Cia

You are almost always good for a laugh James! Thanks

Offal (ewwww)

Q-topolis is a dictatorship! I mean, rules? Really? Good thing I'm above all rules! Smiting people... sometimes fun, sometimes not. You'll see!

Oh yes! Duh!! I should have put the 2 together as well, lol. Well I'm glad you read another of my stories, though don't feel any rush to continue to read. I have a varied content in there, all sorts of genres. Escaping the Pain was definitely more focused on the criminal reasons behind Alan's abuse. I also did very much want to make that story a romance. I was writing down plot ideas for Hiding last night and it won't be that same format at all. Hiding focuses on the abuse, the cause and the effect it has on the body and mind. Anything further for Joey will need to incorporate that journey he has to take to mental health, with the many stumbling blocks along the way. Dane's story was vastly different. He had the support of his mother and his abuse, while bad, wasn't as extreme, nor long term, at least until Alan tried to kill him The big thing was that I wanted to show the care and support that Dane and Tap gave each other through the story, their challenges as a couple and how they protected each other. That and I did give it a bit of the ideal spin, Dane's life took an abrupt turn for the better that wasn't quite realistic but hey, literary license and all that!

Thanks guys! It is a lot of work, I get to see the behind the scenes so I know that you guys do put time and effort into the anthologies that isn't seen regularly.

Why does alpha male have to mean sex fiend, callous, non-caring asshole? A true dominant man isn't just out to subjugate his fellow man through his superior abilities to bed women or men and amass a huge following of ticked off one night stands. That's just a cocky asshole. Sure, people buy into it but where does that leave the fidiot when he finally realizes that sex isn't the be all and end all to being a MAN. Now, maybe I'm just a woman who doesn't get it but to me a true dominant man isn't out to use em and lose em. I respect a man who is built powerful or has that presence but if he's a dick or has the 'I'm the hottest man here' attitude I'd not touch him with a 40 foot pole. Being able to handle the attention others give him without being that jerk, acting respectfully to his partners, being honest about who they are is much more appealing. I'm not saying be a monk if you're looking to explore, sex is and can be fun if it's shared the right way, but understand that without that emotional connection it won't be nearly as good. I'm not a man but I do tend to write in alpha males in my stories. I'll agree, they usually have a certain build, a definite swagger to their step but they also have that quality that makes them men I can respect. Caring, honest, loyal, trustworthy, protective. I live with an alpha male, imo, and while I could add jealous and over-protective to that list for him I wouldn't be with him if I didn't think he was all of those other qualities and more.

Do you mean how she picked the Red Eye, called in the song request of 'Come On Rain?' and there was a post-it note there with the number for her radio station when in this day and age we have speed dial and phone address books? I think she was giving him a kick in the pants, hoping he'd come through. Seems like it worked with how hard he was working and his intentions Female manipulation at its best. (that's if I have your question right and am not just totally reading into it what I want )

Wow, thank you Benji! I think Joey has a lot to share that could be valuable in a story too. LOL, okay, okay, enough people have asked. I will continue this story.I have had some thoughts on directions to take this that will hold true to the start I began with Hiding, but in a whole new story. We shall have to see how much Joey really wants to talk to me and let me figure him out.

Wow, thanks for the very honest review. I can sympathize on the reading list/book stacks. Right now on my computer lap table next to my side of my bed I have 30 some odd books, under and on top, only about half of which I've read. Sad, isn't it? So don't worry, I don't mind at all. I try to write in a very easy to read style, one that had good flow. I know this is a sensitive subject and I didn't want to belittle it but I did want to make sure it was easy to read. You might like Escaping the Pain if you liked this, it has similar themes with perhaps a bit of a more 'ideal' ending. This story was/is a bit grittier. I did leave it open so that I could continue this story. I wasn't intending on working on it right away but I think it will be something I do very soon as I've had a lot of people ask me that same question. Thanks so much for taking the time to read and review, I love hearing from 'new' readers!

Thanks! This was definitely not a story that I really wanted to point out 'he was abused, he got help, he found a boyfriend, life is perfect'. I was going toward pointing out the effects of abuse on the mind and the body and the different ways helping the victim can take. Helping someone recover doesn't mean making life perfect. This is fiction but not one of those stories. He takes that first step so we know it isn't hopeless but in my mind he has a long road ahead of him before he's even close to better, much less good. Thank you so much for your comments dear, you are always a dedicated reader and I can never say thanks enough!

You're right. It does happen all the time. Sometimes the worst abusers are caught and punished. All too often kids fall in the cracks or help comes too late to save their minds or their bodies. The violence is just deplorable. I have put it in some of my stories here and there, not to use it but to point it out. Sometimes we forget the consequences of looking away. Thanks so much for sharing the incident near you and your comments, it was a real highlight to read your thoughts for the story. Perhaps! I am not quite sure what story would come from this further, though I have some thoughts in my head. I am a sucker for a happy ending but I don't know that I would make them a couple. Might be too convenient. I don't know if I'm that nice to characters, even if I've already tortured them plenty! Thanks so much for your review and comment here, I love to hear what you think.

I really enjoyed reading your story. I wonder what signifigance the lighter has beyond his yearning for fire. It seems special. I hope more comes out about that in your continuation. The story is well written but feels a bit disjointed, as if it were snapshots from Daniel's life. I mean, where do we go from Daniel getting kissed by Shane to Daniel burning down his house with his stepdad inside? What was the motivation or the point that precipitated the action? The story works without it but it's something important we don't get to see that would allow us to see inside Daniel a bit more imo. That said, it was a gripping story.

Interesting story. I'd like to know if his state of mind is due to the drinking or if the drinking is due to his state of mind. There's more behind the thoughts of the character we don't get to see so it was a bit one dimensional for a story but for a characterization it was lovely. His musings and his determination to end it all right before he falls and passes out again are very bleak. The last line was a bit of quip, though it made me think that in some ways he was dead to society already, he already took that leap. Definitely a story that makes you think, good job!

Because they refuse to look beyond their own narrow views, they feel threatened, they are sadists, or just because they can. There are many different reasons people abuse others, I don't understand that part of it but I can show the effects of those types of thinking. It hurts, in a lot of ways, ways I wanted to show here. I'm glad the emotions held true. Thanks for the review, I really appreciate all the feedback you give me on my stories!

I'm all about new relationships in my stories, reading and writing. I've been in one for so long I think I live through the characters be they gay, straight, bi, men, women, aliens, kitty cats, fanged folk, blue peoples Yep, like it all! Beyond that, I need a story with a plot. I like to have all the emotions and excitement of two people meeting and getting to know each other but it has to be part of their lives and make sense to the story. Then they have to be involved in some other type of subplot, a mystery, an adventure, a war of galactic proportions, crime... sometimes bunny fluffy stories that are just about 2 people are okay but become quickly boring. I read very fast so I will usually give a story a chapter or two to get my attention but then if it's not sucked me in I move on but when I write I still try to have a hook in the first few paragraphs. A good line, dropping the reader into conflict right away, emotions exploding all over the place... it's all good!

Thanks Marzipan! That's where the past medical training comes into play. I know the likely things they would say and yet still keep it layman enough to make it understandable by everyone who doesn't have that background. The pain involved, well I've had broken bones, woken up from anaesthesia and been completely loopy, so it wasn't hard to make that believable. Honestly, waking up after major sugery with massive blood loss, broken bones pieced together, and tubes everywhere is a reoccuring nightmare of mine. I can remember people talking to me and not knowing who they were or what they said, flinching from contact because it all hurt and then just fading in and out of consciousness due to massive pain meds. I didn't focus on that part of it but it was a major part of my mindset when I wrote the story. My injuries weren't due to a beating thankfully but it definitely gave me fodder for the story. Thanks so much reading, reviewing, and commenting!

I wanted to have Joey repsond to Danny, mostly because Danny's been there. I didn't want it cliche but all too often we come across people who have been hurt much as we have been hurt in life. How we repond to them says a lot about us. As much as this was about Joey, I think I was focused more on what Danny could do for both of them. Yes, it's dark but in ways that show that the darkness doesn't always win. I need happy endings too! Thanks so much for the review hun!

Yes, you guys are my constant inspiration, what would I do without you and your wonderful writing tips and guidance over the last year and a half? I'll leave it to you to decide if I'm being sarcastic or not Lughbert. Nephy knows how I feel, lol. And yes, the mix of third and first and present/past was interesting but hard to integrate. Hopefully by you not picking it apart that means it worked well in this piece. Thank you Ag, for the review and comment!! I am not sure if and when I will revist these guys with all my other projects but I like to leave anthologies where I can come back and add sooo much more to the story. Aww, thanks Nephy! It wasn't an easy write, though it flowed really fast as I made it up. Sometimes things are better left unsaid but this story was one I felt strongly about when I wrote it, as short as it is. I am really glad you enjoyed it and thank you sooo much for leaving comments! Renee, what can I say? Many many Thanks for all your help, the comments, reviewings and compliments as well as the critiques and questions you pose before I post that make the stories so much better!

Wow, lots of cuties on here. All that snow though Matt, brrrrr! You can keep it!

Of course you hate the picture. Butt! Thanks for the compliment. Now was that so hard?

Perv on people like Camilo... until Matt catches him and then he gets in trouble! Just kidding. Welcome! I hope you continue to enjoy the site. If you have any questions feel free to send them my way.

Thank you! A comment in the forum and a review, wow! I'm really glad you enjoyed the story, even if the subject matter is not so pleasant. Acknowledging abuse, and that the mental can be just as bad as the physical is important. It's something that affects you for the rest of yur life, no matter how well you recover from it. Yet sometimes victims find something that brings some peace and they come out of hiding. You never know what that might be but it's profound change.

LOL. Well I did write this intending to make it much more... intimate, than Bonds. Glad to see it's coming through. I can't have things be just physical, I like exploring the emotional connections between two people who care truly for each other. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

Wow, talk about coming out strong. Great story dear! I was wondering if they were splits but you walked that line between the same person and twins so well. I wasn't sure, not til the end. I hope to see much much more from you!!

Great story Rilbur. I really like the sequence of events. The last line made it though, totally had me laughing!