Nahrung

What I'm most surprised about is the readers' reaction to Brad and Luke having an affair and Luke inviting Lyn to witness the act. As I've stated, I suspected that there was something sexual going on between Brad and Luke. I have also suspected that Luke has a thing for Lyn. Luke's motive for having Lyn witness the blowjob is unclear. Perhaps he wants to make Lyn jealous and/or entice him into a three-way with him and Brad? Anyway, I'm still puzzled by attorney Lyn's ignorance of the situation. How can someone so highly trained in critical thinking, observation and analysis be so blind? We could also get into Lyn's attitude toward Alexander but, that's just a whole different exercise in Lyn being clueless.

Thanks for the Happy Halloween present! Absolutely excellent... exactly what I was looking for tonight!

Just to add to the speculation and analysis, I get the sense that there's something sexual going on between Brad and Luke. I sense that Luke would love to get naked with Lyn. I think that Brad still has a crush on Lyn. Damn, Lyn must be hot! That, combined with his standoffish yet inviting personality, makes him even hotter. Just little musings of mine...

Nick and Jack are typical young adolescents, thinking and acting like young adolescents, but impaired by Nick's mental health issues resulting from, among other things, his father's death and a mother who is absent a lot, and Jack's history of abandonment, neglect and abuse. So, neither of them grew up 'normal' and are guessing at what normal is AND they don't seem to have an adult who is paying attention, watching what's going on, listening to them and coaching them about what 'normal' is. This is where people like Miss Clarice come in. Now, before y'all start reacting to my use of the word 'normal', let me just say that I was an adolescent counselor for 20 years. I worked in community, residential and treatment programs. NORMAL is a word we use a lot in counseling because, hey, what do you call the opposite of dysfunctional? The kids I worked with often told me that they 'just want to be normal'. So, a lot of counseling is helping people feel, think and act 'normal'. We can get into a lot of discussion about the finer points of what 'normal' means. Please don't. You know what it means.

Hmmm... The 'Memory' chapters are becoming more of the story than the main story. I'm not sure what to make of that.

Is Lyn actually hearing these rich snobs say these things about his mother, or is it just his insecure imagination talking? I'm still waiting to hear about Alexander's marriage and divorce.

Knowing that, I'm pretty sure that's why Nick's mom made him promise to call her if things got to be too much. Hopefully, he will.

Wow... so much so fast. So much to unpack and sift through, topped off with an ominous cliffhanger. Nick, Jonah and Jack really should meet together with an adult and get some clarity and direction on where to go from here. And then there's the letter from dear old mom and dad.

Thank you so much for this story! I found a link to it at the end of 'Swing For The Fences' Ch. 33. A very entertaining and sweet story. I also learned a bit about Buddhism. I always thought Nirvana was a Hindu thing.

I can't wait until Miss Clarice has to confront someone on their bad behavior. I worked with a woman like her when I was a counselor at a residential high school (Job Corps). She mostly had to make little sounds to get a kid's attention and woe be he or she who tried to ignore her. She was 'in your face' personified.

Well, whatever Mr. Johnston's personal or medical issues are, he is clearly not a good fit for House Parent. His behavior is clearly inappropriate and unprofessional. Hopefully, Nick's mom will write that letter and object to him being in such a sensitive position with Nick and his fellow dorm mates. It's nice that Jack could spend the break with Nick. Maybe Nick's mom could get Jack's parents to let him stay with them instead of returning home. I would think that being a doctor might give them an 'easy out' from dealing with Jack.

Well... I'm not sure what qualifies someone as an 'expert' to you but I was hoping that my experience with adolescent mental health would count for something. Anyway, the question I was answering was about whether Jonah had ADHD. Also remember that Asperger's is on the low end of the autism spectrum. One of the hallmarks of Autism is impaired perception of social cues. It sounds like the adults you know are a little further up the spectrum.

I was an adolescent counselor for 20 years and I would guess that, because of his social dysfunction, he's more Asperger's. He displays an impaired ability to catch social cues. So, telling him to THINK was the wrong thing for Nick and Jack to tell him. He thinks obsessively... he just doesn't know what to do with his thoughts. He guesses at what 'normal' is but he very much wants to be normal. Nick and Jack have to get back to him and assure him that they love him and LIKE him and want to be his friend. Threatening the removal of their friendship was a terrible thing for Jonah to hear!

Great Story! Thank you, Laura! Will 'Beyond The Veil' be on GA? I hope so...

Will 'Beyond The Veil' be posted on GA?

Good story! I've been following the Sunny Hill saga since 'Good Boys... I was always frustrated that I couldn't comment or ask questions without getting into Paetron. Thanks, Laura for posting on GA! It's fun being part of the discussions!

After several previous failed attempts, I started reading this story last weekend and am captivated by it. The subtle weaving of seemingly trivial details that come back as important is making the reading somewhat strenuous but intriguing and fun. I've started to worry that I might have missed something and then 'IT' gets explained. I'm glad that I'm getting to know Laura on GA. Being able to read yours and others' musings has been a great improvement over reading your works on Nifty.

Yeah... WOW... I get 'adolescent angst,' but Nick has somehow mastered the art self self-delusion. It's amazing how he continually ignores reality signals and goes with his self-destructive thought process. He even fucked up the last scene with Jack! I SO WANTED him to just crawl in bed with Jack, wrap his arms around him and KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT!

Ryder went from suspended in the air with Cassandra clawing into his skin to laying on the ground unconscious after the witch fell to the ground. Danny somehow got Ryder's blood on him which he wiped onto the ground (I'm guessing that somehow broke the curse). So... great chapter but difficult to follow.

Wait... Did Hearst know that Nolan was Jamie's brother? I tried reading back to figure out but couldn't find anything.

An old saying I once heard: 'Women marry men hoping they'll change. Men marry women hoping they won't change.'

Ah... but is Hearst going to come clean about XPress? I'm curious to learn what happens to that rag.

Love the advice mom gave to Nick: '… pick the one that makes you feel treasured. You can’t go wrong.' Too often, we make 'love choices' based on how we feel about the other person, but I've learned that what's most important is how THEY treat US! Too often, we base our choices on delusion and hope rather than reality. It's a painful mistake that we torture ourselves by making over and over.

I LOVED Jack's reaction to Mr. Bojangles! 😂 '"The second the door opened, Mr. Bojangles barreled through, barking, tail wagging, forty pounds of ecstatic muscle. He launched himself not at me, but at Jack, who barely caught him. “What the—?!” “He likes you!” “This is assault!” “He loves you.” “He’s licking my ear, Nick. This is non-consensual.”' HEHE... Jack is turning out to be the best friend anyone would want to have. I wish we knew what his family did that causes him to crash... 😐

Fascinating chapter! I especially appreciate the bit about 'Chekhov's gun'. It explains to me the difference between a good story and a bad one. I often times find myself overwhelmed and confused by some stories that barrage me with so many useless characters and details that I find myself trying to remember what the plot of the story is. 😕