History

Giftedish

Charlie was born on August 18, 1997, in the working class neighborhood of east Lakewood. His wasn’t a pleasant childhood, but he got by, learning at an early age the importance of amusing himself…by profit, if necessary.

His parents’ domestic situation was in a state of perpetual class throughout his early years, to the point that little Charlie became very well acquainted with social services. On more than one occasion, it had seemed likely Charlie would spend the remainder of his minority in the Leroy-Thompson Foundling Home. As it was, he was a frequent “guest” of the institution, during phases when things were particularly grim at home.

During these sojourns, Charlie naturally became acquainted with the house’s more permanent tenants, forging close friendships with lifers Rahim Douglas and Rafe Dominguez. Charlie’s naturally outgoing demeanor and irrepressible sense of humor made it easy for him to get friends, and before long, Charlie, Rai, and Rafe were an inseparable, sometimes terrible, trio.

Despite, well, everything, Charlie was a surprisingly good student. Though he played the part of a slovenly lout to perfection (and, indeed, the extent to which the role was a performance is hotly debatable, and Charlie will never concede to putting in more effort as a rule), he always got good grades, while simultaneously driving his teachers to distraction.

The fact of the matter was that Charlie could handle school; he just had his sights higher things.

Making Green

Charlie’s career in alternative medicines began almost as soon as he started high school. His was a tiny concern, at first, fueled by hustle, grit, and a small but loyal costumer base comprised of his friends: Rafe, Rahim, and a new addition…chubby class clown Xavier Rivers.

As the years went by, Charlie’s web of influence widened as word spread that he could get what you needed at a rate that wasn’t downright destructive to the constantly fluctuating finances of his target audience. His growing esteem came with a higher profile, which brought him new admirers, with business plans of their own.

The CCD

Around the end of his junior year, Charlie became acquainted with Colin Gable, a diminutive skater boy with broad knowledge of superheroes and an even deeper chip on his shoulder.

Colin had recently been parted from his best (read: only) friend, Dylan Doyle. Better and resentful, he sought solace in what Charlie could give him, and ended up commiserating with him, forming an unlikely friendship. They soon learned they shared an enemy in Nina Patterson, albeit for very different reasons.

Later that summer, Colin introduced another disaffected young man to their group: Derek Jackson, a nerdy trombonist who blamed Nina for the departure of Erin Littleton, a former member of Nina’s clique who Derek had long carried a torch for. Derek was initially less thrilled at voicing his grievances so openly, but very slowly began to open up under the others’ influence.

Charlie christened their trio the CCD, a punny acronym on their names but, outside of a meandering group chat and a few clandestine smoking sessions, there wasn’t much action.

Until a day in late October. The night before, Colin had convinced Derek to accompany him to a lavish house party hosted by Brooke Maddox, one of Nina’s friends. There, Derek had a realization, which he imparted to Colin, leading to a three-man sit down after school the following day. Colin and Derek met with Charlie at the football field, where Derek proposed a theory: a way of getting at Nina they hadn’t considered before…her boyfriend, Tyler O’Neil. At the party, Derek had witnessed a fight between Tyler and Jake Fitzgerald, spurred by an insinuation that Nina hadn’t been as loyal to Tyler as he’d always been to her. What if they could exploit that? What if Tyler had more in common with them than he did with Nina?

Colin, for his part, drew their attention to a video that had been posted last night, depicting local outcast Audrey Jensen making out with an anonymous girl. The video’s uploader? Lakewood_Eyes. He singled out Audrey as a potential ally…she was bound to be furious with Nina for outing her so blatantly. Charlie declared it was good: they each had their assignments, and they each knew what they had to do…before long, Nina would be out of business (and out of their lives) at last.¹

These plans were all well and good, but the question remained that, if Colin and Derek had their marks…who was Charlie supposed to be going after? Derek asked as much in their “CCD” group chat later that day, as Charlie was heading home. Charlie idled outside Big Mike’s auto garage, watching Amanda Steele close up shop for the day, confidently affirming his “business partners” he knew his job.²

Appearance

Charlie was a tall and lanky young man, topping out at 6’3. He had a lanky build and a pale complexion, with brown eyes. He kept his brown hair buzzed.³

Wardrobe

Charlie frequently wears tracksuits, complemented with a pair of DC skate shoes that he claims are vintage. He wore such an outfit to his CCD meeting at the football field.⁴

Personality

Charlie had an outwardly easygoing, laid back personality. He affected a dreamy, not-all-there attitude, peppering his exchanges with languid quips and typical stoner humor. In fact, he had a sharp mind and a resourceful nature.

Outside of business, he was deeply protective of his close friends. However, his loyalty wasn’t perfect and he had a deeply ingrained sense of self-preservation that steered him away from doing right by the ones closest to him.

Equipment

Headphones: Charlie owned a pair of headphones, which he would casually wear around his neck even when not in use.⁵

Crimes Committed

Weed dealing: Charlie is a prolific dealer (and user) of marijuana.⁶

Origins and Development

Of the characters who appear in the first volume of The Story so Far, none have been as drastically expanded from their initial incarnation more than Charlie.

Charlie debuted in the 2015 Season 1 AU. Unlike other original characters who transitioned from the forum to The Story, Charlie wasn’t a true playable character, appearing in a single scene as an NPC portrayed by BeartoothGuy, who portrayed Colin Gable. The function of the scene was for Colin and fellow stoner Derek Jackson (portrayed by TellatrixForever) to discover they had the same dealer, kicking off a friendship. This friendship ultimately never materialized: the two didn’t share any other scenes for the duration of the forum’s run, and Charlie consequently never appeared again.

Despite this, Charlie was frequently mentioned following his debut, as a lynchpin of a storyline for new OC Theodora Kellerman, portrayed by ThePlotMurderer. Theodora intended to crack down on an apparent epidemic of weed dealing on campus, spearheaded by Charlie, whose last name was given as Harris. She and Principal Teague went to some lengths to establish that they would be speaking to Charlie at the soonest opportunity, though these plans were derailed by a fight between Amanda and Nina, which dominated their scenes for the rest of the forum’s duration.

When The Story so Far launched in 2019, Charlie (his surname now changed to Hawkins, in recognition of OC Ted Harris, who’d been introduced in The Final Retreat) and the other stoners appeared largely to maintain continuity with the 2015 forum, which Volume I served as a continuation of.

Charlie appeared briefly in the first chapter to pick up after the forum’s events, and ended up being the first victim after Nina, whose death had been described at the end of the forum. Colin and Derek didn’t long outlive him, perishing in the following chapter. The deaths of all three stoners served primarily to beef up the body count. Similar to their original incarnations, they didn’t have any real connections to the other characters and were rarely attested after their deaths.

It was only when Lakewood: Year One began in 2023, and the Story so Far redux in 2025, that the “stoner” characters of Volume I were significantly built out, and a storyline crafted around them, tying them to the greater plot.

Other Interpretations

Season 1 AU

Given that Charlie’s original incarnation was only a “character” in the broadest sense of the term, he didn’t have much of a personality. He was far more subdued than his SRU incarnation, hiding his face beneath a hoodie and speaking in a gruff undertone.⁷

Trivia

Charlie was never intended to be a playable character, and was meant as an NPC. Given this, he didn’t have a faceclaim, either in the forum or when he was originally adapted into The Story so Far. Like Colin and Derek, he received a fresh face when Lakewood: Year One relaunched in 2023, being “cast” with comedian Pete Davidson.

In the Season 1 AU, Charlie is referred to as being part of the sophomore class, nominally a peer of the core teen cast (though this was inconsistently applied throughout the forum). When the original Story so Far Appendix was compiled in 2020/21, Charlie was still reckoned as being older than the other characters, with the explanation being that he’d been left back at some point. To this end, his birthday was given as August 18, 1998.

He was later made still older, with the Lakewood: Year One relaunch establishing he was two years older than the likes of Emma and Audrey, being a junior during the titular year, and therefore a senior at the time of the Lakewood Slashings. The 2025/26 Volume I rewrite also established he was a deceptively good student,⁸ removing any question of him having to skip a year.

Charlie has a habit of dispensing “bro discounts” to friends. The discounted amount varies per his discretion.⁹

Charlie is coy and ambiguous about his sexuality, at one point claiming he’d try anything. Whether or not this is an admission of bisexuality or just Charlie being cute has not been confirmed.¹⁰

Quotes

You won’t find a nicer hash-slinger this side of the PNW.

Charlie reminds Colin he’s not like the other weed guys.

I do try to radiate a suitable aura of menace, but that’s as easy as not changing my socks.

Charlie tells Derek he’s aware he can be intimidating

Sorry, dude. I don’t do girl-on-girl. It’s denigrating to women.

Charlie is uninterested in the kissing video

Gallery

1. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 25 ↩︎
2. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 30 ↩︎
3. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 25 ↩︎
4. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 25 ↩︎
5. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 25 ↩︎
6. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 25 ↩︎
7. Season 1 AU: Pilot, Post 221 ↩︎
8. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 2, Scene 19 ↩︎
9. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 25 ↩︎
10. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 25 ↩︎