Profile
Denny
| Full name | Aiden Edmond Stokes |
| Nickname | Denny |
| Age | ~20 years |
| Gender | Male, he/him |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | High school dropout |
| Occupation | Struggling musician/thriving bum |
Overview
An energetic, extroverted, genuinely kind Tennessean young man who wishes to become a professional musician - Denny is a good-natured, happy kid who's all about love, support and acceptance, but the surrounding world is trying to corrupt his exceptionally pure heart.
Appearance
Denny is 5'7" (171 cm) tall and his build is thin and overall fairly scrawny. He radiates joy with his sincere, wide smile and short bursts of laughter and lively chatter. He moves around a lot, and sitting or standing still for more than ten minutes is pure torture for him. He expresses himself vividly with his whole body which he has a good control over. He's not strong, but he's agile and despite being almost constantly on the move, he doesn't seem to run out of breath.
Denny's skin is light, slightly tanned and freckled. He has big and expressive brown eyes and sharp facial features, one might notice his somewhat sharp canine teeth. His hair is something between dark blond and light brown and it's stylized carefully to look messy in a carefree way - bad hair days are easily fixed with a beanie. Denny has a warm but dynamic tone to his voice, and his Southern drawl is distinctive but not noticeably thick.
His style is casual with punk vibes. It's unlikely that he'd go out wearing sweatpants or looking overly fancy; he has a carefree look, but he minds his appearance. Unfortunately at the moment his clothes are more like a collection of what he can afford rather than what he wants to wear - although he does enjoy finding cheap t-shirts with the tackiest prints and terribly bright colors. Denny wears Chucks, no matter what the weather is like - if it's cold outside, he wears a jacket but that's about it. Denny's ears are stretched and he usually wears 1/2 inch steel tunnels. He has tattoos: the other is a text on the right side of his chest saying "No tattoos until you're 18"; and another is on his upper back representing guitar strings inside a circle that’s surrounded by fingerprints.
Skills
Denny breathes music, and he's extremely passionate about it. When he's concentrating on making music, his always cheerful attitude shifts to a much more serious and focused mood, and on the flow he can actually sit still for a long while.
His first instrument was piano, and he has played it ever since he was a little kid. He found guitar a bit later, and he sees it as his main instrument, definitely preferring electric guitar to acoustic. He can also sing, and he has good vocal control.
Personality
Denny is an extremely kind and gentle, warm person who loves to have people around him. Even when things look dark, he is able to keep his positive and optimistic attitude and he seems to find good things in everything. He’s quite a chatty guy, and he talks even more when he feels safe - when he doesn’t need to hold back his endless energy, his talk tends to sound like a stream of thought, and he can come up with pretty vague (and silly) ideas about the surrounding world. However, Denny is a good listener, and he has a strong sense of empathy, which also makes him surprisingly perceptive. He’s not very knowledgeable, but he’s creative, imaginative and good at connecting the dots. In general people see him as a simple, hyperactive boy, but there’s wisdom inside of him; it just appears in an unexpected form. He has trouble focusing and staying in one place, unless it's about music or being a therapist to his friends.
Denny is always ready to help his friends and even when he’s in the direst of situations, he won’t hesitate to aid a friend in need, and countless times he has stood up all night to make his friends feel better. He’s an excellent friend to have, but he sells himself short and he could take better care of his own well-being. He’s learning to be more cautious around people, but with as large a social circle as he has, there is always someone who is trying to take advantage of his good heart. Still, despite his sweet, forgiving and definitely non-threatening nature, he isn't a pushover and he greatly values his personal freedom of choice. It's very unlikely for him to snap, but he holds his ground when he feels strongly about something.
Denny’s exceptionally genuine kindness is just that - pure, genuine kindness. He is usually honest and isn’t deceiving on purpose, but if he finds himself in situations that make him feel uncomfortable, he will usually find a way to avoid directly facing the matter. Denny appears confident and courageous without any hints of shyness, but those who know him very well, can easily tell when something makes him nervous or unsure. There are many things he’s insecure about, and it takes time before he’s willing to talk about his feelings and fears.
Denny isn't shy to give praise to others, and his way to hide semi-flirty, subtly sweet words into his casual talk is very smooth. His intention is not to hit on people, but his manner of speech can sometimes confuse people into thinking he’s more into them than he actually is. He prefers friendship over romance any day, but he won't turn down a person who approaches him. When it’s about romance, he’s either "just friends" or "all in", but he never makes the first move.
Denny lives in the moment, makes rushed decisions and doesn't think about the consequences of his actions - he doesn't really look back or plan the future, but he can learn from his mistakes. He’s a good kid, he’s got potential, but there are underlying emotional issues he must solve before he can make progress in his life.
Childhood
Denny was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and he is the middle child and has two sisters, Alicia and Amy. His job-oriented parents Joan and Kenneth could provide an idyllic middle-class life in the suburbs. Denny had a safe and fun childhood, lots of friends and a loving family. He always looked up to his dad, and instead of his birth name Aiden, he preferred to be called Denny, as it matched with his dad’s nickname Kenny. Kenny’s younger brother, famous rock guitarist Collin Stokes was Denny’s idol, and it was Uncle Collin who lit Denny’s spark for making music.
Denny was a lively kid and he had trouble focusing on things he wasn’t interested in, but he did just well enough so it went unnoticed. He wasn’t good at school, but he was both musically and socially skilled. From an early age he learned smooth talk from his dad, and for a long time he thought it was perfectly fine to casually flirt with people. When Denny was fourteen, Joan found out that Kenny had an affair, and that destroyed everything Denny believed in. His dad’s actions crumbled their family and caused so much pain that Denny felt how something broke inside of him as well. Joan and Kenny split up, Kenny moved out and lost everything in divorce, including Alicia’s respect. Alicia did her best to convince both Denny and Amy that their dad was scum and that he should suffer for what he did. Joan's coping mechanism was to work harder than ever, and while she was present in her children's lives, she became distant.
Denny didn’t want to take sides, and beside family issues, he had other concerns as well. He started to understand that he wasn’t only interested in girls, and drawing a line between friends and crushes became more difficult to him - what he thought was perfectly normal interaction with people, his high school girlfriend Steph disapproved. Steph’s unsupportive and angry reaction to Denny’s confession about his sexuality startled him. He had too much on his plate, and to escape facing his feelings he focused entirely on music. Soon his mother found out that her son was skipping classes, and after they had a huge fight, 16-year-old Denny packed his things and left his mother’s house.
Boise, ID; ages 16-19
Denny headed to Boise and temporarily moved into his dad's apartment. This temporary living arrangement lasted about four years, and during that time Denny got himself a job and when he got fired, he got a new job, he adopted a dog, made friends and made music. Kenny was okay with everything, but didn't show much interest in his son's life and choices.
When Denny was 18, he found himself a band he wanted to join, and he became the rhythm guitarist in a punk/jazz/rock/fusion band Hope Vitus. The lead guitarist and vocalist Jason and the bassist Corey were more than happy to have Collin Stokes's nephew aboard, but the drummer Cale wasn't as thrilled. Cale was a skilled and extremely passionate musician who kept Hope Vitus alive, but he was an unapproachable person and Denny noticed it was impossible to make friends with him. Some months later, when Denny got beaten up by strangers and was very hesitant to tell his bandmates why he had a fat lip, Cale forced the truth out of him. Denny reluctantly confessed that he was attacked because he was seen kissing a guy he liked, but, to his surprise, always judgmental and unfriendly Cale was this time very supportive and showed his softer, caring side. They became friends, and over time they learned to trust each other.
Ages 19-~27
Okay, before I know how I want to do this, I'll just link this highly convenient (?) timeline draft on DeviantArt:
Fun Facts
- Denny's dad is of Irish descent, and they share the same middle name Edmond.
- No one really calls him by his first name, and he automatically introduces himself as Denny Stokes.
- Denny is into alternative rock and punk rock, but he is open-minded about other genres, too. He finds something nice to say about pretty much any song or style.
- Some of his favorite bands to mention are Weezer, Set Your Goals, The Offspring and Incubus.
- Wham! is one of his big favorites, too. He's a huge George Michael fan.
- Some of his favorite bands to mention are Weezer, Set Your Goals, The Offspring and Incubus.
- When Denny was sixteen, Uncle Collin gifted him a PRS SE 245 guitar that has been upgraded over the years. Denny loves his guitar, and calls it Paul Jenny (pronouns vary).
- Uncle Collin is an exceptional guitarist, and he has guided his nephew on his musical journey but hasn't exactly taught him. Denny is self-taught, and he's notably skilled for his age.
- Penny was six years old when Denny got her when he was 18. Penny is aging, and while she still acts like a happy, friendly puppy, she's getting slower.
- Denny is pansexual.
- It's an issue for him and he's extremely hesitant to talk about it. Only his closest friends and younger sister Amy know about his sexuality, but he hasn't told his parents or Uncle Collin, for example.
- When he was nineteen, he was beaten up for showing affection towards a guy. After that Denny shut down, and while he wholeheartedly supported his LGBT friends, he didn't have the courage to be who he really was.
- He's also overly cautious about engaging in romantic love and affection. He doesn't make first moves, but he almost certainly responds if someone makes a move on him. His views on love aren't the most conventional and his parents' divorce made the matter even more complicated, and he's afraid he'd eventually hurt people by committing.
- Denny's dad taught him to drive, and gave him a red 2000 Toyota Camry LE on his 18th birthday. Denny named the car Kilkenny.
- Denny is good with cars and knows how to fix things or at least locate the problem if there's any. Camry hasn't caused him much trouble, but he has helped many friends and strangers on the road.
- He's born in the early 90's (1993-1994?) but I've still got some timeline tinkering to do before I can say anything solid about it...
- And same goes with his birthday lol, he's born either in early or late summer.
- Denny got his first tattoo when he was fifteen and the second when he was eighteen.
- The one he got when he was fifteen is based on a note his mother wrote him. Uncle Collin encouraged Denny to get a tattoo, which required Collin to pretend to be his legal guardian and get it in another state. Collin still thinks it's hilarious.
- The other tattoo is designed (but not tattooed) by Denny's high school best friend Jaxx and it was a gift for Denny's 18th birthday. The guitar strings seem to be in reversed order (high E string on the left when it should be on the right), but Jaxx's artistic vision was that the strings are viewed from the inside of a guitar.
- The one he got when he was fifteen is based on a note his mother wrote him. Uncle Collin encouraged Denny to get a tattoo, which required Collin to pretend to be his legal guardian and get it in another state. Collin still thinks it's hilarious.
Creation facts
- Created in August 2021 during a chat with friends. He was based on a very loose concept of "a beaten up low-life hobo" who was supposed to be saved or adopted by a rich couple and it would end up as a romcom, or ot3, or horror setting.
- He was created in like 20 minutes, but because the original story concept didn't happen, he started to live his own life, like my OCs usually do, and this silly, happy boy has developed into a silly, happy, complex boy and I love him very much. uwu
- Cale wasn't supposed to be such a huge force in his life, but there's very little I can do when two completely different personalities work together better than I had ever imagined. uwu (again)
- Denny's concept name was Bum boi, and I still refer to him as Bum... unless I try to be super serious and then I call him Denny.
Friendos
Cale
It took Cale some time before he trusted Denny enough to let him see there was more to him than just a grumpy attitude and hatred for humankind. Denny can wholeheartedly say that Cale is the kindest person he knows, despite Cale's quirks. Over the years their friendship grows stronger, and there's nothing that can break it as long as they have each other. Very wholesome.
Candy
Denny met Candy at work, and soon they were looking for adventures together. Candy is a bit of a mysterious girl, but she's kind and sweet, and Denny likes spending time with her. That's only going to be super wholesome when two kind and sweet persons with similar emotional issues hang out together a lot, right? Right?
Jaxx
Jackson, or Jaxx - the more x's, the better. Jaxx was Denny's best friend in high school, and they still keep in touch weekly.
Fayth
Denny's friend since middle school. They used to be close, but lately Fay has been focusing on her studies and future plans, and she has pushed Denny aside. Denny still supports her, though.
Jason
The vocalist and lead guitarist in Hope Vitus. Every now and then Jason gets drunk or high with Denny and it makes Cale mad (at Jason). Aside from that, Jason likes Denny's energy and trusts him, and they're pretty good friends.
Corey
The bassist in Hope Vitus. Both are sociable and talkative, but in different ways - Denny is bursting with energy and ideas, and Corey is calm but obsesses over things easily. Nevertheless, they get along pretty well.
Adrian
Denny admires Adrian's laid-back attitude and the chill way he lives his life. They both love music, and their matching personalities enable chaotic, fun adventures.
Family
Joan
Joan Mayer (née; formerly Stokes), Denny's mom. They're not on good terms, and Denny doesn't answer her calls or text back. Denny doesn't admit it, but deep inside he knows he should've listened to his mom instead of storming away. He still loves his mother and speaks kindly of her, but doesn't want to actually talk to her.
Kenny
Kenneth Stokes, Denny's dad. He used to be Denny's biggest hero, but now Denny does his best to get his dad back on his feet. Kenny changed a lot after divorce, and a man who used to radiate charisma, is now very reserved and often lost in thought.
Uncle Collin
Collin Stokes, Kenny's younger brother. Collin is a famous guitarist, and Denny idolizes him. When Collin's ex-wives made it clear they didn't want him to be near their kids, Collin started favoring Denny over his own children. Collin is a fun guy but the worst role model a young man can have, but Denny loves to spend time with him.
Liss
Alicia Benton (née Stokes), Denny's (4 years) older sister. She is a responsible and "no-fun" big sister, and she and Denny have had fights quite often when their different personalities clash. Nevertheless, Alicia cares about her family deeply. She keeps in touch with Denny and helps him pursue his dream to make music for a living.
Ames
Amy Stokes, Denny's (3 years) younger sister. Amy and Denny have always been close, they share similar interests and they've got each other's backs, no matter what.
