Billy Blair

Billy is an aspiring musician trying to find his place in the world.

Billy seems to say anything he thinks of, as quickly as he thinks of it. This often lands him in trouble, which he doesn't particularly mind; he chases an adrenaline high at any chance he gets. In spite of this, he is actually fully capable of filtering the things that come out of his mouth, but only when it's legitimately necessary. He isn't easily embarrassed, and remains relatively unbothered when people laugh at anything idiotic he says. However, he hates to see other people embarrassed, and in such situations will do his best to alleviate that discomfort.

He is often seen as aggressive and rude by those who don't know him well, but when it comes to close friends and loved ones, he might venture to show a more sensitive and thoughtful side. Although in most cases he's still rude even around those he likes.

Though he can be frustratingly stubborn, Billy is usually willing to learn and grow, but it takes him some time to admit when he's wrong.

Billy had somewhat of a quiet early childhood. His father, Frank, enlisted in the US Army in early 1942, just before Billy's 5th birthday. The memories he had of Frank at this point were hazy and cluttered, having been formed at such a young age. To compensate for the separation, Billy constantly asked about Frank, and painted a mental image of him as this untouchable war hero, an idol to look up to.

Billy was 8 when Frank returned home, and the two were inseperable for some time, making up for the years they were apart. While Billy's mother, Mildred, never much cared for his more energetic and playful side, his father was happy encourage his boyish antics, at least while he was a young child. There was a level of understanding between them which seemed to gradually fade as Billy grew older, Frank excusing less and less of his behavior every day, placing stricter expectations for him to be more put together and responsible. For his 10th birthday, Billy's grandma gifted him a 3/4 acoustic guitar, which he taught himself to play, igniting his strong passion for creating music, a passion which his parents were not fully opposed to, but didn't want him to pursue as a career.

Around the time Billy entered high school, things started falling apart. As he formed more of his own opinions, the differences between him and his parents rose to the surface and the occasions when he could actually get along with them became few and far between. Meanwhile, he found himself falling behind both socially and academically. His adolescence had brought about a kind of stress that seemed to ruin anything and everything good. He painfully realized that his childhood best friend, Fred, was drifting away from him as their interests diverged, and soon his only real friend was his sister, Dana, who naturally shared some of the same issues at home and school. At this point, they were both seen as easy targets for their classmates to torment. Billy would do his best to just ignore it and move on, until he realized that Dana was also being picked on, at which point he began starting fights with anyone who spoke an ill word of her. He quickly learned that most of these bullies were stronger than him, and he began working out in his free time in order to be seen as more of a threat, but realized that it was also a useful outlet for his frustration and anger. Before long, he had started actually winning some of the fights he got in, and gradually became more confident in standing up not only for Dana but also for himself. At this point he felt like he could finally get it together and live his life, if only his parents would let him have any freedom.

Billy's ambition to become a famous musician remained unwavering, but his parents pressured him to get a college education so that he could get a "real job." They had wanted him to become a doctor or lawyer, but when he absolutely refused to take that path, they landed on a compromise that he would major in journalism, since he had done uncharacteristically well in his high school english classes and enjoyed reading and writing. He was still unenthusiastic about the whole concept, but looked forward to moving out on his own and finally gaining some independence.

Trivia

• He didn't get a driver's license until age 19.
• He was abnormally obsessed with Harry Houdini for a while when he was 13; a combination hyperfixation and crush.
• He used to draw as a kid, but dropped the hobby sometime in middle school.