Welcome to Hickstead, home to both Seven Oak Stables, and Blue Acre - two rival stables. Both offer opportunities for their clients to reach the highest level of excellence. Each stable differs from the other, so choose wisely and never forget, loyalty is everything... Meanwhile as the stables battle it out, there's trouble brewing at the university. Be careful, if you don't pick a side you may get caught in the cross-fire...
This is an chilled out rpg with a super friendly and relaxed atmosphere! Remember to sign up with your characters full name in all caps and don't forget to do your claims! Thank you and Welcome, we've been established since 10th March 2009 but unfortunately have had to close guest view of our boards due to multiple sites ripping off our hard work, such a shame! Come chat to us in Discord before joining if you like!.
Sam didn't tend to get ill, or at least not anymore. He knew that was one of the many thousands of things he had to thank Marnie and Kyle for which seemed ridiculous, how could they make an impact on his health? By taking him into their home and feeding him up, making sure he took care of himself when before them he wouldn't have bothered. Back with his dad, the beatings aside, they have rarely had enough money to get by, living off the government benefits and Sam's wages when he'd left school and picked up a job to have enough money to eat. The money has frequently gone more to fund his dad's drinking habit but at least they hadn't lost the roof over their heads. He'd never been very healthy, skin and bone, his breaks had taken longer than usual to heal due to malnourishment and he'd always felt a little unwell - stomach usually empty, skin a little pale in pallor. Sometimes sleeping in dirty places and resorting to less than appealing meal options to get by. Prison has been the only time he'd gotten proper square meals every day.
Then along came Kyle and Marnie, with their determination to feed him up and it had done the job. He'd taken a while but eventually packed on the pounds and filled out as he should have years ago. He felt more energetic and better in his mind just from getting proper home cooked meals every day and a good night's sleep. So it felt odd to him that he'd woken up so unwell. It made it worse in a way, having felt how good his body could feel when it was healthy. He'd been tired last night and gone to bed early but bad attributed it to the extra hours he'd been pulling at the library for upcoming exams and his desire to pass it. Now he knew why - his head was absolutely pounding, as if someone was in there hammering at his skull. At one point, before the others were awake, and somewhere between Kiara waking to demand attention, he had been sick in the bathroom, but now as his alarm rang and broke through his foggy mind, he groaned.
He didn't realise he'd hit snooze until he woke to a knock on his door, and then he heard Kyle's voice. "sam?" he cracked his eyes open again and blinked in confusion, and glanced at the time. "I'm late!" he said in panic and threw back his covers, assuming Kyle had come to wake him for that. He'd take a few extra shifts on recently, despite the gentle warning from Marnie of not pushing himself too hard, and he was never ever late. He didn't want to let work down. Ignoring how he felt he went to stand up in a rush, and then staggered. His head swam and blood pounded in his ears. His stomach curled and he clapped a hand to his mouth as if that would stop it whilst reaching out with the other to try and grab something so he didn't faint.
Sam had made an effort to be on time. He was aware of the day and what was happening today and be knew that his brother and accompanying girlfriend would need support. Not because their family were difficult or anything of the sort, given the way they had welcomed Sam into their home and their family with open arms, he felt they were the most accomodating people he'd ever met, but he knew how nerve wracking it could be to meet the parents, and especially given Jack and Jade's odd circumstances. He'd met her a couple of times and thought she seemed nice. Pretty and sweet, a bit of a funny side that he'd been too nervous to encourage when he'd met her, but he didn't see any reason why Marnie, Kyle or Harper might not like her. Still, support in numbers and all of that. Plus he felt Jack would appreciate it too, if he was there - not that he felt be could be much help given his awkwardness when it came to familial disputes or arguments. He tended to disappear and hide, still not quite able to break the habits of a life time drummed into him that yelling meant punishment and punishment hurt.
He'd managed to finish a little early at his shift and one of his classes had been cancelled, leaving him suddenly plenty of time to get home and make himself presentable. Dinner, he believed, was the occasion and though he had offered, Marnie had turned him down - more likely to spoil her creation that add to it. Instead he showered and changed into some fresh jeans and a shirt, nothing dressy but better than joggers and a t-shirt. By the time he was done he heard the door go and he knew Jade had turned up. He didn't know if Jack was with her or not but he hoped so; better to be there with her than ask her to turn up at the house and risk their mother opening the door first.
He released his hold on the flowers as she took them, thinking it had to be a good sign that she didn't throw them back in his face, or just throw them away at all. Though Heather wasn't his first girlfriend, he would consider her his first serious one. He didn't have great experience with girls even despite the handful he had dated before her, if anything it had frustrated him how some girls had fawned because they thought him sweet and shy and something they could mold to suit them - he was quiet but not stupid and he didn't feel like he needed changing. Heather was different, they had been friends for so long first it made things feel different, more real, and he wanted things to go right - but she was tough to figure out sometimes and he had to work hard to keep up with her. Like now, he couldn't be sure what he'd done or if he'd done something but he was sure that he had or something was wrong. Naturally, seeing her bruises made it clear but now he didn't get why she was hiding from him.
"no one sam, it was no one. i promise." Sam frowned, "So you did it to yourself?" He asked, wondering how or why she was do that. He thought that sounded like rubbish, but 'no one' couldn't give bruises like that. "Who are you protecting?" He asked. Had she been seeing someone else and that person had hurt her? He didn't know if they were exclusive; he had assumed as such but stupidly never spoken to her properly about it. "please trust me." He shook his head slightly, "Trust you on what? I don't understand..." and he didn't - what was she asking him to trust her on, she hadn't said anything.
Sam's shift had been a busy one, he hadn't had much time to think. It was unusual for the day; it was a Thursday, and though they had the usual work crowd early morning and then the university students and the other odds and sods trooping through, it had been non-stop go since he had clocked in late morning. He'd had his English class at 8am, and had only had time to drop his bag at home and make a small start on his weekend homework before he'd had to shower and change for his start at Starbucks. He knew he didn't need to have the job as far as his adopted parents were concerned, they paid for a lot of his things, but he didn't like them paying for everything. He was used to being self sufficient, and in the end it had been a compromise that he had been allowed to have one job whilst he spent his other time in class. That sounded odd given that he was an adult and could do what he wanted, but he wanted to keep Kyle and Marnie happy and disliked upsetting them; they had not liked the idea of him working his butt off with extra shifts or a second job, so compromise it was.
He caught sight of Mav in the corner waiting and when there was a slight lull in the queue, he grabbed a spare pastry that would no doubt be wasted otherwise, and took it over to him. He didn't make friends easily, and he tried hard to keep the one's that he did, so he placed his offering carefully on the table, aware that Mav did not seem 100% present as he approached. "Hey, here, hope you like custard." He gave him a small smile and stepped back. "I'm nearly done, just fifteen more minutes - do you want a top up or anything?" She asked, nodding to his cup. He'd get that for free too; Sam didn't like to take the piss with his job but he'd been there a long time now and was well liked as a hard and honest worker, and the manager never minded the odd extra treat being handed out when it was close to closing time - it would get trashed regardless, as they couldn't carry old pastries over to the next day.
At first he wondered if nobody was home. He couldn't hear any signs of movement from the house, and there were no cars in the driveway - but considering how busy the house was he had assumed someone would be in; at least Heather considering she was avoiding him. Or perhaps she wasn't home and that was why she was putting him off. He didn't think she would be like that, she wasn't a mean girl or a bitch, she was nice and she was usually pretty straight up from what he felt he knew about her. He shuffled nervously on the top step and was just considering leaving the items on the top step and heading home to wait again when he heard it - the door finally opening. Sam had just started to worry Heather might have seen him and decided not to answer because it was him, but whilst he felt relief that at least someone was here and might answer his questions, his nerves returned tenfold at who it might be and if he was going to get sent away.
"sam?" He let out a breath, part of him hadn't actually expected to see her and he was rushed with emotions - unsure if he could pick out one from another in the churning mass. "H-hey," He said nervously, shuffling again on the top step and then thrusting out the flowers with a flush of his cheeks. "There's are for.. you-" He cut off when he saw them. He had been so anxious to see her and then so surprised that he hadn't caught them at first, and his words halted in his throat. Another surge of emotions, some familiar and some more alien - he rarely felt anger, so squashed down by fear and anxiety as had been conditioned into him from such a young age. But there it was, that rush, that beat of protectiveness that he was only now understanding with his family and friends. "Who did this to you?" He asked, the stutter gone, the anxiety fading, replacing his expression with a frown of concern.
Sam was concerned. No, scratch that, Sam was more than just concerned, he was anxious - that gut gnawing, can't eat, can't sleep kind of anxious. Something was wrong and he didn't know what it was, or what he had done, but he had clearly done something to upset Heather and now she didn't want to see him. She hadn't quite said it in that way, and he thought she was maybe trying to spare his feelings for some reason, but she had told him not to come round. They had texted, but she hadn't been answering his calls - and he was embarrassed to admit there'd been a fair few, and after the seventh she'd text him to say she couldn't answer, but that she was fine. He'd wanted to see her, to meet up, and then that's when she'd started to say no. She was busy, she couldn't, Dustin wouldn't let her out for some reason. It was one excuse after another and he didn't 100% buy it when it reached the third day.
He hadn't seen her on campus either, not even from a distance - nobody had - so now he was really worried. Something had to be wrong for her not to go to class, she didn't generally skip, that he knew anyway. He just wanted to know what it was so he could fix things. He'd thought he should come prepared, like in the movies how they did it - so he brought a bunch of pretty flowers, her favourites, and a big box of chocolates. Whatever it was, he'd make it right. He hadn't told her he was coming, he hadn't wanted to see a text that told him not to, but he was scared he was doing the wrong thing by turning up. Maybe this was too much, maybe he was going to get called a stalker for this. Swallowing hard, he reached up to ring the doorbell, shuffling nervously on the top step whilst he waited for someone to answer.
GENDER: male AGE: twenty-one D.O.B: 17th september SEXUALITY: straight STATUS: dating PLAY-BY: dimitri vankerkoven HAIR: dirty blonde EYES: hazel with green flecks
"LAYING IN THE SILENCE"
TATTOOS: none SCARS: quite a few DRINK: very occasionally SMOKE: nope, he quit DRIVE: yes GLASSES: nope HOME: O'hara's house
"WAITING FOR THE SIRENS"
quiet, withdrawn, unconfident, sensitive, nervous, gentle, kind-hearted, self sufficient, thinks before he acts, non-confrontational, learning to stand up for himself, wears his heart on his sleeve, doesn't trust easily, over-thinker, try-hard, more athletic than he appears LIKES: , music , his guitar , beach sunsets , quiet places , reading , cosy-ing up in the corner of a library , learning new things , his new family , people who don't make snap judgements , going on drives , doing things the old fashioned way - pen and paper over a laptop DISLIKES: , his dad , beer , power cuts , crowded places , getting into trouble , being late , conflict and confrontation , people romanticizing violence STRENGTHS:, talented musician , self preserving , good at reading people and emotions , avoiding conflict , being unseen WEAKNESSES:, lack of confidence , terrible at flirting , over thinker , easily persuaded - succumbs to peer pressure , anything with sugar in it FEARS:, his dad coming back into his life , turning into his dad SECRETS: , was a virgin until we was 20, used to be teased about it whenever people found out , has been to prison
"SIGNS, ANY SIGNS I'M ALIVE STILL"
STATUS IN SOCIETY: working class OCCUPATION: student - english and economics, part time barister at starbucks EXPERTISE: guitar, and the inner workings of gangs/prison WEALTH: very little PROUDEST MOMENT: joining the o'hara family - he was terrified of making trouble and causing issues but they were all so welcoming and let him in with open arms and finally he's able to come out of his shell MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT: some school 'friends' found out about his going to prison and began bullying him when he first returned to college. it took weeks to shake off all the comments and even now sometimes he still gets them.
"I DON'T WANNA LOSE IT"
FATHER(S): thomas zayne johnsons - 51 - truck driver MOTHER(S): daphne poppy johnsons - deceased in childbirth STEP-PARENT(S): adopted father - KYLE MITCHELL O'HARA - 36 - doctor adopted mother - MARNIE CAITLYN O'HARA - 35 - homemaker OTHER HALF: dating HEATHER TALLIS MCCARRAN - 19 - photographer/student SIBLINGS: adopted brother - JACKSON WILLIAM O'HARA - 18 - student/barister adopted sister - HARPER JANE O'HARA - 15 - student adopted sister - kiara - 1 year old CHILDREN: none
Sam didn't get a good start in life. His mother - sweet and kind, died giving birth to Sam. She had always been quite sickly, and she'd been warned against having a child, but she hadn't been able to say no to Sam. His father, who loved his mother dearly and lived his life for her, blamed Sam and was never the same following her death. He'd always had a penchant for alcohol, but he was sucked into the vortex of alcoholism following his wife's death and spent most of Sam's childhood abusing him - from physical beatings, to locking him in his room. Sam was known as 'the weird kid' in school with his ill fitted clothes, sometimes unclean, and the fact he sat at the back of the class and never participated. He was conditioned into being a quiet, withdrawn kid, always in and out of hospital. There were many acquisitions into his home life but somehow, nothing ever stuck to his father, and each time Sam was left with his father without hope.
When he hit 14, his father bullied him to leave school and become a go between for him in black market deals and the occasional drugs run - his father was not a dealer, but he would take any job that offered decent enough cash and used Sam as a scape goat should the deal go wrong. Sam took the brunt of any deals that went wrong - which happened on occasion - and stopped bothering to fear for his life the third time he found himself staring at the sharp, pointy end of a knife. At 15, one of the deals was busted by an under cover cop. Sam was taken for questioning, said little and refused to give his father up, and ended up behind bars with a two year sentence. A part of him was relieved at first, to be away from his dad, but he soon found that even in prison, he couldn't escape his eye.
His father had contacts, and he used them to warn Sam about speaking out, and what he would do if Sam snitched. If anything, prison life was more accommodating than home life. Sam attempted to put himself back into education but when his father visited to warn him he'd be going back to work when he escaped, he saw no point in trying, spending two miserable years avoiding conflict and trying to not get stabbed. He managed to make vague friends with his cell mate, but he was so conditioned to fear people - particularly men - that it was hard to get many words out of him.
Upon his release, his father did just what he said - came and collected him, and sent him back to work. Sam tried to refuse, knowing that if he got caught again, he'd be right back in jail with no prospect in life, and the following argument sent him back to hospital. A young doctor by the name of Kyle took interest in him, concerned over the amount of visits Sam had had over the years. It took time, and effort on Kyle's side to pry but eventually, he uncovered the truth about Sam's history, and when confronted at the wrong time, Sam's father made a show of his true colours. Gaining Sam's trust, Kyle and his family took the kid in. He thought his father would come after him but for some reason, he upped and disappeared instead; he's unsure if Kyle somehow had a part to play in this. Since then, he's started to come out of his shell, meet people, make friends, talk to girls, and he will always be grateful for what the O'Hara's did for him- in Sam's mind, the family entirely saved his life.
I'm okay, just working on an essay for uni.
