Benjamin 'Benji' Louis Beecham
Posted: Mon Jun 28, 2021 12:23 am
Name: Benjamin ‘Benji’ Louis Beecham
Gender: Genderfluid (Assigned Male)
Age: 18
Grade: 12th Grade
School: John Endecott Memorial Academy
Hobbies and Interests: Lacrosse, Parkour, Running, MMA, Activism
Appearance: Benji almost naturally sticks out in a crowd. At 6’3” tall they’re well above the average, and although they weigh a quite normal 163lbs, most of their weight is in the form of compacted muscle which gives them a lean, athletic look. Their chest and stomach are flat yet defined, the faint outlines of muscle groups clearly visible when Benji stretches or flexes. Their light brown hair is short and styled into a neat under shave, whilst their lower face is kept meticulously clear of all facial hair. This allows for their quite sharp and high features to stand out; Benji’s nose is thin and their cheekbones are high, giving them a somewhat haughty appearance, counteracted by full lips and a resting smiling face. Their only piercings are two small silver studs in their lobes, occasionally replaced by clear plastic if the situation demands.
Their clothing choices tend to fluctuate between days and moods, although there is a constant current of athleisure wear to it, with windbreakers, yoga pants and leggings making reoccurring appearances. Most of Benji’s clothing is relatively good quality and not inexpensive, and they buy from both the men and women’s sections of the clothing store, allowing for a wide variety of different colours.
On the day of the kidnapping, Benji was wearing a close-fit grey tracksuit, a blue and white pair of ankle-high running trainers and a matching blue windbreaker with various pride flag badges attached to it over a long-sleeved grey shirt. To accessorise, they also wore a white ballcap with ‘Salem Lacrosse’ printed on the front, over a set of crossed lacrosse sticks.
Biography: Benjamin Louis Beecham came into the world at NSMC Salem Hospital on the 12th of May, 2003 to a family that was confidently incorrect in thinking they were a boy. The younger sibling by three years to their sister, Victoria, Benji lead the life that most very young children do. It wasn’t until they grew older, and started going to elementary school, that some of their most defining features revealed themselves.
As a child, Benji was chastised many times for not focusing in class. Teachers called them a daydreamer, constantly fidgeting and never focusing on words or numbers… But as soon as gym started, they were a different person. With a little genetic assistance, Benji quickly became one of the top sportspeople in their year, and then their small school. Middle school tempered their unusualness- a more populated environment meant more sportspeople, after all, but Benji’s enthusiasm was unperturbed by entering a bigger pond with bigger fish.
As they grew and developed, Benji’s love for sports moved out of gym class, and into the wider world of extracurricular activities. They bounced off of traditional martial arts, especially taekwondo, and were never much for the gridiron, but excelled in soccer and track. Never one for the raw physicality and high-speed impacts of American Football, their speed and the power of their legs lead to them being a formidable presence as an offensive midfielder and striker. Being naturally suited to these roles meant that they received praise and attention for succeeding, which in turn only spurred them on to try harder and succeed more. This same speed was why they were always a fan of track, and, much like with soccer, early successes launched them into a positive feedback cycle.
Their initial forays into martial arts could be considered a precursor to their discovery and subsequent love of MMA later in life, an analysis that wouldn’t be inaccurate. As a youngster fizzing with energy and without much patience, the slower paced and somewhat more performative nature of traditional martial arts often left Benji bored and soured their taste for them later on, whereas MMA was fresh, exciting, and felt, to Benji at least, much more about the here and now than a focus on century-old techniques.
As Benji grew older, they also grew into their academics much more. More outlets for their energy meant they focused more in class, and although Benji’s grades have never been particularly exceptional, they’ve equally never been particularly poor, and they’re a fairly solid B-grade student. Benji’s least favourite subject has always been math, something which has resulted in their math grades occasionally dipping dangerously low, although never low enough to cause serious problems.
The Beecham family home was always one for talking about politics. Even at a young age, it was difficult to avoid hearing people discuss current events and international news- most of which came from a fairly liberal standpoint. Both the elder Beechams were supporters of Bill Clinton and later, Tony Blair (until the Iraq War, at the very least, which both opposed.) Both Victoria and Benjamin grew up with debates over topical matters being held over the kitchen table… But, when they were around twelve, Benji began to fall down a very different path. They spent nights watching Ben Shapiro and TheAmazingAthiest videos, ‘feminist owned’ compilations and other such alt-right content. The reasons for why, exactly, Benji ended up sliding down this path are unclear even to them- teenage contrarianism, perhaps, the urge to resist their parent’s politics, or maybe their realisation that something about themselves didn’t sit quite right and alt-right content being the easiest escape for it. Luckily for Benji however, they had Victoria- who had noticed her sibling’s slide and took it upon herself to try and challenge their views.
The next few years at the Beecham family home were argumentative ones. Benji’s proto-political beliefs were challenged, the lies they believed brought to the light time and time again, and even to this day, Benji credits these arguments with making them much more of a critical thinker than they ever were before they slanted right.
Entering grade nine and moving to a new high school brought Benji to yet another level of competition. Never before had so much of what they had taken for granted as what they were been placed under such scrutiny. As they formed their nascent political views, they slowly began to realise something else about them as well: puberty had jostled free an attraction to men that even Benji had never been aware of, and a slow, dawning realisation that maybe ‘man’ wasn’t exactly what they were to match. led to a lot of his early teenage years being spent in self-discovery, which they only emerged from at around 16 years old.
This was a difficult time for the youngest Beecham. A lot of their initial emotions were shame. The belief that something was wrong with them, or that they were ‘broken,’ in some way. They spent a not-insignificant amount of time hating themselves for their ‘abnormalities,’ watching gay media then immediately scrubbing all evidence of having done so out of their computer, and internally wrestling over their own love-hate relationship with their body. Two things helped them through this; their sister, Victoria, who once again ended up being Benji’s rock, and a safe, comforting refuge in the form of sports.
They had only barely entered John Endecott when they joined the school’s Lacrosse and Track teams. As both an attackman and a sprinter, they pushed themselves even harder in the face of fresh competition. Having been exposed to MMA by a friend, Benji’s old martial-arts-muscle-memory began to spark and connect itself together, and they found themself legitimately enjoying a combat sport for the first time in their life. In addition, the new gym brought them into contact with a host of new individuals to befriend and learn from, another of whom ended up taking Benji to a parkour taster session. Much like them and lacrosse, it didn’t take long before they were hooked. Benji took to parkour like a fish does to water, rapidly including both new sports into their regimens.
They were fortunate for this refuge in sports, because it was also where many of their now-friends come from. Benji’s social circle has expanded and contracted quite a few times throughout their life: the most dramatic being when they came out, and many of the people they had become friendly with during their alt-right phase didn’t accept them. Luckily, however, they’ve had some firm friends who have stuck with them the whole way through, and have met others through their various extracurricular activities.
Now, at eighteen, Benji’s pretty sure they’ve figured most of what makes them them out. They started identifying privately as non-binary at seventeen, and only recently came out to friends and family (although Victoria insisted, she knew long before they left the closet) to a surprisingly warm acceptance. Their identity has tinged their politics (or, perhaps their politics allowed them to explore their identity,) and although the Beecham family has always been more left-leaning, Benji’s done a lot more than mere online activism, having made the 7-hour drive down to Washington DC multiple times to participate in protests alongside campaigning in election season.
As their high school career draws to a close, Benji has been seriously considering what their options are in terms of their future path. The Beecham family coffers can afford to send them to university, but with no particular area of academic excellence and little clue of what they actually want to do, Benji is stumped as to what they’d do as an undergraduate degree, let alone where they’d do it.
Advantages: Benji’s fit, strong, and healthy, with a well-trained physical body that should grant them the advantage in most confrontations. In addition, their interest in MMA has given them practical real-world experience with hand-to-hand combat and their parkour skills lend themselves well to rapid movement around the island.
Disadvantages: Benji’s training in martial arts has given them a strong sense of duty and carefulness in fighting: Benji is extremely disinclined to actually seriously hurt their opponent, leaving a more motivated attacker with the edge over them.
Gender: Genderfluid (Assigned Male)
Age: 18
Grade: 12th Grade
School: John Endecott Memorial Academy
Hobbies and Interests: Lacrosse, Parkour, Running, MMA, Activism
Appearance: Benji almost naturally sticks out in a crowd. At 6’3” tall they’re well above the average, and although they weigh a quite normal 163lbs, most of their weight is in the form of compacted muscle which gives them a lean, athletic look. Their chest and stomach are flat yet defined, the faint outlines of muscle groups clearly visible when Benji stretches or flexes. Their light brown hair is short and styled into a neat under shave, whilst their lower face is kept meticulously clear of all facial hair. This allows for their quite sharp and high features to stand out; Benji’s nose is thin and their cheekbones are high, giving them a somewhat haughty appearance, counteracted by full lips and a resting smiling face. Their only piercings are two small silver studs in their lobes, occasionally replaced by clear plastic if the situation demands.
Their clothing choices tend to fluctuate between days and moods, although there is a constant current of athleisure wear to it, with windbreakers, yoga pants and leggings making reoccurring appearances. Most of Benji’s clothing is relatively good quality and not inexpensive, and they buy from both the men and women’s sections of the clothing store, allowing for a wide variety of different colours.
On the day of the kidnapping, Benji was wearing a close-fit grey tracksuit, a blue and white pair of ankle-high running trainers and a matching blue windbreaker with various pride flag badges attached to it over a long-sleeved grey shirt. To accessorise, they also wore a white ballcap with ‘Salem Lacrosse’ printed on the front, over a set of crossed lacrosse sticks.
Biography: Benjamin Louis Beecham came into the world at NSMC Salem Hospital on the 12th of May, 2003 to a family that was confidently incorrect in thinking they were a boy. The younger sibling by three years to their sister, Victoria, Benji lead the life that most very young children do. It wasn’t until they grew older, and started going to elementary school, that some of their most defining features revealed themselves.
As a child, Benji was chastised many times for not focusing in class. Teachers called them a daydreamer, constantly fidgeting and never focusing on words or numbers… But as soon as gym started, they were a different person. With a little genetic assistance, Benji quickly became one of the top sportspeople in their year, and then their small school. Middle school tempered their unusualness- a more populated environment meant more sportspeople, after all, but Benji’s enthusiasm was unperturbed by entering a bigger pond with bigger fish.
As they grew and developed, Benji’s love for sports moved out of gym class, and into the wider world of extracurricular activities. They bounced off of traditional martial arts, especially taekwondo, and were never much for the gridiron, but excelled in soccer and track. Never one for the raw physicality and high-speed impacts of American Football, their speed and the power of their legs lead to them being a formidable presence as an offensive midfielder and striker. Being naturally suited to these roles meant that they received praise and attention for succeeding, which in turn only spurred them on to try harder and succeed more. This same speed was why they were always a fan of track, and, much like with soccer, early successes launched them into a positive feedback cycle.
Their initial forays into martial arts could be considered a precursor to their discovery and subsequent love of MMA later in life, an analysis that wouldn’t be inaccurate. As a youngster fizzing with energy and without much patience, the slower paced and somewhat more performative nature of traditional martial arts often left Benji bored and soured their taste for them later on, whereas MMA was fresh, exciting, and felt, to Benji at least, much more about the here and now than a focus on century-old techniques.
As Benji grew older, they also grew into their academics much more. More outlets for their energy meant they focused more in class, and although Benji’s grades have never been particularly exceptional, they’ve equally never been particularly poor, and they’re a fairly solid B-grade student. Benji’s least favourite subject has always been math, something which has resulted in their math grades occasionally dipping dangerously low, although never low enough to cause serious problems.
The Beecham family home was always one for talking about politics. Even at a young age, it was difficult to avoid hearing people discuss current events and international news- most of which came from a fairly liberal standpoint. Both the elder Beechams were supporters of Bill Clinton and later, Tony Blair (until the Iraq War, at the very least, which both opposed.) Both Victoria and Benjamin grew up with debates over topical matters being held over the kitchen table… But, when they were around twelve, Benji began to fall down a very different path. They spent nights watching Ben Shapiro and TheAmazingAthiest videos, ‘feminist owned’ compilations and other such alt-right content. The reasons for why, exactly, Benji ended up sliding down this path are unclear even to them- teenage contrarianism, perhaps, the urge to resist their parent’s politics, or maybe their realisation that something about themselves didn’t sit quite right and alt-right content being the easiest escape for it. Luckily for Benji however, they had Victoria- who had noticed her sibling’s slide and took it upon herself to try and challenge their views.
The next few years at the Beecham family home were argumentative ones. Benji’s proto-political beliefs were challenged, the lies they believed brought to the light time and time again, and even to this day, Benji credits these arguments with making them much more of a critical thinker than they ever were before they slanted right.
Entering grade nine and moving to a new high school brought Benji to yet another level of competition. Never before had so much of what they had taken for granted as what they were been placed under such scrutiny. As they formed their nascent political views, they slowly began to realise something else about them as well: puberty had jostled free an attraction to men that even Benji had never been aware of, and a slow, dawning realisation that maybe ‘man’ wasn’t exactly what they were to match. led to a lot of his early teenage years being spent in self-discovery, which they only emerged from at around 16 years old.
This was a difficult time for the youngest Beecham. A lot of their initial emotions were shame. The belief that something was wrong with them, or that they were ‘broken,’ in some way. They spent a not-insignificant amount of time hating themselves for their ‘abnormalities,’ watching gay media then immediately scrubbing all evidence of having done so out of their computer, and internally wrestling over their own love-hate relationship with their body. Two things helped them through this; their sister, Victoria, who once again ended up being Benji’s rock, and a safe, comforting refuge in the form of sports.
They had only barely entered John Endecott when they joined the school’s Lacrosse and Track teams. As both an attackman and a sprinter, they pushed themselves even harder in the face of fresh competition. Having been exposed to MMA by a friend, Benji’s old martial-arts-muscle-memory began to spark and connect itself together, and they found themself legitimately enjoying a combat sport for the first time in their life. In addition, the new gym brought them into contact with a host of new individuals to befriend and learn from, another of whom ended up taking Benji to a parkour taster session. Much like them and lacrosse, it didn’t take long before they were hooked. Benji took to parkour like a fish does to water, rapidly including both new sports into their regimens.
They were fortunate for this refuge in sports, because it was also where many of their now-friends come from. Benji’s social circle has expanded and contracted quite a few times throughout their life: the most dramatic being when they came out, and many of the people they had become friendly with during their alt-right phase didn’t accept them. Luckily, however, they’ve had some firm friends who have stuck with them the whole way through, and have met others through their various extracurricular activities.
Now, at eighteen, Benji’s pretty sure they’ve figured most of what makes them them out. They started identifying privately as non-binary at seventeen, and only recently came out to friends and family (although Victoria insisted, she knew long before they left the closet) to a surprisingly warm acceptance. Their identity has tinged their politics (or, perhaps their politics allowed them to explore their identity,) and although the Beecham family has always been more left-leaning, Benji’s done a lot more than mere online activism, having made the 7-hour drive down to Washington DC multiple times to participate in protests alongside campaigning in election season.
As their high school career draws to a close, Benji has been seriously considering what their options are in terms of their future path. The Beecham family coffers can afford to send them to university, but with no particular area of academic excellence and little clue of what they actually want to do, Benji is stumped as to what they’d do as an undergraduate degree, let alone where they’d do it.
Advantages: Benji’s fit, strong, and healthy, with a well-trained physical body that should grant them the advantage in most confrontations. In addition, their interest in MMA has given them practical real-world experience with hand-to-hand combat and their parkour skills lend themselves well to rapid movement around the island.
Disadvantages: Benji’s training in martial arts has given them a strong sense of duty and carefulness in fighting: Benji is extremely disinclined to actually seriously hurt their opponent, leaving a more motivated attacker with the edge over them.
