Shadow086

Yes, and somehow I don't think Jack is going to let the "homo-patrol" screw over his darling son just so Daddy's little girl can have a clear path to valedictorian.

Excellent chapter, as usual. The problem with these short stories is that they always leave us wanting more.

I see it more as a corrupt politician using any means necessary to push rivals out of the way. I'm ready to bet that this rule would never have been put in place if Billy wasn't in the running for valedictorian. As for Jack, I never got a homophobic vibe from him (otherwise he would have stopped trying to be involved in Brett's life). Threatening to out someone to keep them in line is blackmail for sure, but I don't really see the homophobia in that. Billy's sexuality was just the most convenient way for them to marginalise him, and they probably want to suck up to Carl as well. At least it looks like their plan's going to backfire since the students seem to be more on Billy's side than Sarah's.

Is Mr. Taylor really homophobic, or is he just using that as an excuse to eliminate Billy from contention for valedictorian? I'm not so sure about that. Same goes for Jack. Carl is the only one of the three who was proven to be homophobic. I find it a little funny and sad that while this was going on, north of the border we were about to legalise same-sex marriage.

I wasn't sure if Vanderbilt was a high school or a college, that's why I was asking.

Two things about that: 1. Is he still in high school, or is he in college? 2. Is he in the same school district? It wouldn't do to let any student get away with this kind of scandalous and inappropriate behaviour while representing their school. And John wouldn't want to give the impression that he has a double standard, now does he? That wouldn't look good in a lawsuit.

Nice chapter! I don't know why, but I can't trust Sebby. Something about him feels...off. It's awfully convenient that he showed up when he did with his words of comfort. Let's wait and see what happens, but for now, I believe that Sebby is manipulating Torsten. A different, more subtle form of manipulation than what fire dragons use, for sure, but manipulation nonetheless. I find it very hard to believe that Torsten could develop such strong feelings for Sebby in the few minutes they spent together. Crawley's glove is an intriguing device and I can't wait to see how that pans out. Too bad you can't draw blood from a pile of ashes (still sad about that ). Now it all makes sense. Why Celeste is watching over Torsten, why Araziah was so eager to keep him all to himself. My guess is Torsten will not react well to being thrust in the middle of this war. I don't know where he can hide once the Conclave finds out he'll be the new Seer. This should be fun

Amazing story, Com! Loved it! But man...Over 92 journals of Billy Chase, you better get cracking if you want to get them all written!

I've been thinking about Dave in this chapter. Maybe he knew about Billy's autism and decided to keep his distance all this time because he knew he shouldn't force it and was waiting for Billy to reach out to him. I think there was more to it than Dave just trying to stay out of Billy's way.

No, she's caught having sex in the bathroom during prom.

Yes he did. And where was Jack while this was going on? Maybe he was reviewing the directive he wrote to see if they can get off on a technicality?

Billy did almost everything right, for once. Treating Mary with respect and genuinely making sure she's having a good time, keeping his temper in check and calming down Dustin, admitting some responsibility for the breakup, and of course, throwing away valedictorian for Brett. He's grown so much ! B&B still have work to do to cement their relationship, but I think there's a new level of understanding and respect that will make it work. It's interesting to see that the student body appears to be supportive of B&B's relationship, I wonder how that's going to come into play once the principal tries to hand down punishment on Monday. Speaking of which, I'd love to see what happens if Jack suddenly shows up and starts chewing them out for trying to expel his son with no valid reason. I wouldn't be surprised if he resigned and threatened to sue the school district . Maybe someone could let it slip that Kenny was engaging in "inappropriate behaviour" during prom? I can't wait to see who ends up becoming valedictorian. Probably Sarah, but I think John Taylor (who should be expelled from a cannon) is going too far, and I can see Sarah's speech being drowned out by jeers from all the other students.

Loved it, Com. Always fun to see some backstories like this one.

Oh, I thought you meant how we the readers were blaming Billy ........I agree Billy isn't the only one to blame, and I've said it many times. However, I don't think that calling Billy out on his shitty actions is blaming him for everything, but he probably sees it that way. And since the story is told from Billy's perspective... That's probably also why we didn't see his parents' reactions as them trying to teach him that the way he acted was wrong, but instead as them blaming him and ignoring what he has to say. Billy was stuck because Jack and Jen basically made him choose between his boyfriend and his family. While I think Billy's mom was wrong to hide his condition from him, it's really hard to say for sure whether or not they did try to help him be more socially skilled. He's not socially skilled, and that makes him come off as selfish and arrogant, so it's hard for me to blame the people around him from reacting and treating Billy like a selfish, arrogant prick. All his friends said was along the lines of "What is wrong with you? You don't treat people like that!". But the breakup is mostly Brett's fault, I think. He wanted Billy to be honest with him and respect him, but if he'd been honest with Billy and confronted him instead of playing this silly game, this wouldn't have happened. It's likely that Billy would've caved in and told Brett everything if if he heard the words "I won't hate you." That's it. That's all Billy needed to spill the beans. But Brett had to be a little brat and fuck things up for both of them. I find it kind of funny that Joey's the one playing mediator and trying to get them back together.

I disagree with most of this, and I'll try to explain why. Yes, Billy was manipulated (intimidated is more accurate, in my opinion), but he still had many opportunities to come clean and tell Brett, yet he kept his mouth shut the whole time. I'll admit this is partly because Billy wasn't able to pick up the signals due to his condition, but if he really felt so guilty about this, he could've told Brett and accepted the consequences. The time to tell Jack to take his internship and shove it was when he offered it in that hospital room, but he didn't. I also think it's entirely fair to blame him for letting things get to this point when literally everyone he talked to about Jack told him to confess to Brett to prevent his current situation from happening. I do agree about Jen taking advantage of him, though. Now I can't help but wonder if, all these years, she ever saw Billy as more than a patient or case study for her book. Jack and Jen should tell Brett the truth, but I doubt Brett will listen to them, let alone believe what they tell him. No, Brett doesn't want anything to do with either of them at this point, and any truth-telling would have to come from Billy, or maybe Joey confirming their story. Brett needs to hear the truth from someone he trusts, and that list is very very short at the moment. I can't really blame Dustin either. Yes, Billy saved his life, but he contributed to letting Dustin get to that point in the first place, and he lied to him much like he lied to Brett. I also understand why Dustin treats Billy like a selfish, whiny brat, because he kind of is being one and needs a kick in the rear to get him to start fixing things instead of complaining about how his life sucks now. I do think Billy should tell him about his condition, though. I'm sure Dustin would understand and support him. As for telling Brett, again, I think Billy needs to be the one to tell him. He also has to be careful in how he tells Brett so he doesn't sound like he's using it as an excuse. But maybe Brett already knows about it. After all, he might have happened to look through a copy of his mother's newest book while he was stuck at home.

I forgot. Happy belated birthday, Dustin!

Well, now Billy's getting on the right path. Starting with the internship. I think Billy did the right thing at the wrong time, and a little bit for the wrong reasons. He would've gone through with it if Brett hadn't dumped him. I can see Billy being an activist for gay rights, but not a lawyer. Still, he did turn down the internship, and managed to sneak a hit at Pastor Carl while doing it, so I give him credit for that. What really made me proud of Billy, though, is how he pushed Jack to give it to Joey instead. That's the unselfish part, and Billy had no reason to try and do a good thing for someone he hates so much. I don't think this will go unnoticed by Brett, and trying to help Joey will mean a lot more to Brett than if Billy had simply given up the internship. Inviting Mary to the prom was also a nice gesture. And thankfully, he's being completely honest with her from the start. I think word of this will get back to Brett as well, and he'll be happy that Billy went to the prom. Now both boys have their prom dates, I wonder if they can play on technicalities and screw over John Taylor. Suppose Brett and Billy were to show up at the prom with their "dates", and decide to spend the prom with each other instead, they didn't really violate school rules, so Billy should still have a shot at valedictorian. That's the major roadblock to them getting back together, I think, but the way Billy is now he'll probably be able to talk to Brett and explain why he's so obsessed with beating Sarah Taylor. Maybe there's a bit of selfishness, but it's mostly the principle of valedictorian being handed out through nepotism instead of merit.

The way I see it, the diagnosis isn't a challenge for Billy to conquer, but, just like his diabetes, learning to accept it and live with it might be. Billy had a lot of trouble coming to terms with diabetes and how it will affect the rest of his life, I think something similar will happen here. I think the challenge for Billy will be to convince himself that he's still the same person he's always been, and that there's nothing wrong with him.

Loved it, Com!

In Paula's defense, maybe she tried showing him some techniques, but Billy isn't always the most receptive to criticism about how he acts, so it's likely he would have ignored her. I have to wonder, though, if Brett would have been okay with dating one of him mom's "freaks", since he seems to look down on them. What Billy needed and still needs is someone to ground him and clue him in when he makes mistakes. I think George did that in his own way, but Paula really dropped the ball on that front, in my opinion, mainly because she's as short-tempered as Billy is.

From what he told Paula, I feel he already has without knowing exactly what it was. That's where the "I feel like there's something wrong with me" comments come from. I think he felt the same as when he punched the mirror, except now he's able to verbalise it. Edit: It's like he knew he's different from everyone else but didn't understand why. Paula just gave him that missing piece of the puzzle.

That's exactly what the problem is, Billy is almost unable to perceive and interpret the signals Brett was sending him. The question is, will Billy see it as an explanation or an excuse? I half-expect him to rush to Brett's house and tell him, thinking it's the magical answer that will make everything alright again, like he did every other time they had a fight.

That's true. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Billy had the right to know about this growing up, much like Brett had the right to know who his father is.

My thoughts: #1: I would add to that that Brett's impulsive nature leads him to have a bit of "tunnel vision" and not look at the big picture before putting his plans into motion. If he'd stopped to think about it for a minute, he might've realised that it's not as black and white as he first thought. Brett's always been impulsive and lets his anger control him, that's consistent with the way he's acted throughout the book. #2: If you'd revealed that at the start of book 1, then maybe, but the way you did it works because you get to know Billy as a person first, not as "that kid with Asperger's". I don't think it's a "challenge for him to conquer", but rather a reality that he has to live with. In that sense, Paula and George were wrong to keep this from him all these years. I don't know how to explain it, I just don't think they were fair to him by not being there to help him learn about and understand this vital part of who he is. And since Billy is a pessimist and also has a tendency to run away from his problems, I'm worried about what happens next because there's a real possibility that he'll attempt to use it as an excuse for his behaviour, which would be a terrible mistake. #3: I've always thought of Billy as someone who has no social skills, with maybe a bit of OCD thrown into the mix. It doesn't help that, as Paula said, doctors kept wanting to diagnose autism on every kid who behaved the slightest bit odd.

The main problem I have with that is that Brett thinks Billy lied out of malice, when that's clearly not the case. He was still wrong, but it's not as bad as Brett makes it out to be, in my opinion. I don't buy into the argument that Billy screwing up justifies all of Brett's actions.