DEREK TATUM is a 32 year old THERAPIST at The Brielle Institute, and looks a lot like Aaron Tveit.
Derek’s house was fairly small in terms of inhabitants, but large in physical size. Beside’s him, his dads (who both worked) and his two dogs, there was no one else in the house. Derek was usually on his own, coloring in his room or playing video games, going outside and kicking around a soccer ball or playing fetch with his dogs; he was easily occupied and entertained. One of his fathers worked in a bank and the other in an office building. Derek’s life was very bland, and the only bit of color it had were his parents. Though, they were also a bit of the reason why it was so bland. Many kids, especially when they were younger, were not allowed to come over and play with Derek because their parents didn’t want to have to explain why Derek had two fathers. He saw nothing wrong with it; they were just his dads. But as time went on, and Derek got older and lonelier, he saw plenty wrong.
We hope they are playing a game
Derek accused his dads of taking away his only opportunities at friends, ruining his life and making him feel “weird”, “uncomfortable” and “different.” His dads desperately tried to remind their son that they loved him, but the rejection of kids his age and not having any friends took a toll on him. Derek resented his fathers, and he felt like they resented him as well. Derek had everything he ever wanted, all the toys he could need plus two loving parents... but that wasn’t enough for him. When he turned 18 and moved out for college, he decided to search for his birth mother, in hopes of contacting her. He studied psychology, something he was genuinely interested in, especially since he had so many questions in life... specifically, in his life. He kept all of this out of his fathers’ knowledge, until after Derek had finally found her, his mother, and they connected online. When he broke the news, they weren’t exactly thrilled to hear it. That threw a curve ball in their already rocky relationship. Derek had a feeling the day he met his mother would change his life, but he didn’t expect it to be in this way.
But this is is really happening
While he was at lunch with his mom, there was a news story about a shooting at a bank that had occurred... the same one one of his fathers worked at. By the time Derek could figure out what was going on, it was too late. His father was dead. While it hadn’t been perfect, it just proved that you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. It was hard for him to deal with but slowly, surely, he made it through. A little more than half a decade later, he’s looking for a change of pace in his practice and found Brielle. The event changed who he was, though, and Derek is not the same focus guy he was before; some say he’s lost his ‘touch’. In Brielle, he is very well liked, more so by the patients; he’s bubbly, outgoing, friendly....and not at all serious. He isn’t known for discussing any feelings or serious topics with the patients, instead trying to be their friend, gossip about what was going on in the building, discuss his own outside personal life; his degree, at this point, about as useful as wet socks. The patients may love him, but the staff don’t.. they often feel like he’s the weak link in the facility. Derek has to either get serious and lose the relationships he has with the patients...or stay the careless man he is and lose his job.
Unfortunately, Derek is OPEN!
