[ josh segarra, cis male, he/him ] — spotted in the streets of brooklyn, it’s MANUEL “MANNY” ACOSTA. they have lived in the city for TWO YEARS, working as a BARBER. the 35 year old will probably be seen around WILLIAMSBURG a lot, seeing as that’s where they live. people say they can be a bit OBLIVIOUS and GOOFY, but friends know them to be RESILIENT and LOYAL. you know for sure you’ve found them when you’ve come across A REPLY TO A TEXT MESSAGE TWO WEEKS LATER, EXCESSIVE HAIR PRODUCT, AND A WHISKEY COLLECTION. welcome to brooklyn, it’s been waiting for you!
the basics
full name: manuel "manny" acosta nickname: costa (to friends) date of birth: 2/13 age: 35 pronouns: he/him/his sexuality: bisexual hometown: montclair, new jersey occupation: barber retired professional tennis player personality: manny is a dad joke loving, somewhat happy-go-lucky guy who is a social butterfly. while he can be oblivious and air-headed at times, manny is known for his infectious laugh and ability to make fun of himself. he has golden retriever energy to the max.
bio
born in montclair, new jersey as the youngest son in the loud acosta family, manny had always taken to the sport of tennis. from a young age his parents encouraged him by placing him in lessons and soon enough manny found himself getting into college solely because of his skills on the court. for most of manny's teenage years, his life revolved around tennis. despite his hard working attitude, manny always maintained a goofy and positive disposition. never being the brightest bulb in the box, he felt immense pressure to get a scholarship for tennis to get himself out of montclair.
to no one's surprise, manny was offered admission to the university of georgia where he quickly made it to be one of the stars of the team. academics not really being his strong suit, manny opted for a career as a professional tennis player and dropped out of college after just one year and one semester. his family and friends were hesitant to support him since he was now betting his entire future on his career. manny's career was slow at first as he barely had any sponsors or any money. he grinded it out on the professional tour and barely made enough money to pay himself and his travel expenses. for eight years he worked relentlessly and finally he reached a peak high world ranking of #32 (now manny's lucky number). he felt on top of the world for a few short months as he finally was able to cash in on his hard work.
everything came crashing down in sequence when manny was celebrating in flushing meadows new york following his performance at the u.s. open. manny decided that he was going to let loose a bit and confessed his feelings for another top male tennis player on tour (wanted connection!) and while the feelings were reciprocated, someone nearby had been recording their conversation and it began to circulate within the tennis world. slightly embarrassed by his vulnerability, this distracted manny from his work and as his cringy confession circled around with talk about his relationship and sexuality. manny subsequently suffered a knee injury at practice and, though he didn't know it at the time, he would never step on court professionally again.
after trying to rehab his injury to the best of his ability for over two years, manny finally had to throw in the towel at the age of 32. without a career to fall back on, the normally gregarious man became uncharacteristically down on himself. after some soul searching, he decided to get his barber's license since he had always cut his own hair while he was traveling on tour. manny then got a job as a barber in the city and moved from new jersey to brooklyn. for the past two years he has built up a network of clients and friends and his past life as a tennis player has faded to the background. with dad jokes galore and goofy banter in the barber shop, manny is known for his jovial and outgoing nature once more.
wanted connections
*former tennis fling (wc above!): as described in the bio, this is another tennis player (or maybe coach or physical therapist, someone in the tennis world) who manny fell hard for and then his injury ruined whatever it was they had going on; their relationship likely fizzled out as a result of manny's career ending co-workers/clients: since manny works as a barber, these could be friends of his who are his client or co-workers at the shop or maybe a nearby establishment in williamsburg neighbors: manny lives in williamsburg so anyone who he would run into getting coffee, or maybe even someone who is irritated by his positivity/joking room mate: manny definitely doesn't make enough to live on his own so this could be a positive or negative room mate situation best bud/wingman or wingwoman: someone who likes to go out with manny and have a good time, [maybe even someone more negative who balances out his golden retriever vibes?] romantic: fwb, exes (maybe even as far back as when he was in college or on tour? also have an idea for an ex that cheated on him blatantly but manny was either too busy with work or too oblivious to notice), someone he is crushing on hardcore misc: former room mate, siblings or cousins or some other familial connection, a former/current rival
