Graeme

@Timothy M. Mason's going to have an income of $500 a week. That's $26,000 a year. It's not a big income, but he won't be paying rent, so his biggest expenses will be the utilities and food. He'll still have plenty to spend in frivolous stuff if he wants. He just won't be able to buy anything particularly big unless he saves up. Oh, and with the way his father has organised things, he won't be paying any Australian tax on that income. I don't know about USA taxes, but I'm sure those taxes will be minimal, too. So, as an after-tax and after-rent income, $26,000 a year is quite decent. @impunity Anti-religious and anti-gay is an uncommon combination. It's just in this case that the source of that attitude is due to Ben's uncle being molested by a someone at a religious school. Ben's father hates the religious organisation for protecting the molester, and hates gays because his brother was molested by one. That appears to be the father's views, though so far we only have Ben's thoughts on the matter.

Mitchell gave Ben another kiss. “I’m sorry, but you know the routine.” Ben chuckled. The two were still intertwined in Mitchell’s bed. “You’re kicking me out again.” He knew Mitchell worked on Saturday mornings, and Mitchell had more than made up for the inconvenience the night before. Ben wasn’t bothered by the impending early-morning departure. “Only after I make you breakfast.” Mitchell propped himself up on one elbow so he could smile down at the young football player. “But since

I'm not sure that Scott has truly learnt his lesson. His attitude at the start of the chapter was that everything was Mark and Bobby's fault. That they had enticed him and that was the cause of the problems. Yes, he had a change of heart while tied to the goalpost, but moving to Arkansas, he'll be in a very similar mindset to when he moved to California. He has the chance to do the right thing, but he could easily revert to being a bully. When he moved to California, he was desperate for acceptance, and found it by bullying others. He's leaving California desperate for acceptance, and...

Given how many people he'd been having sex with (Richard, William and now Ryan), it's surprising that rumours never started. William, in particular, I would have expected to have said something to someone while he was jealous that his cousin had stolen Scott from him. I actually found Scott a little less revolting in this chapter. Admittedly, this is from his perspective, but he didn't come over as bad as he did from Mark's perspective. When he wasn't near Mark and Bobby, he sounds almost reasonable, with normal concerns about what his peers will think of him, and whether he'll be left all alone...again. Of course, we don't see what he's doing or trying to do to Mark and Bobby, except at the theatre, but it's interesting. I wonder if what he's left out is a reflection of him not wanting to think about it, or not realising how wrong it was and therefore not worth mentioning?

This is why there are stories that I would like to write a sequel for, but I haven't: I can't come up with a story, that is to say, a start, middle, finish. The start is usually easy for a sequel, because you've got a starting point, but you also need the middle and finish to make it a story. When I have written a sequel (which hasn't been often, though I'm currently on my fourth novel in a series that I never expected to take off in this way) I usually introduce new main characters as a way of bringing something new to the story. The familiar and loved characters still play a significant role, but the story at least partially revolves around the new characters, not the old. The one prequel I wrote, for that same series, describes one particular scene from the original book from a different perspective, but I was very careful to avoid anything except minor spoilers as part of that prequel (it helps that the scene in question was in an early chapter of the original series). I have another prequel planned, to explain part of the motivation of one of the characters of the series, but again, it'll be written to avoid spoilers. My Lilydale Leopard series didn't start out as a planned series, but I kept that as an option as I was writing. The original story was standalone, but I was always aware that I had an entire year of football ahead, so I wrote the first book accordingly. The third book came about because I realised I wasn't going to be able to finish the second book where I originally planned, so I brought it to a conclusion at an appropriate point, and then started on the third book to bring the story to a close at the original intended ending point, introducing a new character in the process to allow myself more writing material and more of a story. The fourth book is more of a spin-off, taking the action away from the core group of characters, and is again largely centred around a new character. A fifth book, returning to the core characters is planned.... Most of the above came about organically. I didn't plan on a series, but I allowed it evolve. At each step of the process, though, I asked the questions that Comicality said to ask. What is going on that will make a story? Where is the conflict/challenge? Is there going to be a satisfactory conclusion? Unless I had positive answers to those questions, I wasn't going to proceed. I have a long list of short stories that I would love to expand into a novel or novella, but I haven't because I haven't been able to come up with positive answers to those questions. Similarly, for sequels to my other novels. Without inspiration of how to write a unique new story, I can't write a sequel for those novels. I like to reflect on movies when it comes to sequels. There are very few sequels that come up to the standard of the original movie, and those that succeed have done so by not repeating the story of the original. My favourite example is Short Circuit and it's sequel. The sequel doesn't repeat the same story, but focuses on a different character from the original, and builds something new as a consequence. That's my goal each time I contemplate a sequel: to create something new, not just more of the same.

Now there's the Scott we've all grown to hate... He really has been indoctrinated by his father. His uncle isn't any better, but Scott started out knowing what he was doing was wrong. This chapter shows that it didn't take much for him to fall into the same mentality that caused his problems in the first place. After being downtrodden and abused for so long, he's moved onto the other side of the fence and became the one doing the abusing and making others downtrodden. I can appreciate that the power went to his head, but it would've been nice if he'd felt even a little remorse doing what he was doing. He did at the start, but that didn't take long to disappear...

People have a reason for acting the way they have. It may not always be rational, but there's a reason. Learning the reason Scott was the way he was doesn't make what he did right, but it explains why he did it. It was an emotional reaction on the spur of the moment. Intellectually, Scott should know his father wasn't going to beat him up again, but he was probably afraid that his uncle would. His experiences at his old school also probably meant he never considered the possibillity that he may be going to a gay-tolerant school. So, he lashes out and burns his bridges behind him...all to protect himself

Thank you! We'll just have to wait and see how the auction turns out. They can be very unpredictable. Thank you. In Clarissa's defense, she's left her family and almost all her friends behind to follow Deon to Sydney. That's scary and she's still showing signs of emotional stress as a consequence. If you like, she's insecure, and Deon disappearing without telling her why has made her scared. The same doesn't apply to Neil and Liam because they have each other, which is what they want, and Deon has his first love, football (which is another thing that is stressing Clarissa, as she said to Daphne). Mason's parents are both lawyers, with his mother also previously being a Californian Assemblywoman, and now a member of Congress. We have the impression that neither family comes from old wealth, but it's pretty clear that they're well off. Given that Mason's parents met in law school, they've probably been lawyers for around 20 years. That's enough time for at least one of them to have worked their way to a well-paid position in a law firm. We don't know how long his mother has been in politics, but politicians have the capacity to earn more than their base salary. Not necessarily illegally, but simply through contacts and knowledge they acquire. Thank you I'm sorry I can't post more frequently, but the writing hasn't been progressing as fast I'd hoped. I also write my stories so they can be read through in one shot, with posting serially simply being the way to get the stories out there without a long delay between publishing something. That's why I tend to keep the cliffhanger endings to a minimum -- they're more an artifact of serial writing than novel writing. @shyboy85 I don't mind your infrequent comments. I'm just happy that you're still reading and enjoying. Clarissa wasn't part of the group when the incident that ultimately triggered this trip to Melbourne occurred. So, she's not aware of the situation, especially since when she did become involved, her focus was on Neil, not the players (even if one particular player did his best to try to change that ) It's possible Helena, Stacey, or Karen could've told her, but obviously they didn't, or it didn't sink in.

Ben grinned at the bedraggled figure that was collapsed on the living-room couch. “You look wrecked.” “I feel wrecked.” Ross managed a weak smile. “It’s been a couple of hours since I finished training, and I’m still knackered. As I made my way home, I wondered what the other people on the train thought I’d been doing.” He winced. “The walk from the train station to here was bad enough. I’d hate to think what I looked like then.” “If it makes you feel any better, you missed a light t

I haven't been here for all 16 years, but I've been hanging around for a long time. There's been a lot of changes over those years, but the core reason why I'm still around hasn't changed: this is a great community. I love the stories, but it's the people who are here that keep me coming back. Sadly, some of those people are no longer with us and others have simply moved on, but along with old friends still here, there are many new friends, too. So, thank you to @Myr for creating this wonderful place, but thank you, also, to everyone who makes this the place that it is.

And it's over. While Scott was a bully and deserved some punishment, the punishment he received was more than what he deserved. However, we're talking about young teenagers, so going over the top is not unexpected. Working out the appropriate level of response is something that comes with experience. Thanks, Ron! I really enjoyed reading this story again.

Thank you! That was the intention...

Plan B is very risky, and lots of things can go wrong. I hope Plan C is a good backup, just in case. I'm impressed by Randall. He clearly doesn't care if people know about him and Richard. He may not be saying anything explicitly, but he's not hiding how he feels.

I'm glad to see that Ryan is basically a good guy who's been taken in by the serial liar, Scott..Their plan is risky from a number of points of view, such as @droughtquake mentioned, though I believe the story is set in a time before sexting became widespread, so they may be able to avoid that particular legal headache. I'm also glad to see Bobby bounce back so fast. I wouldn't be surprised if he has a few hangups as a result of almost being raped. He's obviously fine with Mark, but he may become a little cautious with others, especially strangers, for a period of time.

Dog schools kids A therapy dog helps out at a New South Wales country school during the current severe drought. In case you're wondering how one dog can make much impact, you need to know that the school in question, which caters for classes from Kindergarten to Year 12 (high school seniors, in American terms) has, according to their 2017 annual report, a total of just under 130 students. With 13 year levels from K-12, that's an average of 10 students per year level. Ajax, the therapy dog still has a lot of hard work to do, but the numbers are small enough for him to be able to help the kids out by keeping up their spirits during one of the worst droughts Australia has experienced.

Thanks, @Timothy M.! As usual, I can't comment on too much, but regarding your last comment, Clarissa would be travelling back to Melbourne (from Sydney) to visit family and friends.

Mason Cox is the inspiration for Mason's name in this story He's an exceptional athlete.

Ben Driscoll wasn’t sure what to think. On the one hand, he’d had a great night with Mitchell that ended with them both in bed. It was something he wanted to experience again and again. On the other hand, the more time he spent being ‘gay’, the more likely his family would find out. He could live with being disowned—at least, he thought he could—but his father wasn’t rational when it came to homosexuality. A violent response from the family was a definite possibility. Even living in a differ

Yes, someone else pointed that out to me. I'll fix that soon I think Caleb was more surprised than uncomfortable. It's a minor celebrity who lives in another state dropping in to a small party...not exactly something to be expected

Scott's a user. It's quite possible that Ryan knows nothing about what Scott has been doing. His reaction to seeing Scott in that bathroom would tend to indicate he didn't know what Scott had planned on doing. Mark and Bobby have just had a wakeup call about how dangerous what they're doing can be. If Mark hadn't gone to see what was going on, Bobby would've been raped (again -- Scott had already forced him at least once over summer). Maybe, now they'll stop playing around and take the evidence they have to the school principal. They already know she's looking for an excuse to expell him.

I remember! And, yes, it's really good. The opening scene was fun. When we're starting a relationship, there's a natural tendency to want a lot of one-on-one time. Mark's pique at not having Bobby's attention is perfectly understandable, but it's still amusing. He got what he wanted in the end, even if it wasn't exactly what he'd had planned

How do you find out if someone else is gay? By giving them the opportunity to safely tell you. By being outed, Mark has presented himself to other students as someone who they could potentially trust to tell the truth. By his actions against Scott on the first day, he's shown he's not going to fall over and let himself be abused; that he'll stand up for himself, if needed. That's why Richard and Randall have both felt confident enough to tell him the truth about themselves. It makes me wonder how many other gay students there were at my school when I was growing up in the 70s. I didn't know of any, but, in hindsight, I couldn't have been the only one...

She's 13 and she knows what her mother would do with her if she steps too far over the line. If she's helping Scott, I doubt it'll be voluntarily. Also, it's during the school day. Scott's absence would be noted, if he was trying to do something. Yes, a trap is plausible, but I don't think it's likely unless Amy is being forced, in which case she is still legitimately in trouble and needs help.

My comment on an earlier chapter about Scott attracting gay guys seems to be correct. I hope Richard has enough self-confidence that he doesn't allow himself to be blackmailed by Scott into doing things he doesn't want to do. I found Amy's comment to her mother about "already up to three years" amusing, but things then took a dark turning. While Mark doesn't like his sister that much, he still cares for her -- he's shown that several times -- and will do what he can to protect her. Amy obviously knows that, too, because now that she's in trouble, she's turned to Mark for help. I just hope it's not too serious

Thank you! Thanks for the great post, Timothy, most of which I can't comment on (as usual), but I wanted to clarify this point. The Players' Association is essentially a union representing the players. The president is always an active player, as are most (if not all) of the office holders (I'm not 100% sure if they have to be active players or not). As such, they don't have the power to suspend or fine players, but they certainly have influence with both the clubs and the AFL Commission (who do have the power to fine players, and possibly other sanctions, too). Mason's father is certainly not winning awards for being the best parent, but he's certainly not shy about trying to protect Mason. Now, if he would only talk things over with his son, rather than trying to control everything without consulting...