Terry grew up raised only by his father, David, and on occasion, his Uncle Charlie, having never known his mother. When Terry was 11, David started acting strangely paranoid and moving them across the country. They wouldn't stay in any home for more than a year before leaving. In some circumstances, they stay for only a few months.

This lifestyle has led to Terry having difficulty keeping friends. He normally doesn't keep in touch with friends after he moves. David's paranoia has kept them from owning cell phones, and with texting being the prefered communication among teens, his old friends soon forget about him.

Terry is quick-tempered. He likes to blow smoke and talk tough, but until recent events, his bark ha always been worse than his bite. Because of his tough attitude and outcasted lifestyle, he sometimes gets into fights at school. However, he's pretty bad at picking fights he can actually win, and usually gets beaten up.

His relationship with his father has become strained because of the constant moving, which David refuses to explain the reasons for. Whereas they used to get along very well, seemingly endless secrets combined with adolescence has driven Terry to no longer take David seriously.