S081 - James, Joshua [DECEASED]

[backslash]

Name: Joshua James
Gender: Male
Age: 18
Grade: 12
School: John Endecott Memorial Academy
Hobbies and Interests: Lacrosse, caring for his ant farm, taking surveys and personality tests, Christian club, Pottery Barn

Appearance: Josh is athletic and conventionally attractive in appearance. He stands at 6 feet tall and weighs 170 with much of the weight being lean muscle. He has a squared jaw and a somewhat rectangular face shape with prominent cheekbones. His eyes are dark hazel, are deeply inset with hooded lids, and have a naturally intense-looking gaze. His eyebrows are straight and appear as though they are groomed, but he does not actually groom them. Josh is Caucasian and has medium-fair skin that is typically tanned in Spring and Summer due to his time playing sports. He is typically only on the pale side during mid-Winter. He has dark lashes. He has a Roman nose that is a bit wider at the tip. His lips are full with a dramatic cupid’s bow and appear to turn up just slightly at the corners. He has slightly wavy blond hair, which is usually kept short, only just starting to show that it is wavy –- just like all of his brothers. He has a smooth but gentle mid-tone voice. He usually smells faintly of sandalwood from his deodorant and cologne.

In dress, Josh is unremarkable. He is always seen in either jeans or athletic shorts and a plain T-shirt in a neutral tone. On occasion, he will wear a lacrosse team T-shirt. For footwear, he wears black sneakers. When attending church, he will wear a light-colored button-down and a pair of khaki slacks.

On the day of abduction he was wearing a light gray long-sleeved shirt, a dark blue peacoat, a dark blue scarf, jeans, and black boots.

Biography: Josh James was born on October 23 to his parents Bill, head of HR for W.B. Mason office supplies, and Janet, a housewife, as the youngest of five boys. His oldest brother is Fredrick (29), then his brother Paul (27), Steve (24), and Bruce (21). Frederick is a mortgage finance officer, Paul owns a successful juice bar, Steve is a skin salesman – selling medical synthetic skin --, and Bruce is in school to be an anesthesiologist. Bill and Janet met at a purity dance as teens and immediately hit it off, having Frederick not long after getting married.

Josh grew up in a bustling and busy household with all of his brothers. As the youngest, he was sometimes lost in the shuffle. His mother was often pulled in many directions with all of her sons and his older brothers were not encouraged to help with the childcare of the younger brothers. He is not particularly close to any of his brothers other than Bruce, who left for college when Josh was 15.

In school, he was well-liked by other kids generally but was also fairly quiet. He would accept invitations to play sports, which he was naturally good at, or other games, but wouldn’t go out of his way to talk to others. While not especially popular, no one had much of a negative opinion of him either.

Each grade that he went into, the reputations of his various brothers preceded him. Going into middle school, he sought to not make waves while also starting to develop his own interests. One common factor for all of the men in the James family was playing lacrosse – something Bill had done and in turn, each James brother was enrolled into at the age of 11. Though all of his brothers also excelled at the sport, it seems to be the one space where Josh seems to be more engaged. He does well with analyzing the positions and points of the game and enjoys connecting with his teammates while on the field.

When he was 12, Josh was idly watching a nature show with his brother Paul before dinner. The show featured someone with an ant colony and he became interested. Many of his brothers had pets, such as Steve having a cat, Frederick having a dog – which he took with him when he moved out – and Bruce having a Pacman frog. Josh asked his parents for an ant farm and while they were a bit puzzled that that was his choice of pet, they agreed and bought him a small ant farm. He purchased a queen from a local pet store and also harvested some wild ants for his farm. Josh feeds them small insects and as a teen, has a very nice, gel, LED-illuminated tank for them. They are low-maintenance but he really enjoys watching them work together and build out areas while listening to music.

Moving into high school, he was still regarded well by others if not particularly close to anyone. His family are devout protestants and attending church and Sunday school was an important activity for the family and the brothers. As Josh entered high school, he joined the school’s Christian club, as all of his brothers had before him. The club consists of some Bible study and some community service through volunteer work. Josh is not super passionate about either aspect, doing them mostly out of obligation and so as not to rock the boat with his family. On occasion, he does enjoy the volunteer activities, mostly for the praise he receives.

While researching ways to make extra money to help their various volunteer causes, Josh found that he could make a few dollars by answering online surveys. He found that as a middle-class, white teenage male, his opinion was highly sought after by various companies. He really enjoys taking these surveys and takes them very seriously. The activity appeals to him because he likes that there is someone who values his opinion and wants to hear about it. He also has taken to taking personality quizzes, which he also feels is like someone taking an interest in him. He donates any money he earns from the surveys to the Christian club for their volunteer and pizza party funds.

At 16, his parents encouraged him to get a job, though his family is middle class and can afford to buy him whatever it is he could ask for. From the point of view of his parents, this was a good way to learn responsibility and get to know what working is like. After walking around the mall, Josh noticed a “Help Wanted” sign at Pottery Barn and applied as an evening, part-time cashier. He was accepted and now works between one and two afternoons a week at Pottery Barn. Josh finds the interior of the shop soothing and actually does like to look at the items and arrange displays. He also likes the way the store smells. It’s not typically very busy and the store does not play music or have harsh lights, so he enjoys the relatively peaceful atmosphere.

Josh is on the high school lacrosse team and plays as a midfielder. He’s a good and aggressive player, which is a departure from his usual demeanor. He pals around with his teammates and will hang out with them during lunch as a group if he doesn’t have another activity. He is good enough to consider playing college lacrosse. Overall, he is not someone who has strong emotional reactions and is calculating on the field. This is also something that his teammates consider to make him a good listener and they will sometimes vent to him.

As far as relationships, Josh has not had any. It’s not been unusual throughout his life for him to notice people looking at him flirtatiously, but he tends to be pretty oblivious to people actively flirting with him. He has a reputation among the girls of his school for being hot but boring, so not many girls have directly approached him for a date. He has found some people at school sexually attractive but tends to feel a bit guilty about that due to his religious upbringing. During his junior year, he overheard some girls talking about how he was handsome but dull and called him “Invisi-boy.” This hurt Josh’s feelings, but he said nothing and walked away.

In school, he gets average to decent grades. His best subjects are history and chemistry, for which he is in AP classes. He isn’t sure exactly what he’d like to major in yet and has been applying for schools as an undeclared major, thinking maybe he could be a lacrosse coach someday. His father is hoping that he'll choose a field that will allow him to come work at W.B. Mason.

Josh gets along fine with his parents. His father is not around as much so their relationship is friendly if impersonal. His mother is around much more and now that Josh is the only child left in the house, she talks to him more about her day and worries and he will confide in her. Because this is their fifth son and all have followed similar tracks without a lot of crisis, Bill and Janet have nailed down all of the steps and responses for raising their last son in an assembly-line fashion.

As someone who is the youngest of many siblings, Josh has often just been given impersonal treatment from his parents and people at school who know his brothers better. He is used to getting hand-me-down things and so never really chooses a lot of books, toys, or media for himself. He wants social acceptance and to go-along-to-get-along, not being greatly passionate about anything due in part to being lumped in with his family as a unit rather than an individual. He is a bit of a quiet person, thinking a lot to himself about how to most easily navigate situations. Josh lives his life in a check-list manner, feeling best when he knows what he has to do. He usually doesn't think much about other people.

Advantages: Josh is a fast runner, strong, and has quick reflexes from his years of lacrosse. He is not quick to anger and observes before making decisions. He is not disliked by anyone at school and would have some allies in the form of the lacrosse team.
Disadvantages: Josh has pretty shallow connections with even the people at school who know him best and so allies would likely not be that willing to risk themselves to help him. To many students, he could be an unknown entity, which could make it harder for him to acquire allies or may make others suspicious of him. Josh feels best when someone else gives him a course of action, such as in sports. Without someone to tell him what to do, he may be aimless and upset.

Designated Number: Student No. 081

---

Designated Weapon: BR18

Conclusion: I'm the invisible man! I'm the invisible man! Incredible how you can... see right through me! Show them what's spooky in the neighborhood, Invisi-boy. - Veronica Rai