Post by ELLEN VICTORIA STERN on Aug 3, 2013 19:19:33 GMT -8
| [atrb=style,width: 420px; background-color: efefef; background-image: url(http://24.media.tumblr.com/0478144b9f16c95a37367d1aca56b45c/tumblr_mkfax8tDxp1s97ldco1_500.png); padding: 5px, bTable] ELLEN V. STERN 22 | STRAIGHT | MAID | COLLEGE STUDENT | CINTIA DICKER THE INTERVIEW WELL, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? SIT DOWN. "No need to be rude, sugar." The young woman takes a seat as told, smiling brightly at her interviewer. "I'm Ellen Victoria Stern, as it doesn't seem like you'll be asking. Most people just call me Eevee, though. Mostly cause of my initials, you know, E-V? My best friend started calling me that when we were in the third grade." In an attempt to be polite, she doesn't give her usual speech about calling her Ellen or Ellie. Nobody is allowed to call her that, she'd typically say, with the exclusion of a few select people. "It's also because of the Pokemon, though. Eevee's real versatile, you know? At the beginning, she's great. But you give her a little somethin' extra, and she becomes amazing. I like to think I'm like that." Explaining the slightly odd nickname is habit, at this point. Everyone always asks, and she always has to answer. After all, it'd be rude to leave them confused. WHAT, DO YOU NEVER HAVE A DATE? STOP STARING AT ME LIKE THAT. "Oh no, I have dates all the time. I've got a boyfriend." A secret boyfriend none of her friends knew about, but Eevee finds that fun. Prior to her secret boyfriend, her dating history was a little complicated. One boyfriend in high school, who had ended up dead after her father found out he'd broken her heart. Then she'd left, and her love life had seemed simpler, at first. A few dates here and there, until one ended up knocking her up during her second year of college. "If I didn't, though, I wouldn't be too concerned about it. I've got a daughter, Carolina June. She's about eighteen months old now, and I barely have time to for my boyfriend as it is, between taking care of her and school. If I hadn't found my boyfriend the way I did, I'd probably be single now." As it was, she'd been surprised to end up with her boyfriend. He was, after all, her boss when they met. He was twice her age, but she didn't see anything wrong with that. WHATEVER. WHAT QUALITIES DO YOU LOOK FOR IN OTHER PEOPLE? Pausing before answering, Eevee smiled a bit. "What everyone else looks for, I guess. Someone I can get along with. Someone who can understand my history, someone who won't ask too many questions I'm not comfortable with. Things have never exactly been normal for me. I need people who don't mind that too much." Understanding was the biggest quality she looked for in a friend. Trustworthiness was right along with it, but that was generally determined along with their level of understanding. What she wanted was simple, she thought. She wanted to have judgment free friendships, because the rest of the world judged her enough as it was. HOW MISS AMERICA OF YOU. I SUPPOSE YOU VOLUNTEER EXCESSIVELY, TOO? "Volunteer? I wish I had the time for that. I've got a pretty busy schedule, you know? I'm in college, double majoring in Women's Studies and Journalism. That takes up a lot of my time. Then, when I'm not studying, I've got a job. Which isn't particularly bad, I'm just a maid, but it still takes time. Not to mention the fact that I'm raising a kid more or less alone. I mean, I've got Cooke, but he's... I don't know. Anyway, after all that, I barely have time to go on dates and sometimes do something fun by myself. When I have the time, I like scrap booking. A teacher got me into it when I was in high school. Now it's kind of my only actual hobby. I just don't have time for much else. Plus, I'm making one for Caro. I want to have something to show her how loved she was, once she gets older." Eevee always wished for more time, but unless she cut something out of her life, that didn't seem to be happening. She couldn't think of anything that could actually be cut out, though. Her studies were important for her future, her job kept her from relying on her father for money, and her daughter wasn't going anywhere. There was always the option of breaking up with her boyfriend, but she was happy with him. She didn't want to have to break up with him just to make the rest of her life easier. YOU ACTUALLY LIKE THAT STUFF? DARE I ASK YOU ABOUT YOUR CHILDHOOD? Looking slightly offended, Eevee nodded slowly. "Well, yes, I like that stuff. As for my childhood... I guess I can tell you a little about it. I lost my mom when I was a baby. Gang violence. Um. My dad raised me by himself after that. I mean, he had girlfriends, you know, but never anyone serious? Not until I was around nine. Then he got a serious girlfriend, and they had my brother. Then my sister. And another brother. And two more sisters. Well, actually, I'm pretty sure my two youngest sisters are with a chick my dad cheated on her with, but I wasn't around when they were born, so I can't be positive." Jojo and Raye were only three, but her other siblings were twelve, nine, and seven, so it was possible that her step-mother was their mother as well. Eevee had heard rumors of her father knocking up another woman, though, which wouldn't surprise her. "My childhood was obviously a little... odd. My dad's in a biker gang. Well. He's kind of in charge of it? So... That's what I grew up in. I was always surrounded by guys, you know? And the women I was around were generally in the life as well. Everyone I knew as a little kid either rode a bike, or was a stripper. Or prostitutes. Yeah. When I started school, I met other people. Except... I never got invited over to friends houses. And nobody was allowed to come over to mine. Their parents wouldn't let them. I mean, I get it, you know? My dad looks like a scary biker dude. My dad is a scary biker dude. So, whatever, I guess. It just made things a little lonely. I didn't go to a sleepover until I was fourteen. And that was only because I made friends with the new girl before she was told about my family." Sighing, Eevee shrugs, before smiling a little. "I never had to worry about being safe, though. My dad was scary enough to keep anyone from attempting to hurt me. Unfortunately, that made me kind of impossible to date in high school. I grew up in a small town, you know? Everyone knew who my dad was. The only reason the local cops never arrested him was that his 'business' kept our town from going bankrupt. They needed him. Still do." Talking about her father always made her a little uncomfortable, and Eevee found herself fidgeting as she continued talking about her childhood. "I, uh, I did get a boyfriend eventually. In my senior year. Alfie. God, he was just... He was great. A childhood friend, you know? I mean, we didn't get to play much outside of school. But at school, we were partners in crime. I was a little bit of a tomboy, and I used to drag him along on adventures. He was kind of a chicken unless I goaded him into something. We fell in love, like best friends do in all those sappy chick flicks. We were talking about getting married after graduation. And then..." Alfie had been accepted into an ivy league school. He was going to go away to study, and maybe after that, they could get married. Until then, it'd have to be a long distance relationship, he'd tried to tell her. "He was going to go away to college. It kind of upset me, having the future we'd planned put on hold. So... We broke up. I went home from our date that night in tears. I wouldn't talk to anyone." That had been the only provocation her over-protective father had needed to finally go after the boy he was sure had destroyed his baby girl's innocence and broken her heart. "The next morning, there were police at the door. Someone... Someone had broken into his house. He'd been shot, and... It killed him." Nearing tears, she looked down at her still fidgeting hands. "After that, I ended up leaving my hometown. My dad made me bring Cooke with me, to watch out for me... He's pretty overprotective." Leaving her hometown had started an entirely new chapter in her life, if you asked her. It was a time of freedom, of discovering who she was without the influence of her father. He hadn't let her go alone, but he hadn't asked her to take someone she didn't like, so she supposed it wasn't so bad. Besides, she and Cooke had quickly come to the agreement that him reporting to her father on her life any further than her general well-being would result in a fist in his face. "We ended up in Brunswick. I'm going to college here. We've got an apartment, and he's kind of like a regular roommate, I guess. Except for the fact that he's like forty. But we get along great. He's pretty much my best friend. So, after moving to Brunswick, life settled down. My dad offered to send money, so I could focus on my studies, but I wanted to be independent. I started stripping. It was kinda fun, actually. Until I got pregnant. That kinda ruined me being a stripper." Sighing, Eevee shrugged slightly. "I already told you that my daughter is about eighteen months old now. Caro's the most important thing in the world for me. I'd do anything for her. I loved her from the moment I knew she was in there. Anyway, when I found out I was pregnant, I knew stripping wouldn't be an option for much longer. A friend pointed me in the direction of a maid job, and that luckily worked out. That's really it. My life in a nutshell, I guess." THAT'S IT? NO SKELETONS IN YOUR CLOSET OR ANYTHING? "My boyfriend dying when I was eighteen wasn't enough of a skeleton in my closet? Ugh. Fine." Biting her lip, she looked back down at her hands before answering. "I don't have any conclusive proof, but I know my dad killed Alfie. He may not have pulled the trigger himself, but it was on his orders that it was done. That's why I had to get away. I couldn't live with him, knowing that." Feeling a little relieved by telling one secret, she decided to tell another before the next question was asked. "He also doesn't know that I have a baby. I didn't want him to know, so I made Cooke promise to keep it a secret. I threatened to run if he told him. I don't want Caro growing up like I did." Those aren't her only secrets, but Eevee has lived her life keeping secrets. She won't tell that she has no idea who the father of her daughter is, or that the man she's dating is near the same age as her own father. The only person she's ever told is Cooke, and he's sworn to take it to his grave, something she fears would be literal if her father ever found out. EH, I'VE HEARD WORSE. IS IT GOING TO INTERFERE WITH YOUR TIME IN BRUNSWICK? "You've heard worse? God, I'd hate to have your job. Well, actually, I think I'd love it. I want to be a journalist. I want to tell stories, to tell the truth to the world. I want to make the world a better place." It probably seemed silly to some people, but it really was important to her that she made some kind of positive difference in the world. With all the bad that her father had done, Eevee felt like she needed to try and balance it out with some good. "I think telling stories can help make things better. Learning new things can change a person. I like to think that if the world learns enough, it could change." Optimism was hard to find, sometimes, but she always tried her hardest. It'd be difficult to carry on otherwise, she thought. IF ALL ELSE FAILS, I'M SURE YOU HAVE A RELATIVE'S BASEMENT YOU CAN LIVE IN. Frowning, she shook her head. "As I mentioned, I've got a roommate. Technically, I don't need to work. I'm sure that... Whatever it is that he does, it'd take care of the three of us if I lost my job or something. So, I don't see myself ending up needing to live with any relatives. If I had to, though... My mom's brother is okay. He lives in Portland. That's part of why I chose Brunswick. It's close to him, but not close enough that we'll be tripping over each other. We have dinner every Sunday. He's a pretty good uncle." He'd also become more of a father figure to her than her own father was, at this point, but Eevee didn't like talking about that. ALRIGHT. THAT'S IT. SHUT THE DOOR ON YOUR WAY OUT, WON'T YOU? "Uh, yeah, sure. Thank you for your time?" She wasn't sure this hadn't been a waste of hers, but she felt a little better for having talked about her problems. Keeping all of it inside really was bad for her, she thought as she left the room, forgetting to close the door as she went. BEHIND THE MASK EMILY | 18 | PACIFIC | I lurk sometimes | CASH, CHELSEA, and NELL  |
