Mark Arbour

Thanks Miles! I'll try to give you that fly's vantage point, at least for the important stuff. :-) Take off your sweater and enjoy summer. It's definitely arrived in Missouri!

I doubt that anything would happen at the Crampton tent. Jim will be focused on smoozing with his guests, and JJ won't want to make a scene. I don't think JJ is a particularly likable character, but your mileage may vary. I do think he's interesting, and that makes him fun to write.

I think you'll enjoy the stops in both Chicago and Hawaii.

Thanks for the review! I can't argue with you, or even play devil's advocate, on the topic of religion and how it has devastated our planet. But we are stuck with it, at least for now.

Thanks Gary, for that nice review. Your review reminds me of Tim's from last chapter, and from that concept that sometimes you don't really appreciate someone until you've lost them. I think that Matt got that, at one time, but I think his resolve was short-circuited by the deal with Brad and Wade.

Thanks! I thought it was time for us to see some of the cars we've encountered in the past. Robbie's Cadillac had gotten a little beat up, and had to undergo a pretty detailed analysis of the problems, but then it was buffed up to a fine luster. If you think about it, that's not unlike the grieving process Brad had to go through with him.

Great review! I don't think Brenda Hayes White can afford to change. She's gotten herself wrapped up in her church, her new husband, and her new life, and that life doesn't allow for sympathy for sinners.

Thanks for the review, Polly! I think Brad needs to find someone too, but I don't see that happening quickly. He's just busting onto the single's scene, so it would be a bad idea for him to meet someone now.

Sometimes tragedies change people for the better, sometimes for the worst, and sometimes not at all.

July 4, 2002 Claremont, OH Matt We lay there, panting and smiling at each other, having just finished another round of amazing sex. “That was good,” Wade said, pretending like it was no big deal, that we could have great sex like that with just anyone. “I think you meant to say that was awesome,” I corrected. “That might be another way to put it,” he agreed. He lay sprawled across me, with his face buried in my n

Alright, I thought I'd give you all an update. There's good news, and bad news. The bad news is that it will probably be a bit before the next chapter is posted. I'd call it two weeks if I was optimistic, but three is more probable. The good news is that I'm about halfway done writing the next chapter. As some of you have noticed, Flux has continued on, and that's because I had a number of chapters of that story in the works before I went into the hell that was the end of the semester. The semester is over now, so I'll have a little more time to focus on George and his gang.

Wow. Thank you! I wasn't even paying attention. And that gives me another opportunity to thank my team, who had to read and/or edit all 5,000,000 of those words, and to my readers, who consumed them. No wonder Sharon needs a vacation.

Well, if there was to be no more drama, and all the problems were solved, that would have been the final chapter. And it wasn't.

Thanks Tim. You're right (and I know how much you love to hear that) ;-) I think that learning that lesson, appreciating what you have, is usually worth the pain it costs.

Maarten, Thanks for the review and the comments. To be honest, it's not often that things flow together so perfectly (four rings; four sons). I got lucky. I think your instincts may not be too off. ;-)

I'm so glad you liked the chapter. I don't think Wade can go down the road you're talking about, and I really don't think he has any choice but to be an openly gay man. He came out with too high of a profile in his freshman year, and there's a very visible record of that, with a newspaper article complete with pictures of Matt and Wade. Wade knows this. Remember how he cringed slightly when his mother came to visit after he came out, and told him that he'd ruined his political career? He's destined, at least for the next ten years or so, to be a peripheral player at best. I think Matt is clinging to "friends with benefits" because he knows that making a commitment right now is a bad idea. That gives him a way to keep distance between him and guys he hooks up with who he's also into.

Thank you so much. And for the record, most guys that I've had sex with haven't cried. ;-) I'm not that good, and I'm not that bad. I like that you picked up on how much stronger these characters are, especially Matt and Brad. I'm not saying that they won't reel if someone punches them hard, but I think they have the ability to rebound now, and I'm not sure they did a couple of months before this. It's kind of like when Will first went to see Zach play football in New Jersey. He was really nervous, comparing it to his trip to visit Tony, because when he'd seen Tony, he'd been strong enough to deal with his bullshit. With Zach, he was too wounded to handle it. Now I think these guys could handle it.

Thank you so much. And for the record, most guys that I've had sex with haven't cried. ;-) I'm not that good, and I'm not that bad. I like that you picked up on how much stronger these characters are, especially Matt and Brad. I'm not saying that they won't reel if someone punches them hard, but I think they have the ability to rebound now, and I'm not sure they did a couple of months before this. It's kind of like when Will first went to see Zach play football in New Jersey. He was really nervous, comparing it to his trip to visit Tony, because when he'd seen Tony, he'd been strong enough to deal with his bullshit. With Zach, he was too wounded to handle it. Now I think these guys could handle it.

I'm late to the party here, Cole, but happy belated birthday!

Well, when I figure it out, you'll probably know. Thanks!

Thanks Jason. Hang in there. I'm sure Will won't disappoint you. :-)

Thanks Kevin. Those are all very good questions. Very good questions.

Well that is really flattering. Thank you. I guess it says something that it took me more than 30 chapters in 9-11 and another 22 in this story to finally move beyond that nightmare. I think that for these characters, it will always be a viscerally intense event in their lives, but I think they've all moved through the grief stage. Now they get to move on to new, exciting challenges. :-)

Why would it bother you to deny a character happiness? It doesn't bother me at all. LOL. OK, that's not really true, but Cody tends to fall in love pretty easily, and he seems to fall out of love just as easily.

Thank you so much! Brad giving the rings to the boys was significant in the way that he mentioned (to bind them together, and give them a tangible memento) but I think the symbolism is even deeper than that. By giving away HIS rings, he's basically internalized and externalized that he's single again.