Ian

At just 15, Ian has already learned the art of survival in a world that often feels stacked against him. He lives with his mother in a small inner-city tenement. Being fatherless and poor with his mother working two jobs just to put a little food on the table and pay the rent, he works under the table for a corner store, delivering groceries and deli orders to customers on his bike. The tenement walls may close in, but Ian’s wits and street smarts help him to temporarily escape them. If you see him sitting on his bike at the street corner while he observes those around him, you can tell from the way he looks at you that he's a very smart and cunning kid who knows how to work his charm. He knows he looks cute and that he has that certain appeal, and he is shrewd enough to know how to use that to his advantage to earn a little extra. With a sly smile and a knack for knowing exactly what people want, he turns grocery deliveries into opportunities for extra profit, charming lonely hearts and earning himself a reputation as the ‘go-to guy’ for a bit of company. But behind the flirtatious banter and the easy laughter lies a boy who craves genuine connection. Tom, the guy from down the hall, offers him a glimpse of what that might feel like—someone who sees him not just as a pretty face, but as someone worth knowing. His mother loves him dearly, but having to leave him alone so she can work so many hours, she doesn't really know much about what he does with his time other than that he delivers groceries. Ian is happy with his life as it is, as he can earn some money and get the kind of attention any 15 year old boy craves. And he knows that the poor tenement life is a lot worse for some people than it is for him.