Glass Under Fire
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About the girl. . .
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E mmelyn Cuevas grew up in the kind of silence that wasn’t peaceful...only heavy. The absence of a father left a void she learned not to talk about, and her mother’s presence was a poison drip, bitter and careless. From the time she was old enough to lift her little brother, Raphael, into bed, she became a caretaker, nurse, and shield. Her little brother’s mind was fragile, his needs constant, but she loved him fiercely.
There were dark times where she had to fight off strange men wandering past the living room when her mother was too high to pay attention, and some nights were successful and others, not so much. Though Raphael's presence and brightness to his face when she was in his line of vision, melted away the animosity for the time being. The one night she left to go have fun with friends, foolishly thinking her mother was compentent enough to handle her own son, she fell asleep while her brother was in the bath tub. He was only seven. No high amount of drugs or drinks can ever remove that gut wrenching emotion or the scenery from her memories... walking into the house; not seeing him right away. Not in his room, but face down in the tub.
When he passed, a piece of her gentleness was buried with him. What remained was the steel cold, sharp, and necessary.
Life after leaving home wasn’t freedom, not really. It was survival. She learned the currency of the streets: favors, secrets, the right tone in her voice to get someone to back off, the calculated smirk that said she’d seen worse than whatever they were threatening. She works odd jobs. Sometimes legitimate, sometimes not, just enough to keep a roof over her head and her stomach full.
Her armor is made of dry wit and sarcasm, quick jabs that push people back before they get too close. But for those who manage to break through her guard, there’s warmth buried deep, the same tenderness that once kept her brother safe. She craves affection like a starving thing, but she’s terrified of what comes after it—dependency, vulnerability, loss. So she plays it cool, even when her heart aches for a touch that doesn’t come with a price.
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Plot ideas
✿ She takes on a younger runaway or street kid, seeing echoes of her sibling in them.
✿ A job or side hustle forces her into the orbit of someone who challenges her defenses.
✿ She crosses paths with someone from her past/or randomly , forcing her to confront who she’s become. -
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