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Ethan Harris; The heartbreak
Topic Started: Jan 29 2018, 11:51 AM (236 Views)
SilentJack1999
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Name: Ethan Jeffrey Harris
Gender: Male
Age: 18
Grade: Senior
School: George Hunter High School
Hobbies and Interests: Video games, reading, basketball, EDM music, chatting with people whom he trusted.

Appearance: Ethan is a Caucasian boy with a height of 6'1" and weighs 177 lbs. He is slightly muscular, and has a fairly tanned skin, due to him being active in basketball. He has an oval face, and has brown hair and a pair of hazel eyes. He also has a long nose. He prefers his hair to be short, and often combs it to a side. He usually shaves his facial hair, leaving the lower chin clean.

Ethan usually chooses skater fashion, most preferably a hoodie with a pair of black slim fit jeans and a pair of Adidas running shoes, which is black in color with white stripes. He also was often seen wearing a wrist watch with black NATO straps.

Biography: Ethan was born on the 27th of April to Robbie Brannon and Ellen Hale, an average married couple in Atlanta, Georgia. Robbie worked as a broker, while Ellen was an office clerk. The couple met each other in a nearby university as coursemates from the Degree in Business and Management course, and were married one year before Ethan was born.

Everything seemed great for the family at first, as they had a stable income and having another addition to the family, Brendan, two years after Ethan was born.
Unfortunately, on the 18th of May 2003, when Ethan was only 3, Robbie was murdered during a bank heist, being shot in the head. To make things worse, the criminals could not be recognized, as their faces were covered by masks during the robbery.

Having to accept the fact that she lost her husband, the family's fate was turned upside down. Their financial status was in desperate measures due to the sudden loss of income.. Ellen soon fell into depression one year after Robbie's death. She soon got addicted to alcohol, and was always found wasted in her house every night. Her attitude towards her kids changed too, becoming more violent and harsh towards them. The boys had to suffer their mother's drunk and violent behavior for a long time due to her abuse of alcohol. Every night, the boys had to sleep early so they would not get beaten up by their mother again.

Things got way more serious when one of their neighbors heard the boys screaming for help and pleading for mercy while being abused by their drunk mother. The neighbor went on to call the police, where Ellen then committed suicide by shooting herself in the head in front of her kids after hearing the police car siren. Being terrified of what they had witnessed, Ethan was taken into the Child Protective Service a few days after the incident along with his brother, as none of their relatives lived close to that area.

After being in the foster care system for a week, Ethan and his brother were then both adopted to the same family through the foster care system, the Harris family, that lives in the rural areas of Chattanooga. Their adoptive father, Trevor Harris, is a salesman who also does volunteering when he was free, while his wife, Samantha, works as a counsellor in a nearby elementary school. The couple have three children, but two of them, Summer and Felix, haven't come home for a while since they graduated from university. Their youngest child, Kylie, was also on her last year in high school and was prepared to move out. Feeling lonely and compassionate for the two boys' fate, the couple decided to adopt them into their family.

At first, Ethan was hesitant for trying to fit into the family, still terrified of his mother's death. However, Trevor and Samantha took care of him with patience, trying to know him better. They asked him about his ambitions and interests, attempting to bring him out from his trauma. But still, the process took a lot of time, and Ethan still didn't seem to trust them a lot yet. They also did try to bring him to the psychologist, which they heard Ethan's thoughts about witnessing his mother's death, and how he just wanted to forget about it.

Ethan's interest in basketball started when Trevor decided to play ball with him in the nearby basketball court when he was 6. Trevor thought that this might be a good way to know him better, as he was once a basketball player in high school. They had a fun time that day, and Ethan never felt that enjoyed before. They had been playing basketball often ever since, sometimes with Brendan. The sport brought them closer, and after a couple of months, Ethan seemed to have moved on from his past, being focused on his current hobby.

Ethan didn't really had the best memories in elementary school. The other kids in school teased and bullied him a lot, mostly due to the fact that his biological parents were dead and his adoptive mother is the counsellor of the school. The bullying started off with isolation, along with mild verbal abuse. The entire drama then snowballed into something worse, eventually causing him to get beat up and being pranked on. Despite getting warnings and detentions from Samantha, the school counsellor, the bullying never seemed to stop.

When he was 8, some boys from his class decided to pull a prank on him by calling him near the staircase in their school. They then pushed him down the staircase, causing him to tumble from the second floor to the ground floor of the school building. He fractured his right arm in that accident, and was in a short coma due to him knocking onto a wall after falling. The involved students were punished and suspended, but since then, Ethan never really spoke to anyone else again in school due to the incident. His grades also dropped from A's and B's to mostly C's since he could not focus on his studies.

Despite being an introvert in elementary school, Ethan started to gain interest on books, mainly fiction. His interest grew when he found an old novel, presumably from Trevor and Samantha's kids. The novel is about the daily lives of a group of 15 year old boys trying to survive high school. Ethan soon got interest in the novel after reading it, hoping that he could also have an interesting school life rather than a terrifying one. He then read all the other novels when he was free. Sometimes he would borrow some from Kylie, who is also a fan of mystery and horror fictions. While reading, Ethan could felt as he was in a particular scene of the book, which he enjoys a lot.

Ethan's social life didn't really improved when he was enrolled into George Hunter. He was still quiet and shy towards others, despite being in a new environment. This continued until he met Anastasya "Anna" Alekseyevna, a cheerful girl from his class. During his sophomore year, Ethan was paired up with her for a science project. At first, Ethan thought she would ended up like the others, which she would just get out from his life once the project is finish. But she was just…different. Unlike the others, she did not really care about his past or him being a quiet person, or their completely different backgrounds (She came from a rich family). She would spend hours chatting with him about their lives and interests, other than the project they were working on. For him, it was rare to see such an friendly and warm girl, especially when he was a nobody in school. They soon became good friends in school, going to lunch together and hanging out most of the time. Their friendship also boosted his confidence, as he started to speak more to his other classmates and his performances in his studies had improved.

He also decided to join the school's basketball club, after gaining enough confidence to do so from his family and friends. Eventually, the coach found out that he had some talent in him, especially on dribbling and throwing three-point shots. Ethan was excited when he got chosen to be in the team, and was determined to give up his all. He usually stay in school for extra basketball practice, and was always asking his coach and his teammates for advice. His determination and sportsmanship led him to be one of the main starters for his team, after his coach seeing his improvement after a couple of games.

When he was 15, one of his best friends gave an XBOX 360 to him as his birthday present. Ethan was stoked about it, and was eager to play games with it. He found himself fonder towards sport games such as FIFA and NBA than the others. He did try to play multiplayer games such as Counter Strike: Global Anxiety and League of Legends, which was on his computer, but he played it less often as he could not handle the stress that was given by his friends when he screwed up. For him, gaming is more of a leisure rather than a competition. Despite joining the gaming club, Ethan refused to join any tournaments, since he wanted to stay his interest towards gaming as a hobby.

He got a shocking surprise when he was 16. One day after school, he got a confession from Anna, saying that she actually got a crush on him since a few months ago. Ethan didn't really replied her for a while, as he couldn't bear dating one of the popular girls in school, that he could draw attention again, especially hate. But after days of thinking, he decided to accept her, as he felt that she was for real and not just playing games with his heart. Their relationship went pretty well, from sharing interests such as gaming and EDM music to going out on dates. Although their relationship had drew jealousy and hatred all over them, Ethan was told by Anna to just let it be, as long as they are still together.

As for his family, Ethan and his current parents grew closer and closer, until he decided to change his surname to Harris. During the weekends, Ethan would spend his time with his family for dinner and play computer games with Brendan. Since Brendan was still a toddler when their biological parents were killed, Ethan decided to hide their pasts from Brendan for now, so that he would not end up like him. Sometimes, Ethan would also felt slightly envious of Brendan, since he was more sociable and confident. But still, the two brothers have a great connection, and will care for each other when needed. Despite not knowing the other kids, Summer and Felix that much, he also bond well with Kylie, as she would recommend books and games for him to enjoy. For him, he sees Kylie as his protective big sister, since she would always help him when he was having problems in school such as studies and relationships.

For his ambition, he wanted to further his studies and be a psychologist when he graduated high school. Inspired by what happened to him in the past and his girlfriend, who also wanted to be a doctor, he thought that it is important to fix someone's psychological problems before it is too late.

Advantages: Ethan was known to be a loyal, determined and friendly person. He is also considered smart at times. His training from basketball also give him enough strength to fight someone.
Disadvantages: Despite moving on from his past, Ethan's trauma is still not fully wiped out. There are also people who is targeting him for his success in high school. He can get emotional sometimes, and this might get in the way for him to think properly and might cause him to snap. It also take time to gain his trust, as he do not want to be disappointed again.
Edited by SilentJack1999, Feb 13 2018, 03:41 AM.
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Hey SilentJack! Before Ethan can be given a full critique, please make sure that his profile fully adheres to the template. Specifically, you need to get rid of the line breaks between the Name/Gender/Age/Grade/School/Hobbies sections, and the Advantages and Disadvantages sections. Thanks!
"Art enriches the community, Steve, no less than a pulsing fire hose, or a fireman beating down a blazing door. So what if we're drawing a nude man? So what if all we ever draw is a nude man, or the same nude man over and over in all sorts of provocative positions? Context, not content! Process, not subject! Don't be so gauche, Steve, it's beneath you."
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SilentJack1999
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Done!
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Ruggahissy
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Howdy! I'm Ruggahissy and I'm in this room with this computer and a single, bare light bulb swinging above me and I don't remember life before this. I'll be your mod for this critique! I've got some questions about Ethan's life up to now that I'm hoping we can look at and help flesh him out further. So to the critique:


" He also has a tall nose."

- I think this may be the wrong word here. Long nose?

" and often combs it to aside"

- To a side, perhaps, instead of aside?

"The couple knew each other in a nearby university, and was married one year "

They met at a nearby university, rather than knew? Also were they students there or did they just meet there. And "was married" should be "were married" because it's a plural subject.

"Robbie was robbed and murdered in a bank heist, being shot multiple times in the head and torso."

- I'm not sure why Robbie was robbed when the criminals were there to rob the bank which has way more money than an individual would have on them. And also not sure why he was shot so much. It's fine if he died in a bank robbery since I suppose that's something that happens on occasion in real life. But this would probably read better as the father getting shot during the course of the robbery rather than being robbed and targeted.

"Their financial status were in desperate measures "

- "status was" since status is singular.

"Despite Ellen's numerous attempt to file lawsuits to find the culprits, it was to no avail. "

- I thought the criminals were never caught because their faces were hidden? You can't file a lawsuit if you don't know who you are suing.

- So, if their mother is not working and is spending every day drunk, who is paying the rent? Buying groceries? Paying utilities? Ethan is 3 years old when his dad died so he's 4 when his mom becomes an abusive alcoholic. so that makes his brother 2 years old, a toddler. Is no one taking care of him? These children are both way too young to do much for themselves.

" The neighbor went on to call the police, where Ellen then committed suicide by shooting herself in the head before the police arrived."

- How did their mother know that the police were coming? I don't imagine the neighbor shouted that she was calling the police?

"The boys, terrified of what they had witnessed, were taken into the Child Protective Service a few days after the incident."

- Brendan is 2-years-old. He's not going to remember this, nor am I certain that he understands what is happening.

So do neither of their parents have family in the area? Someone who would be checking in on this family/ concerned about the kids before now?

Where were the kids at the time of the suicide? Were they in the same room?

Was the mother ever violent before? This seems like quite a shift.

"Ethan and his brother were then both adopted to the same family through the foster care system, the Harris, who lives in the rural areas of Chatanooga."

- How long did they spend in the foster care system? At what age were they adopted? Also it should be "the Harris family, that lives" and "Chatanooga" should be "Chattanooga" with two ts.

Their adoptive mother is a counselor. They may want to send Ethan at least to a child psychologist to deal with and process what happened with his mother. That would probably help him with the event more than basketball, though it's fine to have an interest in basketball.

"The other kids in school teased and bullied him a lot, mostly due to the fact that his biological parents were dead and his adoptive mother is the counsellor of the school. "

- I'm not sure I understand the bullying here. How do the kids know his original parents died? He has parents now. The school counselor isn't someone the kids would see very often like a teacher, so I don't know if the kids for the most part would know who she is let alone tease him for it.

"The entire drama then snowballed into something worse, eventually causing him to get beat up and being pranked on. Despite getting warnings and detentions from Samantha, the school counsellor, the bullying never seemed to stop."

- If the kids physically assaulted Ethan they would get more than a warning or detention, likely suspension and a talk with the parents if this is a reoccurring issue. Also the school counselor does not give out warnings and detentions, that would be the teachers.

"When he was 8, some boys from his class decided to pull a prank on him by calling him near the staircase in their school. They then pushed him down the staircase"

- Why are these kids trying to kill Ethan? At this point wouldn't they consider having him change schools?

"Despite being an introvert in elementary school, Ethan started to gain interest on books, mainly fiction. "

- Despite? Seems a pretty popular hobby among introverts.

What is the book he reads about the kids surviving high schools?

"Ethan's social life didn't really improved when he was enrolled into George Hunter. "

- A lot of time has passed since the worst (and last?) bullying incident with the stairs. From that time to George Hunter it's been 6 years. Did he have any friends during that time? Did his parents notice the change in him and try to do anything to help? Did he lean on his brother Brendan?

" But she was just…different"

- Remove the ellipses since they aren't in fitting with the tone of profiles generally.

"Unlike the others, she did not really care about his past or him being a quiet person, or their completely different backgrounds (She came from a rich family)."

- Completely different backgrounds because she's rich? His adoptive parents are solidly middle class it seems, he's not poor.

"When he was 15, one of his best friends gave an XBOX 360 to him as his birthday present."

- So he DOES have friends?

"Although their relationship had drew jealousy and hatred all over them, Ethan was told by Anna to just let it be, as long as they are still together."

- Why do people hate him for dating a girl he's been friends with for awhile? How does this manifest?

"As for his family, Ethan and his current parents grew closer and closer, until he decided to change his surname to Harris. "

- The kids were adopted at 2 and 4. Their names would probably already be changed when they were adopted

" Since Brendan was still a toddler when their biological parents were killed, Ethan decided to hide their pasts from Brendan for now, so that he would not end up like him."

- How would he hide this from him? And what would it mean to not "end up like him"? He must be aware they are adopted. Wasn't Ethan bullied in elementary school for being adopted? I would assume they went to the same elementary school. Also their father died during a bank robbery, there would be an article of that on the internet if he ever Googled their father's name. There's no reason for their adoptive parents to hide that they were adopted or not to discuss what happened to their parents once they were old enough.

"For him, he sees Kylie as his protective big sister, since she would always help him when he was having problems in school such as studies and relationships."

- Where was Kylie before during all the other problems he was having?

"For his ambition, he wanted to further his studies and be a psychologist when he graduated high school. Inspired by what happened to him in the past and his girlfriend, who also wanted to be a doctor, he thought that it is important to fix someone's psychological problems before it is too late."

- So which is it? Has he applied for colleges yet? Will de decide later once he's done his general education course?

" Ethan was known to be a loyal, determined and friendly person."

-I'm not sure we saw any evidence of him being loyal, determined or friendly in the profile.

"He is also considered smart at times. His training from basketball also give him enough strength to fight someone."

- Considered smart? Or is he smart? Also I think playing basketball would give him strength and agility, but I don't think you can specify that it would help in a fight.

"Despite moving on from his past, Ethan's trauma is still not fully wiped out. There are also people who is targeting him for his success in high school. "

- How is trauma from his past a disadvantage? How is it affecting him that would give him trouble during SOTF? Why are people targeting him in high school? For the girlfriend? I thought things had improved?

Alrighty, that's the end. Post when changes are done.




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This character biography has had no alterations for more than two weeks and has been put in the abandoned characters forum. This profile is eligible for resubmission by the handler upon alterations requested by the staff.
"Art enriches the community, Steve, no less than a pulsing fire hose, or a fireman beating down a blazing door. So what if we're drawing a nude man? So what if all we ever draw is a nude man, or the same nude man over and over in all sorts of provocative positions? Context, not content! Process, not subject! Don't be so gauche, Steve, it's beneath you."
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