Backstory
For most of Efrain’s childhood, there were many instances he found uncertain to this day. How did his mother easily flip over tortillas on the hot stove with her hands, did his father really know the celebrity he claimed to know in that action movie? When he was still in Latin America, he witnessed a strange dog-like creature whir by his parents’ car on a dark night, convinced with Alfajor that he saw a chupacabra. These instances sparked his interest in the unknown, but that one night where he may have seen a cryptid sparked his adoration for the unreal.
His parents paid no mind to their children’s blossoming fixations, instead spending many years being indecisive on a home to settle in. Efrain happened to be very social as a child, easily blending into each new school and staying positive even after leaving so many faces. After all, he was so close to his sister, who was always by his side in the end. Fluent in Portuguese and Spanish, his social abilities began to wane when he found his next home out of his familiar home countries, moving to Sauzieu, Germany.
Why Germany? There was a job opportunity his father simply couldn’t pass on, and a change of scenery is always a good thing, according to his mother. A kid like Efrain couldn’t protest, naturally uneasy about having to learn a third language from scratch, but it seemed Alfajor was thrilled. He couldn’t understand it, but her excitement to experience a new country with him made his worries leave soon enough, and he felt their first few months there as a vacation really. It was a summer break filled with immediate trips to German landmarks, and reggaeton playlists replaced with German language lessons!
By the time Efrain began middle school in Germany, he did feel out of place as some foreign new kid, but once he got the hang of German culture things weren’t as stressful. His everyday life since was rather plain and unchanging, but he didn’t mind the peace, having a lot of time to think about his aspirations. Still frequently watching shows on the supernatural and urban legends with his sister, he thought it’d be neat to search for a cryptid one day. However, his sister’s future had begun to branch in another direction once she was in 7th grade, and had gotten a girlfriend.
Efrain grew up knowing his sister was interested in girls, but couldn’t really imagine the day either of them actually fall for anyone. They joked that maybe she would get a girlfriend first, and so it happened. When watching novellas as children, Alfajor would comment that she’d like a cute wife like certain actresses, yet her partner was a lax, unconventional girl with the demeanor of a delinquent. First impressions aside, Efrain got along well with Otthild, who wouldn’t mind tagging along on cryptid marathons with the pair despite her own disbelief in the matters. Since they were all in middle school, Efrain can only recall mundane but nice moments in his life, and soon enough it was time for college. If he had to pick something to be stuck doing for the rest of his life, it would obviously be cryptid searching, but, realistically, it would be teaching history or geography. And so, that became his major in college. As a student, he learned to live independently, which was probably for the best considering his upbringing. He doesn’t express many complaints, and does love his parents, but they were traditional in their behaviors. This meant being physically reprimanded for doing things typical of a child, being told to do something correctly without any guidance, including his experience living alone now. Latino men don’t get taught how to cook, that’s a “woman’s role”, but Efrain preferred to teach himself so his mother wouldn’t have to visit constantly. Hispanic dishes were a lot of work from scratch, so he relied on some instant meals before delving into German recipes his boarding mates taught him.
With the lack of Latino food stores near his dorm, Efrain would buy food at regular convenience stores that other German students frequented, including his sister’s friend, Juneau. She was someone he’d see every once in a while on weekends and school breaks when he would stay with his family, an acquaintance that didn’t progress beyond that role due to her shy personality and no further reason to talk. When Efrain recognized her in public, he made the first move in saying hello as usual, but they happened to go to the same aisles a couple times, and when checking out he noticed their similar choices in foods. Forced around one another further, they shared the majority of their path to their dorms, although his was closer.
In that time frame, he figured it’d be easier to talk to her, mainly regarding his sister, but he did branch off when she got more comfortable speaking. It wasn’t the first time they ended up seeing each other around, and she started to go when he would since it was safer to be around someone she knew when she shopped on her own. Efrain didn’t mind it, enjoying talking to her, and fairly easily falling for her. He didn’t tell his sister about their contact, that they even started to text behind the scenes, but he did want to know more about her and asked Alfajor. She caught on to his interest, a little embarrassed that his brother liked her new friend, but she should’ve expected it with her being his type. Egged on to ask her out, he eventually did. Reciprocated, although Juneau apologized if her introverted nature gets in the way, he was very happy, especially if he could encourage her to become a better version of herself.
Getting closer, he learned about what she wanted to do, become, and to some degree the experiences she had been though. Efrain had similar experiences with having difficultly strict parents, with the adjustments to moving, and he wanted to see her heal from the grief she had over a friend years ago. As for him, he tried to hold back in all honesty, but once he started talking to her about his fondness of the supernatural, he went all out. Just like Otthild towards his sister, Juneau found his rambling on his interests endearing. As a fan of fiction and stories, cryptids interested her a normal amount since she didn’t believe in them, but she supported him nonetheless. With that enablement, he’s grateful in having her around, thinking of the future more than her who’s just enjoying her present life. Hearing about her father’s spontaneous tendency to relocate their family, Efrain has considered finding a way to move in with her in the near future so she can stay in the town she loves, especially when he sees the elation in her eyes with Carambola around.
