full name.	julian jaqwan barnes.
dob + age.	june 23, 1989 / 27.
born + raised.	florence, mississippi.
residence.	richmond, philadelphia.
occupation.	security @ down & cambridge.
romantic status.	kinsey 0 & single.
family.	delly & jamison.

blurb

Blake, a maintenence man, and Delly, a career receptionist, were married for two weeks before the birth of their first child, a son they named Julian, but decided to call Jaqwan. The pregnancy had been an accident, they were both sixteen years young, and the wedding certainly fell into the shotgun category. Neither of them had particularly taken to the idea of having children, but abortion was out of the question due to religious beliefs and their family frowned heavily on the notion of adoption. A severe lack of money was always a point of contention in the Barnes household. Blake dropped out of high school to support his growing family and Delly rushed to get her GED and join him, especially after the arrival of Jaqwan's younger brother, Jamison.

It goes without saying that Jaqwan's upbringing was modest, at best. His parents taught him the value of working and the value of saving money, even if they didn't have the money to save for themselves once bills were paid and food was put on the table. Jaqwan was working odd jobs, like cutting grass in the neighborhood and babysitting for neighbors in their apartment building, by the time he was in junior high. Academics came relatively easily to him, a fact that his mother was thankful for, and basketball came to him effortlessly. He excelled at ball and, though he wasn't on the honors list, Jaqwan always made decent grades in order to stay on the team. Once he was in high school, Jaqwan was able to lock up a job at Ramey's -- a local grocery store chain in Mississippi.

Blake and Delly's split festered deep in Jaqwan's heart and left him riddled with deep seated trust issues, a highly emotional heart, and a tendency to bond quick and hard to people. He feels emotions, especially negative emotions, very intensely due his mother's loud, domineering personality casting a shadow in their household. Delly's demeanor kept Blake from his sons, even after they were old enough to contact him on their own. He simply wanted no part of the emotional abuse anymore. Without a husband to bully, Delly's attention swiftly turned to her oldest and most promising son, like Jaqwan was her meal ticket.

It was a solid plan, too, and it likely would have materialized if Jaqwan hadn't met a young girl during his senior year of high school. Young love was intoxicating to Jaqwan. Young love made him feel alive, made him feel like a superhero. The relationship was carried out primarily in secret with their friends at school in the loop on the situation, but their disapproving families shaking their heads at them when their suspicions were raised. Mississippians did not at all like the idea of a black guy and a white girl together. They didn't care how many three pointers he successfully shot or how many games Jaqwan won with spectacular clutch plays. She was all Jaqwan could see, she was all he cared about, she was worth throwing away a full ride to University of North Carolina. She was worth stealing his mother's car at the tender age of eighteen. She was worth disappearing out of Florence, Mississippi without a trace.

Life was uphill from the time the two of them ran away. She had high school to finish, he had to find a job that paid enough for them to survive, and they had to dodge both their families. Neither of them participated in social media until she was legally an adult. Her family, luckily for Jaqwan, wasn't actively searching for her or filing missing person's reports with the local authorities, but his philosophy was to be better safe than sorry. Young love, it would seem, would make you do things that were reckless and dangerous. Philadelphia became home to him quickly. His mind still young and impressionable enough to blend in easily in his urban surroundings, even if the culture shock was tremendous in the beginning. Nine years have gone by since he landed on his feet and put down roots in Richmond, Philadelphia. Jaqwan has been through numerous jobs, he's made friends who are more like family to him, and he's made a name for himself in his field of work. Delly would argue that he hasn't been home enough (or at all, not even once), but he doesn't care about anything except for what's right in front of him.