On his eleventh birthday, Rashid came into Steven’s world, moving in across the street. Rashid, another outsider moving in from another city, found a kindred spirit in Steven. As both of them had limited social circles, the found a common bond in one another. For the first time in years, Steven felt the emptiness of his world slowly fill with the joys that a friend can bring. The world book was no longer his sole source of imagination and fantasy. Rashid introduced comic books, video games, 52 tv channels, and a zest for recreating wild imaginings. With Rashid, Steven was able to go on hunting safaris in the big back woods, build towering forts that overlook acres of battlefields, ogres and princesses were around every corner, and at the end of the day, there was someone with whom to share all the days experiences.
From an outsiders perspective, Steven was receiving the attention from an adult group, and more importantly from a peer, that would help him as he prepared to enter junior high. Despite still searching for approval from his mother and those classmates that were less accepting, it appeared that Steven was growing as an individual.
Then, the summer before eighth grade, Rashid’s father was transferred to another city in another state. The move happened quickly, and within a week, Rashid and his family were moved out, and Steven was left alone once again.
In Rashid’s wake, Steven retreated further into his world of fantasy. He no longer noticed if his mother was home or not. He holed himself up in his room, reading comic books and experiencing the world through movies. His mother had an account at the local video store, and every other day after school, he walked to the store, picked up a movie, and watched it as he ate dinner, watching how actors moved in the scene, how the walked into a building, the way the smoked a cigarette and held a soup spoon. He imagined himself defeating Drago in Rocky IV, and it was he who corralled a friend into playing hooky and riding a float in downtown Chicago. Films were an easy way to live an exciting life without risking himself. His fantasies could be fulfilled, one 120 minute dose at a time.
His obsession with actors grew and grew throughout high school, as he became less and less interested in geometry, biology, and the daily struggles of school and socializing. While interested in films, and the actors that presented the stories, he never made the leap into acting. He never even auditioned for a high school show, nor attended any of the productions through his four years. He often thought about it, imagining himself a smooth Johnny Depp from CRY BABY, walking on set and wowing the director, but he allowed those fantasies to remain just that, fantasies.
As college quickly approached, Steven struggled with the paths that laid before him. Because of his poor grades and lack of motivation or effort, any school with a lengthy application process would be out of the question. His sister, despite having been out of the picture for nearly a decade, did leave some precedence in attending college, and Anne, despite her absence as a mother, did encourage Steven to continue school or find a trade that he was excited about.
Once done with government mandated education, Steven took the opportunity to study at a local junior college, where the courses and curriculum were rather lax. He retook some math classes that he had done poorly in, and explored some design and auto classes, aimlessly taking classes that seemed interesting, but always proved to be more work that Steven was willing to put in.
After two years of junior college, steven decided to take a break, and began working at a local pharmacy through connections his mother had at the hospital. Five days a week, and sometimes on Saturday, he worked at the first floor pharmacy downton. Steven took money, had patients sign paper, and handed out medication, day in and day out. He saw individuals from all walks of life; the corporate high-flyers that looked on top of the world, would slide in at the end of the day, looking for their medication that would help them through another evening. There were the pre-op and post-ops that showed up for government assistance in their life altering ways, the old folks looking to extend their days by one more cycle. In all of this, steven saw a cross section of the world that he had never seen before. He saw the pain in other peoples eyes that he had previously imagined were only in his. Yes, he was alone and spent years trying to hide, but so were the people that came in every day, looking for another way to hide. All those people looking for escape gave Steven the sense that we wasn’t alone in the world. But what changed his life and his surroundings was an encounter with an older gentleman one night as he was helping to close up shop. The pharmacist was tirelessly working to contact the insurance company to make sure the prescription would be covered, and as the pharmacist toiled away, and Steven was counting the drawer, the old man asked Steven what he wanted to be. Was he studying? Did he have a plan? What was his dream?
Steven stood stock-still for a second, not knowing what to say to a question that had never before been asked of him. And in a flash, Steven said, “I want to be an actor,” never before having entertained the idea, or even admitting to himself that he wanted to be more that just the guy working the counter at the local pharmacy. The old man stayed seated in his chair, looking at Steven, and all the while taking in Steven’s presence. And then firmly, with the utmost sincerity and concern, he said, “It is time you move on and make that a reality.” With those words, Steven resolved to move on, to leave a house that never was a home, and head west where dreams are made. Within two weeks of their quick talk, Steven had packed up, and started his journey to Los Angeles...
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From here, I need to work on Steven and his relationship with Bob...
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