jkwsquirrel

Yes, I thought the title was self-evident, but I did enjoy the speculation surrounding a certain part of the anatomy being the titular "unit." I don't know that many of us deal well with people telling us about the things that are wrong with us, especially when we know deep down that there is some truth to what they are saying. While it would be nice to send Joey off to a deserted island, I don't think we've heard the last of him.

Thank you so much! It's good to see some love for one of my favorite characters!

That's kind of the vibe I'm after. In that area Dustin was right about Billy. He wants so desperately to belong and be one of the "normals." Paula and Billy both have a longing to be accepted, and are willing to hurt their loved ones to get that acceptance. In other words, they're willing to hurt the ones who already accept and love them in order to gain acceptance and love from people who don't accept them already as they are.

Music plays a big part in helping to get me into a mind frame to write. For this chapter, I found inspiration in a line from the Metallica song "Fade to Black." "Emptiness is filling me to the point of agony." I think Dustin would almost rather face the abuse of his father than face the emptiness he feels. He feels like he's even given his soul away. To quote another Metallica song, "One:" "Darkness, imprisoning me, all that I see, absolute horror. I cannot live. I cannot die. Trapped in myself. Body my holding cell."

I don't see how things can get much worse for Dustin. Hopefully he can find a way that leads to redemption and can fill the emptiness he feels. There are some parallels between Joey's rant and Dustin's. They've both known Billy and his parents for a long time. I found it ironic that the very things he bitches about his parents are traits which he himself displays, and that his friends find irritating in him. As for the next chapter, Paula is not the mother you're looking for. I like your theory about Paula and Pastor Carl.

Nah, once a story is in the hands of the reader, it's theirs. You can see things the author never intended and that's cool. Also, just because the author says, "this is what this means," doesn't make it so. It's art. Meaning has many dimensions.

Thanks! It was fun to just allow the boys to be boys for a while and not be caught up in all the drama. There's a reason they fell in love with each other, and moments like the banana incident reveal why they are a couple.

Yes, Emily knows and has known for a while about the boys. That's why Brett is so open with her about the banana. Of course, even with someone who knows about their relationship, Billy is guarded. Billy feels terrible about what happened to Dustin. He also feels responsible because he didn't speak up, but then, Billy often feels responsible for thing he had no control over. What happened to Dustin was a case of things spinning way out of control that Billy had no way of stopping, but he feels responsible nonetheless. Dustin is still processing everything that happened to him. It will take time for him to work it all out.

Awesome! See, Amanda was never a monster. She seemed big and bad from the perspective of a couple of young boys, and she did torment her little brother. But there was always love between her and Dustin. Tough love, yes, but love nonetheless. Of course she still thinks Billy is a loser...

Yep, only three more chapters... in part five. And I don't hate you for your thoughts on Dustin. He's a complex individual.

It's always interesting to see what developments in each chapter gets highlighted in your comments, friends! Here's the thing with Dustin. He just went through the most violent and harrowing experience in his life. He's got major PTSD going on. His ranting at Billy came right after he'd just recounted the brutality of what his father did to him, the brutality that led him to try to kill himself. He has been betrayed in the worst possible ways. The people who were supposed to protect and love him are the very ones who wounded him and turned him into what he's become. He's been violated, tortured, and abused. The most mature and reasonable of adults would have a rough time trying to process everything after what he went through. In his mind, Billy should have saved him somehow like a Prince Charming in a fairy tale. But Billy is just a kid. Everything seemed so clear as to why he never told anybody about what Dustin was doing. It all made sense. Then things spiraled out-of-control. Of course Billy would have said something if he'd known how bad it was going to get, but how could he have expected what happen? Dustin, with the benefit of hindsight, thinks Billy should have saved him from what happened to him. In Dustin's pain-medicated mind, Billy's just as bad as the people who abused him, not because of anything he did, but because he didn't live up to Dustin's expectations of him. He's not thinking logically, but emotionally. Brett was right. Even if Billy had spoke up, things were destined to crash eventually. I enjoyed the interaction between Billy and Brett in this chapter. Brett is becoming his own man, much more confident in himself and comfortable in his relationship with Billy. I think that is the reason why he was so quick to answer Billy's question. Billy is still a boy who is not comfortable living in his own skin. While both Brett and Dustin use the word "coward" to describe Billy, I think they are seeing different aspects of Billy's character to draw that conclusion. Dustin sees the hero who failed to save him, just like he failed to save Brett until the last minute. Brett, who knows Billy much more deeply than Dustin, sees the young man who constantly doubts himself. He tells Billy that he's attractive, that even other people are noticing his cute features, and Billy brushes aside the compliment. He refuses to see himself as anything besides a loser who no one likes and who everyone will hate when they discover the "real" him. What Brett means by Billy's cowardice is really his pitiful sense of self esteem. When Dustin beat him down, Brett picked himself back up. When Dustin beat Billy down (verbally), Billy lacked the strength to get back up. Brett is convinced that if Billy were more confident then they could be more open in their relationship, and his impulsive nature doesn't care what the consequences of that openness would be.

I've thought of them as Billy - Justice, Dustin - Loyalty, Brett - Honesty

Monday at school was rather interesting. Not only had word spread through the whole school about Dustin’s hospitalization, but word had also spread about Joey and his family being humiliated at church. I heard through Emily that the McKenzie family had left town for the week early that morning. It was funny, though everyone knew that Joey had gotten a girl pregnant and paid for her abortion, nobody seemed to care or realize that I was the one who had exposed him. Apparently, it was Pastor Ca

We're only scratching the surface!

I've enjoyed the various takes on Billy's actions. Yes, Joey deserved it. Yes, Billy went about it in an immature way. I think Joey thought he was above the law in this argument. He couldn't have thought that Billy would do what he did, but he didn't know that Billy was on edge like he was. Billy was going to snap on somebody that day, Joey was just dumb enough to volunteer. I agree with your thoughts on Brett. I thought he handled the situation with more maturity than Billy did.

Aw, thanks William! It's always my hope that I could totally remove the speech tags and you would know who is saying what because the characters all have their own voice. I try to think pretty deeply about each character's perspective as I write. Why would this character think and feel this way? It's also a lot of fun to watch the boys mature and change.

Well bless your heart!

I don't remember Brett and Joey being related. Besides that, I enjoyed your thoughts! (I always do!) I will say this; don't underestimate Jack McKenzie. He didn't get to where he is in life without knowing how to make dirty little secrets disappear. Actually, Joey might have been better off just telling him in the first place, but Joey is scared to death of his dad. (Remember the scene in the principal's office after his fight with Billy? "My dad's gonna kill me!")

Good stuff! I agree. Both boys think they are right. Both boys have good reasons for not liking each other. Both boys fight dirty. Joey pushed just a bit too far and Billy punked him out. I mean, does anyone really think Joey hopes George drops dead? He was angry and flailing wildly hoping to land something that would hurt Billy. Billy doesn't mess around when he's angry, he goes right for the jugular. He wanted to hurt Joey in the worst way possible, a kid who knows he can never measure up to his parents' expectations, who deep inside knows he's just as bad as he says Billy is. Billy knew where to hit him. But now that he's thrown his best punch, what will happen when Joey strikes back?

I take it you don't like Paula? Heh heh heh! I don't think Brett was supporting Joey, so much as scolding Billy for the way he did what he did. Brett knows Joey can be a douche bag. He's more concerned that Joey will seek revenge on Billy, and he'll get caught in the crossfire.

There was a whole book about it! LOL

When I was writing Joey's dialogue, I used some of the thoughts that readers have expressed about Billy's faults. Really, Joey didn't say anything that was necessarily untrue. Billy can be narcissistic, passive-aggressive, manipulative, and sarcastic. Joey has been on the receiving end of Billy's temper before. Billy is not an angel. However, coming from Joey, Billy wasn't going to hear anything constructive. As for Brett, don't worry too much. He wasn't mad, just concerned that he was going to be on the receiving end of the fallout.

I think you've captured Billy's attitude about the situation nicely. He didn't want to calmly work things out or talk politely to Joey's parents about his behavior. He wanted to screw him in as vicious a way as possible. Brett's concern isn't that Billy did what he did. He knows Joey deserved it. He's just worried about what will happen next, because he knows Joey can be pretty vicious himself. When Billy loses his temper, bad things happen.

Yep, Brett is convinced that it will end the way you've described. Billy could have quietly talked to Jack, but then he wouldn't have had his sweet revenge on Joey.

It's a remarkably sound-proof restroom! Got to agree about Paula. She's determined to save Billy like she saved George. But she wasn't dragging George to a church George actively hated going to.