Alright, I just gotta rant for a lil’ while about this extremely f’d up family. Hope y’all enjoy!
So, we begin this journey with a lil’ girl named Clarisse Brooke Grandberry. I never sorted out the details, but I imagine Clarisse was born into a low-income household with parents who had a turbulent relationship. A such, she didn’t know what a healthy relationship looked like or what to aspire to. I imagine she also had several siblings, so she received less attention and care than what kids ideally should. In her adolescence, Clarisse began to develop an interest in more rebellious activities, yet her shy, anxious nature left her unable to act upon any of her impulses. However, that would all change the moment a boy named Jose Sanches walked into her life.
At 15-years-old, Clarisse met Jose, a boy with a reputation for misbehavior. He had a long record of delinquency, disrespecting staff, and engaging in petty illegal activity, such as smoking, theft, etc. Although he was an asshole to 99% of people, he was exceptionally nice to Clarisse, which made her feel special and believe she could fix him. Unfortunately, dating Jose only proved to be detrimental. He gradually convinced her to participate in increasingly risky behaviors, and it was beginning to affect her personality and her relationship with her family. Eventually, her parents took away all means of contact with Jose, hoping this would curb Clarisse’s dependency on him. Sadly, all this did was strengthen her resolve, and she often snuck out of the house at night and on the weekends to hang out with him. He started her addiction to cigarettes, a habit she still has decades later.
It was the night of Jose’s sixteenth birthday. Clarisse and Jose were atop his car, smoking a couple cigarettes and gazing up at the starry night sky. I suppose the warm, fuzzy ambiance contributed to their decisions in that moment, as that was the night Jose got his birthday wish and they copulated for the first time. All was great between them for the next few weeks. That is, until Clarisse began to feel odd for an extended period of time. It began with simple fatigue; never feeling fully rested. Then, it escalated to inexplicable nausea occasionally accompanied with vomiting. It was only after she had missed her period that month that Clarisse finally took action to find the truth. Unfortunately for her, her worst fears had come true: a store-bought test confirmed that she was pregnant.
Terrified, Clarisse’s immediate thought was to inform Jose, but he didn’t take the news well at all. He was adamant that he didn’t want to be a father and insisted she take pills to get rid of it, yet Clarisse denied his request out of her Christian-based belief that killing her unborn baby was immoral. He continued to pressure her over the next few weeks, but by that point Clarisse’s parents had found out about her pregnancy and refused to let her abort or miscarry in any way. After determining that Clarisse was to carry the pregnancy full-term, Jose took that as his que to get out of there. Since then, Clarisse hasn’t spoken a word to Jose or received any attempt at contact from him in over 25 years.
Not only was Clarisse left to grapple with the heartbreak of being betrayed by her boyfriend, but she also had to deal with raising her baby, Quentin, as a single mother under the scrutiny and disappointment of her entire family. Since she gave birth when she was seventeen, she didn’t complete her education either, instead having to rely on low-wage unskilled labor to sustain her and Quentin. After a few years, Clarisse managed to save up enough money to buy a small apartment for her and Quentin, yet financial issues weren’t their only concern. See, Quentin had some behavioral issues that manifested pretty early on and were amplified by Clarisse’s lack of backbone in disciplining her son. Quentin was a violent lil’ bugger who would hit, claw and punch if he didn’t get his way; his temper tantrums were nothing to sneeze at. Clarisse was overwhelmed by her son’s anger and opted to just give him whatever he wanted to stop his behavior, leading to a cycle of outburst-earning-reward for the mother and son.
At 22-years-old, Clarisse got a job as a waitress at a local bistro. One Sunday evening, she tended to a customer named Cory Montague and took his order, striking up casual conversation that incorporated some playful flirty banter. From that week on, Cory specifically requested to be waited on by Clarisse every time he visited the bistro. After a few months, Cory asked Clarisse out on a date shortly after her shift had ended. She was surprised, a little nervous, but it’s not like she had anything noteworthy going on, so she accepted. It turned out to be the best decision she ever made.
On their date, they discovered they had much in common. Cory also grew up poor but was studying mechanical engineering to break the cycle of poverty, although his education was making slow progress. Impressed, Clarisse further pursued a relationship, which was made official on February 14th, 2000. Cory was an angel sent from heaven for Clarisse; he supported and encouraged every step she took to further her aspirations and self-esteem. He was patient with her at even the most difficult times, such as when Quentin disrespected and disobeyed Cory. Quentin wasn’t enthused to have a new man in his life trying to control and structure him; especially when Cory refused to cave to his demands.
Regardless, Clarisse and Coy remained committed, marrying later that summer and giving birth to their daughter, Brandi Elise Montague, on October 6th, 2001. Shortly thereafter, Cory obtained a Professional Engineer (PE) License after nearly six years of education, achieving the dream life they aspired to have. All was perfect for them for the next decade! Well, if you ignore Quentin’s relentless and ever-intensifying misbehavior, but that’s beside the point. In January of 2012, Clarisse broke the news that she was pregnant again, igniting newfound excitement and joy in the family. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to last.
See, Cory was raised on a diet of unhealthy, fatty foods, and this eventually developed into him developing Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) as a young adult. Although he improved his diet, his disease still haunted him in the form of chest pain, shortness of breath, and fatigue. Despite Clarisse’s concerns, Cory always continued to push himself harder. After all, he had two, soon to be three kids to support on a yearly salary of $60,000! He had to step his game up, no matter what his heart threw at him.
That mentality proved to be his downfall. One day, Cory was working overtime, when he suddenly felt an extreme pain in his chest, one so overwhelming he fell to the ground, gasping. A few of his colleagues who’d also stayed late took notice and rushed to his aid immediately, but by the time an ambulance arrived, it was already too late: Cory Montague was declared dead on arrival.
It was truly the worst minute of her life to receive the phone call from her husband’s work. This was the second time a pregnant Clarisse had been left to grapple with such horrific heartbreak, but now it was by the love of her life and not some selfish piece of work. Nevermind the grief, Clarisse had to contend with the fact that she had no income now that the breadwinner was gone. For all his greatness, one fatal flaw Cory enabled was Clarisse’s complete dependency on him for everything: finances, child discipline, emotional support, etc. Without him, Clarisse was practically helpless. How could she comfort her grieving daughter and provide for all three of them? No, four! Bear in mind that Clarisse was still pregnant at this time!
On December 20th, Clarisse gave birth to her and Cory’s only son, whom she named Nicholas Saint Montague in honor of the Christmas spirit. His nickname is Nico.
Clarisse eventually applied for Social Security Survivor Benefits so she could focus on caring for her children at home, which wasn’t a walk in the park either. Without Cory to keep him in line, 18-year-old Quentin began to act out and became verbally and physically abusive towards Clarisse, who had no clue how to properly discipline her son. 11-year-old Brandi herself was lost. Her father, the pillar of her life, was gone, as was her sense of security. Now fatherless, Brandi searched for alternatives to fill the void Cory left behind. Given how her older brother was always there and seemed so self-assured and independent, Brandi slowly began to replicate his behavior. It started off with small offenses -snapping at her mother, avoiding chores, ignoring warnings- but escalated as she became a teenager. Just like Quentin, Brandi and her friends began to disobey authority and law. She began to experiment with illegal substances, such as vaping and marijuana, and started sneaking out to go partying with fellow crashouts. Clarisse was deeply concerned for both her children’s wellbeing, but she was preoccupied with caring for young Nico.
If there’s one thing that Clarisse has going for her, it’s that Nico is a much more well-behaved child. At 7-years-old, he possesses a very innocent kindness that Clarisse encourages as much as she can, wanting to succeed in raising this one child when she’s all but failed her two eldest. Will Clarisse be able to get Quentin and Brandi on the straight-and-narrow? Only time will tell.
Whew, I know this was a long read, so thank you to all who stuck through to the end. Despite not being an important cast of characters in the long run, the backstory I’ve invented for the Montagues is so potent and, well, sad, that I just had to share it with the rest of y’all.
Author's Note
Given how the Montagues are a microcosm of generational trauma, I wanted each child to reflect their parent in some way. I hope this comes through in their characterization.
Quentin Montague - despite having never met his biological father and even resenting him, Quentin actively engages in behaviors that directly mirror that of his teenage father. Hell, perhaps he’s even worse than his father in some ways.
Brandi Montague - she was once a good girl who experienced a highly traumatic loss, and it permanently altered the course of her life. She’s repeating many of the same mistakes her mother made as a kid, and while Brandi never fell pregnant, she did fall into the clutches of a man who intended to use her for his twisted desire for control and satisfaction.
Nicholas “Nico” Montague - given he’s literally a 1st grader, there hasn’t been much time for Nico to be corrupted by his siblings’ influences. Clarisse wants to protect his innocence and purity at all costs, even if it means she’s unintentionally sheltering him from healthy, necessary experiences for kids his age.