Do not give your attention to what others do or fail to do; give it to what you do or fail to do.
Gender & Pronouns: cis male, he/him
Occupation: Chief of the Fire Department
His life had never been... big. He had his parents, an older sister, a bike that had later been exchanged for a motorcycle, a teen band that practiced in a damp garage and average grades. His family went on vacation once a year, could afford to buy useless trinkets without worrying about what to put on the table, they had a car that broke down the correct amount of times annually. But that was it. There had never been anything thrilling about his life when he was growing up. No big plans or unachievable dreams. They had been content living in the suburbs of a small, typical American town.
And that was exactly what had pushed James over the edge. He had turned from a well-behaved youngster into an angry teenager, someone who violated public property and got caught behind the school drinking and smoking weed. He got into fights and ran away from home more times than he could count.
He got his first tattoo at a place that wasn't even a proper parlour and had pierced his ear with a rusty nail on a dare. He had brought chaos into the lives of his family.
Somehow he had ended up finishing high school, got enough of attendance not to get suspended or expelled (most likely because of his parents' begging), but he didn't care. He didn't want education. He wanted to stop feeling like he was stuck, like there was nowhere for him to go, except maybe follow in his father's footsteps and become an accountant who got back from work every day exhausted and unwilling to pay attention to his children. It was making him feel sick and made him feel like the only option there was – was a failure.
Even his test had been a joke. A dominant. Sure, he was rough around the edges, filled with young rage, but weren't dominant supposed to be successful? Weren't dominants supposed to be people who had a chance to achieve something? Even his parents had both been switches that had somehow made it work to a point of actually conceiving children.
Then he made the biggest mistake of his life. And the one that changed him for the better.
He was twenty-four at that time. Working odd jobs whenever he could and crashing on various couches of his friends. He had stayed away from his family, unable to look at them and see his own reflection in their pained eyes. He didn't have drugs or alcohol problems, but they still looked at him as though he was a sick, sick man who needed help that they were unable to provide.
Then he had met someone. An older woman. Another dominant. Scientists claimed that dominants shouldn't get involved with others of the same mark, but he said screw them. She was great, their sex was great and for a moment it felt as though he was finally doing something right. Then it turned out that she was a con artist who scammed him of what little money he had and proceeded to take several loans in his name. Loans that he had never agreed to. Then she disappeared.
He couldn't pay off those debts, had no way of ever getting that much money. He got arrested and put on trial for embezzlement. And finally someone had listened.
It turned out that the woman in question had been wanted in several states, that his hadn't been the first case and if he agreed to help the investigation, he'd end up with nothing but community service at the local Fire Department.
He agreed. He got the hours. He fell in love with the job.
Now, ten years later he had risen in the ranks and when presented with the opportunity to sign up for the Triangle Project he didn't hesitate. He still wished for novelty, for change, but now he knew how to search for it.
He got the highest position in the Fire Department, mostly because it had been vacant for months and was curious to see what life and scientists were going to throw his way.
