Poor Man's Son

[centexhairysub]

I like that you're adding in the negative side of the new world that Gathan's been thrust- mainly that it's causing a rift between him and his parents. I hope that can be fixed at some point, but it's pretty realistic that it happened.

 

I loved Stefan's brutally honest conversation with Will. Part of growing up is being able to handle hearing something you don't want to hear. He's right- John's just shy of 13, WIll's not-quite fourteen. It's ridiculous for Will to think that he's found true love at 14, but...the thing is, when you are that age, that is exactly how you think. I loved Stefan's speech.

 

 

 

This was exactly what Will needs to hear, and I'm glad he got told that. I don't think "true love" when it comes to Will and John. I think "adorable puppy love that'll end before high school does." I mean, John isn't even in high school for another year, and I get the feel Will's already planning a wedding in his head or something. Aside from just the age, I'm just not feeling a palpabe, soulmate connection between the two. I think the gold standard for me in that regard would be Matt and Andy in Cross-Currents, who had that palpable connection even when they were Will and John's age. Matt and Andy were two guys you could tell were meant to be together. Here, in Will and John's case, they feel like very good friends who care about each other, but not "True Love" in any sense.

 

It's so painfully adolescent what's going on here- Will's so serious and so committed to John, while John seems to think of themselves more as being best friends who can fool around with each other. I'm just cringing for Will. It's bringing back some pretty cringe-worthy memories. But when you're in love with someone for the first time, or think that you are, you're convinced they're the only person you're ever going to love and you must be together, forever. That's a very teenaged view, and you're capturing that well, Mark.

 

Good chapter.

 

Well in general I have to agree with methodwriter but then I thought about it and decided I don't... LOL... I don't know if Will and John are truly soulmates and will be together in 50 years or break up during the trip to Paris but I think either is possible. We don't know why two people make it and others around them don't. I know at least two couples one gay and one straight that have both been together since they were about the same age as Will and John. Now, in the case of the gay couple they were apart for a few years for college and the military but both got back together and have been ever since. Dough and Mike were both 14 when they met and became involved. Doug went into the army when he was 19 and Mike was in college. They were apart for six years, although they did see each other several times during that break. When Doug got out of the army and went to college, he choose one that was near Mike and they reconnected. They have been together, and completely faithful as far as I know since. They just celebrated their 23rd year together, and that doesn't count the years in their teens. They are a wonderful older couple that I do guite a bit of traveling and theatre trips with. The straight couple got together when Patty was 14 and Charlie was 16 and he even put off college for two years working so they could go together. I actually believe they have never been with anyone else sexually in their whole lives. This August will be their 25th Wedding anniversery. They waited until they graduated college to get married. They had been together almost eight years when they got married.

 

I do think that you can met your soulmate when you are 13/14/15 but also agree that is rare. I don't know for sure how Will and John really view each other because we have had very little face to face time in this story for them. I do believe that they will met and be with others over the next few years but who is to say that when they get out in the world they don't find that the grass was always greener with each other...

[methodwriter85]

I'm not saying you can't find your soulmate at a young age....in Andy's case from Cross-Currents, he was eight years old when he met his. I'm just saying I don't get a soulmate vibe from Will and John particularly. I could be wrong, but that's my gut instinct- it just feels more like John views Will more of like a best friend that he can fool around with as opposed to Will, who seems to think they're true love. I think John has the view that he does want to go out there and explore, and he's right. He's 13. You should not be tied down to one person when you can't even get a learner's permit yet.

 

It just feels very much like a junior high/high school relationship, because it is. Whether or not it goes past that remains to be seen. (Hopefully the storyline will pick up and it won't be another ten stories before Will hits his 20's.)

Edited May 23, 2011 by methodwriter85

[centexhairysub]

I think part of my deal with Will and John is the lack of face time between the two. I can't get a read on them because although they have slept together a few times and had a couple of conversations; I just don't feel like they have had enough one on one time to figure out what they want and where they are yet. I sort of like the idea of them finding each other and being with each other forever but agree that I don't have that vibe yet either.

 

On a different note, do you like Crosscurrent? I have tried to start the story twice and just never really got into it for some reason. It is usually the type of story that I really like, but just couldn't seem to connect. I never got past the first couple of chapters when it first started. Maybe I will go back and give it another chance...

[methodwriter85]

Trust me, it is worth it. Andy Sharpe is kind of annoying blowhard who needs to be right all the time, but he's also a kind-hearted, intelligent, wonderful human being with a heart the size of Texas. I think Andy's whole Alpha Male jock personality can be somewhat off-putting to people who remember getting bullied by those guys in high school(I didn't, because we didn't have sports), but when you get past that you see a pretty worthy protagonist. And the love story between him and Matt Price is pretty well-worth the read.

 

I agree that we really don't get enough face-to-face time between Will and John. I'm sure the Paris trip will fix that. But from what I've seen, I just don't think that it's there with them. And a "forever guy" at 14...I don't know. Maybe it's just more how I view the world and my own cynicism about relationships than them not actually being "forever" material with each other. I'm sure it can happen. But we don't know. I'm also sure that the CAP saga ends before Will and John hit their late 20's, so even when Mark ends the story we can't really know for sure. But...I don't know. What vibe I'm getting right now is that Will seems more willing to build his life around John than John is interested in building his life around Will. The two examples I can think of would Will wanting to go to Gunn High so he can be close to John, and John delaying going on the trip so he could do lacrose. I think John's making things like his sports more of a priority than Will, as he should be at that age. I just think it feels like Will's much more serious about John than John is about Will.

 

I'm letting my own views that people shouldn't be settled until their early 30's kinda color my own viewpoint in this case. I do think that I could see Will getting settled down in his early 20's like Brad did, but I could also see that not happening. Darius is definitely going to follow the route of becoming a family man in his early/mid 20's, though, bucking the generational trend of delaying marriage and parenthood. JJ seems like the most like me in this regard- from what I understand, figure skaters tend to delay serious relationships until AFTER they're done with competing, and I can see JJ having a really wild period in his 20's like Marcel did. JJ's whole latebloomer persona would suggest that he'll start having sex when he's about 19 or 20, spend a whole decade making up for lost time and having fun, and then possibly settle down when he's 30-ish in the mid-2010's. But probably not to have kids. I think JJ would take his partner of whatever gender and live in a cool, funky hipster neighborhood in New York City or maybe London.

[mmike1969]

I wonder where and when JP had actually met Kristen?

[Tommy_B]

I wonder where and when JP had actually met Kristen?

 

Wouldn't you assume they met in Claremont over one of the July 4th celebrations? There weren't many people of that level in Claremont so I think they'd all know each other.

[rjo]

I still wonder if JP relationship to Kristen maybe closer than just a distant relative.

[Matthew k]

I still wonder if JP relationship to Kristen maybe closer than just a distant relative.

 

Well they aren't distant relatives..... JP's father is either Kristen's grandfather or great uncle, right? I forget what Bill was to Kristen.

[centexhairysub]

Well they aren't distant relatives..... JP's father is either Kristen's grandfather or great uncle, right? I forget what Bill was to Kristen.

 

I think that Bill Hendrickson, JP's biological father, would have been Kristen's great grandfather.

[methodwriter85]

We haven't really gotten a lot about the Hendrickson family, have we? They haven't really been a part of the story since the orginal CAP story. I don't remember hearing much about them after JP's scene with Bill. He's gotta be dead at this point, right? And he should be at least a great-grandfather.

 

JP would be Kristin's great-grand-uncle or something like that, right? Can we just make Kristin an only child, as well as her father and grandfather the only child, so we don't have to deal with other entanglements here? Let's keep it simple and streamlined. LOL.

 

My guess would be that Jim would try to use the information to force JP to share his family shares in the company to give to Rich, but then that really wouldn't work because of the dirt that JP has on Jim about JJ, and the dirt they have on Rich about Ella. So I'm stumped to see what kind of actual drama this would really cause, if it doesn't have to do with disinheriting JP and Claire. JP has the bulk of his money NOT tied up in the Crampton business, so I can't really see what that would do, either.

 

I guess the main point of this storyline would be JP and Claire learning more about the Hendricksons. Mark used the last story to explore the history of the Carmichaels. He used The Letter to explore the Schluters and the Hayes. I guess the Hendricksons have to be next.

 

Edited because I consulted the family tree. The Hendricksons have been there, just under the Crampton name. So Bill and Marjorie Hendrickson had Donna, who is JP's half-sister and sister-in-law, that got to married Jim, who is JP's half-brother. Bill and Majorie needed to have had a son that carried the family name, but I haven't really seen that son mentioned. That son needed to have had another son, who had Kristin's father.

 

So there needs to be a "legitimate" son that Bill had, who we've never seen mentioned, for all of this to work. Or Bill needed to have had a brother, that is actually Kristin's great-grand-father.

Edited May 24, 2011 by methodwriter85

[methodwriter85]

And I just remembered that JJ's actually Ella's uncle. Man. How funny would it be to have an uncle that's two and and a half years younger than you? God, this family tree is complicated. Thank god we never had a scene where JJ tried to flirt with Ella or something. That would have been icky. Sometimes JJ being an immature little kid saves him in ways he can't fully grasp yet. LOL.

[Hermetically Sealed]

LoL, my aunt is a year younger than me. But, I grew up with her so she's more like a cousin or sister. Though, I'd imagine if Ella and JJ found out about their relation (assuming they don't at this point) it'd probable be weird.

[mmike1969]

well considering Brian was only about 10 years older then Kristen, she could be JP's half sister...

[methodwriter85]

But did Bill even have a son, though? A legitimate one, anyway. The only Hendrickson mentioned as being his "official" offpspring was Donna Hendrickson, who became Jim's wife. It would actually have been pretty interesting if Bill Hendrickson was unable to carry on the family name, but had all these illegitimate sons that he couldn't claim. That's happened more than a couple of times in royal families, I think. I'm thinking that Bill had a brother, who's the one that actually carried on the family name and is Kristin's great-grandfather.

 

LoL, my aunt is a year younger than me. But, I grew up with her so she's more like a cousin or sister. Though, I'd imagine if Ella and JJ found out about their relation (assuming they don't at this point) it'd probable be weird.

 

I think it would be more interesting for JJ to find out when he's about 19 or 20 as opposed to now. He's not ready; and I think we should save that for when JJ gets his own story. Let him stay a blissfully oblivious little kid for just a few more years. 2006 can be his awakening in many ways. Mark's pretty good with the delayed gratification stuff, such as Jim not getting confronted about JJ until Millenium, so I'm hoping that's something that JJ stays in the dark about until sometime around the 2006 Olympics.

Edited May 24, 2011 by methodwriter85

[rjo]

One can only at this point assume but sense Bill was very active I can only believe he had more than one child with his wife. If so Kristin would be his great granddaughter or granddaughter. There is something more however. Another secret hiding in the background. The thought that came to mind was that JP was Kristin dad or granddad. That would be very interesting. I just have that feeling. I could be wrong but something tells me something important has not been revealed yet.

Edited May 24, 2011 by rjo

[methodwriter85]

But that's the point- that Majorie herself wasn't that fertile, so she was only able to issue one child with Bill. It would make sense that he would blame her for that, which was a VERY common mindset back in those days, and to "punish" her for not being able to give him a son, he constantly cheated on her. That would actually explain a lot of his behavior, and add some extra depth to the scene between Bill and JP in the orginal CAP story. Bill agreed to let JP be raised as a Crampton because he was a teenager or something when JP was born, and Bill figured that he'd have a son with his wife later on to carry the family name. But that didn't happen, and thus carrying on the family name had to go to Bill's brother, Kristin's great-grandfather.

 

As for JP somehow fathering either Kristin herself or her father...I mean, I wouldn't count it out completely, but...there are some boundaries I think JP wouldn't go past. Having sex with a woman married to a Hendrickson just doesn't seem all that likely, when you figure how JP pretty much needed to be with Jeff to get him through having sex with a woman just once or twice. And since JP already knew he was a Hendrickson biologically, I can't see him just throwing caution to the wind and screwing a Mrs. Hendrickson. JP has always been a very careful, deliberate person.

 

For your scenario to work, it would basically have to contradict everything we know about JP. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it would require JP to be seriously out of character.

Edited May 24, 2011 by methodwriter85

[rjo]

I agree with you. I can't see JP do that. Even the sex JP had with woman (Isidore) was done with Sam or Jeff. I wish I could see into Mark's mind sometimes but I can not. One question I have for you Jeremy where did it say Bill's wife had problems with bearing children? I remember Isidore could not have children after Clare and Billy but I don't remember any reference to Bill's wife.

[methodwriter85]

I was just making a guess, since the only legitimate child that Bill had who we know about is Donna Hendrickson Crampton, so yeah. I mean, there could be a son out there, but it might make things more interesting and with some added gravitas if Bill was never able to have a son that he could actually give his name to.

[Mark Arbour]

I agree with you. I can't see JP do that. Even the sex JP had with woman (Isidore) was done with Sam or Jeff. I wish I could see into Mark's mind sometimes but I can not. One question I have for you Jeremy where did it say Bill's wife had problems with bearing children? I remember Isidore could not have children after Clare and Billy but I don't remember any reference to Bill's wife.

 

No you don't. It's a very scary place.

[rjo]

Mark, I don't know about that. It must be a great place to come up with these wonderful stories.

[PrivateTim]

Mark, I don't know about that. It must be a great place to come up with these wonderful stories.

 

I dunno, that room in Malibu scares the poop outta me.... I think I will keep my hands off Mark's Pensive.

[mmike1969]

Well Tim, I am sure if you wore latex gloves, it should safe for you to handle it.

[sat8997]

But that's the point- that Majorie herself wasn't that fertile, so she was only able to issue one child with Bill. It would make sense that he would blame her for that, which was a VERY common mindset back in those days, and to "punish" her for not being able to give him a son, he constantly cheated on her. That would actually explain a lot of his behavior, and add some extra depth to the scene between Bill and JP in the orginal CAP story. Bill agreed to let JP be raised as a Crampton because he was a teenager or something when JP was born, and Bill figured that he'd have a son with his wife later on to carry the family name. But that didn't happen, and thus carrying on the family name had to go to Bill's brother, Kristin's great-grandfather.

 

Hello?? Haven't you read these stories?

 

This is by far the most oblivious scenario you've come up with to date, Jeremy. Both Bill and Marie were well into their 20s or maybe even early 30s when JP was conceived. Marie already had Jim and Bill would have already fathered Donna.

 

Sometimes you really need to rein in your imagination.

 

No you don't. It's a very scary place.

 

With gerbils.

[Mark M]

i don't even know what to say about that room for robbie n brad. but put me brad n matt in there and cody and i'll do any of them any day....i just cant get enough of them four. i liked Max for a time there too. OH an Neil was my hero....NOT! bahahahaha. Who's the villin in this story?? So far it just seems like people consience lol.

 

Anyway so far i'm enjoing poor mans son. Although i've taken a keener interest in the bridgemont series.....just cuz maybe it's more action??? i'm not sure. but then again pirates of the (won't even try spelling it) 4 is out recently so maybe thats why, i havent seen it yet though. love the first 3.

 

ummm so i'm still wondering where Will and john and wow i cant even recal his name......the hayes cousin of robbie is what i'll reffer to him....i guess i could've scrolled up but i'm being terribly tired/lazy.

Is he straight or will he bat for the other team.....im so confused with him. either way HOT HOT HOT.

[B1ue]

Hello?? Haven't you read these stories?

 

This is by far the most oblivious scenario you've come up with to date, Jeremy. Both Bill and Marie were well into their 20s or maybe even early 30s when JP was conceived. Marie already had Jim and Bill would have already fathered Donna.

 

Sometimes you really need to rein in your imagination.

 

The scenario still plays out reasonably well with the ages adjusted, and the preservation of his good name coming into play (as well as Grand Daddy Crampton telling Bill to sit the f**k down and do exactly what he says, or else), except that Bill would, in that case, once it became obvious he wouldn't have a legitimate son and JP's grandfather had passed away, probbaly consider himself no longer bound by those rules and seek to engage JP. He'd probably have played a more active role in Brian's life, even if he wasn't willing to dare Crampton's ghost.

 

Still, it's an interesting thought, how Bill may have viewed his wayward sons, and if he ever wished to claim either. And what his wife would have done, or if in fact she's the real reason he didn't. Certainly more interesting than just writing him off as irresponsible. We have Jim and Rish for that .