jkwsquirrel

Yeah, what ever happened to that thing?

We'll find out soon!

We're not quite done with Joey and Jack. Joey has come a long way from the punchable douchebag of the past. I still remember the cries of "Fuck Joey McKenzie!" Such a slimy little creep, but maybe there's hope for him yet?

Thank you! I appreciate it!

I think Billy's treatment of Mary was awesome. I think the way he treated her showed a lot of maturity. As for what will happen after this? Well, there's still three chapters to go!

You know, when I think back about Brett over the course of the story, I think about a kid with a great deal of integrity. He is very true to himself and to others, and has been that way throughout the story. He's a tough young man and he never gives up. And of course he figured out the loophole in Mr. Taylor's plan to nail Billy. The best troublemakers aren't the ones who break the rules, they're the ones who know the rulebook better than anybody, they just choose not to obey.

I thought it was vital that Billy not talk about Asperger's or autism at this point. I think Brett would have seen it as Billy just making another excuse to justify what he did. Brett wasn't looking for much, just a little bit of respect. "I know I hurt you and I'm sorry." Not "Well, I had my reasons..." Brett's heard enough of that in his life. He just wanted his boyfriend to be honest with him. What happened after the make-up was the key. Billy walked into that ballroom holding Brett's hand, fully prepared to lose everything except Brett, which was far more than Brett was asking for. This is what Joey was setting up when he told Billy "you have to find a way to show Brett what's in your heart because words just aren't going to cut it." All along Brett has been the one reaching out, wanting to tell people about their relationship, wanting to hold hands, wanting to kiss. Billy's always held back. Brett just wanted to feel like Billy wasn't taking his love for granted (or granite. lol!). The dance wasn't just the conclusion to this one fight, but to the whole story.

Thanks! I think Dustin's pretty sweet myself!

My vision for Mr. Caldwell - overprotective father of a special needs child, now seeing her growing up and wondering what his role in her life will be as she matures into a woman. He's asking "Who is this guy and what does he want from my daughter?" for perhaps the first time. However, he and his wife have raised a strong young lady! Mary chafes against her father's over protection like so many young people do. As for Billy's reputation? It's a small town and some very big wigs are actively against him. Rumors are easy to start and hard to stomp out. I do not see them as members of Carl's flock at all.

I'm glad you liked Mary! I had to hold off on her until late so that it wouldn't be obvious that there was a girl available for Billy to ask to the prom. And it was as if Billy was seeing her for the first time when he saw her across the room. Like, "Oh yeah, there's a girl I could ask!" I wanted to be very sensitive in my portrayal of her due to her condition. It was important to get her character right. She's feisty enough to challenge Billy in ways that others wouldn't or couldn't. I loved how Billy's respect for her grew and grew as he got to know her.

Thanks!

It took a lot longer than usual to get dressed and ready for the prom than I expected. I didn’t think I would care so much about how I looked, but I spent at least an extra ten minutes in the bathroom making sure everything looked right. Mom had taken me to a barber earlier in the week for an honest-to-god haircut, instead of letting Dustin take a hacksaw to it. I stood there in front of the mirror looking at the young man looking back at me. Teeth were brushed, hair was combed, contacts were pr

“What do you mean Brett has a date to the prom?!?!” I asked a little too loudly after Emily told me the news at lunch. “I’m just telling you what I heard,” Em replied. “He’s signed up for himself and a guest.” “Who’s the guest?” I asked. “I don’t know. It just says him and a guest.” “Hey did you hear Reilly has a date to the prom?” Dustin asked as he sat down next to me with his lunch. “Yeah, you hav

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for the comments and likes. Interesting discussion as always. I will just add a few notes of my own! The diagnosis of Billy isn't the latest challenge for him to conquer. It has been the challenge from chapter one. Billy has always had trouble relating to people and expressing his emotions appropriately. That's nothing new, it's been there all along. This chapter is here to help shed a little light on why that has been the case. Every once in a while, someone would ask me if there is something wrong with Billy because of the way he was acting. I always said no, because I, like Paula, don't see it as something wrong with Billy. it just is. I think we all have those areas of our lives that we don't quite understand. I also didn't want this story to be "the one with the boy with Asperger's who falls in love with the ADHD kid." Hopefully, you just experienced life as this young man has lived, struggling to find his place in the world and just hoping he's one of the normal, ordinary kids, but realizing he's far from ordinary. Regardless of whatever labels we can come up with to explain our behavior, I think for many of us, all we want is to find love and acceptance. As for Brett, give him a while. He's been through a lot and it's hard for him to process it all. When the stress got to be too much for him he reverted into that bratty little asshole we all knew so well earlier in the story. Give him some time to think about things, and he'll find his way. Thanks everybody!

I knew I had to do it. I knew I had to talk to Brett sometime. It was driving me insane to be without him. But every time I saw him he was surrounded by people. Two weeks had passed since that day when everything had fallen apart. I didn’t know where to turn. To my surprise, there was no mention around the school of Joey’s parents breaking up or anything. I thought for sure by then that word would have gotten out that their marriage had fallen apart. Nor was there any news about Brett’s m

Did you know there’s no direct line from Erie to Pittsburgh bus lines on a Friday night? Yeah, I know that now. Just one of many things I learned as I had to find a way home after Brett ditched me in Erie. I spent a few hours in a bus station in Cleveland in the middle of the night as I waited for the connecting bus. That was fun. I had no idea how I was going to get from Pittsburgh back home. I thought about calling mom to come get me, but that was just too embarrassing. In the end, call

Thanks again for the comments everyone. I can't really take the time to answer all of the comments. Check out the forum page if you want the inside scoop to my own fucked-up life. Just know that I've greatly treasured the conversation. There's no right or wrong way to feel about how this chapter all worked out. You can hate Billy, you can still hope there's some good in him, you can think Brett was right or wrong for what he did, it's all awesome. I appreciate the passion!

Brett’s mom had a little party for Brett on the Sunday before our big road trip to celebrate his eighteenth birthday properly. It wasn’t a big gathering, but it made Brett happy to see everybody before he returned to school the next day. He ended up with a bunch of names on his cast and his mom bought him a new laptop which meant that I’d be getting his old one. She also got him some Yankees tickets for a three-game series in June at Yankee Stadium against the Pirates, and a hotel room for Br

Thanks for the comments everyone. I really appreciate it! Things are going well.

It always takes me a moment when I wake up in a bed besides my own to get my bearings. I found myself thoroughly tangled with Dustin, who continued to sleep peacefully. Sometime during the night, I’d turned around to face him. His arm was still draped over my body, but now he was using my arm as a pillow. Our legs were intertwined. There would be no way to pull myself away without waking him. And I didn’t really want to either wake him or disengage myself from his body. Yeah, I know I sho

In a what-if scenario, what if Dustin had grown up in a normal, well-adjusted family? Can you imagine if this sweet little boy had grown up in a family that nurtured and supported him instead of stomping every last bit of hope out of him, to the point where he wanted to end it all? We can survive without food, water, even air for a while, but we cannot live without hope, so someone wise once said. I enjoyed your thoughts on Brett. Designer baggage indeed! As for Billy? Yeah, I'm not quite sure when the heel turn took place, but he's definitely crossed over into full douchebag territory. I do love a redemption story though!

I envisioned the sex scene in this chapter as a picture of where the boys' relationship has gone. (I don't just throw sex in the story, it always has a purpose if it's "on screen.") Billy's still a broken character at this point. Sure he cut his hair and fixed his sugar, but he's still wounded. In particular, his moral compass is broken. Lying has become too easy. In this chapter, he saw Brett as a tool for his release, rather than someone whose feelings mean more to him than his own. Coming on his face was just another way of violating Brett's boundaries.

Dustin's a good kid. This was a dangerous chapter, because Billy has fallen so far that if Dustin had offered Billy might have given in to temptation. How can someone so smart be so stupid, right? Good idea with the dance, but I can't compete with a timeless American classic!

Dustin is only now beginning to become the person he should have been without the abuse he went through. We'll get Em's reaction next chapter. What we are seeing now is the cumulative effect of all of Billy's lying to Brett. He's so disconnected from the reality of the moment, thinking that he can hold together all the pieces of the dam that is falling apart all around him. The collapse is inevitable.

Nothing wrong with wanting justice, of course. But what Brett is upset about is the selfish and jealous side of Billy winning out. Brett knows what being consumed with jealousy and selfishness did to him, it got his ass kicked and made him an all-around jerk. He's afraid Billy is headed in a bad direction. You're not the only Billy-Dustin shipper! Of course, the that is the one rule of WAR that cannot be broken, Billy and Dustin can never get together. Kill Billy's dad? Break Brett's leg? Turn Billy toward the dark side? All fair game. But never can Billy and Dustin finish what they started that night after the card game.