𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 📚 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒐𝒅𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒆.
name : theodore ‘teddy’ che
age : thirty-two ( born sept 25th )
gender & pronouns : cis man & he / him
neighborhood : outpost
occupation : high school english teacher
faceclaim : henry golding
about. wanted. pinterest.
𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐲.
– our story begins in kuala lumpur. english rose and scientific prodigy eloise chapman was doing a year abroad in the capital of malaysia when she met daniel che, a student at the university of malaya. despite their vastly different backgrounds ( eloise came from old money, whereas the ches made their riches through real estate development over the last few decades ), the two hit it off in an instant, and once the year was up, daniel followed eloise back to oxford without a second thought -- much to the chagrin of his father, who had been grooming him to inherit the family business.
– first came marriage, then came babies -- four of them to be exact, with little theodore bringing up the rear as the youngest. growing up in their guildford estate, teddy and his siblings wanted for little. while his mother and father paved the way with their innovations in biochemistry, the kids were put through their paces in prep school.
– as the son of two academics, teddy had all the tools to be a promising student but none of the drive. try as he might to stay interested in his classes, distractions were everywhere and he was certainly guilty of getting wrapped up in them. by the time adolescence rolled around, his siblings had all gone off to oxford and teddy was drowning in his studies. thankfully, his favorite teacher was there to throw him a life raft.
– james caddington completely changed the game. with his warm demeanor and endless supply of book recommendations, he single-handedly got teddy excited about literature for the first time in -- well, ever. he began reading not only for school but for pleasure, and all those nights in did wonders for the rest of his courseload. thanks to mr. caddington, he passed secondary with flying colors. when oxford once again found itself in his sights, his parents were delighted -- but teddy had other plans.
– announcing that he was venturing overseas to study at harvard university rocked the che household to its core. it didn’t matter that harvard was ranked number one in the world -- they were an oxford family. rich people problems, am i right ? teddy finally managed to appease his parents by promising to major in something “useful”. economics was boring as sin, but science had always been his worst subject and it was the lesser of all evils.
– thus began the harvard era. his courseload was absolutely miserable, every book on his desk full of numbers instead of stories. if it weren’t for his plum editing gig at the harvard review, the ivy’s esteemed literary magazine, he likely would’ve crawled back to england with his tail between his legs. this time, it wasn’t a teacher who saved his life but a girl.
– they met at a poetry reading, locked eyes across the pub and the rest was history. madeline ( “call me maddie” ) was incredible. not only did she convince him to pursue literature, she also convinced his parents to be cool with it. she was charming and intelligent, with a job offer at the smithsonian already lined up after graduation. teddy had always believed his father leaving everything behind to follow his mother was the most romantic thing he’d ever heard, so when maddie announced she was moving to DC, his next step was clear.
– he’d go on to get his masters in education from georgetown university, and the night of his graduation, he finally popped the question. the next eight months were a blur of wedding planning, and it was shaping up to be the event of the century. the morning of his wedding, teddy dressed in his tux without a care in the world, ready to marry his soulmate. but when he arrived at the church, maddie’s best friend and maid of honor was out front waiting for him. she could barely look him in the eye as she told him maddie was not coming.
– officially in panic mode, teddy got into his car and drove -- and drove, and drove. unfortunately, his beloved 60s aston marton was not equipped to handle the spontaneous trip. it broke down on the side of the road somewhere in georgia, just outside a town called iron river. he managed to get it to a repair shop in town, where the kind-eyed mechanic informed him it’d take her about a week to get the car back on its feet.
– he was supposed to be in the maldives on his honeymoon. instead, he was stranded in salt county, staying in a crumby motel without even a change of clothes to his name. the situation was less than ideal, yet somehow, against all odds . . . he fell in love. between boston and DC, teddy never really thought to picture what life in the states looked like for him. turns out, it was this.
– so he got a job teaching english at the local high school and made his most impulsive purchase to date -- a house in the outpost. he’s been in iron river for over a year and a half now, turning lemons into lemonade. who would’ve thought the worst day of his life would turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to him ?
𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐬.
teddy is very passionate about snacks. he keeps them in his desk and is the kind of teacher who throws out candy for class participation. literally always at the grocery store replenishing his personal and professional snack collection.
father to an adorable brown cat named dodger -- not an oliver twist reference but a tribute to his favorite biscuit, jammy dodgers. dodger actually owns the house, he just lets teddy live there.
LOVES the neon moon saloon without a trace of irony and would go there every single night if he could. addicted to pac-man and skiball.
not quite as hopeless a romantic as he once was and definitely a bit less reckless with a heart, but he still has dreams of finding his person <3 swipe right, babie !
inspirations : rupert giles ( btvs ), arthur weasley ( harry potter ), richard campbell gansey iii ( the raven cycle )
frequented locations : neon moon saloon, horizons grocery store, the farmer’s market, the heights, whiskey garden
