Wayne Gray

Oh, that's cool you got to learn and experience a bit of ASL. I wanted to so badly when I was younger, but all I can do is fingerspell. Keep on reading! All shall be revealed in time. 🙂

Hehe. Thanks! I'm a "pee in the shower" kind of guy. Healthy urine is sterile, after all. 😄

Hehehe. That's okay! I'm glad you liked it your second time through! 🙂

How will you make it?! This question I cannot answer, though I am certain you shall find a way. 🙂 I've never been a cop, but I have been a US sailor. We had locker rooms, and almost all of us changed on-site. I'm not totally sure why, but it just is how it is. Anderson isn't gay. He's a straight, happily married man with a couple of kids. But he's accepting, and most of the others on the force are too. The minority who might not be know to keep their mouths shut. Imagine that - bigots are shamed for bigotry and not encouraged. Huh. What a concept. Avery and Lee make for a sweet little pair, all snuggled up. And yes ... it makes me remember back to the first few times I felt that same excitement. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for the comments and for reading!

There are so many times when romance is a bad idea. Yet, it happens still. We'll find out where those efforts end up. It may be predictable, or it may go completely off the rails. Thanks for the comments and for reading. 🙂

I wish there was such a place too. I know there are recovery get-away places, but none are reasonably priced. None have the unique focus Camp Refuge has in a gentle, holistic immersion in nature and connection to others. Greg started it because he felt such a place was needed, and he was right. We do need it. Thanks for commenting, Sunshine. 🙂

I hope you enjoy the spin back through the campground, Sunshine! Thanks for reading and for the comment. 🙂

Great to hear you're on the mend, Chris! Yes, rest. Then you can get to your fan mail when you're a bit better able to tackle such a pile of it! 🙂

Thanks for the great comments, mayday. To Lee, the cabin is a treasure. He has never had his own space. More, he had never been handed the power to acquire his own living arrangement. True ... Greg lied a bit to him. Greg has kept Lee thinking that he doesn't have a choice. But there's something telling there. Lee could have run away, and he has not. You're dead on. Nobody has ever asked Lee how he feels, what he wants. Nobody has ever taken interest in him, in his natural inclinations or desires. Lee has suffered so deeply. Avery will certainly help him along a more independent path, and in the process Lee is helping him too. Eddie kept Lee dependent on him, whereas Greg is setting things in motion so Lee can stand on his own. Greg's goal is completely opposite of Eddie's - to build Lee up, so that he can, one day ... fly. Very insightful. Thanks for taking the time and thought here.

Great comments, Dave. A guy, ANY guy, has to be comfortable to yell "Hey!" at Harlan. Lee doesn't know all there is to know about him, but Harlan puts off a vibe - one that convinces most to step carefully around him. Well, not Lee. Hehe. But that's not the only mark of his growing security. He's truly making plans to stick around, paying rent on his cabin, learning how to be an asset for the campground, getting to know Avery and Greg better ... he's really trying. Lee's efforts have made a dent in Greg's concerns. And absolutely, Avery is so happy to have a friend in Lee. Avery loves and values the other Raven Project kids, but they've gravitated to each other, naturally becoming closer to others. So to Avery, Lee is his friend. One that he made, all on his own, and one he intends to keep. And ... from the look of things, one he intends to get to know even better. Thanks for reading and for commenting!

Thanks, Parker. He has begun to believe. He has only just started down the path, but Greg can see the potential for more in Lee's life. Cooking is one path forward, and they can both sense it. More is coming. 🙂

Was that wording intentional? 😛 Thanks, molly. There's progress on a few fronts. Lee is showing interest in things beyond earning money, and he has agreed to put down roots - at least for a week. That's huge. And Harlan. Well ... anytime that man is involved, you never quite know what will come.

Thanks for the comments. Harlan is capable of fixing and initiating a lot. I had to be careful there. I don't want him to fix all of Lee's problems. I think I struck a balance, and I look forward to the moment when the story is done, and people can see the whole picture. Because there's certainly a larger picture. 🙂

Thanks for the comment, Jeffrey! 🙂 That "slow" comment is important. Anybody tries to push Lee to do anything, and he will dig in like a stubborn mule. So it's important to just let him be. Though, Avery is pushing him in a totally different way. That's coming from a place of curiosity, interest, and friendliness. Lee doesn't know how to deal with that in a confrontational way. So here we are.

I appreciate the role you played. you helped make Avery into a believable teenager, and Lee too - because they both are. 🙂 It's terrible ... what that sort of treatment does to us, particularly as kids. They internalize so much, and that is what Lee is struggling with now. It will take time and reinforcement of his worth to get over that.

Thanks, molly! That's a great way to describe the interactions between Avery and Lee. Lee can't quite admit he likes being around Avery, not yet. But given time, that may come. We'll have to see.

Thanks for the comment! And ... look at you, making those connections. Hrm. Isn't that interesting, indeed.

Thanks, Bryan! It's hard to be an island when you like how you're treated by those around you. Greg is a thoughtful guy, and in a vacuum he'd have no problems taking Lee in and helping him along. Though he's not in a vacuum; Lee's connection to Avery both concerns and gives Greg hope. Kitsukuroi ... that is perfect. Yes. Well put. I think Lee and Avery vacillate between the broken shards and the precious mortar holding them together. Harlan is his own force, isn't he? He steps into a scene, aware, judging, calculating. In this chapter Lee shows himself worth Harlan's attention. That alone has set this newly-evolved Lee apart. And ... you're too kind. Though I certainly appreciate it. 🙂

Great comments. Thanks for these. I've said this before, but up until now I'd never felt Greg offered much other than "stability". But here, we get to watch him struggle just a bit with his doubts as they concern Lee. Because he does have them. Yet, he's willing to look beyond to try and help Lee. He really wants Lee to succeed, and that desire is getting stronger every day. Joseph was afraid of what both Anderson and the other cops would think of him. He knew he had to tell them (or he thought he did!), and he had determined to do exactly that. So maybe this way turned out better in the end. Nobody is shocked. Nobody really even cares. It just is, and now that the cat is out of the bag, Joseph may just find a bit of ribbing from more than his partner. 😄 Lee and Avery are both stepping carefully. Neither has experienced what they're attempting. I like your thoughts around recovery, and ... I'm rather impressed you caught that Avery had likely suffered violence in his past. A single line in the chapter ... that's all there was to hint at it. Nice job. All I'll say about that is there's a reason Avery was removed from his birth parents. There's more to come on Friday. 🙂

Ahhh, you caught that! Good. Joseph was still trying to process his way through the fact that his partner knew he wasn't straight, and yes ... he missed the "we know" comment. Okay. So imagine this. A changing room filled with dudes getting into and out of uniform during the shift change. Joseph peels off his t-shirt, is chatting up someone ... while behind him, three of his coworkers are eyeing his huge bite mark on the back of his neck/shoulder and giving Anderson smirks. All the while, Anderson is like "shit, how do I tell him? shit." Yeah ... that's pretty much how that has been going! Thanks for reading and for the comment! This one was fun. You added to your post! Okay. Yes, Mason and Jeremy moved into the Airstream. They did that back in "A Silent Song" when Clay and Greg moved to the house they purchased next to the campground. And Harlan certainly noticed Lee's potential. It can't hurt to have a guy like Harlan in your corner - not at all.

Harlan picks up on almost everything. He makes the word "perceptive" seem vastly inadequate when it comes to human behavior. So he can sense ... something there. Thanks for the comment. I do like this chapter, and how it turned out. A lot of what is here will show up down the line in other chapters.

That scene ... hehehe. Joseph and Anderson really do trust, love and value one another. That was the only way they could talk the way they did, and their connection helped Joseph be okay with things. Lee ... I do think it's amazing what those things you mentioned will do for a person's confidence and sense of self-worth. He's paying his own way, and doing what he needs to do in order to function and be a productive member of society. Now ... there are sex workers who have the freedom to pick and choose clients, and command their own lives. That was not Lee's life. He was a tool used by someone who saw him only as exactly that. But things are different now. With Avery, Lee has found someone who just wants ... well, him. Him as a person. The whole Lee. He's never had that, and it's new, terrifying, and exciting for him. Thanks for the great comments! This is a story I've wanted to tell for a while, and I'm glad I get the chance to do that.

Thank you, Butcher! 🙂

Omelets really take skill. Lee has a natural grasp of flavors, but that doesn't do anything for building skills needed to execute a well-made omelet. Yet we also got to watch him stick with it and keep trying until he nailed it - even at the expense of a few bucks from the donation jar. Greg is trying to show Lee that he is more than how he thinks of himself. He's on the way, and Greg is encouraged that Lee is beginning to believe. Yes. We've not heard from Mr. Eddie. Hrmm. But you're right - Lee's situation is still tenuous. I personally love that scene in the squad car too. Joseph was appalled while Officer Anderson was both embarrassed for him, and eager to give him grief too. Yep. Definitely partners! Thanks for the comments and for reading. 🙂

I have never claimed innocence from deviousness! 🙂 Thanks for the comments, and for reading. I'm glad you enjoyed it!