Carlos Hazday

@Dmrman Although CJ's precocious and above average in many areas, I keep trying to make him multi-faceted.. If you pay attention in the future you might notice the more time he spends with the dads, his personality will be a mixture of theirs. I didn't want every character in the story to be gay and using Ben and Hudson game me the opportunity to feature two guys who are very supportive of the GLBT community and the organizations they founded.

@Dmrman I can't recall how much I had to rewrite in this chapter. Normal procedure: write, set aside for a bit, beta reader, review comments, make fixes, read over, make changes/corrections, editor, make appropriate changes, editor, make appropriate changes, editor, make appropriate changes, read over and tinker, let sit, read over and tinker, post. The chapter covering late summer 2017 has been my biggest headache. I had to go back and add some things and it got out of control. Had to slide scenes to the subsequent chapter which created a domino effect and I ended up with an extra chapter. That one has yet to go through any of the above steps so it my grow again. There's so much in my head trying to get out sometimes I have to smack myself.

@Dmrman Tried to give CJ the attitude that if the world gives you lemons you make lemonade. Spoiler: CJ's group will grow LOL

Speculate away, I kinda like it

@Dmrman Harley was a stroke of luck for me. (i'd say genius but I'd never hear the end of that!) Meeting him the first day of school was the beginning of a good friendship and I guarantee you he'll be around for a long time. Avoid talking about him with @Bucket1. Buck has these weird ideas about what's going to happen with Harley. LOL The two kids will be at the center of the action as the story begins to shift it's focus from the older men in the near future.

@Dmrman LMAO! I'm not as proficient as others in the use of emojis but this one I know Anyway, CJ has some serious growing up to do no matter how aware andmature he may be. He'll continue to act like a teen at times but we know he has a good head on his shoulders. We'll get to meet the Kennedy brothers in an upcoming chapter.

@Dmrman I've been remiss in thanking you for giving me the opportunity to revisit these old chapters. It's been quite enjoyable to read over some of the scenes I wrote so long ago. Some individuals have natural leadership abilities and become reluctant leaders. I think CJ falls into that category. He may not seek attention but his instincts lead him to act in ways others admire. At the time of this chapter, he's still reeling from all the changes but as things settle down he'll have to accept his personality won't let him blend into the background. As for the elder Kennedys, they'll reappear but it won't be for a bit.

LMAO! @Dmrman Thank you. I think we ratched up the drama enough for a bit. Time to let CJ be a teen again.

@Dmrman CJ can defend himself verbally and phisically but at his age sometimes it's hard to figure out the correct approach. It's going to be up to the dads to teach him it's important to know which one to use. It should be interesting

@Dmrman Carp! I'm so flattered by your words I don't know how to reply. Thank you!

When I'm able to have readers care about my characters I know I've done my job. CJ will definitely be having a little chat with Tom's parents and I think you might enjoy it. I look forward to hearing what you think.

I told people I didn't write cliffies and the reason for the break was I ran out of paper and ink. But at least I delivered as soon as I could.

Don't worry. Be happy. The next installment is published and waiting for you unlike original readers who had to wait a few weeks to discover what happened afterwards.

Thanks, bud. That was a fun chapter to write.

Nope. I turned down all suggestions/requests to run for office when I was younger. I'm too outspoken to be a successful politician.

@Dmrman I blame the closet for a lot of those misunderstandings. It's been shown those who know and interact with gay people are more accepting so the more of us out there, the better things will be. As for consistency, it's very important to me. This is a story about a gay boy coming of age in an accepting and nurturing environment but still having to deal with words and actions outside his circle. Hopefully CJ will rise to the occasion.

You'll soon realize @Defiance19 has her own plans for Sean. And she has an advantage over the rest of us because she lives in NYC!

@Dmrman One of the things I keep working on is making each character an individual. With such a large cast it gives me the opportunity to explore different aspects of the gay community and show we're not a monochromatic unit.

@dmrman LMAO! Although I sometimes presage things, it's still fun to surprise readers. Trust me, this won't be the last time I pull something like this.

@Dmrman It's interesting I'm replying to a comment addressing the dads' support and encouragement of CJ. I've spent part of today outlining a scene where Cesar stands up for CJ (not that the kid needs help defending himself) and puts his son ahead of his job. It's going to be a looong time before that chapter gets published but keep this comment in mind whenever we get to it. Parents are meant to guide and assist not force their kids to act a specific way. As long as they do no harm to innocent people, let kids be kids.

@Dmrman I don't take my self too seriously and treat my writing the same. It's not meant to be high literature but an enjoyable way for readers to pass some time so humor is very important. Even when I eventually deal with some very serious issues, there'll be a few laughs thrown in for good measure.

@Dmrman Please, feel free to speculate as much as you want! Although I warn you not everything you imagine may turn out to be correct. LOL

You may have read my comment about Washington being a character in the story. I love the city and as you'll dicover in the future, CJ's tale couldn't be told with him living anywhere else. I hope you enjoy some of the other locations I'll be taking our boy to in the future.

@Dmrman Not sure what you mean by a cliff.... LOL I found it interesting most readers felt Dragon would be the one taking care of the jerk.