jkwsquirrel

I'll never tell!

But would anyone make the connection between a kid who grew up in the town twenty or so years earlier and a kid who moved in from out of state? Even Brett himself didn't know the origin of his name, just that he was named after some special boy in his mom's life.

Did this chapter render okay? is it previous chapters that had trouble? I just hate plain Arial text for stories, that's all. So dull.

Is it jig or gig? I feel like Brett! Anyway, yep, Jack likes to manipulate every situation to his advantage. It would be hard to blindside him. On a totally unrelated note, I was so tired when I posted this chapter that I forgot to click on the option to keep my formatting. I hate the way this chapter looks. Oh well. I'll deal with it.

The answer is already hidden in the story somewhere. Oh sure, I could tell you where it is, but that'd spoil the fun. And if you figure it out, don't tell anybody! If you must tell somebody, send me a PM.

I think Jack realizes the jig is almost up, but who wants to throw their life into a state of chaos? Who wants to destroy their marriage and damage their reputation? Yes, there is more to learn. We'll find out eventually.

Of course, I really did give the whole game away about Joey being Brett's brother way back in Cold Winter chapter 3, "Birthday Bowling Bash:" Joey was born a few days after Brett and had taken over his role of shortest boy in our class since Brett had gone through his growth spurt. With their brown hair and handsome Irish looks they actually looked a lot alike. They could almost pass for brothers, if you didn’t know any better. Of course, Joey had brown eyes and straight hair like his mom and Brett had blue eyes and his hair would get curly if it got too long like his mom. And of course there was the infamous "Brett and Joey's dad had a conversation" comment. But we've talked about that before.

Oh, there's definitely some history between the Roberts and McKenzie families, or at least between the Cunningham and McKenzie families. Jack kind of hinted at something in the Retaliation chapters "Enemy Territory" and "Fallout." Jack has been around long enough to remember George's checkered past. Funny thing about the two Bretts, think of the people who knew Brett McKenzie who would have no idea of the connection to Brett Reilly. Paula, George, Emily's parents, Miss Winston probably taught both of them, anybody who was around Donora in the 70's and 80's would know what happened to Brett McKenzie. Very few probably would ever make the connection that the Doctor who moved into town in the 90's had any connection to him, or that they became friends in New York. And as a side note, I was afraid that I'd given away the whole game way back in "Fallout" when Jack was threatening Billy: "I see the fear in your eyes, just thinking about what would happen if someone were to reveal what it is you do with your best friend when you’re all alone. You think I’m not sympathetic, but I understand your pain more deeply than you could possibly imagine. You see, I’ve seen what your particular kind of secret can do to a young mind. I’ve seen the shame, the fear, the desperation that leads to destruction. I watched it eat my brother alive, until he took his own life. I don’t wish that kind of pain on anyone. Billy, I’m not your enemy. I just want you to do the right thing. Not for me, but for your family, and for my son."

Thanks dude! We're moving toward that happy ending! Still some bumps in the road yet to go though! Brett breaking his leg is probably the key to unlocking the rest of the story. Almost everything that's about to happen is a result of that accident.

Almost like he's tired of hiding and wants to be caught after almost nineteen years of lies. Jack's story is more complicated than it appears from Billy's perspective. Can you imagine lying to your spouse for almost two decades? I think he was prepared either way when he told Billy to tell Brett the truth in the hospital. Like it would almost be a relief to have it be over. And you're right, it was make up sex that led to the make-up baby. Joey is a month younger than Brett.

His initials spell WAR for the love of God!

I'll put it this way, Commencement is the end of Billy's story.

Is there an emoji for pointing at one's own nose like you would in charades for when you hit the nail on the head? Lots of unresolved guilt there. But we'll talk about that... in a future chapter! Mwahahahahahahahahahaahaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11 Two and a half words: Make-up baby. Joey was the result of Jack feeling guilty over his infidelity.

Yeah, but now they'll start to fall faster!

Thank you! It almost seems like Jen and Paula are coming from opposite directions, meeting in the middle, and will go zooming past each other. As for Jack, I think his brother's legacy had to have left a deep impact on him, one that he's tried to bury for eighteen years. Your memory is spot on! George did tell Billy that he should let Brett "mess around with it.," and that he and Brett would figure out why it is such a big deal together. (It's only taken 35 chapters to start paying that little foreshadowing moment off!)

You will definitely find out the answer to this in a future chapter! And it's WAR, so you know it'll be solved in a mature and reasonable way.

A bored Brett is a dangerous situation for a lot of people!

Thanks jp! A tale of two mothers, for sure. Time is running out for people to come clean to Brett.

This made me laugh way too much! I don't know if it's the gay connection, but certainly Jack could use the name connection as his excuse for his overprotective behavior about Brett. But is it just a coincidence that Jack began to lose favor in Pastor Carl's circle around the same time that Brett's sexuality was becoming public? Not that Carl knows, but maybe Jack doesn't appreciate the direction of Carl's preaching. Another domino? David is better able to talk to Paula about Carl than George was. She could dismiss George more easily because he just didn't understand.

Thanks DQ! Our little Billy is becoming a man. Oh sure, we get the occasional emotional outburst, but not so much at this point. And can we really blame Brett for being a brat after all he's been through?

Thanks! As we get closer to the end we're discovering more secrets as the dominoes begin to fall.

Latest chapter, Blame It on the Rain" is up. A tale of two mothers. It's a little early, but I've had a long, rough week and I'm tired. So I'm going to bed! I hope you enjoy the chapter!

I was so happy to have Brett back home. I was able to stop in and see him every day after school to bring him his schoolwork. He spent the first week home in the hospital bed his mom got him. But after the second week he was able to move to the couch. He wore nothing but a pair of boxers and the giant cast on his leg most of the time. When visitors were coming, he’d pull on a t-shirt and maybe a pair of gym shorts. He couldn’t take a shower or a bath, so he had to have a sponge bath every

Billy gets it honestly. Nobody throws shade like Paula. “You need to keep ice on that so the swelling will go down,” mom instructed. “Huh?” I asked. “Your eye,” mom replied. ... Finally, mom came outside and found us. To my surprise, rather than scold us for sneaking out of our own party, she joined us on the porch and sat down next to dad. She grabbed dad's cigarette, and to my shock rather than throw it away she took a puff! “Whose idea was this again?” she asked. ... “You used to be cool,” I sulked as I got in the passenger seat. “We both know that’s a lie,” mom replied, ... “Ow! You’re hurting me!” Brett whined as Dr. Reilly grabbed him by the arm and forced him out of the room. Brett had finally gotten his mom’s full attention. “What did you do to them?” mom asked. ... “Between the two of us, your mother’s going to have her hands full,” dad joked. “Going to?” mom asked. “Have you been around for the last few years?” We all laughed. ... “Boy, is he pissed,” I replied. “His mom thinks he needs therapy.” “After spending a week with you who can blame him?” mom joked. I didn’t think it was very funny at that point. ... “So you know, huh?” “Oh please! I’m your mother. I’m not stupid." ... “Well, I hate to tell you this, but dealing with your mother is just like…” “Don’t even think about saying what I think you’re going to say! I am nothing like my mother!” Brett laughed again. “Okay. You’re right. You’re nothing like your mom. You don’t feel the need to win every little detail of every little argument at all.” “I… Shut up!” I replied.

Sometimes you just find the perfect description. This is from tvtropes.org: The Snark Knight This character has a world-weary disdain for everyone, themselves included. They typically suffer from a healthy dose of Intelligence Equals Isolation, and are the type to stand aside at parties and quietly drink beer while making biting quips about the idiocy that surrounds them. To the "herd followers" they deprecate, this makes them a mild Jerkass. The sympathetic see their antisocial behavior as a sort of personal crusade against idiocy. The Alpha Bitch and Jerk Jock are their mortal enemies. If they have any positive interaction with the Big Man on Campus, then they are also a Cool Loser, teaching him not to be a self-satisfied twit while he teaches them to be less haughty and smile a little. The key element that differentiates the Snark Knight from a normal Deadpan Snarker, a Smug Snake, or a plain old jerkass is that the Snark Knight holds themselves to their own impossibly high standards. This means that they will throw barbs at themselves as often as they throw them at others, with the exact same level of vitriol. And because of these high standards, you can bet they won't be Easily Impressed. Sometimes the Snark Knight ends up as a Sidekick or one third of a Power Trio with the main protagonist, providing the role of the cynical commentator and Meta Guy.