Some people say that Derek looks a lot like DIEGO TINOCO. His faceclaim is semi-negotiable and he is currently AVAILABLE.
Life’s never been a walk in the park for Derek Guerra. His parents moved from the Dominican Republic together to a lesser-known neighborhood in Queens, where they worked hard for their money in order to keep a roof over their heads. Derek was an only child for four years before his little sister came, and then the twins soon after, and his baby brother not too long after that. By the time he was eight years old, Derek was a part-time elementary schooler, part-time babysitter.
The thing is that his parents never factored financial security into their life decisions before they made them. They had five children because they loved kids. It didn’t hit them until after they were born just how expensive five kids would be, and while they worked extra hard to make sure they were well fed and happy, that also meant that there came a time where Derek had to step up to help his parents maintain the life they’d dreamed of. Caring for his siblings became a priority for him whilst his parents worked. When he was old enough to get a job of his own, he made money sweeping at his local barbers and selling concessions at the local movie theatre all through high school to pay for broken bikes, new sneakers, and bus passes for the lot of them. All of this meant making some sacrifices of his own when it came to his studies, his friends, and his beloved school football team, but he loved his family and was willing to put in the work.
Truthfully, the stress and the pressure put onto Derek by helping support his family and achieve his own goals is probably why, if you ever saw him outside the walls of his own home, you’d never guess he could be so soft for the ones he loves. To any outsider, Derek has always been cold and matter of fact, having no time for anyone outside of his small circle as he focused every inch of spare energy that he had on keeping his grades above water and keeping a small but steady income coming into his bank account. For a while, it seemed to pay off; after a short break from education, he got into his local college – and with a football scholarship, no less – and he managed to land one job at a coffee shop near the college and another at a bar in East Village . His scholarship allowed him to use all of the money he made on helping his parents, and living at home kept him around to take care of the kids.
Now though, at twenty-one years old, Derek’s finally recognizing just how completely and utterly burnt out he feels. He’s doing the best he can, but his motivation is dwindling and he’s tired all the time. Things are starting to slip through the cracks; he’s regularly running late to his shift at the café and the bar; it’s becoming clear to his coaches that he’s not able to keep up with the teams’ workouts and practices, and his grades are getting so bad that he’s at risk of losing his scholarship and there’s no chance he’ll be able to keep attending university without those extra funds. Not to forget to mention his family and friends who keep harping on him about how little time they get to spend with him. He’s starting to wonder how much longer he can keep all of this up, and if he really wants to in the first place.
Dorothy St. Claire - Little Miss Upper East Side is Derek's co-worker who also happens to be the daughter of the boss. When she’s not gentrifying the neighborhood with double-recycled coffee cups, she’s off somewhere spending thousands of dollars of her dad's money on vegan purses and second-hand designer clothes. It probably goes without saying that they’re not cut from the same cloth, but he gets along with her dad and he needs the job, so they're both just gonna have to suck it up because neither of them are going anywhere.
Works at the Star-Catcher Company - Stella Lunden gave him a job a little while before he turned twenty-one. He helped prepare and run food for a couple of months before he was old enough to jump behind the bar. Stella’s always been kind enough to give him flexible shifts, offering as few or as many as he needs which is why, although the pressure of two jobs, college, and a demanding family is weighing on him, he’s not sure he could leave his job at the bar simply because of how kind his boss has been to him.
