Mathew Laurel
BASICS
Name: Mathew Brendon Laurel
Age: 25, born February 9th
Gender: Male
Occupation: Ex-military. He was discharged for medical reasons. He was shot, though the bullet did not hit his spine. The damage was caused by a shock wave from the bullet caused by the impact. Mat is now paralyzed from the waist down, in a wheelchair, and was told that he will never walk again. He's covered by government-funded disability and insurance, but even though he’s pretty much going to get paid for the rest of his life, he still has a job. He works with computers.
Hair: Dark brown, short. He has stubble on his face, and hair on his chest and stomach as well.
Eyes: Pale blue with flecks of yellow and brown.
Complexion: Clear, light complexion.
Build: Stands at 6’3”, around 160-170 lbs. He has a toned, slightly muscular upper body (he works out to stay in shape), but his lower half is weaker, his legs wasted away from lack of use since the accident. Overall, he looks pretty rugged, but also clean and well-kept.
Orientation: Straight.
PERSONALITY TRAITS
In general, Mat is loud, abrasive, assertive, and definitely not the kind of guy who holds back from speaking what is on his mind. He knows how to get his way in most situations. However, in the three years since his “accident” where he lost the use of his legs, he’s worked up to being a calmer, more understanding person. He at least tries to not resort to violence in fights – sometimes it works and others times it doesn’t. It really just depends on whether the other person is as willing to settle things calmly and reasonably or not.
He likes to have authority and to be in control of a situation, but he doesn’t make too big a deal of it if he can’t be the leader. He prefers to go about things his own way. He’s a skilled tactician, but has terrible sense of direction. He doesn’t like it when people act like he can’t do something because of his disability, so he tends to show off a lot and will often try to prove that he is still just as good as before he got hurt. This is most embarrassing when it doesn’t work out in his favor.
Mat hasn’t changed a bunch over the years, honestly. In a lot of ways, he’s still the same as he was when he was younger. He’s easy to recognize because of this. He has the same crude, perverse sense of humor. He is playful, funny, and he can be sweet, but most times he’s just an asshole. He’s easily amused and not very difficult to entertain, but he has a short attention span as well. One thing that has changed is his sense of right and wrong. He also has a better grip on when would be the time to act how he wants and when he needs to be more serious.
From his experience in the army, he’s shaped up a lot. He has matured quite a bit and doesn’t take so much for granted like he used to. Going into the military had probably the greatest influence on his life and how he turned out as an adult. It helped him learn to respect other people more and to treat others more fairly (especially women, authority, and his elders), how they deserve or want to be treated. He’s gotten over being depressed and angry at the world for getting shot and ending up paralyzed, but he still has his moments occasionally.
STRENGTHS
Has no trouble getting along with other people
He adjusts well to change
Can take care of himself
WEAKNESSES
He rarely asks for help, especially when he needs it the most
Easily offended or bothered by simple things
Sometimes lets his anger control him more than it should
INTERESTS
Likes: Watching sports, patriotism, classic cars, guns, big dogs, eating meat in front of vegetarians (it seems more satisfying that way), people who aren’t afraid to do what they want, sports jerseys, action movies, drinking, showing off, the beach, home-style cooking
Dislikes: Seeming weak, little kids, being treated like he’s helpless, slackers, pain, having nothing to do, ignorance, places without wheelchair ramps for the disabled, people who act overly-sympathetic, reading/writing, people who talk a lot, losing his temper
FAMILY
[Father] _ Jack Laurel, age 47. He gets along mostly okay with his dad, but they don’t have a very strong bond in general. Mat always felt like he had to work really hard to impress him or get his attention, like he wasn’t good enough for his father. Truth is, Jack had wanted a girl – no sons, just one girl. He obviously didn’t get that, though. And with one boy to start off, he knew they were going to have enough trouble and so he didn’t make a big deal out of trying again for a girl, since the chances were only 50-50 that they would actually get one.
When Mathew went into the army, Jack was seemingly proud of him then. It didn’t change his overall opinion of him or make him start paying more attention to him suddenly, but he had been at least somewhat supportive of the idea. He didn’t try to hold him back from doing what he wanted to do, partly because he thought he needed the discipline.
[Mother] _ Maxine Laurel, age 44. Mat had always been closer with his mother, though he could sometimes be an ass to her too. He never did anything really hurtful like telling her that he hated her – because honestly, he’s never felt that way. However, when he expressed to her that he wanted to go into the military, she freaked out a bit and tried for the longest time to change his mind, but to no avail. He never fully understood why she had reacted so dramatically about him going into the army, seeing as it had been obvious, what with how patriotic he had been (and still is). He figures she was must have just been in denial about it.
When he was sent back home with a fracture in his spine, paralyzed from the waist down, that’s when their relationship started going downhill. She started judging him more, throwing out a lot of “I told you so” comments and basically just treating him like he’d always been disabled, like he was helpless. It’s what made him start to push away from her, to put distance between the two of them. He knows she doesn’t realize this and that she doesn’t think she’s doing anything wrong, but he wishes she would.
OTHER
1. Mat has a vast collection of guns that he stores in the cellar of his home, also known as “the Gun Room.” He’s fired all of them at least once.
2. He was born in American (and as were his parents and his parents’ parents), but his family descended mainly from East Germany and Ireland.
3. He drives a Dodge Ram with hand controls by the wheel. He loves driving too much to give it up just because of his disability.
4. He has two dogs at home: A German Shepherd, Cole, and a Weimaraner, Oakley. Both act as guard dogs, extremely protective of their owner, but Cole especially helps him around a lot. He was trained as a service dog for paraplegics, to note.
5. He doesn’t often get close to other people. Mat tends to test people a lot and prefers to get to know them first before he deems them as friends. He can be a bit judgmental.
