John Henry

No apologies needed. Sometimes I use a lot of subtext and whatnot, and I sometimes take things for granted in my writing, which can get lost. I know what's in my head, but it doesn't always makes it way to print. I agree with you about the restraining order situation; however, restraining orders are considered civil rather than criminal matters, and the police aren't required to enforce civil situations unless they become criminal first. Merely breaking a restraining order by proximity isn't enough, which is why so many people get hurt or killed before the cops do anything.

Yes, Bryan is a more "extreme" (for want of a better word) teenager. He has trauma which makes his usual teenage issues worse, and I'm trying to keep that in mind as I write. Diego and Steve are do the best they can, but they really need to get him into therapy, which Bryan has resisted or refused to participate in in the past. Until they can convince him to give it a real try again, they can only do so much as parents. Kenny and his mom...that's a story for another time.... I wasn't trying to be political when it comes to the gay vs straight parents issue. Lol However, I agree with you. Conservatives have no evidence that homosexual couples make worse parents than heterosexuals. Diego hasn't been a perfect parent, either. He moved from damaged relationship to damaged relationship throughout the boys' lives. Steve is really the only healthy relationship Diego has been in. Diego tries to be the best parent he can be, and Steve is trying as well, without over stepping, and really that's the what every human should aspire to.

I don't like writing non-realistic characters, so the teens I write about are never two dimensional. Their emotions are fluid and moves in waves. I also try to keep things are authentic to age as I can, and teen often bottle their emotions, since they don't know how to deal with them. Everything happens suddenly, new experiences and feels, and they don't have the time or knowledge to process all that's flooding in. They get overwhelmed and either take it out on themselves or others. Bryan is someone who has always taken his feelings out on others as a defense mechanism to prevent people from getting close and hurting him, and it's no different in this chapter. Steve just happens to be patient and carrying. He looked at Bryan and said (paraphrasing), "I see you, I acknowledge you, and I love you." That's all anyone in Bryan's situation wants, and it was enough to break that frozen barrier for Bryan. I'm not sure if you missed it or not, but Bryan and Caleb were adopted by Diego already. Donna and Calvin lost their parental rights to the boys, and Diego is their parent. Calvin is trying to regain his rights and custody, which is what the court battle is over. Provided Diego wins, he can let Steve adopt the boys if he wants.

That's the problem with self-conscience teens, isn't it? Emotion overrides logic almost every time.

Thanks. I'm glad you like it so much. It needed to be said, and I'm glad that the opportunity for Steve and Bryan finally came.

That's very true about the student union; however, it's really more about Bryan's over all sense of not belonging and feeling abandoned, so he'd never come to that conclusion on his own in those moments. Clearly, the Spanish Club is inclusive and supportive of Bryan's sexuality, but Bryan's pension for pushing people away when he thinks he's going be hurt won't even let him consider the possibility that the club/union would accept him for not being genetically Latin. It's even acknowledged in the narration that he understands the terms Latino and LatinX and that they apply to him, but he can't let go of the idea that people want him in their lives. Calvin's presence is reopening all the wounds and insecurities that Diego healed. As for the similarities in looks of the boys, I based that on their real life counterparts. The real Bryan is clearly his mother's son. You can look at pics of them and just know; however, the real Caleb looks nothing like either parent. I've even questioned the paternity, but I guess there was DNA tests done. So, as far as the story goes, it's same thing. They are Donna's and Calvin's kids, biologically, but Diego and Steve are their dads.

Bryan is a typical, messed up, American teenager. Anger is something that's extremely common place, especially for a kid who is forced to share his space who also pushes people away. Luckily, Steve is one of those guys who refuses to let go.

The roads were clear enough the following Tuesday for the boys to go back to school. Caleb and Bryan certainly weren't ready to return to the grind of the American education system; however, Steve was absolutely ready to return. He loved the boys, but he was a little tired of playing babysitter, as cabin fever was starting to take hold, pushing the brothers into fighting over the tiniest slights. Bryan and Kenny got out of Diego's truck and went their separate ways. Both boys had grown a li

Yeah, they really need more one-on-one time, but that's also part of being a parent.

Again, I first envisioned this going differently, but glad it turned out the way it did.

More like all the information. Lol

My original plan was for Steve and Diego to have a fight over it, but it just didn't feel right, which almost put me in a corner with the direction of the story. Instead, I decided that Steve is the type to watch someone burn themselves, after he warned them not to, then ask, "Now, what lesson did we learn here?" It certainly helped me progress the character and the story. Idk if I'll put this in the story or not, but I can imagine Steve and Calvin getting in a fight, Steve knocking Calvin out, and once Calvin comes around, Steve--who is squatting down next to him--says, "Where do you think this all went wrong for you?" It makes me smile. 😁

Google is a total snitch. Lol #TheMoreYouKnow

I actually had a different direction then got some writers block and was worried I was going to write myself into a corner, which I'm prone to do. Luckily, I took the break and finished it the way I did. It made for a short chapter, but it got me out of the bind I was in.

Steve came home with soup from the restaurant. He had the boys serve themselves as he brought Diego a bowl. “Thanks, Babe, but I'm really not hungry,” Diego said. He was lying in bed, mentally replaying his meeting with Billy. “You've got to eat something. My mom used to say, 'Starve a fever, feed a cold,' or something like that.” “I don't have a cold.” “You said you weren't feeling well, so unless there's something you're not telling me, you probably have a cold.” Steve set

Billy doesn't necessarily do humility, at least not well. He's been like this, pretty much, since high school, and has used it in his legal practice. He's fully aware of his biological father's crimes, which the murder of Justin being among the worst, and he isn't about to suffer fools lightly because of it. He knew Diego came to the office thinking he had the upper hand, so Billy knocked him down several pegs for it. Billy has had his parents' pasts used against him, so he doesn't allow anyone to weaponize that against him. Diego was insecure and got cocky, but he underestimated Billy and paid for it.

Definitely not the Elvis conspiracy you thought it was, eh?

Um...nope. 😉

Nice catch.

There was a lot of guilt on Billy's part and Charlie had a ton of issues after what happened to him, which Billy still blames himself for. It's also why Charlie cried when he left Diego's after Diego told Charlie about his sexual assault.

Glad you got through it. There were other crimes Will Parker committed that I considered telling, but none had been reported on, except his criminal convictions, which would've been a pain to truncate here. Will was probably my favorite and darkest character to write, and was certainly an antihero that fell quickly to his dark side.

Was the reveal better than finding out about Elvis's love child? Some states allow underage family members to work in family-owned establishments/businesses. I disagree with the practice some some or most of those kids don't get paid or paid what they're truly owed. I once worked at a fast food restaurant and we had a 16yo kid who looked 13, and we constantly got complaints about it.

Unfortunately not....

I'm surprised no one guessed that Calvin was Kenny's father....

The snow was mostly gone by Friday as a warm front came into the area. The roads were still dangerous due to the large amount of water pooling around clogged storm drains. School was still canceled due to minor flooding, so Steve and the boys continued their D&D campaign. Bryan had asked his dad if he could go to the restaurant and help out, but Diego turned him down. Not only did Diego want to avoid a fine for violating the state's child labor laws, Diego wasn't planning to go in as early a