AMY ADAMS, CIS WOMAN, 48, SHE/HER ⟨ ✽ ⟩ hey, you haven’t bumped into isabela lockhart-manzo lately, have you? they have been living here for the past month and during that time, locals have gotten to know them as candid & assertive. a little birdie told me they can be quite harsh & resentful though. explains why they’re a sports journalist. they really remind me of diamond ring adorned fingers, confidence that could kill, hot coffee. if you’re ever looking for them, i bet you can find them around alma, tapas & wine bar.
name: isabela lockhart-manzo
age: 48
birthplace: new york city
location: port briar, maine
occupation: sports journalist for espn
gender: cis woman
sexual orientation: heterosexual
status: married
isabela was born & raised in new york city. she comes from a wealthy family, as her father is the son of italian immigrants who moved to the united states to make a life for themselves and their family. her paternal grandfather founded a pasta company that became a staple in grocery stores and delis all over the world, becoming an international name and one of the most popular authentic pasta brands on the market. ( not set in stone yet, i just had this vibe! )
she absolutely hates when people shorten her first name to ‘ bella ‘ - she prefers isa or iz. although, only close friends/family & her husband are allowed to call her that.
her parents expected her to work for the family business, but she left that to her older brothers. she had her sights set on a career in journalism. she gravitated to sports journalism ( her extensive knowledge on all types of soccer/football, etc growing up nudged her in that direction )
she's fluent in english, italian, spanish & knows conversational french.
definitely the strict mom. she’s tough, but loving. Sometimes she feels like she is always the bad cop, rather than being on an even playing field with her husband when it comes to parenting, but he seems to always end up being the good cop.
i imagine isa and her family having succession vibes. just because it makes me laugh lmao.
she’s fiery and won’t take anyone’s bullshit. she’s more than happy to call people out and even enjoys doing it. bordering on real housewife of nyc at this point tbh.
The day had dragged on, much to Isabela's dismay. Working outside of New York had begun as a challenge with constant conference calls, and late nights. It was safe to say she wasn't quite thrilled at the thought of leaving her beloved home city, the only home she'd known, but she did it for the benefit of her husband and their children. Surprisingly, she'd actually enjoyed the tranquility of the quiet town... maybe moving wasn't so bad after all. Coming home to her husband was the highlight of her day, and to be in his arms would solve every minuscule issue she’d had to deal with that day. Nate was her person. Her best friend. Before him, she never thought she could love someone the way she loves him.
“I’m home, amore mio.” The redhead cooed as she walked into their home, playing her purse on the counter, knowing their children were off with friends for the evening. Leaving the couple to become… reacquainted. Not that they’d been lacking in the bedroom lately, though. Her desire for him never faltered. He was as sexy as the day she met him decades earlier. She sauntered her way through to the living room, immediately catching sight of the love of her life. Without missing a beat, she sat herself down on the couch next to her man, leaning over to press a kiss against his cheek. “There you are, baby. I’ve missed you.”
When Leo grew tired of staring at the same walls in the library, he usually went to beans & barley for a change of scenery. This afternoon, his plans were to write the scripts for the videos he’d record on the weekend, answer a few emails and finish the reading for his next class. Suffice to say he was going to need a lot of coffee. Santini pressed enter to send the last email and stretched his arms.
While he pondered on what he’d order next - as coffee, unfortunately, did not yet count as food - the person on the table next to his let out a curse. The boy lifted up his head and grimaced when he realized what happened. “Me neither…” if Leo ever did something like that, his parents would make him go back, apologize and clean up the whole mess. Not to mention the scolding he’d get for being so clumsy. It was weird to realize that not everybody had the same upbringing as him. “Do you need some napkins?” He offered, picking up some on his table. “Everything is still working, right?” Leonardo asked. After all, liquids and technology were not the best combination “I don’t know how you’re so calm, to be honest. If it happened to me I’d probably make a scandal.” he said with a smile.
With her mind on the laptop disaster, it completely slipped her mind for a moment that it was a friend of her son’s by her side. Isa sighed, shaking her head. “Some napkins would be great. I think it’s fine, it’s just on the keyboard from what I can see.” Offering him a faint smile, she knew she had to be in mom mode. Otherwise she’d probably make a scene, or at least call the person out... but it was in her best interest to tone down on embarrassing her children. For now, at least.
“Trust me, I thought about it.” She chuckled, her gaze taking focus on the approaching waitress with her fresh coffee in hand. It wasn’t until the hot mug had been place in front of her, and she’d said her thank yous before turning her attention back to Leo. “How are you? I haven’t seen you at the house for a few weeks. I take it you’re studying hard, then?”
Coffee. Isabela’s staple. Like many Americans, it was what got her through each day, otherwise she’d be an absolute wreck, which might sound dramatic to some, but you just had to trust her when she says you don’t want to be around her before the caffeinated goodness hits her lips. “Another latte, please. Can you make it a triple shot this time? Thank you.” The ginger politely asked the waitress, only to turn back to her laptop, slender fingers tapping on her keyboard in an attempt to conjure up another idea for her next pitch to her boss. So far, nothing. Zilch.
As she sat with her own thoughts, out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone walk closely past her table only to accidentally spill some of their beverage on the computer sitting open in front of her. “Fuck!” She groaned, her eyes glancing up to see that the culprit had simply walked away without apologising. In disbelief, she looked over to the person at the table nearest to her. “Did you see that? Not even a sorry. I don’t understand people who are like that.”
STARTER FOR: anyone
EXTRA: the retro room, any time
even with the generous four inches that her heels provide her, nia can’t reach the top of the cabinet that sits innocently in the retro room. not being gifted vertically is something she’s long made her peace with ( along with the help of an extensive heel collection that brought her to almost scraping average height ), but the small wooden table she’s been eyeing remains far outside the length of her stretching fingertips. a devious glance around her surroundings provides her with no less than four ways she can get to the top of the cabinet. a split second later and she’s climbing atop a different table next to the high cabinet that provides another three feet of height. there are already plenty of scars of wear on the table top, evidence of a healthy life it once held, and so she’s not too worried about the tips of her heels scuffing. maybe when she has help she’ll come back to retrieve it as well, but for now she happily reaches for the small wooden box that she’d been eyeing. item in hand, she turns then to clamber back down only to find herself looking down at someone. her small o of surprise morphs quickly. “ so — our little secret ?? ” she offers, smile wide and charming. signature. “ what’d’ya say ?? ”
The eclectic charms of The Retro Room never failed to lure Isabela inside, even before the Lockhart family made their big move into the town. There was just something about it that sparked curiosity, and their range of items seemed to be ever changing. It was always a must-see. Even when she didn’t need anything.
Holding a worn silver music box in her hands, her focus turned to a young woman climbing onto a table, heels and all. Frankly, she was impressed at the expertise, even if the redhead’s own features formed a grimace at the thought of an arising disaster. Luckily for everyone in the store, the disaster had been averted. “I mean, I’m not going to tell anyone, but you’ve got some skill with those shoes. I pretty much live in heels myself, but I don’t even think I could do that. Impressive.”
location: conan & sons.
availability: open to everyone.
the night was starting to slow down, which left nuray with a little more time to attend to each customer. she took her time mixing up cocktail, before placing it in front of one of the customers sitting there. upon seeing their confused gaze, she pointed towards the other side of the bar. “it’s from that guy over there, he likes trying to guess what people’s drink of choice might be,” she explained with a wink. “if you don’t like it though, i will gladly drink it myself.” one of the many upsides of this particular job was that once business slowed down, she was usually allowed a drink or two of her own, which she mostly used to keep her late customers company.
“anyway, why are you here all alone? i heard tonight is supposed to be insanely starry, the entire town is probably enjoying the sky on the beach or something.” while she was well aware that some customers preferred to drink in silence, keeping to herself wasn’t really in her nature and so she often erred on the side of chatting too much. “though i suppose stars might not be your jam.”
After the day she’d had, there was no way Isabela was going to head home without stopping out for a drink. She knew her husband was at home with their children, leaving the fire maned woman with the perfect opportunity to drown her sorrows in liquor. Everyone had their own little ways to deal with bad days, hers involved a little nectar on her tongue, and music. Although, as she sat in Conan & Sons, she wasn’t overly impressed with the choice of tunes that were blaring on the speakers. To each their own.
The sound of a voice caught her attention, causing her blue gaze to dart up to the young bartender opposite her. “Oh? Well, that’s nice.” She replied before offering the stranger a few seats up from her an appreciative smile. Cocktails weren’t her usual pick, but she wasn’t the type to turn down a free drink.
Ever since moving from New York, Isa had found everyone so alarmingly nice. Back home she thought a nice gesture was a taxi driver not running her over as she crossed the street. Port Briar was a serene, picture perfect paradise, and surprisingly, she was starting to take a liking to their new little piece of paradise, even though, convincing her to move out of the city was like pulling teeth.
“Ah, just a shitty day at work. I don’t really want to go home and spread my miserable mood to my husband and kids.” The mention of stars provoked her to turn her head, catching a glimpse of the glittering sky briefly. “I’m not saying stars aren’t my jam, but alcohol is more my jam tonight.” Jam? Did she really just say that?
