ChromedOutCortex

Hey - Sorry about that. I should have added more notes. This is a "continuation" of the full story, but more from Robby's POV. I think I set it to complete too quickly... I will fix that right now.

You are so welcome! Truly, writing is a labor of love. I'm so glad that you enjoyed this story. 🥰

You're welcome! I really enjoyed writing this. 🥰

I've read about toxic parents/family - but never someone that is willing to throw everyone away. 😞

Poor Sarah. 😞

I think we always want to see the best in everyone... maybe they will change if I do this. Or if I behave this way, they will see who I am. Unfortunately, experience has also shown me that once a person is set in their ways nothing changes them. They just make excuses when people leave them.

It was a con, all along... they never really cared for Sarah and by extension her family. Why stop with one individual, when you could target everyone?

We met sporadically over the next few months, and for a while, things seemed… better. Maybe I was overthinking everything. Maybe Manny was right. Maybe this really was just my family trying to reconnect. “See?” Manny said one evening, lounging on the couch as I worked through some notes. “I told you, Robby. It’s all good. They want to reconnect with you. Tanner even stopped by the record store the other day.” I looked up sharply. “Wait—what? You never told me that.” “Sorry, I must

The Dinner Setup The big day arrived. Sarah’s parents were the first to arrive, immediately heading into the kitchen to help Sarah. True to form, Sarah had everything under control. Her sister arrived a few minutes later, coming straight from work. “Oh, you didn’t have to come in here!” Sarah said with a smile as her parents started tidying. “Nonsense,” her mom replied. “This is what we do. You’ve done all the hard work.” Michael joined them shortly after, stepping in from his

Robby, what are you thinking?” Manny asked, his voice calm but searching. “I don’t know.” I ran a hand through my hair, staring at the coffee cup in front of me. “I’m happy to see them, but it just doesn’t feel right. You don’t cross my parents and live to tell about it. I know what they’re like. My dad is ruthless—you saw them both.” My voice tightened, the memories of their coldness resurfacing. Manny leaned forward slightly, his tone steady. “Maybe they did. Maybe they decided it wa

As Roger pulled the car onto the main road, he glanced over at Cal, who was fiddling with his phone. “So,” Roger began, his tone casual, “Jeremy seems nice. You two getting close?” Cal looked up, his face still a little flushed from the afternoon sun. “Yeah, he’s a cool guy. New kid, you know? Figured I’d help him out—show him the ropes a little.” Roger smirked, his eyes briefly flicking from the road to Cal. “Uh-huh. Is that all it is?” “Dad,” Cal said, groaning but laughing

Ryan drove straight to Nate’s place, his hands trembling as he clutched the steering wheel. The recording felt like a ticking time bomb sitting on the passenger seat beside him. Each word he’d captured played on repeat in his mind, the cold calculations and venomous tones of Helen and Fred Evans haunting him. He’d wanted the truth, but now that he had it, he wasn’t sure he could face the consequences. As the city lights blurred past his window, Ryan’s thoughts spiraled. How had it come to t

The days after meeting with my parents were the hardest. But what was even more difficult to swallow was that my brother and sisters weren’t there to support me. They were gone. I tried to call them, but with Mom home all the time, she always intercepted the calls. I could never get through. I wondered—did they think about me? Did they understand what I was going through? I couldn’t believe they could be as cold as Mom and Dad were. Tanner practically raised me. He taught me how to ride a b

Robby, estranged from his brother Tanner after coming out as gay, builds a life with his husband Manny, marked by love, resilience, and family. Over the years, Tanner sends cards for milestones—graduation, birthdays, even Robby’s children’s births—but never bridges the gap in person. Haunted by past betrayals and unwilling to risk his hard-won happiness, Robby wrestles with the meaning of family, forgiveness, and whether some wounds can ever truly heal.

Damn. Thanks for catching that. Fixing it right now.

Ryan’s Redemption The next morning, Ryan sat in a corner booth of a local coffee shop, chosen for its quiet atmosphere and lack of familiar faces. He’d arrived early, nursing his second cup of coffee and a gnawing pit of guilt. In front of him sat a box of donuts—Nate’s favorite, with sprinkles. It was a pathetic gesture, but Ryan didn’t know how else to begin mending the wreckage he’d caused. He turned the cup in his hands, staring at the dark liquid as if it might hold answers. How di

I absolutely LOVE reading your comments! Taking a lot of what you write into account as I work on another story. 🙂 🙏

I climbed into the car and buckled my seatbelt as Ken glanced over at me. “Hey, kiddo. How was school?” he asked, his tone light. “It was… good,” I said, staring out the window. I wasn’t lying. It had been a good day. The drive was quiet except for the hum of the engine and the occasional sound of Ken flipping through radio stations. My mind, though, was racing. I replayed the day in my head: the jokes, the easy banter, and the way Cal had smiled at me when he said goodbye. I

Ryan’s chest tightened as the conflicting voices in his mind grew louder, a cacophony of fear and desperation. I can’t. I just can’t. Keep it together. Don’t say it. Don’t ruin this. But the other voice—the quieter, more insistent one—pressed on. Tell him. He loves you. He’ll understand. The tension burned in his throat, his heart hammering so hard he thought Nate might feel it. Ryan squeezed his eyes shut, pressing himself deeper into Nate’s chest, as if he could disappear into the warmth

Finally! I've always been an introvert, and do find it hard to make friends as I get older but when I was younger, it was so easy!

You're right, it handles other genres pretty nicely as well. Apparently you have quite a bit more control, but I don't quite understand how the tags work so I've been listening to other AI generated music and they also show the lyrics and the full structure, so learning from that and from the Sona Subreddit.

Correct! I thought it was amazing how it picked up on things, of course you need to use tags and I've seen others do some pretty cool stuff. Also depending on which genre you select, it just uses the right voice. Need to play around with it a lot more, the Sona Subreddit is pretty active with people trying out all types of things to see the results.

The next few weeks, Michael was overly cautious with everything he did. He worked from home entirely, monitoring everything at home with eagle-eyed vigilance. He even began to suspect the nanny might be involved somehow—though in what, he wasn’t entirely sure. Paranoia consumed him. Every sound, every glance, every offhand comment from Sarah felt like a potential landmine. He had let his guard down once, and it had almost cost him everything. That would never happen again. But there was one

My morning routine didn’t change. Wake up, get cleaned up, pack my backpack for school. Head down for some breakfast, then someone would drop me off. This week it was Jen, since she was on the late shift at the hospital. The ride to school was the usual. Jen and I chatted about school and whether I’d made any friends yet. “Nah… school’s too big. I’m too new. Nobody knows me. It’s all a bit much,” I said. “Yeah, I get that, Jer," she replied. "But you’re good-looking—maybe you shou

Hey All - So I found Suno, I know it's not new -- but holy heck! How cool is that! I "made" some music (LOL - if you want to call it that). I cheated, and created a couple of accounts - just having so much fun with it. https://www.suno.com/@chromedoutcortex and https://www.suno.com/@chromedoutcortexexperimental My BF is Korean, so I've been pestering him to help me with lyrics, two of the songs on this "experimental" account are courtesty of him (well, the Korean at least, he helped translate from English > Korean). The songs are Rainbow in the Dark and Fire in the Rain. There are two versions of each. Also created a metal version of a song called Voices of Freedom. I think I'm going to have to spring for a subscription - just having so much fun with it! I'm not a musician, and could probably never do something like this IRL. Enjoy! Would love to read what you think of them.