I saw [DINAH PERLMAN] at a coffee shop in [MANHATTAN] today. I forgot how much [SHE] looks like [INBAR LAVI]. They are a [THIRTY-FOUR] year old [ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY] who’s been in NYC for [SIXTEEN YEARS (ON AND OFF)] now. Every time we run into each other, they are always [INTELLIGENT & PASSIONATE] but I’ve heard people say they can also be [SUSPICIOUS & CURT]. [FIND AN ISLAND BY BENEE] reminds me of them every time it comes on the radio. — [gabs, she/her, 24, est]
it’s gabs again! finally presenting u my sad baby bean dinah! she’s a fairly new character so she is open for any connections y’all might need! | @villagestart
tw: death, emotional abuse
about —
full name: dinah jane perlman age: 34 birthday: january 6th, 1987 sexual orientation: demisexual/heteroromantic gender: cis female pronouns: she/her
bio —
tw: death, emotional abuse
dinah was the only child of adam and davina perlman, born in rochester, new york. she grew up a happy girl, with a close bond to both of her parents, who were also happily married. as a small girl in a situation as privileged as the one she was in, she had no idea just how rare it was. she attended many classes and spent all of her free time doing activities with her parents, it was almost a childhood out of a fairytale.
DEATH TW. it was unfortunate, but very early in her life, the peaceful and loving world she’d been raised in would be ripped away from her in an instant. she was ten years old when the accident happened. it was a head-on collision, and according to many, dinah had been lucky to have survived the hit, especially with as little injuries as she did. whereas her parents hadn’t been so lucky, and had died either instantly or before reaching the hospital.
she had only ever been close to her parents, she had never even met any extended family. so it was a surprise when her uncle, her father’s brother, stepped up and volunteered to take care of his brother’s only daughter, just as he had done with his company — as a way to honor his memory, he had said.
ABUSE TW. dinah moved into her uncle’s house in hermosa beach, california, soon after all formalities were over and done with. lifestyle wise, it wasn’t too bad of an adjustment, maybe just the warm winters were the ones that confused her the most. but everything else... it was a very chaotic change in dinah’s life. to begin, her new guardians, her uncle and aunt... they weren’t nearly as kind as her parents had been. they would put her down with every chance that appeared, only to then tell her it was for her own good. not to mention they were so dead set on keeping up this... perfect family façade with her uncle being the new ceo of the family company and whatnot, especially when she knew how they spoke of everyone involved behind their backs, how they acted with each other behind the scenes... all the yelling, the blaming. it made for a very confused young dinah, when it came to social interactions.
dinah’s only saving grace growing up in california was her cousin, natalie. the two were close in age, and she found solace in the girl. natalie reminded her a little bit of what her life had been like in upstate new york, she had this soft character that reminded her of her mother. despite going through the same stuff, natalie had always chosen to be kind and remain herself, so she wouldn’t become bitter like her parents had. so the girls were best friends, and in all formality, they were like sisters.
in high school, dinah had no problems making friends — but there was always something missing. she had learned how to treat people and have them like her from her new family, but she had never really been able to have a connection like the one she had with her parents in her early youth. until alexander came around. he was going through a whole new kind of shit that dinah couldn’t quite grasp, but she understood the motions of grieving and losing someone you love. they became close friends, and eventually, dinah’s first serious relationship.
despite her new family’s thoughts, she moved to new york city with alex with the premise of going to college. it wasn’t a complete lie, but it was also an excuse to leave that home and build something with her love, something that could become what she had had in her childhood, to her future children. it all seemed like it was falling into place: her degree in psychology and an engagement to the love of her life.
of course though, based on past experiences, dinah had some suspicion with how well her life was going. it usually ended up a preface to something terrible, something she had no control over. and well, her suspicions ended up being correct — while she attended law school, her previously perfect relationship with alex quickly deteriorated... until there was nothing else to do. and the engagement ended fairly quickly after she realized they had reached that point of no return.
very much in her feelings about the failed engagement, dinah began refusing the love and care natalie would always offer. it came as something hypocritical to her, as she seemed to be so happy with her partner, that her parents seemed to love so very much. why couldn’t they have supported her, too? and why hadn’t natalie defended her?
DEATH TW. the woman decided to stay in new york despite the clusterfuck that it had become, dinah refused to make any appearances in california, she hadn’t even attended natalie’s baby’s birth. but she would soon regret her choices, as a year or so after the baby’s birth, dinah received the news that both the baby and nat had died in a car crash. of all things, a fucking car crash. part of her felt like she held some curse, and maybe that was why alexander had fallen out of love with her so quickly.
these kind of situations will harden up anyone. the woman placed her focus almost entirely on her work, doing some paralegal work in a number of offices, until reaching the district attorney’s office, recently getting the job as an assistant district attorney.
after natalie’s death, dinah actually came to learn that her relationship with her baby’s dad wasn’t as accepted with their family as she had first thought (which infuriated her. how could she not have known? they did the same to her!) and how little her uncle seemed to care. how he was mostly angry at the inconvenience. since then, there’s been some alarm bell ringing every time she has to be in contact with the man. she’s turning a blind eye to the suspicion, but she’s starting to think that her parents’ death was way too similar to natalie’s.
headcanons —
dinah has tried to channel her negative energy since losing natalie into self-defense. she’s proficient in krav maga and kickboxing!
very recently though, she realized aggression wasn’t the best way for her to go about things (although self-defense has proven to be useful in the city and in the courtrooms), dinah found a healthier way for her to let out her energy: dancing. nothing fancy, she attends some classes and loves throwing it back on the weekends lmao
her apartment complex doesn’t allow pets, but she’s befriended a feral cat that she feeds and pets every so often. still needs a name for the cat.
