[ margaret qualley | female | she/her | twenty-five ] —— it’s just another typical week in hawkins i guess — isn’t that right, heather holloway? huh, guess they can’t hear me over hold me now by the thompson twins playing on their walkman, but it looks like they’re headed to work as at melvald’s or as a lifeguard at the community pool. did you know heather has been in hawkins for her whole life? yeah, they’ve been described as a bit insecure, but i suppose them also being compassionate outweighs the negative. i’ve also heard people say they remind them of the smell of chlorine on a hot summer’s day, watching fireworks in the night sky, trying on clothes and eating ice cream on a mall trip… however, that could just be this weeks newest rumor.
the basics //
full name : heather elizabeth holloway birthdate & zodiac : july 29, 1962 gender & pronouns : female, she/her sexuality : undecided occupation : employee at melvald’s & lifeguard at the community pool during summers hometown : hawkins, indiana family : tom & janet (parents), eric hunter (husband, deceased)
deeper dive //
hobbies : BAKING - heather’s always loved baking and tends to do it when she’s stressed. SWIMMING - anything to do with water has always been a favorite so being a lifeguard has always been a favorite job of hers. JAZZERCISE - something heather’s really gotten into and loves the classes at the mall. WRITING - she’s always loved writing and really wanted to be like her dad, but the way he put her down and wanted her to be like her mom stopped her from perusing a career in journalism.
favorites : food - chicken and dumplings drink - coke, red wine (alcoholic) movie - sixteen candles song - hold me now by the thompson twins color - red habits : cigarettes / alcohol / drug use nervous ticks include [ playing with whatever jewelry she’s wearing, blowing bubbles when chewing gum ] loves : [ her father, swimming, lifeguarding, summer days, her friends, spending time at the mall, listening to music, being carefree ] fears : [ not having the life she wants, spiders ] talents : [ baking, lifeguarding, swimming, being able to cry whenever ]
appearance //
height : five foot, eight inches tattoos : none scars : none piercings : ears hair : dark brown, long, usually in ponytail, curly
bio //
Heather was a miracle child for her parents. They were married a few years and were trying to have a kid, but nothing was working. Finally, her mom discovered she was pregnant and they had Heather on July 29th, 1962.
Growing up, she was spoiled endlessly by her father. She would get whatever she asked for and would scream happily when he’d come home from work. She wanted nothing more than to be like him and would do fake news articles to show him, which was deemed cute at the time.
While things looked picture perfect on the outside, things weren’t like that on the inside of the family. She doesn’t remember when the shift was, but her parents started arguing more and more. Her dad was staying at work later and her mom was tired of being a stay at home mom. She was drinking more often and they would fight about that. Heather remembers hiding in her room while they fought as a kid, working on her fake news articles to calm her dad down.
As she became a teen, Heather wanted to start a path of becoming a journalist. She brought up joining the school newspaper, but her father suggested cheerleading instead. Because she wanted to make him happy, she did that instead. While she liked it and grew close to her fellow cheerleaders, she wished she was in the news room instead. The only thing she felt like she was doing for herself that the truly, full heartedly enjoyed was when she started working as a lifeguard and its the one thing she’s kept over the years.
When she graduated, life became complicated. She wanted to go to college for journalism, but again, her father didn’t want it. Instead, she continued working as a lifeguard and ended up working as a assistant to someone at city hall because her dad was friends with him and the mayor. This was all under the plan that she would quit once she met someone and was going to get married so she could be a housewife like her mother; something she never wanted to be.
Things in her life started to feel boring. While she would go out on dates and still go to parties with her friends without her dad ever finding out because he would call it very “unladylike of her”, her day to day life was boring and she rarely went on dates with guys she actually liked.
Things changed the summer of 1985 when she properly met Billy Hargrove. The two started seeing each other and she really liked him. It was never serious, but it was something she liked. Before the Fourth of July, things started to feel different with him. He was acting strange and while he was a hit with her parents, everything wasn’t right and she couldn’t quite place it. Then, after the tragedy at the mall on the Fourth, she found out he was one that died in the mall and she was heartbroken that her friend and the guy she did like died.
Her father saw she was grieving and wanted to help her move on, so he did what any father would do and set her up with the new guy at work. While Eric was a nice guy, Heather didn’t really see it going anywhere and felt like she was just dating him to appease her dad. However, December came and they spent Christmas together and in front of her family, her proposed. Unsure what to do and scared to say no in front of her parents, she said yes.
From there, things seemed to tumble out of her control. She quit her job at city hall and with her mom and Eric’s when she came to town, she was planning a wedding and getting a dress and setting a date for the end of March, which was months away. She felt panicked and scared and she didn’t know what to do. Suddenly, she was having a house with a yard and soon another ring on her finger and she was panicking all the way down the aisle as she said ‘I do’.
However, the day she had dreaded ended with confusion and fear and relief. It was hours after the wedding and with everything going on in town, her father barely got a hold of the photographer from the paper and they were outside the library getting photos done with the earthquake hit. Eric, seeing the line coming, pushed Heather out of the way and her father grabbed her. In the process, Eric succumbed to the strangeness of the Earthquake and passed.
Everything after that moment felt strange to her. She was sad, yes, that a nice guy lost his life, but she felt relieved. While she was a widow, she felt relief she didn’t have to be a wife. However, she had to put on an act around her family and Eric’s when they came for the funeral. And because she was married, even for a short time, she inherited all this stuff and had a house that should be for a family, so she opened it up for people to live with her.
With her father actually letting her grieve, Heather actually hasn’t dated anyone since her wedding. She doesn’t wear her wedding ring or the engagement one anymore. She keeps them put up in the back of a drawer. She’s trying to focus on herself and her friends and just getting back to things and that’s all she wants. She hopes now maybe she can secretly take journalism classes so she can do what she wants to, but for now, being a lifeguard and employee at Melvald’s is fine to her.
wanted connections //
Friends - those she grew up being friends with or new ones she’s met.
Roommates - she had a big house all to herself and needs roommates.
Exes - those she dated in high school or throughout her twenties.
Hook-ups - anyone she’s had a night or more with.
Enemies - those who don’t care for her.
Secret Half-Sibling - I have an idea that her dad wasn’t exactly faithful and she may have a half-sibling she doesn’t know about out there.