full name: Easton Michael Lipe
hometown: Turtle Bay, South Carolina
current location: Turtle Bay, South Carolina
occupation: Math Teacher @ Westside High School
relationship status: Single
POSITIVE TRAITS: Resilient + Pragmatic + Sarcastic
NEGATIVE TRAITS: Frustrated - Pessimistic - Stubborn
theme song: Hurt by Johnny Cash
children: Caleb (19) + Olivia (16)
Trigger Warning: Gun Violence
Easton never thought of himself as a hero. He was interested in teaching, chasing his teaching license, finishing his student teaching at a high school out of town. Then came the day that split his life in two. A gunman entered the school, and Easton - still only in his twenties, with everything ahead of him - threw himself between the students and the danger. The bullet struck his back, lodging near his spine. The kids lived. Easton walked away, but not unchanged.
After years of rehab and doubt, he finally managed to earn his teaching certification and returned to the classroom. He also got married to his high school sweetheart and they had two children, a boy and girl. But their marriage wasn’t meant to last. The accident had changed him quite a bit. He felt like a lot of people looked at him with pity and they just fought over little stupid things. He loved her so much, but neither of them felt it was fair to their children to constantly be fighting. They eventually divorced and they share custody of their daughter. Their son is now an adult but their daughter is still sixteen.
Easton lives with the aftermath. His legs tingle and go numb, sometimes he feels like he’s in a bath of warm water, something they give out. He can still walk, but it grows harder with each passing year. Pride keeps him upright when the easier path would be giving in to the chair he dreads.
He is currently in the process of opening a Drive-In movie theater with Micah Henley.