Ben, a character in the #LoveHacks series, is one of the Main Character's dates and a potential love interest. He is first seen in Book 1, Chapter 11.
Appearance
Ben has black eyes and black hair. He wears glasses. His everyday outfit is a blue jacket over a red and white henley shirt, which give him the typical geeky look. In contrast, he is also very fit and sports an athletic build.
Personality
Ben is a talented artist who works as a comic book illustrator. He is very warm and charming, and will passionately stand up for those close to him. Writer Owen also described him as "natural and confident".[1]
Background
After art school, Ben worked as a freelance artist taking commissions. A few years ago, he met George Lee, the original illustrator of Venus Corps, during Hero Con SF. George said he had "gumption" and liked his spirit. George got him some gigs during promotional art and some variant cover art for the series and when he retired, he recommended Ben as his replacement.
Chapters
#LoveHacks
Book 1
- Chapter 11: 11 Times Geeks Gave Us Life!
- Chapter 12: We Dated Three Guys At One So You Don't Have To!
- Chapter 13: 13 Dating Fails You Have To See To Believe (Off-screen; Physical Appearance Determinant)
- Chapter 14: Don't Plot Sabotage Without Reading This First
- Chapter 15: Why Sports Dates Have Us Hooked
- Chapter 16: 16 Secrets For The Perfect Breakup
- Chapter 17: 17 Things Never To Do At A Work Party
- Chapter 18: The Ending Will Blow Your Mind!
Book 2
- Chapter 1: What Happens Next Will Shock You
- Chapter 2: The Hot New Company Everyone Is Talking About
- Chapter 3: These Cosplays Are Better Than The Real Thing
- Chapter 5: 5 Party Hacks All Millennials Should Know!
- Chapter 6: The 6 Best Spots For A Guys Night Out
- Chapter 7: 7 Things That Happened (And Stayed) In Vegas
- Chapter 8: 8 More Things That Happened In Vegas
- Chapter 9: Forget Everything You Know About Weddings
- Chapter 10: 10 Surprising Foosball Tips
- Chapter 11: 11 Signs You Grew Up With An Older (Determinant)
- Chapter 12: 12 Things You Wish You Could Forget About Last Night
- Chapter 13: 13 Times Burning Sands Was Lit
- Chapter 15: 15 Tips For When Family And Work Collide
- Chapter 16: 16 Things Teens Don't Want You To Know
- Chapter 17: So Your Roomie's Moving Out... Now What?
- Chapter 18: This Series Finale Will Have You Shook
America's Most Eligible
Book 3
- Chapter 3: All Eyes on Us (Determinant)
Guarded
Guarded
- Chapter 13: The Fan Convention
Relationships
Main Character (Dani)
While Main Character originally dates him only to get some juice for her article, she ends up warming up to him, finding him amusing and more fun than she expected. She keeps it a secret that she writes about relationships and dating and that he will be part of the article. They develop a true relationship and they can kiss more than once. After the baseball game date, they can hook up. When she is finally ready to tell him about the article, TJ interrupts the moment when he arrives at her apartment and mentions her dating list which Ben overhears. When he asks her about it, she reveals the true circumstances surrounding her side of the relationship, which breaks Ben's trust and leads to a brief falling out until they make up with each other. They agree to start anew and she invites him to her company's anniversary boat party as a first date and to introduce him to her group of friends. During the boat party, she can invite him to a secluded area of the upper deck to watch the fireworks together where they can make out.
In Book 2, Chapter 1, they have a talk after Cole drunkenly revealed that Mark is in love with her. Ben shows understanding that there may be something between her and Mark but he would like to know for sure. She can agree to keep dating Ben and he states to be fine if she wants to see other LIs at the same time. In Book 2, he becomes friends with the rest of her friends. She can choose to become official with him in Book 2, Chapter 18.
Cole
At the end of Book 1, Ben becomes partners with Cole to work on a series of webcomics through the ComicFeed App, which they dive into for the first half of Book 2. Cole calls Ben the golden goose. Cole once showed up drunk at 3 a.m. to cook Ben dinner and show off his new app, Cook4Me.
Mark
Ben and Mark initially don't get along particularly well, mostly due to their mutual romantic interest in the main character. When Cole is unable to compete in Fooscrawl with Mark in Book 2, he sees it as a chance for the two of them to overcome their rivalry. In a premium scene, they can admit their mutual jealousy while they practice for the tournament. Cole's plan to force them to bond ends up succeeding, and they are on better terms with each other after the tournament. Mark even tries to help Ben come up with superhero slogans when the latter is struggling with writer's block close to his deadline.
Gallery
Other Looks
Ben's sketches of the gang as superheroes
_as_LoveHacker.png "Your Character (Dani) as LoveHacker.png (741 KB)")
Miscellaneous
Trivia
- Ben is shown on the cover of #LoveHacks, Book 2.
- In the story, he appeared in an Usher music video. His high school dance crew, the Beat Geeks, went to the video shoot in Oakland when they needed extras for a crowd scene.
- Similar to AJ, he likes comics. His favorite comic book store is called Galactic Studios.
- One of the #LoveHacks’ writers, Owen, has stated in a blog (link in references) that Ben is his favorite #LoveHacks character because of his charming geekiness.
- On June 14, 2018 on an Instagram live stream, it was confirmed by the LoveHacks team that Ben Park is Korean.
- He shares the same name as Ben from It Lives In The Woods.
- He is called Benjamin by other characters while present and doesn't object to it. Thus, it can be assumed that this is his full name. As a result, he shares the same name as Benjamin Wright.
- He shares the same surname as the surname of MC from Perfect Match as well as his/her cousin, the Park family (Alan, Faith and Wendy) from the High School Story: Class Act series, Hudson Park from Slow Burn, Joss Park from The Billionaire's Baby, and Heartbreaker from Filthy Rich if the default last name is kept.
- He played baseball in high school and was offered a scholarship to play at Grantmore University, but he turned it down to go to art school.
- His father is a dentist.
- He appears in Book 1, Chapter 12, but only in the preview for Chapter 13.
- Ben used to breakdance.
- He makes a cameo appearance in America's Most Eligible: Wedding Edition, Chapter 3, if you sneak off to HeroCon. There he says that AME is kind of his guilty pleasure and that he is rooting for Your Character (America's Most Eligible) and your fiance(e).