"Hi, I'm so sorry to ask but -" Navy exhaled, turning around and trying to reach the zipper that seemed to be malfunctioning on her dress. "I can't seem to get this rezipped again, or well, something feels off." she paused, gaze meeting that of @estherquinn's in the bathroom. "Could you please help? I'd rather not have to interrupt my fiancé's socialization time to help me get dressed for the second time today."
Esther Quinn (Amanda Seyfried) is looking for their ex-partner / daughter's father.
WANTED CONNECTION: ex-partner / daughter's father
FOR CHARACTER(S): Esther Quinn (Amanda Seyfried FC)
REQUIREMENTS: open to any cis man born in 1987 who would have graduated in the year 2005 at Merrock High School.
SUGGESTED FCS: none really; anyone who fits the age is good -- I'm open to any race/ethnicity, so don't fret!
SPOTS OPEN: 1/1.
CONNECTION DETAILS: Essie's high school sweetheart, the boy she started to notice as more than just a friend who happened to be a boy. The two fell head over heels, and got pregnant soon after high school. They welcomed their daughter, Mae Elise Quinn on November 15, 2006, and left Merrock in the summer of 2018 for a job that your character was offered, living in Vermont, though they visited home often for summer vacations or holidays. In 2024, after a long heart to heart, they decided that although they loved each other very much, the spark just wasn't there, and that their relationship had felt mostly like platonic, friendly parenting for years, and decided to amicably split, especially with Mae being old enough to understand. They both now (obviously!) live in Merrock again.
LAST NOTES: They were never married, and the dynamic would kind of just be like two best friends living together, although they were intimate and did love one another, they just never got there. I'm not really picky about the character on your end, they can be in any career, any personality, have fun with it!
CONTACT: @cagenewman ; yes, please! Just to make sure we've got timelines and details together.
arrival to merrock: local; left in 2018 and returned in 2026.
housing: currently living with Elise in the countryside.
occupation: mortician & part-time server.
work place: Quinn Family Funeral Home & Taste.
family: member of the Quinn Family, daughter (Mae) born November 15, 2006.
relationship status: single.
personality
At work, it's all black dresses and sensible pumps, hair tied back, simple jewelry, 'I'm sorry for your loss' and polite smiles. And at home, playing with her sister's cats, tending to the garden, or out with her friends, it's jeans and frilly tops, a slick of red lipstick, a bouncy laugh. The duality of Esther. She's a friendly, nurturing, whimsical kind of gal, but she can be compulsive, a worrywart... has a touch of vanity to her (though she blames that on being a Quinn). She tends to lean into quiet reflection more so than blurting out what she really wants to say, enjoys music and animals (but not spiders!), long walks after a light rain and being a mother. Especially to someone she can share clothes with.
portrayed by Amanda Seyfried; penned by Katie.
full biography / background
triggering / sensitive content warning: funerals, funeral homes.
Being born a Quinn means that there will always be certain expectations placed on you... and interesting family dinners on holidays. But Esther didn't mind. She was just enough of a good girl that her parents didn't pay her any mind, and most of her life lessons were learned from the most important person in her life: her older sister, Elise.
Regardless of societal or familial pressures, Esther had a good, happy childhood. She was rarely in trouble, made friends easily in school, and didn't want for much. The Quinn parents made sure that their kids had everything that they wanted and needed, didn't hesitate over horseback riding lessons, dreams of being an ice skater, wanting to learn how to dance... big, fancy vacations. Outside of her older sister, she found comfort in hours spent with her uncle John, learning from him about running a business -- although her parents weren't the most thrilled with the business being funerals. Still, it gave her a plan. Something she wanted to do for herself.
Life is good at curveballs, though. For Esther, that curveball came in the form of a lifelong friend who suddenly looked like she could fall in love -- and she did. They were inseparable for their final years of high school, and despite her dreams of going to college, studying to take over uncle John's business one day, she held herself back... and for good reason, when she found out that she was pregnant. But she had a certified Good One in her partner, who had a good paying job and an even better heart -- their daughter, Mae Elise was born on November 15, 2006.
A stay at home mom for Mae's early years, Esther was the best mom possible, stepping up in ways that her own mother should have. She read Mae night time stories, took her for long walks to the park, taught her how to count and say her ABCs before she even started school. But once school started, she went back to work with her uncle John, running the 'front office' of the funeral home, thinking she was back on the right path -- until her partner called to tell her that they were moving to Vermont with a golden opportunity for his career. She didn't hesitate to agree.
Vermont was good to the family, if not a little quiet. With Mae in school and her partner at work, Essie filled her hours volunteering at a local animal shelter until they took her on as a full time employee, loving the work that she did there. They took frequent trips back home to Merrock to see their families, vacation in the summer time, enjoy long holidays. It was during those trips home, though, that Esther began to realize how unhappy she was in Vermont -- she loved volunteering, and she loved the life that it afforded her daughter, but she wasn't sure that it was what she wanted for the rest of her life. And when her uncle John had a long talk with her about his future, eyeing retirement, and who would take over the funeral home one day... the gears began to turn.
After a long talk with her partner, the decision was made for them to split -- amicably, and with a lot of love between them. They had always been best friends and always would be, but... in love? That had faded over time. While he returned to Vermont with Mae to finish high school, Esther moved to Massachusetts to attend the FINE Mortuary College, working as an intern at a local funeral home while she studied. After graduating in the spring of 2026, she packed up the last of her belongings and headed home to see what Merrock had in store for her once more, feeling refreshed, rejuvenated... and a lot like starting over.
Merrock would like to welcome Esther Quinn (Amanda Seyfried), penned by Katie. Make sure your account is submitted in 48 hours, and take a look at our welcome brochure. Can't wait to see you around town! xx
OOC INFO: Katie; additional character.
face claim: Amanda Seyfried.
full name: Esther Nicole Quinn.
nickname(s) / goes by: Essie, Es.
pronouns & gender: she/her, cis woman.
sexuality: straight.
birth date: September 14, 1987.
birth place: Merrock, Maine.
arrival to merrock: local; left in 2018 and returned in 2026.
housing: currently living with Elise in the countryside.
occupation: mortician & part-time server.
work place: Quinn Family Funeral Home & Taste.
family: member of the Quinn Family, daughter (Mae) born November 15, 2006.
