[ Shay Mitchell, female, she/her ] - was that Tala Cruz i saw by the lighthouse today? i heard that the thirty-four-year-old who has been in nightrest for 24 years and works as a Dean of Nightrest High and boxer has a reputation of being intelligent, but also tactless. they reside in low point & people in town usually associate them with marking every error in red ink, boxing in the gym every night, permanent resting bitch face. let’s hope the killer doesn’t go after them next.
BELOW HERE YOU WILL FIND DEATH, VIOLENCE, HOME INVASION.
STATISTICS.
NAME: Tala Cruz
GOES BY: Tala for most Star for family and like 2 friends
Tala was born in Salem but most of her memories are in Nightrest, Ma. Her mother was from Salem and her father was from the Philippines. They met when she went to visit for spring break in college and the rest is history. They fell in love but she couldn't leave her hometown so he joined her.
Tala was a happy child who always had a smile on her face growing up. She was named after the stars in the Philippines so that's what her family called her.
That smile faded when she walked home from school in 7th grade to see cop cars in front of her home. Apparently, it was a home invasion. Her parents didn't fight back, they thought that it would be better. That they would take what they wanted and leave, but that didn't happen.
After that Tala lived with her aunt in Nightrest. It wasn't all that far from home but it felt like another world. Her smile was replaced with a blank expression that didn't lead to her making many friends in her new school. She came home with gum in her hair one afternoon and her aunt wasn't going to tolerate it.
Her aunt put her in martial arts and told her that if someone pushed then she pushed harder. If someone slapped then she would punch. She had learned the hard way that there's no peace or beauty in not fighting back.
Tala got into boxing by the time high school started and was in competitions by graduation, all while keeping a 4.0 average. Colleges all over the country wanted her, but she didn't want to go far. She took the full ride to Salem State and kept her nose in the books. She went straight from her BA to her MA, while training every night and doing competitions on the weekends.
She worked as a Math Teacher for 5 years before shifting her focus and working her way up the ladder until she became dean of the public high school. She loves her job but really just loves having the balance between strengthening her brain and body.
PERSONALITY.
Tala is a bitch more often than not. She has a really bad case of resting bitch face but she isn't sorry about it because it keeps people from talking to her. She has a LOT of walls, but when she does let someone in she is painfully loyal. Her romantic life is complicated because she didn't have a glow up until adulthood and with how aggressive she is it's not often that she's asked out. She doesn't like feeling vulnerable, so she would rather argue with you than cuddle on the couch. Getting in a really good argument does get her hot and bothered, though so she has basically only experienced hate sex. (Totally healthy I know)
WANTED CONNECTIONS.
Friends ish people where she tolerates them but her walls are up
Maybe 2 or 3 friends that she's actually close to. Ones who put in the effort to get past her walls and now they call her star and she loves them?
Enemies with benefits? iiidddkkk
Enemies without benefits too is a vibe.
She has been here since middle school so I'm down to chat about whatever connections <3
Looking over her shoulder, Kendall was surprised to find that the other woman was, in fact, speaking to her. She kept herself from letting out a scoff and offered a polite smile instead. Fine—polite was generous, but better than walking away like she would have done any other day. “You know, you might be able to do that yourself if you put a bottle or two down. I mean, honestly, do you really need that much?” With that, Kendall turned her attention to the bottles lining the shelves as she waited for her to move out of the aisle.
“I like to get all of my bottles at once. It makes it so that I don’t have to come by too often,” Tala said, doing what she could to keep herself from rolling her eyes. “Although it would be lovely to go out of my way to have more experiences like talking to you,” she added, accepting that being nice wasn’t in the cards for her today. Putting two of the bottles down, she grabbed her phone and slid it into her pocket. Picking back up the bottles she make sure to walk between the woman and the shelf she was looking at.
“I’m just saying—it’s a lot. I’m just doing you a favour letting you know.” Kendall pretended to look over the expensive bottles for a few moments longer before settling on the cheapest one. It would do, but did she really have a choice? When she walked in front of the shelf, Kendall couldn’t help but let out a scoff. “Very mature. You could have said excuse me.”
“And you could have help with my phone, but I guess we are both a little inconsiderate,” Tala said, with sort of a shrug. It wasn’t all that easy to shrug when she had her hands full but the point was made either way. Unfortunately there was a line, so she couldn’t exactly be as in and out as she was hoping. The worst part was probably not being able to scroll through her phone while she waited in line.
Open Starter: (@nightreststarters)
Location: nightrest liquor
Tala wasn't really one to go out for drinks, but she did enjoy making her own at home. After a busy day at work, she could really use a glass of wine, at least, but she was all out. It had been a while since her last trip to the liquor store so she decided to stop by on her way home. She grabbed two bottles of wine, one of rum, and another of whiskey. She was able to manage to hold two bottles in each hand, but she didn't realize that she put her phone down on the shelf until she didn't have a good way to place the bottles down. "Could you grab that for me and just slide it into my pocket?" she asked the first person she saw.
“I can grab it but I’m not sure you’re gonna fucking - get it back,” June replied - picking up the phone and looking at it, flipping it around and over. “Nice shit - wow.” Her eyes raised towards the amount of liquor Tala’d been holding. “This is fucking - peak sad cat lady gets obliviated in the comfort of her home to cope.” The first thing June had done with her fresh paycheck was replenish her beer supply - it was cheap, and she could hide the cans all around the apartment; less chance of her roommates stealing them. “Is it the kids at school? Are they bullying you?”
“I would appreciate getting it back, It probably won’t pawn for much since like 5 models have come out since I got it,” Tala said, fighting the desire to roll her eyes. After hearing her next comment, she wasn’t able to fight it anymore. “I am actually not much of a cat person, I just like to keep my liqour cabinet stocked so I don’t need to come to the store often,” she explained, even though she didn’t know why she was bothering. “Actually, I like the kids at school, it’s adults that make me prefer my weekend job.”
Open Starter: (@nightreststarters)
Location: nightrest liquor
Tala wasn't really one to go out for drinks, but she did enjoy making her own at home. After a busy day at work, she could really use a glass of wine, at least, but she was all out. It had been a while since her last trip to the liquor store so she decided to stop by on her way home. She grabbed two bottles of wine, one of rum, and another of whiskey. She was able to manage to hold two bottles in each hand, but she didn't realize that she put her phone down on the shelf until she didn't have a good way to place the bottles down. "Could you grab that for me and just slide it into my pocket?" she asked the first person she saw.
she didn’t know what she was doing here, not really. darla didn’t do much drinking beyond the cheap liquor at the grocery store, or whatever her friends buy her at the bar. how she ended here was either out of pure luck, bordem, or both. browsing the aisles, the voice called out to her, causing “um —” she shifts from leg to another, blinking once, twice. “do you need me to carry one of those for you? and your phone.” darla doesn’t want to come across like it’s an impossible ask, but the older seemed like she’d need help before the glass bottles slipped and shattered across the floor anyway. “i was on my way out.”
“If I needed you to do that then that would have been my question,” Tala pointed out, her face only slightly more serious than she was. The woman reminded her of some of the students, offering because they’re trying to be nice or because they feel like they’re supposed to. “I like the balance of the bottles, so two in one hand and one in the other would probably throw it off, but thank you. Bringing my phone would be nice, thank you,” she added, before walking towards the register.
Open Starter: (@nightreststarters)
Location: nightrest liquor
Tala wasn't really one to go out for drinks, but she did enjoy making her own at home. After a busy day at work, she could really use a glass of wine, at least, but she was all out. It had been a while since her last trip to the liquor store so she decided to stop by on her way home. She grabbed two bottles of wine, one of rum, and another of whiskey. She was able to manage to hold two bottles in each hand, but she didn't realize that she put her phone down on the shelf until she didn't have a good way to place the bottles down. "Could you grab that for me and just slide it into my pocket?" she asked the first person she saw.
Staring blankly at the wall of wine, Forrest only came back to reality when someone’s voice cut into his train of thought. “Oh!” Automatically, he grabbed her phone - they were hesitant naturally, always second guessing some of the most innocent of actions. Sliding her phone into her pocket could have already been done, but of course he had to worry about seeming too touchy, too close for comfort. “Um, yeah, just - okay, slipping it in now,” he warned, placing her phone into her pocket with the gentlest of touch. A second later, Forrest cleared his throat. “I didn’t meant… to say it like that - I mean. Not that you didn’t know that.” Clearing his throat, Forrest turned his phone towards Tala suddenly, showing her a picture of the bottle of wine his mama sent him. “Do you know which section this would be in? I feel a bit blind, I’ve been looking for eons now.”
Tala watched the guy as he struggled with his words. She was actually pretty amused but it wouldn’t be easy to tell by her facial expressions. Her eyebrows furrowed as he attempted to back track, but at least she had her phone back. “Thank you for making that as uncomfortable as possible.” She was about to turn towards the register when he asked about the wine. “Um, yeah. That wine is over here,” she answered, before walking over to the area she got her own bottles from. “That one, three rows up, in the middle, with the purple label,” she said, not really able to point or gesture with the bottles in her hands.
"Oh, yeah, sure. That definitely makes it better. Choosing not to have manners. Well done. What a great example you are for the next generation," Cameron sarcastically said, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. How can a woman who was only a few years younger than him still act like a teenager? "Why? Are you dying? Injured?" He asked, unimpressed with the question because he didn't really care what people thought about him and the failure and disgrace that was his marriage and family life. His work at the hospital spoke for itself.
“Oh, yeah, sure. That definitely makes it better. Choosing not to have manners. Well done. What a great example you are for the next generation,” Cameron sarcastically said, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. How can a woman who was only a few years younger than him still act like a teenager? “Why? Are you dying? Injured?” He asked, unimpressed with the question because he didn’t really care what people thought about him and the failure and disgrace that was his marriage and family life. His work at the hospital spoke for itself.
“That’s interesting. So, you only need to be helpful in your job setting? Yet, I’m expected to act like I do at work everywhere?” Tala said, with a roll of her eyes. He didn’t seem to understand her point, but she really shouldn’t have expected anything more than that. “I can explain your hypocrisy to you but I can’t understand it for you.”
Open Starter: (@nightreststarters)
Location: nightrest liquor
Tala wasn't really one to go out for drinks, but she did enjoy making her own at home. After a busy day at work, she could really use a glass of wine, at least, but she was all out. It had been a while since her last trip to the liquor store so she decided to stop by on her way home. She grabbed two bottles of wine, one of rum, and another of whiskey. She was able to manage to hold two bottles in each hand, but she didn't realize that she put her phone down on the shelf until she didn't have a good way to place the bottles down. "Could you grab that for me and just slide it into my pocket?" she asked the first person she saw.
It’s been a long day and the last thing he wants is to sit in some bar with other people, especially when he was still worried about Anya on her hospital bed, and he had a full schedule at the hospital tomorrow. That was how he found himself at the liquor store, the need to just buy a bottle and go back home taking over. Huffing out an impatient sigh, he moved towards Tala, showing her a frown. “For someone running a school for young kids, you don’t even know how to say please? How are you supposed to be an example when you don’t even have basic manners?”
Tala didn’t even attempt to stop herself from rolling her eyes. “I know how to say please, I simply didn’t choose to,” she answered, “Don’t you work in a hospital? Your job is literally to help people but you are choosing to be an ass instead. See how that works?” Tala didn’t know why she was even responding to him. She wouldn’t normally humor such a juvenile comment.
Open Starter: (@nightreststarters)
Location: nightrest liquor
Tala wasn't really one to go out for drinks, but she did enjoy making her own at home. After a busy day at work, she could really use a glass of wine, at least, but she was all out. It had been a while since her last trip to the liquor store so she decided to stop by on her way home. She grabbed two bottles of wine, one of rum, and another of whiskey. She was able to manage to hold two bottles in each hand, but she didn't realize that she put her phone down on the shelf until she didn't have a good way to place the bottles down. "Could you grab that for me and just slide it into my pocket?" she asked the first person she saw.
Looking over her shoulder, Kendall was surprised to find that the other woman was, in fact, speaking to her. She kept herself from letting out a scoff and offered a polite smile instead. Fine—polite was generous, but better than walking away like she would have done any other day. “You know, you might be able to do that yourself if you put a bottle or two down. I mean, honestly, do you really need that much?” With that, Kendall turned her attention to the bottles lining the shelves as she waited for her to move out of the aisle.
“I like to get all of my bottles at once. It makes it so that I don’t have to come by too often,” Tala said, doing what she could to keep herself from rolling her eyes. “Although it would be lovely to go out of my way to have more experiences like talking to you,” she added, accepting that being nice wasn’t in the cards for her today. Putting two of the bottles down, she grabbed her phone and slid it into her pocket. Picking back up the bottles she make sure to walk between the woman and the shelf she was looking at.
Open Starter: (@nightreststarters)
Location: nightrest liquor
Tala wasn't really one to go out for drinks, but she did enjoy making her own at home. After a busy day at work, she could really use a glass of wine, at least, but she was all out. It had been a while since her last trip to the liquor store so she decided to stop by on her way home. She grabbed two bottles of wine, one of rum, and another of whiskey. She was able to manage to hold two bottles in each hand, but she didn't realize that she put her phone down on the shelf until she didn't have a good way to place the bottles down. "Could you grab that for me and just slide it into my pocket?" she asked the first person she saw.
