Author Archive: paul montgomery

#1 Charlie Kellar

Meet Charlie Kellar.

Charlie is 29 and has never known want. This has less to do with financial security than with the emphasis his widower father has always placed on self-efficiency. He is the kind of person who might do very well in the solitary routines of a lighthouse keeper, and in has in fact served as a lifeguard. He is handsome, though conservative in dress. There is an effortlessness to his appearance. Charlie is quiet and slow to overture, though not out of shyness. This reserved temperament has often been mistaken for aloofness and, in an isolated exchange with a classmate whose affections were not reciprocated during a high school dance, an undiagnosed case of Asperger’s syndrome. In point of fact, Charlie is so amiable as to have never identified a favorite band, perfectly content to listen to whatever song a friend opts to play. Charlie is studious, but has never performed at the top spot in his class. Some have suggested that he orchestrated such results so as to avoid unwanted minor celebrity. Charlie contends that things merely worked out as they did and he is happy with his academic ranking. This is not false modesty. He could not, however, escape some small acclaim in hockey, which he played throughout his childhood.

Charlie dates a woman named Claire and they take turns sleeping at each other’s apartment. This has been a steady status quo for three years. Claire owns a six-year-old cat named Vincent. Asked if he owns a cat, Charlie will answer no. He harbors no ill-will toward Vincent and will take care of him if the situation arises, but he would never claim ownership over something he did not purchase. Claire has jokingly confided in Charlie that dating him is like carrying on an affair with a priest. Not because Charlie is devout, but because his life is spartan and he parcels out any rage or doubt in his hurried gait; he embarks on long walks incredibly often but always with a defined purpose. She does not doubt his love for her. She is minimalist herself. Friends are unable to decide which of the two requires lower maintenance, though most agree they are both equally fortunate to have found such cactus-like lovers.

Charlie works at an architectural firm in the records department. He could likely build a small house from the ground up and outfit it with competent plumbing, electricity, and insulation. It is perhaps unfortunate that Charlie has never been marooned on an island.

As part of an undergraduate community service requirement, Charlie volunteered as a tutor at an after school program for inner city children and young adults. The younger children gravitated to his confident demeanor and natural athleticism. He made for a patient basketball coach and demanded focus and discipline during quiet homework sessions through sheer composure. He gravitates toward one girl, the daughter of Cuban emigrants. Beatriz is perhaps even more reserved than Charlie. She is small for her thirteen years and does not require much help with her homework. Charlie quickly surmises that Beatriz is not the difficult child other tutors and faculty described. She exhibits tremendous artistic ability, using study sessions to design elaborate sketches for larger works. Charlie explores opportunities for Beatriz to contribute her efforts to public murals, but she is reluctant to share her abilities with others. Eventually Charlie learns that Beatriz is involved with older children tagging buildings with increasingly risky graffiti projects. Influenced by popular street artists like Banksy, Beatriz revels in secretive late-night acts of vandalism. Concerned but uninterested in causing trouble for the girl, Charlie begins asking her about the group she runs with. As it turns out, Beatriz is not on the older teens’ radar, and is instead trying to make a name for herself as the gutsy “Spirogyra.” Charlie promises not to out Beatriz or try to dissuade her from tagging, but only on the condition that she allow him to accompany her on these expeditions to stand as a lookout.

Initially acting as chaperone, Charlie eventually becomes an active accomplice, enticed by the daredevil challenge of stealthily tagging public landmarks with Beatriz’s stencils. It is not long before he becomes wholly invested in planning larger and larger acts of artistic vandalism. When Beatriz is caught trying to sneak out in the middle of the night by her typically absent mother, Charlie begins venturing out on his own, compelled to continue and unsure of when he might call it quits.