Occupation: Yoga influencer & aspiring yoga studio owner
Preferred Pronouns & Gender: she/her & cis-female
Sexuality: Bisexual
Hometown & length of time in Briar Ridge: Flint, Michigan & moved to Briar Ridge six years ago
Neighborhood: Downtown
Family: Mario and Luciana Flores (parents)
PINTEREST | CONNECTIONS | PLAYLIST
Tw: deafness, infertility struggles, divorce
Valentina was born deaf, but like every other difficulty in her life, she took it in stride. At the age of 5 she got a cochlear implant and went through years of hearing rehab and speech therapy so she can now communicate very effectively without having to read lips or sign. She married her college sweetheart and while the two loved each other deeply, lack of communication and struggles with infertility eventually drove them apart. Since her divorce, she has built her life from the ground up and has become a incredibly successful deaf, yoga influencer. She is the embodiment of making things happen for herself.
Valentina was born completely deaf. But it took her parents almost a year to realize that this was the case. Her grandfather was deaf, so her parents knew it could be a possibility for their children as well.
They tried to use hearing aids for several years, but they did nothing for her. So when she was five years old, she had the surgery to install a cochlear implant. This was the start of years and years of hearing rehab and speech therapy.
The adjustment to the implant and hearing was hard on Valentine. Her parents did their best to assure her that her differences didn’t make her any less special, but with how other kids had a hard time understanding her at first, it definitely took its toll on her.
She would always wear her hair down to cover the cochlear implant, she worked really, really hard in speech therapy to try to get her voice to sound like everyone else’s, when she was older, she would force herself to stay in loud environments like birthday parties and the like even though those loud noises often triggered migraines
It wasn’t until she went to college and really worked on her self love that she fully came to accept and feel confident with her differences. She finally started wearing her hair up, she would happily reference her deafness and talk about her cochlear implant, she really began to feel like her disability was also her super power and it empowered the shit out of her
Shortly after her freshman year, she met Henry Monroe. The two fell hard and fast for each other. She felt like he was her perfect match in so many ways. By their senior year, the two had moved in together. When they graduated, they quickly got married and moved to Philadelphia so that Henry could play for the Philly Flyers. Though a lot of people warned Val against giving up her dreams for her career and her life for a guy, even if he was her husband, she never thought of it that way. To her, Henry was her dream, and being there to be able to support him was incredibly important.
During their time in Philly, Valentina discovered and nurtured her passion for yoga. She started an instagram page to document her journey and pretty quickly grew her following to where she began to get brand sponsorship deals
Things were going so well for both Henry and Val, until they weren’t.
The better Henry did on the ice, the worse off their marriage became. While at the start, Val could understand and completely emphasize with how much time he needed to dedicate to practicing and meshing with the team, one too many nights spent at a hotel close to the arena because it was easier, and less and less quality time with each other started chipping away at Val’s confidence in their marriage.
Eventually, despite the distance growing between them, Val had a pregnancy scare. It wasn’t until that moment when being pregnant all of a sudden could be a reality that Val realized how much she wanted to be a mother. So when they found out that she wasn’t pregnant after all, but that the stress from their relationship had caused her period to get out of whack, Val was surprised at how devastated she felt.
After that, they tried again and again, but never could become pregnant. And the distance between them only continued to grow. Val thought that Henry resented her for the lack of success with getting pregnant and carried that guilt far more than she should have.
Eventually, when Henry had been gone far longer than he had originally communicated, Val called him one night and a female voice answered the phone. This was the straw the broke the camel’s back. She couldn’t believe that after everything they had built together, he would just throw it all away.
She immediately packed her bags and went back home to Michigan. The divorce was surprisingly easy, proving in Val’s mind that Henry really didn’t care that much. And within such a short amount of time, the last seven years of her life were erased as if they hadn’t existed
Slowly, Val built her life back up again. Her content creator career was really taking off.
Six years ago, Val moved to Briar Ridge to support her college best friend who was newly pregnant and newly single. The move was a welcome change for her and she’s loved the life she’s built for herself here, and even hopes to open up her own yoga studio soon
Headcanons:
Born totally deaf, parents realized at 12 months old. Tried hearing aids for a few years but did nothing for her. At age 5, she got a bilateral cochlear implant. Had to go to years of hearing rehab and speech therapy
For years as a kid, she was incredibly self conscious of her cochlear implant, would always wear her hair down and wouldn’t talk about it. It took a lot of growth and self-work in college to finally be comfortable with it and now she feels like it’s one of the best parts of her
With her cochlear implant, loud noises trigger migraines
Hates when people touch her hair because it usually causes her cochlear implant to fall off
Quality time is her absolute top tier love language for her
It had been a quiet Christmas at the Flynn household. Callum had woke up early to play Santa and an excited Aoibheann passed out on the sofa after lunch. It was simple but it was theirs. Now it was boxing day and the young girl was at her Grandparents for round two of the festivities, also known as more presents, so Callum had the night to himself. A couple of beers with friends sounded like just what he needed after the tiring first semester and the pressure of Christmas, so that's where he found himself. "You know, you Americans don't do things too differently this time of year, just bigger," the last word also expressed by the man throwing his hands out for emphasis.
It had been a while since Val had gone out. After the disaster that was the after-effects of the Santa on the Sands, she had kept things pretty low key. But it had been months now and after another Christmas alone, Val needed the distraction. Okay, not completely alone, she'd obviously spent the day with her best friend and best friend's daughter, but alone in regards to a romantic partner. Christmas was the time of year that Val missed being married the most and doing everything as a single woman, every single year, could feel a little depressing sometimes.
So she'd made her way to Firefly, navigating the crowded and brewery as she looked for an empty bar stool to lay claim to. Thankfully, she spotted one in a quieter corner of the bar, where she'd actually be able to distinguish the voices around her. The brunette was just about to sit when the person seated next to said stool threw out his arms, almost colliding with her. Val shook her head and let out a chuckle when she recognized the would-be offender. "Well now, Mr. Flynn," she mock scolded, placing her hands on her hips. "I was just about to claim that stool," she paused to point at said stool, "but now I'm not so sure I won't be at risk of being knocked off and falling on my ass. You sure I don't need to report to Aoibheann that she needs to keep a closer eye on you?"
starter for: anyone (capping at 3!)
location: septima poinsette clark library
Valentina had been spending a lot of time at the library lately, looking up rules and regulations around opening a business, town records, business best practices, and more. Making herself comfortable in one of the large chairs, she quickly became so engrossed in her current read, she hadn't noticed when someone took the chair beside hers.
She did notice, however, when suddenly a couple somewhere behind her, started screaming at each other over the spoiled milk the woman had found in the fridge that morning. Cringing, Val instantly shrunk back into her seat, in an attempt to simply disappear. Her eyes moved up to the person she now realized occupied the seat beside her, checking if they were hearing what she was too. "How many times do you think Harv over there has put spoiled milk back in the fridge before?" she asked in a whisper.
starter for: @wyatt-brady
location: the streets of downtown briar ridge
Valentina angrily dug through her purse, looking for her phone. When her hand finally grasped it, she yanked it out and immediately swiped open her facebook app, scrolling to find the 'Briar Ridge Renters and Landlords' group. "Oh, I am so reporting that guy on facebook! Estúpido!" she grumbled as she and Wyatt hastily vacated a rental property they had been hoping could work for their studio space. The landlord had a wandering eye and hand, and clearly, listed the property more in the hopes of getting opportunities to ogle women than because he actually wanted to rent it out to anyone.
Her thumbs flew dangerously fast over her phone's keyboard as she typed out a strongly worded 'renter beware' post for the group. When she had finished. She stuffed her phone back into her purse and let out a defeated sigh. "Why does it feel like we are never going to find a place, Wyatt?" she whined.
Without so much as a thought about what she was doing, Nia leaned across the countertop to settle a hand gently on Val's arm. Her gaze remained locked on the others and she offered a soft sympathetic smile. "I get that. I do... sometimes it's hard, but all of this is more than just numbers. You can do everything right, and it could still have a slow start. That doesn't reflect on you." Nia reassured, "It'll work out. The only way it fails is if you quit. We both know you're going to put everything you've got into this. So it might take a little longer than you'd like, but it'll work out." She eased back to grant Val her personal space with a far too broad, mile-wide grin. "Besides, you've got me. If you need to advertise more and reign in some doe-eyed tourists I can hook you up at the resort. I bet if we offered a few classes there you'd have a flock of snow bunnies in no time flat."
A shrug decorated her slender shoulders, "If that doesn't do the trick we'll host a charity event out of the studio. I'm full of a million ideas." Her expression melted into a fond smile. "Besides, I doubt you'll even need me to help that much once things open up. Look at you. You're a naturally charming woman. I'm sure you've already got a pretty loyal customer base."
Her eyes flitted to the spot where Nia's hand rested on her arm, her lips involuntarily twitching upwards at the contact, the warmth that spread through her at Nia's reassurance. Taking in a calming breath, she nodded her head, as if simply agreeing to Nia's assurances could truly convince her over anxious brain that things would be ok. "You're right." She nodded one last time before forcing a more assured smile onto her features, squaring her shoulders and sitting up straight. "I can't catastrophize. Not when things haven't even started yet."
Her gaze moved up to meet Nia's, "You might really be onto something with that snow bunny idea. Think Cameron would go for letting me teach a couple classes at the resort in a bid to get my own clients?" she asked, curiously. She pondered the idea for a bit before Nia's words brought out a chuckle and a flip of her hair. "Oh, what can I say? Charming is just one of my better qualities. Along with the crippling ability to overthink everything and never ever being able to pick up on if a person likes me or not." Propping her elbow on the island, she placed her chin in her open palm and smiled up at Nia, batting her eyelashes at her. Clearly making a joke at her own expense. Not being able to tell if a person liked her or not upon first encounter would make it hard to get more clients. It also made her love life a complete joke.
who | @valentinaflorcs
where | Nia's apartment.
With what was easily her busiest time of year done with, including spending her Christmas Eve working a charity function, Nia switched gears entirely and shoved anything work-related aside until after the New Year. Which left her with a few days to really focus on getting things together to help Valentina. Her kitchen bar was a collage of paperwork, spreadsheets, highlighters, and the like. In the oven was a pan of homemade macaroni and cheese that Nia could take absolutely no credit for. Marco had dropped it off with cooking instructions, something about being afraid otherwise she'd spend her holiday eating everything frozen from a cardboard box. Her defense that, no, that's what takeout was for did not help her case at all.
"Okay, so remember..." Nia smiled reassuringly across the array of figures to Valentina. "It's normal for it to take a while for a new business before it's truly profitable. It's not a sign of a bad idea or anything like that. Pinky swear."
In what would probably be considered far too casual a manner for two exes, Val's entire business plan was sprawled across Nia's kitchen. Over the last couple months, the pair had moved far beyond any remaining awkwardness from their past relationship thanks to Nia's beyond gracious offer to help Val out. Now, Val couldn't even imagine not having Nia back in her life. Beyond the invaluable assistance the brunette had provided, Val found herself thankful over and over again for the friendship they had somehow managed to salvage. Did she still feel the pang of 'what if's?' every time she felt herself getting even more comfortable with having Nia back in her life so closely? Definitely. Did she know what to do about it? Absolutely no freaking clue.
Letting out a dramatic sigh, Val placed her head in her hands at at the brunette's words. "You're right.. I just-" she paused, brown eyes scanning the documents spread out before her before finally making their way up to meet Nia's gaze. "I don't know how the heck I'll separate that from my own self-worth." she admitted with a defeated shrug. Val wasn't usually this... lacking in confidence about something. But this studio would be her absolute baby. She had poured her heart and soul into prepping for this and she didn't know what she would do if it didn't do well. Slipping her bottom lip out from between her teeth, she asked, "How can I not take it personal if this doesn't work out?" For the first several weeks, the brunette had simply been to excited with the idea to really worry. But over the last few days, it had been weighing heavily on her.
it's useless, she thought. just as lark was about ready to stroll back over to her bike, she glanced over to find val sitting close by like some heaven-sent miracle. ❝ oh, thank fuck, ❞ she exhaled under her breath, immediately walking over as her eyes widening emphatically. ❝ please. I'm so pissed off, val. what kind of asshole breaks someone's mirror and then keeps it moving? ❞ a flicker of shame wormed its way out of her psyche –– that was exactly the kind of thing lark would have done in the past. though, to be fair, she'd like to think she's grown as a person since. but then, old habits did die hard.
❝ it's going to take at least a couple hundred to fix, ❞ lark bemoaned, feeling the childish urge to kick at the chair nearby. instead, she chose to be an adult and opted to take a look at the drinks menu. ❝ I need something that will knock me on my ass." she glanced over in between searching for something appropriately boozy. ❝ what's going on with you? still on the hunt for a good space? ❞
Val shook her head in frustration for her friend. "Honestly, I know it makes me sound like an old abuela, but it feels like no one has any common curtesy these days. If they were really in a rush or something, the least they could have done was leave you with a note and their contact info." Letting out a breath, Val grabbed her purse off the chair next to her, making room for Lark to sit down. "With how unsuccessful my hunt has gone today, I'm right there with you." she answered, looking at the menu as well. "I would rather not remember the sleazy way one of the landlords I met with today looked at me." she added with a grimace.
❝ oh, motherfucker... ❞ lark glares as she takes in the busted mirror on her motorbike. shattered in several places, it'll be at least a few hundred to have replaced. suffice to say, she's pissed and bruising for a fight. clenching her jaw, lark twists her head this way and that, but no one catches her eye guiltily. her gaze narrows.
❝ hey, you! ❞ she glances about the slow-moving street, searching for onlookers who might have spied the asshole who did this to her bike. across the road, at an outdoor cafe, she marches up to the closest table. ❝ hey. sorry, to interrupt. did you see who hit my bike over there? ❞
Val had spent the morning combing through downtown for unoccupied shops. She was looking for a place she could rent, maybe even buy eventually, and use to open her own yoga studio in. It had been a long, seemingly fruitless endeavor. And she had to admit she was feeling a little disheartened already, as she plopped down at one the outdoor tables of her favorite cafe, hoping a little pick me up treat would give her the energy to get back out there. She was just opening up the menu when a familiar voice caught her attention. Val couldn't help but chuckle as she watched Lark interrogate one of her fellow patrons. When the person didn't seem to have any answers for the blonde, Val waved at the woman to get her attention. "¡Oye chica! Come join me! It's my treat since your day clearly isn't off to the best start." she offered, referring to Lark's broken mirror.
Up until this day, Feli still had no full grasp on whatever it was between her father and his sister. The woman wasn’t sure what to think of it either. It had always been just her and her father. But knowing she had family in Briar Ridge, a fact that was always there in the back of her head… It was sometimes confusing. Especially when she bumped into Val after the endings of their classes clashed. What were the odds of both of them working at the rec center, in rather similar jobs together. Feli’s gaze moved up to the cochlear implant for just a second. It was impressive to the woman how someone was able to deal with something like that and she could only have respect for it. Maybe it was normal to Val, Feli had no idea because they had never talked about it, but to Feli… To lose her hearing would be one of the worst things in life to imagine. Just as she was about to open up her mouth, it was Val who started first. A small smile played on Feli’s lips as she realised that they both felt how awkward this entire situation was. “I’m good. Getting lost in work a bit more than I would like, but we’ll get there. How have you been?”
Val couldn't help but offer her cousin an apologetic smile as she realized Feli had been about to speak when she had asked her how she was. She was glad she wasn't the only one who felt somewhat awkward. And the realization that Feli felt it too, lifted it a bit from her shoulders. She relaxed, even just a little bit. She nodded enthusiastically at the other woman's answer, being able to relate a whole bunch. "I feel you!" she agreed. "I'm uh-" Val paused for just a moment, realizing she was about to tell her cousin, who she hardly spoke to, something she hadn't really admitted to many, even her closest friends. But if there was ever going to be growth between the two, there had to be some vulnerability, right? Letting out a sigh, she plunged ahead. "I'm thinking about opening up my own yoga studio, and it's kind of consuming my entire life right now." Pulling her bottom lip in between her teeth, she chewed on it a little bit as she waited to hear Feli's response. Would her cousin think she was oversharing when they hadn't really gotten that close yet?
Signing the words back to her, Wyatt couldn't help but display a proud smile. She had been learning ASL for at least a couple of years now and although she was nowhere able to fully communicate with Val by signing, she was at least able to have a basic conversation. "And a perfect excuse as to why I enabled said choices." Moving over to the couch, Wyatt gently scratched Pepe behind his ears, giving the adorable cat a little attention before they began the adventure that was cleaning out Val's closet.
As Wyatt settled onto her friend's bed, Wyatt took a sip of her wine before carefully resting the glass between her folded legs. "Activewear? Okay, one of the worthy causes you're donating this stuff to might just become my closet." Having grown up with not that much money, Wyatt had grown up with a deep belief in saving everywhere she could. Until her gym wear, even though it was regularly her work attire, was falling apart, she couldn't bring herself to pay for more. "It was good, interesting.." With another sip of wine, Wyatt signed a no in the mirror for Val to see. "I may have gone to the beach bar after the charity match and I may have gone home with Callum." One more sip of wine and Wyatt tossed another top to Val. "How was yours?"
Val beamed at her friend signed back to her. She really couldn't put it into words how much it meant that Wyatt had put in the effort to learn to sign. It provided so much comfort, was a safety net in a lot of ways for Val, and she appreciated her best friend wanting to provide that for her. It was a mark of what a good friend Wyatt was. The fact that she had knowingly agreed to help Val clear out her closet was another testament to how good a friend she was.
"Honestly, if you see anything you want, even if I for whatever reason think I still want to keep it, just take it. I give you permission to literally sneak whatever you want out of this apartment. It'll force me to get rid of stuff." she offered with a chuckle, spotting a super cute sports bra and throwing it in Wyatt's direction. "Starting with this! That red is absolutely your color!"
After doing so, she moved to take off the top she had just put on, throwing it in the 'get rid of pile,' and moving onto the next outfit. She whipped around though at Wyatt's explanation of the kind of activities she had gotten up to during Santa on the Sands. "Wait, what???" she threw the top Wyatt had just thrown at her back at her friend. We are not going to just move right past that, thank you very much! Spill!"
Tanvi had a Kindle, multiple murder mystery books on her shelves, and even a few books in her Audible app from free trials she'd gotten throughout the years and yet... the PI wasn't sure the last time she actually read anything for fun. Which was why, as she pretended to peruse the shelves of the library while following the older man she'd been hired to catch selling company secrets to the brand's biggest competitor, Tanvi looked incredibly out of place. They were in, what was her humble opinion, the most boring section- the reference section, and she couldn't even muster up the attention span to focus on a single book she pulled from the shelves. Luckily, the man she'd been hired to watch was none the wiser to this shadow, as he was too preoccupied with trying to look inconspicuous (and failing) while glancing down at his phone.
Using the positioning of the shelves, Tanvi pulled out her camera and snapped a few photos of the shady looking man. She was about to try and busy herself with looking through yet another book as both she and her mark waited for his mysterious companion, when the voice from behind her caused her to nearly jump out of her skin. "Shit!" She whisper-screeched, turning around quickly with her hand over her chest. The only thing that saved her camera from falling to the ground was the strap around her neck. "Val," The color in her features was finally coming back and quiet laughter left her lips. "You scared the fuck out of me." She admitted, glancing back over her shoulder to ensure the jittery man hadn't noticed and taken off. Luckily, he was still in his seat, eyes glued to his phone. "Creepy man in the cubicle in the back. His boss thinks he's in cahoots with their competitors and is getting ready to turn on the company like in 13 Going on 30. I think I'm about to get the proof I need, because there's no reason someone should look that shady in a library."
Wincing at her blunder - Val should have known better than to approach Tanvi while the other woman was clearly preoccupied with remaining hidden - she reached out to gently squeeze Tanvi's arm apologetically. "Sorry, chika!" Glancing over her shoulder to make sure no one had noticed and that they hadn't garnered too much attention, she turned back to her friend a cheeky grin on her lips. "Maybe you should hire me to do the sneaking for you." she teased, knowing full well that the fact she actually caught Tanvi unawares was because the brunette was focused entirely on keeping an eye on her mark. As she pointed out who she was following, Val's eyes lit up with excitement. "OOOH! That sounds exciting!! Need an assistant??" she asked, raising her brows conspiratorially at her friend. "I could act as a decoy while you snatch his phone? I mean... have you see how good I am at confusing myself? I'm sure I could keep his attention off his phone for a good long while."
📚 what books does your muse have on their bookshelf? what books would they like to have? if your muse isn’t an avid reader, is there anything they collect or might like to collect?
She is a huge fan of a good smutty romance, but more recently has begun exploring BIPOC authored fantasy books, finding that she loves getting to escape into fantasy worlds created by and about people who look a little bit more like her and less like the white characters she only saw represented during her childhood. So she'd love to get more of those kinds of fantasy reads on her shelves.
😍 does your muse believe in true love? why or why not?
Does she believe in true love? Yes. She experienced what she's pretty sure was true love with Henry. Does she think that true love is enough to sustain a relationship? No. Clearly.
"Val hey," Ashvi quickly greeted the other woman, almost thankful that the person who overheard her was a friend and not some stranger who thought she had a bad habit of muttering to herself. "I'm glad you didn't catch that, it was honestly a bit of a millennial rant and I need to not do that again," she admitted with a grin loving the way her friend just knew what to say to make her feel better. "Krish c'mon--say hi to Auntie Val." The little kid in question just glanced up before a wide smile appeared on his lips at the sight of one of his favourite people. "Auntie Val! Missed you," but that was pretty much the extent of it since his attention was back on his tablet. "So--weekly grocery shopping day for you?" Ashvi asked with a bit of an envious tone. What she wouldn't give for being able to have her life organized the way Valentina had hers.
"Girl, please! I'm here for any and all rants ever, even if they're not millennial related!" While it was true for anyone, it was especially true for Ashvi. Val had a soft spot for single mothers and she would be there to hear Ashvi voice any and all complaints about anything. Lord knew she deserved the unconditional support. When Krish spoke up, Val beamed down at the little guy. "Missed you too, niñito!" she ruffled his hair affectionately as he glued his eyes back to the screen. With a laugh, Val turned her attention back to Krish's mom. "Yup! And it's going to be a long one! How does everything seem to run out at exactly the same time??" Letting out a huff, she rolled her eyes before changing the subject. "How've you been though?"
"Now watch this!" Val was beaming with pride as she showed Emil how she had trained their child to give her a kiss when she made a kissing sound. When Pepe had done so, Val squealed with excitement, clapping excitedly and giving the 8 month old kitten a treat, after which he promptly sauntered away, done being her little party trick to show off. The brunette watched the feline walk away with an affectionate smile, before turning her attention back to Emil. "So, did you guys enjoy Santa on the Sands?" she asked, knowing that Emil had been able to take his daughter to the event.
