A prompt a week - 21. Alex's Betrayal - Prompt 348

I like the dad sticking to his word, but every kid on Earth screws up from time to time and I'm sure dad in his time did too. Maybe he will remember that. I hope!

On another note, I think this could go somewhere and become a full story. DDK

On 08/29/2014 01:42 PM, Daddydavek said:

I like the dad sticking to his word, but every kid on Earth screws up from time to time and I'm sure dad in his time did too. Maybe he will remember that. I hope!

On another note, I think this could go somewhere and become a full story. DDK

Thanks Dad. I just didn't want to turn around have another, oh my child is gay and I should toss him out story. I wanted it to be a case of him not being mad that his son is gay, but more disappointed by his son's actions and for breaking the rules. Alex is realizing he screwed up and Tommy is feeling like he failed as a father. Something people can relate to. Thanks for the review DDK

I think the father's an idiot and he overreacted. Kids make mistakes. I hope they will have a new conversation in the morning. If he's not careful Alex will runaway Poor Alex!

I think a lot of people have been in similar situations, on both sides of this particular fence. Sometimes a parent HAS to over react a bit to get a point across, and then back off a little after things calm down.

Thank you for a realistic portrayal of a difficult situation. Alex being gay was not really the point of the story. His disregard of the rules, and his lack of trust in his father were. Every parent has had to deal with this on some level, and I think you wrote it very realistically.

I also have no doubt that once dad calms down they will talk again and things will improve. If Alex and Bart are smart boys they will embark on a campagne to do things like clean up Alex's room and make themselves pests with the thoughtful "I'm here and will be home at..." phone calls!

Very interesting narrative turns and an original perspective on the father character.

I did expect/hope the son to lash out jus a bit at his father, who seemed to have chosen self-righteousness to deal with his disappointment (or failure as a father, as you said to DDK). Coming out is never easy as a teen, however open and caring your parent(s) are - the correlation is tenuous at best.

What does he have to hide in his bedroom that he made such sacred territory? ; )

Well done.

There are some loose ends, some things are only touched upon that should be expanded, and these would have made for a fuller picture, but the story stands well enough as is.

 

I understand the "stay out of my bedroom" edict quite well. Some of us need our own space if we are to function properly, and that space can be a refuge for solitude and thinking, or just to get away from the kids. My experience shows this strongly to be a male thing (your mileage may vary). For my father, it was his tools: hammers, saws, wrenches, power tools, etc. We were not allowed to get into his tools or the space they occupied--not even for a lousy screwdriver. One uncle wouldn't let anyone in his basement--his refuge, and other's had their own spaces. My mother and my aunts--to the best of my recollection--never had these spaces, nor seemed to have any boundaries at all. I didn't understand the reason for it as a child, but I do now.

 

Tommy comes across rather strict with the trust issue, but don't we all have things we are less than willing to budge about. This one seems important and Alex is very much aware of it, he knows what he has done. That he broke the trust in the manner that he did speaks of his youth; that he understands what that breaking truly means speaks toward the man he is becoming. I thought this facet came across well.

On 08/29/2014 05:14 PM, Slytherin said:

I think the father's an idiot and he overreacted. Kids make mistakes. I hope they will have a new conversation in the morning. If he's not careful Alex will runaway Poor Alex!

He isn't being abusive Sly. He is just hurt. Tommy may be a father but he is still human. Remember this just happened. Once everyone cools down things will work out. Neither was exactly being totally honest.

On 08/29/2014 09:35 PM, Kitt said:

I think a lot of people have been in similar situations, on both sides of this particular fence. Sometimes a parent HAS to over react a bit to get a point across, and then back off a little after things calm down.

Thank you for a realistic portrayal of a difficult situation. Alex being gay was not really the point of the story. His disregard of the rules, and his lack of trust in his father were. Every parent has had to deal with this on some level, and I think you wrote it very realistically.

I also have no doubt that once dad calms down they will talk again and things will improve. If Alex and Bart are smart boys they will embark on a campagne to do things like clean up Alex's room and make themselves pests with the thoughtful "I'm here and will be home at..." phone calls!

Thanks Kitt. It was the idea of Alex trying to be an adult but failing to trust his father. Tommy trying to lay down the law but being more hurt and upset than helping his son. They are human and they will work it out. part of being human.

On 08/30/2014 12:18 AM, benashton said:

Very interesting narrative turns and an original perspective on the father character.

I did expect/hope the son to lash out jus a bit at his father, who seemed to have chosen self-righteousness to deal with his disappointment (or failure as a father, as you said to DDK). Coming out is never easy as a teen, however open and caring your parent(s) are - the correlation is tenuous at best.

What does he have to hide in his bedroom that he made such sacred territory? ; )

Well done.

I really didn't think of it as a place to hide. I think it is more the idea he tries to give his son his space and asks for the same. Alex was being a typical teen and that occasionally means thinking with the little head instead of the big one. I think it was more the shock that his father knew he was gay and having sex that kept him from really going after him. When he thought about it he realized what had hurt his father was the fact he broke rules he had always kept and was seeing there would be consequences. Whether Tom stays to what he says is another whole story.

On 08/30/2014 03:50 AM, Ron said:

There are some loose ends, some things are only touched upon that should be expanded, and these would have made for a fuller picture, but the story stands well enough as is.

 

I understand the "stay out of my bedroom" edict quite well. Some of us need our own space if we are to function properly, and that space can be a refuge for solitude and thinking, or just to get away from the kids. My experience shows this strongly to be a male thing (your mileage may vary). For my father, it was his tools: hammers, saws, wrenches, power tools, etc. We were not allowed to get into his tools or the space they occupied--not even for a lousy screwdriver. One uncle wouldn't let anyone in his basement--his refuge, and other's had their own spaces. My mother and my aunts--to the best of my recollection--never had these spaces, nor seemed to have any boundaries at all. I didn't understand the reason for it as a child, but I do now.

 

Tommy comes across rather strict with the trust issue, but don't we all have things we are less than willing to budge about. This one seems important and Alex is very much aware of it, he knows what he has done. That he broke the trust in the manner that he did speaks of his youth; that he understands what that breaking truly means speaks toward the man he is becoming. I thought this facet came across well.

Thank you Ron for such a detailed review. Tom and Alex have a really good father son relationship. Tom, as he explains, realizes his son is gay, but wants Alex to come out on his own terms. The problem comes into play when Alex disregards his father's rules and takes his lover into his father's bed. Alex isn't a fool and when everything is said and done he realizes he has some work to do to rebuild the trust with his father. Tom is hurt, evidenced by the locking of his door when his son passes. The morning will see the two of them both facing the actions of this evening. The final result will be up to how they handle things.

Wow, comicfan, what an impact this has! I like all the characters, they are all reacting as befits their own personalities. I love the fact it has a slightly different 'take' on the coming out scenario--it isn't mushy acceptance or harsh rejection, instead it points up that there are more issies involved than just being gay. Coming out is a multi-level process and how it is done is equally important as the act itself.

 

I confess that this is one of the first things I've read by you here...a situation I am going to redress now. Are these characters part of any of your stories, or similar to ones in them? If so, I'd like to be pointed to that story as quickly as possible!!

On 09/05/2014 03:49 AM, ColumbusGuy said:

Wow, comicfan, what an impact this has! I like all the characters, they are all reacting as befits their own personalities. I love the fact it has a slightly different 'take' on the coming out scenario--it isn't mushy acceptance or harsh rejection, instead it points up that there are more issies involved than just being gay. Coming out is a multi-level process and how it is done is equally important as the act itself.

 

I confess that this is one of the first things I've read by you here...a situation I am going to redress now. Are these characters part of any of your stories, or similar to ones in them? If so, I'd like to be pointed to that story as quickly as possible!!

HI ColumbusGuy. Most of what you find in the prompts are the type of stories I often write. I hate to do what is expected in a story. I have a tendency to deal with the characters more than just the setting. I am never a good one to ask what is good of my own because I am usually a harsh critic of my own work. You can glance and see what stories I have that you might enjoy. I write a lot of different type of stories but always try to keep some sort of heart in it.

 

Wayne

I guess I can understand the father here. After all, if you can't be trusted, what comes next? It wasn't as if it was an unreasonable demand or a new rule. The punishments, while harsh, probably hurt less than the realization that he had lost something precious: his dad's trust. If you learn that inconsiderate acts have consequences, you're more likely to think again next time.

And his point about his son not trusting him either hit a nerve too. I bet he had spent time wondering where he'd gone wrong that his son wouldn't come out to him.

On 10/06/2014 05:44 AM, Timothy M. said:

I guess I can understand the father here. After all, if you can't be trusted, what comes next? It wasn't as if it was an unreasonable demand or a new rule. The punishments, while harsh, probably hurt less than the realization that he had lost something precious: his dad's trust. If you learn that inconsiderate acts have consequences, you're more likely to think again next time.

And his point about his son not trusting him either hit a nerve too. I bet he had spent time wondering where he'd gone wrong that his son wouldn't come out to him.

I think it is mainly the idea of youth vs age. He is young and lives in the moment. You can forget rules, plans, and other things when you are caught up in the moment. Coming out is different for everyone. Each person feels the weight differently and then there is always the what happens when I tell, will people still like me? On the other side is his father. A man who has loved him but set rules. He sees things but doesn't comment until things finally come to a head. As the adult he should handle things better, but being human allows him to be hurt and upset, seeing not only his son failing to come clean and follow the rules, but the image of him as a father having cracks and wondering where he went wrong. Life is never just black and white. It is always messy with lots of shades of grey. Thanks for the comment Timothy. I hope you find other things you like and comment on.