Stories

Written for the Fairy Tales special anthology edition, but I missed the deadline, decided to post it anyway. As the title hints, it is a very modern and high school version based loosely off the fairy tale, Sleeping Beauty. One of my favorite fairy tales.

Every day after school, young Zack runs home after his last class, hoping to avoid his abusive father's rage and avoid anymore physical and emotional bruises at home. It isn't until he meets a beautiful stranger at school that he begins to wonder whether or not he's worth anything at all. Can he live in one world and fantasize about the other? Or will he have to choose?

Russ was blessed with the gift of beauty. The kind of beauty that causes witnesses to stare in awe and fall into an immediate state of infatuation. And while he doesn't have much trouble finding boys who would give anything to be with him...Russ is missing that same desire in his own life. He wants more. He wants the chills, the thrills, the longing...is it possible that it simply isn't out there? Or will someone come along...and finally give him the thrill he's been searching for?

Carlo is a gay high school junior. Karl is his straight best friend. Carlo was the first boy Karl met when he moved into town. They became fast friends and once Karl discovered Carlo was gay, he became Carlo's protector. We experience the trials and tribulations encountered by the two friends, right along with them.

It’s Thanksgiving and Tommy Weston is busy making out his Christmas list. It’s a rather lengthy list and there are several expensive items on it, but he knows his parents can afford to get him these things. He’s an only child, somewhat spoiled and maybe even a little greedy. He thinks the world revolves around him and expects to get nearly everything he wants. That’s until he meets Jason and learns about his life.

Andy and Donnie have been friends since the beginning, growing up in the same neighborhood, sharing the same friends, and now playing football on the same team in middle school. They’ve been inseparable throughout it all; but now a new line has been inserted in the equation that is their lives, one they have to learn to deal with, or face having their friendship perish:

Love.

What if Ryan didn't join the band and never got to leave his mind-numbing job as a topless waiter?

The Obsolete, running out of patience for their manager and each other, are destined to fail. On his 21st birthday, Jasper and his best friend Blake have a drunken adventure to visit as many bars as they can. To screw with their fans, they head into The Grind, where Jasper is surprised to find himself both slightly unsure and extremely comfortable. Especially when he and Blake are served by a man Jasper can't keep his eyes off.

If the band didn't bring them together, would Jasper and Ryan have ever fallen in love?

Taylor has a secret and wants to tell his best friend, Caleb. However, given that it's Christmas Eve, a time for acceptance and sharing, Taylor decides to come out to Caleb. It isn't a typical present exchange before the holidays, as this year, their friendship might be on the line, and the ultimate gift worth giving is trust.

A side salad to CWB 3 - An Appetite for More.

What happened when Jared met his new family?

Who is The Fixer?

Millennium is the tenth story in the CAP Saga. Brad is the narrator, and takes us from 1999 into 2000. Many of the characters in this story were introduced in “Chronicles of an Academic Predator,” “1968,” “The Land Whore,” “Be Rad,” “Man in Motion,” “A Summer Love,” “If It Fits,” “Bloodlines,” and “The Box.” You don't have to read them before this story, but it will give you a deeper insight into those characters and their pasts.