CORINNE ISOBEL MCKENZIE . 23 . SCREENWRITER NEWBURY, MA NATIVE . QUEENS, NYC RESIDENT_________________________________
FAVORITES .volunteering at animal shelters and the boys & girls club, pixies, citi bike, poshmark, sabrina, black comedies, her puppy, the shins, shining light on social issues through film, beach volleyball, the laughing emoji, vintage shops, film cameras, toni morrison, ink doodling, jack lemmon, black coffee, tamales, slip dresses, the smiths, e.e. cummings, murder mysteries, lana del rey, red vines, bette davis, black polish when pale, red polish when tan, friends, old theaters, the scruffy look on men, emma stone, skiing, psych thrillers, spa weekends, taboo, rebecca, chinese takeout, mark boal, flea markets, tom hardy, soul cycle, instagram, stevie ray vaughan, unusual laughs, kathryn bigelow, orange juice, greek mytho, gin, frank sinatra, travel, diptyque eau duelle, corfu.
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8 RANDOM FACTS .1. i played the violin in middle school
2. mayonnaise makes me barf
3. i blush easily
4. i became an aunt at fifteen
5. i don't like confrontation
6. my most prized possession is my vintage rolleiflex
7. i get grumpy without my morning coffee
8. i've always wanted to write a mystery novel
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"Unlike Nick and August, I can remember what life was like without Corinne, and it's not a life I'd willingly go back to. Corinne is one of the best people I know, if not the best person I know, and if there's anything I know in life, it's that she'll always be my best friend. Even if the boys fucked off tomorrow, C would always be there. When I first met Corinne, I never thought it was possible someone could be so nice and mean it. When I saw her sitting there in the coffee shop with seventeen year old Nick, I'd almost written her off as the quiet girl. But then when I gave her a chance she surprised me. She is sweet, quiet, and smart, but she's definitely the most determined girl I've ever met. Even more than me.
I never meant to wind up in that closet with Nick. I did it to protect her, as fucked up as that sounds. The entire thing was my fault. I suggested it. I kissed him. I didn't stop. But when the dust settled, Corinne was standing on the other side with her good nature and let me still be her friend. I'm so thankful she heard me out. Without her, I don't think the group of us four would be who we are now. I certainly wouldn't have survived Newbury with my mom, or disowning my father if she wasn't there to handle me at my absolute bitchiest and absolute worst.
Which, I think was why I was as hurt as I was when I found out she and Nick had lied for six months. I've never kept anything from her -- not even that shitty time I made out with Nick in the closet. When I started developing feelings for August, she was the first one I told. I'm still trying to wrap my head around how, or why, she felt she had to keep it from me. I want to forgive her, and I think I have, but I hope things haven't changed. They need to stay the same."
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"I don't like talking about Corinne. It's difficult to do, because I either play down how I feel about her and seem like a heartless douchebag, or I admit it and then I seem like a condescending, manipulative cunt. The truth is probably somewhere between those two options. I've known Corinne my whole life, she grew up next door to me back in Newbury and we were best friends all through childhood. Like with August, I guess I kind of took advantage of the fact she'd always be there, 'cause in my experience, she always was. High school was when things changed. There was that blip where I was playing football and partying a lot-- August calls them the Douchebag Dark Ages. Corinne and I were still friends but I was distracted, I wasn't as good a friend to her as I should have been.
Things worsened when Teddi started. I don't want to get into it because it's petty, high school shit, but I was obsessed with her. Totally forgot Newbury girls existed, and unfortunately, that included Corinne. But then shit went down with my brother and that's when I realized how much I needed her. It wasn't anything I wanted to talk about, but Corinne was next door - she knew something was up, that my parents had changed and things weren't as chill as I was pretending they were. She was there for me and I've never been more grateful to anyone for anything. That's the thing about C, people do her down as being weak or a pushover, but she just sees the good in people. Plus, she isn't shy when she knows what she wants. I can say that confidently, because six months ago, what she wanted was me.
If I'm really honest I had never really thought of Corinne as an option until that fateful day. In Newbury she was just my old pal Corinne, then I went to UCLA and only saw her intermittently. It's now that we're both in New York that everything's changed. Obviously in Newbury Teddi was this sexy New Yorker, so much more sophisticated and self assured than the girls I was used to. But now there's an even playing field and suddenly I can't believe I ever saw Corinne purely platonically. She's so beautiful, inside and out. The city hasn't changed her but it's made her more direct - after all, she was the one who made a pass at me, and ultimately, she's the one who broke up with me too. She's got loads more backbone than people give her credit for and I can't believe I've fucked it all up."
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"All our lives it's been Nick, Corinne and I. Until high school, where Dora joined us. Then it was.. well, you get it. Corey's (she loves this nickname, ik she does) the glue. You know, if shit were to fall apart between us, she'd be the one to gather us and make us work it out. She's the rock, the glue and every other metaphor for the-person-that-holds-us you can think of.
Corey was also my first crush, but I think she was everyone's first crush - definitely two of my brothers and Khan. I held onto that cootie-card for a long time, but I think at age eight I held it especially tight because I thought Corey was so pretty. Then when I was nine I tried to kiss her and then I realized that Corinne was my sister. Not my actual sister, but might as well have been my actual sister. My lips two inches from hers felt a lot like incest.
Anyway. We're all flawed in our own way. Nick is a douche. I have adulting issues. Dora cares too much about mostly everything. If Corey has a flaw, it's being too nice. Which isn't a bad thing. But she lacks a backbone too.. but that doesn't really have an effect on us - only that it's so painful to watch when she gets her ass handed to her. ANYWAY. Corinne is cool."
