and his wife’s 2nd eldest and is engaged to her long-distance partner, who she is moving to be closer too. She is the eldest girl. She is a programmer and likes maths.
[name_m]Lev[/name_m] [name_m]Casper[/name_m] [name_m]Yngvi[/name_m] (25) is the eldest sibling and firstborn of [name_m]Göran[/name_m] and his wife. Against many stereotypes of the eldest, Lev’s a naturally easy-going person with a very patient outlook on just about everything: ideal given that he works as a translator in schools, primarily with children who’ve come to [name_f]Canada[/name_f] as refugees. Out of all his siblings, [name_f]Freja[/name_f] is whom he’s closest too on account of her protective streak - something he respects and stands by, even if he tends to be a bit more reserved about his opinions; in part knowing [name_f]Vera[/name_f] was expecting him to be the one who’d question the speed of her relationship with [name_m]Wayne[/name_m]. He’s determined to be the best uncle possible and the revelation of his sister’s pregnancy has caused [name_m]Lev[/name_m] to discuss his own future family with his partner, who he’s been with since they were both only 20.
[name_u]An[/name_u] avid writer of poetry and fan of symphonic metal, [name_m]Lev[/name_m] tends to spend the rest of his free-time riding around on his motorbike or visiting his family, as he’s currently got his own place - living with his long term significant other and their own little cat, a tabby rescue named [name_u]Joyce[/name_u], who’s become fast friends with Snö when his parents catsat for him. He tends to be the one all his siblings come to for varying degrees of advice on account of how calm and collected he is, even though Lev’s had his own battles with anxiety throughout life that were unknown until he was about 18 and facing the challenge of going off to university in [name_f]Alberta[/name_f]. This only increased his empathy for others though and he encourages his loved one’s to take their time with things, especially [name_f]Yara[/name_f].
Wayne Reese Fordham (15) is Vera’s boyfriend and fathering her daughter-to be. He has an older sister who is best friends with Yara and her partner. Wayne’s parents separated when he was 10 and stayed separated for 8 months but have ultimately reconciled and are having a much happier marriage together. He loves that his parents were able to stay together and knows that they were always a great couple and is happy they didn’t throw away their marriage and instead worked it out. It has been nearly 4 years since they have reconciled and his parents are planning to renew their vows.
Using his parent’s resilience as motivation, he wants to stay with Vera and the baby and do his best with fatherhood and being there as a family. He loves Vera a lot and knows some of her family has concerns about the speed of their relationship and he wants to prove that he is a great boyfriend and father-to-be. However one thing stands in the way, and that is his grade in biology. He has a teacher who tries her best to teach him biology but he finds the subject very confusing but deep down, he knows his teacher wants him to succeed. He wants to be able to finish school as fast as he can and graduate and fears this could be a boundary. His older sister is there for him however and wants to tutor him.
Winter Genevieve Horton (2 months) is the daughter of Vera and Wayne. She is a very friendly and sweet baby, who loves to laugh, which sometimes annoy her parents to death. She also has a gluten intolerance.
