Charlie C.D. Bales

Grew Up… with an incredibly large nose. Charles’ rather large appendage is the big Elephant in any room he's in, but Charles compensates by being a master of wit and a romantic poet.

Living… in a small Washington town. Charles likes small-town life and being a big fish in a small pond suits him.

Profession… Chief of the town's Fire Station. Charles considers being a fireman to be a noble profession. He does what he loves most: saving lives. And his large nose is a secret weapon against the fires. He can smell a burgeoning fire from miles a way.

Interests… reading. Charles is truly a Renaissance man and is extremely well read. His other favorite pastime? Ripping anyone who makes fun of his large nose a new one; in fact, after someone makes fun of his nose, he gives them a list of 19 better jokes that he could have made at his nasal expense. 

Relationship Status… in a doomed love triangle. He is playing Cupid for a new, a good-looking but simple and awkward fireman, Chris, who has just joined Charles' squad. A new sexy astronomer, Roxanne, has come to town, and despite Charles' own infatuation with Roxanne, he helps Chris try to win her heart after she reveals to Charles he has a crush on him. Just like in the play Cyrano de Bergerac, Charles ghostwrites many beautiful love letters on Chris' behalf as a means of expressing his own feelings of true love for Roxanne.

Challenge… dealing with his heartbreak. When the letters to Roxanne work, it starts to become too painful for Charles to keep on writing to his muse from the shadows. And he wonders if he will ever have a chance at real love. Charles explains to his friend Dixie why he doesn't tell Roxanne how he feels: "Sometimes I take a walk at night and I see couples walking, holding hands and I look at them and I think: "Why not me?" Then I catch my shadow on the wall."

Personality… charming, well-spoken, and the most hopeless romantic you'd ever meet. He’s also hilarious and witty, but beneath his jokes and laughs is pain he is going to finally have to deal with.