History:

Nathan Christopher Winchester was born to sixteen-year old high school dropout, Sofia Laurana Winchester, in the late summer of 1985. Sofia had been a bright student in her time, making great grades and maintaining a GPA that any parent would be proud of. She was popular and beautiful, the perfect catch. Unfortunately, when one drunken evening lead to unprotected sex at a town party, Sofia ended up with child. Her parents were disappointed, but they encouraged Sofia to keep the child rather than proceed with an abortion. Sofia was torn, but in the end she decided to drop out and care for her coming child rather than discard her consequence.

The father had no interest in retaining custody of his unborn child. In fact, he blatantly suggested Sofia simply raise the child on her own and he would pay occasional child support if she needed. However, coming from a wealthy family, Sofia declined the offer. She did not want to accept money from a man who could not get up the courage to even recognize he was going to be a father. Sofia cut off ties with the man and never attempted to contact him again.

By the time the child was about to be was born, Sofia had grown comfortable with the idea of being a mother. Her parents were incredibly supportive of her decision, all things considered, and did everything they could to cushion the arrival of their grandchild. Although the estate was not a mansion, it was spacious and more than capable of holding another resident. A baby room was set up in the room across the hall from Sofia and the parents even held a baby shower for their daughter.

Nate was a solid eight pounds and six ounces when he was born, and was measured at the average twenty inches. His name came as no real surprise; it was the name of Sofia's father, and the child's grandfather. Christopher was simply a name Sofia had grown up loving. When Nathan Christopher was brought home from the hospital, he was greeted with open arms by supportive family members and friends of the new mother.

The bouncing baby boy was nothing short of energetic. From the time he could walk, Nate was getting into trouble. He managed to discover the secret to opening his playpen door, slipping out of his crib and even unrolling all of the toilet paper in the bathroom, leaving it scattered across the tile floor. Nevertheless, he was loved and adored by his mother and grandparents. He was not spoiled, ever, but neither was he lacking in the things he needed or desired.

When Nate was five, he was introduced to John Caplan. He was twenty-seven, a good six years his mother's senior, and had a boisterous laugh and charming smile. Sofia had spent the past two years working as an assistant secretary to a small insurance company downtown. Apparently John had been in for an interview, secured the job and began conversing with Sofia on a regular basis. They began dating and before long John popped the question. Of course, Sofia accepted joyously. He was financially secure, adoring and seemed to just love Nate.

After the wedding ceremony, the new family moved into a new house with a large, fenced backyard and neighbors that were a good acre or two away. It was not quite suburban but remained homey enough to give it a pleasant appeal. Nate was not entirely sure what to make of the change, being only six, but he grew accepting of his new surroundings after a few weeks. There were new adventures and treasures to discover. Perhaps there was even a dinosaur buried in the backyard.... or Indian remains! The possibilities were endless.

Sofia became pregnant again after her marriage to John. Nine months later, she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl they named Aubrey Jolie. She looked nothing like her half-brother, but rather favored her father's features. She did, however, manage to have the same large, bold, brown eyes as Nate.

Growing up and beginning the journey into adolescence was no different than his years as a toddler. Nate was curious about simply anything and everything, which earned him more trouble than praise. He loved and respected his mother more than anyone, but he couldn't seem to resist the urge to being adventurous. By the time he was thirteen, Nate was dappled in partying, drinking and smoking. He always felt bad afterwards, though, and would come confessing to his mother with his tail between his legs.

While Sofia was more forgiving, John felt there should be some consequences for his actions. The discussions caused a little bickering between the happy couple. Sofia did not want her son to make the same mistakes she did, but in the same breath she understood the temptation available to teenagers. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but agree that there should be consequences for her son's actions. They were never severe, however, because he always confessed before his parents heard the tale from another source. Among the punishments were additional chores, grounding and suspension from social gatherings.

With curiosity comes physical consequences. It was not uncommon for Sofia or John to get a phone call from the school saying they needed to come take their son to the emergency room. Nate was careless with his curiosity, often landing himself in situations that increased his chances of broken bones. He collectively broke eight bones in the stretch of his middle and high school years. Nate was not exactly fragile, but he was a bit of a daredevil and was willing to go to extremes to satisfy his curiosity.

In addition to his curious nature, Nate was protective of his little sister. He watched out for her whenever he could, and was absolutely thrilled to tote her around from place to place once he earned his license. He was always cautious around her and did his best to not influence her towards his reckless lifestyle. Aubrey, in his eyes, was a china doll and could be broken at any minute. Thus, he carried her around, theoretically, making sure she did not step in any holes or get involved with the wrong crowd.

Aubrey went along with her brother, not minding his overly-protective persuasion. She adored her older brother and admired him. She often told him that she wanted to be just like him, save the broken bones. It wasn't in her nature, luckily, to be so rambunctious. Aubrey was more reserved and likely to watch rather than participate, which pleased both her parents in addition to her older brother.

Nate had always been an adorable child and, consequently, a handsome young man. His curiosity made him outgoing and personable, which in turn earned him attention from the girls in his class. Just like everything else, Nate was interested in the opposite sex. He liked to understand how things worked or what would happen if you pressed this particular button. It was simply his nature and the way he was wired on the inside.

It was no surprise, then, when he began tiptoeing through the ways of women. He was not interested in dating at first, choosing rather to play the field with kisses. However, when he was fifteen he found a beautiful little lass with golden blonde hair and bright emerald eyes that caught his fancy. Her name was Laura Jenkins and she just so happened to be one of the girls that did not swoon every time Nate walked by. She was a challenge, and that intrigued Nate.

It took six months to get beneath her skin and prickle her interest in him. They became an item during the freshman year of high school and stayed together until the winter of their sophomore year. Laura was never entirely in love with Nate, but he adored her like no other. He couldn't quite understand her, no matter how hard he tried, but he liked her company and her sharp sense of wit and humour. She stayed with him because she also enjoyed his company and how he could make her laugh, but the spark just wasn't there for her.

The two ended up losing their virginity to each other the summer before sophomore year. Although they were positive they had used protection, the winds changed and sent them on an emotional roller coaster. Laura found out she was pregnant and immediately panicked. She did not tell Nate, but she notified her parents almost instantly. Within the week, she was put under surgery and the unborn child was aborted. It wasn't until Nate began to question her odd shrug-offs and short answers that Laura finally broke down and confessed to Nate.

For once in his life, Nate felt cheated. His mind instantly ran back to the story of his mother. He had been an almost-aborted child, himself, but his mother had the courage to lift her chin and take on her consequences. If she hadn't, Nate wouldn't have been alive. He wouldn't be here in the world, making people smile and living a life he loved. His heart was broken when he found out about Laura's abortion, and he withdrew into a shell for several weeks. Whenever she called, Nate did not answer and he pretended not to be home when she would knock on his door.

It wasn't until the beginning of sophomore year that they began talking again. The relationship was strained; neither of them knew why they bothered staying together. Nate felt like he would be a horrible person for abandoning her, even though he was horribly offended at her decision - especially for not telling Nate until it was over and done. She felt like she had made the wrong decision and needed to earn back Nate's approval, but they seemed to be at a permanent stand-off for five months.

Finally, just before winter break, the couple broke it off. Looking back, neither of them are sure who initiated the end, but it didn't really matter. They were both let down and disappointed. There was no point in trying to salvage something that just wasn't there. Life slowly began to pick back up, and by the time senior year rolled around, life was back to normal. Nate didn't ignore Laura, nor she him, but they never talked the way they used to. It was just a little too difficult for them both. Nevertheless, they didn't hate each other. They were just there.

After graduation, Nate applied for Faith Academy's university. He did not know much about the high school, except for the fact it was one of the highest-ranked in the country. He wasn't sure he would get in, but he received a letter of acceptance a few months after registration closed. He did not hesitate on his major - Film & Media Production. Nate wanted to get involved in the film industry. He had such an innate capability to pursue his interests and bring out the best in people that it only seemed natural.

Life at Faith Academy was great for the first two years. He managed to pass all of his classes, save racquetball, and go two years without breaking a single bone. Nate was still dancing across the alcohol line, taking a few drinks every now and then but never overdoing it. He didn't want to ruin his chances of establishing a career and was naturally dubbed the designated driver after parties.

One evening was different though, at the start of his junior year. Nate had a little to drink at a party, and unfortunately the group of friends had not planned on his drinking. In what was basically a lack of communication, there was no designated driver. Instead of taking a chance, the boys just waited it out until Nate was feeling sober enough to walk a straight line, touch his nose and logically process information again. There was still a little alcohol in his system, but not enough to be caught on an alcohol test.

Nate was in a car crash that evening. He was driving, but was not responsible. Another drunken driver, of all things, came around a bend clocking near 100 mph and slammed right into Nate's car. Both vehicles skidded off the road and Nate's crash spun in a half-circle to be pinned, vertically, between the other driver's car and a huge oak tree. The car bent like a smashed aluminum can, killing two of his friends on impact and the driver of the other car.

It was a blessing, an amazing one, that Nate survived. The doctors were never sure how he managed to make it out of that situation alive. Of course, he barely did. Nate was in a coma for two months after the accident. It was perhaps the most frightening thing his mother had ever had to suffer through. She was terrified that her son was going to die. She and John took turns spending nights at the hospital, neither of them skipping a single night to stay at home together.

He eventually came out of his coma, and spent another four months of recovery. Several bones were broken, including his shoulder, leg, jaw and three fingers. Nate was essentially a royal mess. He was pretty miserable during that stretch of recovery, but managed to jokingly declare this as his largest broken bone record ever. Even in the darkest time, he was able to make the situation a little lighter.

The wreck caused him to miss an entire year of schooling. By the time he was out of recovery, the spring semester had already began. Picking up the year now would be a waste, not even worth the money and probably impossible with the school system regulations. Nate spent the rest of his free time at home with his parents, idly occupying himself with learning how to play guitar, watching a few of his mother's old classic black and white films and helping Aubrey with her homework assignments.

Nate re-enrolled once fall semester came around. He picked up where he left off, a year behind schedule but determined to finish anyway. He graduated with a degree in Film & Media Production with a specialization in the field of directing. His goal is to become involved in independent film production. He was also one of the two students in the graduating class chosen to earn a full-time position from their internship companies. Nate, starting next month, was to be starting his new job at Brigade Production Co. The cruise was a celebration and pat on the back for finishing school despite the struggles. He was planning on meeting his friend, Leslie, in the Bahamas once he arrived.


How did he/she get from the ship to the island?:

Nate was on the top deck when the ship started floundering out of control. He was one of the few that saw the strange lights, making him frown and peer closer into the horizon. When the waves began crashing onto the cruise boat, Nate desperately attempted to make it into the stairwell, barely reaching his destination before the other occupants on the deck were washed away from the violent waves. He held onto the railing for dear life; and, though his head was slammed into the wall and broken glass cut up his legs, Nate survived.

The final force of hitting land sent him down to the bottom of the stairs. It hurt like hell, but surprisingly nothing was broken. Perhaps life was sending him some good karma vibes, after all. He saw the chaos in the Grand Ballroom, now completely shattered and destroyed, and immediately began checking on people that were injured and obviously took the brunt of the crash.

Nate played hero, doing everything he could to help the passengers more injured than him get to shore. Luckily, a few passengers were doctors and immediately got to work on caring for the injured. Nate was basically a to and fro, going back and forth from the ship to the island in attempt to retrieve as many live victims as possible. Only when he couldn't bear to swim any longer did Nate switch out with one of the other males on shore. He fell asleep in the open, beside several exhausted and passed out passengers, but tossed and turned all night. He rose sporadically throughout the evening, helping here and there before dozing off in brief naps again.


Have you read Filling Out Your Application?: Yep.
Who wrote it?: Me.

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