[OOC] With Friends Like These: A Slice of Life RP Inspired by the Sitcom, Friends

[Devo]

No longer accepting characters outside of the two reserved slots!



So no one told you life was gonna be this way
Your job's a joke, you're broke, your love life's D O A
It's like you're always stuck in second gear
When it hasn't been your day, your week
Your month or even your year

~
Most groups of friends die out once they graduate college. Now that they're adults, people go their separate ways. They change, they make new friends. That's how it works for most groups of friends. However, this is not one of those stories.

This is the story of a group of friends who live in Chicago. Now graduated from college, they're still extremely close (even if some of them have incredibly different interests, lifestyles, and might even pick at each other a lot of the time). It was a stretch and could have been something that would have been along the lines of disastrous, but the group of friends are moving into an apartment complex together, sharing apartments in groups of two.

Their adult life, their friendships, and everything in-between will change, that's for sure. After all, it's a group of incredibly different ethnicities, sexualities, lifestyles, and personalities. Will their so-called unbreakable bonds survive? Will romance blossom between any of them? Will they survive each other and the entire stress of being thrown out into the adult world?

Well, time will tell.

~

Rules and such:

1. The minimum characters I'm looking for in this RP is six, just like Friends itself. There currently isn't a maximum, but over twelve and it might feel cramped. We'll see how this works out.
2. Stay committed. I'm not going to exactly enforce a minimum reply schedule for now, but if you disappear for like a week or two without giving proper warning, I'll most likely PM you asking if you still want part of this and give you the option to have your character move out of the apartments and/or out of Chicago.
3. I'd like a simple one paragraph minimum per post. No maximum, so you don't have to worry too much.
4. Please wait for two other people to post after your last post before you post again. I wouldn't want everyone to feel like two of the friends are kinda taking over. It's an ensemble RP after all!
5. Keep it PG-13. Swearing can stay the same as regular Friends/adult sitcom fare. Anything regarding sexual intimacy fades out or goes to PM's, if you would.
6. A lot of things done in this RP will be decided through us all brainstorming up plots together as time passes in the apartment complex. So a lot of OOC interaction will be necessary.
7. Drama's fine IC. Let's be civil OOC. I'll give two warnings on OOC drama. If I have to give a third one, I'm afraid that I'll have to write your character out of the story politely (them moving away from the others).
8. Do not post the relationship sheet until all characters are accepted. However, you may work on it as more characters are accepted. After all, you'll most likely be writing it 5-7 times!
9. Feel free to start establishing each characters's bonds in the OOC. This will make filling out the relationship sheets and figuring out how each character feels about the others in the best way possible.
10. Have fun! Not really a rule, but this is meant to be definitely a fun time. If you have any questions, always feel free to ask.

~

Character Sheet

Name:
Age: (22-26, AKA either college grads or graduate school grads):
Gender: (Male? Female? Nonbinary?)
Race/Ethnicity:
Sexuality: (Heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, pansexual, asexual, etc.)
Appearance: (I'd prefer real life pictures/face claims or description for this.)
Personality: (Describe what they are like. Minimum three sentences.)
History: (What is their backstory like? Minimum three sentences.)
Other: (Anything else you feel like adding can go here.)

Relationship Sheet

Name of other person:
Relationship towards them: (Best friend, friend, roommate, secretly hates them, not so secretly hates them, crush, significant other, etc. If need be, you can list more than one of these, of course.)
How does your character personally feel about this person?:

[kkbird123]

CS will be up by tomorrow

[Devo]

@kkbird123 Alighty! Can't wait to see what you come up with!

[Fabricant451]

Hey I noticed the Interest Check and was just wondering if there was room for one more?

[Sherlolly]

I love this idea; I'm gonna get to work on a CS now

[Devo]

@Fabricant451 There should be! Worse comes to worse, I could open up a couple more slots. So yeah, go for it! c: And hopefully this one will get off the ground

@Sherlolly Alrighty! Can't wait to see what you come up with!

[Fabricant451]

Alrighty, I'll work on a sheet

[Lord Coake]

I'll have one up tomorrow as well. Need time to mush my ideas together into a coherent character.

[Devo]

@Lord Coake Alright! Take your time; there's no rush. c:

[flightless-angel-castiel]

Gonna work on my CS tonight; being a bit slow and lazy today on things lol.

[Sherlolly]

if the history doesn't quite add up, I'm more than happy to change it ^^

Avery Rydell

Name: Avery Rydell
Age: 25 years old
Gender: Female
Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian- Scottish
Sexuality: Heterosexual (Bi-Curious)
Appearance: Faceclaim- Karen Gillan

Personality: A quiet soul, Avery tends to keep to herself and stays out of the limelight as much as she can. She is capable of many things, but her self-confidence is somewhat lacking. Behind her shyness, a sweet and surprisingly funny girl shines through and she is found to be particularly loyal, finding goodness in almost anyone or anything.

Many people find her to be weak and even pathetic at times; but she is much stronger that one would think. Her willingness to share great burdens with those she cares about is awe-inspiring and her love for her family and friends is as fierce as any lion. Like most people, she does have a breaking point to her niceties and suffers from severe anxiety at the worst of times. She is prone to panic attacks and experiences random outbursts of anger when stressed.

History: Her father left a few moths after Avery was born, leaving her mother to look after Avery and her two older twin brothers in Glasgow, Scotland. The small family struggled, but got by with the little they had. Tragedy struck when Avery reached the age of seven. At this time she was bright, cheery and not afraid of being the center of attention. Marc and Jason, her two older brothers, were on their way home from school when Marc collapsed on the street. Not able to wake his twin, Jason called for help and Marc was rushed to hospital. Marc's diagnosis was inconclusive, but he later died in hospital and the remaining three of the family fell into a dark pit of depression and moved to America in an attempt to start a new life. Jason left their new home to go to college when Avery was twelve; so she stopped going to school to provide for herself and her mother, who had been seemingly frozen in a state of shock ever since Marc had died.

Avery tried as hard as she could, pick-pocketing people in the streets and stealing from local grocery stores, but her mother passed away four years later. Now at the age of sixteen with no decent education and hardly any money, in a final plea for help, Avery prayed to the Gods, any God, that she would be helped in this time of need. The answer to her prayers came in a will from her grandfather, a man she barely recollected. Being handed such a large amount of money, Avery began to build her life back up again and now, at the age of twenty five, she has managed to finally get an education and major in journalistic photography, now currently looking for a job that'll keep her in a comfortable financial state.

Other: Suffers from anxiety, and from time to time will fall victim to a panic attack.

[Devo]

@flightless-angel-castiel Alrighty! Can't wait to see your character! c:

@Sherlolly Avery is accepted! You may move her over to the character tab!

[flightless-angel-castiel]

The history got away from me and got a lot longer than I expected but here we are!

Spencer

Name:

Spencer "Spence" Rivera.

Age:

26.

Gender:

Male.

Race/Ethnicity:

Half Caucasian/Half Hispanic.

Sexuality:

Bisexual.

Appearance:

Spencer stands at a towering 6'3, with a very fit build, since he enjoys being active and working out. He usually lets his thick, brown hair do what it will, usually pushing it back so it doesn't hang in his face. He already has a skin tone similar to a tan all year around but during the summer, it usually darkens since he enjoys being outdoors. He wears laid back outfits, usually opting for loose t-shirts and sweats, or gym shorts and a muscle shirt, and almost always tennis shoes. He almost always looks like he's ready to hit the gym, unless it's a special occasion, then he will dress up, though he doesn't like clothing that feels constricting. For his job as a nurse, he wears scrubs, of course, and with his hours, he is also seen in scrubs a lot.

Personality:

Spencer is like the energizer bunny; he can't sit still for a long time. He's always up and down doing something and if he is sitting down, his hands are fiddling with something, and his knees are usually bouncing. He seemingly has an endless amount of energy and he runs a lot to try and blow the energy off. He's carefree, talkative, and loud. He enjoys life and people and the city he grew up in. He's very encouraging and isn't judgmental at all. He's a very handsy person, always touching someone's shoulder or arm or knee when talking to them. He likes to make people laugh and smile, so he's a joker, always using puns and sarcasm and cheesy jokes to get his humor across. Despite this, it takes a lot to get Spencer to open up; it also takes a lot of time to get close to him. He's open in a friendly and fun way but once someone tries to get closer, or tries to dig into his past, he shuts down and changes the subject. Because of his past, he's hesitant to let people into his heart, and he has trust issues. But, once he lets someone in, he's very caring and protective of them. Even though he looks like a man who would get angry easily, he doesn't; he might get annoyed if someone is being rude but it takes a lot to get him to a point where he's red in the face and ready to blow. Maybe Spencer is so loud and happy and, honestly, over the top, because he suffers from depression. He doesn't tell anyone he suffers from it and nobody would guess. While he loves being active, some days, he will just lay around and eat whatever and be a couch potato. Those days are farther in between than they used to be but sometimes, they still happened, and usually he had to try his best to power through them, but given the chance, he doesn't go anywhere on those days.

History:

Spencer was born and raised in Chicago. His father was an American while his mother was Hispanic. His father had met his mother when he was on vacation with friends in Mexico, during his college days, and it was a fast love. They kept contact and once they both had enough money saved up, she moved to Chicago, they got their own place, and were very much in-love. However, that saved up money didn't last long, and once his mother became pregnant with him, his father's job at a retail store wasn't paying the bills and extra expenses that a baby would take, and so his father began working two jobs. They had to move into downtown Chicago, into a very unsafe neighborhood, but they had no choice, no longer able to pay for a middle-class apartment and medical expenses since their insurance was not worth anything. Despite the sketchy neighborhood and the local schools not being the best, Spencer did have loving parents, who loved him and each other very much.

Though, when Spencer was only eight, his father was coming home late from his second job and got caught in the middle of a gang shootout; he died in the hospital the next day. Spencer and his mother were lost; she had never worked, always staying home to care for Spencer and the house. The money they got from his death would not last forever and so his mother became a waitress at a diner down a couple blocks, having to often leave Spencer with their neighbors, a sweet older woman whose grandchildren came and went often in the apartment complex. Spencer made best friends with her grandson, and enjoyed staying with the older woman, while his mother tried her best to support them without falling into a depression. Even still, she was depressed, and Spencer saw the shift in his mother, saw she wasn't as happy; she rarely spoke to him, just worked as much as she could, and was running herself ragged. As Spencer grew up, he noticed how she was struggling; he, himself, was struggling but he tried his best to be there for her. She still struggled with English, having only known Spanish when she met his father who was fluent in both languages, and so Spencer was fluent in both; he tried to teach her more but she refused, saying she would eventually get it, and Spencer just knew the teachings reminded her of his father.

Spencer was doing fair in school; though, his best friend, Danny, wasn't a good influence. He encouraged Spencer to not care about his school work and by the time Spencer was a sophomore in high school, he was barely passing and Danny had gotten him into the "party scene," at the high school, where Spencer would go out with that crowd and drink and smoke and get up to no good. Spencer's mother was so busy between working, and trying to run from her grief, she hadn't taken notice when it first began. But, when Spencer's principle called, and she had to leave work to come to the school, she found out about it. Spencer had been caught smoking behind the school with Danny and a couple of his other friends; though Danny was the one who dragged him into that scene, Danny put all the blame on him, claiming Spencer stole the cigarettes from Danny's grandmother, that Danny had saw it, and that Spencer was the one who pressured them all into trying the new things. Spencer tried to argue it wasn't true but life was unfair and the blame was put onto Spencer anyway. He got expelled from school for longer than Danny and the other two friends got. Spencer would be out of school for a whole month and his mother was furious; she dragged him home and screamed at him and in her anger, and all her built up grief and overall anger at life, she began hitting him. Spencer let her, because he thought he deserved it; he realized he shouldn't had let Danny pressure him into those things and in the end, Danny put it all on him, when he thought he and Danny were good friends, especially since he and Danny had experimented with each other before and kept it a locked down secret.

His mother had apologized profusely once she realized what she had done and of course Spencer forgave her; she had been going through a lot of mental issues for years and he didn't need to pile more problems onto her shoulders. Still, their relationship was never the same, and the rarity of which they spoke became never speaking to each other. They just shared a house together. Spencer hated the shift in his life, that he had been partially to blame for it. He never went back to Danny's grandmother's apartment, afraid Danny would be around there, and for the month he was expelled, he almost never left his room, letting depression eat away at him. When he did return to school, having to come back the year after, and thus being a year behind, he discovered Danny had been spreading rumors around about him being gay and always hitting on him and trying to proposition him. He had to start his sophomore year over, and so for three years, he dealt with being teased and bullied, homophobic slurs thrown his way, and having no friends. He had been thinking of dropping out of high school when he bumped into Danny's grandmother one day when he walked home from school; he was just in the middle of his second sophomore year and he had already been thinking of dropping out and just finding a job.

He expected her to be angry at him, or disgusted, expecting Danny lied to her, too. But instead, she invited him inside and they had a long talk, where Spencer broke and told her everything, how Danny had lied, and what was happening at school now. Danny's grandmother was very open and sweet and gave him the encouragement to ignore those people, finish high school, and move on to make something of himself. He began going to her house more often after that and even though his school life was hard, and he and his mother were like strangers now, he had Danny's grandmother and she was the highlight of those years. He finished high school and went to college, at first for general studies; he wasn't sure what he wanted to do. Danny's grandmother fell ill during his freshman year and she had to be moved into a nursing home. Spencer visited her often and discovered what he wanted to be as he visited her - a nurse. Maybe a doctor one day. Danny's grandmother had been so excited for him and the next semester, Spencer started the nursing program, and excelled at it. He loved it, feeling like he had found his passion. During his second year at college, Danny's grandmother passed away. Spencer was heartbroken, having felt like that woman became a second mother. He had seen Danny at her funeral and seeing him brought back memories; that, combined with her death, made a really hard year for him, but he kept pushing, in memory of her.

He graduated nursing school and now he's 26 and works as a nurse at a nice hospital, crazy hours but good pay, so he can afford a nicer apartment in a complex. Sometimes, his mother calls him to check in, and he talks to her, but there's a distance between them that still hurts him. He hopes, one day, they can reconnect, but he isn't so sure.

Other:

As seen in the picture, he has a little Yorkie pup, named Peppermint York, or Peppermint/Pepper. He sneaks the little puppy into work and lets her stay in the break room, where puppy pads are laid down, and the other nurses fawn and coddle her; he still finds time to train her and she's almost house broken. He sometimes brings her into patient's rooms, the ones who seem down or are children, and she's very therapeutic for them, though he has to be careful where he brings her, of course, since he could get in trouble for having her there. He's working on getting her license to be an official service dog, since even for a puppy, she's very calm and listens very well and is therapeutic for him too.

[Devo]

@flightless-angel-castiel Spencer's accepted! Feel free to move him to the character tab!

[Polaris North]

Thought I'd jump to the idea of having a rich kid so here 'ya go.

Maximus Santos

Name: Maximus "Max" Santos
Age: 26
Gender: Male
Race/Ethnicity: Half-American/ Half-Filipino
Sexuality: Asexual

Personality: Maximus is one of those people who is always seemingly serious whenever he's alone. He always has something in his mind when it's really quiet and he's alone. When he's in this state, he seems cold and unapproachable but when you talk to him, he's actually pretty much the opposite. He can ease into any conversation, somehow having something to say at any time, even if the topic is a ridiculous one. He's not very social, rather he isn't the type of person to actively talk to another person that he doesn't know. He's not shy, he just doesn't know what a good conversation starter is. And if he actually planned to talk to someone else ahead of time, he usually runs simulations on how the conversation could go. He's weird like that.

Although as a writer, he actually writes some pretty good stories, mostly fantasy and romance. Although the one bad thing about him when he writes is that he doesn't follow any schedule leaving him with a really angry editor since he always goes past the deadline. He claims that writing shouldn't have a deadline because a writer needs his off time too and they can hit slumps. Because of his job, he's almost always inside his room. One can easily talk him to get out of the room and hang with others.

Despite making romantic stories, he, himself, does not find any happiness from getting himself in a romantic relationship with another. He doesn't get it. No matter who he encounters, he feels absolutely nothing. He only got the hang of it when he kept on reading romance stories and observing couples from a distance but he could only incorporate those into his books and not to himself. He could never get himself... 'stimulated'. It has bothered him when he was in high school, when everyone was in the peak of their hormones, but he has come to accept it now. Although he does strive to learn the concept of 'love' and thus continues to observe people every now and then.

Max is an 'otaku' or otherwise known as an anime lover. He isn't too hardcore when it comes to that although he does go to multiple conventions related to anime or maybe even comics. He owns some nendroids or small chibi anime figurines and place them on top of his work area. He openly admits his love for anime to his friends and is pretty much glad that they're not weirded out by him.

History: Maximus was born in a family of four in the tropical island, the Philippines. His father was Filipino while his mother was an American working in there in her own business. His father was part of that business and they soon fell in love with each other and Maximus was born. A year later came his little sister, Julia. The two had contrasting personalities but are almost always seen with each other. They shared a tight knit relationship. They were all happy in the Philippines and he began his studies there.

Somewhere along the way, though, something went horribly wrong. His father started two-timing, his mother became distant and the family was going downhill. The two often fought with each other until they finally gave up and filed a divorce. As if life wanted to punch them in the face, divorce was not possible in the Philippines, rather it was a simple annulment. And so they all travelled to Chicago and put up with each other until they were able to divorce there. His mother had jurisdiction on Maximus and his father got Julia. The two were absolutely against being torn away from each other but they had no choice. His father and Julia went back to the Philippines to join the other woman while Max and his mother stayed in Chicago.

His life was normal then. His mother changed back to her original loving motherly state but if Max ever mentioned his father, she would lock him inside the room as 'punishment'. Julia and Max managed to contact each other through the internet or the phone and neither parents would stop them from contacting each other. At this time, he began writing stories and posting them up at websites. At the same time, he got into watching anime. He diligently went to school and acted like a good boy, not even budging when multiple peers wanted to get him into bad vices. Max knew all too well how that would end up since he grew up in the Philippines and had some bad experiences with drunks and people high.

It wasn't too long until he graduated from college from a literary course. He kept a friend with him, an editor, and they started working together and they were pretty close. The editor, Maria, constantly meets up with him to either collect his manuscript or to chew his ear out. He moved out of his mother's house and then got Julia back in Chicago after hearing that their father abused her. Julia and their mother are currently living at some house in Chicago that he often visits, because of Julia more than anything really.

Other: Despite him seemingly living a modest lifestyle, his family is really rich. He owns the newest model of the Ford Mustang GT which he allows his friends to borrow as long as they take it back the same as when they took it out. His family also owns an Inova with a captain seat which he can use freely.

[MissCapnCrunch]

:) Will get a character up asap

[MissCapnCrunch]

Johanna Sanchez

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|{Name}|

Johanna Marie Sanchez.

|{Nickname}|

Jojo.

|{Age}|

23.

|{Gender}|

Female.

|{Sexuality}|

Heterosexual.

---

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|{In Depth Appearance}|

Johanna is a Hispanic woman, specifically Portuguese. She is very petite at around 5ft 2, weighing between 110-115lbs depending on what holiday season with the most food it is. Her skin tone is fairly light, but can get pretty dark when she is outside in the sun. Both her eyes and hair are a very dark brown. Almost always seen wearing a shade of red lipstick, ever since she was allowed to in high school. Treats herself to manicures and pedicures practically every weekend.

|{Clothing Style}|

Johanna has a few cocktail dresses when it is time to party, but will be seen mostly seen in over sized tee shirts or sweaters and thermals paired with black leggings. She always wears a watch her grandmother gave her, though it has stopped working many years ago.

|{Scars, Tattoos, Piercings}|

Single lobe piercings on each ear.

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|{Likes & Dislikes}|

✔ Dancing
✔ Summer time weather
✔ Drinking something 'pretty'
✔ Learning new things
✔ Makeovers
✔ Cooking
✔ Interior design
✘ Her ex-husband
✘ Bossy people
✘ Being woken up early
✘ Party poopers
✘ When she can't think of a word in English
✘ Silence
✘ The smell of too much perfume

|{Hobbies}|

Commenting her opinions on facebook and twitter.
Looking up makeup/cooking/craft tutorials on Youtube and Etsy.
Barhopping to new and old places, specially ones that offer salsa nights.

|{Habits}|

Leaving her belongings everywhere.
Tapping her nails on hard surfaces when she's bored or listening or nervous.
Switching between Portuguese and English in the middle of a heated conversation.

---

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|{Personality}|

♦ Outgoing ♦ Absent Minded ♦ Over Dramatic ♦ Silly ♦

If you're looking for a silly time filled with laughs, Johanna is your girl. She is always looking for fun, even during the most mundane events- like grocery shopping. Very friendly and outgoing, wanting everyone to join in and be having a good time. She's an amazing party host. However, life isn't always fun and games and when it hits Jojo she breaks down and becomes very dramatic and overreactive about everything. Every problem is always world ending when it comes to Johanna.

|{History}|

"Estar a sombra da bananeira."

Roughly translated into "sitting under the shade of a banana tree" but to the Portuguese, it means that you have no worries. This was the type of attitude Johanna was raised under. Born to Juan and Natalia Sanchez in the city of Faro, Portugal. They lived in the country until Jojo was about 3 years old and then they came to America. They left behind her only grandmother and the woman she was named after, but kept in contact through phone calls, and the rare visits back home.

America wasn't exactly the place of dreams that the Sanchez family had envisioned, but they made it along just fine, getting a small home in Chicago and making it by with basic jobs. Johanna was spoiled endlessly by both her parents as much as they could offer. She very rarely was in trouble, or told that she couldn't do anything she set her mind to. School was a challenge to the very absent minded Jojo but with her great group of friends she made it through, and even found romance her senior year.

Not originally going to college, and getting married not but a few months after highschool graduation was probably not the best path choices Johanna could have made, but with her parents and friend's support she dived right into the adventure. Things were amazing being married. She was Mrs. Warren Vanhaven. Fancy as fuck. Warren and her had a very fun and lavish lifestyle, he let her do as she please as long as she came home and did as he pleased as well.

A year into their marriage they began trying to have a baby, and became successful very quickly after the first attempt. In tragic outcome, the baby was lost and their relationship soon started deteriorating. Warren blamed Johanna for the loss of the baby because she wasn't 'careful' enough. It was a heated and hurtful relationship until the end where they decided it was best to just get a divorce and go their separate ways.

Since then, Johanna moved into the apartment with her friends and is beginning her life anew.

|{Theme Song}|

Dark Times - The Weeknd
_{”Waking up, half past five
Blood on pillow, one bruised eye
Drunk too much, you know what I'm like
But you should've seen the other guy”}

Relationships

|Name of person goes right about here|
Title of person goes right about here or something

Relationship: Something or other about stuff here.

[Devo]

So far I'm really liking the varied group of characters we're getting for this! It's all sorts and I really like that. I recommend from here on out we start thinking about how these characters will react and what relations they will have to each other, now that we're starting to get a good number.

@Polaris North Maximus is accepted! You can move him over to the character tab at your own leisure!

@MissCapnCrunch Johanna is accepted! You may move her over to the character tab at anytime!

[kkbird123]

Will pm a cs by tonight

Sorry for delay

[Fabricant451]

My sheet will be up this evening!