Jasmine Gray

[Jasmine]

The Backstory:

Jasmine grew up poor, in a broken home, and under the tyranny of a drunken father who spent most of his meager paycheck on alcohol. He tried to sell drugs to make money, but usually used them himself, or gave them to his friends at bars and parties. Verbally abusive to the entire family, and physically abusive to her mother and her older brother, Jasmine struggled in life, particularly at school. This left an obvious mark on her, and ingrained a certain amount of distrust in men, particularly men who partake in substances, alcohol or otherwise. Luckily, no physical abuse was ever directed her way, and she was able to pass high school and escape her home and family by enlisting in the Army. 

This escape was not what Jasmine bargained for, as her recruiter told her she would never see combat and would work in a hospital if she chose to be a medic. Unfortunately, with the US pushing hard to provide equality for women, female medics were asked to serve in combat arms units, and sent to war. Although female medics have served in wars in years past, it was traditionally only males who served the combat arms units, and females generally stayed under the protection of the large bases and outposts. 

After three and a half years, and a long 12-month deployment to Iraq, Jasmine left military service due to certain rule and regulation changes making it impossible for her to serve. This, she was thankful for. Upon evaluation, it was clear she had suffered from PTSD, not only from her exposure to combat, but lingering chronic effects from her childhood. “Fight or flight” response had been ingrained in her since birth, and the Army taught her to hone those reactions to keep her safe in a combat zone. Upon leaving the Army, she was given a disability rating which comes with a small stipend to pay the bills. 

Looking for a new chapter in her life and feeling a bit jaded by the government and the service organizations they manage; she is trying to move on from her past and start new as a civilian in Los Santos.

Arrival in Los Santos:

Her arrival was anything but pleasant. Constantly robbed and verbally harasses at every turn, she felt like she was in war all over again. With the traffic cameras malfunctioning in the city, she racked up quite the traffic ticket bill, which she was unable to pay. She tried all sorts of jobs to make a little cash: mail courier, fisherman, garbage man, and money courier. Despite her best efforts, making money was difficult as her fishing pole, radio, even her cloths were constantly stolen from her. She eventually settled on the ATM courier, as the large armored truck provided great protection, and being able to drive a few feet from the ATMs made it the safest job in the city.

Eventually, she decided she needed 2 things: a gun, and a car. After saving up for several days, she made $20k and went searching for a car. She did not want a Warrener, Issi, or similar models, simply because she felt they were so damn ugly. But she needed something... Finally, on a whim she went to the Low-End lot, and a dark blue Prairie was there! She had never seen one before, and with a price tag of 17k, she fell in love immediately and purchased it on the spot, leaving her ATM truck for the company to retrieve. 

Next on her list was a gun, but first she had to clear her record....and here is where Jasmine's story spirals quickly downward...

120 Days in Hell

To clear her name, Jasmine had to clear her warrant. Unknown to her, the cameras in Los Santos were malfunctioning, causing warrants for a simple reckless driving charge much harsher than they should have been. She had no interest in being a wanted criminal, however, so she had no choice. She walked proudly into the police station, confessed she had a warrant, and she was booked. Embarrassed and ashamed, she was brought downstairs, frisked, fingerprinted and arrested.

To no surprise, the cop arresting her was also new to the city and did not know the cameras were malfunctioning. Just her luck! He also did not know he could have lowered the punishment, or offered other options, and of course, neither did Jasmine. So it was, she was arrested and jailed, for 120 days.

If you ask her, she will tell you, even war could not compare to the horror and torture of Los Santos prison. For 120 days, she was ruthlessly attacked and chased through the courtyard, the halls, the cafeteria and the cells. No guards ever seemed to be on duty, and with no phone, and no knowledge of the emergency phone inside the prison, her only option was to run, hide, and fight.

This, of course, did not help at all. The mixed gender of the prison at Los Santos meant men could get away with anything, and the guards cared little, only concerned with preventing a prison break. The crude, awful things that virtually every man said to her as they chased and beat her were more than most could handle, certainly she wished for her own death on several nights.

She was not able to avoid the verbal and physical barrage of attacks, but through some miracle, she was able to avoid rape and death. Finally, she was set free, and vowed never to return.

It Doesn’t Get Better…

This is the point in the story where the hero overcomes her fears and past traumas, sets forth to conquer the world, and finds success and happiness! This is not the story of a hero however; it is a story about a girl named Jasmine.

Although she had gone through hell to get it, she finally obtained her gun permit! She got into her Prairie, drove to the gun store, and purchased a .50 caliber Desert Eagle. This would surely stop the robberies, and she could finally work in peace.

Except, carrying a gun was like wearing a big dollar sign on your forehead! That guns sells for over $10k, and anyone seeing you with it, wants it! If they draw faster, outnumber you, or just feel brave, they will still rob you, and you are out $10k. This was not working as she intended.

Struggling to Make Ends Meet

Things not going well, and every step forward, seems to be taken back by a criminal, she starts to consider giving up. Jasmine may be many things, but one thing she is not, is a quitter. Determined to keep going, no matter how slowly, she makes it back to her ATM truck, and starts her grind. With her head on a swivel, like she learned in Iraq, she cautiously delivered her money bags one after the other. Never stopping when anyone was nearby, jumping in her truck at any sighn of trouble, and running over a few would-be robbers in the process, she started to get ahead.

With her Desert Eagle on her hip, and a sense of awareness about the city, Jasmine was starting to figure things out. Still living out of her Prairie, and often struggling to afford food, she was down, but not out. She even found time to wander into a few areas of the city that gave her peace. Several tucked away fishing spots, a stream along the mountains, and the poker table at Tequilala.

Meeting Charlie

Jasmine discovered there were areas in the city where crime was frowned upon, not only by the police, but all gangs and factions in the city. These were safe places for people to conduct business or meet new people. One of these locations was Tequilala, a local bar. On a delivery to the ATM outside, she decided to walk inside and check it out. No one was around, the main floor, upstairs, all empty. As she explored, she wandered into the basement, and found seven men huddled around a small poker table. One of those men were Charlie Nightingale, humming loudly to everyone in the room with his English accent.

He did not speak to Jasmine at first, she slid behind the table, and asked if she could sit on the couch and just observe. Charlie, of course, said that would be just fine. This may be the first nice person she met in the otherwise abrasive city.

Charlie made friends quickly and seemed to have a fondness for helping new people in the city. After many questions, and many long conversations about the city, Charlie became Jasmines first friend in Los Santos. Charlie was the first face she would remember in the city, and her first phone number in her contact list.

Charlie introduced Jasmine to several of his friends, and showed her Bayview, the mechanic shop that would later be her second home. Many great things came out of her friendship with Charlie, but she was still dealing with demons everywhere else in the city.

Too Much Darkness

Constant robberies, constant car thieves, constant fear and setbacks were the norm in Los Santos. All of this, though, Jasmine could handle, but the sexually charged insults and attacks were taking their toll. She tried everything to make it stop, ignore them, get aggressive, be nice, flirt, run away…but every action she took, they just came at her harder.

Ignore them, they follow you around until they can rob you.

Scream at them to stop, they shoot you in the leg.

Be nice, or flirt, they think you want to f%#*.

Run away…they chase.

It even seemed like the nice ones just wanted one thing. After a great conversation, and exchanging phone numbers, constant phone calls and texts would follow. When she tried to tell them she only wanted to be friends, they would never speak to her again, or get aggressive and pry into her personal life.

Fighting through the robberies, and the low pay, and the risk was enough for anyone to lose it, adding constant harassment and sexual predators at every turn was enough to put Jasmine into an unimaginable depression.

Ready to End It

Three long days of depression and despair, Jasmine had enough, she got in her Prairie, drove to the docks, walked to the edge of the ocean, and prepared to throw herself in. Leave Los Santos, and all the turmoil inside behind, never to feel pain, fear, despair, depression…. or anything ever again.

As tears filled her eyes, and dripped down her face, the irony of how calm and peaceful it was at the docks was not lost on her. This seemed like the only place in the entire city where no robbers, thieves, or sexual ingrates would find her. And here it was that she would end it all because of those things…

Breathing in her last breaths of ocean air, she struggled to text one final goodbye to the one good person she met in the city, Charlie Nightingale. She put her phone away, walked to the edge of the docks, and prepared to delete any memory of her existence….

The Stairs

Jasmines phone dinged. It was a text message. She wanted so badly to ignore it and jump into the frigid waters…but she couldn’t. It was Charlie, of course, and he didn’t want her to leave. In fact, he demanded she see him, to say goodbye. Whether Charlie knew what she was up to, and if he planned to change her mind from the outset of the text messages will never be known, but Jasmine had a feeling he did. He insisted he just wanted to say goodbye and wanted her to meet him at the Bank.

She did. And her life was saved because of it. Charlie hugged her and spoke softly. He led her up several flights of stairs to the top of a building high in the city. Away from the chaos, and away from her own downward spiral. They spoke of the city, her goals, her life before Los Santos. They spoke of the gods, the people, the chaos, and the personalities we hide inside. He was understanding, and ultimately left the decision to Jasmine.

She would stay. Not only in this life, but in this city. She would learn how to deal with the robberies, the thieves, the gangs, and even learn to deal with the sexually-motivated. In that moment, she realized one very important lesson: she could choose to leave any time she wanted to, but she could not leave until she gave this city everything she had…and she had not given it her all…not yet.

Evander

Jasmine and Evander’s friendship is a very different story than Jasmine and Charlie’s. There was no storybook meeting at a poker table, no life-saving walk up a flight of stairs, in fact, Jasmine may very well not remember when it was that she met Evander. She knows she met him with Charlie, and she knows he was always there ever since. But in the same way you don’t remember meeting you brother or sister, it feels like Jasmine and Evander were always friends.

There was no discussion about it, no expectations or demands, just a friendship, pure and natural, with no beginning and no end. As Jasmine started to gain a footing in the city, and gain some sense of control over her life, Evander would be there. They went fishing together, ran the ATM job together, explored the city together, and learned how to avoid crime together.

Having a familiar face among all the chaos, someone you know and trust, someone who never judges and is there when you need them is about all you can ask for in a city like Los Santos. Evander is that person for Jasmine, and she will never forget it.

Falling In Love

For as long as she can remember, there is one thing Jasmine has always wanted. She would dream about it as a child, wish for it on her birthday, and stare longingly at pictures and movies about it. When she found what she was looking for in Los Santos, she was quite surprised. She never expected to find it here, and never thought her dream could come true in such a dark and dreary city.

She did find it, however, right there in the High-End lot of Los Santos…a Banshee! What a magnificent sight. It was exactly like she remembered in her dreams, the curves, the sound of the engine, everything! It was perfect, and she decided as soon as she saw it, she would have it.

It took weeks of hard work, passing up cloths and guns and a place to live. Working long days and nights running her ATM truck and spending countless hours at the docks catching fish. Eventually, she did it, she bought a stock Banshee, and thanks to Charlie and Bayview, modified it to the max, and her first real achievement in the city was hers. She could not be prouder.

Hitting Her Stride

She had finally figured it out. Avoiding the bad guys, making friends, making money, things were turning around. Somehow, through all the beating, robberies, wars, abusive men, verbal torture, and nearly ending it all…Jasmine had one huge advantage over her peers…she was nice. Genuinely, honestly, truly nice. She smiles at people, offered help even at her own risk, took time to explain the city to people, and it paid off.

On more than one occasion, as she was about to get robbed, the robbers knew her, took off their masks, and said hello! Other times, random gang members she befriended stepped in to protect her from would-be criminals. More and more people recognized her and remembered her for a kind act she did for them. It was like Karma but made from kind acts and friendly conversation instead of mystical energies and forces.

She worked out a routine with her ATM job, stopping at safe fishing locations along her route to catch a few fish, adding to her ATM salary, and it added up quickly. She stopped carrying a gun, or any valuables, and when she was robbed, she used her greatest weapon…kindness. The robbers wouldn’t harm her, and many a friend were made from an attempted robbery gone Jasmine. Call it charm, call it manipulation, or call it just plain dumb luck, but it was working.

Jasmine’s First Real Job

Although she might have preferred to, Jasmine could not work as a money transporter for the rest of her life. Evander and Charlie were working their way up with Bayview, and they wanted her to join too. She enjoyed driving the roads too much however, and she could not see herself sitting around a shop all day. Not to mention she had never been into engines and carburetors, as much as she loved cars, she didn’t love fixing them. Instead, like so many things in her life, she would find her own way.

After much contemplation, Jasmine decided to apply as a taxi driver at the Downtown Cab Company. Although the pay was less than Bayview, and even the ATM job, she realized to make a future for herself in the city, she needed something with promotion potential. The added bonus of being able to drive the city made this an ideal choice. Her application and interview went smoothly, and she was hired as a cab driver, and quickly promoted to Junior Driver.

Still working her ATM job on the side, and fishing behind her rented house, she is a staple at DCC, and continued to make friends all over the city, with a bit of a reputation for being one of the fastest Cab drivers in the city. (Don’t tell her boss)

Jasmine and Evander Continued

Jasmine and Evander’s friendship has only strengthened over time. Jasmine bought a stock BF400 motorcycle, only to upgrade to a maxed one the next day. The result? Matching motorcycles! Both Jasmine and Evander were looking for a house, so when the DCC CEO offered a 3g house for rent, it only made sense Jasmine and Evander rent it together. When an alliance opportunity was presented to Jasmine, it was an automatic assumption that Evander would be included. They had their own friends, and their own jobs, but they also shared a true friendship that would not be easily broken.

Meeting Ricky

Ricky met Jasmine at a dance club, she was not interested in meeting new people as she was there with Evander, Charlie and friends. Ricky sat in the back, and commented on Jasmines dance moves, polite and humorous, Jasmine indulged. Still keeping a safe and cautious distance, the night ended, and she was ready to leave the club. Ricky appeared, and told Jasmine that he had left to get an outfit because she saw Jasmine do the same. The idea he would go out of his way to make her smile was enough to break through the barrier, Ricky would be a friend.

Following the night at the club, Ricky and Jasmine went fishing. Neither of them interested in a relationship in such a fake and chaotic city, they became friends quickly. Ricky listened patiently and attentively to Jasmines story and background, something Jasmine is careful to talk about, and sensitive to the reaction. Charlie, Evander, and now Ricky understood, and for their understanding, a loyal and dedicated friend in Jasmine Gray was earned.

The Wanted

Jasmine went with Ricky to learn how to plant “flowers”. She met some of his crew, The Wanted, a car club with side interests. It turned out many of the crew, not surprisingly, already knew Jasmine from one chance encounter or another. The crew were a great bunch of guys: fun, easy to talk to, clearly loyal to each other, and smart about business. Jasmine liked them, and when Ricky accepted her request to help with business, she was excited for the opportunity.

Ricky met with Evander, and all three came to an understanding of their role with The Wanted. Jasmine and Evander were then introduced to some of the crew, and one of the higher-ups in the club. An alliance was formed, and kindness and a smile paid off for Jasmine once again.

Where We Leave Off…

Jasmine has a job, a steady income, several circles of friends, and most importantly, went several weeks without a beating or a robbery! She still has a lot to learn about the city, and some of her allies may not be allies with each other. Her biggest fear is being caught between two or more gangs, and having to either choose, or be ostracized by them. All she can do is hope her kindness and honesty will win over the situation, and the people involved will leave her to remain neutral.

She wants to explore her opportunities with The Wanted but is also incredibly fearful of being charged with a crime and facing prison again. The Wanted is a car club, but has dealing that are sometimes other than legal, she just hopes any involvement she has will allow her to avoid a criminal record. It will be a sticky situation for sure but feels her friendship with Ricky and his crew is worth it.

She remains grateful to the friends and alliances she has made with people in the Zetas, the Wanted, the Mellows, the PD, the EMTs, Bayview, DCC, at the poker table, and the countless others with affiliations she may not even be aware of. She is hopeful to continue to meet as many great people as she can from as many factions as she can, as she slowly grinds out a living.

Most importantly, Jasmine will remain grateful to those she meets, who are willing to hear her story, and understand everything she stands for. True friends are hard to come by, but she’s had success before, and is confident her success will continue. For those willing to accept her with all her flaws and rocky history, a fiercely loyal and intensely dedicated friend will be the reward.

 

 

[Jasmine]

Reserved.

[Jasmine]

Reserved.

[Jasmine]

Reserved.

[Jasmine]

Reserved.

[PersianWariorr]

beautiful story. 

[Jasmine]

1 hour ago, PersianWariorr said:

beautiful story. 

Thanks!!

I need to update it.....a LOT has happened since! Haha.

[BrandonGotti]

Love the story!