Summerabbacat

@weinerdog and @drsawzall we already have Judge "Crustypants" so I think it was apt that we now have Calvin "Pissypants". Perhaps they can console each other with their woes regarding bodily functions; maybe even get a discount on the bulk purchase of adult nappies (diapers for Americans). Perhaps I am a little too much like Bryan (although considerably older), but James annoyed me. I still do not trust him. His statement that he only made reference to Bryan's relationship insecurities so he could win at the game they were playing may be true, but then again it may not. Chiloquiles appear to be something very tasty (as long as they were bean based), but there is no way I could eat something like that for breakfast. Way too heavy. As much as I don't particularly like or trust James, I think extending Kenny's circle of friends (and by default Bryan's too) is likely to be good for both. If James is as I am hoping he is not, I expect him to be bitch-slapped into the middle of next week @John Henry. I am very fond of both Bryan and Kenny and don't want to see either upset, especially if that someone is as smug as James appears to be. And no, I will not accept that this was another "filler" chapter.

I am glad Jamie decided to share with Mike at least some of what is going on. @jagboi's speculation is very interesting and entirely possible. I think the good doctor @drsawzall has raised an interesting idea in the prior comment. Political conspiracies are certainly outside my area of expertise, but I am not prepared to discount any ideas my fellow readers have regarding political involvement in this mysterious turn of events.

I was alarmingly unobservant. Clearly the murder was going to take place in the fucking barn otherwise why would the cows have not been in there. Duh.

A marginal improvement in Morris-Walker's persona, he at least exhibited, albeit briefly, a sense of humour in this chapter. All those huge naked men and not one of them was friendly and had to be disposed of. What a waste of huge naked men @lawfulneutralmage. The questions I have which have not been posed by any of my fellow readers in their comments as far as I can see are: whilst all this knife fighting is taking place between Jamie and an indeterminate number of huge naked men, has a person without a left leg been murdered somewhere else within the town of Windermere i.e. was the appearance of the huge naked men a diversion from the "real event"? was the old geezer with his harem of horny homies missing his left leg? was the police sergeant a caricature of Captain Peacock from Are You Being Served? where is Victor Meldrew when you need him - his response to Jamie's battle with the huge naked men, I don't believe it!

He is not the stepfather yet @drsawzall and hopefully never will be. I assume Ollie's father is the man referred to in chapter 11 when Chris and Andre were discussing the tenants in the apartment where Ollie had sequestered himself: "Do you remember that shooting a year ago? The one the police said was a drug related bikie gang assassination.” Andre asked, “The one where the police thought it was mistaken identity and the gang killed the wrong guy?” “Yes, that one. They shot the guy who was living upstairs with his wife and kid. I think the police were right. As soon as the police cleared up and left, the guy renting the shop turned up with a van, loaded it up, and disappeared.” I suspect Ollie's mother is still grieving too and may not be the best judge of character. I also suspect the boyfriend has had many years experience in manipulating women and children and may even have targeted Ollie and his mother because of their perceived vulnerability. If she chooses not to believe Ollie or blames him in any way, then all bets are off, let the bitch suffer at the hands of the boyfriend. As for baby William, well that remains to be seen.

Playful banter between the two @drsawzall which I found very amusing, and the sort of comment I could imagine from Owain (especially) or Colin.

I have to agree with the learned doctor @drpaladin in that what sort of a stupid question was it for Finn to ask Alec, how do you see me? The other learned doctor @drsawzall described Finn as a fucking moron which succinctly captures my assessment of him too. After Alec describing in exacting detail what his condition entails Finn asks him, how do you see me? For fucks sake Finn. They both get a pass from me though because a) Finn is genuinely endearing and kind and b) Finn's parents should not have been allowed to breed and are clearly as disconnected from reality as their son. The real "surprise" from this chapter, but then again perhaps not, is just how observant and knowledgeable River is of human behaviour, in particular, teenage behaviour. I thought for a moment his frank and no-holds barred response to Alec as to why Finn had reacted the way he did when Alec had not understood his question, was going to either cause Alec to snap at him or have a complete meltdown. Seemingly, River is able to speak frankly and not upset Alec whereas if anyone else had told him he was stupid I think his reaction would have been very different. It is not my intention to ridicule or make light of Alec's obvious anxiety or Finn's less obvious anxiety, but it appears to me that River is going to have to play Dolly Levi to get them both on the same page. Aargh, the sweet sounds of Louis Armstrong (or if unavailable, Bobby Darin is an acceptable consolation). Brilliantly written again @Demiurge. The authenticity of your writing is without question. Angst portrayed with painful realism (and not limited to the teenage years).

I was puzzled by Finn's disappearing act too @drsawzall. One would normally surmise the cause of such an act as being he was upstairs with one or more other party-goers engaging in sexual activity(ies) and/or he was upstairs with one or more other party-goers snorting coke or partaking some other illegal substance(s). Initially, I thought the latter was more likely as when Alec and River arrived at the party it was noticed that Finn was swaying. However, given he asked his brother to shut the party down shortly after River and Alec departed I find it hard to believe he was under the influence of any drug other than the "love drug". Perhaps he is a diabetic though, all hyped up on the products sold at his parents store. I also assumed as did @drpaladin and @Geemeedee that those who were demeaning Alec and River were girls, especially as they referred to the former as "Homeschooled" and the latter as his freak friend. I recall when I was in high school in the late 1970's girls were by far and away nastier than guys, absolute bitches to each other if competing for a guy's attention, and capable of unlimited cuntery towards anyone who did not fit into their view of acceptable behaviour and looks. It always surprised me then that not more guys were gay as they were such spiteful nasty trolls. The revelation by Alec that there is a disconnect between he and his parents came as no surprise to me. I think it may be a significant contributing factor to his anxiety. I was very puzzled by his thought "His phone had been vibrating off and on since they’d left the party, but he didn’t have the heart to look at it. He’d hurt Finn’s feelings. He knew that, but his feelings were also hurt. As childish as that sounded." It appears to me Alec is admonishing himself for having been hurt by those nasty spiteful bitches who glibly referred to him as "Homeschooled", when in fact he should have turned a hose on them or referred to them as the brain-dead c#@&s that they are. It always astonishes me @Demiurge that one cannot drink alcohol legally in the USA until one is 21, yet one can get a gun, vote and marry before that age. And now to have it confirmed that one can get a licence to drive a car at 16 years of age. Sheer fucking madness. Another very well-crafted chapter.

"The weeks dragged on. He was doing well in classes, but he still wasn’t making much progress in the friend department. To his parents’s utter dismay". Really? Are Alec's parents that clueless? Are they so wrapped up in their own lives they have not recognised their son struggles in social settings and has major anxiety issues? Alec certainly made an extraordinary leap when he apologised to Finn for his less than friendly and respectful behaviour. He clearly has a good understanding of social etiquette, he just struggles on the delivery of same. He appears to have bonded surprisingly well with River, who although as awkward and anxious as Alec, appears to have a better or stronger appreciation for the benefits to be gained in trying to improve their social skills. River's comments regarding Finn being a genuinely kind and friendly person, but his friends being snakes when not in his company, suggests River has had personal experience with them, or at least observed their unpleasant behaviour prior to Alec starting school in the current environment. It appears from comments made by Finn about River and his encouragement to Alec to bring him to the bonfire too, that Finn is aware of and likes River too. Alec's slight relaxation of his inner-turmoil and anxiety, with encouragement from both Finn and River, is wholly believable @Demiurge. And the change from blue to purple hair, very attractive indeed. I want to know, does he wear any make up to accompany his dyed hair? I guess if he did it would have mentioned if not by Alec himself, then in denigration by the snakes who ingratiate themselves to Finn. When reading this chapter I had an image of Alec as having "a look" not unlike Edward Scissorhands (without the scissors).

The class issue was very prevalent here too @Robert Hugill with rugby (union) the game for private school educated boys and football (rugby league) the game for working class boys. I don't recall soccer being shown on Australian TV when I was growing up in the 70's whereas football in the autumn, winter and spring and cricket in the summer, was given mass saturation on TV. I was not a fan of any of the football games, but compared to cricket they were riveting. Everyone in my family, males and females alike, loved the cricket, whereas I found it about as exciting as watching paint dry. If the players had been attractively dressed it may have at least offered some perving opportunities, but those all white outfits were the equivalent of lawn bowls outfits. I am ashamed to say (now anyway) that my preferred sport was horse racing.

It is odd we Aussies have so much in common with the English as one would expect as far as language goes and yet there exists this glaring inconsistency.

You will have to pardon my uncertainty @Robert Hugill, but am I correct in assuming the game played by Keith and the other Fags for Football was what we refer to as soccer down under in the Antipodes? In Australia we refer to rugby league as football, although we also have rugby union (which is usually just referred to as rugby) and Australian Rules (which is usually referred to as Aussie Rules). I am not a fan of any of them, although have on at least one occasion watched a grand final of the Aussie Rules, primarily because the eye-candy is worthy of a gay porn film. Keith and Thomas' playful banter is indicative of them becoming more comfortable with each other. Like peeling an onion, each is shedding outer layers of awkwardness and revealing a little more to the other each time they get together. Although neither is well-schooled in the contemporary gay "lifestyle" neither is perturbed by this and they are content to explore and discover together. They also share a sense of humour, not unlike Owain and Colin. Another thoroughly enjoyable, and at times most amusing, peak into the lives of Keith and Thomas @Robert Hugill. The true joy of your writing is your ability to make the banal anything but. Kudos to you for having this skill.

If this first chapter is indicative of @Demiurge's literary talent then I am in for a treat (and for me it can only be a Granny Smith treat, the tarter the better, and if cooked for an apple pie it must be with lemon juice and no sugar, although cinnamon is acceptable). This first chapter was exceptionally well written with few, if any, spelling or grammatical errors. The story telling, which is frankly more important, is also a joy to witness, even though the subject matter i.e. Alec's apparent mental health struggles, is not necessarily the easiest to fully understand or comment upon without appearing patronising or condescending. I can relate to Alec's wanting to be invisible to the general masses whilst paradoxically having blue hair. The reference to his blue hair made me recall the wonderful photograph available on the internet of Deborah Harry with bright emerald green hair, possibly a wig, accompanied by what appears to be a very stoned Nile Rodgers. I have to wonder why Alec's parents home-schooled until he started high school. Did he exhibit social anxiety, fear or dislike of other children at a very early age, and if so was he ever examined by someone with experience in assisting children with these types of issues? I don't believe his parents have done him any favours by home-schooling him exclusively, particularly as it appears they now expect him to effortlessly transition into this new environment and make friends. I have to commend them though for the effort they have made with his home schooling as he does not appear to have "suffered" academically and he has not been subjected to the nonsense the unfortunate "deeply religious farm kids" he encountered in the "home schooled kids social group" have. Alec appears to have potentially made two friends with a minimum of effort, River and Finn. His prior to starting school introduction to the latter was full of angst for Alec, although to an outsider it had some comedic moments. River and Finn could not be less alike, but I feel there is potential there that both could become friends, perhaps even good friends, with Alec. It may require Alec to make an attitude adjustment, which it appears he wants to do but does not really know how to. This is where I believe his parents have let him down the most.

Truly outstanding writing @Paladin. Ollie's recount of his rape at the hands of his mother's boyfriend was sensitively written. Although not explicitly told, it was harrowing reading nevertheless because of the impact it has had on Ollie. And the conclusion was a shocker; I did not see that coming at all. I think it very likely Andre will need counselling now, not only will Ollie's rape stir up old wounds, but I envisage Andre is going to feel guilty he did not take any action when he was also raped, action which may have stopped Ollie from being a victim of this man too. Andre's experience may prove useful if Ollie's mother does not believe her son when she finds out what has occurred. We already the know perpetrator is manipulative and will no doubt plead innocence to Ollie's mother. If Ollie's mother is not inclined to believe Ollie or worse still blames him, I feel Chris and Andre may become parents sooner than they anticipated. Andre's family are certainly close. I am not sure how comfortable I would be having family live two doors down, but neither he nor Chris seem perturbed by this prospect. I guess if all households are respectful of the others' privacy and do not assume they can "drop in" whenever they feel like it, it could work. The best chapter yet @Paladin (and educational too, I learnt who and what Zaphod Beeblebrox was).

In Joe's conversation with Owain he states as follows @CincyKris: "Well, I did that project at school on great grandad's firm, and then you and Mum were talking. And you mentioned how grandad was real religious and rigid when you were young. And his Dad had sold arms, and how there must have been a rift, because of the money and the will. I sort of got to wondering what grandad might have said to his Dad. I also put in some stuff that my Dad goes on about." "So, it's about your Dad too?" He dipped his head in agreement, "A bit. I got the idea, and Blessing and Vanda encouraged me, and it sort of happened." Unless I have misunderstood I believe Joe was talking about Nathan and having included something about him in the short play/scene he has written.

Humour abounded in this chapter, from the discussion between Owain and Joe of the latter's "workshop idea" (scene) The Religious Bigot And The Arms Dealer to Mhairi's response to it, from Owain's casual mention of a wedding to Colin's admission he would love to have his own shed. I assume Joe's scene will not include any reference to Nathan's "indiscretions", just his reactions to the possibility of Mhairi inheriting money from her grandparents' estate, otherwise he could have named it God, Guns & Girls - The Glennisters Exposed as opposed to just God & Guns. The addition of Girls to the former title makes it sound so much more salacious I think and would likely draw a bigger crowd. Joe's time spent living with Owain has not only been good for the two of them, but for Mhairi also. Although she has not witnessed it first hand, Mhairi has been made aware of a side of her son hitherto a mystery to all but Joe himself. Perhaps this interlude will serve them both well in their relationship with each other, particularly for Mhairi though as she is apparently struggling to recognise her son is becoming less dependant on her. Owain's casual insertion of a wedding into the discussion: "Perhaps. You need to think how important they are to you. Only you know that. I lived for years without my parents but am only now realising what I was missing. There'll have to be compromises. Are your family worth it?" "You reckon I should just go on with things." "Leave them as they are, stay in touch, send them photos, invite them to the wedding, that sort of thing." was so clever it was almost as if it was pre-planned (perhaps it was). It certainly delighted Colin, once again illustrating how far he has come in a short period of time. Owain's cheekiness is something which frequently amuses Colin, liberating him from the restrictions of conniving Connie and moralistic Miles. I think Owain's idea of investment in Colin's business in the manner which he has proposed is a terrific one. He will not need to invest a great deal and it is for a finite period, at least initially, during which time the investment will either prove worthwhile or it won't. I particularly like the fact it will not only provide employment for an additional employee but will likely provide additional employment for an existing employee in Bruno. And finally The Shed. The uses for such a shed are limitless, it need not only be for storing Colin's tools of the trade. An absolutely delightful chapter @Robert Hugill. I can see you are going to have your hands full, with not just one but now two weddings to plan. Perhaps the experience you gain from planning Brian and Gordon's nuptials will prove beneficial for planning for Owain and Colin. Maybe you will be so successful that a third wedding may be in the offing for Keith and Thomas.

Once Keres is captured (hopefully alive) I hope Otis can put aside his principles and extraordinary kindness for long enough to be allowed to break every one of Keres' fucking toes very slowly and with precision.

"Otis didn’t understand what was happening. He only saw Watkins pulling something from his pocket so fast it happened in the blink of an eye, and then a whistle-like sound flicked through the air. The man in black holding him fell off his feet, as if he were a puppet on strings, and someone had just cut those. “What the--” Jackie choked on his own words. “You killed him!” For a millisecond I lost my sanity and thought Watkins was an undercover agent like Hudson who had been sent to infiltrate this heinous business Keres has created. Alas, my sanity returned and I realised Watkins was only protecting himself. "Those had to be the guests. They all wore masks, even as they emerged from their cars. There were both men and women, and they appeared dressed for a special ocasion such as the premiere of a movie. Some walked in pairs, some alone, but they were all accompanied by one or two people with guns." It must have been reference to all the guests' wearing masks which prompted the scene from Rocky Horror Picture Show where Eddie rides his motorbike through the crowd of guests whilst being chased by Frank'N'Furter armed with a pickaxe, to suddenly appear in my mind. The image of Frank'N'Furter killing him with the pickaxe in the freezer seems rather tame compared to that which Angel foreshadows will occur at the club. And what of Angel, it seems Hudson has been right all along; Angel is anything but. If any of the boys are killed before the police can shut the club down I hope Angel is the worthy victim. If revenge is a dish best served cold though, I hope it is Jackie who ends both Angel and Watkins, slowly and painfully. "Keres reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, the one next to the heart. For a moment, Hudson had a vision of pulling the beating organ out of the asshole’s chest and feeding it to him so that he could poison himself with his own darkness." Absolutely and gloriously grotesque @Laura S. Fox, so suited to the putrescence known as Keres.

It is a very clever and deeply rewarding literary ploy you have engaged for this story @Ronyx. I found the conclusion of chapter 1 "I turned and looked out the window. A cute young Black boy smiled and waved at me." very moving (and this was even without the benefit of knowing yet who the "Black boy" was). For me this simple statement conveyed a sense of satisfaction, and I suspected possible regret and yearning. I felt certain the then unknown "Black boy" was someone who was important to Phil's awakening that he was gay and someone with whom he likely enjoyed moments of pleasure, but ultimately someone who may perhaps have moved on and left Phil with a broken heart. I suspect the same will be true of Bobby, although I am sensing the relationship with Bobby will be more intense and of equal importance to both. What to make of Roger? This interchange between Phil and Colin says it all: “You don’t get visitors?” he asked. “I thought you had a son.” “Had,” I replied sadly. “He doesn’t want to claim me as his father.” Several of the faithful have commented on this issue previously, including myself @Ronyx. We have, without exception, expressed our dislike of him (and he has not even made an appearance yet). Phil's last statement strongly suggests Roger has "disowned" his father, more than likely because he is gay. My suggestion (which I recall @weinerdog and @drsawzall have previously suggested too) is for Phil to disown Roger if his motivation is homophobic. Paybacks a bitch and Roger will hopefully be its beneficiary big time (unless of course he has an "epiphany" in the meantime, which I would regard with deep suspicion). I too feel Phil will receive a visit from Stanley. Phil's question as to whether Stanley is being bullied struck a nerve, particularly when his mother revealed he is small of stature for his age. It seems children nowadays are more "brutal" than when I went to school in the 1970's, or perhaps I just was blissfully unaware of bullying being so rampant (apart from a couple of instances in which I was the victim). I found it very amusing when talk turned to who was considered "cute" by Phil when he was a teen. As with clothes, fashions change. Phil's description of Paul McCartney as cute is one I have read before, although I myself cannot see it (unless compared to John Lennon, then he is Brad Pitt). I can only assess 60's male pop stars as my current self views them and I would never include any of The Beatles or The Rolling Stones in the category of "cute", in fact of the 60's male pop stars with whom I am familiar the only ones I can think of whom I find attractive are Marvin Gaye (who got even hotter with age) and Elvis Presley (who conversely deteriorated with age). Very satisfying reading @Ronyx.

I have no idea what you are saying with this comment @drsawzall, but I must confess it sounds very impressive. Perhaps you should consider a career in politics, although given many of the comments you have written which I have read, you may find it difficult to suppress/abolish your integrity.

I searched the 'net for any connection between Billy Joel and Billie Joe and could find none. I am certain I would never have made the connection as I was trying to connect them musically, more specifically the song title. Given An Innocent Man was released in 1983 would it not pre-date Diego and Steve too? Having said this, I guess Uptown Girl is still played on some radio stations given it was a substantial hit.

A revealing chapter with Thomas disclosing, at least partially, why he left Ghana and returned to the UK and to what he described as "a more normal personal life as well." I daresay his "breakdown" was far more serious and traumatic than what he has disclosed to Keith; perhaps in time as the two become closer he will reveal more of what led him to leave Ghana. The discussion of cousins and other relations was something I have on occasion discussed with friends. I have three half-brothers whom I have next to nothing to do with as they live in rural Australia and I am in the city. I was already an adult when the first of the three was born so I have had little exposure to them. I have three maternal cousins whom I have not seen since 2012 and paternal cousins I have not seen for 45 years plus. I know nothing of their lives and do not feel deprived because of this. I don't feel there is anything odd about this and have found many of my friends have had similar experiences. Again a most entertaining chapter @Robert Hugill, with Keith and Thomas enjoying more sexual and non-sexual activities together.

I did notice this @jagboi. I made the assumption he would have to go through "different channels" to get the same information for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and that to do so would raise too many questions, questions he would not be comfortable answering, even if the answers were a fabrication. If not this, I thought he may consider the Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish "beneath" the English and therefore not worth the effort of protecting (even the Tory voters).

That was certainly a satisfying moment for both Steve and Bryan and another reason why this chapter was so not "filler" (we readers love "emotionally charged" interactions between characters). Although I don't think it is crucial to the chapter I have to confess the Billy Joel/Green Day reference was completely lost on me. Billy Joel was hugely popular when I was a teen in the the late 70's and into the mid 80's, but I was never a fan (apart from Piano Man and Just The Way You Are, the latter of which is covered on albums I have on CD by several other artists with soul or jazz interpretations). I am only vaguely familiar with Green Day's work but again not a fan (I really only remember them at all because Billie Joe Armstrong has sometimes somewhat resembled Robert Smith from The Cure, a band whom I like very much).

@John Henry I feel you are your own worst critic. Your statement which appears to border on an apology "Yeah, I know it's yet another filler chapter" is not accepted by this reader, and seemingly not by my fellow readers who have commented overwhelmingly positively on this chapter. This chapter may lack the melodrama of those where Calvin makes an unwanted appearance or those where Billy is representing the family in Court, but for me it made the chapter no less worthy of very favourable comments. As you have indicated yourself it was about character development for the twins, and presenting the contrast between Kenny's life living with his mother to his "new" life as Billy and Trevor's foster son. I consider you have succeeded on both fronts. This is not a criticism, but I thought Kenny was a little "undersold" earlier in the story, so for him to be taking a more prominent role has been most welcome. He is an integral part of the Padilla family because of his evolving relationship with Bryan. He has contributed greatly to Bryan's growth from awkward and sullen teen to a teen far less so. It has been my observation he has also contributed, and not insignificantly so, to Bryan's growing acceptance of and blossoming relationship with Steve. And finally, this chapter was worth its weight in gold for the statement made by Bryan “I know, Dad. The only good thing that man ever did was leaving us with you." Bravo Bryan.