Beckley Levine -- D6 (Done)

Appearances can do quite a lot, you know…

For instance, my height is that of a 6’1” and my weigh is about 164 pounds. Right now, I’m definitely of average height so I’m likely to tower over some of my classmates at school. Height supports one’s authority and the amount of weight you possess only emphasizes this sense of authority. Your eyes are also a very important aspect to observe. For instance, my grey eyes are that of a person who’s willing to set out toward his goals. Eyes are definitely important when dealing with people. When you make eye contact with a friend or an associate or a complete stranger, your eyes have to elaborate the meanings behind your words. Compassion is easy to show, but intimidation requires you to send threats to the subconscious mind of the person in front of you. That’s why when you have the height, you need to have your face put out the characteristics of a person who’s in control – you have to show your better grasp of the situation and that you can turn it easily enough.

As for hair, you can do a great many things with it. Hair exists to be manipulated, saying it’s just a fashion statement is underestimating the abilities of hair. Hair is a status quo that has to be followed. If done wrongly, you can come off as a slovenly type of person. But if done right, you can limit the ammunition that critics can throw at you. My hairstyle is what I call the “right type,” and it’s the type that’ll keep people from finding ways to look down on you. That’s important. Easily enough, you can do your hair right if you put products in it, spruce it up, and judge the results; and then, if it isn’t satisfactory, you must reattempt it again. It’s really easy stuff, but very time-consuming if you’re just starting out. I, for instance, have small spikes of hair protruding from the front side of my scalp. Overall, my hair is a bit messy but it’s a controlled type of messy. In my opinion, this shows that you’re definitely not a thug. Like I said, your hair can be manipulated. Mine is manipulated to show both experience and control.

On a side note, if I was also a bit dark-skinned then that could work out even well since I would then stand out even more – I don’t though, unfortunately. Caucasian males seem to be the regular passerby in the streets nowadays. Right now, I don’t want to fit into any half-baked stereotypes – those are horrible, horrible labels to be had. As for any other sort of body language, I suppose an all-knowing smile will also prevail. Then again, being creepy doesn’t really fit in any of my intentions. As my sister Astra would say, ‘if there was a show-and-tell at school, and I brought you, the only thing you would manage to show is that I live with a weirdo who follows me around even at my own home – our home.’

My brother is quite the handful...

He’s stubborn, like a bull, and many people won’t even hesitate to give him that. Unfortunately, their opinions don’t stop there. He’s that type of stubborn that's damn stupid— it's not because he’s actually dim-witted deep down, but it's merely because he’s one of those strange creatures who often neglects the bounds of what reality has dictated for all of us common folk. The boy doesn't like to let go of things so easily; when he starts something, he makes sure to finish it to the end – especially when he's put so much time and effort into it. Easily put: When the boy runs into a wall, he’s still running. Now that I think about it, not even bulls do that.

By now, his classmates must be shivering in their tracks whenever they even catch a glimpse of that boy. For some unfathomable reason, he's also become one of those less-appreciated people of society. I suppose it's to make at least some sense after all. Often, he’ll play the role of the authoritarian figure, dictating what seems logical for others without considering their level of consent for such statements. Now, when you hear someone telling you what to do that don't usually end pleasantly. What's worse? He has a habit of intimidating people, and I bet you he knows that. The guy's too straight-forward, too. Bad habit. If it's clear that he has a distaste for someone, he'll make it obvious. When he's cautious of suspicious folk, he's affront about his suspicions – guy even goes down to the point of questioning everyone around him, as if people are truly out to get him in this world. Calling him paranoid doesn't even diagnose that personality of his. To be more specific, he's Beckley; he says and does things to rile up everyone, just so he can figure them out before he associates himself with them. I suppose that's clever in a way, but he's also definitely done a good job at making friends. This is where some have decided that he’s one smug prick.

Of course, those type of people are a bit fickle when it comes to people in general – in all honesty, Beckley has his work cut out for him but he certainly can cut through it. Although, he may seem a bit tough on people, it's not hard to figure out that he's capable of caring for others and even showing people a bit of a playful side to him; his good side only takes a bit time to show it. To be fair, he certainly doesn't have the best sort of humor that any company might want, and he may tend to say something rather insensitive-sounding at people, but there's always a genuine effort that he consistently puts into his character. He's like a bull, dead-set on accomplishing his work but also careless about the path he takes. I've never been one to like inflexible men, but I'll certainly tell you that Beckley's a man of decision. He's someone reliable, trustworthy, definitely a person who anyone would want a shoulder to lean on at the end of a tiring day. He's someone who definitely wouldn't change in years to come.

Then again, as awe-sounding as he may sound, he's definitely a damn pain to live with. I got one irritating quality to loathe about: his sister-complex (damn it). It's because of him that I can't make any good friends with the opposite sex, and it's definitely because of him that I can't bring what little friends I still have. He thinks it's the most righteous thing to do, protecting his little sister and everything. Now, I'll admit that it's sweet having a brother that cares but it's pretty damn weird that your own brother thinks about you for a large period of the day – and it doesn't even have to be romantically for me to still call it weird. To be frank, Beckley definitely wasn't this bothersome when we were younger – but then again, I never took much notice of such things until our parents left. After that fateful day, he was definitely less cheerful than he usually was before. I think he worries himself too much over me, to be honest. A lot of the times, I miss the times when he was less serious and didn't mind when I cursed around him or those times when my brother actually answered my lame jokes with slightly less lame answers. When it comes down to it, my brother hasn't been the same since that day – and he'll certainly be like that for years to come. But, I'll always be waiting for him to piece himself back together.

One day, our parents went out and never came back. It was a simple story with a simple end – it was a story that began casually and ended ruefully. It was an odd feeling, to be honest. Never had both my parents been late to bed before, and I never thought the two would ever in the first place. Believe it or not, dreams and reality felt as if they had collapsed into each other's respective worlds. It was as if I had found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, only to find my hopes dashed by an already-looted cauldron. To put it simple, nothing felt real and nothing felt fake. It was an empty feeling, one that was devoid of hope. Right felt wrong and wrong also felt right – and logic became illogical. Some time later I managed to gather the courage to form a conviction. It was on that very day that I managed to convince myself that tomorrow awaited their return and that I would be awoken by the shuffling of their feet early in the morning's light. By tomorrow, on that very mentioned day, I had already been proven wrong.

On the third day of their absence, we searched for them and asked around to see whether anyone had seen them. In the end, nobody was sure of what they saw and didn't think of it as anything strange. After all, they were just folks strolling around the streets to look for whatever caught their eye. Not even my own neighbors, the same people who my parents often struck up conversations with over the most least of trivial things, could tell me anything. The very people who made up the neighborhood where I had grown up in hadn't saw a thing. Of course, we never actually told them that they had been missing but that didn't mean that my patience wouldn't run out. I proceeded to curse these so-called neighbors with every dreaded word that my tongue could unfold, shocking them – never had I sworn aloud in public. When I look back, I regret every word I spoke in front of ten-year-old sister Astra. We later gave up that day and headed home. That night, Astra asked me whether or not our folks would be coming home. I couldn't answer that. At the time, I didn't know what to think of such a question back then – and neither did Astra.

As the days grew long, two weeks had roughly already passed. Over the period, I had to pretend that my parents were home when both me and Astra obviously knew that this wasn't the case. I knew that if anybody found out, me and Astra would be put up for adoption in an orphanage. I didn't want that for the two of us – I could never separate from my sister, ever. That's why I had to protect her, I had to make sure the two of us were never separated. A lot of times, I end up thinking back to the time when my parents left us. Even now, I'm not sure if 'left' or 'abandon' are the right words to describe it – but still, none of that dissuades the anger I felt toward both of my parents. They left without a word to the both of us, not even a simple notice to any of us. We had to fend for ourselves before I could finally find work to support the both of us. Right now, I don't even care about finding the two of them – I have Astra and that's plenty enough. When I think back about that certain day, I realize just how much I've changed. Of course, I don't plan on changing ever. Right now, I need to fulfill my duty as both brother and provider. Right now, I need to change to make things right – something that neither one of my parents could do.

I did not have fun with this guy's appearance.