sinqua walls, bisexual, male + he/him ― hey look, it’s davis brooks! they’re 33 years old, they’ve lived in shrike heights for one week, and they’re currently working as a security guard in shrike mall. i heard they’re pretty uncertain, but i think they’re so brave at the same time. can they make it out alive?
Davis Brooks thought he had his entire life figured out. Coming from a military family, there was never any doubt about what he’d be. His grandfather was a Marine, and both his parents were in the army (which was how they met), and then his older brother and sister both followed in their footsteps, joining the navy and the air force, respectively. For him, it felt strange not to join the ranks as well, and beyond that, Davis genuinely wanted to, especially after his father was killed overseas. For Davis, there was no greater aspiration than protecting people, and that was what he wanted to do, so he joined the army like his parents.
Davis rose through the ranks, and he truly felt like he'd found his calling. This was his dream, and it was coming true. However, his personal life was not as fulfilling. He’d dated, but he’d never had a relationship last. And even worse, he wasn’t sure he’d ever loved any of his past significant others, and the longer things went this way, the more discouraged Davis became. Maybe love wasn’t something meant for him. Or maybe he just couldn’t get over his first love.
Growing up, Davis and his best friend Alec had been inseparable, and for Davis at least, it been more than that - he’d been in love. However, Alec had always claimed to be straight, so Davis had accepted that, never professing his love for the man. It was enough just to be near him. As they got older though, they began to drift apart as they went down different paths, Alec falling in with a bad crowd. Davis had tried to help, but there was only so much you could do for a person who didn’t want help. And eventually, they lost touch.
That changed though in a way Davis had never expected. There was a home burglary in his hometown, wherein one of the residents had been badly beaten, and Davis discovered on the news that the description of the perpetrator matched Alec, particularly a unique scar on his arm that Davis remembered from a biking accident. But that couldn’t be right; the Alec he knew wouldn’t hurt anyone. So he told no one, instead looking into it himself, and after a bit of searching, Davis tracked Alec down.
When they reunited, it was like no time had passed. Alec seemed genuinely happy to see him, and after talking, Davis knew that Alec couldn’t have done this. Alec swore he had nothing to do with the break-in, and he seemed aghast that suspicion was ever thrown on him. Davis believed him, though he was admittedly troubled when he learned that Alec had briefly dated the man who had been attacked. But Davis had been thrown off by the fact that Alec wasn’t as straight as he had assumed, and his friend revealed that he’d always had a crush on Davis. And then the men finally acted on their long-standing feelings for each other.
Alas, Davis had been wrong: the house was broken into again, and just as before, the man had been attacked. This time he’d had a security system installed, so he escaped major injury, but his security cameras had footage of the attacker fleeing. The footage was shown on the news, and when he watched it, Davis knew it was Alec despite the grainy footage. Even though the man’s face was covered, he recognized the scar and the tattoo on Alec's wrist he’d seen during their night together. Davis felt so foolish, and, angry with himself, told his mother everything, seeking her advice. She was furious he’d kept this to himself, and after his mother called the police, they converged on Alec's house. Wanting to talk to his friend, to try and convince him to turn himself in, Davis went there too, reaching the house at the same time as the cops. But Alec would not come quietly, and there was a standoff wherein two people were shot before they were able to get into the house and arrest Alec. One of them was an officer who was hit in the spine and would be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life. The other was Davis, hit by what he thought was a stray bullet.
The wound could have been worse: Davis was shot in the shoulder, and apart from some physical limitations, he’d made a full recovery, though he was no longer deemed fit to serve due to his injury, and the army honorably discharged him. But Davis would never forgive himself for letting love blind him to Alec's true nature. His mother never told anyone else (her call to the police had been an anonymous tip), though the police briefly questioned Davis given the fact that he'd been there during the standoff. But Davis's mother could not look at him the same way, and Davis couldn’t blame her. So she suggested he move to Shrike Heights, the town she grew up in and where her mother still owned a home, having recently retired to Florida. After his siblings figured out what had happened, Davis had nothing keeping him in Boston.
