ADRIAN ROMANO. 21. LIVINGSTONE FOR NOW. the faster we're falling, we're stopping and stalling.. we're running in circles again. just as things were looking up, you said it wasn't good enough!! but still we're trying one more time. maybe we're just trying too hard? when really it's closer than it is too far. because i'm in too deep and i'm trying to keep up above in my head, instead of going under.
“That’ll be three dollars and a promise to adopt me for the night now that my shifts over,” Maggie said, hand extended through the ice cream truck window for the money. “Don’t want to go home yet because all the Lawrence clan is out and last time I was alone there at night, totally convinced myself we had a poltergeist.”
“That wasn’t just in your head. You guys really do have an entity. He’s not friendly either. Used to talk to me in my dreams when I would stay over, tell me he sought a sacrifice. Dozer was almost donezo.” Adrian nodded, feigning a solemn expression while placing his change carefully on the metal counter separating them. “Honestly not super into the idea of you following me around the rest of the night. What’s in it for me?”
“it’s on the next aisle,” olivia replied, almost mechanically. she knew he probably hadn’t meant it like that, but she’d felt abandoned when he’d stopped showing up, and the tension was so evident that the lively music still playing through her headphones seemed ironic. “is that what you are now, then? ex brother? didn’t realize you’d emancipated or whatever,” she said, letting out a sigh as she unplugged them, cutting off the music. as badly as she wanted to be mad, she’d been isolated for so long she was struggling to remember why she shouldn’t just reach out and pull him in. “i don’t think — i’m not really doing parties, right now, doesn’t seem to be the most welcoming environment.” she said, feeling rather pathetic for not even trying to yell at him for leaving like that, but she was used to that feeling by now. “it was shit that you didn’t even text, adrian, i get cutting off dad, but mom and me — could’ve used a little support. still can, actually.”
adrian hadn’t known what he’d been expecting. in fact, he’d been dreading this exact conversation for a while now, going out of his way to avoid the family that had once taken him in just to distance himself from the loss. it was selfish, he knew that-- god did he know that. but it was all he knew. leaving, cutting ties, getting kicked out or kicking himself out. he’d never had someone push back against it before. shifting his weight between his legs uncomfortably, adrian brought a hand to the back of his neck. “just kind of.. happened. when i turned 18,” he tried to explain, but he knew it was pointless. the greens had still extended their care for him long past the birthday he became an adult. they’d looked after him until he had found a way to look out for himself, and then he’d repaid them with what? space. or so he thought. “i don’t-- i don’t invite all the gifford kids. not their biggest fans,” adrian offered, but he knew the invitation was futile. he wouldn’t want to go to a party either, if he was her. he hadn’t realized he’d been avoiding eye contact until she spoke again, unloading only a slight complaint when he deserved a lashing. his cheeks burned as he stumbled through a response, trying to find the right excuse. “i was just-- didn’t know you’d want to hear from me. i’m not, like. really family or anything.” pausing, he bit at the inside of his cheek, holding his hands out in front of him almost defensively. “i really thought.. i don’t know. thought i was doing the right thing, going awol.”
“Oh… No,” she said, shaking her head. “The fortune tellers are mostly fake, you know? They do it as entertainment. Anyone can learn how to read tarot,” she continued, shrugging her shoulders. “It’s a lot of reading, but mostly instinctual. You don’t need to be psychic or whatever.” Shifting, she glanced up, smiling at Adrian. “Did you — You have an ouija board and stuff? Feel like that’s something people like that naturally hate, despite its Hasbro origins.”
raising a brow as thalia delved into an explanation on the cards, adrian reached to pick one up, holding it between his fingers and examining it like it was his first time seeing them. “anyone? i’d ask you to teach me, but i don’t really want to subject you to that. not a fast learner, this guy,” gesturing to himself with a thumb, adrian collapsed onto his back, picking at a weed near his hip. “made one myself. thought it was creepier that way. i used to turn all her crosses upside down in the middle of the night, too. she was a bitch, though. i wasn’t just.. like being a cunt.” running a hand through his hair, adrian sighed as the parade of families he’d lived with started to pass through his mind. “feel kind of bad for everyone that had to put up with me, though. at least most of em.”
though olivia wasn’t supposed to wear headphones at work, the constant whispers full of pity from people who were apparently unable to mind their own business made it unbearable these days. the manager was out having lunch, so it just seemed easier to concentrate on piling up cans of beans if she could have music blasting and covering up the sounds. she was a bit distracted with the song though, and when she walked backwards to contemplate the piece of art that was her pile of cans, she bumped straight into someone. “oops,” she said with a half grimace, pulling down her headphones, the cure still playing faintly in the air. “sorry, was — you know. did you need beans? please grab the ones on top, it may look fancy but it’s kinda fragile and i don’t feel like playing jenga right now.”
though it was absolutely in poor taste after everything the green family had done for him, adrian had been avoiding them like the plague ever since michael’s arrest. he didn’t want to be involved, felt like he was a sure suspect in any criminal activity. bad luck followed him like a shadow he couldn’t shake. after that.. he felt like he had given up his right to visit them, especially when the news broke. he couldn’t remember the last time he had even seen olivia, let alone spoken to her. his hands twisted together nervously as he listened to her fumble something about beans, unsure what the right thing to say in a situation like this was. “i-- uh. no i don’t need beans. just looking for the beer.” he rubbed at the back of his neck self consciously, the admittance of the only item on his grocery list feeling like a detail too private to share. “i’m uh-- i’m having a party, later. you can come, if you want. obviously. don’t have to. not sure if spending time with your like.. ex foster brother is what you want to be doing after.. everything.”
“They’re tarot cards,” Thalia said, turning one of the carefully crafted card-shaped canvases toward the person in front of her. “I’m painting my own deck. Thought it’d be nice to do it outside.”
“are you a fortune teller?” adrian asked, leaning up on his elbow to get a better look at the completed cards. “don’t know if i’ve ever really believed in this shit to begin with,” he continued, head still spinning from the night before and sunglasses adorned to block out the sun. the pounding migraine might have had something to do with his abrasive tone. “feel like it’s something my dad would have been into. used to pretend to be into it to piss off this one foster mom i had though. she had one of those walls of crosses, thought harry potter was the antichrist or some shit.”
adrian: if livingstone was a reality tv show i think i would be the one who throws drinks in people's faces
adrian: like the villian
adrian: but id have a redemption arc in the second season because i'd shave my head and take a vow of silence. twitter would uncancel me and i've have my own line of unisex boxer briefs
CIS MALE — ever hear people say ADRIAN ROMANO looks a lot like TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET? I think HE is about TWENTY-ONE, so it doesn’t really work. The GATES SKATES EMPLOYEE has lived in Livingstone for THREE YEARS. They can be +ADAPTABLE, but they can also be -ANTAGONISTIC. I think ADRIAN might be A TIER 3 SHEPHERD. ( alli. 20. cst. she/her. )
adrian was born to two bandmates, erin romano and pete lazarus
erin and pete were constantly on tour and baby adrian was always in tow. his earliest memories truly were of drugs, sex, and rock & roll (queue the eden songs that i love dearly)
though exciting, his childhood was tumultuous at best. his parents weren’t actually together, their relationship was extremely volatile and everything in their lives, including adrian, came second to their drug habits
the band broke up when he was 9 and shortly after child protective services received a tip on adrian’s wellbeing. ( to this day, he is convinced his own father called it in, unwilling to take care of him or be connected to his mother anymore )
he bounced around from foster home to foster home, each move more difficult on him. he lasted with some families for as short as a couple of months before being relocated, whether it was because adrian was prone to getting into physical altercations or because several of the families subjected him to abuse
adrian never really bothered to make friends, especially after the first few moves, however he did get along with one of his younger foster brothers, josef. he hasn’t seen josef since he was 15
it was no surprise to anyone when adrian started experimenting with drugs himself, however they never became the problem for him that they were to his biological parents
when he was entering his senior year in high school, adrian was placed with the green family in livingstone, vermont after his social worker had exhausted any other resources and they stepped up for him
he never got along with mr. green or michael, but he did like mrs. green. he stayed with the family for the remainder of his high school career and even agreed to attend gifford to please them. he felt like he owed them something after they had taken him in
though he and michael never really got along, he was cordial with him. he doesn’t know what to believe about his arrest. if he learned anything from his life in the system, it was that everyone is capable of evil
he dropped out of gifford last year and now lives in a beach front property with the money he inherited from his biological father who recently passed away. he is more determined than ever to find his mother now
II. EXTRAS
he has many tattoos, all over his arms and hands, chest, and even on his neck and thighs. most of them are small and meaningless
pretentious music taste, likes to wear all black, a punk boy cliche
he can play the guitar but doesn’t. owns one but it’s old and most of the strings are broken anyway
likes to skate, smoke, drink, the few things he actually enjoys
he works at gates skates on the beach and spends most of his time there
he hated his biological father but loves and misses his mother dearly. he kept her last name and hopes to be reunited with her one day
suffers from depression, has issues with alcohol dependency though he would never admit it
not very good at school. likely had countless tutors at his time in gifford leading up to him dropping out
has a weird sense of humor, mostly just obscure memes and being rude for fun
very pansexual
his pinterest is HERE !!
III. WANTED CONNECTIONS
LIVINGSTONE CHILDREN: since he lived with the greens his senior year of high school and the summers surrounding the year, he went to school and lived in livingstone for a good bit
FOSTER SIBLINGS: maybe your muse’s family was one of the families that took him in?
MET ALONG THE WAY: he travelled all across the country when being placed with different families so it’s highly possible he went to school with anyone that lived in america growing up even if he didn’t stay with their family!!
EXES: i can’t imagine he has many, but i do think he had at least one serious boyfriend or girlfriend in high school, possibly another at gifford??
ENEMIES: adrian is prone to getting into fights so maybe they’ve fought or he’s fought one of their friends, maybe he’s been rude to them (not unlikely for him tbh) or they were rude to him and now they hate each other? maybe they sleep w each other out of spite too, any route!!
CLOSE FRIENDS: altho it may seem like he just hates everyone from what i’ve said thus far, he is very outgoing and likes to be around people most of the time!! he would have a lot of friends if your muse can tolerate him
