Birchwood Isle Family Roleplay

Basic Information

Full Name: Roland Jeremy McClain
Nickname, if Any: Jem
Age: 19
Birthday: April 11th
Sex: Male
Pronouns: He/Him
Current Grade/Year in School, if Applicable: College Freshman
Current Occupation, if Applicable: Barista at the Grind House
Special Needs: none?

Appearance

Height: 6'0"
Build: Muscular/Athletic
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Distinguishing Features: distinctive jawline
Brief Description: Jem's posture give him a distinct air of nonchalance, and he often has his hands shoved into the pockets of his athletic shorts. His hair is short, blonde, and worn in a spiky hairstyle. He smiles freely, the smile lighting up his blue eyes. You'll often find him shirtless in a pair of athletic pants or shorts (unless he's required to wear a shirt wherever he is) and wearing a pair of running shoes. Sometimes he wears a baseball cap, especially if he's wearing a t-shirt or tank top. His skin is slightly tanned from the amount of time he spends outdoors. He has long, thick eyelashes that give him a charming appearance.

Personality

What are your greatest strengths? athletic; humorous; self-assured; outgoing; respectful; gregarious; verbal; charming; team player
What are your greatest weaknesses? cocky; boastful; manipulative; volatile; aggressive; changing; stubborn; reserved; insecure
What do you struggle with? Most of all, Jem struggles with the fact that he was sent to the island as an adult only to immediately become classified as a minor who must be under the authority of an adult.
What are your hobbies or interests? Jem's main hobby is playing lacrosse. He loves it and is very invested in his sport. He also loves to work out and does a lot of it.
What do you really enjoy? playing lacrosse; video games in the evenings; hanging out with the guy at the pub; flirting with women; being complimented on his smile; grilled foods
What do you really dislike? professors who are tough on him; having to make decisions; being the one assigned to cooking duty; looking after younger kids; not having internet access or video games
What are your favorite things? an autographed baseball his brother gave him when he was ten; his lucky red t-shirt
What do you fear? failing out of school; being a "young adult" forever; never being allowed to leave the island; rejection
Describe your personality in 100-500 words: On the outside, Jem comes across as incredibly confident. He does know who he is, and he has a remarkable degree of self-awareness for someone his age. He won't tell anybody that he works on himself as much inwardly as he does outwardly (on his body) but he's done a lot of personal development work over the past couple of years and he's really just doing his best. Internally, he's insecure and often feels that he wound up on the island so that he could have more time to grow up from being too childish. But at the same time, he knows he can't grow up on the island so it feels as though he has to stay here until somebody else decides it's time for him to leave and grow up somewhere on the mainland. Jem doesn't like it, and this paradox makes him hostile toward adults often enough that it has become a battle between what he really wants and what he does to prevent that from happening.

Relationships & Behavior

How do you normally get along with adults? Most of the time Jem gets along well with adults (over the age of majority). He's charming and respectful, usually reasonably well-behaved, and adults generally like him from the jump. The issue comes in when a power struggle starts, him seeking his independence and them wanting to force him to obey rules that don't always feel fit for someone his age. He's volatile to the point of being violent at times, and it can be difficult for adults to get their hands on him if he doesn't want to be touched or handled. Adults are hardest for him because he considers himself one of them still, and they don't consider him one of them.
How do you normally get along with teenagers? They annoy him, especially now that he's clumped in with them, developmentally. He sees all of the mistakes they make and doesn't understand why they can't get their shit together.
How do you normally get along with other children? For the most part, Jem actually likes younger children. He's a father himself -- or he once was -- and he tries to do right by the younger ones. He's not perfect, by any means, but he works hard to be a good "big brother" to the younger ones, who often don't know better than to make the mistakes they do.
How independent are you? Very.
How do you normally react when you get into trouble? Jem will do whatever he can to avoid punishment -- to the point of putting up a physical fight if it comes down to it. He's explosive and volatile and he doesn't like people putting their hands on him.
Link to your discipline sheet: click here ✅

Orphan Village

How long have you lived at the Orphan Village? Just arrived
Which House do you belong to? Oak House
Are you currently enrolled at the Orphan Village Academy or BWI College? BWI College
What jobs or responsibilities do you have at the Orphan Village? Not very many because, between college and work, Jem's super busy. He has a lot going on. The main thing he's responsible for is helping to look after the younger kids.

How did you come to live at the Orphan Village? Jem's mother... Well, in his words, she stabbed him in the back. When his girlfriend left him with their two-year-old daughter, his mother decided she wanted custody, and one of the easiest ways to get custody from him was to send him away to a place where he would, in his words, be treated as though he was incompetent. Now she has custody of his daughter and he lives on Birchwood Isle.

How do you generally get along with caregivers and authority figures? It's hard for Jem. For two years, he's been the caregiver to a beautiful two-year-old daughter. Now he's had the tables turned on him and he's being treated, in his words like a little kid. He doesn't like having his freedom taken away from him and he's unhappy about having to follow somebody else's rules. He's respectful toward his caregivers, and they generally like him, but he hates being taken care of and it begins to show after a while as he gets more worn down.

How do you generally get along with younger residents? Jem sees potential in the younger kids, and when he closes his eyes, he can see the person that his daughter might grow into with time. They can be triggering for him because of what he's lost, but he works hard to be kind to the younger ones and makes a point of spending time with them when he's available and especially if the caregivers are busy.

How do you generally get along with your peers? Great. Jem gets along great with people his own age, for the most part.

Do you prefer to be adopted or remain in the Orphan Village? He'd rather stay here for right now. You'll know if that changes. And he doesn't have to be given the choice.

Describe your ideal adoptive family. n/a

Is there anything else we should know about how you get along in the Orphan Village? Simply put, Jem considers himself an adult and the people around him consider him a child. Or, at best, an adolescent. He struggles with this a great deal and he will do whatever it takes to "pass as an adult" around the village in general. He doesn't spend a ton of time there because of his commitments at school and work, plus his lacrosse schedule, but when he is at home he tries to play the role of an adult. For some people, this can really get under their skin.

Background

Describe your history in 150-1000 words: Jem was raised in a toxic family environment. His father left when he was eight years old, and it wasn't until much later that Jem realized that his father had to leave to get away from his mother. She was as toxic a person as there could be. The things she wanted always came first, and she was willing to use and manipulate Jem to get what she wanted. It made life at least a little bit easier that Jem was successful in nearly everything he did, since his success impacted the way she viewed her own reputation. He was a straight-A student throughout his elementary, middle, and High School years, a star athlete on the (American) football, soccer (football), and lacrosse teams, and teachers and coaches always seemed pleased with him. This made other parents admire her and the "work she did raising that boy" and she continued to live off of his reputation.

That is, until he got Aoife pregnant. It wasn't supposed to happen. She started out as little more than a sports groupie. At first, their relationship was built exclusively around sex. Jem enjoyed sex with Aoife and, like his mother, Aoife enjoyed the renown she got for being his girlfriend. But the pregnancy changed everything, and suddenly Jem had responsibilities he hadn't before. His grades slipped, albeit temporarily. He was sixteen years old and had a career in college sports ahead of him! The last thing he needed was a child! But he and Aoife did their best to make a go of it. In the end, however, the relationship wasn't that serious for Aoife, and she left, leaving him with two-year-old Collie to care for.

Two months later, he arrived on Birchwood Isle. Alone. His mother sent him off under false pretenses, and it didn't take long for Jem to figure it out: She had full care of Collie now. She could adopt his daughter as her own now that she'd gotten rid of him and Aoife was out of the picture. Jem was furious, but he couldn't leave the island. He was stuck now, no longer an adult with a daughter of his own, but a "former father" now classified as a minor with no choice but to stay where he'd wound up, without aging while his daughter continued to grow older on the American mainland.

Other

Is there anything else we need to know about you? It would be wonderful if someone could help Jem get custody of his daughter, Colleen! She won't have aged much because he is, like all people joining the Orphan Village, newly arrived on Birchwood Isle!