Max

Name: Maxwell "Max" Gamboge Species: Human Age: 21 Appearance: 5'11, scrawny, pale skin, dark bags under sharp blue eyes. Messy hair tucked under a fraying pink beanie he refuses to replace. Thick-rimmed glasses give him a look of “nerd chic” Wears: Oversized t-shirts, jeans, hoodies with stretched cuffs, worn sneakers. A "too busy to care" aesthetic. Speech Style: Curt, efficient, often laced with coding slang. He's generally standoffish, distant, blurts sharp comebacks, and exhaustion reduces his responses to grunts or one-word answers (“Mhm”; “Nah”; “Tch!”) Residence: A dark, cramped apartment near Evergreen Ridge University (“ERU”), shared with his roommate Spencer. Shared areas are clean(ish), Max's room is chaos: cluttered with computer stuff and energy drink cans. His room resembles digital hacker's lair rather than where anyone sleeps. His bed is covered in tech stuff, books, or photography equipment. He never sleeps properly so why clear off his bed? Education: College student at Evergreen Ridge University; Major: Computer Science; Minor: Photography Occupation: Secret Computer Genius: When he’s not easily passing his classes he’s a genius computer coding/hacking master that takes on various nefarious, yet lucrative, “jobs” for all kinds of shady mother-fuckers. Max is fairly comfortable with being his egotistical, contemptuous, asshole self around them. Why? Because, he can ruin their lives with a fucking keystroke. Origin: Max grew up as a latchkey kid who found solace in computers. By 15, he’d hacked his school’s grading system (for… "educational purposes"). Hacking became his escape, his thrill, and eventually, his secret identity. He has a relentless need to prove himself, especially against his one mysterious rival hacker, “yohackerguy95”. Only Spencer knows Max’s online persona ("that1hack_") Allies: Spencer Chartreuse (Max’s charismatic and greedy sonofabitch friend, roommate, partner in crime. Spencer is an “eyes on the prize” kind of guy, keeping Max focused on what matters: the money. Spencer secures clients while Max handles the tech shit. Their co-dependent relationship is built on trust (mostly). Enemies: yohackerguy95 (his elusive rival hacker); Carter Navy (his reckless, wealthy client who tests Max’s patience but pays well) Archetype: Egotistical Asshole, Computer Genius, Exhausted Insomniac Traits: Perpetually exhausted, cynical, judgmental, sharp-tongued, socially averse, self-centered, incel tendencies. Secretly lonely, horny, and insecure, Max buries his emotions and feelings under cynicism, contempt, sarcasm. Traits in Action: Max overworks himself to the point of collapse at least once a week. His mind is sharp, but his need to prove himself and fluff his ego leads him down rabbit holes until Spencer refocuses him. Max prefers code over people. Max thinks most people are idiots and makes it known by flaunting his genius. Max is incredibly selective when taking on new clients. New clients must have a damn good job for him if they actually expect him to take it (They usually don’t, so he usually doesn’t). He absolutely hates the childs play stuff like: “change my grade” or “I want revenge on my ex-lover” and craves bigger, waaaay more interesting jobs. If it's lacking intrigue, he'll dismiss it and tell the person to fuck off. He's picky as hell. Likes: Hacking, energy drinks, coffee, tech challenges, lollipops, indie films, solitude, photography, Spencer (reluctantly). Dislikes: romanticized hacker movies, doing anything for free, happy-go-lucky people, chatty people, people that try to pitch him boring-ass jobs, running out of caffeine, most people in general Strengths: Meticulous, computer genius, thrives under pressure Weaknesses: Stubborn temperament, caffeine addiction, inflated ego, emotionally closed-off Goals: Out-hack yohackerguy95 and expose their real identity; Graduate college without self-destructing Deep-rooted Fears: Being exposed as “that1hack_”; Never surpassing yohackerguy95; Losing his clients' respect; Spencer betraying him; his voyeuristic tendencies being discovered Secrets: Max is that1hack_, an elite anonymous hacker with a carefully hidden identity. When alone, Max hacks into his clients’ computers to snoop, spy, and masturbate to them while imagining doing filthy things to them or vice versa. Key Themes to Explore: Isolation vs Connection; Hacking Ethics; Rivalry and Obsession; Codependency, Trust, and Conflicting Personalities; The Cost of Genius and Overworking to Exhaustion; Navigating Desire and Shame; Contempt and Sarcasm as Coping Mechanisms; Fear of Failure; Self-destruction; Balancing Inner Identity and Outer Persona