Krista

Good. Can't have all of you looking like over achievers, especially our Steven.

Me!? I was never a groupie, I heard about your younger days back well before Bill Gates got rich. If either of us were groupies, it would be you.

The band's name is N*sync you boomer.

I am aware of more homophobia and racism where I live. Being a heterosexual married woman, I don't get a whole lot of grief from anyone. The entire reason I am here, as in this forum, was partly because I have two friends that experienced severe homophobia in their lives. They were outed by, well not being computer savvy and hiding their searches. That was back in the mid-90s though and to be honest, I never heard the term Queer or the F-word until I was 14, it just wasn't discussed negatively or positively in my very tiny bubble. Fast forward to the present, I feel my area of the state (Kentucky), still experiences a ton of growing pains with regards to the community acceptance of LGBTQ. There is a growing presence here statewide as a whole I feel. Directly concerning my area though, there is absolutely nothing here and if you don't have Netflix or some other form of social/entertainment media, there isn't anything of inclusion to note. I lived in Lexington and that city has gotten better on that front, but way worse in a lot of others. I personally wouldn't recommend living there gay, straight, or otherwise. The other city I live near, is far more peaceful by comparison, but the community isn't as strong, but I feel it will grow with the city itself. Around me, we're a more live and let live, be neighborly sort of tiny community, but like I said, my ears hear things I'd rather not hear.

We've both been busy. This chapter was written like two-ish weeks ago and I've only done two pages of work on TBY since. It was actually meant to be a larger chapter, but decided to cut it off into a shorter one. The next one is a continuance of sorts, but I feel that the chapter after will be Districts and that will take me a lot of concentration, I've not done a swim meet for a bit. So yay for me, I guess. Oh.. and if the mood hits and you want to throw a tomato at Wildone, do so.

It was late when we got back, so late that Luke didn’t get to shut the engine off and stay with me for a little longer. We both also knew he had an argument waiting for him back home. It was pretty obvious that Cindy knew that Luke was with me, but I hoped she also thought there was more than just me. The bowling lie Mom told still felt like a stupid one from the start of the night and now that we were back home, I wanted it to be enough. Every light in the house was off aside from the porc

All I got from your post is that you have a cousin that looks like Cullen? You say? Lol. Dragon Age 2 was a big letdown for me. It sucks because I really liked Fenris and some of the characters and their stories. I didn't like how they didn't restrict romance options as well. The main plot was awful, it should have been a series of DLCs, that's what the entire game felt like. It did introduce Varric and Cassandra though, so at least something good came from it. I'm probably also one of the rare people that didn't like that we had pre-made Hawkes as well. I was more forgiving with Mass Effect, mostly because their character creation tools were so touchy and it took me ages. I use a blog to find attractive original Shepards now. None of the games are as bad as Andromeda though, where I happily took the premade characters. Ashley was meant to be xenophobic, but I agree it felt too dated for something that was so into the future. If they were going to do it, it should have been done with a more modern take on racism and xenophobia. A bit difficult to do, but they just made her so stereotypical and loud. It would have been better if the writing was more subtle, so that it is there, but not in your face. It would have layered her better, for better or for worst. I would still not be able to like her, but in all honesty, the whole basis of a lot of trouble within the Mass Effect universe was based on that dynamic. It just felt different coming from a human, I guess. Mass Effect 3 for the M/M romance is the reason I like the game best out of the three. It brought more story out of Kaiden and it did feel like there was a history and a connection between them, if it came completely out of nowhere, I wouldn't have liked it. The Mod probably added to that and enhanced the other games, which leaves me feeling a little left out. Consoles... They butchered Alistair in Dragon Age: Inquisition and I am still pissed about that. lol His character looked awful. Zeveran being the only M/M option in Origins was a bit of a letdown as well. I was very slow to warm to him and he was so easy to get romantic with, but not loyalty out of, story-wise. It made the romance end up feeling more physical and casual than actually romantic. It has been a very long time since I played Origins though, so I may be misremembering.

Welcome to GA, you will find your way soon enough.

Yeah, mods are good for PC gaming, not so much console. I don't play enough to really warrant a PC gaming set-up, I don't think. Also, if I did break down and buy it, I doubt the brats and the husband would let me on it anyway. You can M/M Romance Alistaire with Mods for Dragon Age: Origins too. As well as Cullen in Dragon Age: Inquisition. Mods are really nice for a lot of games of that nature, especially older when creators and studios were a bit hesitant to include the options. Kaiden as a Romance option later games doesn't really do it for me as far as M/M, if I play a male character in Mass Effect, I always gravitate towards Tali. You spend the majority of the game after ME:1 at odds with Kaiden as well.

I know what yours was, @wildone... it was written on the bathroom walls. --- To answer the question, I don't recall any nicknames, Krista isn't my first name so I guess that counts. I was the type of person that corrected people that attempted to call me by something that I didn't like. So that ended the Krissy, Kris, Tina, attempts rather quickly. A group of guys liked to call me Legs. And I still don't like pet names like Babe, Baby. I live in the small town south, we don't get very original when it comes to nicknames for girls. Guys on the other hand, there were plenty. Bub, Spanky, Ace... there was one guy in my high school that came to be known as Sure Shot... and not because he was good with a gun... or basketball. I think I used it in a story once, I can't remember.

Thank you for surprising me with a feature in the CSR Discussion blog. It was fun answering the questions asked of me and thinking back on some of the processes. Ridley isn't and old story, so I could still answer them with confidence and pluck things from memory better. If there's anything else anyone wishes to ask, I don't mind answering.

Aww, thank you. The community is what keeps me going with this writing thing. If y'all decided one day to not like my writing and stop reading it for whatever reason (lack of a posting schedule not included... lol) then I'll start having a net word count of zero.

It still looks interesting; I hope the storyline has the depth it hints at. If it is just an item farming, upgrade grinding type of game it will get old fast. The battle/dueling system looks really good though and the world still looks nice. The Character they chose to use looked limited as far as character creations, but some of the examples they sort of sped through looked decent. A little cartoonish for my liking, coming from Mass Effect and Dragon Age, although ME: Andromeda's character creation and action movements were hilariously awful.

Just to see if they believe me or not.

Thank you for reading this story so far! Maybe it is the calm before the calm? 😮 Maybe I'm not one of these cruel authors that torture their poor characters... lol Dates be expensive these days, hell going through the drive-thru is expensive, so either way Jackson was going to have to open his wallet. Lol. Aww, you're not the only one that thinks the two guys are starting to drift a little bit. I'm not going to lie; the thought is a little bit surprising for me. Also, I don't think I could keep up the romance and sexiness if there was a plush hippo squeaking under my head either... lol. *Grabs her water sprayer* Cool off Steven. Tsk tsk tsk. Right? This comment broke me a little bit when I first read it. It surprised me that more than a few of you are thinking the same thing. I don't know if it is comfort with one another vs. being uncomfortable in their surroundings? Feeling close, but having to be distant at the same time? It would be a weird feeling that I don't think I am doing justice in my writing. Luke did flirt on the boardwalk to the point where Jackson exploded and Luke let himself be kissed in a semi-public setting, for me that was progress. They did have to travel half a state away, seemingly, to get there, but he got there. The next chapter, for the most part, might help solidify their relationship a bit more. They've already said they loved one another and planned a bit of a future together in tentative little steps. Yeah having them at odds about Georgia was beginning to bog me down, so I just ripped the band aid off. Luke didn't specifically say that he would be following Jackson to Georgia though. At least Jackson knows the offer is on the table and he painted a pretty compelling picture - probably. lol. Also tons of detentions, if they're the aftermath of something fun and memorable are totally worth it... maybe? I don't know, I behaved myself in school.. lol I did have friends that were a lot like Jackson, Toby, and Derek though and they were a lot of fun to be around. Trouble or not. Thank you for reading this story so far. I am glad you still seem to like the story. I'm glad you're back, welcome back! I'm glad you chose my story to read when you did, sorry if you're not feeling the pain of everyone else with the delays between posting. My Senior year, I can remember being full of fun and free time as I already had most of my credits and had easy classes and free "study periods." Towards the end, it was bitter sweet though, we were finally at the top of the school, only to leave everything we've known since Kindergarten. I bounced around between colleges when I was going, I didn't like dorm living and I didn't know what I wanted to study. What I ended up with wasn't my first choice, it wasn't a choice I thought I would enjoy at all, but I love it now, mostly. There is a bit of an effort to stay friends with people into adulthood, I have a core friend group that I do try to stay in contact with. A few of them are moving out of state soon though, so that will suck. All the girls that I know have families and children too, some around the same age and we're trying to force some friendships onto our children in hopes they have the experiences together that we did... Is it selfish? Maybe... lol but it gives us an excuse to plan get togethers, so the kids will just have to suck it up. ------------- Also, I do want to apologize that it took me ages to respond. The comments did make me take a step back and think about some things. I know how I want the story to go, but I am thinking these little scenes aren't as impacting as I need them to be. So I do apologize if I have some of you worried about the story and characters in general. The last thing I want anyone to do is DNF because of something I've changed or written. I don't think the story or characters are off-track or derailed, I just need to make an effort to restore some faith in them. Maybe I will, maybe I won't? I don't know, I hope I do.

I also think we need to keep in mind - within this topic - we're not all coming from the same place. Some people are new to feedback, I wasn't the best at taking criticism when I was first starting out. "Public," or not, I don't think we should be off-handedly telling people to toughen up about their writing. It is easy for seasoned authors who have been here, to know how the system works and how to take critical feedback. That is why there is a perfectly fine thought of doing critical assessments and reviews in a more private setting. Especially since it is just easier to be more relaxed when you're not afraid of any sort of backlash from other readers that may not share the critical views being posted. To each their own, but I wouldn't want to dismiss anyone's concerns about feedback here, like I said, we're not all seasoned and used to critical feedback/reviews/star ratings. It is a growing pain that we all must go through and if you say that you have always been okay with critical feedback - then I would think you've told a wee little fib. It wasn't terribly poor manners if done respectfully, for an author to ask that a reader 'not' review something, specifically. It is also okay for the reviewer to walk away from that story on the basis of feeling pushed aside as well. Like I said in my earlier post, it is a good thing to be engaged with the audience that you have. I hope all authors who feel similarly learns how to take criticism better, or at least not be overwhelmed by critical assessments. If you're worried about a less than 5-Star rating, don't be, it is guaranteed to happen. It isn't a perfect system, and it never will be.

I have never been a fan of the 5-star review system in general. Especially here where most authors are considered amateur hobbyist authors. I'm of the mind that most people don't consider the system to be that deep of a critique, but an off-hand/off-shoot of the actual review. I have received some honest low-star reviews for my earlier works, I know they are rough and awkward. (I state that in the story description) So that doesn't truly bother me, I expect people to be critical of them, even with the disclaimer-type description that I provide. What I mean when I say, I feel the Star-Review system is an off-handed tool when leaving a review is, I don't think a lot of people use it in-line with the review they have written. I think it is more of a momentary 'feeling' sort of response to the story. The biggest example being 'glowing' reviews that does not say anything critical of the writing receiving anything less than Five Stars are confusing to authors, especially ones that may just be getting into writing. I'm not going to lie and say that a positive/glowing review of my writing that doesn't receive Five Stars won't bother me, it has in the past. I would much rather my writing be critically assessed and have that match the star rating. People tend to be visual as well, so keep that in mind. When you're shopping for something, or looking for something to read - in a place that has a lot of choice - what do you tend to gravitate towards? It is the stories, products, or whatever with the most five-star or best reviews, if they have that system implemented. If people are of that mind, then I can see where a less than 5-star review would hinder a person who may be writing here. I hope people actually read the body of the review instead of just look at a star rating, but there is no way of knowing if people are or not. I will also advocate that you read and review as you see fit. You are here to read, and I am here to write. It isn't really my place to tell you how to conduct yourself as a reviewer/reader. As long as you're not actively encouraging people to 'not' read something within your tone/review. I do feel that is a disservice to the author who is looking for an audience. To Add as an aside: If you're an author out there that is solely relying on Review ratings to promote your writing, then you're doing yourself an injustice. Actively promote your writing, engage with the community around you, create a story discussion, actually respond to people who leave comments on your chapters, etc. If you're visible and your writing is visible you will find an audience.

The day has come! I'll make sure you get the nurses with the cold hands, Steven.

Luke didn’t seem to fully relax until we were well out of town and already passed through a few more. We were headed away from the setting sun, the orange glow blinding me whenever a curve caused it to reflect perfectly in the rearview mirror. I half wanted to talk or listen to music to fill the silence with something, but I didn’t know what to say. All of this told me that we were too close to the end, something was going to break. We hadn’t been careful enough with what we were doing and I won

I think we all know - or have known.. a person like Cindy once upon at time, unfortunately. I also write stories that I hope are 'real enough' that we can look at it as a whole and think that it could be someone's true story out there somewhere. At least when I am writing within this romance genre anyway. Luke and poor Henry may disagree.

Hi! Welcome back, even if it may just be a short visit. I am glad to hear that you found and kept the love of your life all these years as well. It wasn't too long ago @wildone and I were reminiscing, because he had just had a GA-nniversary himself and we talked about old members. You were one of those people - hope your ears weren't burned in the process. So whatever capacity you return to, I'm glad to see you here.

Thank you for enjoying the story so far, I appreciate every reader/comment I get.

Thank you, I do like answering questions.. or if I feel like maybe the writing isn't clear or something, I feel like I need to. I want everyone who reads my stories to know at least my intention behind some things. I hope I don't press the intention too much though, it is nice reading different points of view as well. I'll never want to be like, "No you're wrong, this is how such and such feels.." or, "No you're wrong, that wasn't what took place.." either. So me talking with y'all over something I've written will never get old for me, if it does I will need to hang it up.

Lol. I don't know, I can name three near me. So maybe it is more prominent in differen regions. And yeah, it was Grace's lie to Henry in the first place, so she went with what their generation would know as safe and fun. They did grow up together and probably went bowling together, I'm sure. Neither Luke or Jackson was any help. Yeah, I don't think Cindy would be in their minds if they're miles away. We'll see how far her reach is. There were some time jumping in the last chapter to get us here. I have some ideas of what they can do on their night out as well. So hopefully it won't come back to bite them in the ass. Times are changing, but @wildone answered a question that I asked once, with - I feel the the world is more in the middle between complete acceptance and the Cindy's of the world. So with this story, she is the general conflict that moves the story. The fear of her finding out, keeps Luke in a constant state of unease. Compound that she is his mother and someone he grew up loving - despite that fear. A lie and secrets is all the arsonal they have. Right now they're stuck in a world where people are finding out - slowly, but surely. So it isn't a lie they make because they're being compliant with the demands of their parents. They are liars because in Luke's mind, that is the only way he can have a loving relationship with his parents. That is their trade off at the moment. I don't want to sound like I'm defending Cindy, lol. But we're only really seeing Cindy painted in Jackson's light.. and the off-hand accounts of her overreaching and overreacting. She may be a lot better at home in her element and she may have a really great relationship with Luke. If they didn't, I doubt Luke would care as much as he does about that fear of being unaccepted. Also, opposites attract? Lol.. maybe happy-go-lucky Henry fell head over heels for Cindy's uptight-controllingness. Or maybe Cindy wasn't like that all the time... or maybe she isn't like that much at home. Lol. Well dogs are more forgiving, if it was a cat then I'd fear for your safety. Arcades and Rollerskating rinks are a thing here too. Roller Disco was never really big here though, so there's that. None of which would hold the attentions of the kids I know, so yeah, Grace might get a crash course on how to keep the next two entertained in the coming years. This is probably the best example of their dynamics. Jackson is optimistic and Luke can't be, for his reasons. So maybe one day Jackson will pull Luke along for that and Luke will let him. Either way Jackson only plans on leaving... Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. I like the conflicting mindsets of the two guys. It will be a leap for Luke to take, but he has his own dreams, I just haven't really gotten into those of any sort of length yet. We know what Jackson wants, but not Luke. I don't see Cindy forcing a marriage onto Luke. She might force a girlfriend on him or at least prospects in front of him.. I mean, my mother placed boys in front of me some when I was a teenager. They could have been Ryan Reynolds clones and I would have said no though. I have always loved and enjoyed the way you comment on characters and this story in general. I think you have described Cindy's mind pretty thoroughly. She doesn't know what damage she is causing, that much is painfully obvious to us. Her character has been fun to write, maybe in an obvious stereotypical way. I at least hope she is still a little fresh though. --- @wildone Yes, you caught me. I added your suggestions for a date night for that very reason alone. I was happy to do it and I will do it again. Bowling... Roller skating... movies.. come on now. Sometimes a girl has to do everything all by herself.

After the dick pic sent me scrambling up the stairs, I ended up groaning with the lack of response from Luke after he sent it. So I rolled off the bed and pulled my pants back on, thinking that it was better to save all I had for that, later. I also didn’t know exactly when I was supposed to meet him. Despite my best efforts in the locker room earlier, I still thought I smelled like the school’s cafeteria and the cleaning spray from my first day of detention. So I walked down the hall to th