genesisalvarado

[genesisalvarado]

"Why not? Bossman isn't even here," she continued to work on him, "and it's not like I'm gonna tell. Plus, you can blame it on me if you do get caught. You have to please the customer, right?" Given that she felt she'd made a compelling argument she was all grins when Henry caved and gave her the time and attention she was craving. "Of course you do. I'm a fucking badass. I've been doing this shit since you were in diapers." She was only 3 years older than him but semantics. But then after collecting the darts he hit a near bullseye and the competitor in her ignited. Gen walked up beside him, dart toyed in the grasp of her fingers, "but like top shelf free?" The brunette grinned up at the skyscraper human and then launched her dart like a reflex. It landed just inside of Henry's.

Henry was wiping down the bar when he heard Genesis' pouts. "I can't just go on break whenever I want." He resumed his cleaning trying not to give into her, but he was weak. "Okay fine." He threw the white cloth down on the bar walked towards the dart board collecting the little darts into his hands. "You think I need an advantage?" He playfully scoffed as he threw the first dart, it wasn't quite a bullseye, but it was still pretty close to the center. Henry spent a lot of the slow hours doing just this. Throwing sharp objects was fun. "Well I'm always happy to give a pretty girl a free drink."

[genesisalvarado]

"Actually, I if could get a copy..." She bared her teeth in an exaggerated grin, they both knew that his Nana, who was also now her Nana, had already given her a key. It wasn't something Genesis fully understood, family dynamics and how to behave within them were a bit of a foreign concept, but Nana had really begun to show her that. The fact that the family carried it on afterward? Well, the wavy headed brunette was doing her best to assimilate. She glanced at the milk in her hand as Eli made his point and nodded, taking that in and feeling the weight of it. There was an emotional struggle that took place beneath the surface, but she knew it meant a lot to her. "To be honest, she was helping me as much as I was helping her," Gen offered, still not quite understanding what Nana saw in her, beyond giving her medical care in times of need. Then she gasped, "you wouldn't dare! That shit's so bitter, I don't know how people drink it black. I get the no sugar, I don't do that, and don't even get me started on the coffee flavored lead they serve at the hospital." Her head shook as she poured milk into her cup and then stirred it up. "No, it's an off day. Why, you need some help?" Brow lifted, she was interested and curious, but she might be more in the way if he was constantly having to stop and show her things.

"Did you want the keys too?" Eli smirked. "Wait, no, Nana already gave you that." He waved it off with a smile as he went back to finishing up the side design on the bottom of the four layer cake. Shaking his head he chuckled as he finished up, still keeping an eye on what Gen was doing. "You know, if there was ever any proof that Nana loved you, other than the April Cupcake she made in your honor, this—" he gestured to her getting the milk. "Is it." The woman who said don't touch anything in the store let Gen do whatever she wanted. She was like the unofficial sister in this family. "I'm debating it," his smirk let her know he didn't care. "I knew the hospital coffee is shit and anyone who says otherwise is full of shit. Do you have to go in today?"

[genesisalvarado]

❛ SOREN & GENESIS. — SMOOTHIE SERENITY.

By the look on Gen's face there was no disguising that the whole health and wellness craze was completely lost on her. The only reason she'd even stepped foot inside this place is that she was being nice to her partner. The wavy headed brunette could get down with a smoothie if it tasted an awful lot like a milkshake, but from the pickup counter she spotted an awful lot of things that looked like pureed lawn clippings. "I'll buy your drink if you give me a recommendation that doesn't turn me into a rabbit or make me throw up in my mouth a little," she offered, glancing up at the tall @rouqes beside her looking over the menu.

[genesisalvarado]

❛ KIT & GENESIS. — BLEACHERS SPORTS BAR.

"Call the cops, I don't even care," the wavy headed brunette claimed as she straightened out her clothing after shoving the Karen aside that had been causing a scene at the bar. "Fucking tourists," she muttered to Kit, "don't come to fucking Texas and act like that." When the woman overheard her it took very little for the flame to ignite all over again and Genesis practically shoved past @kit-mcgrady just a little to move towards the woman that was firing off at the mouth again. "I know all the cops, bitch. Go for it, I ain't scared." As a first responder she was on a first name comrade basis with fellow first responders, and most looked past the fact that she used to have a fairly decent rap sheet. Her pretty eyes were rolling when she turned back to Kit, she'd gripped his shirt at some point, fingers curled in at the shoulder like some sort of anchor, but Genesis had released the ranch hand then. "See, cowboy, isn't comin' out with me fun? Wanna slide on the bottom of them boots? We could head over to The Whiskey Barrel..."

[genesisalvarado]

❛ HENRY & GENESIS. — THE WHISKEY BARREL.

"Come on — when's your break? You've been working and ignoring me all night." Not really, it was just past seven in the evening, but Genesis was bored and restless. It wasn't promising for peace when left to her own devices in that state. Something their shared past @hxnrycomeon could easily remember. There was a fluttering of energy under the surface, it was nearly making her skin crawl to be still and just sit back with a drink. The day had been a lot and sometimes, on a day like today, Gen felt as though she couldn't wash the stains off her hands. "Play darts with me," the wavy headed brunette encouraged, "I'll even give you the advantage this time." Her grin was wide as she leaned forward a bit and added, "oh, and Benny said I can have a freebie from the top shelf. You know, on account of my good behavior and all."

[genesisalvarado]

❛ ELI & GENESIS. — BLUEBONNET BAKERY.

While Eli was a bit busy, literally with his hands in the midst of a new masterpiece, Genesis had kindly let herself into the back to grab some milk from the fridge. "What?" The wavy headed brunette had a wide eyed innocence, a look of zero shame, when @carmxchaels offered her a look of incredulity at her audacity. "I thought you said I could help myself," she shrugged, and the hardly reformed wild child made her way back to her coffee mug without any real care. Maybe he hadn't actually said that specifically, or meant it to that degree, but give Gen an inch and she would no doubt at some point take a mile. "I need it for my coffee. You wouldn't dare force me to drink cream-less coffee, would you?"

[genesisalvarado]

❛ CAROLINE & GENESIS. — THE CHICKEN SHACK.

"I couldn't even tell you why," the wavy headed brunette began. It was a day off, a break much needed in order to stay sane when it came to the exhaustion of her job, both mental and physical. Sometimes even emotional. Turning that off was downright impossible 100% of the time. "But I hate coleslaw." She was digging into the macaroni side that came along with her chicken sandwich. The aforementioned atrocity, the coleslaw that had not only made it onto her plate but into her sandwich, was pushed aside. When she looked up at @carolineweav she carried on, "why, or who thought putting that soggy mess into a sandwich was a good idea?"

[genesisalvarado]

After a long shift and getting through a terrible call that had the bus racing to the interstate, Gen had been in need of winding down. It didn't always help but some booze and a way to let off steam could at least stave off the images for a while. By the time Benny had swung by, being a dutiful little bar owner bringing her a fresh drink, she'd already mopped the floor with and taken the money off two guys at pool. "Letting me in?" Brow quirked, she moved close to Benny, almost too close. "I don't recall seeing this face at the door when I came in." The wild, hardly reformed brunette was looking right in his eyes. Genesis was challenging him with a look that'd make the devil smile. "Besides, I'm always on good behavior. It's hardly my fault if people act up around me." She'd had a lot of practice manipulating men, and her fingers lightly toyed with a button at the center of his chest. "You gonna act like you weren't enjoying the show before you came over here?"

↦ closed starter  / genesis alvarado @genesisalvarado ↦ location: pool table @ the whiskey barrel

Benny had seen her come in, and of course, he'd kept his eye on Gen for a while. Thankfully, she hadn't started any trouble yet, but that didn't mean she wouldn't at some point. If she wasn't so entertaining, he might not let her get away with as much as he did... But Benny was a sucker for pretty eyes like Gen's. Swinging by with another drink for her, Benny leaned against the pool table she was standing near. "You planning on being on your best behavior for me tonight, or you gonna make me regret letting you in?"

[genesisalvarado]

CHARACTER - BASICS

Name: Genesis Alvarado

Faceclaim: Adria Arjona

Age / Birthday: 33 / April 15, 1992

Gender / Pronouns: cis woman / she/her

Hometown: Galveston, TX

Occupation: paramedic & digital artist

District of Residence: Ridgeview Heights

Time in Blackstone Ridge: Around 5 years

trigger warnings: gambling, addiction, absentee parents

CHARACTER - BACKGROUND

What is the one place your muse feels most at home, and what does this place mean to them?

It may sound silly, but — in her car with the window down and the wind in her hair while the Beastie Boys blast. Just going for a long drive, scenic or not, is something that gives Genesis a sense of freedom. That's what it symbolizes to her. Worries drop away, her mistakes are non-existent for a while, and her mind opens up. Whenever she especially feels something a little too intensely, or she's got an issue to work out, then she's in the driver's seat moving along some road leading her to nowhere in particular.

If your muse is not native to Blackstone Ridge, what brings your muse to Blackstone Ridge? If your muse is from Blackstone Ridge, what keeps them here?

A fresh start. From the start life had been chaotic and a tough experience. As a latchkey kid, with parents too young and selfish to be attempting to raise a child, Gen was often left on her own or to the mercy of neighbors. When her father had gone missing in the midst of his gambling addiction, it had been too late when her mother had attempted to turn things around. Gen was fully in the fast lane and perhaps a little feral by then, she did what excited her heart and thought about consequences later. Eventually as a young adult that had gotten her into some trouble. Paying for her actions in a very costly way, she ran to be free of a broken heart and start over where she'd be a stranger. Where a blank slate would be possible.

What would you say is your muse’s biggest motivation or desire, and how does this impact their decision-making?

Now that she's finally growing up Genesis is really discovering just how much stability means to her. To have a job that's for the community, a place to call home, and away from the stresses of living rootless or dishonestly — it's becoming clear that she had it so wrong for so long. In youth she rebelled against anything steady, she didn't know what to do with it or understand what it was. If she could make it with her art, that would be the ultimate goal to achieve, and to do that she needs to be responsible. That's what she's learning, to make mature decisions and to stay disciplined.

How does your muse view themselves as a person? How does that compare to how your muse’s best friend views them?

How other people see her and what they may think of her, even the closest people to her in life, Genesis tries not to think about. Nobody truly knows anyone, especially all the history and private battles that have been fought. No one's been there through every loss nor every high. She knows she's fun. Aware of her fearlessness in heading into the fire rather than running out. The thing is, Genesis also knows she has a long way to go in being a better person. She's still harboring big secrets and there's things in her past that she hasn't made peace with. Like most everyone else, Gen sees herself as a work in progress.

What is your muse’s relationship with their family like?

In childhood, Genesis' parents were absentee. As a teenager her mother made an attempt to parent but it was too late by then. Her father was gone and in the end her mother was too selfish. They haven't really spoken since Genesis left home so many years ago, but she wouldn't turn down a conversation with her mother if it were to come about. There's a long lost need to see who's really there. In some respects she perhaps even wants to forgive her mother, she's just not positive that a relationship between them would ever truly be possible. Maybe they're too alike.

Does your muse struggle to admit when they make a mistake, or are they quick to own up to it? Does it matter who they’re admitting it to, or how big the mistake is?

There's some mistakes Genesis still has yet to own up to and apologize for. She's definitely admitted them to herself but she keeps that locked away somewhere deep within her. Any long gaze in her eyes will show you with that glinting wildness that they're in there like caged, snarling animals thrashing against the confines to get free. Small mistakes are easy to own up to, there's no struggle there. What she grapples with is if she'll ever get the opportunity to come clean to the one person she's sure she owes the truth to.

What is the coolest place your muse has traveled to? If they’ve never traveled far, what’s one place they hope to visit someday?

As an aimless young adult Genesis got up to her fair share of traveling. Mostly in the states. While California was a dream and New York was wild, the coolest place was New Orleans. The city is something to experience and to this day she still tells stories of the time she spent there.

Which parent (or parental figure) does your muse take after the most and in what ways? Are they aware of these similarities?

Unfortunately Genesis is a solid mix of her parents. Not only did she inherit her father's addictive personality, she also had been burdened with her mother's hedonistic needs. They're parts of herself she's attempting to tame and tone down. While she's long past the rush of illegal substances, Gen still battles acting on every impulse and whim. She's largely still looking for the thrill while also beginning to understand that slow life can be just as fulfilling. Thankfully her profession as a paramedic provides her with pulse pounding days and she never quite knows what her day will be like.

Does your muse struggle to forgive others, or are they quick to offer grace? 

Mostly she struggles to forgive herself. As much as she can see growth in who she is from who she was, there's nothing quite as heavy as the weight of hurting someone you loved. Because of the way she beats herself up sometimes, Genesis is easier on others and their mistakes. Not only is she quick to offer grace and understanding, sometimes even if a person doesn't apologize, Gen can often discern motives and intent. It's not as common that someone intentionally sets out to hurt someone else. Most of the time they're coincidental.

Describe your muse’s highest high or lowest low so far in their life.

The highest high was falling in love, real love, for the first time. There was nothing like it for a woman that had spent her childhood and formative years lonely, unwanted, and unloved. Because of that genuine, unconditional kind of love she felt for someone else Gen made a huge sacrifice. There was still some self preservation at play, she'd always been a survivor and instincts were practically unchangeable. But the lowest low was hurting that same love. Like a curse maybe. Genesis played with fire and not only burnt herself but also the person she ended up saving. 

[genesisalvarado]

❝ GIRLS LIKE HER WERE BORN IN A STORM. THEY HAVE LIGHTENING IN THEIR SOULS. THUNDER IN THEIR HEARTS. AND CHAOS IN THEIR BONES. ❞

STATS:

Name: Genesis Alvarado

Age: 33

Face Claim: Adria Arjona

Occupation: Paramedic & digital artist

Neighborhood: Ridgeview Heights

Gender & Pronouns: Cis female & she/her

BIOGRAPHY:

trigger warnings: drug use, underage drinking, parental neglect

Every now and then the cosmos aligned just right and a soul was born into a name that proved fate to be something real. Genesis was born to Lara and Alejandro Alvarado, a couple who had married right out of high school and were going nowhere fast. The two couldn’t seem to figure out adult life and how to live efficiently; money was often squandered too quickly, often as soon as it hit their pockets or bank account so that they could enjoy young adulthood, forgetting they had a young child who needed proper attention and consistent care. Genesis, or Gen as most called her, spent much of her time in the care of a neighbor while her parents worked and then burned through their paychecks. A latchkey kid was what she would soon become, finding she had personality traits all too similar to her parents — addictive like her father and hedonistic like her mother. Alejandro had a gambling habit, known locally as a bit of a card shark that would occasionally take a trip to large cities to hit up bigger games and bigger jackpots. Her mother, Lara, was into anything that made her feel good; whether that was dabbling in drugs and drink or getting in a fast car with a man that wasn’t her high school sweetheart turned husband, she was game for it.

It was two weeks before Genesis’s fourteenth birthday when her father never returned home from a weekend rounders trip out in New Jersey. Missing persons reports were filed and investigations eventually went cold after a month of not so hard looking around. Apparently Alejandro had a reputation in Jersey City and Atlantic City which caused the police to tell Genesis and her mother to expect the worst — he was no doubt gone and not meant to be found. Of course the young teen was devastated by the disappearance and permanent loss, though perhaps not so much as she could have been given the lack of depth to her connection with her parents. They had always been somewhat distant and absent, loving but too invested in themselves rather than creating a wholesome family like much of her friends and classmates at school had. Instead of grieving heavily, Genesis opted for fantasy, imagining that her dad was some explorer or an archaeologist working on a dig in some foreign and far away land. She did it because even then Genesis had the thoughts that there had to be more to life than this.

Coping well wasn’t something her mother did when it came to the loss of Alejandro. It surprised Genesis, she had believed they pretty much lived separate and distant lives. Given that she was the only parent now to put food on the table and provide for Genesis, Lara stepped up and cleaned up her act a bit. Nothing was given up in entirety, things simply slowed and didn’t happen as often. The absenteeism of boundaries and structure in her life set Genesis on a crash course for destruction and ruin for her own life, as it seemed every time life led to a fork in the road she always took the path less traveled — always made the wrong choice and went the wrong direction. It seemed she was determined to learn things the hard way, through mistakes and major fuckups. She wasn’t yet fifteen when she gave into experimenting with drugs, and like her mother — anything that got her heart racing. But Genesis always seemed to get caught or into more than she could handle.

After getting caught drag racing cars, it was determined by the state that she wouldn’t be able to drive a car legally until she was eighteen. Despite it being an ‘oh shit’ moment and quite the wrench in her youth, the minor brush with the law couldn’t set her straight. No, she continued to make bad decisions. At seventeen, Gen was expelled from high school for drug possession and if her own vices weren’t bad enough, the young brunette’s attractiveness also turned out to be a problem. She knew how to use her pretty brown eyes, sun kissed skin, and sweet talk coming from glistening rosy lips to get just about anything she wanted from someone. Usually it was for a fix or a drink, older men always being the best targets — no matter her goals and dreams in life, Genesis just couldn’t seem to get it right. Holding down a job was laughable, giving up on her own hedonistic indulgences generally always turned out to be too big of a sacrifice, so Genesis went on bouncing through life one or more problems at a time.

The town just seemed to get smaller and smaller, too many people knew her and not in a way that would have Genesis holding her head high when sober. Her mother long gave up on her so the official freedom of eighteen sent the girl to the big city, finding Houston to be a trove and a fresh start. She managed to get her GED and enrolled in college, though again, a normal social structure and schedule was too hard to maintain and it took longer than the average for Genesis to earn an associate’s of arts in art — one of her dreams being a painter. It was during her time in college that the Alvarado began to pull out of society’s labeled boxes. College was also a time where dating a woman opened up to her and just another avenue of life she walked down the path of. Men and women were fun to entertain on the art scene. For some time, she was hardly around, traveling with other artists led her to adventures she wouldn’t soon forget. Such as the trip in New Orleans where she got mugged, or the sex party she somehow ended up at while in Los Angeles — the paths were never clear how she got from one place to the next but it sure as hell wasn’t the rational part of her brain that made the decisions.

Eventually when back in Texas, her addictions got her in trouble once again and with the threat of jail time looming over her head, Genesis yet again made a one sided pact with God that if he helped her out of the mess she would go clean and straight. The lesson would have been to take the consequences, sell out her dealer and do a little time then work to live life responsibly. She was edging past twenty-five and still hadn’t really begun living properly, something that had festered under the surface and nagged at her in the back of her mind. The DEA had another plan for her, one she stupidly took, and that was no jail time if she worked as an informant. What she didn’t expect was that she would find such a kindred spirit and someone she felt the need to help and take care of but also a man she would fall crazily in love with. Partly, she would tell herself that it was the drugs and the partying she did with him but Genesis had gotten very good at lying to herself. Eventually being between a rock and a hard place, she cracked, the pressure from the DEA and the love she had for the dealer sent her running away. She fed the DEA some fairly useless information and made up the rest, keeping all of the dealer’s secrets before leaving Houston for a place where she'd be completely unknown. Yet another attempt at starting over.

It was one thing to break her own heart over and over again in life, it was another to have someone else’s heart in your hands and to take advantage and hurt someone you loved. Her new vow was to get her shit together, to finally live life as a real adult in the world should. When she settled into Blackstone Ridge, Genesis put herself back into college while working as a waitress to barely make ends meet. She had all the credits needed already to meet the educational requirements as a paramedic, she needed course specific classes and training. When it came to it, Genesis actually surprised herself that she was good at it. She filled out her degree and earned an associates in paramedicine. For someone always on the go and needing such a constant state of stimulus, working in emergency and trauma care was a good fit, but it also was quite a bump in income going from waitressing to EMT and paramedic. With the means to do so she was able to move from her roommate situation downtown to her own place in Ridgeview Heights. Still without a clue what life is all about or how to navigate it, Genesis at least and finally had something going right and well for herself.

CONNECTIONS:

Here for a good time not a long time — the party buddies, those down for the rush of a wild time, even if the adventure is a little tamer these days.

You knew me by another name — the mark she went undercover to get close to as a part of her deal with the DEA. they burned hot and bright and then she ran.

Meet me at the altar — the woman she married on a whim because why not?? they can figure out the details later...

neighbors, friends, enemies, people she's helped as a paramedic, hookups, fleeting relationships, good dates, bad dates, best friend, etc.

[genesisalvarado]

“She’s the devil’s favorite poem.”

— Maram Rimawi

[genesisalvarado]

#this is so me

[genesisalvarado]

ADRIA ARJONA for Who What Wear