Dodger

I'm unable to confirm or deny this, of course, but it is possible.

Robbie perhaps can be forgiven this time for jumping to conclusions without thinking it through. With everything else that's going on in his life he's pretty mixed up at the moment but Alex needs to be given an opportunity to defend himself. There are always two sides to every story. Thanks @Roen.

Sooner or later someone has to stand up to Don. He's had his way for far too long but his plan of holding the family together with a mixture of fear and reward hasn't worked. All it did was make life impossible for Robbie, to such an extent that the thought of no longer having to deal with it is preferable. This is a obviously a dangerous turn of events but as usual it will go unnoticed by Don and Sue, despite all the warning signs which they have repeatedly ignored. If anything happened to Robbie now then Tom would most likely never be able to forgive himself when he's really done little wrong. He can see how unstable his friend is from three-and-a-half thousand miles away but the people who are with him every day can't. Mr Andrews is the first adult to oppose Don and openly challenge what he's doing and he's a big player in all of this. The school principal and long time friend of the family. The man who knew Robbie's mom. Don will feel betrayed but while they slug it out, someone needs to recognize how vulnerable Robbie is before it's too late. Thanks Tim.

Jamie, the kid he met in the hospital tends to bring out the best in Robbie. I guess his life puts things into perspective and in a way they have both benefited from a very unlikely friendship. There's a lot of hurt left over from his mom's illness that Robbie still hasn't been able to deal with as well. Another important issue which D&S should have been helping him with instead of ignoring it. They wanted Robbie to join their family, but he came with a few issues which needed some work. Instead of helping him they've made things a lot worse. It would have been so much easier if D&S were more like Nathan's parents. Poor Tom means well and must be feeling bad for Robbie. It's a difficult position to be put in, whether he's called this one right or wrong remains to be seen.

You make some excellent points as usual Steve. I'll try to work through them. Robbie is definitely in a dark place at the moment and what happened in the shower was a insight into his mental state. It's obviously a dangerous place to be and even he is able to recognize this. It also shows that he hasn't been able to deal yet with his mother's death. Another wound which hasn't even begun to heal but it's something that needs to addressed rather than ignored. Sue and Don have proved ineffective, choosing to brush it under the carpet rather than talk to Robbie about it. He feels isolated and perhaps this is one of the reasons why he's lashing out at everyone. Don, unfortunately was brought up to believe that such emotions are a sign of weakness in a man and his attempt to hire his own brand of counsellor was predicable. However, it may actually prove fortuitous to Robbie as it brings Walter out of the woodwork. He knows the guy who Don's hired and felt the need to step in and go to extraordinary lengths to try to block him. Robbie should be able to see that he's not alone and it may help him climb out of a very dangerous place. As for Walter, this unassuming but very wise old man seems to have struck a chord with a lot of readers. I must admit I was completely taken by surprise by his popularity after only featuring in a couple of chapters but there you go. Walter deserves to play a more prominent role in the story.

Very interesting comment @Shadow086. Most people so far seem to believe Tom has got it wrong and Robbie is maybe being too quick to judge. We'll see very soon if this is the case. Walter is the man who has advised Mr Andrews to step in and block Don's hired counsellor, so he obviously has had dealings with this guy in the past and feels strongly enough to want to get involved. It's good news for Robbie but he can't see it at the moment.

Thanks @Butcher56 The anger issues are a big part of Robbie's problem and even Sue pointed this out. He's obviously more effective when he doesn't lose his cool. The moment he sees red, he just plays into Don's hands and loses every time. He managed to keep his temper under control though when talking to Tommy, who has the type of personality which would test the most calmest of people. 🤔

Robbie is showing increasing signs of anxiety and mental issues, which like you say, is to be expected. I know a lot of readers on this site will be able to relate to that, to a certain extent, including myself. Good to know it's encouraged you to do more writing. Thanks @Israfil

Thanks @Edward. We don't know too much about the other guy who Don hired but I think most readers will be able to work him out without too much help. It seems that Walter knows him enough to want to get involved rather than just watch from the sidelines. As for Alex, Robbie, and Nathan. It's anyone's guess.

Walter is back, indeed. I'd like to say it was all planned but I have to admit to being pushed. Reader power works to a certain extent. It proves that it's worthwhile commenting, I suppose. Especially with an ongoing soap opera like this. He plays a small but important part.

I look forward to these articles each week, so please continue to share your tips and tricks @Comicality.

I warn you. I'm pretty good at dodging questions. Even I wouldn't be able to guess it was me!

It’s fair to say my first Thanksgiving in Canada was memorable for all the wrong reasons and the inquest began immediately. I wasn’t sure why I felt the need to go with Tommy, but although I wasn’t proud of what I did, I wasn’t really ashamed either. I just wished I could have found someone nicer to do it to. Tommy was undeserving of such attention, and he underlined this by avoiding me until it was time for him to leave. Then he had the cheek to try to hug me in front of everyone as if we were

Well done Carlos. I love the way you handle this feature. It's always been my favourite, but you've made it even better. It feels like you've been doing this for much longer than a year. Some good questions and answers from four talented authors and great introductions.

Robbie may have surprised a few people with his brazen display not least himself. Even if he didn't expect to see it through to its conclusion. Unfortunately, the person in trouble isn't Don either.

Thanks @Benji Tommy may have had his suspicions, but I think what happened was entirely down to Robbie's perseverance. It was a bad decision which he will probably regret forever but it was more of a reaction to everything that was happening to him than a genuine attraction to this boy. It could have been anyone.

Probably more in a bad state of mind than actually desperate for a sexual encounter. After all, he didn't get anything in return, not even a thank you. You're right, Tommy is a tosser and undeserving of such attention. I suppose he was just in the right place at the right time. We will see how much this counselor is able to help him with his growing list of problems.

Robbie is definitely on a bad path. He needs to stand back and think about what's going on rather than knee jerk reactions to situations which are now out of his control. Despite breaking up with Nathan, there's a lot to suggest he doesn't really want that. He would have preferred to have been at Nathan's house for Thanksgiving than with Don and Sue and when he discovered Daniel was going, it just rubbed salt in the wounds. If this was a plot by Nathan to get at Robbie, then it worked to perfection. The main beneficiary of this was Tommy, who probably should thank Nathan for his crude introduction into the adult world rather than Robbie. I'm not sure if Tommy will ever reveal that secret to anyone, unless he turns out to be gay, of course. It's likely though he will keep that well hidden from everyone.

Robbie doesn't go to Nathan's house. The conversation with Nathan's sister happened the day before on the Sunday. It's a bit confusing, I probably should have explained it better, so apologies for misleading you. I will see if I can edit in something to make it clearer. Thanksgiving in Canada is always on the second Monday of October but other than falling on a different day it's pretty much the same as in the US, very family orientated with lots of food and a big fat bird (turkey). Nathan's family would have been having their own Thanksgiving. Don is a control freak and he was obviously happy to see his biggest headache (Robbie) fall into line after a threatening to cause problems at the beginning. By praising Robbie to the family he's giving the impression of a happy family and covering over any cracks. Robbie is still very much the prisoner and he proved it by allowing Don to pull the strings.

Robbie doesn't seem to any gaydar whatsoever. He was wrong about Rory and didn't have a clue about Alex. He probably would have guessed right with Nathan if Daniel hadn't have told him first. Admittedly, I've never been that good at it either.

It's not Tom either!

Happy Birthday my friend @paul.b

Robbie has missed a number of opportunities to out himself to the family and you're right, because it couldn''t really get a lot worse for him. We know that Don and Sue for all their faults have never physically harmed Robbie or even threatened to, but Robbie is still scared of pushing them too far. He enjoys antagonizing them but there's always a line which he won't cross even if he can't see it himself. Maybe he still feels his position within the family isn't as secure as he's been told or sees outright confrontation as being futile and something that wouldn't benefit him in the long term.

I assume you mean the worrying discovery. Well, you can relax because it's not Jamie. I'm not that cruel. Daniel is in an unenviable position but no one is better placed than he is. It's also possible that Daniel may not particularly want them to get back together.