He Looks Up, Eyebrows Lifting Slightly At Angela And The Bag Of Rocks, "shopping Spree?" Though, He Slips

"yeah, if you're a masochist who wants to get your heart broken, a mess is alluring." and she had plenty experience with that sort of attraction unfortunately, but it always made for a good story and isn't that what really mattered at the end of the day? "alright, alright, relax, i'm just giving you shit. the article was fine, bash. not a lot you can fucking do in this sort of situation." shreya shrugged before taking a long drink of her dirty shirley. she stirred the straw around, tilting her head to the side and humming, "i mean, i'm glad i didn't have to write it." she'd rather stick to the not highly publicized stuff. she was, of course, a self-proclaimed personality hire.

THE SMOOTH BUZZ WAS a lazy attempt to rid of any frustrations vibrating within his body. the whole town felt on edge, ready to fall at the slightest drop of a pin. he shrugged at shreya's rebuttal nonchalantly. ❝ never mentioned beauty , some people would argue even messes can be alluring , ❞ he meant that truly, even if it wasn't relevant for the woman side him. what were humans if not all poetically broken? still, the dig at the headline caused his lighthearted mannerisms to tighten. it wasn't something he was particularly proud of, which was unfortunate considering he was rather protective over his work. but news came out, deadlines were due, the opportunity was painted in red that now stained his hands. ❝ right , like i had a fucking choice . ' hey bennett , can i take the day off to mourn this latest tragdy ? ' ' yeah , let's just shut down the register for the day . ' that sounds practical . ❞ he mused with irritation, rolling his eyes in irritability as he downed his drink in response.

he looked up, eyes landing on none other than foster. naturally anxious already, he could feel his anxiety ratchet up a notch, his mouth suddenly feeling drier, pulse racing. griffin looked at him with slightly wide eyes, shrugging, "i don't study, um, marketing." he didn't know what possessed him to try a business school joke, but it was too late to backtrack, so he just plowed on. he much preferred to talk about his book anyway, "relate? um.. not particularly," though, the loneliness... sometimes, "i just think shirley jackson is so masterful at building suspense, in... in storytelling, really. anyway... yeah, i could write a thesis on her." he ducked his head a bit sheepishly, not used to being put on the spot — and by put on the spot, he meant literally just being asked a question by someone outside of his family and close friends. if he were braver even a little bit, he would ask foster if jackson's work had ever influenced his, but then that would make it known that griffin had seen pretty much everything the other had made and that would be very embarrassing probably. griffin nodded then, humming, "i, um... stuff related to tech is over in aisle six. i can't promise there's polaroid film, but i know there's disposable cameras and that sort of stuff so... there's a chance?" he told him, "would hate to see you flee town, but i can't make any promises." in griffin's own head, it sounded like he was practically begging foster to not leave town. though, that didn't stop him from the follow-up question that required incredible bravery on his part, "what do you need it for?" maybe he'd even get the scoop on what foster was working on now, which was an exciting enough prospect to keep him from avoiding eye contact completely.

ꜜ   ﹙   📹    ﹚   ﹕    INTRODUCING   A   BEGRUDGING   GARGOYLE   HUNCHED   OVER   A   BOOK   !   couldn't   even   be   bothered   to   look   up   when   the   bell   above   the   door   clanged   its   weary   tune,   foster   entering   the   pharmacy   and   stamping   snow   off   his   boots   onto   the   welcome   mat.   and   he   couldn't   help   but   snort   at   halfhearted   sales   pitch   tossed   his   way,   funny   how   griffin's   father   probably   had   the   charm   to   sell   used   condoms   at   the   motel   while   the   kid   couldn't   even   look   a   customer   in   the   eyes.      ❛     you're   really   selling   it   there,   champ.     ❜     foster   laughed,   more   tease   than   bite,   as   he   stepped   closer   to   the   counter,   boots   squeaking   faintly   on   the   worn   tiles.   and   he   planted   his   palms   on   the   counter,   leaning   just   enough   to   catch   sight   of   the   book   that   must   be   so   engrossing.   a   flicker   of   recognition   crossed   his   features,   eyebrows   lifting   lightly   as   he   drew   his   gaze   toward   the   younger   man.      ❛    hangsaman,   huh   ?   you   relate   to   it   ?     ❜    he   asked,   nodding   toward   the   book,   his   voice   dipping   lower,   gentler—   not   quite   mocking   now   but   probing,   his   curiosity   piqued.      ❛    the   loneliness   ?   the   descent   to   ...   madness   ?     ❜ but   foster   was   just   half-joking   with   the   inquiry,   a   small   chuckle   slipping   past   his   lips   as   he   fished   his   wallet   out   of   his   back   pocket.      ❛     i'm   just   here   for   some   polaroid   films,   by   the   way.   please   tell   me   you've   got   some,   or   i   swear   i'm   driving   straight   outta   this   town   and   never   coming   back.   well,   no.   but   i'm   definitely   not   gonna   be   happy   about   it.     ❜

Anais Nin, The diary of Anais Nin vol. 1: 1931 - 1934.

(  geraldine viswanathan  .  cis woman  .  she / her  )  .    ⸻  shreya  howe  ,  a  twenty - seven  year  old  ,  has  survived  another  day  in  red  creek  where  they  have  lived  for  their whole life ( besides college )  .  the  gossip  is  known  for being  curious  and  overbearing  and  is  often  associated  with  talking so fast the words run together , naps taken anywhere , music blaring in headphones  .  in  a  small  town  where  they  work  as  a journalist at the register  word  travels  fast  .  it’s  hard  to  keep  a  secret  ,  and  it  looks  like  the  boogeyman  knows  that redacted .

STATS

full name: shreya naomi howe   hometown: red creek, mi   sexuality: queer (really just... into anyone who will give her an abundance of attention)   birthday: august 1   zodiac: leo sun, cancer moon, aries rising  height: 5’6”  languages spoken: english, na'vi (language from avatar (2009)) marital status: single children: none  traits: curious, outgoing, assertive, impatient, overbearing, nosy 

BACKGROUND tw parental death

shreya has no memories of her dad, she used to pretend when she was in kindergarten that she remembered saying her first word and saying it to him, but that was a lie she crafted to make herself feel even remotely better of only knowing him from pictures and stories

she was always an outgoing, loud child, could make friends with anyone and was always the first to reach out to new kids in class or in town; half of this was out of the kindness of her heart and the other half her nagging curiosity to know Everything about everyone

despite chandra's religious preoccupation, she took solace in her mom, going to church with her, following her around to try and keep close, make sure nothing ever happened to her like it did to her dad

she, of course, spent plenty of time bothering her older brother, playing the usual annoying little sister role and always ALWAYS looked up to darshan, he's the closest thing to a father figure she ever had

when she was 11, chandra died after a brief, horrible illness, and shreya wasn't sure if she herself would survive it, but darshan came home and he took care of her and she's not sure if she'll ever be able to repay him for that sacrifice

she covered up her grief with humor and her big personality, always putting on a smile and keeping an appearance of everything being chill and cool

when she graduated high school, she shipped off to ohio university to study journalism, but she knew her path would always lead her back to red creek

she returned and got a job at the register where she is allowed to gossip for a LIVING, which she loves <33

she knew daniela growing up and her disappearance has kinds fucked w her, plus now kirby dying??? she's like what the HELL is going on? beautiful young women are under fire... shreya said EYE could be next??? anyway, she's never been good at handling her grief, so all this violence and sadness in town is definitely not helping!

PERSONALITY AND FUN FACTS

she's friendly! sometimes almost TOO friendly and sometimes it's only because she wants a quote or some scoop for her latest article, but she does have a big heart! lover girl core underneath all the jokes and all the grief

was absolutely the first one to text the group chat when queen elizabeth died and then shot off a series of tweets that probably could get her fired... her henry kissinger death tweets? even more unhinged

curious, just loves to Know things, wants to know everything down to the tiniest detail

probably shouldn't tell her secrets but she loves to be told secrets

she IS a loyal friend though, will not be breaking codes of friendship unless she thinks it could really benefit her career

pretty anti-religion; religion didn't save her mom so now she's kinda like... what the hell @ god? u canNOT be real if all this shit happened to me

big flirt, loves dating and loves The Chase (loves to be chased), but has not had many serious relationships bc that would require emotional vulnerability that she is not equipped for; she LOVES when people are vulnerable to her but cannot reciprocate it

probably a little annoying but in an endearing way

does NOT play about the people she loves, will fight you if you're mean to the people she cares about, fiercely protective

lives with a lot of guilt, mostly in regard to darshan giving up so much to take care of her when their mom passed

has a lot of special interests (na'vi, fantasy novels aka fairy smut, writes fanfiction, lover of wes anderson movies)

sleeps with socks on

has a black cat named chip and he is her baby, her pride and joy

also has a garden in her yard, most of it is dead but neverthless... she persists! (someone come help)

character inspo: velma (scooby doo), liz (shrinking), lois lane (superman), betty (riverdale), lilly (the princess diaries)

there was something about fresh grief that was numbing, a sort of autopilot that griffin's body just immediately clicked into. he remembered when his uncle died, he was young but he could remember how heavy it felt, like a set of football shoulder pads that he couldn't just shrug off like he had when he was five and tried peewee football for all of six minutes. this felt different. he hadn't been particularly close to his cousin, but still, it felt awful, he felt sick to his stomach. since hearing the news, his body felt like it was in a permanent dry heave while his head was empty, too overwhelmed to form a single thought. but he had to get out of the house, which led to wandering, which led to here standing in front of collette with a vacant expression on his face. he cleared his throat, shrugging, "i don't really know what i said either. not important. probably just, like, hey, what's up?" griffin shrugged, taking his gloves off and shoving them in his coat pockets, "got anything interesting for sale today?" not that he was planning on buying anything, but he could use the distraction.

LOCATION : red creek fish market. TIME OF DAY : mid - morning, just a bit before noon. STATUS : open starter, accepting replies.

the  cognitive  limbo  felt  more  physical  than  usual  —  a  headiness,  floaty  &  almost  dreamlike,  forcing  collette's  attention  in  multiple  directions  as  on  one  hand,  the  influx  of  news  that  came  from  a  radio  behind  the  counter  -  though  interrupted  with  pulsing  static,  still  loud  enough  for  them  to  hear  all  the  unsightly  details  of  this  morning's  findings,  versus  the  smile,  unsubstantial  but  still  there,  etched  onto  their  face  with  a  serrated  blade. it  was  nothing  out  of  sorts,  coming  from  towns  whose  fibre  was  woven  with  tragedy,  yet  each  news  alert  doesn't  get  more  palatable  with  time.  this  was  an  ache  one  couldn't  easily  soothe  over  with  a  few  licks  to  the  wound,  and  it  stunted  collette,  one  whose  gaze  bounced  between  others  whose  mouths  equally  as  upturned  as  their  own,  though  she  could  almost  see  the  scars  of  theirs,  too.  sic  vita  est,  life  goes  on,  but  this  ear  worm  remained  persistent.  they  hated  it,  the  insistence  to  just  keep  going,  life  as  usual  when  someone  no  longer  has  that  opportunity.  but  through  the  fog,  a  voice  boomed,  syllables  growing  clearer,  a  “  huh,  sorry,  ”  spoken  under  the  vendor's  breath.  “  can  you  —  can  you  say  that  again  ?  sorry.  i  didn't  hear  you  correctly,  i  don't  think  …  ”

I know I sound like your mom but you kids need to stop fucking vaping

everyone should thank me because as bad as i am, i am holding myself back from being much worse

cyrus & griffin & shreya written by ef for redcreekfm

cyrus- about griffin- about shreya- about

an unfortunate situation. griffin thinks that's a bit of an understatement, but he can tell from the look on his dad's face that he isn't necessarily in the greatest headspace. neither is griffin, to be fair. neither is most of the town, probably. he lets out a breath, nodding at his dad, "it's... it doesn't really feel real, y'know?" and he knows it's still fresh and there aren't a lot of details, but it's so surreal.

he's a little bit terrified and a lot worried about his family and the people he cares about. he wants nathan to tell him that everything is going to be fine, but griffin knows he can't, he knows that's an impossible ask. with everything that's been going on? he can't see a future where things get better, just maybe less terrifying. because even if he survives this, if everyone he loves survives this, nothing will ever be the same. "i don't work today, so... yeah, yeah, i'll be home. i'll stay home." griffin nods. he swallows hard, tugging on the sleeves of his sweatshirt as he stares at his dad. "dad..." he hesitates a moment, feeling a little bit stupid at what he's considering asking, once again that same seven-year-old instinct washing over him, his cheeks go pink with embarrassment, "can i hug you?"

〔　🦂　〕　　…　　𝗶𝗻  𝗮𝗻  𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗽𝘁  𝘁𝗼  𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗹  𝗵𝗶𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳,  nathan  looks  griffin  in  the  eyes,  hopes  the  presence  of  his  youngest  son  could  help  pull  himself  together  but  the  forlorn  look  on  his  face  is  almost  enough  to  break  him.  his  heart  is  caught  in  his  throat,  trapped  between  the  scream  trying  to  claw  its  way  out  of  him  and  all  the  secrets  he  cannot  dare  to  say.  the  answer  is  so  simple  —  she  was  murdered  —  and  yet  he  can't  bring  himself  to  say  it  out  loud.  never  in  his  life  has  he  felt  so  powerless,  drained  of  all  the  confidence  that  typically  came  to  him  like  second  nature.  it  used  to  be  so  easy  answering  all  of  griffin's  questions,  but  not  he  doesn't  even  know  what  to  say.  “  an  unfortunate  situation,  that's  what.  ”  but  it's  more  than  that,  and  he  knows  it.  it's  an  act  of  violence,  it's  a  warning.  kirby's  death  was  likely  not  a  stroke  of  bad  luck  if  whoever  killed  her  is  trying  to  put  the  blame  on  him.  the  only  thing  nathan  doesn't  know  is  why.  he  heaves  a  heavy  sigh.  “  would  it  be  be  too  much  to  ask  you  to  stay  home  today?  i  can't  —  i  —  ”  i  can't  risk  losing  you  too.  “  i  don't  think  it's  safe  to  be  outside  right  now.  ”

//   (  aldis hodge .  cis man  .  he/him  )  .    ⸻  cyrus cromwell ,  a  thirty-eight  year  old  ,  has  survived  another  day  in  red  creek  where  they  have  lived  for  ten months (but grew up there) .  the  magnet  is  known  for  being  charismatic  and vain  and  is  often  associated  with  caffeine fueled days, loud laughter in quiet places, displeasure hidden behind a dazzling smile  .  in  a  small  town  where  they  work  as  a teacher at red creek k-12  word  travels  fast  .  it’s  hard  to  keep  a  secret  ,  and  it  looks  like  the  boogeyman  knows  that  redacted  . 

STATS

full name: cyrus carson cromwell   hometown: red creek, mi   sexuality: closeted bisexual  birthday: may 23   zodiac: gemini sun, sagittarius moon, sagittarius rising  height: 6’2”  languages spoken: english, arabic, mandarin, russian, spanish, conversational french and german marital status: married children: 2, zeke (8) and lily (6)  traits: charismatic, intelligent, driven, vain, manipulative, sycophantic

BACKGROUND

second oldest of the cromwell family, cyrus always knew he was expected to achieve great things

while he helped tori with their younger siblings sometimes, he spent a lot of time out of the house with his friends

he was popular at school and super involved in the red creek community, star of the high school basketball team, class vice president his senior year, valedictorian — his list of accolades is long

when he graduated, he immediately got tf out of red creek, attending stanford

he majored in political science and linguistics with a minor in international relations, eyes on a job with the UN eventually

when he graduated, he moved to europe and then continued to move around the world, working as a translator at various embassies and UN facilities

somewhere in there he met his wife (submitting as a wc... *eyes*) and they had two kids

but about a year ago REDACTED happened and cy shortly after moved his family back to red creek very abruptly

now he's working as a teacher at his alma mater, teaching government to high school seniors and probably is a language tutor on the side for anyone who wants to learn a language he knows; he claims he just wanted to "slow down" but... yeah, that's not really true... ANYWAY!

PERSONALITY AND FUN FACTS tw brief mention of internalized biphobia

kind of an egomaniac, thinks he is god's gift to this earth (and maybe he is idk)

he knows he's hot

very protective of his siblings and family and anyone he cares about

very charismatic, easily commands and keeps a room's attention and LOVES it

was absolutely a ladies man in high school and college, dated a lot before meeting his wife; recent conflict with his wife probably has him being a little flirty when he shouldn't //: men smh

is bisexual but insecure about it and very much tries not to let people know that as he's always kind of felt pressure to be the typical big, strong Man of the House, especially because his parents weren't around a lot he's always wanted to fit the picture perfect image he was "meant for" which only included heterosexuality in his mind

hates navy blue, refuses to wear anything in that color

has an insane workout routine and is in the process of constructing a guest house in his backyard just for a gym space (not very handy like That, so someone please come help him build it)

does not feel guilty about getting tf out of red creek as soon as he could, doesn't feel guilty about most things he does even if they're somewhat questionable????

fake as fuck, even if he hates you he will smile at you like (((:

the murders scared him as a kid since he was around 13 but now he kinda thinks the whole resurgence/boogeyman returning theory is bullshit; he was friends with one of heather's siblings and saw firsthand the kind of grief people were going through, so now he thinks people are bringing it back as a story to scare the young people in town

character inspo: mr. incredible (the incredibles), steve (the haunting of hill house), patrick bateman (american psycho), mouth (the goonies), fitz (scandal)