Krista

Well the guy was told by Trace, Davin, Gavin, Lacey, hell probably even the dogs, and Colt of all people that Celia would have accepted him. It was complete fear and not wanting to relive the loss of a 'mother' even one that's mostly a stranger to him, for him to risk it. Lisa did a number on him. Trace also said that Celia is rather perceptive, so who knows. I think she keeps a lot of her realizations inward, waiting for the person to come forward and open that door instead of her barging in.

Yeah, I don't know how Cody came to know. Westley is likely the heavy betting favorite on that. I doubt either of his parents would outright give him the reason. I could see Cody bugging Westley until he exploded, just to get Cody to drop it and not pester him with it. I do wonder after school stars for him if Cody would be so willing to keep the biggest secret the Benton household still holds... I wonder if their mother covered that base with him yet or not. I think Joel has heard enough from both of his parents to realize that 'Home' for him has changed. But hopefully it doesn't put too much distance between him and his brother.

Oh goodness... 😮 Twenty is rather rage-heavy. The police were headed somewhere, that's all I'm going to say.

I see you used my favorite word. Maybe. Another beautifully poetic comment, lovely. A few hairline cracks, they've probably been there since she saw the images on that laptop. She felt the parting words. We did see Phil push back a little and is already thinking about what his children may need past what his wife wishes and possibly what he's willing to understand at the moment. There's some hope there, but I do wonder if Joel will ever see it. And, forgiveness can set Joel free. It could be the very thing he needed to start fresh.

He may have waited to the very last mile to finally speak, but at least he did. It allowed him to be uplifted by her and put on firmer ground. I didn't feel the impact of the scene when I wrote it, but I did when I read it. I'm proud of Cody as well. Yeah, Phil Benton is caught out with wanting to possibly still be there for Joel. He doesn't understand him anymore, their vision of who Joel is changed for them... and they didn't like that change. It will take a lot for him to reach out fully, I'm thinking. That's likely not something that's going to happen within weeks, months... might not happen within a year or more... not with Lisa in his ear, so yes... a set needs to be grown. And no, I don't think they had dropped in on the Benton house. It would have been a ripe for gossip scandal... 😮 Poetic justice, maybe... but Joel aside, they have a pretty stable household. Westley needs a shit ton of work... and Lisa has shown her true colors, but stability is there.

Funny story, I've only had one mother figure that was universally liked from start of the story to the finish. That's Cora from, "Standing in Shadows," and there was a chapter or two where she got some heat from readers about how she handled something. Y'all didn't like Jackson's mother Grace much at all in the whole first half of that story. She grew on you guys though, but in the beginning she was just as unliked as the Cindzilla. It's easy to see that throwing away Joel has left a void... Westley isn't going to fill that void. Cody lost probably one of the most important people in his young life, he's not going to forget that. She's risking a lot, Celia told her as much. And yeah, he's scrappy.

She works at a Hospital. She likely works with and deals with people from all walks of life on a daily basis. She's kept her job all these years, so she can 'deal with it' it seems. Too bad that didn't extend to her own children... And yeah, I don't know if she'd be okay with Cody brought home a gay friend... but I don't see her pulling him out of school... well, maybe not 'before' Joel being outed anyway. She might be at her end with all this and I could see her doing that, homeschooling him and such. And yeah, rare moment where Trace gave good, 'but' the 'wrong' advice. lol. Hmm. I wonder what the police cruisers were up to.

I do feel for Cody, he's at the age where he's still well within the sphere of thinking that his parents can't do no wrong. Now he's at odds with that youthful and innocent way of thinking. I couldn't imagine having that much distrust all of a sudden, but he feels it. He hints at it when he defended Joel, it was more than just feeling slighted and on a border of a tantrum. He was fighting completely against the two people that he probably never thought would do him or his brothers any harm, or unfairness. Him leaving and running, is more or less him getting out of a situation where he feels scared and powerless... I'm thinking. And yeah, I think it is safe to also say that before Westley outed him, Joel was likely the kid they most depended on... and felt was the most grounded in reality with goals and ambition. If they haven't figured Wes out by now, they're blind. Cody is too young to put that much pressure on him yet. Mind you, we're only seeing all this fallout. Joel hints at a great childhood with reasonable and thoughtful, easy to love parents... that's the pain of it all. If they could 'get over' Joel's sexuality, then Joel's whole story wouldn't have played out like it has. Your comment choked me up a bit as well.

Yeah, all seems to be teetering on whether or not Phil Benton can overcome his own issues with Joel and helps make any interactions Cody and Joel has happen. If he folds in that, then Lisa wins. At least until Cody gets to the age where he can stretch his own legs, I'm thinking. They can't keep him cooped up forever. I 'think' the only people that doesn't know about Joel within that household is Gavin and Lacey, that are human anyway. The dogs don't know either, but they don't really care, they're just in it for the head scratches, sneak treats, and pat-pats. If only unconditional love came as easily for humans...

Yeah, he finally got that confirmed beyond any doubt. There's still a lot of up in the air stuff within that dynamic though, so yes baby steps. Gotta learn to walk before you can run.

Yeah.. the pace of this story finally had a cup of coffee.

“We better hurry,” Lacey grunted as she raked a pile of horse shit towards the center of the stall. It was our last one. “Why?” I asked as I scooped up the pile and dumped it into the wheelbarrow. I found out the floor in the stalls were concrete that continued from the gangway for draining, but it was also covered with a layer of dirt. It was softened more by wood chip bedding mixed with straw, and the horses spilled a lot of their hay. There was a sour, but sweet smell that lingered even

uh huh.

Nah, I think it is just a gas issue with you, Steven. --- And, Spring is my favorite season. I like seeing things coming back to life after a long and cold winter. Autumn is good for like two, maybe three weeks. Then the death of everything, dust, and the warning of Winter never works for me. The loss of daylight hours doesn't either. Winter sucks. I want 24 - 48 hours of a soft powdery, glittery, serene snowfall of a respectable two or three inches with no windchill and then you winter lovers can have it all back. -- And Steven, you 'have' to like Winter. Up there you have two seasons. Winter and 'Maybe Not Winter.'

You're a champion, let no one tell you any different.

I wasn't paying attention to Gabe's mannerisms a whole lot, but he is rather polite isn't he? Although a bit devious as well, but it was to get the paper out and he legitimately thought that in doing so, that it would 'help' Ridley, or at least wake him up a little. I don't think he was expecting that kiss for his efforts, but he obviously took that bonus. And I am being stubborn with the Matt story. I'm on the fence at the changes I'd have to make with Matt in order to make 'him' work. I don't know if his story would be worthwhile without those changes.

The only thing I don't like about your Title is that it took me nearly 500k to write a "Best Year.." and 5+ years to write the thing. I'm not taking any chances on repeating that, no, no, and no thank you.

'The Secret Life of Ashby'

I'll have to read this story again, to give this comment the weight it needs as I've forgotten bits and pieces of this story. I've been trying to avoid it, having the almost clean slate that I do... I'm still trying to commit to a story idea, but maybe the fact that I've yet to commit to it.. is the answer I need to move forward, wipe the slate back clean and get going with something else.

WHEN did you sneak into this story and comment??? And HOW did I miss it? lol... I feel that most of the time I'm functioning obliviously in this world. That kiss surprised everyone. Most of all though, I think it surprised Ridley and Gabe. Neither one of them went into this night hopeful for the outcome, trying to really get that outcome. It just happened. The Matt dynamics is what fell to the wayside with this story. Not just with how he dealt with Ridley, but also a lot of the hidden opportunities on the table that I could have explored if I wished to. It gives some weight to a Matt mini-series, but I'd have to commit an idea of him that would make it worthwhile and I'm on the fence about that idea as it is. Then again, I also don't want to give anyone hope that this story is more than just what is written, because I have no plans on making it so... just the character Matt has always been a lingering regret.

Thank you! Probably my favorite chapter in this small story. I loved the interactions, finally seeing more of the family dynamics outside of Ridley's head and where he put himself, and then Gabe.

He had some lovely insights on writing and he took the time to share those. That is something I'll always respect him for, the time he devoted to writing, helping build this community, and to give it back through his years of experience. It is the little things that make characters feel grounded and real. It is one of the more finer, but essential functions of writing in all perspectives, but to a much more substantial degree in First Person. It can do some of the heavy lifting at making your protagonist/narrative voice likable and fully realized within the writing.

Lol. I find myself forgetting my own writing and being pleasantly surprised... and well since I'm hard on myself... unpleasantly cringing at parts of it. But, overall I'm proud of most of it.

I find myself often rereading Ridley. Thank you for giving this story so much love.

And... I'm not touching the rest of that conversation y'all had in the wee hours of the morning. Not at all.