be right back: the scrawled message that casper had left just before his accident. kiwoo stares down at the note. it had remained pinned to the fridge even after the funeral, and when he realized his roommate was back, he had haphazardly shoved the note into the junk drawer. occasionally, he would look at the note— evidence that something had happened to casper. that all wasn’t fine. when he hears the familiar voice filter through the house, he crumples the note and puts it into his pocket. “hey!” his voice cracks on the first word, “i thought you went out for coffee.”
the sleep heavy in casper's eyes as he shuffles from out of his bedroom. the path from his room to the kitchen a route he could walk in his sleep ( he practically is now ). heels of his palms raise to rub at his sockets as he rounds the last corner, " kiwoo ? is that you ? " voice hoarse. it takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to kiwoo's shape in the shared space. the recognition followed by an all too familiar nervous swoop of his stomach. " hey, " his hand self consciously rising to pat down his bedhead, " i fell back asleep instead … was about to make a pot, " rounding behind him casper stretches for the empty coffee machine, " want some ? "
where : ridley's bed and breakfast .. out on the curb in front, that is. perfect spot for gossiping and also talking to the undead.
act normal, act normal, act normal. this was helena's new daily affirmation. pressure to be perfect might be self-inflicted, but she can't imagine what the town would say if she were the one to accidentally let her feelings slip. even if looking at casper meant her pulse going haywire and her nerves attacking her with the need to grasp him by the shoulders and go you were dead ! i mourned you ! instead, here she is, settling down on the curb beside him and handing over a lemonade. “ mama made that for the guests, but i snuck some out for us. ” this is, of course, tantamount to robbing a bank in helena's eyes, which is why she only ever does it for those who're special to her. her foot taps against the floor, nervous tic even when she's pretending to be polished and carefree. “ sorry i haven't been around much recently. it's just, you know, with the new priest and all. family stuff. ” a missing sister, a cousin returned from the dead, no big deal ! it was all so ridiculous she could've started laughing. “ did'ya try my ribs ? at the potluck ? ”
there wasn't anyone who would ever use the word perceptive to describe casper nam. too caught up in his own brain to notice let alone discern others around him. that didn't mean he was total oblivious, especially when it came to those close to him. years and years of knowing and hovering near helena gave him ample opportunity to learn to read his best friend. something was off. it's not substantial enough for casper to put his finger on it or speak to it. the air around them twisted more tense then usual. with a half smile he takes the lemonade, a short nod of his head in thanks. he takes in the apology, considers it. that must be the faint hum of tension between them. " you know it's no issue … i've been working so much anyways, don't worry, " he tries his best to sound reassuring, but it comes out sounding much too casper-y. " sorry, i wasn't super hungry at the potluck, " features turning sheepish, " don't kill me, ok ? have any leftovers ? "
casper nam has always been somewhat of an character; withdrawn, but certainly not antisocial, one of the busiest people in marrow and always a little disheveled. asher likes him – enjoys talking to someone somehow so different, yet not different at all from themself. asher finds himself seeking casper out, drawn to him by something they aren’t sure they have a name for. however, their friend can be hard to find out and about in marrow, so instead they find themselves knocking at their door. “ casper ! ” they call out. “ come work at the library today ! ”
casper's socked feet pad against the tile of the kitchen floor as he mills about. an uncharacteristic silence floats through the house, a tell tale sign either the other occupants were out or hiding in their own rooms. the ladder exactly where casper could be found until that moment. having come to a pausing point in his newest baldur's gate save, he'd thought to venture out of his cave to see if any of his roommates were out. not that he was looking for anyone in particular, totally not. his goaless meandering broken by the knock on the door and the muffled, but discernible, words that followed. he's quick slipping on his sneakers and reaching for his nearby work bag ( where one of his many work laptops resided ).
" i'm coming … " he huffs joining the other on the porch shuffling his bag onto his back. casper wasn't opposed to asher's company, something that couldn't be said about more than a handful of marrow natives. for whatever reason a fondness for them seemed to be growing in the recent weeks. it wasn't something he was to think too deeply about. " are you working ? "
time heals all wounds. but helena thinks there must be a reason for the exact amount of time being removed. time hasn’t made it easier to see the returned again and again. time hasn’t stopped funerals from flashing in her mind’s eye when she sees faces that shouldn’t be breathing. seeing casper is like a gut punch, and she has to force herself to school her features. “ you ? in the way ? that could never happen. ” weak, breathless laugh that attempts to be teasing. it wasn’t just casper’s death that haunted : it was how focused she’d been on the loss, she hadn’t even noticed estelle slipping from her until her sister was gone. two of the most important people in her life, wrenched away in a matter of a month. until casper came back and estelle didn’t. “ you alright ? need anything ? ”
a sense of safety falls on casper's shoulders as he takes in helena. forever a face he searches for in any crowded room. two halves to an unlikely pair. a friendship built on years and years. the familiar face is like a safety net in the swirl of people around them. " i'm ok, i guess, " he gives the hint of smile as he shifts making room for her on the curb beside him, " just not feeling great … foggy … " that was the best word to describe it. " you know i don't do well in crowds anyways, figured i'd come out here and get some air. " head bobbing toward the open air of the street. " you having fun ? "
gabe plops right down beside him, using his knees to balance a plate full of food. he's got all eyes for his mac n' cheese and takes a couple of healthy bites before refocusing his attention on casper. "you gotta stop assuming that," gabe says, pointing his fork in casper's direction and digging into another bite. he's not really sure what to say. from what gabe knows, casper died, and yet he's sitting right next to him now, walking and talking and...is casper breathing? gabe can't tell. he takes a sip of lemonade, wipes the back of his mouth with a shirt sleeve. "you're not in the way just for, like, existing." a pause, an almost curious look. "aren't you hungry?"
the smell of the food on gabe's plate wafts into the air. the distinct sent of extra cheesy macaroni and cheese invading casper's senses. forever a growing boy, in most situation the smell alone would get casper craving. instead of the smell sinks through him, unfazed. his brain tries to catalogue the last meal he had but comes up hazy. surely he had breakfast this morning, right ? " force of habit, " he answer simply, watching with careful eyes as the other eats, " guess not really … maybe i'll have some in a bit. "
Away from the crowd, Elijah fishes a carton of cigarettes out of his jacket. He brings one to his lips and lights it, his back facing the potluck as it’s still happening. Marrow’s a fucking mess, he thinks, with all that’s happening. He’s only snapped out of his thoughts by an unexpected apology. “It’s barely a private spot,” he shrugs, as if part of the reason why he chose to be out here wasn’t the fact that it had been far enough from other company. There’s a small gap between them as he takes a seat on the curb. He takes a drag of his cigarette, then pauses. Glancing sideways at Casper with a delayed realisation, face only half-apologetic. “D’you mind?”
there's a short twitch of embarrassment in casper's lip before he schools his features. elijah isn't wrong, casper is in the open on a public street during a neighborhood party. he shifts on the curb giving the other ample space to sit down beside him. eyes flicker to the cigarette being lit before quickly shifting back ahead. " go ahead. " he says with a shrug of his shoulders. never himself a fan of smoking himself, he had a coughing fit the one time he'd tried to take a drag. but he'd never judge someone else for whatever their vice may be. " you not about the party either ? " he attempts at small talk.
📍 a random curb not far from the door's of sancutary church
🗝️ open to all ( no cap )
a short puff of a sigh from casper's lips as he unceremoniously lowers his body onto the concrete curb. there's a lingering throb concentrated behind both temples. an ongoing ache he can't subside with ibuprofen, caffeine, calories or sleep. the past few weeks have melded into a blur of time and space, the ability to recount his exact whereabouts only a haze. however, the feeling all together different than the swirl of his brain after days of sleepless nights coding through a particular tough work sprint. was he getting sick ? there was no time for that in his schedule. " oh sorry ... am i in your way ? " eyes fixating on the figure approaching, " i thought i'd be out of the way here. "
( jeong yunho, cis man, he/him ) 𓉸 marrow's own CASPER NAM, age 27, passed away on APRIL 20TH. loved ones report that they were extremely INTELLIGENT and express discontent with rumors that describe them as RECLUSIVE. according to town gossip, their death was due to A CAR CRASH DUE TO DROWSY DRIVING — which is strange, because i could have sworn that i saw them at BEAR PAW DINER last night.
𖥻 ﹕ 01 › the basics
name casper nam // nickname cas ( by few ) // birthdate july 6th // zodiac cancer // age twenty7 // gender & pronouns cis man & he/she // orientation bisexual, biromantic // hometown tbd // death date april 20th // cause of death car crash due to drowsy driving // status returned
𖥻 ﹕ 02 › visualization
faceclaim jeong yunho // hair black & shaggy sometimes in his eyes // eyes dark brown // height 6'1"
𖥻 ﹕ 03 › muse building
returned - undoubtedly, people have displayed strange behavior around you recently. what do you think of it?
casper's first answer is a simply a low hum, nose scrunching at the question. " honestly ? i don't really pay much attention to other in general , " a soft definitiveness to his tone, " i'm not around a lot of people, never the most popular guy around, " a short nonchalant shrug, " — maybe they've been more standoffish ? i just attributed that to the bedhead and second day clothes i've been wearing ... our game's next deliverable is due soon and i've had a lot of late nights ... "
returned - imagine you can recount the events of your death, explain that day.
tw mention of car crashes ; it's hard to account for the true start of casper's death day. minutes turn to hours then into days, brain filled to the brim with C# and C++ code. brackets, braces and endless lines of logic flipping and spinning through his head. the game he'd been working on was coming up on a very critical deadline and one of his junior developers had made a grave error in an integral computing process. with a looming investor showing on the horizon the whole company would be in deep if the error wasn't fixed and fixed quick. so in typical casper fashion, his one track mind was focused directly ( most times unhealthily so ) on the task at hand. he couldn't do anything else until this problem was solved. it was by a stroke of miracle he'd scrounged up a fix for the issue. while the find merely a bandaid rather then a completely solution, it would suffice for the upcoming investor demo.
his train of thought interrupted by a low, guttural growl in his lower stomach. forget sleep, when was the last time he'd eaten ?with a quick shuffle to the small apartment's kitchen. he began rustling through kitchen cabinets searching for something, anything to eat. no way he had really gone through all the ramen in the cabinets ... not even some gold fish to tide him over ? fighting his eyes from drooping he scribbled out a quick note in his muddled chicken scratch "going to the gas station be right back" sticking it haphazardly to the counter for his roommate to see.
the walk and slide into his car an easy practice step. ironically, one he knew could do in his sleep. after stepping in he took a moment to shake his head. the shake forcing his eyes to stay open just enough to get him to the nearby gas station and back. it was just around the corner, it would be an easy drive.
the sound of tired screeching on concrete followed by the unmistakable crunch of metal rung in the air. casper didn't even make it around the corner before his car slammed headfirst into a nearby telephone pole.
select a label for your muse & explain why it relates to them.
the recluse — from childhood casper has always felt ' separated ' from those around him. be it self imposed from fear of rejection or the actions of his peers. a quiet yet intelligent kid grown into a genius of an awkward adult. it was always easier for casper to be on the outside looking in. while he's grown to be able to handle social situations and hold adult friendships, often still he finds himself on the corners of the room observing and often times wishing he was back home at his playstation.
𖥻 ﹕04 › headcanons
casper is extremely intelligent and due to his intelligence skipped multiple grades in high school and started college at the mere age of 16. he holds a master degree in computer science with both a bachelors in computer science and computer engineering. thus how became the senior developer at his current company.
his mother gave him his first gamecube when he was five years old and ever since he's been an avid video gamer. preferring vast single player rpgs over anything online. he currently owns any console you could possibly name. on the side of work ( which barely ever happens ) he is working on his passion project of a medieval fantasy single player rpg.
his naivety and shyness often has him walked right over by many, included a majority of his coworkers and bosses.
casper easily puts close to 60 hours a week into work. overworked and under paid sometimes it seems all the casper does is work. this overwork is what ultimately lead to his death. he fell asleep at the wheel and ran headfirst into a telephone pole not far from his apartment complex
has a fluffy white cat named cloud
tw mentions of cancer ; only son of a lower middle small family in the area. heavily loved and coddled by his mom until she sadly passed away due to breast cancer his junior year of high school ( 15 yo ) has a simple, not deep relationship with his father. they call each other on holidays but that's the extent of their relationship. his father is awkward just like him.
has a slightly idealized version of love though he's never experienced it ... his parents were that couple incredibly in love so he awaits for the day something that magical might happen to him
upon returning casper would literally just return to his apartment and keep working on his current workload ... even after he discovers what he is he will probably just be more worried about the game he's building .... priorities .... will suck blood to be able to focus
lowkey rebelling against what he's become because it's more an inconvenience then anything else ... wym he needs blood now ? he's got stuff to do !!!
( ex ? ) roommate of kiwoo, poppy & gabriel
𖥻 ﹕ 05 › links
pinterest
𖥻 ﹕ 06 › wanted
best friend / ride or die i'd really love somebody that just gets the casper is awkward and closed off and just goes with it ... they could be an opposites attract type of scenario where they accept casper for who he is and forced their way into his life ... they just get one another ... could be returned or remnant
one night stand a rogue random night for casper that probably only once in the history of his entire life ... he would be red as a tomato ANYTIME her saw them ... remnant preferred
entourage set on him casper is going to kind of against what he's becoming ? he's too quick to want to be what he was before he passed away and wanting blood would be such an annoyance to him then anything this is entourage trying to get him on to their side and accept it all
returned friend somebody who also is like wtf is going on for them to discuss and bond over
ex coworker another person who worked or has worked at the development company that casper works for ... they could be impressed with him or he could have unknowingly called them dumb or something
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