Tris

Unfortunately for the rest of the world, IMO there's almost an entire universe of people out there like that. Or am I being too jaundiced? As for the title, I hadn't thought too much about, but I suspect you're onto something...

@Summerabbacat, I won't disagree with you at all when it comes to ABBA. So fine!

Oh, my! Contact sporting with another gay boi - it's like I've died and gone to heaven!

Nothing like jumping to conclusions ... sheesh!

From your lips to God's ears! Or maybe to my ears.

I couldn't agree more! Am I permitted to crush on a literary creation??!?

I've always loved this song. Heck, I love just about anything ABBA has written / sung. Great stuff!

Not exactly "random kindness and senseless acts of beauty" - there was nothing random about Barrett's kindness. But close enough! Kudos to Barrett for turning things around for poor Todd. Makes me almost want to get bleedin' blind drunk to see if anyone would do the same for me ... but since that's not remotely likely (the getting drunk part), I'd at least like to win a lottery to get to meet Fairy Godfather sometime. Great story thus far @Superpride!

Why do I feel such affection for Todd ... and Barrett, for that matter? As for Anthony, well, I'm not impressed, but then, I have no siblings, so maybe I'm incapable of "getting it."

I was horrible when I let one of the kids next door color in my coloring book. Said neighbor NEVER colored in the lines. That was the last time I ever let anyone else color in my coloring books! One has friends, but one has to uphold Artistic Standards. And sometimes Standards outrank Friendship, at least among the immature LOL.

Not as good as buckwheat, I'd reckon...

Woof!

"Daunting" kinda says it all, @D.K. Daniels. Been there too many times myself. Come to think of it, I'm still kinda there right now. "Lucky me" (sarcasm, anyone?). So glad to hear that someone else "gets it," having also passed this way before.

That could be one of the themes of my own life. Maybe it applies to an awful lot of us. La vie est compliquee, as they say.

Ah, that (literal) mountain-top feeling! Been there myself - though we didn't end up holding hands, no matter how briefly. We were, though, at a higher elevation, hiking through the Massif Central. In the end, William was not interested in me "that way." My loss. Still, when it dawned on him that I was sweet on him, he just smiled. Maybe he was flattered? I'll never know. We remained friends, but ending up as we did on different continents (story of my life), this particular friendship did not survive the distancing.

This line is PRICELESS!!! Thank you, @Summerabbacat!

Ross not knowing where he belongs is, in many ways, a metaphor for the story of my own life which is both bilingual and bicultural. Nothing like having @D.K. Daniels cutting REALLY close to home, eh? But maybe that's part of what makes DKD so compelling 🙂

Another coupla thoughts about Ross' seeming ambivalence: on the one hand, he knows his time in Ireland is short, and the temporary nature of his stay may give him caution about starting anything which has no chance of turning into something long term. Of, Ross may have put our hero on some sort of pedestal, and the tnought of doing The Nasty might smack too much of defilement. Of course, I might be ascribing too much maturity to Ross to even think such things. But I've been "guilty" of both behaviors: once I chickened out of something because I was about to go overseas for three years, and I was loathe to get involved too deeply with much of anyone. On the other hand, my current Crush and I have been "crab dancing" around what will become of "us" (and yes, there is definitely an "us"). It has been 6+ years now, not even having gotten beyond hand-holding because, well, as the song says, he's "so high above me" ... though maybe I'm just a wuss.

A lot of memories for me, here. I grew up in a fairly rural area that was slowly being "developed." Although I didn't live on a farm, neighbors on both sides of me were truck farmers. Across the way were wetlands, so not much farming going on there. Anyways, I had taken a shine to Richard, a new kid in the area, but my best friend put a stop to that pronto, since boys being with other boys just wasn't "done" back then. I suspect my best friend thought he was doing us a favor, shielding us from "iniquity." Being too shy to force the issue, I gave up on having a physical relationship with Richard, even though he was clearly interested in taking things in that direction. I still think about him (he has since moved abroad), and what we missed out on still weighs on me. It's tough, though, at that age. It was tough for me, anyways.

This brought back a memory or two. I bought my first record album because it was Daniel's favorite. Since it was my money, my parents really had no say, but my mother was clearly disappointed that "all that money" could have bought a roast instead of music. Even then, I realized that my mother's objection was more about what buying Daniel's favorite album for myself REALLY meant - that I had a crush on him. Daniel and I are still in touch after all these years, even though we're on separate continents. He's still hot as Hades, and still makes me swoon. And he's still hopelessly straight, but friendships often transcend sexuality, because some things are more important than others.

@drsawzall is right - others have already said what needed to have been said, for which I add my grateful thanks. No sense reinventing the wheel. While my path hasn't been the same as Phil's, there is a lot in my life that has imitated @Ronyx's art. I have a few years left (those words from my lips are meant for God's ears, of course!) and I hope my tale turns out half as well as Phil's. May the Almighty grant each one of us the peace that passes all understanding as our pilgrimage wends its way, leading us to our final safe harbor.

My sentiments exactly!

That is exactly what crossed my mind as well. So glad this tale took a different turn...

Words fail me. Thank heavens for those who, like @Secret Author, can speak for us.

Amazing writing @Secret Author. Usually I have difficulty keeping characters sorted when there's a "cast of thousands." But this time I was able to keep track of everyone (well, most of everyone), despite my less than stellar memory. I'd love some further chapters. Any guy named "Owen" is automatically a favorite of mine - and no, don't ask why 😉 . But there's more that begs for follow-up story lines. Love this!