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“i  am  right,”  and  it  was  affirmed  by  a  proud  nod.  jasper’s  threshold  for  right  and  wrong  was  stark,  rigid,  never  up  for  debate  —  he  was  glad  that  somebody  seemed  to  agree  with  it.  as  they  spoke,  their  eyes  continued  to  flicker  almost  as  though  they  were  trying  to  hide  from  the  light  glaring  in  their  direction.  to  others,  the  neon  signified  excitement  ;  an  evening  with  friends,  a  night  brimming  with  partying  and  alcohol  and  bad  decisions.  for  jasper,  it  just  reminded  them  of  how  much  of  a  nightmare  such  an  environment  could  become,  and  how  quickly.  their  nose  twitched,  and  they  pivoted  slightly  so  that  the  light  wasn’t  as  harsh.  “well,  i  don’t  know  about  that.  people  like  me  get  blamed  for  all  sorts  and  i’m  not  very  good  at  explaining  myself.  if  someone  thought  i’d  done  something  wrong,  i  wouldn’t  know  how  to  react.  not  properly.”  sometimes  he  wondered  if  other  people  truly  understood,  or  if  they  thought  of  jasper  as  some  strange  being  with  rambling  and  untethered  thoughts.  gently  they  shook  their  head.  “the  lights  are  bothering  me.  but  i  don’t  want  to  leave.  i  want  to  make  sure  you’re  absolutely  fine  first.”

What a funny bloke, she thought, sticking her hands into her pockets and snorting another laugh at their followup comment. They looked ruffled, like a cat coming out of a dryer, endearing in their own right. "You're right again," she agreed with an easy bob of her head. It always amused her how quickly others seemed to think when another was rising out of sleep - like somehow, she'd left her brain behind and it was not doing well to catch up. "I don't think just being near someone unconscious is worthy of pressing charges," she smirked, rational, kind in her eyes. "I think you're all right." Danny watched how their eyes flicker somewhere past her, and she turned her head to catch a glimpse of the neon. In any other context, they would have seemed tacky, but tonight, they felt like Christmas lights. "Sorry, are the lights bothering you? You don't have to stay, everything's good."

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for  jasper,  it  was  a  regular  occurrence  that  others  took  their  deadpan  nature  to  be  humor.  he  cocked  his  head,  watching  the  stranger  as  she  adjusted  and  wiped  her  eyes,  his  hazel  gaze  narrow  in  their  own  silent  and  analytical  way.  it  wasn’t  that  they  were  making  a  negative  judgement,  only  that  they  were  trying  to  work  out  how  the  new  person  worked  —  hyper - analysing  a  situation  was  as  normal  to  jasper  finch  as  combing  his  hair  or  remarking  on  the  weather.  “it’s  not  the  best  thing  to  be  thought  of,  either.”  not  unkind,  just  matter - of - fact.  their  eyes  were  unfocused,  flitting  between  her  and  the  bar  behind  them,  the  neon  glow  that  lit  up  their  faces  in  pinks  and  purples.  “and  i  just  wanted  to  make  sure  i  wasn’t  going  to  be  implicated  in  a  crime.”

The last remnants of sleep clouded at the edges of her mind. Words were spoken, a face was there, but it was as if she needed to shake her mind to attention. A flurry of blinks and a little toss of her hair, and Danny realized that the comment was both realistic and hilarious. "I didn't mean to," she scoffed, pulling herself upright and tugging at the ends of her sweater as she stood. "I guess drunk wouldn't be the worst thing to be thought of, anyway." Wouldn't be the worst thing to be, either, she reasoned, and gestured to Shooters behind her. "Ironically, I was thinking about heading in when I made the fatal mistake of sitting down." A tired, easy chuckle, and she shook her head. "Thanks for checking, though. Sorry if I looked like a corpse."

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the  book  nook  was  jasper’s  safe  haven.  when  he  had  been  born,  back  when  their  parents  had  taken  them  to  the  doctor  to  find  out  what  was  ‘ wrong ’ ,  they  had  told  joseph  and  nora  finch  that  their  youngest  child  —  their  only  boy  —  would  never  hold  down  a  job.  for  years  he  didn’t,  trying  desperately  to  feed  their  resume  through  mailboxes  only  to  never  be  called  back.  the  bookstore  had  taken  a  chance  on  the  bright - eyed,  excited  bibliophile  and,  ever  since,  jasper  had  never  missed  a  day  ;  they  arrived  on  the  hour,  took  their  breaks  as  though  they  were  in  the  military,  and  made  it  their  mission  to  commit  every  inch  of  the  building  to  memory.  there  were  parts  of  life  that  were  near  impossible  for  jasper,  but  books  weren't  one  of  them.  “kim  gordon … ”  they  repeated  the  name  as  though  they  were  tasting  each  and  every  syllable,  “girl  in  a  band ? it  would  be  in  the  memoir  section.  would  you  like  me  to  show  you ? ”

leon's made a promise to himself, he's gonna read a novel before the month ends. okay, maybe two months. he used to be such an avid reader, then the pandemic happened, then he started using social media for work, and reading was left on the back burner. but he decides he misses it, so he takes a step into the book nook. after perusing some shelves, classics, contemporary, music biographies, the blond goes up to the register and sees a man, most likely a clerk or the owner of the shop. "hey," leon smiles. "do you have that kim gordon book? i'm with the band, i think it's called."

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the  sky  was  a  wash  of  indigo,  and  jasper  was  making  their  way  home  after  a  shift  at  the  book  nook.  their  days  ran  mostly  the  same  —  arriving  just  as  the  doors  opened,  setting  up  behind  the  counter  and  running  to  and  from  to  stock  the  shelves,  to  identify  special  orders,  to  help  customers  find  exactly  the  right  book.  by  the  time  his  shift  was  over  the  boy  was  exhausted,  and  then  they  commenced  their  walk  home  —  the  same  path,  the  same  journey,  the  same  distance.  like  clockwork.  this  time  there  was  something  different,  and  jasper  squinted  through  the  darkness  at  the  body  on  the  bench  ;  he  stopped  and  stared  and  waited  for  the  woman  to  notice  him,  tilting  his  head  like  a  curious  puppy.  “that’s  okay.  it’s  probably  not  the  best  place  to  fall  asleep,  though.  people  might  just  think  you’re  really  drunk.”

Location: Outside Shooters Open Starter @windsorbaystarters

Sleep ran its fingers across her eyes like a lover. Twelve hours, like any Saturday, each one rolled in sugar, sending her head spinning on swingsets of recipes and hands whirling like candy floss. Every night in the kitchen was its own sort of trip, and she enjoyed the high each time. But it left her with leaden muscles and a dispassionate drive home. Danny left the car park on foot, entirely meaning to go for a single drink, instead finding a roadside bench along the footpath she could hear seducing her from a mile off. A tunnel of time warped around her, velvety dark sealing her eyes shut, and only when there was the distinct warmth of another presence beside her, she shot up, lost to her surroundings. "Sorry," spilled out of her in a hurried breath, overrun with fright that sent electric sparks flying onto her skin and not a coherent thought to speak of. "I only meant to sit down for a minute."

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jasper  hesitated,  thinking  seriously  about  ava’s  suggestion.  “maybe  i  should  …  is  that  difficult ? ”  conspiratorially  they  leaned  over  the  table  and  dropped  the  volume  of  their  words,  staring  at  their  friend  as  their  mind  unravelled  the  idea.  it  had  never  meant  to  be  a  business,  more  like  an  interest  that  had  escalated  —  jasper  adored  logging  things,  keeping  every  drink  and  opinion  in  a  neat  little  book.  their  fiery  passion  spurred  them  on  like  a  horse  gunning  for  the  end  of  a  race.  he  cradled  the  cup  and  leaned  back  against  the  seat,  taking  a  slow  sip  of  the  drink  with  a  deep,  lengthy  sigh.  the  moment  warm  cocoa  hit  jasper’s  lips  was  the  moment  all  their  worries  melted  away  and  disappeared,  the  reset  that  the  boy  desperately  needed  after  an  exhausting  week.  “thank  you  for  meeting  with  me.”  they  took  another  sip,  “this  is  much  more  fun  when  i’m  not  alone.”

"That's fair," Ava said with a nod of her head. She had to admit, she was impressed by her friend's entire system when it came to documenting and rating each and every drink they ordered. "You can always give them some pointers here and there. That way the more you order, you have a good chance to getting the same baristas multiple times, who may pick up on exactly the right way you like your hot chocolate and just how many marshmallows to use." Ava's nose crinkled up as her head shook in agreement. "No, we can't have them stealing or selling your system. You should try to get the copyright on it before anyone else can, if possible." She loved how passionate her friend was when it came to the subject matter and all Ava wanted to do for her friends was show her support and encourage them in any way possible.

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“ah,  no  —  that  defeats  the  purpose.”  if  there  was  one  thing  jasper  had  going  for  them,  it  was  their  authority.  he  knew  exactly  what  he  wanted  and  what  he  didn't,  had  a  strict  sense  of  right  and  wrong  which  was  as  clear  as  the  difference  between  black  and  white.  it  wasn't  always  received  in  the  best  of  ways  ;  jasper  was  grateful  that  his  friend  understood  that  there  was  no  malice  behind  their  words.  “i  can't  just  tell  them  how  to  make  it  perfect.  then  they'd  get  five  stars  without  even  trying.  no,  they  have  to  do  it  themselves  ...  maybe  i  can  give  them  a  little  pointer,  like  if  they  ask  if  i  want  marshmallows,”  their  hazel  eyes  widened  in  a  way  of  silently  asking  ;  who  doesn't  ?  “but  i  can't  tell  them  my  system.  then  they'd  steal  it,  or  sell  it,  or  try  and  copyright  it  or  something.”  his  own  nose  scrunched  like  an  animal  catching  a  bad  smell.  “there's  nothing  wrong  with  them.  there  just  has  to  be  an  equal  ratio.”

Ava wasn't always a coffee lover, but her tastebuds have gotten accustomed to the caffeinated beverage within the past few years. Early mornings at the library always required some type of fuel to get her through each day, especially when those days were typically scattered with screaming children. She twirled the straw around in her caramel ice coffee as she watched her friend scribble into their notebook across the table. She had to say, she loved their dedication and also organization when it came to their hot chocolate reviews and ratings. "Hm, maybe next time you can ask for a specific number of marshmallows?" Even though it wasn't guaranteed that the baristas would follow those instructions, it was at least worth a shot. "What's wrong with the white marshmallows?" the woman asked as her face twisted in confusion. "I mean, marshmallows are white to begin with. Do the pink ones taste different or do you just prefer the aesthetic better?"

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「  ✱  」  STATUS ﹕ open  . 

「  ✱  」  LOCATION ﹕ mug shot café  . 

「  ✱  」  WITH ﹕ open ( @windsorbaystarters )

it  wasn’t  unnatural  to  see  jasper  in  a  coffee  shop,  scrawling  frantically  in  a  notebook  and  inspecting  a  tall  glass  of  hot  chocolate  from  every  angle.  in  fact,  it  was  the  most  natural  thing  in  the  world.  every  coffee  establishment  had  a  rating,  an  entry  in  their  own  bible  ;  something  to  tell  them  whether  they  should  return,  and  where  the  café  ranked  when  it  came  to  creating  the  perfect  cup  of  cocoa.  “it’s  not  as  good  as  last  time,”  he  sighed,  sitting  back  down  opposite  their  friend,  “last  time  they  had  four  marshmallows,  and  now  they  only  have  three.  even  worse,  two  are  white.  maybe  i  could’ve  given  them  an  extra  half  point  if  the  majority  had  been  pink,  but  …  ”  they  clicked  their  tongue  against  their  teeth,  “disappointing.”

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             [      ✱      ]             is  that  jack  wolfe   ?  no,  that’s  jasper  finch,  a twenty6  year  old  living in the downtown  who  uses  he / they  pronouns.  he  currently  works  as  an  employee at the book nook   and  has  been  in  windsor bay  for  ten  years.  he  loves  musical theatre, hot chocolates and the sweet chirping of foxes in the night  and  the  character  he  identifies  with  most  is  orpheus from hadestown.

full  name   :   jasper  joseph  finch  . nickname(s)   :   little bird, jas  . hometown   :   manchester,   united kingdom  . languages :  english .         gender   :   demi - man .

relationships.

orientation   :   homosexual . relationship status   :   single family members in play   :   none ! family members ( npcs )   :   maren finch ( twin sister ), two older sisters ( wcs ) !

the  youngest  of  the  finch  brood,  jasper  took  well  to  being  raised  by  his  other  siblings.  with  their  parents  away,  he  was  often  left  in  the  more - than - capable  care  of  his  three  elder sisters.  a  solitary  creature,  jasper  never  caused  much  of  a  fuss  —  he  was  happy  enough  tucked  away  in  the  little  worlds  he  created,  with  a  good  book  on  his  lap  or  a  pencil  clutched  between  his  fingertips.  sport  didn’t  interest  him,  whether  that  was  participating  himself  or  watching  it  on  television,  a  more  creatively  minded  soul  perfectly  content  with  his  own  company  as  the  others  entertained  themselves  on  games  consoles  and  chasing  each  other  around  the  garden.

it  wasn’t  noticed  until  their  parents  truly  settled  back  into  the  pushes  and  pulls  of  daily  life  that  perhaps  jasper’s  loner  qualities,  his  introversion  and  his  disdain  towards  certain  meals  that  his  sisters  whipped  up  for  him  meant  he  wasn’t  quite  like  every  other  young  boy.  in  his  early  life  those  long  silences  had  been  filled  with  books  and  games  that  needn’t  any  players.  diagnosed  with  autism  at  fifteen,  jasper  was  finally  able  to  unwind  and  unmask  —  although  understanding  why  his  brain  behaved  in  the  ways  it  did  was,  at  the  time,  a  seemingly  endless  task.  he  would  have  rather  stayed  and  helped  his  eldest  sibling  bake,  or  nuzzle  up  in  a  blanket  and  create  sprawling  landscapes  in  his  mind  :  with  the  support  of  his  siblings,  though,  he  soon  learned  that  life  didn’t  have  to  be  as  scary  as  it  first  seemed.

throughout  his  early  teenage  years,  jasper  fantasised  about  getting  away  and  seeing  the  world.  when  his  parents  decided  that  they  were  going  to  up  and  move  the  family  to  windsor bay,  he  welcomed  the  change  of  pace  and  scenery,  a  chance  to  start  afresh  in  a  land  anew.  it  was  far  from  what  he  was  used  to  in  manchester  ;  everything  was  louder,  concrete,  suspicious,  but  he  took  to  the  new  landscape  nonetheless. 

when  his  nineteenth  birthday  crept  into  view,  he  came  to  realize  that  the  new  country  wasn’t  independence  enough,  and  so  jasper  decided  that  he  was  going  to  break  away  from  the  status  quo.  he  found  an  apartment  for  himself,  a  job,  and  assimilated  as  much  as  he  could  into  the  unfamiliar. since  getting  his  job  at  the  bookstore  six  months  ago  jasper  has  never  missed  a  day,  however  most  slow  shifts  are  spent  reading  behind  the  counter  or  scrawling  ideas  for  his  own  stories  on  the  backs  of  notebook  paper.

jasper  is  gay,  and  although  he  is  timid  in  many  corners  of  his  life  that’s  one  part  of  himself  he  isn’t  prepared  to  silence.  he  is  proud  to  be  who  he  is,  and  will  speak  his  truth  even  if  his  voice  shakes.  more  than  anything,  he  wants  a  love  like  the  ones  he  reads  about  in  storybooks.  something  that’s  pure,  something  that’s  true,  something  that’s  whole  and  all  encompassing.  there’s  no  reason  why  he  can’t  have  his  own  happily  ever  after.  his  favorite  things  in  the  world  are  hot  chocolates  and,  yes,  if  you  make  it  wrong  he  will  tell  you  about  it.  there  needs  to  be  whipped  cream  and  marshmallows  for  it  to  be  acceptable,  otherwise  he  can  —  and  will  —  make  a  fuss  about  it.  his  palate  is  rather  slim,  but  that’s  his  non - negotiable.  every  café  in  town  knows  him  by  name  and  hardly  need  to  ask  him  what  his  order  is  before  beginning  to  make  it.

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Jack Wolfe as Gabe Goodman Next To Normal