Jaro_423

This was a very touching chapter. Your characterization is so good and I love here how you have made us see into what makes Sandra tick and how she is mellowing in spite of herself. And then the love and the bond between her and William is so profound too. Of course, it's all so romantic as well, but that's what makes it a good story. We want to believe the best too, in spite of life and the world and ourselves, so for me, reading is a way of enjoying a more perfect view of life than one usually gets in the real world. Thank you for writing this story with such skill. I am very blessed to have discovered your story and I am so enjoying it.

I have to say you did a great job. Troy's reaction/response was the best and it really rings so true too. Anything else would have certainly put a big question mark over whether Troy actually loved Grant enough, but this shows he did. And that he appreciated how much Grant loved him to do this. Great way to bring the worry of the journal to a fitting conclusion that just cements them in a tighter bond than ever. Well done. Thank you.

Wow! Difficult to know what is best here, but Grant is really sticking his neck out and likely to get it stomped on good and proper, and I'm not sure he won't deserve it. It all depends on Troy's pride and just how much he is willing to let go of it and realize that he needs help - all the help he can get - in order to pick himself up again and live a decent life. It looks like this might be a difficult one where things spin out of control.

Ah, cleaned up and pride back in place, and Grant, bless him, makes room for Troy to exert that pride. I guess he's helpless here, for to push Troy would not be right either. It's tricky and could so easily all blow up in Grant's face. Hoping that somehow it all works out.

The chapter title had me a bit worried. I thought it might be a literal wall, like the fence, so was glad to find out it was the kind of wall that needs to fall: that wall of pride. Pride can be such a terrible prison and a relentless warden. So glad that Troy managed to let the wall fall. Not sure where this is all going but it sounds like you are really a romantic too. And I'm finding it difficult to put this down. Thanks for such a great story and such plausible characters. You really are skilled.

I have a new respect for Grant. He really is skilled at handling tricky situations or tricky folk. Even with his knowledge of Troy through the journal this would not be enough to know how to handle Troy, but Grant negotiates this with as much skill as Troy has in building a fence well. I am a great romantic, so, of course, I want this all to fall into place with a HEA but being realistic I can't see it happening somehow, so I am very intrigued to see how you develop this story and if you're as skilled as your characters are in their fields. So far, I see you are greatly skilled so I am expectant of good things to come.

This chapter made me cry with Troy hearing John speak to him. OMG. So sad for him.

You portray Troy so well. A proud, independent man who won't accept charity even though he actually desperately needs it. It is sad and heartrending. And there Grant sits in Troy's house like the cat who licked the cream and debates whether he can splurge on fixing Troy's fence. Damn! Grant is making me angry.

Wow! Troy's situation is tragic and heartrending. I nearly ended up in a similar position though I had no work and no support until my kids came through with some help and I miraculously found an affordable room 3 days before I was due to hit the street life. So his struggles are real to me. I'm thankful that I was not facing the cold though as that makes his situation that much harder to bear. Very real characters. And how do they connect, though here is no doubt a part of the journal? By contrast Grant is enjoying setting up his first independent home. What a thrill for him and such a delight. I envy him that privilege and yearn myself to regain that independent living.

Very short chapters but always take one somewhere. Interesting that Rick picks up on Aiden's relationship with his father and has a solution for him that Aiden seems ready to accept. It also poses more questions about Rick and why he is in a wheel chair and what his story is. Looking forward to finding that out.

A good opening chapter. It has drawn me in to read on. I'm curious to see where this goes with the famous artist who seems to know what he is doing and the totally rookie, most unsuitable model you could think of. What will Aiden do with Rick on canvas and off?

So, you came back in January. I had to pick this up again because it is so good. You are such a skilled author. Excellent, but I'm not sure I am up for this stop start ride. Are we going to finish this story now? Probably not. Can I keep coming back to see if there's progress? Not sure I have the stamina to do that. I don't regularly come on the GA site any more, though I must say there have been some great reads here, this being one of the best. This chapter looks epic in that Corbin seems finally to have made the decision to move on and cut the Englishman off, and then we read the chapter end to find out the drama is not ended yet. Wow! Again. You do amaze me in how you draw this out. I loved Corbin's tearing out his classmates after they ambush him. That is great drama. But also shows this amazing side of Corbin in his loyalty to his housemates. He is such a complex character and you have drawn him so very well and in such a compelling manner. The house politics in this election of new members is totally baffling to me. It is so incredibly complicated and so very political. It's no wonder you Americans spend so much time and money on politics. It seems it's in your blood. It's really quite exhausting. But this story seems to epitomize that and much as I am sometimes weary of it all, it is intriguing and compelling. I have to put that down to your skill as a writer. Let's see what more you have to draw me in.

I probably should do that but I can't face the marathon.

@northie thank you so much for the notification of this story. I enjoyed it immensely and strongly identified with so much that Eric is going through, though I'm in a different part of the world entirely and so the cultural side is very different in many ways. I have been moved to tears in every chapter and am feeling quite vulnerable after reading this. Thank you for writing Eric's story. I would love to know why you did so and what the motivation behind it all was for you. And I am so very grateful for the opportunity to read this remarkable story. I love it for it's realism and I really got to like all the main characters. I look forward to reading the next one as there are still lots of untied ends here. When do you anticipate your next one being ready for posting?

I'm not about to get in some legal wrangle over this. I have a gentleman's agreement with my landlord - very rare in this day and age - so I am respecting the privacy of his home in which he very generously allows me the use of a furnished room at a very reasonable rate. I may even find one day that he is not at all homophobic. So far he has been incredibly helpful. He is Mormon (maybe ex now as he doesn't seem to be too involved with them any longer) which is what made me somewhat wary of coming out to him. But he crochets as do I and he is very encouraging with the projects I have done, even given me some wool. It's actually a very good situation, but it is somewhat precarious too there being no signed agreements. I have to trust here and not live by the legalities of this. It is a good thing for me. But thanks for your concern.

Bless you, @northie there probably is, but I doubt they would be much help. A friend of mine has been seeking help from Social Services and they really not great in providing adequate solutions. He was in a home for a while but forced to move out even though he had no where to go. My landlord has helped him but the situation is not good, and I am not about to lose my room either as it still gives me a measure of independence. So like Eric I cope with what I can, keep my nose clean, don't rock the boat. So you story is an inspiration in that Eric has found some folk who get him and who are there to help him. That is such an incredible blessing.

This time in Adam and Andy's home is all part of Eric's expanding knowledge. Those two young men are so very good to take him in. It is almost unbelievable how very compassionate they are. So few like them in my experience. In fact, none that I can recall in my sphere. It's all about money and what can be afforded and little about care for fellow human beings gay or straight.

This story often moves me to tears. I'm touched this time that Eric is in such a place where people have rallied round him and shown him kindness and acceptance. I have not found the same even though I now live in a country in which it became legal to marry the same sex in 2006. I have only lived here since 2017 having come from a country where one can still be imprisoned for being gay. I had hoped to find greater acceptance but my circumstances and past experiences have led me to be over-cautious so that I have now retreated partially into the closet again. It might prove in the long run to be totally unnecessary but I daren't risk losing my accommodation, and since I am not in a relationship it really doesn't matter much.

I get so involved in the story that it brings me to tears all the wonderful help that Eric is getting. Puts me in mind of a fall I had recently in which people appeared from all round to assist me. It was wonderfully encouraging to know that most folk are very kind and helpful. So glad Eric is suddenly finding he is not alone and isolated and he does not have to be fiercely independent and fall foul of the system. So heartwarming. Thank you.

This chapter suddenly moved things up a notch or two and left us hanging at the end. Very good. For me it was a very interesting chapter because there are little snippets of life elsewhere which is always interesting even if sometimes they might seem rather everyday to a person who lives there. And then the exchange between Brian and Eric when he boldly comes out. That is so realistic. I hope Brian manages to process this and come out right side up. Such a lot of folk get stuck at this point because they can't comprehend that gay doesn't mean alien or monster or pedophile. I do hope Eric has not injured himself badly. He's too important to this story. On the gay issue I just want to say that I have gone down that road of coming out. I once had the attitude of stubbornly declaring the truth of who I was and be damned, but now I have retreated back into the closet somewhat just because it is easier that way and I am tired of being hurt by rebuffs and a little afraid that I might actually lose my room if my landlord is not happy. It's a hard one. The world is still a very unfriendly place in many ways in spite of the advancements that have been made for the queer community.

I was sort of keeping up by following Gay Star News but it has just closed down. Sounds very like what Eric was following with all sorts of news, much of which I don't pay attention to but so much international news too. I think it was British based. I hope it will be able to start up again. But in the interim do you or any of your readers have a recommendation for a good online gay news provider?

I did laugh when I saw this. When my wife's cousins from America visited us in Africa and we asked it they were ready for "pudding" they eagerly responded and then when it was served said, "but where's the pudding?" I think perhaps my wife had served up a tart or something. They decided the jug of custard was the nearest thing to pudding. Lol.

I am enjoying the exploration of Eric's new world with him. It gives me a good chuckle too.

I wondered if I would need to re-read the first book again, but this first chapter brought it all (or at least a lot of it) back. Thanks for the notification of it @northie. I don't come on the GA site as a regular thing so I completely missed the postings. I'm very happy to get acquainted with Eric again, because I so identify with much of what he is facing being an older person. Lol. I was at least introduced to computers comparatively early by my brother-in-law who was younger and got involved in a computer business. I vividly recall the delivery of our first computer and how the guy installing it lost me with his jargon. I was too embarrassed to ask what the hell he meant and couldn't wait for him to leave so I could fiddle on my own. That was long before the dawn of the internet and in the relatively early stages of desktop computers. But I am eternally grateful that my brother-in-law pushed us into becoming computer literate. Now, of course, IT has taken off like a rocket and I am behind and falling ever further so, just coping with what I can manage. Lol. Like Eric, I am also gay, and discovered or owned up to this very late in life, and like the computers and the IT I am also behind in it. Lol. But learning more each day. And then the other thing I love, is that you are pucker English and not this American-English thing which is half the time not English at all. Lol. I wonder who will read this and bite. Lol.

Wow! What a great chapter to end with. It's like we jumped off the cliff on this one it was so filled with drama, emotion and yet that beautiful song rendered even more beautifully in the rendition chosen. Wow! And then there's the promise of something to come and a new beginning you have hinted at. Very exciting too! And there is Mr. No-Romantic creating this chapter. Not going to let you get away with this non-romance claim!