[name_f]Annalise[/name_f] [name_f]Eliana[/name_f] [name_u]Beckett[/name_u] “Lise” (17), a highschool student from Las [name_u]Vegas[/name_u], [name_u]Nevada[/name_u], was born to an ever-eccentric woman who wished for [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] to have an extravagant name. Although her father never wanted children, upon the discovery that her mother was pregnant with a baby girl, her mother immediately fell in love and adored her newly anticipated daughter. Her mother was adamant that they keep the baby, and Annalise’s father reluctantly agreed. This ultimately caused the father to harbor resentment toward Annalise’s mother and created a rift within their relationship. This dynamic created strong yet subtle animosity and hostility in the environment that [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] grew up in. In attempts to navigate her environment, [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] developed into a quiet and timid child, and ultimately an alienated individual who desperately longed for connection outside of her home.
As a teenager, Analise’s stoically distressed personality caught the attention of like-spirited souls. Among these peers, [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] found a sense of belonging that she never even considered possible. Sharing similar experiences, the friend group spent time experimenting with alcohol, trespassing, and spraying painting cars, among other delinquent activities. Despite the reckless and impulsive nature of their bonds, their depth and loyalty to each other was unyielding.
[name_f]Lise[/name_f] craves the affection and intimacy of a romantic relationship even if she isn’t consciously aware of it. Although several others have expressed an interest in romantic affairs, [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] remains aloof and socially unaware, thus never having reciprocated. In the midst of this tumultuous journey, [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] continues to seek the elusive connection she’s yearned for, navigating the maze of adolescence and self-discovery, hoping to one day find the warmth of acceptance and love that has eluded her thus far
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[name_f]Zoey[/name_f] [name_f]Isabella[/name_f] [name_u]Rivera[/name_u] (18) grew up in the same Las [name_u]Vegas[/name_u] neighborhood as [name_f]Annalise[/name_f], although they never interacted until high school. Zoey’s parents had a stable marriage and provided a loving home, but [name_f]Zoey[/name_f] struggled with anxiety and depression, often feeling like she didn’t fit in with her peers. She found solace in music and began playing guitar and writing songs. When [name_f]Zoey[/name_f] and [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] became friends, they bonded over their shared feelings of loneliness and found comfort in each other’s company. Zoey’s music helped [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] express her emotions, and in turn, Annalise’s loyalty and support gave [name_f]Zoey[/name_f] the confidence to pursue her passion. Now a high school senior, [name_f]Zoey[/name_f] dreams of attending music school and creating music that speaks to others who feel misunderstood.
major tw: SA mentioned 
other cw: substance abuse; neglect; mental health struggles
[name_f]Rinoa[/name_f] " [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] " [name_f]Therese[/name_f] [name_m]Hancock[/name_m] (18) is a fellow classmate of [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] and [name_u]Zoe[/name_u] who attends the same mandatory counselling group as the former. People could assume [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] and Tisa’s reasons for being placed in the group were accidentally switched on paper: [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] is a child of the foster system, having been removed from her father and stepmothers’ custody when she was 13. By the time this occurred, [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] concedes the worst of the damage had been done. Her parents were opiod addicts and users, whose extreme negligence led to her not only having to raise herself, but she was subjected to sexual abuse by a neighbour, who was arrested and convicted for crimes against 3 local girls’.
Since she was taken from the home - following confessing to a detective she had been abused when an investigation occurred - Tisa’s had no contact with her parents by choice, and she readily admits to having nothing pleasant to say or think about them, especially her dad, who made a point of badmouthing her maternal family, only to turn out no better than them. Her biological mother has been in psychiatric care following extreme postpartum psychosis, and [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] has seen her a few times, however it’s sparse thanks to her social worker not wanting to risk her witnessing her mothers’ separation from reality. Really, Tisa’s social worker is the most consistent adult she’s had in her life, partly because she doesn’t have much faith in older peers.
Unlike [name_f]Annalise[/name_f] and [name_u]Zoe[/name_u], [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] prefers befriending people with an avoidance of thrill seeking and recklessness. She fears inheriting any kind of addiction from her father, with the sole exception being her occasional smoking, but [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] tries to not lapse into it becoming a coping mechanism. Journalling and writing fiction are her favoured means of handling her emotions, either that or watching obscure, low budget films that have an iconic charm to them. Something she’s fond of is collecting strange prints and posters, which have increased since she settled in her current placement home.
In group therapy, Tisa’s as quiet as ever, however if pushed a combative side emerges. Attention is something she shies from, especially thanks to having lived in fear of the investigation of her childhood trauma becoming public. Anonymous identities are one thing, but another of the victims still lives locally and [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] worries about her revealing things - as they aren’t particularly close [not that it’s something [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] thinks either of them owe one another thanks to painful reminders]. Annalise’s group are what she calls ‘A Headache’ however she has no real animosity towards them, more an apathetic form of disapproval. Oh and romance? [name_f]Tisa[/name_f] would rather give that a pass for the indefinite future.
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Tw: transphobia, dementia
Sadie Roberta Garland (18) is another member of group therapy. Her middle name coming from her dead name “Robert”, Sadie is a transgender female who lives in an apartment with her grandpa. Sadie is training to be a CNA, wanting to work with people like her grandfather
who has dementia. Her grandfather ironically is the only adult in her life who respects her and uses her pronouns, his child - her mother - and his son in law are not accepting, so her grandfather was the only one who was genuinely accepting, going against the grain of the other people in his generation.
Her grandpa is still early in the stages of dementia, but Sadie dreads the day where she loses her best friend.
Sadie gets along well with Zoey and the rest of the people in the group. There is one person who she talks to semi frequently in the group, another trans person who is quiet and shy as well, but they are very sweet and they relate to Sadie in a way no one else there does. Sadie wishes her parents would be more accepting but knows it’s unlikely given their bigoted beliefs.
Sadie moreso shares the opinion that Tisa holds because she feels like the “Annalise Squad” is quite irritating as Sadie is not a fan of substances or alcohol because she feels worried that she will get addicted because she has known people who get addicted and had to be homeless, something she is terrified of. Sadie doesn’t like the group therapy setting, and likes the individual sessions they provide even less. The therapy group is for young guys and girls 17-20, which a lot of people find a bit girls, but it’s so young people can get to know each other. There’s actually only two guys out of the twelve participants, and one of them is Sadie’s trans friend. Sadie only attends group therapy because her grandpa instructed her to, feeling like she needed assistance with her mental health. She also attends a support group for LGBTQ+ - who she’s sharing with her trans friend - people run by the same people who run the therapy group.
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[name_f]Rachel[/name_f] [name_u]Marie[/name_u] [name_m]Turner[/name_m] (20) is Sadie’s best friend from high school. They became close friends when [name_f]Rachel[/name_f] defended [name_f]Sadie[/name_f] against bullies who were making fun of her gender identity. [name_f]Rachel[/name_f] is now attending college, majoring in psychology with a focus on LGBTQ+ issues. She is involved in several LGBTQ+ organizations on campus and continues to be a strong ally and support system for [name_f]Sadie[/name_f]. [name_f]Rachel[/name_f] also volunteers at a local homeless shelter and hopes to one day open her own LGBTQ+ youth shelter.
tw: cheating
[name_u]Allison[/name_u] “Allie” [name_u]Rose[/name_u] [name_m]Turner[/name_m] (16) is Rachel’s younger sister. The two of them are very close and [name_f]Rachel[/name_f] often calls [name_u]Allie[/name_u] to hear about school drama, which [name_u]Allie[/name_u] has plenty of. As one of the school’s “popular girls”, [name_u]Allie[/name_u] always knows the tea, and ends up caught in a lot of drama too, unlike her older sister. While a lot of the popular girls at the school are rude, [name_u]Allie[/name_u] is nice to everyone, which means she has friends in both the popular group and the “less-popular group”.
Between being on the varsity volleyball team, charity with her youth group, and peer tutoring at school, [name_u]Allie[/name_u] really likes to hang out with friends and family. She’s an extrovert at heart and loves to be around people, but is happy to stay home and watch Netflix with her cat, [name_u]Ollie[/name_u]. She wishes she had more siblings since she misses [name_f]Rachel[/name_f], who is now in college. But with all of her friends she has a great support system and close friends she treats like siblings.
Right before homecoming this year, Allie’s boyfriend of 14 months cheated on her with a close friend. [name_u]Allie[/name_u] only found out from a good friend of her boyfriend. After dumping the cheater, she started dating the boy who told her. Now, the cheater is trying to win [name_u]Allie[/name_u] back, but she’s done. Her friend who the boyfriend cheated on her with has been begging for forgiveness, but [name_u]Allie[/name_u] hasn’t talked to her since. She has her other friends talk to the girl for her, but doesn’t want to hear the girl’s response. It’s been a hard month for [name_u]Allie[/name_u], but she’s in a happy and casual relationship with the boy who told her.
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[name_f]Genevieve[/name_f] " [name_f]Eve[/name_f] " [name_f]Martha[/name_f] Backland (16) is one of Allie’s friends, who’s serving as a peacemaker between the fractured aspects of the group. Although some people consider [name_f]Eve[/name_f] a little high strung, their dedication to their friends’ is always evident and undeniable, even through times of conflict. Growing up with parents who divorced when they were only 5 months old, [name_f]Eve[/name_f] - who’s genderqueer and uses they/she pronouns - has witnessed the positives of compromise from a young age. While they fell out of love, her mom and dad never pitted the children in an emotional tournament to champion them, and instead focused on raising [name_f]Eve[/name_f] and their older brother with as much union as living apart could allow. The siblings spend 4 days with their mom and 3 with their dad one week, then 4 with dad and 3 with mom the next, while holidays are divided on a yearly basis.
Things did become more strained for [name_f]Eve[/name_f] at home when their younger half-brother was born to their dad and his girlfriend. She was never that eager to interact with her unofficial stepkids, and Eve’s brother believed she’d try pushing them out in favour of the baby. It wasn’t that bad, however they do notice there’s still awkwardness between their dad’s girlfriend, them and their brother, with their little half-brother not getting many opportunities to bond with his siblings alone, in spite of the fact their dad knows his older children are responsible with his well-being.
When [name_f]Eve[/name_f] decided she wanted to become a child psychologist, this was met with some skepticism from her peers. The nervous side of her personality means there’s an assumption they can’t handle difficult situations or conflict, when in actuality Eve’s more apprehensive about matters such as failure and disappointing others, rather than listening to matters of conflict. They’re staunch in their hopes for the future, and to the surprise of no-one, Eve’s firmly pursuing academics, although she still ensures there’s time for her friends and love of climbing.
[name_f]Eve[/name_f] has complex feelings when it comes to Allie’s new romance. While they’re happy she’s free from her ex, they also can’t help but worrying she’s moving to fast with getting involved with someone else - possibly a distraction from confronting what occurred between their friend and Allie’s ex. Having dated their significant other - who’s nonbinary, although they lean towards masc presentation - without bumps, [name_f]Eve[/name_f] knows she’s lucky in this sense and cherishes her relationship, especially how understanding the person she’s with is when it comes to her anxieties. However, they also want to understand why their friend would go off with Allie’s ex and - as this girl has supported [name_f]Eve[/name_f] a great deal, especially when she was exploring her gender identity - deep down hopes for some peace at the very least.
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