Riley Gabriel Blackburn:
Age: 18-19 (around there) Four years Abby's junior
Height: 6'2
Hair color: soft brown
Eye color: cornflower blue
Personality:
Riley is a good-natured, fun-loving, happy guy to be around. He' always optimistic and looks at the bright side of things and loves food almost as much as he loves his sister (which is A LOT). He's a joke-ster, always trying to get his solemn sister to laugh or even smile. And sometimes he succeeds, but most of the time he doesn't. He's always doing things for other people, always helping them out. He's just all around a really great guy. The meanest thing he could ever possibly say, or the meanest insult he could ever give would be: I hope you step on a LEGO! (Yeah, he's a softie...)
Family:
When Riley was just three years old, his father left for war, and when he was five, his father died, leaving his mom, Maria, desperate. His mother never being there for him, Riley was raised mostly by Abby. They grew very close together as a result. Riley's the only one who could make Abby open up to and share her feelings with.
Background:
Riley never was a great scholar, and not very scholastic, despite his tutoring from a determined Abby. He was more hands on as a child. He dropped out of high school when Abby left the house and became a mechanic. He has a hidden talent, though. He is an artist.
Here's an excerpt from my book about him. He is three years old during this time.
Abigail suddenly
heard a loud thump from up above the
second floor, and her attention was averted from her appearance to who was
coming downstairs. She jumped up,
conscious not to step on her dress as she did, and hung onto the railing with
one hand, waiting. Several more thuds later and a huge bang, she saw that it wasn’t her parents
coming down, only her little brother lumbering down the stairs. She sighed, but a smile still was plastered
across her ever cheerful face, and went to help her three year old brother down
the huge steps.
“Come on, Riley,” she prodded, grabbing his
chubby hand and softly tugging him down faster.
For being three, Riley was unusually small and still had the look of a
baby. A walking baby. Once Riley had reached the bottom, with help
from Abigail, she sat him down on the last step and examined him closely,
looking for anything that was amiss with his appearance. She took a step backwards and rested her chin
in her hands. “Hmm...”
“Wha,” the little three year old
questioned, looking at Abby innocently with his round arms and shoulders lifted
in a shrug.
She knelt in front of her younger brother
and brushed his locks of soft brown hair in between her fingers, motherly like,
and swept it to the side so it was neat.
She straitened his checkered blue and white shirt and rolled his cargo
pants up so that he wasn’t tripping over them when he walked – more like
waddled, Abigail thought. “There,” she
smiled, sitting on her knees and looking over Riley with a reproving eye. “You look very handsome, Riley,” she nodded
in satisfaction, looking into the cornflower blue eyes of her little brother. “Just like Daddy.”
It looked as if someone had given the boy a
huge piece of chocolate, for Riley smiled as wide as his mouth would let him,
and his eyes lit up like it was his birthday.
“Really?
Abigail nodded enthusiastically, touching
his chin with the tips of her fingers.
“Yup. I wouldn’t be surprised if
you grew up to look like his twin.”
Riley stuck a finger up his nose, much to
Abigail’s disgust, and smiled happily.
He wiggled his finger and then pulled it out, gooey green gunk dripping
from his nose.
“Ew!
Riley,” Abigail scolded, shooting up from her sitting position. “That is disgusting! Don’t do that.”
Riley held his wet finger in the air and
stuck his lower lip out. “What do I do
with it?” he asked, giving Abigail an innocent puppy face look.
Abigail sighed, trying not to smile at the
adorableness of her brother, and shook her head. “Go get a napkin in the kitchen and wipe your
nose and finger on that.”
Riley stood up and toddled awkwardly over
to the kitchen, sticking his other finger in his other nostril.
“And remember to throw it in the trashcan
when you’re done,” Abigail called after him, staying at her post in case her
father came down. “Boys,” she thought to
herself, once more seating herself patiently at the foot of the stairs. “Cute and disgusting.”
All around, Riley is a really great guy. Sweet, sensitive, a joker, and a loving brother.
~Angelina Zoe
