Summerabbacat

I agree @weinerdog, it appears Benantha will not be returning to the house, well at least not in this story. If Samantha wants to finish her tertiary studies though she well may return, in which case I assume Ben will too. Jack (Red) is a menace, a menace which I am hoping will be dealt with by video footage of him entering the carpark where Matt's Commodore was damaged. If he is found to have damaged Matt's car I think it a certainty he will get off with a fine and maybe an order to pay the damages bill. Will such a lenient punishment change his behaviour? It is hard to imagine it will as he is so stupid. If however, he threatens Aaron again and the boys are able to record the threat, he may face more severe punishment. The best possible punishment for him though would be to be socially ostracised. If Andy is found guilty and sentenced, the Court of public opinion may find Jack guilty by association. Whilst this is completely unfair and is contrary to my principles, I could easily make an exception for someone like Jack. I am disappointed the story is about to finish @Mark Ponyboy Peters, but I guess the outcome of Andy Thompson's arrest is a logical place to conclude it, unless you intend to do a Who Shot JR on us, and leave the outcome as a cliffhanger until the start of a new story. The peasants will revolt if this is what transpires.

@Paladin I guess it is a "burden" I will just have to bear. I am used to being a Beast Of Burden though, serving by day in the Commonwealth public service and for the balance of the day my feline mistresses at home.

"Ben giggled and said, "Good point, Uncle Vince. So, the big news of the evening is that Scarlett and I are dating on a trial basis." The statement left the chuckling adults intrigued. "What's the terms of this trial basis," Julie asked after sipping the cider. "Well, we both feel like we've got a good balance between having things in common and being into different things, but we're not sure if it's the romance of Christmas, so we've decided on reevaluating the relationship after Valentine's Day dance." Are you sure Ben is only 13 years of age @Ticklishboy30? His "evaluation" of his newly minted relationship with Scarlett seems awfully mature for one so young (LOL). "So, Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Morgan and Grandma and Grandpa Wakefield were at the dinner, which surprised me." This statement cleared up my confusion regarding Brett and Trevor's parents @Ticklishboy30. I have to wonder why Ben's Grandma and Grandpa Morgan, Ben and Trevor's parents, are so bigoted but Grandpa Morgan's parents seemingly are not. Has Grandpa Morgan become a bigot because of Grandma Morgan's beliefs or the beliefs of her parents, or was he a bigot to begin with? I am intrigued by this scenario. Whatever the reason, it appears Grandma and Grandpa Morgan will "celebrate" a lonely Christmas unless Brett and Trevor have other siblings whom their parents "approve" of. I have never watched a wrestling match in my life, but the running commentary from Julie and Vince did remind me of the baseball commentary by Phil Rizzuto in Meatloaf's song Paradise By The Dashboard Light from his Bat Out Of Hell album, without the obvious sexual connotations.

My prediction for Jordan and Cameron, for the short term at least @Ticklishboy30, is captured brilliantly by the incomparable Aussie singer, the late, great Renee Geyer.

Terrific start @Paladin. Another young gay man with an accepting family who support him. Who "woulda thunk" such things possible until more recently. Jordan and Cameron, both attractive gender neutral names which seem equally suitable to either gender. A lawyer and an architect, quite the professional young couple. Jordan oozes confidence and used that confidence to his advantage with a direct pick up of Cameron in a coffee shop. No sleazy or cliched one-liners from this lad. I loved the exchange between Jordan and his father, particularly the examination of how their mother and wife respectively will react to a new man in Jordan's life. I am also intrigued by the final sentence "Excellent. It's time you moved on", suggesting to me Jordan has had his heart broken before. No songs popped readily into my head when reading this chapter @Paladin. I think the frantic pace with which one scene changed to another it was too much for my old brain to keep up with. As I write these comments though two songs suddenly popped into my head, and given they are by an Aussie singer it seems only fitting that either one of Christie Allen's monster hits Goosebumps or He's My Number One, captured the direction of this chapter. I of course loved them both, sheer pop perfection. Sadly, British-born Christie who grew up in Perth, died in 2008 at age 54 from pancreatic cancer. And check out Christie's "spray on" pants in this video. Ouch.

I just tried to find a video for it on the 'net but could not. I am not familiar with it as the Cher show was not on TV in Australia as far as I know, or if it was we did not have it on TV in rural Australia. There is another duet from Cher's show which I love even more than the one with Tina. It is a duet between Cher and Labelle with Miss Patti almost becoming airborne from the outfit she is wearing and her powerhouse vocals. Cher looks to be really enjoying herself and holds her own with Nona and Sarah, but not quite with Miss Patti. Cher wears an amazing headpiece and her outfit is stunning. The song is wonderful too.

I am not surprised Damian has started to have nightmares. I imagine the first one experienced won't be the last, particularly if he now fully appreciates what his mother's intentions were regarding Ludo, and what she may well have done to him. He is going to need lots of support. Fortunately he has that already from his beloved Dad and from Arthur and Adam, and I think Gordy and Lesley will be there to lend any support they can too. Graham Marcus' warning about what is likely to come echoed Lesley's suppositions. All four, but particularly Ludo and Damian, are in for tough times. I hope the bank they work for is also put under the microscope and is severely criticised. Another riveting chapter @Robert Hugill. Luckily for Ludo he now has a partner who supports him and Damian has a co-parent who oddly enough is there to care and protect him, not one who finds him an inconvenience.

I echo the sentiments expressed by several of my fellow readers @Paladin, I too appreciated the slow build up of the relationship between Jason and Liem, just like a train gathering speed. As I was reading the story I kept hearing snippets of ELO's Last Train To London and The Monkees Last Train To Clarksville. What made this story somewhat different from many others was the immediate acceptance of the burgeoning relationship between Jason and Liem by both families. I have had many co-workers of Vietnamese descent in my 40+ years of working and cannot recall any who were the slightest concerned about me being gay. I was amused by Linh's whispered comment to Susan “I hope Jason is gay.” It spoke well of her acceptance of Liem and her "approval" of Jason as a potential partner for her son. A charming short @Paladin, one which I think you could develop further if you are ever inclined to do so.

Imagine the diva "dummy spits" (LOL). It would be like watching one of those dreadful Real Housewives Of ........ shows. You would never get Aretha to Cher the stage with any of her contemporaries. She never had anything nice to say about them and was a legendary diva, amongst other things. Cher and Tina could recreate their version of Shirley & Company's Shame Shame Shame which they performed on Cher's variety show on 27/04/75. The epitome of fabulousness, Carol Channing, could sing Hello Dolly to herald Dolly's arrival on stage with Donna to sing Starting Over Again, with all three surrounded by dozens of drag queens. Donna could then segue into No More Tears (Enough Is Enough) with Barbra who could then segue into Tell Him with Celine. Judy Garland could perform with Rufus Wainwright (in drag) and do anything from Judy: Live At Carnegie Hall.

Bugger. I got myself so excited Sarge might be Nathan. It was like last week when I won the $100 million in Powerball and had the money all spent/donated, only to be dashed again when I did not win it. I hope I am not getting dementia because I have no recollection of Matt's car having the headlights smashed and the paint damaged. Do you remember what chapter that occurred in? It makes me concerned what else I may have forgotten or did I miss an entire chapter perhaps. The criticism that each chapter is told from a different character's POV is odd. I could understand and agree with the criticism if it disrupted the continuity of the plot or resulted in confusion for the reader as to who said what and when, but this has not been the case (apart from my forgetfulness above).

I think Micah well may be Mary's first experience with what becomes her lifelong passion as seen in the spin-off stories @Cane23. She has already shown herself to be a compassionate and deep-thinking child, the former of which she definitely did not inherit from her birthing vessel, in fact she inherited nothing from Rebecca, for which she is most fortunate. Even if Rebecca is a physically attractive woman, such beauty would be destroyed by her inner-ugly, an ugly so repulsive it must eventually start to show on her external appearance. I have been wracking my brain to suggest something horrible to happen to Rebecca, but have not as yet thought of anything nearly horrible enough. My suggestion above of a terminal illness is a good start, but she must be made to suffer more. She would likely play the martyr if she got a terminal illness. Whatever it is, it must be something where John and the children turn their back on her in her hour of need and she has nothing to live with but her bitter memories. Revenge is a dish best served cold, which in the case of Rebecca is very apt. I just hope it is also a dish best served in abundance, with all those she has wronged smiting her repeatedly.

Reading this delightful comment of yours @weinerdog, particularly the speculation in bold text, I had a very sudden and plausible epiphany. The Sarge is described as middle-aged, which may mean he is any age from 40-55 ish and therefore born between 1948 and 1963. Given this, I am speculating the Sarge's given name may be Nathan, a man born in 1959/1960 who was the best friend a boy named Danny could ever have had. It would explain the Sarge's apparent comfort with all the gay men/teens in the story and his gentle and caring manner with Paul and Aaron. Just saying @weinerdog, and hoping I might be right. And I am positive now I have not read this story as I remember little of what has occurred to date, and I am almost certain I would have remembered Ben's accident and its aftermath, the attack on Aaron and now on Paul, and the sudden arrival of Tony. I am quietly confident Andy Thompson will not be able to buy his way out of trouble. Sarge appears resolute and I doubt he will be intimidated by the Thompson family, particularly if he is Nathan or perhaps even Lachlan. I am also quietly confident Jack will be identified as the culprit who vandalised Matt's car. I have to ask though @Mark Ponyboy Peters, wasn't it Guy's car which had the headlights smashed etc rather than Matt's, or did I miss a vital part of the story and Matt's was vandalised too in the same manner? Tony's maturity and compassion is surprising me no end. He certainly does not get the latter from the Monolith, perhaps he "inherited" it from his father. Excellent chapter @Mark Ponyboy Peters with the arrest of Andy Thompson the highlight. I also loved the rhyming in the following sentence which I daresay was unintentional, but was just gorgeous, "Backing out of the parking space we gave Dave a wave farewell".

I had the same thought @Paladin, in fact, I had him pictured as El Supremo, the Jack of Spades, if the Jack of Spades is in fact the El Supremo. The irony would be delicious and a loud slap in the face for Rebecca. I thought it was mentioned Rebecca's parents were deceased when Melissa went to visit her with the gift for Mary's birthday. I just revisited chapter 6 where this event occurred and there was no mention of their parents though, so I must have imagined it or assumed they are dead because they are never mentioned. I don't recall either of his grandparents being mentioned in the spin-off stories about Joshua. As I indicated above, I highly recommend these spin-off stories and they do not reveal anything about the conclusion of this story, although quite a few of the "cast" are featured in the spin-off stories to varying degrees. I assume the Jack of Spades is a person of political, judicial or industrial importance @Paladin, someone with enormous wealth and/or power who leverages their power and/or wealth to achieve whatever outcome they desire, someone who does not entertain the word 'no' when they make a request/demand.

I think the inept interrogation was to lull Rizzo into a false sense of security @pvtguy, a false sense he may be able to share with the Jack of Spades and the Aces who are the lifeblood of the boy flesh porn racket. If he and the others who are the driving force of this racket think the CPD and FBI are onto them they will either move or dispose of the "merchandise". If they believe the CPD and FBI are clueless they are more likely to become careless themselves hopefully.

Unfortunately he is still married to her as late as November 2024 @pvtguy. @empath has written and published two stories about the life of adult Joshua (baby Joshua in this story) in which Rebecca and John Renkin are still married to each other, and she is at least as toxic, perhaps even more so, than she currently is. In those stories, which I highly recommend, she is only mentioned in passing, she has not contaminated them yet with an actual appearance. The mere mention of her name though is like poison to those who have been unfortunate enough to be acquainted with her to any degree.

Pure evil has many faces. Charles Miller, Jason Rizzo, William and Rebecca Renkin. She may not be involved in the child porn racket, but in my eyes she is as equally degenerate as those who are. Her description of Micah as an urchin was even lower than I thought she would sink. Clearly I have underestimated how truly toxic and despicable she is. She has no redeeming qualities, not one. It is perfectly understandable why her husband hates her with a passion and her children are at best indifferent to her. She has nothing to offer anyone which is of any worth. She is an entitled parasite, sucking the lifeblood out of those she should be nurturing. With her wealth she could do so much good, imagine the difference she could make to the lives of the boys, but no they are urchins in her narrow self-centred world. It is unfortunate she is still alive 32 years later, still sucking the lifeblood out of all those whose lives she has poisoned with her presence. I can only hope as Joshua's life progresses she is diagnosed with a terminal illness and all those who under normal circumstances would have provided comfort to her i.e. John and her children, turn their back on her. She is the epitome of a c#*t. I must say @empath there was much to like about this chapter, such as the progress being made in locating some of the boys and Daniel's offer to Qian Chang, but for me everything was overshadowed by the behaviour of Rebecca Renkin such that I am fixated on her.

OMG Brett and Vincent have been dating for 1 month and they are only now making love. Such virtue, such restraint, such aching balls. No wonder their first time was so 🔥🔥🔥. Tina Charles, who was the singer of this song, although it is not she who appears in the video, describes it best. And now Brett and Vincent are to be uncles and Ben a cousin. The selection of When A Child Is Born most appropriate, and although I am not fond of children, I have to acknowledge the beauty of the message of this song, particularly when sung by the great Johnny Mathis, a very handsome member of the LGBTQI community and a consummate singer. The video clip might be a little too syrupy for some, but I think it encapsulates the "message" of this story to perfection @Ticklishboy30, and it doesn't hurt that Johnny is "smoking hot" in the video clip.

I don't think being able to sing is a requirement to be a rock/pop star @Paladin. There are plenty of popular "singers" today who owe their popularity to something other than their singing talent.

I think @Paladin is being bashful @Ticklishboy30. He may be a little older than me but for reasons unknown I can see him rocking a pair of those boots ala Gene Simmons or Paul Stanley from Kiss belting out Rock N Roll All Nite, I Was Made For Lovin' You, Sure Know Something, Shout It Loud or Love Gun.

With all this pre-Christmas tickling taking place I hope all have plenty of spare underwear as someone is bound to have an "accident" sooner or later. I loved Ben's serious stance to begin with when he was "interviewing" Vincent to ensure he was good enough for his Uncle Brett. For a fleeting moment it appeared Vincent took him seriously and was ready to hyperventilate. "Do you think you'll ever cheat on him, abuse him, or make him wear a neon pink leotard with bright purple leg warmers and orange ballet slippers? If the answer is yes to the leotard and legwarmers, I'd love a picture." had me in stitches. What a hideously garish colour combination, one which appealed to me enormously. Pink, purple and orange. The only colour missing was emerald green. I have to wonder if Brett returning to his hometown will have a thawing effect upon his relationship with his parents. I searched high and low for a song about tickling or with tickle in its title @Ticklishboy30 and the only one I could find was Tickle Your Fancy by Taste, an Aussie rock band with a sound somewhat similar to Sweet or Status Quo. Not really my type of music although I don't mind the song. The only reason I even remembered it was because I have it on a K-Tel various hits album from 1976 entitled Right On. You may remember the song @Paladin. It peaked at #49 in June 1976. I was 12 at the time. Apologies for the sound quality, its 💩💩💩 and the lip synching by the leader sing is woeful. His shoes are fabulous though. Did you ever have any shoes like his @Paladin? I had a pair a little similar.

Another short story featuring Joshua, a 30 something gay man who has only recently admitted to himself and a few select others that he is gay. The catalyst for this momentous event, a chance meeting with another man, Marcus, in an environment totally alien to Joshua, a chance meeting which has led to love with Marcus, who like Joshua comes to the relationship saddled with a great deal of baggage. We learn a little more of Joshua's life before he left his parents home to forge his own way in life. An unhappy childhood shaped the man he has become, and to his credit it has not left him embittered. Another 5 star experience from the pen of @empath, an author so aptly named. His empathy for his characters, particularly those who have been emotionally damaged, is a revelation to witness.

“What? No, mom and dad weren’t invited.” Mary stopped walking and looking into her brother’s eyes. “We obviously have more catching up to do. I meant it when I said I don’t talk to mom much, dad either I suppose. The Cooperative has been my family for a long time.” I was very pleased Mary reaffirmed her indifference, at best, to her's and Joshua's parents. The statement appears to express Mary has greater animosity towards their mother than their father, or am I reading into this comment what I want to be the case. “Oh, honey,” Marcus received a hug from Aunt Mel as well. “I am torn between sorrow and glee. I’m sorry for what your mother must have put you through, but it also seems fitting that Rebecca has a gay son.” The one real injection of humour in this chapter which had me almost rolling on the floor with laughter. It was pleasing to read Rebecca Renkin is universally loathed. This is what happens when you believe yourself to be something akin to a Countess but behave like a Cuntess. The reunion between "Joshy" and Rosa was very moving and provided great comfort to Joshua and I expect to Rosa too. As stated by @drsawzall this story was immensely enjoyable and quite the update without spoiling the story yet to come in Kept Boy to Made Man, apart from the "spoiler" Daniel is apparently deceased. Another terrific short from you @empath. The appearance of Roger, Thomas, Brendon, Melissa, Samantha, Juan, Rosa, Dr Fenton and Professor Radcliffe most welcome.

Revelatory, endearing and upsetting. You cleverly did not disclose Joshua's family name in his first story @empath otherwise it would have "prejudiced" my perception of both his parents, although I must say since making her first appearance in Kept Boy to Made Man my opinion of Rebecca Renkin has not improved but has continued to decline. Joshua's quirks, the step counting and his fascination with Abraham Lincoln, continue to endear him to Marcus and to some others he meets. The upset was, of course, the invitation from his mother to what I assume is a Thanksgiving family gathering. I can only hope both Joshua and Mary tell their parents exactly what they think of them, which presumably will not be pretty.

I recall the incident @Paladin but did not remember the human involved until I Googled him. John Brown, the man most remembered for having had sex with his lusty wife on his desk in his parliamentary office, after which she left her knickers behind in an ashtray. Such was the reputation of quite a few in the Hawke cabinet, including the PM himself. 😜😜😜😜😜

Very obvious Robert and I don't think I would ever have guessed it without some help. I recall reading the Bobbsey Twins books around the same time as Enid Blyton. I suspect I was between 7 and 10 years of age. I think by 11 or 12 I had "moved on" to Agatha Christie and by 13 or 14 it was Emily Bronte, F Scott Fitzgerald and D H Lawrence. I never cared much for Shakespeare and don't recall ever reading anything by Charles Dickens.