AugustusWaters

I’ve refrained from commenting because I need to reread all the way through, but I’m going to make an exception here. Corbin has done many truly nasty things that his friends (and readers) have, lovingly, forgiven him for. If he chooses to jeopardize his relationship with Pete over this, though, that might be the most heartbreaking one of all. It never felt like like there was nothing that Corbin wouldn’t do for power—one just assumed that he would protect the people he loves with the same vicious intensity that is both his fatal flaw and greatest virtue. Even to consider that he would throw Pete, someone he loves and has never (unlike, say, Hutch) gotten in his way, is painful. I’ve been disappointed in Corbin often and precisely because I think that he could—and wants to—be so much better. This just makes me think I was wrong to think so highly of him in the past. Okay, that’s my rant. Can’t wait for the next chapter, and, in case my anguish about Corbin didn’t give it away, I think this story is some of the best writing (of any sort) I’ve ever read and I love it with all my heart.

If I start writing this I’m detail, I just don’t stop, and I need to work tomorrow. So, TL;DR, I’m somewhat basic in my tastes, so I’m most engaged with the New Orleans timeline, because it ties in directly. But I’m also a sucker for first loves, so I’m addicted to the Cali timeline. The Paris timeline, though, I just don’t care for. Partly, because I just want to go back to the main timeline, and partly because I feel Duncan—I think this may be intentional—is just a boring character. One that I empathize with, but boring nonetheless. I also loved the bits about Kevin over the summer. Golden.

I keep coming back to this. The young have no business dying. Beautiful hearts must not stop beating. The invisible touch of a compassionate word lingers but the promise of feeling it again cannot be broken. Loving souls should not dismember into nothing but memories. But they do. Too often and too soon and too fast and too easily, they do. And whst hat hurts most of all is that we know this one thing to be true in a world where we search and search for something real to hold on to.

Shameless request: it would be so cool if this could have a Kevin + Becker ending. Maybe that’s clichéd and pathetic, but for some of us it’s the only way to really experience what that feels/would feel/could have felt like. Another crpplingly real but imperfect ending might be feel more true to how things are, but maybe those are overdone too. As an aside, this is on my list of top 5 stories I’ve ever read. Thank you for this beautiful, heartbreaking, soul reviving and inspiring tale of what it means to love another man as you are becoming one yourself.

Maybe give us a new chapter or two? The wait is murderous

At age 20, I’ve lost a father, a brother and two grandfathers; you’d think I’m immune to loss. I didn’t even know Skinnydragon, but this makes me hurt in ways that i last felt when I lost my brother. Funny how someone you never knew can break your heart.

Also, as someone who's ideated and tried to commit suicide, trust me, you're not alone. And it gets better, if only a little.

In what I think is a weird twist of fate, out of all my good friends, most of whom I've known for almost 14 of my nearly 20 years of life (I've known one for nearly 16 years - that's just before 9/11, for context) the only one I'm actually comfortable pouring my heart out to is the one that I crushed on, helped through a toxic relationship, fell in love with, fought with, outed in a rush of anger and yes, made a move on. As friendships go for me, I've known him just over 3 years, and it's been three incredibly volatile years, yet somehow, we've become each other's rocks. Point is, if your friendship ran as deep as you say, then he'll come around. Just let him know at some point that you still care about your friend. In the meantime, learn to forgive yourself. We are not the mistakes we make, but the lessons we learn from them.