You’re roommates again in New York. Work at Empire feels lighter with you around and feelings begin to bloom. But just when he’s ready to act on them, he gets a phone call, with terrible news.
ཐི♱ཋྀ
“He’s... dead.”

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#AnxiousChar #Determined #Nervous
#SouChefChar #NativeFrenchUser #ChefUser

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╭ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ DISCLAIMER: ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ┄ ╮

This story is an AU where most elements from the original series remain intact, but certain details have been adjusted to better fit the character and concept within this universe. This bot is part of a new series, for the sake of which, some changes are made. For example, I had a hard time finding exact dates for when he was in New York or how old he was at the time. So please bear with me if it’s not 100% accurate, and feel free to kindly correct me if you can. If not, I hope the slight guessing regarding time, age, and such won’t ruin your experience of this story.

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TW: Su*c*de mention(of a family member not the char) in the Intro

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The Story:

Carmen’s life was never easy. He grew up in a broken family, in a broken town, and it broke him, just like it did his mother, his brother, his sister. When Mikey managed the family restaurant, working there became Carmen’s one true goal in life. But his brother wouldn’t let him. So he went to France, determined to become the best chef who ever lived, so Mikey wouldn’t be able to send him away again. And since then, a lot of good things have happened.

He met you, a friend for life. You helped him learn the language of the country he’d fled to, taught him how to stay calm under stress, cooked with him at 3 a.m., and lived through stories he could one day tell his grandkids. Eventually, he made his way to Empire. Working there sounded like a dream come true, until he met the head chef, David Fields, who thrived on abusing his staff, digging up old wounds and giving Carmen new ones.

But then you came, and made everything better again, like you always do. You became roommates once more, sharing philosophical questions at night, fighting kitchen wars by day, never leaving each other’s side. And then it happened, one evening that couldn’t have been more perfect. It ended with the two of you in bed together, after all this time. Carmen could hardly believe it. Finally, finally, his life felt like it was turning around for the better. Long-term. With you, he felt like he could weather any storm. But he didn’t know about the hurricane that was coming.

Until Sugar called, telling him of his brother’s death and all the plans he’d made for a better life crumbled between his fingers.

╔═══════════════════════ TL;DR ════════════════════╗

What?

You and Carmen have been friends for years. You helped him through anxiety attacks in school, taught him French after he lied on his résumé, and gave him a place to stay when he had nowhere else to go. Years later, when he was working under an abusive chef in New York, you came to support him and you stayed. Because through all this time, a bond connected you, deeper than some of his own family ties.

Yet nothing beyond friendship ever happened, until yesterday, when you finally shared a night together. He’s elated the next morning, already planning a future with you, seeing his life finally turning around... when he gets the call from his sister. His brother has died. And the world turns upside down again.

Where?

New York, 2021. A shared apartment, better than the one in Paris, now that you’re both well-earning chefs.

Who?

You’re his best friend, the one he met in culinary school in Paris a few years ago. You were roommates, bonded over your passion for food, but parted ways after graduation. Years later, you stayed in touch and reunited when you both got hired at Empire. But you quickly realized he’d lied about how nice everything was. Since then, you’ve helped him navigate the chaos every day, and he couldn’t stop the feelings from growing.

╚══════════════════ Short Summary ══════════════════╝

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A lil Role-Play Advice:

This series will follow a similar structure to my Thomas Shelby Vraji series, meaning the user character will remain consistent, growing and evolving alongside the story. I aim to leave as many details open as possible, allowing you to fill in the blanks and personalise your character as you see fit.

What is coded into the bot: You are a native French speaker (teaching Carmen French will become canon in this story) with a passion for cooking, roughly the same age as him.

The following canon events happened:

You taught him French, let him crash on your couch and became actual roommates for the whole of culinary school. You were not romantically involved back then, but shared a one-night stand recently. You made him quit smoking for a while and work together with him at Empire.

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Author's Note:

This was a hard and kind of weird bot to write, honestly. So far in the series (I haven’t watched the newest season yet!! xD), we don’t have much information on how Carmen found out about Mikey’s death. We can pretty safely assume Sugar called him, but that’s about it.

In the series I’ve written so far, this moment is a turning point. After everything you’ve been through together, actually getting together would be the next logical step, but life intervenes, and instead, it drifts you apart again.

The next bot chronologically (unless I have another spontaneous idea, which can always happen) will deal with the aftermath of him leaving. So it’ll be canon, just like in the show, that after learning about his brother’s passing, he cuts all ties and returns home.

Of course, you can play this without following that story path. You can comfort him in any way that feels right. It’s an important part of his story, and I really hope I did it justice.

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