Graeme

I've seen studies that indicate that males between the ages of 14 and 18 are the most homophobic. The speculation was that this is because they're at an age where they want to be perceived as macho and masculine, and anything with connotations that aren't is to be avoided. Sadly, being gay is too often strongly linked to being effeminate, hence the homophobia in that age group, Interestingly, since sportsmen are often perceived as being the most homophobic in that group, they're also the ones that are often the most self-confident and hence the ones who are most able to accept someone as being gay without seeing it as a threat to their own masculinity. Taylor certainly seems to fit that model. I think it also helped that he was new. He didn't have a history with you that would conflict with his initial knowledge of you being just another sportsman. Just speculation on my behalf Thanks for writing this. I think it's useful for people to know.

I think I'll start a "my favourite line" theme to these reviews For chapter it was: I’ve also learned to never underestimate a 19-year-old male’s capacity for immaturity. Followed shortly afterwards by: Blah blah blah 19-year-old-male’s blah blah blah. Though I'll concede that the ending was pretty good, too

That opening scene with Indie was brilliant. We get a really strong feel for his character, especially with such lovely lines such as: They made me watch Frozen. That line, as a paragraph all by itself, shows the horrors to which his acquaintances (they can't be called friends) subject him to. I had to grin. Then we finish up with one of the guests going into meltdown because Efrain and Cory show up, both drunk and incredibly horny. A perfect end to a wonderful chapter. Thank you!

For everyone who wondered how Kevin got JJ's number, I thought it was obvious that Joe and JJ are the same person. JJ didn't like admitting that he likes guys, but Joe was the part of him that does. A really enjoyable story even though I figured out JJ/Joe early. In fact, that was part of the enjoyment, admiring how the author handled that situation.

Loving the story. I'm pretty confident that Gary is Garret and Toph's mother's employer, and it's Toph's mother that Gary had to talk to. I wonder when they all get together and realise that. I also love the way you've described how Toph paints. I can imagine it -- a journey of discovery with every painting. It means he'll probably have trouble doing portraits on commission, but if he develops his talent he'll be able to paint portraits and then sell them to whoever he painted.

Ah...the arrival of the attack twink. One of my (many) favourite parts of this story The 'pet' names in this story are one of its endearing characteristics. Usually Preston gets to give them, but this time it was Indie. The initial scene, Romero's recanting of it immediately afterwards, and then the text messages between Indie and Efrain all brought a smile to my face. Thank you!

You can't help thinking that Indie is a little jealous, but he won't even admit it to himself

The two guys have a great relationship. Despite definite top/bottom roles and related dom/sub tendencies in the bedroom, they have a remarkably balanced friendship. Cory doesn't mind putting Efrain in his place and Efrain doesn't seem too annoyed when it happens.

I don't play any sports at the moment, but when I was very young I did athletics. The only event I was ever any good at was race walking (made the district finals one year). The main sport I did was a youngster was basketball -- both playing and refereeing. Other than that...nothing

Thanks for the insights on how it feels to be on a team and secretly gay, and then how your teammates handled learning the truth. For a long time, I've been of the opinion that a lot of homophobic insults are really just insults where the user doesn't believe what they're saying. That doesn't make it acceptable, but it's not always meant as being a personal attack. This is more true for young people today than it was for young people in my time, and a lot of that is because homosexuality is a lot more accepted today than it was then. However, I still remember when someone I used to work with came out to her boss, who is of the same generation as me, and he immediately apologised for all the homophobic comments he'd made in the office. That just reinforced to me that a lot (but not all) of homophobic behaviour is not meant to be homophobic -- being gay is just an abstract subject for too many people and hence available to be used as an insult. As soon as there's a concrete example in front of them, they back away from their previous behaviour. I'm looking forward to more of these stories. Thank you!

Sorry, but the writing on the third book is going slowly. It'll start posting sometime in 2016, but I can't promise when.

Hmm... another chapter with the naming master (Preston), Efrain discovers Cory is bi, and someone(s) take a shower. Efrain was cute, with the best pickup lines, and Cory was...Dread Pirate Blueballs. What's not to love about this chapter?

Not every homeless teen needs to go that far, but yes, it's good that he didn't. Peter will be changed by the experience, hopefully in only positive ways.

Thanks Valkyrie!

Thank you

I understand why Indie ran away. As he said, he spent years with his boyfriend, only to have Jameson leave him for a girl. The thought of hooking up with another bi guy scared him. He didn't want to go through that again. Of course, there's a difference between a hook-up and a relationship, but this gives a hint that Indie's not into hook-ups. He wants a relationship, and he's scared to do that with someone that he thinks might leave him.

And so the dance between Cory and Efrain begins... It's nice re-reading the story afresh, with time to think about the chapters before moving onto the next one. I'd remembered little things like the dancing, and had forgotten things like the 3 F's (football, physics, females).

Thank you

Thank you! Yes, I think that's the best part of Christmas, too.

Very true. The past can be a millstone around our necks, but that doesn't mean we can't sometimes take it off and move on without it.

Thank you. I think it would be a tough job for me to write a Christmas story that didn't have a happy ending. I'm a romantic at heart

Thank you! I'm glad that working out the relationship between Joshua and Isaac didn't ruin the ending. That was one of the things I was afraid of.

Thank you

Thank you! Yes, showing up the day before allows Ruth and Isaac to get over their past without the complication of their parents (which would've required a much longer story that would've stopped me from entering the contest in the first place).

Thank you