craftingmom

Yes, at least even in his panic Matt had the forethought to call the cops rather than just run over by himself--that could have been ugly all in itself. I'm glad you enjoyed it! Hope you like the last two! Thanks again for reviewing!

Thank you! That is very sweet of you to say! I very much appreciate you taking the time to let me know what you think!

Yeah, that's what I thought too. Outright killing him was too easy for him. Glad you liked it!. Thanks for reviewing!

Thank you! I did think about just shooting him in the head, but it seemed too easy for him. I'm so glad you have enjoyed the story. I have really enjoyed your reviews. Thanks!

Sorry for putting you through the wringer, well sorta anyway! Glad you liked it.

You're welcome (long time coming, I know...)Thanks for reviewing!

So glad you liked it. (I would post more, but GA guidelines only allow me to post one chapter a day--but at least it lets me post everyday.) Thanks so much for reviewing!

hehe, well, don't get up too early. Kids are off from school tomorrow so I get to sleep in (no 8am posting tomorrow), maybe closer to ten. So glad you liked it!

Chapter 15 Matt stared at the phone in his hand in disbelief. What the hell? Was that really Avery's father? Matt's heart pounded in his ears as he slowly processed what he'd heard. Had the man actually hit Avery? Avery had sounded terrified in the seconds before the call disconnected. He had to get over there. As he dressed quickly and raced down the steps, Erin appeared from her room. "Where are you going?" she asked sleepily. "I think something's going on at Avery's house," he

OMG! That's so ! Can't stop laughing! Love when he come up on a person and stops to wave, then jumps right back in!

Hey there! It was just suggested to me by a reader that it might be nice to start a story thread about What No One Sees. I know the story is almost done now, but this might also be a good place to share thoughts about, not only the story, but abuse in general. There has been a lot of emotional response about the story, especially about the lack of action on both Avery's part as well as Matt's and the rest of the town (teachers, sheriff, etc). I do understand why people may think it odd for Avery not to have confided in Matt yet; and yes, he's beginning to trust Matt, but he's also lived in fear for 6 years--he's known Matt, as a friend, for only a couple weeks (they only went to the mall about two weeks ago (and a couple days) and Avery spent one of those weeks with Delgasio. He's afraid of losing Matt if he tells him, it's the fear of punishment, but also the fear of shame and humiliation that keeps Avery back--it's not necessarily logical to those of us who haven't grown up in abusive situations; an abuse victim isn't always thinking logically. I guess if we all acted logically there wouldn't be the horrors of abuse at all. As for Matt (and Erin) not yet connecting the dots, again, I'd just have to say that they've only known him closely a short time, and Avery isn't telling them anything. So while we (as readers) think all the signs are obvious--heck why didn't Matt go running to the cops when he saw those bruises under his braces? Why did he believe the lie Avery told him about the 911 call?--the reality is that most people don't go running to the police with accusations without a lot of evidence--which Matt doesn't have yet, he doesn't even have strong suspicions because Avery explains everything away so far--more like that nigling in the back of his head. Again, Matt's really only been with Avery just over a week (two on the generous side), he hasn't had time to see a real pattern yet. I suppose if everyone in the town compared notes on Avery, they might come to the conclusion that he's being abused. But part of the point I guess I was getting at with this story is that many people see a little something that triggers a 'hmm, I wonder why?' moment, but many are unlikely to act on it without more evidence, and when the victim themselves is denying it, then it makes it doubly hard to prove anything. Yes, this story is a bit of an exaggeration of most abusive situations. Most are not quite this bad, but still any abuse--mental, verbal, physical or sexual--is unacceptable. Sometimes, like with my mom and dad, it's more of a constant berating or belittling of the person. I hate that my mom puts up with it, but she does, as victims of abuse often do. They may not see it as abuse, the abuser may constantly apologize and draw them back in, or , like in Avery's case, the abuser has just asserted so much control and fear over the victim that they feel like, "this is it". It takes a lot of trust and a lot of courage to get out of an abusive situation. I guess I just hoped to showcase one kid's struggles, his hopelessness, his fear and shame, at feeling stuck. There are so many stories out there of kids who are abused for years and then we hear about how they killed their abuser on the news--they reached a breaking point, where they felt there was no way out but violence as well. Our goal in society is to find these kids (or adults) before they are so broken that they feel they have no other options-- to catch it and stop it well before it goes on for years, slowing breaking them down. So, that's my ramble for now. Hopefully, it's not preachy--just wanted to share my feelings about it. And if you have any questions/suggestions about the story (or anything else) please feel free to ask! (and thanks Cazpedroso for the idea to start this thread!)

Fortunately, it's not a long wait for more!

Thanks so much!!

Hehe, love the ideas for Carl and William! And I know cliffies can be mean O:), but at least you won't have to wait long for the rest!

Well, that would definitely be an interesting twist with Carl accidentally killing William.

Hehe, it is very interesting to read all the wondering about what's going to happen. Hey, maybe it's just a neighbor borrowing milk! hehe.

Yes, it is very sad to know that this story is not that far-fetched. The story you related about the 'camp' is just chilling. I am glad this story has you wanting more; hopefully, that means I'm doing something right, right? hehe Thanks again so much for your help and insight (especially with the phone call!)!

Hey there!Thanks so much for your review and comments--so much to think about. And just as a note, this story actually has gone through a beta read of sorts as it was posted previously on another site with reviewers offering comments, from which I did tweak it already. And this story was actually already read by several GA members who requested me to email it to them after the comment in the Nov. CSR interview, several of whom suggested that I should post it as they thought others might like it. So, I guess, since it had been read and commented on several times already, I really didn't consider bothering anyone else to beta read it--especially my betas, as I have them engaged in the neko sequel that should come out next week (just the last couple chapters left to write and have beta'd, yay!) That being said, thanks to drpaladin6 and Robert Rex's comments, I think I'm okay with the whole EMS call thing as it is, especially since the 'law enforcement' reviewer (drpaladin6) feels it is plausible and handled perfectly. It's obvious from the variety of comments that even with a specific beta reader or even two that there will always be something that strikes someone differently or thinks a character should have done something another way. For example, the turtleneck--a turtleneck in winter, to me, really isn't that crazy. And it's unlikely at this point that anyone would think that much about what Avery's wearing since he's been like that for years. Avery has already established himself as a person who wears baggy clothes, hoodies, always in long sleeves and long pants, even in the summer. He's always been 'that emo kid' who buries himself in clothes. So, no, for Avery, I don't think it would seem weird to the other characters that he'd wear turtlenecks for a week or so, even if it warmed up some--it's a story, it's winter, the weather is cold, everyone's wearing winter clothes, turtleneck doesn't seem that out there. I think the hardest part many have with this story is the fact that Avery is hurting and they want so badly for it to stop, to save him. And I guess the most realistic part of all this is that it's hard to imagine why an abuse victim continues to 'allow' themselves to be abused. I know we want to say 'why the hell hasn't he told anyone?' or 'why hasn't anyone done anything yet?' but the horrible truth is that it just happens-- it slips through, victims learn to just get by, they prefer to hide it for fear or shame, etc, they hide it well, and it's not necessarily logical. Most people prefer not to get involved. Even those who may have a suspicion are not likely to act immediately and accuse a parent of abusing their child without some sort of evidence (especially if the child themselves are denying it) and accumulating evidence takes time. The concept behind this story is to show (by a little exaggeration, yes) that abuse is going to happen under our noses. No matter how much someone might be loved it doesn't mean the signs will all click into place right away, if ever (ie. a child hiding abuse by say an uncle from their loving parents for years). So, for the purpose of this story, I think it actually is plausible enough (frustrating maybe) that Matt (or anyone else) hasn't read the signs yet even if he loves him so much, or that Avery hasn't found the strength yet to confide in Matt after only a couple weeks. Yes, given enough time, Avery would probably tell Matt or Matt would figure it out, but it would probably, realistically, be later in their relationship...not after just a couple weeks. And there I go rambling, sorry! You've given me a lot to consider as always, certainly thinking through character motives and such, and I greatly appreciate everyone's insight and comments here at GA. Thanks again for reviewing as always! Hope you enjoy the rest.

Chapter 14 Man, Matt had looked good, Avery sighed as he curled up in the chair in the living room staring into space as he remembered meeting up with Matt at the coffee shop earlier today. Matt had beat him there and ordered a couple hot chocolates and brownies. Matt was already sitting on the loveseat by the fireplace, their drinks on the coffee table in front of him. Matt patted the seat next to him and Avery easily settled next to him. When Matt grinned down at him with those adoring

Glad you are enjoying the story, and yes, they are starting to question it. It has only been two weeks since the shopping trip--and one of those was spent at Degasio's--so while Erin and Matt haven't figured it out yet, they are getting there. Avery is hiding it well, he's done it for years. It's not like they are going to look right at him and know he's being abused--even if they've thought it, Avery has the excuses ready. Thanks for reading and reviewing.

Again, thank you very much for your help. I never really expected the phone call to cause such concern (probably should have just left it out like I'd originally planned!) And thank you for relaying your story about your older friend still suffering abuse. A friend of mine was abused for years too (before I knew her) by her father and she never reported it either--for fear of punishment, shame, etc. I appreciate you taking time to review. Thank you.

Glad you enjoyed it.

I think he's been living day to day for so long, blocking out as much as he can, and just getting by, that he hasn't ever considered that he could be free of his father's control. He's known Matt--as a close friend--for less than two weeks, then spent a week away from him, he just hasn't reached the point of total trust yet. He still fears he'd lose Matt if he left.