At age 20, Darrell is in deep denial about his health. His motto: live for today. His attitude: “I’m young. I’ll go to dialysis as often as I can and I’ll be okay. And what does it matter—I probably won’t live long anyway.”

Darrell has much to learn. Unfortunately for Darrell, he doesn’t learn quickly.

When Darrell was 18, he was diagnosed with hypertension, which he had had for years. His doctor prescribed dialysis, which Darrell has been on for the last two years. Darrell is also on a list waiting for a kidney, although he’s not optimistic about getting one: his father is also on dialysis, his mother has high blood pressure, and he has no siblings. He often shows up for his treatment late, and frequently ends his treatment early, which concerns his health care team at Hope Street. But each time, he assures them he is feeling fine and that he will stay longer at the next treatment.

When Darrell was a boy, he wanted to be a professional basketball player. He played whenever he could, year round, with any team in need of a dedicated player. His position: center, the same as his hero, Shaquille O’Neal. When he was 12, after a year of pleading, his parents took him to Florida to a basketball camp, where he studied with professional basketball players like Clyde Drexler and Scottie Pippen.

Darrell still plays basketball, mostly on weekends and with not as much confidence or passion. He is also attending college, but has yet to declare a major. (Commitment is a challenge for Darrell.)

Darrell has his own "apartment"–the converted garage behind his parents' house. He has no steady girlfriend (nothing is too steady in Darrell’s life), but goes to movies, fast-food restaurants, and arcades with a half dozen different young women he knows from his neighborhood and/or college.

Meet the rest of the characters of Hope Street.