Jeff Burton

So this is the first thing I've gotten to read from @Krista because after reading some of her forum posts I'm a little afraid of her for some reason lmao. This was amazingly well written and now I'm going to have to deep dive into the rest.

Hahaha I already know it's a Texas thing 😃 Innocence is always in the eye of the beholder Oooh no no no, lol Curiosity doesn't always kill the cat ❤️

I'll also give you guys a 'behind the scenes insight' about how this chapter was written. Sometimes when i write a draft I literally word vomit anything and everything I can think of when I'm writing it, because you know I have a general outline of how this should end in my head and filling in the gaps to get there isn't set in stone. When I was writing the lunch time conversation and I got to the line where Josh answers "Yep." to the "Have you met someone" line, I the author of course knew exactly what he was talking about but at the same time I'm so queued into Ben's psyche because it's based after mine, I typed it, then read it as Ben would and immediately freaked out internally just like Ben did. I literally felt the line "I felt funny, like something in my head suddenly stopped working correctly." It was actually an odd sensation like I myself got triggered in way that I totally forgot about. My brain started just spitting out the confused text that followed. Because that's how it is when someone like myself (or Ben) reacts and thinks after being triggered by it. It's like a bunch of garbage text, or thoughts that make no kind of coherent sense coming out of nowhere then the switch throws like a circuit breaker and you immediately go back to normal. The whole thing made me feel a little dizzy, and flustered from it. It certainly caused my heart rate to go up. It was an interesting experience to say the least to be triggered mentally like that in a controlled way, in a safe space so I had the opportunity to analyze and think about what the heck had just happened. It just goes to show that even though I think I'm "fine" now, I probably still have some more work that needs to be done in my own recovery, and Ben is in that exact same spot. He thinks he's fine but he's far from it. The theme of this event will follow in the next chapter in it's most severe form. It's the start of everything that will follow until the end of the story.

I've so been waiting for this comment, because you keep me on my toes. And also if I ever write something that seems to be confusing to you feel free to PM me directly about it so I can fix it. Ben has always been hard for me to write because I'm using some of my issues to frame his (even though his are worse then mine). His bounce back to being normal is a skill I learned to do a long long time ago and it's not a good one to have. Everyone is catching onto my subtext about Alex so I guess I did that part well even though what you said was something I hadn't even considered and maybe I should lmao. The last line in the chapter you mentioned does have significance, it's going to play out in the next couple of chapters. I try not to give spoilers but it's hard when you get active feed back and jump for joy when people notice it, it means I'm doing something right. And then there's Josh, all I can say is, "I have no comment at this time." 😃

SO NOTED! 😂

Thanks! I wish I was harmless

I think that's what brought me in here LOL. I'm from Texas myself, so my brain must have flagged it as familiar. I'm usually wake in the normal US overnight hours due to a backwards schedule, but yeah, i figured asking what this was instead of trying to read 4+ thousand pages of posts would be a better idea 😂

I have no idea what this is. But after 4,867 pages of posts and the sites database is still working I want in so here I am.

That's so cool. I only started posting my stuff here recently despite being a member for almost 20 years. Well I mean I started spring of last year but you know life gets in the way and it's a year later before you know it. Getting published was something I thought about when I was younger I just never followed through. So don't get discouraged, you after all did make it to print and that's an accomplishment! You can add another member to that fan base, I've got this story and you followed so I'll be looking forward to more of your work!

You can watch Beautiful Thing on tubi? Are you friggen kidding me? Do you know what I had to go through to get my hands on a VHS copy back in 1999? Oh it was so worth it though lmao. @Josh Aterovis I've been enjoying the hell out of this and I feel vindicated due to your writing style since mine follows the same path even though I've read here and there I shouldn't do it 😂 You mentioned this used to be in print, I'm surprised I never ran across a copy. In the late 90's I was trying to figure it all out and sucked up as much media as I could get my hands on.

Shhhhhhh

Thanks! I'm sorry it took so long to come back. This chapter was a little shorter than I would have liked but I it did what I needed it to do. To be honest after having been gone as long as I have been and the fact I haven't written anything since, I just needed something to try to get back into it. This story always has been a little harder to write which is why I take my time with it. Which is why it got picked for my return lol.

I was abruptly awakened by the sound of the headboard next door banging against the wall. "Not again," I thought to myself as I shoved my pillow over my head. The rhythmic banging continued with such force and regularity that it could have been in sync with a metronome. Judging by the pitch of the moans, I guessed that the person next door was probably Asian. I hadn't even seen my neighbor yet, so I didn't know anything about them except that they seemed to prefer Asians over any

Yeah I’m most definitely still breathing, my extended absence wasn’t health related, but it has been a tough year, not really upsetting per se, just never ending if that makes any sense.

I’m coming back soon. I promise. ❤️

So I read this in one sitting it took me 3 and a half days. All of this hits a bit personally for me because I lived this or rather a version of it. It brought back a lot of memories including some stuff I still haven't let go. Hell if I had someone like Jo when I was 16 I probably wouldn't have made all the mistakes I made. At some point, I'm going to have to write my version because it'll probably be the only way I ever get over it at this point. I lost my parents too at 16 and that first year and a half almost killed me more than once. This all has just been too close to what I went through, right down to the issues with the church. This story and mine is a prime example of what can happen when every single thing is done wrong because of someone else's good intentions. Somehow I'm still here though, the church may have totally failed me but the big guy upstairs somehow still looked out for me. I was a mess. Damn I need a drink now. Dodger, good job. I look forward to continuing this as you write it.

Many thanks. Over the last month, I've become less critical of myself. My writing much like myself, is a work in progress. Though my writing style has felt a little odd to me, sometimes it even feels wrong compared to what others do yet I'm encouraged to keep doing it like that because the response has been overwhelmingly positive. I do have many more stories such as this, I may just add chapters to this one, each chapter being a different experience. A lot of my experiences involve a lot of compassion on my part, there are a couple though that were just downright dangerous and I'll try to include those as well, to bring awareness if anything else. Thanks for the feedback @Anton_Cloche, it's given me some stuff to think about.

Working on it, no eta at the moment though lol.

@weinerdog, that actually means a lot to me. And it isn't easy for me to do, which is why some things sit for a while before being updated. It's important for me to find the right collection of words to express what I feel when I write it. Yesterday I wasn't sure how Nathan's story would end, this morning I woke up and it was so clear, like it was plain from the beginning. People send me snippets all the time of what ifs on my stories, and one spoke volumes to me, but I had no idea how Nathan would get there, and become that person. That road to the end is not an easy one, and all I can do is hope for forgiveness, not from my readers, but from Nathan himself. Jacob's Advocate and Salvaging the Road to Redemption are both on temporary hold until I get through this story. Nathan and Corey have my undivided attention until it's done.

Yep, they're actually split between two schools across town from one another. I don't think I'll ever be able to recreate someone special like Gavin which is why he's the chosen one.

@Summerabbacat, I want to actually reply to a few things this time. Starting with the last. Yeah, this chapter was light, I spent Wednesday and Thursday of this week sick with a high fever, and most of this chapter was in one of those delusional fever dreams, and of course, I had to write about it. I ended up using this chapter really as a bridge between what's coming, and what came before, and I realized that's what's stalling me on Jacob's Advocate Chapter 8, because that too is the same kind of bridge and I haven't found the words to do it diligence. Second, sadly schoolyard violence is still a thing, and it's happening among younger age groups these days as well. And to touch on what you said about "gun culture" I myself have owned and do own firearms, but I will never write any sort of material on violence involving guns, especially in a school setting, for the reason you wrote: a gun in their hands would be a very dangerous and unpredictable thing. So even writing about it, is a strong no-go for me. I can and will write about a whole host of other touchy topics, situations, and emotions, simply to raise awareness and how to seek help, but that one I simply will not do. As for Jackson running for governor, well the unofficial rule is you need to be able to count to ten without using your fingers and he isn't there yet, so probably not going to happen. Nathan is one snarky individual, he isn't cowed by fear. Maybe it was the anger talking, or maybe he just didn't care. I had the same problem when I was his age. Now for Gavin. I just broke my literary multiverse by indicating all the characters across all the stories actually live in the same area. How much longer do we wait before some of these people actually run into each other and what kind of chaos will happen when they do, lol. I've already had some thoughts on Ben, and it's an interesting prospect. Which I may dive into once I figure out how his story integrates alongside the others. I have to be careful though because Ben's story actually starts the year after Jacob's Advocate and runs parallel with Life in Suspension. Gavin may get his own 'how-it-came-to-be story still, who knows?

“Good morning,” Jess greeted me as I ambled up the steps in front of the school as I did every morning. “Yeah, morning,” I said quickly as she fell into step beside me. “So. How’re things.” She asked coyly trying to get a rise out of me. “If you have a real question to ask Jess, just spill it,” I said not taking the bait. “My someone is touchy today. What’s the matter, didn’t make it to first base?” “Seriously? We’re using sports analogies now?” I huffed. “Hey

Now that I'm able to sit upright, after 24 hours of the most veracious fever dreams I've experienced in my life. I wish I could take credit for Ben, but he like everyone else is based on my experiences although mine weren't as severe. But we had the same shady apartment, and the landlord was based on the real deal. Most of what is about to happen is based on the memory of that awful winter of 2000. So just bare with me, as all that plays out.

Oof. I'll try to leave poor Ben alone.