Parker Owens

You may be right that waiting for a complete story lets one avoid delayed gratification. At least next week's chapters post quickly. I thank you for your many thoughtful ideas and comments. More importantly, I want to thank you for taking the time to read Andy's journal both now and in the past.

I am sorry I disappointed you. The story will draw to a close next week. I ask you to reserve judgment until then. Thank you for your honest feedback, which I appreciate.

The story has had a lot of winding road to get to this point. All of it has Andy annoyed and anxious as a hen in a foxhouse. At least everything updates more quickly next week...many thanks for your comments, and for reading Andy's journal.

I beg your forgiveness, Tim. There was so much to describe about this day - and Andy was so lucky to have Kaz looking after him. Thanks so much for reading Andy's journal, and for your thoughts.

Yes; at least the updates come fast and furious next week. This is a big event in Andy's journal, and it would have been way too long a chapter otherwise. At least Andy can write. Kaz was so good to him. Thanks for your reactions, and you have my apologies for the suspense. Most of all, thank you for reading!

So much to digest for Andy. Wedding day has been a big day, so far. Leave it to Kaz to play coach and psychologist all in one. Thanks for your comments - sorry about the suspense - and above all thank you for reading!

Loved this response to the prompt. Loved how Daniel let go and just went to learn to Dance. Loved his interaction with Pierre (great name choice!). Loved how Stefan is an incurable stuffed shirt - not the sweep-him-off-your feet love interest I expected. Love Joe comes to the rescue at the end. Can you guess I re-read this story several times? Wonderful story, and left me wanting to know more about Daniel and Joe.

April 1 – Saturday The room is getting chilly. There's not much heat here. Bare plank floors. No electricity, no toilet. There's a thin mattress I'm lying on. No big double bed – no chatter of a lively, overflowing household – no frantic wedding preparations – nothing but lonely quiet. It's not raining anymore. Hard to believe that Friday morning – just yesterday morning – I woke up to Kaz gently shaking my shoulder. I blinked, and wondered for a second where I was. "Come on, Andy, time for

Well, Andy is certainly anxious. In fact, he's anxious in a dozen different directions. Unfortunately, he is still internalizing so much. Old habits die hard. But unlike other anxious times, Andy now has family - real family he can count on. And the family was generally supportive and welcoming. Certainly Nonna Costanza is happy with her new grandson. Thank you for reading this chapter, and for your generous review.

Unbidden tears, hot scorching emotion rising to the surface. You evoke such images as I can imagine...both water springs and lava flows. Neither are controlled, and what is their source? Your unreasoned melancholy strikes at the heart of the structures we build around ourselves. What a great poem. Thank you.

I'm glad you have got to this point. Andy is in a better spot now - he has Zander - he has family. This is the love and support he needs, and has deserved. Thank you for continuing to read the journal. Hope you can get some sleep!

I read this chapter twice, drinking in everything Tait told us. Sean reeled Tait in, made him feel happy and desired and perhaps something more. He discovered how to play Tait like an instrument. And poor Tait has to live with the memory of what happened and with the destruction Sean's control left behind. The melancholy knowledge of the oncoming train wreck comes through so achingly well in this chapter. Your writing is at a whole new level here, and it leaves me wanting more. This so well done. Thank you!

David2 is slowly drifting into the deep end. Gary may try to hold David2 accountable, if his statement is to be believed. I feel worst for the people David befriended - Chuck, Biggie, and especially Twoey. Beginning to wonder if David2 will destroy David entirely, and turn this into a tragic story. Seems possible, anyhow. Thanks for this chapter, well written and suspenseful!

I am so very sorry you think it horrid. Andy has had an incredibly bad piece of luck, but he at least came out of it largely unscarred. But he is still anxious and scared, and who can blame him? Far too many kids experience something like this, and worse. Thank you for wading this far,

I am so glad you persevered through the dreadfully hard parts of Andy's life. They make this moment so incredibly sweet, special and satisfying. Thank you for sticking with the journal...

Bubby - I am sorry the story upset you at this point. Give it some time, and some thought. In any case, Eric is better off than he was with his father. That he chose to go back to the farm, and not run away directly is actually an important part of Eric's growth. There are bright spots, but you are right in saying that they glow dimly just now.

Stefan/Eric got a good break running into Eustace Whitley. For the moment, he appears to be safe and dry and warm. This is a huge improvement. Thanks for hanging tough with Eric. I really appreciate your comments.

No, I don't hate Eric/Stefan. But I know the reality of kids who have to live as he has. He got away, and with some hope of safety. He got a meal. He will live to wander another day. Thank you for hanging in there as Eric/Stefan has done. I really appreciate your doing so.

When you wander the roads and live on the margins, it's hard to meet good people. For Stefan - now Eric - he has learned that being quick to trust is to risk being a victim. What a pity, because he really seemed to enjoy the reading. Thanks a lot for staying with the story, and for your reviews. Hope you like what follows of Eric's journey.

You were good to keep going. Stefan is limping away from a horror nobody should have to endure. Life will still be hard, but nothing could compare to what happened already. He is a survivor. Thanks for staying with the story, and I hope you enjoy what follows.

This poem made me sad. I know how this poem feels - all too frequently. I stare at a page and want to write, but nothing comes to mind - no poetry, no prose, no music. You have captured that moment, that hour so well. I cannot help but feel the frustration and unhappiness it radiates.

Loved this chapter, SD. Here is a blockbuster surprise. All kinds of bets just got wiped off the table. This is the kind of thing that can fracture not just individual lives, but whole communities - and Davids1&2 live in just such a small town. Of course, I'm anxious to see what David2 will do to adjust his war plan. A swift surgical strike? I nasty, splashy bit of public humiliation? My fear is that if David2 tries to be too subtle and takes too long to develop his countermeasures, he will become absorbed into this rather unpleasant persona. He will lose his friends and his brother, too. In effect, the Pastor and his mom will have won by remaking his very soul. So: need to see a new chapter very, very soon, please. Like now. (insert impatient toe tapping here)...

I composed a reply - twice - and my computer ate it - twice. Ugh. Here it is, finally: 4000 words means that Andy has so much more to talk about than in the summer when he was running. We do indeed feel much closer to the way Andy is feeling – anxious, worried, beset by unfamiliar demands few (or none) go through at his age. Mrs. K surely had to think this one through over and over; as a parent, how do you decide if it's right to let your child take part in a very public ceremony you aren't sure about? Andy surely handled many situations gracefully, from Frank's challenge to Maria's initial faux pas to gently turning Lena away. But his stomach was churning the whole time. His worry about his genetic links continue to haunt him. Thank you so much for your fantastic commentary, and I hope you enjoy Andy's upcoming entry.

Well, Andy got to meet the siblings, and Nonna Costanza. There are plenty more relatives where those came from, but that's a big enough group to overwhelm Andy anyhow. The rest of the family will be taking stock of Andy, too. Everything is happening so fast! Not sure if Andy really knew what he was doing, but it's happening now. Thanks for your reflections, and I hope you like Andy's next installment!

No, they aren't perfect; nobody's perfect, not even Andy Andy's quick thinking about Jeff probably got him out of an unpleasant situation - and in addition, might indeed start a beautiful friendship... Thanks for your thoughts. Hope you like Andy's next entry...