#𝐀𝐑𝐂: / before college

[atakeflight]

" I know Bart. Such a wordsmith. Then again, I heard that original student body president speech, I shouldn't be surprised. " She was teasing, of course. She knew he could win that election. She sat down to eat a surprisingly delicious vegan takeaway. New York certainly had far more take out options than Springfield, but she had truly been touched that he had gotten something specially for her. Bart was the only one who really tried to do things specially for her. " Thanks for this by the way. It's really good. "

Usually, when their parents got takeaway, Lisa was forced to either order a few sides instead of an actual meal. She was the only vegan in her family, she never expected them to become vegan like her, but it would be nice for them to try --- like Bart had. He had always taken care of her, she was only paying him back. It had taken her so long to realise all the little things he did for her. She had a whole childhood of debt she owed her brother and she planned to pay every cent.

" Mom sent brownies there in my bag, dad sent a card, so i put that in the trash for you. " She monitored to his trashcan. She sort of knew this trip was not as much of a 'family surprise for good grades' as mom had made it seem. Marge Simpson was worried, and this was her way of getting Lisa out of her bedroom. "Y'know mom tried to say this was a 'reward for my good grades' and I know that's not true, I'm sorry if mom worried you, but I'm fine. "

She wasn't, her meds had stopped working, her room was a mess and the feelings of 'life is pointless' was coming back in full swing. " Oh, I forgot Maggie also got you a little something as well. " she moved her hand over to her bag and placed the brownies and candy pacifier (in red of course) on the table. "We saw it when we went to the pier and well, Maggie wanted to get you something. "

@ghostfcce cont from here.

[paxtonrp]

𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐒

Name: Grayson Hall

Age: 48

Occupation: Roofer

Affiliation: Neutral

Gender & Pronouns: Man (He/Him)

Faceclaim: Phillip "CM Punk" Brooks

𝐁𝐈𝐎𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐇𝐘

Life wasn't always supposed to be this way, Grayson thinks when he looks at his hands and his household.

His parents were good people -- humble, kind, and hardworking. Like many families who called Paxton their home for generations the Halls were ingrained in the land.

It was an accident that turned things upside down. His father suffered an injury that made it hard to work; as a result Grayson and his mother and his youngest sibling tried to pick up the slack, but no matter how hard they tried they couldn't make ends meet.

As his father became a shell of himself, fading into the sofa, Grayson worked odd jobs around town. Construction always had jobs to offer for the hungry and with mounting medical bills, school clothes for his younger sibling, and food to put on the table it made more sense for Gray to become the man of the household.

Grayson dropped out of high school just before his junior year. His mother tried to fight him on it, but in the end they both knew he didn't have a choice.

For a few more years, they managed to keep the land, but when his youngest sibling wanted to go to school the Halls collectively made a decision: let go of the past to secure the future.

So, when his sibling went to school, Grayson and his mom moved to Oceanview. His father came too, but the loss of their home took his life within a matter of months.

Grayson grew up around his wife, but always on the fringes. It was easy for that to happen with his having dropped out of high school, but they met again during a summer after her college graduation.

It surprised Gray that she wanted to be with him when he had little to offer, but they went steady for about three years. By the time they got married he had steady work building roofs and laying tile, and her folks came around to the idea of them.

Things were good for awhile. Gray and his wife had their son and daughter who were their entire world. His younger sibling was doing well for themself and his mother remarried.

About seven years ago, Gray began to notice little changes in his wife. She lost weight and changed her clothes. She suddenly wanted things he had never been able to give her.

For awhile, he wondered if there was an affair, but he never had the chance to ask. One day his wife was there and the next she was gone.

He reported her missing when she didn't call the kids to make sure they got home from school. After a few days and the police finally letting him file a true report, the local media went wild, but it was like she disappeared into thin air.

It's been seven years. Gray's children are 16 and 13 now. Every anniversary of his wife's disappearance leads to questions with no answers, but there's always gossip and his kids are tired of the rumors.

The kids are beginning to stick their noses into places they don't belong and he's trying like hell to keep them close. After everything he's lost, Gray can't imagine his children disappearing into the night never to be seen again.

𝐏𝐋𝐎𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐂

His wife's disappearance has rocked him to his core. Gray will do anything to make sure his children wind up like his younger sibling: graduated from high school and in college with futures on the horizon. He desperately wants his children to have an easier life and he wants them to not blame themselves for their mother's disappearance. At the end of the day, Gray's not sure what to believe, but as the years stretch by without a sign he's beginning to lose hope and with that loss of hope there's blinding rage. Gray's children insist there's more to the story and the rift in the family all stems from the fact that his kids want answers and he'll die trying to protect them from whatever story is out there. With the way things are going in Paxton, he's not sure if there are people out there that want them to know the truth.

[grayson-hall]

𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐒

Name: Grayson Hall

Age: 48

Occupation: Roofer

Affiliation: Neutral

Gender & Pronouns: Man (He/Him)

Faceclaim: Phillip "CM Punk" Brooks

𝐁𝐈𝐎𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐇𝐘

tw injury, death

Life wasn't always supposed to be this way, Grayson thinks when he looks at his hands and his household.

His parents were good people -- humble, kind, and hardworking. Like many families who called Paxton their home for generations the Halls were ingrained in the land.

It was an accident that turned things upside down. His father suffered an injury that made it hard to work; as a result Grayson and his mother and his youngest sibling tried to pick up the slack, but no matter how hard they tried they couldn't make ends meet.

As his father became a shell of himself, fading into the sofa, Grayson worked odd jobs around town. Construction always had jobs to offer for the hungry and with mounting medical bills, school clothes for his younger sibling, and food to put on the table it made more sense for Gray to become the man of the household.

Grayson dropped out of high school just before his junior year. His mother tried to fight him on it, but in the end they both knew he didn't have a choice.

For a few more years, they managed to keep the land, but when his youngest sibling wanted to go to school the Halls collectively made a decision: let go of the past to secure the future.

So, when his sibling went to school, Grayson and his mom moved to Oceanview. His father came too, but the loss of their home took his life within a matter of months.

Grayson grew up around his wife, but always on the fringes. It was easy for that to happen with his having dropped out of high school, but they met again during a summer after her college graduation.

It surprised Gray that she wanted to be with him when he had little to offer, but they went steady for about three years. By the time they got married he had steady work building roofs and laying tile, and her folks came around to the idea of them.

Things were good for awhile. Gray and his wife had their son and daughter who were their entire world. His younger sibling was doing well for themself and his mother remarried.

About seven years ago, Gray began to notice little changes in his wife. She lost weight and changed her clothes. She suddenly wanted things he had never been able to give her.

For awhile, he wondered if there was an affair, but he never had the chance to ask. One day his wife was there and the next she was gone.

He tried to report her missing when she didn't call the kids to make sure they got home from school. After a few days the police finally let him file a true report; the local media went wild, but it was like she disappeared into thin air.

It's been seven years. Gray's children are 18 and 15 now. Every anniversary of his wife's disappearance leads to questions with no answers, but there's always gossip and his children are tired of the rumors.

The kids are beginning to stick their noses into places they don't belong and he's trying like hell to keep them close. After everything he's lost, Gray can't imagine them disappearing into the night never to be seen again.

𝐏𝐋𝐎𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐂

His wife's disappearance has rocked him to his core. Gray will do anything to make sure his children wind up like his younger sibling: graduated from high school and in college with their futures on the horizon. He desperately wants his children to have an easier life; he wants them to not blame themselves for their mother's disappearance; he wants, he wants, he wants. At the end of the day, Gray's not sure what to believe, but as the years stretch by without a sign he's beginning to lose hope. Gray's children insist there's more to the story. The constant rift in the family stems from the fact that his kids want answers. Meanwhile, he'll die trying to protect them from whatever story is out there. With the way things are going in Paxton, he's not sure if there are people out there that want them to know the truth.

Inspiration

Rick Grimes (The Walking Dead), Joel Miller (The Last of Us), Jubal Valentine (FBI)

Aesthetic

Callused hands, heat rolling off asphalt, muscles tearing and pulling, gray temples, weathered skin, static on the TV screen, the cries of a hound dog, children begging to ride on his shoulders, unfolded laundry on the couch, a wedding band tucked into a wallet

[atakeflight]

“  stop fussing— this isn’t my blood.  ” ( from bart / for lisa ) @ghostfcce

i'm sick and tired of you blaming me for every setback you have ever had. Her own words echoed in her mind from a few months ago. Bart going off to art school as well as her deciding that she wasn't going to college at all, seemed to be the mending point in their relationship. Lisa had been glad, she only ever seemed to have one person in her corner at all times, and it wasn't her parents. She had been doing nothing but studying and sleeping back home, which is probably why she was finally awake when out of springfield.

The low mood crept in at night, when there were less distractions, she had just taken her pill when she had heard her brothers door open. She had thought Bart was in bed, she had been sneaking around the apartment the whole time, so she could already feel her heart start to beat a little faster. A GASP had escaped her lips when she had noted Bart's appearance. A real reminder for Lisa why DR LISA SIMPSON MD was never a possibility. She hated blood, it made her feel sick. She was about to rush over, her breathing was already panicked when he spoke ---

A roll of her eye at his response. Even if secretly she was happy he had said it. It calmed her down. Brought her out of panic mood and back to annoying little sister mode. ❛  Because that makes it so much better... ❜ another realisation hit her. He hadn't stopped - in fact it seemed her brother had gotten into even deeper crap. ❛  At least check yourself over? ❜ She would offer to do it, but --- that always caused problems.

[atakeflight]

"drunk people like hamburgers, it's not science." @cosmicrayed

𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐀 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐁𝐄𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐎 𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐃 at her fathers actions. It wasn't like her father, Carl, Lenny and Barney were acting out of character, this is exactly what she expected of them, but she always hoped for more. It was one area where she remained optimistic, even if she had more than enough evidence that he wasn't going to change. As she looked over at the four of them eating Krusty Burgers she moved back to turn to the person who had spoken. Drunk people did like hamburgers, and Lisa had wanted to counter that it was due to the fact that alcohol is dense in calories, but she was still far too embarrassed by her fathers actions to say anything. ❛ again, i'm so sorry about my father and his friends, Ms Storm. ❜

[paxtonrp]

𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐒

Name: Kincaid Hollis

Age: 35

Occupation: Owner of Matacuna Feeders/Former PBR Rider

Affiliation: Top Hand for The Cowboy Mafia

Gender & Pronouns: Man (he/him)

Faceclaim: Martin Sensmeier

𝐁𝐈𝐎𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐇𝐘

tw accident, murder, drug abuse

Growing up in the Seton Village part of Paxton was not idyllic. The part of the town that focused on the agricultural side might have been poor but it was close knit. His parental figure had him since he was eleven. Before that was a shuffle of different places before he landed into the capable hands of two parents who couldn't conceive. They had another kid a little younger than him, which became a sister.

His foster mom was present, but very hands-off. Caid was allowed to do whatever he wanted in a broad sense of the word. There was some semblance of parenting, but not easy with a single parent. She was tied in tight with the local indigenous community — which is how he fostered a love for rodeo.

Through high school, he was in the FFA and high school rodeo. When he turned sixteen, he started to also work at Matacuna Feeders for money to buy a vehicle, and take his girlfriend on dates.

During his senior year, Caid was confronted with the realization that the thing he was best at was riding bulls. He made the decision to forgo college and go straight into rodeo. Registering with both the PRCA and PBR, he tried to double time it.

Rodeo was hard on his body and his mindset, paired with a break up from his high school sweetheart, Caid was someone who rode through the injuries. Take a lickin' and keep on tickin' was his mindset.

He developed a drug addiction to help himself keep up with the grueling schedule. He was coming back to Paxton when he could and working the yard on his off time, and it was there that a Hand by the name of Tilly reached down and offered him some advice.

Caid, despite his career choice, recognized that he was out of control well before he hit rock bottom. He shifted his focus to solely PBR — as the money was there — and he went on to clean up and win two championships.

What would be the last year of his career (unbeknownst to him) was set to be troublesome. His sister was in some deep financial troubles. Her then boyfriend had made a series of bad bets, and the loan sharks were circling. These were not the people that would go away unless you made them.

So, Caid made them. With the help of Tilly, and some of the Hands, he found the loan shark passed out on drugs, and they rigged his trailer to look like a meth explosion. Caid was made a Hand shortly thereafter, with the understanding he was still well into his career.

It didn't matter much, because a few months later, Caid took a nasty dismount off a bull that hand him landing on his head. He knew he broke his neck, and two days later he was in surgery and they removed a disk, effectively ending his career.

He came back home to Paxton, and with the money he had, he bought Matacuna Feeders at the age of 26. A year later, he was married to his high school sweetheart — who he never stopped carrying a torch for — Julie, and they soon had a son.

Their marriage through the rule of Charlie was strained. Tilly, his mentor, went to jail around the time they welcomed a second kid. Caid watched for a long time before Randall came to him, drunk, and grieving the loss of an innocent woman at his own hands.

It was Caid that brought the betrayal of Charlie to the table of the Top Hands, and spurred the vote to remove Charlie — who had clearly gone goofy.

The new leadership under his brother, Elias, has been a welcome one. They're smarter, nimbler, a better organization. Regardless, being a Hand is for life, and while one day the duties may end, the loyalty does not.

𝐏𝐋𝐎𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐂

Caid's been around the Cowboys for most of his life. He's seen the good and the bad. While his leadership has been unwavering, some times his thoughts do. He's a careful Hand, more than he'd like to admit, he questions the content of his soul with this work, and content of that soul being passed down to his kids. He's managed to juggle both the Cowboys and his family, even through Charlie, but it's left some holes in him that he doesn't want to admit.