David O'Brien

David stands at a reasonable 5'10", with reasonably uneventful grey-blue eyes and a large smile. His brown hair is cut short and nowadays is always combed neatly into place, but when he was younger he would often spike it up at the front. Although he is quite well-built from having always played a fair amount of sport, even David will acknowledge that he is almost completely incapable of defeating anybody in a brawl. Permanently clean-shaven, David's boyish features often make him appear younger than he actually is - something he often resents in a profession where age tends to be associated with professionalism and power. If anybody ever struggled to take David seriously in Politics because of his youthful appearance, however, he strived to change their minds by dressing smartly in designer suits ranging from Armani to Ralph Lauren. He carries with him an air of somebody who definitely knows how to act in public and behave in social situations, promoting a charismatic image for his current political campaign.

"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude." These words, spoken originally by Thomas Jefferson, could probably best describe David O'Brien's life philosophy. Born to succeed and pushed by his parents - particularly his mother - to be the best he could possibly be, it has often been said that the word 'failure' isn't in David's vocabulary but rather is a distant concept he's vaguely heard of perhaps one or twice. His ambitious and competitive nature ensured he was always a good student, and he also possessed additional talent of being able to appear as though he excelled without ever even trying.

Having grown up in a house where his parents scrutinised his every move and criticised his every decision, it's surprising that David didn't grow up to be insecure - in fact, quite the opposite. His attitude in the past has been politely described as 'confidant', but perhaps has more accurately also been called 'cocky' and 'arrogant'. According to David, there is only ever one correct opinion - his own - and woe betide anybody who believes the contrary. He can also come across as spoilt, most likely due to having been raised as an only child in a fairly wealthy family. When he was at school, there was a group of people who couldn't stand David as well as a group who hung onto his every word, and even to this day most people would point out that he's the kind of person you either love or despise. However, even those who actively dislike him would probably begrudgingly agree on one point: well-connected and influential, there are definitely several advantages to being David O'Brien's friend rather than his enemy.

Given David's propensity to stick firmly to his own point of view, it's perhaps unsurprising that he wanted to go into politics from a young age. He was also practically wrapped in the American flag since birth, embedding in him a strong sense of nationalism which was one of the reasons he ultimately decided to join the Republican Party. Although he doesn't consider himself to be as extreme as some of his fellow party members, David's political ideologies are mostly right-wing and conservative, and it is those very same values that he is promoting in his bid for State Senator of Suffolk County. Ambitious to the point where some might almost call him Machiavellian, David is careful and meticulous in everything - including his current campaign - and believes in doing what is necessary to get what he wants even if it means compromising his own integrity to do so.

The Irish-American O'Brien family was, originally, a large working-class family from South Boston - although, as David and his parents are often quick to point out, that was a very long time ago. His paternal grandfather - who, in keep with Irish tradition, David is named after - set up his own business with the little money he had and managed to turn it into a multi-million dollar empire. The company was then bought out for an astonishing price by a major multi-national, turning the O'Brien family into what is colloquially known in Boston as 'lace curtain Irish' almost overnight. As a result, David's father, Craig O'Brien, was already born into wealth and met his future wife, Karen, whilst they were both attending Harvard Law School. Once they were married, however, the O'Briens soon discovered that they were unable to have children. Although the Catholic Church advised that infertility was a call to adopt, both Craig and Karen were adamant to have their own children and ultimately ended up undergoing IVF treatment despite the oppositions of their religion. It was thankfully successful, and in 2080 Karen gave birth to David O'Brien at Massachusetts General Hospital in Beacon Hill, the neighbourhood where the O'Brien family ultimately ended up settling.

David will often admit that he would have liked to have had a sibling growing up; if that had been the case, he would probably have ended up far less spoilt. The only person who perhaps came close to a substitute for a brother was David's neighbour, Aaron MacDermott - due to an already formed friendship between both their families, the two boys grew up together and Aaron often served as the anchor to David's frequent overriding ambition. Craig and Karen, on the other hand, did nothing if not feed their son's headstrong nature. Determined he would be just as successful professionally as they were if not more, they piled their expectations on him and pressured him to be the best at school both academically and athletically. It didn't matter that David enjoyed English and History the most in Elementary School - his progress in all subjects was closely monitored by his parents and excelling in anything less than all of them was unacceptable. It didn't matter, either, that David despised playing sport when he first started school - his father ensured he practised every single one until David could play pretty much anything from American football to soccer. David always preferred individual sports such as tennis, however - perhaps because he was never much of a team player. The O'Brien household was also extremely disciplined, to a point where David would often joke with his friends that it felt like being raised by parents in the military. Despite the fact that David's parents were always behind him, however, he could never stop feeling somewhat distant and disconnected from them - after all, they only ever wanted to listen if it was to hear good news, meaning David could never actually talk to them about any problems he had. In the past, David occasionally felt that he could never quite please his parents no matter how much he achieved, but as he grew older he began to realise that the main reason he wanted to be successful was so he could be proud in himself.

By the time David had reached High School, he'd already decided he wanted to follow in his parents' footsteps and attend the same college as them - but not to become a lawyer. David was determined to go into Politics, and with his parents completely behind him put humility completely to one side in declaring he would one day the President of the United States. Pretty soon, David found himself at Harvard Law School with his best friend Aaron and working harder than he'd ever had to his life. He remained focus on the target he'd set himself when he first started college, however, and eventually graduated summa cum laude much to his parents' satisfaction. Since graduation, David has joined the Republican Party and been steadily working his way up the political ladder, setting himself small goals in order to ultimately achieve his final goal of running the country. Currently, he is in the middle of an intense campaign to become the next State Senator of Suffolk County and, as far as David is concerned, not even the sky is the limit - it's only the beginning.