my kink is karma

[rivergables]

QUICK STATS

Name:  Vanessa “Van” Gable

Age: 32

Occupation: Bartender at Steeldrivers

Neighborhood: The Mines

Gender and Pronouns: Cis female, she/hers

Astrological Sign: Aquarius

LIFE SO FAR

(TW Affair, Parental Abandonment, Divorce)

- Vanessa Celeste Gable hails from a four generation mining family that has always been considered a little "kooky" by conservative circles in town; Gables have always been known for eccentric behavior and liberal leanings, even if it went against the grain of those around them 

-Vanessa was born as a result of an extra-marital affair between her mother and a high standing family man on the city council; once it was public knowledge who the father was, it was townwide gossip fodder for months and the man and his family moved out of state when Vanessa was five 

-Not long after graduating high school, Vanessa tore out of town with her boyfriend at the time and made their way to Los Angeles, getting married in Vegas along the way; Vanessa managed to bring in a little bit of money as a struggling musician, playing open mic nights and weddings, waiting tables, while mostly supporting her husband who was working towards his real estate license and building up a good clientle

-After several years in Los Angeles, her husband started to hit it big in the real estate and property, building up seven digit comissions and starting his own big shot agency;  it came as a complete blindside to Van when he announced on heir tenth anniversary that he was leaving her for a supermodel

-Humiliated, Vanessa moved back home to Iron River as a fresh divorcee with a failed music career and her tail between her legs, back to living in her childhood home and working in Steeldrivers while still making a side hustle of writing jingles and original songs (most of the latter rarely see the light of day) 

FUN FACTS

- her mother is an artist and a bit of a hippy, she was very much a ‘I’d rather you do it in the house’ kind of parent, and often threw ‘salons’ in the living room for other artists and creatives in the community (her mother had currently relocated to portland)

- had a reputation as a wild child in her youth, but was really just bold and unapologetic which often threw older people in town for a loop

-drives her mother’s vintage green volkswagon bettle

-pretty tatted up all over, she prefers the vintage styles

-hand rolls cigarettes that can usually be found hanging from her mouth as she writes songs on her back porch

- more will be added !

WANTED CONNECTIONS

-friends! vanessa lived in town until she was twenty, so it’s totally likely that she’s had life long, cradle to grave friends!! maybe some of them have fallen out of touch since she ran to LA, or maybe they’ve visited back and forth over the last decade

-enemies! van has a strong personality and doesn’t mind speaking her mind with little regard of being “southern” polite, so it’s likely she’s made an enemy or two in high school or beyond

-flings! van has been on a wild streak since her tne year marriage ended, so she’s likely had tinder hookups or flings after closing time at the bar and very much the potential for messiness

-mines community! i’d love for there to be a little neighborhood found family that have bonfire drinks, game nights, etc

van is pretty fresh so i’m really down for anything and i love building ideas together!! if you have something in mind please feel free to add me on discord @  bendela#8730 

[rivergables]

oakleyhall·:

The prospect of another hour there has him sinking lower in his chair, his legs outstretched in front of him which was a trip hazard for anyone passing by but at least that could double up as a source of entertainment for him. 

“Shut up,” He interrupts, a less than comforting offering from him but it was the initial reaction her well-meaning dismissal caused in him. “I’m not just going to up and leave you here. When they say you can go, then I’ll go too.” 

Once upon a time, he would have been the first call she made when she found herself in a place like this, but the effects of the time that’s passed between them was never more present in how that wasn’t the case now. 

“You want something from the vending machine? I got a hankering for what I’m assuming is the flattest Diet Coke in all the land.” 

"No, you shut up," she retorts like a knee-jerk, knowing that if her ribs weren't aching and if he wasn't a chair too far away, she'd be making an effort to elbow him at that moment to punctuate her point. 

 The 'up and leave you' provides a sting in her stomach that she knows isn't coming from her injuries and doesn't quite deserve to bear. The more venomous side out her tongue wants to say something about it never stopping him before, but she swallows it down. 

 Everyone had had a hard enough night without her mouth making it worse. 

"Okay," she says finally, conceeding, before adding. "Glad you didn't get hurt. Kinda an accomplishment considering how dumb you can be." 

 At his question, she eyes in the direction of the vending machine. 

 "You gonna actually pay for it or you gonna shimmy it out?"

[rivergables]

nataliextate·:

-

“ a poll ?  “  well , that certainly captured Natalie’s attention , heard arching back to look at the brunette sitting beside her at the bar . With a cold beer between her slender fingers that she kept on twirling on the bar top , she too leaned forward a little out of pure instinct . Besides , the more the other kept on going , the more Natalie’s blue eyes widened .  “  Taylor Swift is a damn national treasure , who the hell is he to judge ? “  she was quick to speak her mind , brows furrowing together as she started searching for the DJ .  “  of course , i’d show up , i feel like half of iron river would too , which also includes the male population because c’mon , who doesn’t jam to  you belong with me  ?  “ 

“Taylor Swift is the music industry,” Vanessa concurs with a knowing nod of her head. “But men over a certain age sure don’t appreciate that. Think the only thing worth shaking a tail to is Luke Bryan or Keith Urban. Which, you know, is fine for what it is. But let’s not act like they’re even in the same calliber of musical impact as Taylor. And if you can’t line dance to ‘Shake It Off’ you sure as hell aren’t trying hard enough.”

[rivergables]

jamesxkennedy·:

“A poll, huh?” James asked as he turned his attention back to Vanessa, curious as to exactly what this poll was. He listened, hands wrapped around his diet soda- instantly feeling himself be pulled into it at the mention of music. While country wasn’t exactly his type of thing, James still liked coming here, liked the atmosphere that the place had to offer. “I might not know much about country music, sort of out of the realm of what I listen to but I’m pretty sure that that she is a country artist.” He shrugged and took a drink of his soda, setting it back down, hands clasping in front of him.

A laugh fell from his lips at her question. “I mean- wouldn’t that be on ladies night? Or just a general Taylor Swift night? Because if it isn’t ladies night, then honestly, yeah. I probably would come. Need to switch up my music taste besides listening to the same thing over and over.”

“Ladies night doesn’t men ladies only, it’s a common misconception,” Vanessa informs him as she collects some beer bottles from a box behind the counter and loads them into the cooler.

“It just means that there are more incentives for the women to come out. You know -- no cover charge, cheaper drinks, free nachos. Stuff like that. Mostly it started as a tactic so guys would have better odds at getting laid at the end of the night which, now that I think about it, super gross.” She places her palms against the bar top and cocks her head to the side in thought. 

“Now that you mention it, though, maybe Taylor Swift is better for a ladies only night. I can’t imagine any guy would get any play in a room full of women screaming All Too Well Ten Minute Version.”

[rivergables]

owen-mason​:

“Keep handing out compliments like that and you’re going to give me an ego.” Owen replied back with a laugh and small shake of his head, watching Van for a second. At the mention of work, Owen made a face. “Work has been slammed. So much so, the other night, they moved me from the ER to he upper floors to help out. I hate to put on my nurse mode for a moment but if you’re still coughing pretty bad, you might wanna get that checked out.” Always trying to tame his inner nurse, especially when he was around his friends. But more often than not, he was unable to stop himself from it. “Besides the hacking of a lung, how have you been Van?” Owen paused once more, eyes glancing up to the menu, knowing that he would end up getting a few drinks while he was here tonight. He waved a hands towards it then looked back at her. “Anything new on the menu? Or anything you’d suggest trying?” 

“I’m a bartender, it’s my job to hand out compliments,” Vanessa signs, speaking along so that he can catch the movements of her lips where her signing may fail.

“But you? I would compliment you for free. Always. Good guys are allowed a little bit of ego as long as you promise not to become a dick.” At his insistence that she get the cough checked out, she waves her hand and nods along. “I know, I know. I will, I promise, once works lets up and shit. Until then, I’ll just keep taking shots of whiskey. Seems to do the trick. I’m doing okay, really. As well as someone can expect with a near death experience, you know? Like how much would it have sucked to die on bumper cars? I wanna go out on a high point but not a comical one.”

She looks behind herself at the menu in consideration.

“We’ve been trying out this new cucumber and gin thing. Wanna have a go at it?”

[rivergables]

open: @ironriverstarters location: steeldrivers

“I’m taking a poll,” Vanessa muses, elbows on the counter as she leans on the bartop to speak to the person over the counter. 

“Me and the DJ have been having a spat. Nah, let’s not call it a spat -- a spirited discussion where he’s definitely wrong. I think we should have a Taylor Swift night. Preferably on a ladies night. I think it could really fill the place up. But he says that this is a country music bar and that Taylor isn’t a ‘country artist’,” she punctuates with quotes while she rolls her eyes. 

“But if we had a Taylor Swift night, would you show up?”

[rivergables]

oakleyhall·:

Oakley looks away from her at her description without intending to, his mind had always been a vivid thing and her words aid in painting a clear picture that he didn’t like at all. It could have been worse, that’s what he told himself internally, and he’s grateful that it wasn’t. 

“It started at the bumper cars, but I’m not sure how exactly. I don’t think anyone does just yet.” 

He shifts in the uncomfortable waiting room chair, the brightness of the lights enough to nearly make it slip his mind how late it was. Entirely the point of them, he guesses. 

“Did they say how long you’ll be waiting?” 

“Equipment that old, it’s not a shock. Wouldn’t be surprised if those wires hadn’t been looked at since Reagan was in office,” she snorted, slouching down a little lower in her chair in an effort to get comfortable, trying to keep her discomfort out of her face.

She had known Oakley well enough to detect when he wanted a topic change, even after so many years, so she didn’t fight him on it.

She didn’t like how close the call was tonight either.

“Maybe another hour, they wanna check on my lungs after all the smoke,” she tells him with a bob of her head. She knows it’s the smart thing to do, even it takes all night.

“You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to, I know it’s late--”

[owen-mason-deactivated20220615]

Who: @rivergables​ Where: Steeldrivers

Owen pulled the door open to the bar, a grin on his face the moment that he saw Vanessa behind the bar. He made his way through the crowd of people, his grin only growing even more as he took a seat on one of the empty bar stools. Having grown up together, Vanessa was one of those people that had meant the world to Owen, someone he knew would always be in his life no matter what. He hated what she had gone through, wanted nothing but happiness for her but at the same time, he was glad to have her back in town. After all these years, it was nice knowing that he could simply send her a message to make plans and meet up. That there wasn’t hundreds of miles between the two of them.

He brought a hand up, waving it some to catch her attention before he brought his other hand up as well. Vanessa learning to sign was another thing that had meant so much to Owen as well. Never did he expect anyone to learn sign language for him but she had and at such a young age too. “Well, if it isn’t my favorite bar tender.” He signed with a grin, leaning forward on the counter some as he kept his eyes on her. 

[rivergables]

“Most handsome man I’ve seen all night,” she signs in return with a bright grin as she walks over in the direction of the bar where her friend is seated, pulling some empty glasses from the bar top and placing them beneath in the rinse bin on the counter. 

There were thousands of things that set Los Angeles and Iron River apart -- climates, cultures, and weather to name a few. However, one of the advantages that she enjoyed about being home was that she was never far from a friend. Sometimes it was difficult to live in a town where everyone knows everyones business, but she prefers it now to being just another body in a city of that size. 

“I’m glad that you’re able to make it out. Have you been slammed at work since the fire? I’m still hacking up a lung.”

[oakleyhall]

where: riverside medical center. 

for: @rivergables​ 

“There you are.” Oakley says with relief, having traipsed around the entire wrong part of the hospital in his search for her. Urgent Care made the most sense for where she would be now that he’s both feet in it and looking down at her from where he stood, but as the night dwindled into the small hours of the morning he wasn’t at his sharpest after what felt like the longest night of his life. 

He seats himself in an empty chair one over from hers – even then, even there, distance – looking her over like he might be able to identify and fix where it hurt through sheer wish to. 

“What did the doctors say?”

[rivergables]

“You’ve got a lot of nerve saying that like I was hiding under a chair or something,” Vanessa informs him with a good natured smile on her face, arching a brow at him as she looks him up and down. 

She’s surprised that he actually showed up, considering what a long night it had been. Her bed had been a featured character in her drifting thoughts since she’d taken a seat in the waiting room -- not complaining when others with more pressing injuries were brought in before she had been.

“Nurse who looked me over thinks I have two broken ribs,” she explains, tilting her head back and squinting at the florescents before she looks back over the chair to him. 

“I had that safety bar thing down over my lap and it got locked so when we started smelling smoke I was trying to shimmy my way out of it--”

[rivergables]

oak 📲 van.

vanessa: shit i didn't know it got to the barns

oak: it spread so fucking fast

vanessa: are they close to putting it out?

[rivergables]

gabriela-bourbon·:

Her throat felt like it was on fire. Every breath she took, she felt like she was gasping for air like if she was drowning. In that split moment, she was more scared of not breathing than the actual fire itself. She let out a few more coughs, before finally speaking. “Fuck this shit. Fuck this place,” She let out, whipping her face from the dirt and blood that collected. After collecting herself, she squinted her eyes and see the voice that spoke up behind her. One hand, lifting up to her cowboy hat and adjusted it. 

“All I know, that surely took a good ten years off from my life. And I already know I wasn’t going to have a long life either,”

“Long lives are for whimps anyway. ‘Die young, leave a pretty corpse’ is what my mom always says. Then again, my mom is in her mid sxities, so I don’t really know how much of her own advice she’s taking.”

Her mother was kind of like that; handed out quips and advice like it was going out of style, but didn’t always apply it to herself.

“Were you in the bumper cars too?” Vanessa questions as they continue to walk along, keeping an eye open for any solid shelter or some water they could grab. 

“Like what the fuck was that? Chemical fire? Electric? How fucking old were those things?”

[rivergables]

narincelik·:

“Yeah, I think so.” Perhaps, not gracefully. But beggers certainly couldn’t be choosers in this situation. Besides, Narin was grateful and lucky that her injuries were minor compared to a lot of others. Including, Vanessa’s. “I knew I should’ve stayed home.” The one time she decides to venture out, all hell breaks loose. Literally. There’s an inferno happening all around them. “What about you, are you okay?” She noticed the other woman cupping her side and witnessed a subdued wince of pain. “Is there anything I can do to help?” She was no medic but, her cousin was and she was willing to try and emulate some of her magical powers in the ER room. 

“Shit like this isn’t exactly encouragement to get out much,” Vanessa concurs with a quick nod of her head, followed by another barking cough. First bottle of water she could find and she was gonna down that shit like it was a mid-shift vodka shot. 

“What me? Nah, I’m good, I probably just pulled a muscle on an old sex injury or something,” she jokes -- though it is starting to hurt to breathe a little. 

“Actually, how’s your balance feeling at the moment? Because I’m kinda feeling like I can’t stand up straight so if I could just lean on you a little...?”

[rivergables]

oak 📲 van.

vanessa: are you okay where are you at?

oak: yeah i wasn't near it when it broke out

oak: i've been helping out with the barn fire with a few folks

vanessa: shit i didn't know it got to the barns

[rivergables]

oak 📲 van.

oak: i had to read that twice

oak: ok

oak: text me when you're there and when shit's under control here i'll come through

vanessa: are you okay where are you at?

[rivergables]

oak 📲 van.

vanessa: yeah i was there

vanessa: still am, the people doing triage or whatever want me to head to the er

oak: are you hurt bad?

oak: are you going to the er??

vanessa: i'm a little knocked up

vanessa: oh god bad word choice unsend

vanessa: but yeah, not as pretty as i was went i went in

vanessa: yeah i think i should

[rivergables]

oak 📲 van.

oak: are you are the fair??

oak: reply

oak: reply

oak: reply

vanessa: yeah i was there

vanessa: still am, the people doing triage or whatever want me to head to the er

[gabriela-bourbon]

for: open for anyone ( @ironriverstarters​ )

location: state fair, at the bumper cars

Being at these kind of events, Gabriela wasn’t ever the type to go. But part of her was telling her to go out, socialize for a bit, get a life instead of being around horses all day. Little did they know she wanted to be around them more. She immediately regretted the decision when she felt that there was something wrong, and the operators didn’t seem to care or notice. Her hands held the wheel tightly until quickly letting go when the music suddenly had stopped the noise came from the machinery. Everything around them quickly got engulfed in flames, including herself. And all suddenly, people forced themselves out from the cars and charged towards the exist, not caring who was in front of them. Gabriela even went towards the exist, but seeing those were trying to squeeze through and be patient were pushed down to the ground and stepped on. It was chaotic and insane, and the flames that spread behind them were growing larger by the second. Before Gabriela was able to make her next decision, a group of people bumped into her, and she quickly lost balanced and fell down, also getting stepped on. With her hands, she was able to push away those that were running past her, but she didn’t managed to get up completely unharmed. 

Finally managing to get out and realized that she was out of the mess, Gabriela took a deep breath and immediately started to choke with all the fumes she had inhaled. Now, covered in dirt and her own sweat, all she needed was some water and the closet first aid kit. 

[rivergables]

One thing was for sure, you’d never be finding Vanessa near bumper cars again. She felt now doomed to one of those people who developed a new phobia over something completely monotonous. 

In many ways, the crowd was far more threatening than the fire itself -- people pushing through impossible spaces and shoving each other over and not looking for anyone underfoot. Vanessa supposed that she would have to give people the grace of following their natural instinct; there was something in your body chemistry that told you to run when heat got to be too much. It’s the same reason that you pull your hand from scalding water.

“We need to get upwind of the smoke,” she calls to the woman walking in front of her. 

“Who knows how much chemicals and shit are in that smoke, you know?”