What's in a Name?

Heidi Larsen

Heidi Larsen- Danish/German ancestry; Heidi Larsen is a student who is initially described as being pretty, vain, and conceited, with green eyes that appear faintly cruel, and she maintains an infamously turbulent on-and-off relationship with Devon Tremain. She is confrontational and sharp-tongued at times and often seen as a toxic and rude person, as well as frivolous and superficial, being mainly interested in her looks and public image. She has a slender physique with "curves in all the right places", straight, light golden brown hair, a flawless, peach-like complexion, petite snub nose, and luscious, pillowy lips. According to her girlfriends, she had the "perfect peaked cupid's bow" and was seen as extraordinarily beautiful, serving as a source of envy to much of the female student body. One of the more popular girls at the school, Heidi first met Devon during a very difficult time of her life during which she was romantically involved with an emotionally abusive ex-boyfriend. Feeling concern for her and attempting to see the good in her, Devon fell for her vulnerability and they quickly connected. Taking her under his wing and offering to protect her from harm through positive reinforcement and encouragement, she and Devon were happy together for a time and her better qualities appeared to surface. Since the first grade, she had been her school's scapegoat and outcast, routinely being picked on and mocked for her differences and placed at the bottom of the social pyramid. It was often assumed that Heidi's mean and sour disposition stemmed from the bullying and teasing she received in Springfield, Illinois as a kid. Upon reaching puberty, she formed a friendship with Vivian Masterson and eventually became one of her lackeys and most frequent companions after being unexpectedly defended by her. 

She had suddenly started her first period in the girls' locker room, with Vivian claiming that she "saw potential" in her to be among the popular crowd with her emerging good looks. Despite learning this, her relationship with Devon began to fall apart after she proved herself to be excessively prideful and stubborn, refusing to receive advice from others and preferring to do things as she pleased. Heidi is notoriously hardheaded and impulsive, as she is uncompromising and uncooperative and dislikes being told what to do, making relationships with her increasingly difficult to sustain. Her obdurate nature was sometimes too overwhelming for the generally patient Devon, with many of his friends, such as his best friend Nolan Persaud disliking Heidi and referring to her as an "attention whore" and "drama queen". She could be incredibly manipulative and sabotage situations for her own benefit, guilt-tripping Devon into not leaving her when he tries to cut off ties with her and reacting in a dramatic, emotionally effusive way. She also had a fluctuating self-esteem and self-image and tended to experience many highs and lows, appearing erratic and emotionally unstable much of the time. Heidi was heavily self-deprecating and secretly self-harmed by cutting and scratching herself, with Devon being the only person aware of this. She also suffered from a combination of anorexia and bulimia, often obsessing over her weight and purging secretly in the girls' restroom during her lunch period before being found by one of her classmates and escorted to the nurse's office. She once came with an açaí bowl and said that she wasn't allowed to eat pastries or anything with carbs since they would make her "fat", although she likes hot pockets and rolled ice cream. 

Although Devon was unhappy in his relationship with Heidi, he still struggled to break up with her and move on, feeling compelled to "help her" and believing there is still good inside her. As a younger teen, Heidi's interests included shopping, boys, and her appearance, as well as drinking and partying, and she tended to spend excessive time making postings on social media, namely Twitter. She listens to Benson Boone and has also joined her friends in watching different shows, with her being a particularly big fan of The OC. This frivolousness most likely surfaced from the influence of the company she kept around, such as the the popular students who encouraged impulsive, self-destructive behaviors that led her to neglect her education. Devon's mother strongly dislikes her, believing her to be a toxic influence on him due to her awareness of Heidi's previous involvement with drugs, such as heroin and alcohol, in addition to disapproving of her verbal abuse. Heidi was not a very dedicated student and put minimal effort into her studies,  preferring to socialize with her friends and lacking ambition, although she always had a small interest in interior design. It was widely suspected that she suffered from a personality disorder, although she refused outside help despite her family's suspicions and concerns. After being caught with alcohol during school hours by Alicia Ibarra, she was ordered to spend 24 hours in detox and 90 days at a sober living facility, which she initially refused to do. It was not until a near overdose at a party she attended her senior year of high school that she began to realize the toxicity of her behavior and began to self-reflect on her choices in life. 

After a brief stay as an inpatient at a psychiatric hospital, Heidi continued treatment at a rehabilitation facility during which she confronted her inner demons and the reality of the destructive pathway she was undertaking. Regardless of her previously unpleasant behavior, she revealed herself to be a troubled soul whom despite trying to keep herself on the straight and narrow, often fell victim to her own temptations and lack of self-control. With the help of Mrs. Seymour, a stern, but well-meaning female therapist at the rehab facility, Heidi internalized her emotions and struggles as she achieved a healthier mentality and found coping mechanisms. Although they initially did not get along, she was able to change her negative way of thinking and achieve an emotional balance under her strict regulations. Heidi was also encouraged to establish friendships with others at the hospital, most notably a troubled young mother who had previously been diagnosed as bipolar after being dismissed from her work as a nurse in the air force named Sharon and a retired firefighter struggling with PTSD and addiction named Layth. Despite having some traits of a manic episode, she is officially diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder throughout her stay at the clinic. She had a propensity to overindulge in toxic behaviors such as substance and drug abuse and obsess over certain people. This lead her to realize she also had an addictive personality, with a subconscious desire to emulate and become a part of Vivian's charmed life. While Devon remained supportive of Heidi during this difficult time, the two eventually parted ways upon concluding that their relationship was not healthy. 

Heidi came to focus instead on her recovery and slowly develop a romantic attraction to another client at the rehab facility. She met a misunderstood young man with long golden red hair that fell slightly beneath his shoulders and blue eyes named Keegan, who was dealing with a depressive state and had abandoned his previous life in Washington, DC. She learned that Keegan had ambitions of being admitted into the police academy and had previously worked as a security guard at different movie theaters and department stores. She realized that he had a very similar past to her own and bonded quickly with Keegan, eventually falling in love with him. Heidi self-disclosed and revealed her own desires and discovered that she had creative inclinations and felt at peace creating art. She colored extensively in therapeutic coloring pages and produced elaborate sketches and drawings in her notebooks to pass the time. She saw that she still had a desire to beautify and enrich the world creatively and focused on healing herself psychologically and spiritually to pursue a career in advertising, as she had previously aspired to. The two formed a solid friendship and progressively got to know each other, before eventually consummating their love secretly on the roof of the building in which they were staying after escaping momentarily during the night. The two decided to become healthier people together and were later discharged from the rehabilitation facility, promising to remain in contact with one another regardless of the direction life took them. She later attends the Rhode Island School of Design to major in Multi-/interdisciplinary studies and achieve a new life through a change of environment. She maintains a long-term relationship with Keegan as they live in a shared off-campus apartment together with their two dogs.

She evolves from a previously shallow, mean-spirited person with superficial desires to an authentic, genuine individual with earnest desires to leave a meaningful impact upon the world in some way. Heidi not only abandons her old friend group, but comes to develop healthier relationships with her fellow colleagues at university. She forms a particularly tight bond with a shy, artistic girl named Kaya, who has long, wavy blonde hair and quickly becomes her closest friend. She also gains 1.5 lbs and replaces her old, harmful habits of excessive partying and substance abuse with kefir and sessions of yoga, as instructed at the facility she had previously been admitted to. She increased engagement with nature, in addition to creating her own YouTube channel during which she would share her craft projects and makeup tutorials with others. Heidi also developed an interest in fashion and would periodically design and make her own clothes, meanwhile showing a more humanitarian side by donating some of her creations to charity. She adheres to the famous quote "tomorrow is a fresh day with no mistakes in it", learning in time that it is never too late to make the right choices and chose the correct pathway, regardless of how flawed or misunderstood you may be. She began to treat others as she sought to be treated, always providing those she encountered with a benevolent smile and replacing the jaded look in her eyes with sympathy and warmth. She later married Keegan, who spent his honeymoon with her in the ancient city of Petra and at last achieved his dreams of being a police officer after receiving his degree in criminology. Heidi likes the athleisure trend better than the "McBling" one and begins avoiding fake tans that make her body look orange in favor of tinted moisturizers with SPF. In the meantime, she found work as an an advertising designer in Chicago before coming into her own as the two decided to start a loving family. ESFP 3w4