In Silver Glass

[Alphus]

Chapter 1​

Just Another Day​

1.1: The Snowball Effect

"No, it's not a problem," Jon said, trying his best to hide his annoyance. "I'll arrange the display as soon as I can."

Hanging up the phone, he sighed loudly this time before glancing in front of him at the layout for the art exhibit that was happening tonight. The artist he had just gotten off the phone with had told him yesterday that he was not going to be able to be finished in time, which was no problem for Jon as he could include it in the next show in another six weeks. Now that changed, and he had to figure out how to fit him in now.

"Mr. Arken?"

"What is it now?" Jon said, turning around to face his office door.

"Uh, this order needs a signature from you," Andrew said quickly, startled by Jon's tone. "I-I can come back later if now is a bad time."

"It's alright," Jon said taking the clipboard and putting down his signature.

Glancing at the the layout on the wall, Jon asked daringly, "Is that for tonight's exhibit?"

"Yeah," he said, following Andrew's eyes to the layout mock-up. "I have to rearrange it all because Gordan finally finished his piece today, even though yesterday he said he wasn't going to have it in time."

"Can't you just bump it back to the next one?"

"I could, but he's from the art university down the block. They're are biggest source of students, and in return, we're their biggest supporter. It's a close relationship I try not to mess with," he said at length.

"Can I make a suggestion?" Andrew asked.

"Sure."

"What if you move the seats from here to here," he said, stepping up to the mock-up and rearranging the pinned cards. "Then move these two sculptures and put them over here, and then move this over some. That way you have some extra room for Gordan's project... and then some if there is another last-minute entry."

"That... actually works," he said, crossing his arms on his chest and looking over the plan. "I'll send these over to the museum now they have time to rearrange everything before opening."

"Ah, it was no problem. I actually enjoy puzzles; this was easy," he said, smiling.

"You're Andrew, right?" he said, looking curiously at him.

"Yep, that's me."

"What do you do here again?"

"I'm just and office assistant. No real position technically," he said, shrugging.

"Oh.. hm... well, thanks. You better get those papers sent out. I have more work to do," he said, brushing Andrew away.

"Yessir," Andrew said, unsure of what to make of Jon's questioning. Nonetheless, he turned and left the room closing the door behind him.

"Lana?" Jon asked, pressing down on the intercom button to talk to the office secretary. "Put in word to the employment office for them to make Andrew Morden my assistant."

"Are you sure? Er, I mean, yes Mr. Arken," she replied, having to correct herself right away.

"And send someone from the museum to pick up the layout corrections for tonight."

"Will do. Anything else I can do?"

"That will be all," Jon said, taking his finger off the button. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath and shook his head slowly. It was already a hectic morning and it was only ten. Taking a sip of his tea, he began to work on coordinating other upcoming events.


1.2: Walking on thin ice

"You're Jon's best friend, right?" Andrew asked a woman, unsure if she was the right person.

Turning around from her painting, she tilted her head to the side. "Yes, why?"

"I was just wondering... um... Well, I... I'm... Is he? Er," Andrew said, trying to figure out how to ask what he wanted to know, but at the same time not to try and seem rude. It was hard enough to work out what to say, but it was also difficult to try and not feel intimidated by Samantha. She had a goth, rock, and punk style of clothing, and yet her attitude also seemed very young and innocent. It was a kind of freaky mix to someone who wasn't used to it, and Andrew wasn't used to it.

"You want to know if he's gay, and possibly interested?" Samantha asked quite easily.

"Uh... yeah," Andrew sighed a bit of relief.

"I swear I get asked this every year. Sit down," she said, rinsing her paint brush. "This is going to take a while."

It was about two weeks after the exhibition now. Andrew did everything he could to get the attention of Jon, but nothing seemed to really work unless it involved anything to do with the institution. After asking someone close to him about Jon's distant nature, they had pointed him to Samantha who said that she was able to answer him, which is where he found himself now.

They both sat down at a work bench on the other side of the room. Samantha looked over at him curiously, causing Andrew to shift a little feeling a bit uncomfortable.

"So," Samantha said breaking the silence. "First thing's first. Call me Sam; I hate 'Samantha.' Second, yes, he's gay. Third, and here's the biggie, he's not interested."

"How do you know?"

"Hello? I'm his best friend," Sam said. "He wasn't always like this. He did used to hang out and party once in a while like the rest of us at one point. You see, Jon was with high school sweetheart, Martin. They were together for about 8 years, starting in Sophomore year. Well," she said, taking a deep breath to collect herself, "two years ago there was an accident. They were driving home from one of our monthly exhibitions when they were hit by a drunk driver on Martin's side. They were in the hospital for about three days when Martin died. On top of weeks of physical therapy, he had to find a way to live without Martin. Since then, he hasn't been the same. He became consumed with working here and helping everyone. I'm really the only person he talks to on a personal level now, and even that is kind of rare," she said, shaking her head. "It's really his interest in work, not people. Ever since he came back to work here, he continues to push himself to get everything done and be on top of everything."

"But why?" Andrew said, feeling extremely sorry and sad.

"Jon and Martin started this place right out of high school. With the money they got from art competitions and various supporters, they built this place up to what it is now. It was a dream they had, and I figure Jon wants to keep that dream alive. It's really all he has left now."

"I feel stupid," Andrew said, feeling bad for not knowing and thinking there was something more.

"Don't hate yourself for it... you're not the first," Sam said, smiling cheerfully. "Now you know. It's better to try and not get involved with Jon, more for your sake than for his."

"What if... what if I tried to get close to him?"

"You'd be the first to try. A lot of people don't want to deal with a broken man. Anyway, I have to get back to my work," she said, standing up. "Look, I won't stop you if you want to try and get close to him. That's not my business; I've just told you want would be involved in attempting to get close to him. But I also won't stand by and do nothing if you upset him." She wouldn't tell him that she wished someone could help him pull back out of his shell.

Nodding his head, he watched her go back to her painting. Should I? he thought to himself. Something about Jon... he couldn't get him out of his head. There was something about him, and he couldn't figure out what. I can't imagine life being only about work. He decided in the end... he was going to try. There was an attraction there he couldn't explain. He never met someone that puzzled him so much, even with the story Samantha shared. Damn his love for puzzles.

Little did he know that his role in this would be much, much larger than he imagined.

 

[hardreader]

An interesting start. I'll be around to see where this is going.

 

[Autolycus]

An interesting start. I'll be around to see where this is going.

Fully agree with Hardreader - thanks for your contribution!

 

[GrayFox]

This is very intriguing!

 

[erasfred]

Will definitely also be around to see how this turns out.

 

[DonQuixote]

Alphus,
This is an interesting start.
A little polishing, perhaps.
Will be interesting to see where you take us.

 

[Craiger]

Alphus,

It's good to see you back writing. As with the others, I will look forward to your new chapters.

Craiger

 

[giorgiobaby]

interesting start, looking forward to seeing how this goes from here. Good luck

 

[sexygaydude]

this is very interesting. i like it so far.

 

[Alphus]

Chapter 2​

Scars Never Heal​

2.1: It's just routine

Jon woke up and stared up at the ceiling. It was still dark; nothing new for him. Even though his alarm was set for eight in the morning, he sometimes woke up before sunrise. Since... his... death, he wasn't able to sleep through the night any more. This was one of those days. Hearing a soft purr on his left, he turned his head to look at a cat sleeping on the pillow beside him. He smiled slightly, reaching out to pet the tabby.

"You still miss him too, huh?" Jon said softly. Turning to his right, he looked out the window at the full moon that was slowly going back over the horizon before closing his eyes. He wasn't going to try and go back to sleep, as he never could since that day. He was just going to lay for a bit before getting ready. Twenty minutes later, he walked into the bathroom.

Turning on the light, he studied himself in the mirror behind the sink, which is something he often did. He was only twenty-six, but his body gave away a history twice that long. Normally he kept his dark brown hair short, but now it was at least six inches passed his shoulders. Once clean-shaven, he now wore a shaggy beard and mustache, albeit not thick, it was definitely what he would call scruffy.

Pushing his hair out of the way on his right shoulder, he ran his hand over the scar where they had to open to repair his shattered collar bone. His eyes ran down to his left forearm, where a second scar was, although smaller from a serious gash. Pulling his briefs up on his right leg, he looked over the third scar where his femur had to be nailed together as well. Despite having let himself go, he still managed to have a fairly athletic build. He assumed it was just the physical work from moving around art pieces and supplies around the complex.

Still, he couldn't help but not care how he looked. Outside of work, he cared about very little, if anything. No one saw this side of him, and he knew no one ever would. He was depressed at home, for there were memories everywhere. He closed his eyes, only to open them and find himself four years earlier.

"What are you thinking about?" Martin asked, coming up to stand behind Jon, putting his arms between his, placing his hands on his chest, and kissing his neck softly, nibbling a little.

Twitching a little at the bite, he reached back and put his hands through Martin's hair. "Nothing much, just happy we bought this place."

"Oh, is that all?" Martin smiled, kissing his neck some more before resting his head on Jon's left shoulder and looking in the mirror too.

Laughing a little, "Well, I thought I might go to the gym," Jon said, looking at his body.

"Why? You look fine to me. More than fine," he said, sliding a hand down to rub on Jon's briefs, right over his crotch.

"Hey!" Jon said, snatching Martin's hand away before turning around to face his love, only to pull him in and kiss him.

"We have to get ready," Martin said, kissing Jon some more.

"Nope, we don't. I called Sam to take care of stuff today. I told her we still had some things to move."

"What's missing? I thought the last truck came yesterday."

"I didn't say what we had to move," Jon said, moving his hand down and squeezing Martin's butt.

"Oh, you're a sneaky little one," Martin said before grabbing Jon, sitting him up on the bathroom sink and made out with him some more.

"Hold on!," he shouted as they were spinning out of control, flipping over three, maybe four times... he couldn't tell. All he heard was screaming and yelling--​

Jon blinked a few times, confused for a moment at what happened. He saw himself in the mirror again, this time alone and broken, dazed but knowing full well of what happened. Feeling sick, he threw up in the toilet. Like a number of things these days, it wasn't new for him; it was just the ghosts of the past talking to him again. Back in reality, he sat back to rest on the bathtub and looked around him. A moment later, he burst into tears.


2.2: Checkmate

"What's new on the agenda today?" Jon asked, stepping into the building and having been greeted by Andrew.

"Nothing much, actually. There's some more art supply orders on your desk you have to approve," Andrew said handing Jon his tea. "Contractor also faxed some concepts for the new building."

"Not a problem," he said shortly.

"Uh... Mr. Arken? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Jon said.

Walking together to Jon's office, Andrew detailed some of the other things that was on Jon's plate that had to be done, or that he could provide an update for. When they got to the front of his door, Andrew got the list of things he needed to do for today and left to take care of them. Jon turned, unlocked his door and entered only to be startled by Samantha sitting at his desk sucking on a lollipop.

"You know, your lock is really easy to pick," Samantha said. "You might want to change it. Oh, and the new concept art... I think you should tell them to be more creative. Honestly, have you seen this? It's so tacky."

"No, because I just got in," he said, putting his tea down and grabbing some papers his desk and looking through them. "Wait, when did you learn to pick locks?"

"Oh, you know me. I like to get around."

"Right," he said, unsure of what she was implying. "So, what do you want?"

"You had a bad morning didn't you?" Sam asked.

"I'm fine now. I have things to do, just tell me what you need."

"We're going out tonight."

"What?"

"You heard me. After work. Don't give me an excuse either; it's Friday, and I don't want you sitting home all weekend doing nothing," she said.

"What's the occasion?"

"Nothing special," she replied. "I know, I know, you don't really go out any more, but... do it for me, please?" she asked, giving her best puppy-dog look she could do.

"I'll go. But I'm being reluctant about it," he said, sighing.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she said happily, giving him a hug. "I'll see you tonight." Walking out of Jon's office, Samantha made her way through the halls to find Andrew making copies of some documents. Upon seeing him, she nodded. "I still don't know how he's going to react."

"Well, he has to be expecting something, right?" Andrew asked.

"I don't think he even knows it's his birthday. It's just how withdrawn he's become," she said worryingly. "I gotta get back to my stuff, so I'll see you tonight."

"Sam, wait," he called out to her at the last second.

She turned to face him, "Yeah?"

"Do you think it's a good idea?"

"No one's tried," she said quietly. "It's worth a shot. You seem to be getting somewhere with him... but even I don't know for sure," she muttered, before turning to leave again.

Andrew was silent as she walked away. How could someone forget their birthday? Did Jon really stop caring so much about life that he stopped caring about himself too? He knew from talking to Samantha that he was distant with all his friends and family, and he was even near-suicidal at one point. Andrew shook his head, reminding himself that now wasn't the time to space out right now--there was things to do.

"He has to like it," Andrew muttered before collecting the new copies and walking out. It had been a few months since he became Jon's assistant now, and in that time he learned a lot about things that could aggravate or amuse Jon, despite him being mostly numb. It had become a careful game of chess and today he was making his first major move. He wasn't sure if Jon would take his turn or just throw the board off the table.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained, he thought.

 

[hardreader]

Interesting. Very interesting.

 

[GrayFox]

I'm betting on Andrew.

 

[Alphus]

Alphus,
This is an interesting start.
A little polishing, perhaps.
Will be interesting to see where you take us.

It was both done on purpose (having a haphazard feel), but also because I kind of sped through thoughts before letting them completely form. Plus it didn't help when I was 1/2 asleep.

I have a better idea of flow and style now, and that'll be evident in the next part.

I'm betting on Andrew.

Not without help, there's no way you'd win that bet. There's someone else who he'll have to rely on (and it's not Samantha).


Thanks to everyone for the comments!

 

[Craiger]

This is getting more and more interesting. Eagerly awaiting the next chapter.

Craiger

 

[DonQuixote]

Alphus,
You are doing a fine job of crafting your story. This chapter is very cohesive - mind lapse scenes included. You are allowing us into Jon's inner sanctum, bit by bit, so we can begin to understand WHY he is so so distant and disconnected with the real world. You are also allowing us to see his friends and colleagues struggle with trying to figure out how to break through the force field of oblivion Jon has thrown up around himself. We can tell they care, deeply. Just as we can tell that he cares/d a lot, too.

This is a very realistic protrayal of both the insides and outsides of someone who has suffered a traumatic loss and is in the midst of depression. I don't know if you are an observant bystander/family/colleague of someone who has suffered, or if you are the one who has suffered, and are now far enough removed from the isolation chamber to be able to accurately look at it and share the feelings, emotions, sometimes seeming lack of same with us.

As someone who has been thru a mid-life crisis with a loss that hurled me into manic depression with obsessive-compulsive interpersonal complications, I can say that you are doing an excellent job of bringing us all inside this story.

A very minor grammatical thing, if I may -- I'd like to introduce you to the word "were". It's the plural form of "was"
This OR that WAS . . . This AND that WERE . . . I was, He was, She was, They Were, We Were. I'm back from the dark side, but I'm afraid I'm still anal when it comes to certain grammatical devices.

I look forward to your next installment. I, too, amd betting on his friends and co-workers. I think his shell is starting to crack, he just doesn't realize it, yet.

Thank you.

 

[harry113]

Poor Andrew .... hope this works !!
Thanks for a great & well-written story
Please continue
Harry

 

[giorgiobaby]

Great start Alphus, I like the story line and keep up the good work. Look forward to the next chapter.

 

[Alphus]

Chapter 3​

Soft Side of a Rose​

3.1: Change in Tide

"I can't believe you're doing this," Jon said, leaning against a wall with his eyes covered by a scarf that Samantha had wrapped around his head. "Did it have to be pink?"

"Hey," Samantha said, putting her hands on her hips and giving Jon a look he couldn't see. "Is it so wrong to put a little color in your life?"

"Pink isn't a color, it's a monstrosity. I think I'd prefer being blind like this than to see it. Where are we going anyway?"

"That's my little secret. Now wait here while I change," she said, leaving Jon in the hallway.

"Wait, what?!" Jon shouted. Trying to pull the scarf off, he couldn't undo the knot and it was too tight to slip off his had. Giving up, he slid down to sit against the wall waiting for Samantha to return. "I will never know why I agreed to this," he muttered.

Moments later, Samantha came back only to be confused as to where Jon went to. "Where'd you go?"

"I'm down here."

"Oh," she said, looking over a small partition that was between her and Jon. "I didn't see you there."

"I could say the same thing."

"Let's go," she said, helping him up.

Downstairs, she helped him get into her car all the while laughing at Jon's questioning to figure out where they were going. Soon they were on the road for only a half-hour before she parked the car. It was then that Jon finally realized where they were.

"Are we... at the beach?"

"So you're the real Captain Obvious," Samantha said while she helped Jon get out of the car. "And no, you're not taking it off just yet."

It was another five minutes from the car to get to the beach. Once they got up the short stairs, the sounds and smells of the ocean became clear. He could hear the seagulls in the distance, the sounds of the waves crashing on air, but nothing else. As far as he could tell, it was just the two of them. He had some trouble walking on the sand blind, but Samantha helped him keep his balance. Finally, she stopped him, indicating they were finally here... wherever here was.

"Keep them closed," she said as she undid the scarf, and finally took it off Jon's head. "Okay... now."

Jon opened his eyes, blinking a couple of times to get used to the light change. He took a second to realize what was going on when everyone shouted 'Surprise'. Looking around, he could see almost thirty people from the institute here for him, all standing in front of a large banner that said "Happy Birthday, Jon!". He was unsure how to react. He looked to where Samantha was standing, only to be surprised again, for now she traded in her usual darker cloths for a pure white dress, wearing the pink scar around her waist and tied it into a bow.

"Who's idea was this?" Jon said with more seriousness than he might've intended.

Samantha, misreading his tone, stepped away from Andrew and then pointed to him silently with a slight gesture of her wrist.

"I-I did," Andrew said.

Jon looked at him for a moment while everyone else shifted uneasily in the silence. Then, he walked over and hugged him. It was a gesture he hadn't done in years. "Thank you," he said quietly in Andrew's ear.

Upon seeing Jon's reaction, she slid back to her original position beside Andrew. "He couldn't do it without me," she said, smiling innocently as possible.

"Thank you, too," Jon said, hugging her as well.

Music was playing and a bonfire was lit. Pretty soon everyone was having a good time and the atmosphere was very light. They watched the sun sink into the see and watch the moon take its place. Time passed quickly and it was almost midnight when people started to leave. With a few handshakes or nods, people left to go on home. It was about one in the morning when it was just Jon, Andrew, Samantha, and Matt, who was a close friend of Martin and by association, Jon. The bonfire was now down to a low glow, and every once in a while one of the larger pieces of wood would pop and send another bubble of embers into the air. Andrew was finishing his story of how he ended up working at the institute.

"Oh, I got out of there the second I turned eighteen," Andrew said, answering a question from Matt.

"If I was gay, I think my parents could handle it," Matt said. "I mean, considering the field I went into, they kind of assumed from the start," he added, shrugging.

A couple of people laughed at the comment, and then it became quiet. The waves crashed rhythmically as the bonfire continued to glow less. It was about five minutes before the silence was broken by someone, causing everyone to jump a little as they didn't expect it.

"He would've loved this," Jon said just loud enough for everyone to hear. He was staring out into the ocean, watching the moonlight sparkle and dance across of the surface of the water. "We never went to the beach at night. Even in darkness there's beauty."

Sighing, Samantha leaned over and hugged Jon tightly. "Oh, sweetie. You okay?"

"I'm fine," he said, breaking his gaze and looking at her, smiling a little. "Just thinking, that's all. Really."

"Well... okay. We should go, it's getting late. Plus, I'm getting cold," she said, warming up her arms.

"You wore the sleeveless dress," Andrew said, giving her a look.

"Hey, I wanted to look nice," she retorted.

"Cat fight," Matt cut in.

"Shut up," Andrew and Samantha said in unison.

"STOP!" Jon shouted loudly, causing his voice to echo a moment later. It was silent again as he stood up and picked up the bucket of water that sat by the fire. Using his other hand to stabilize it, he lifted it up to chest level and then doused the fire. Sizzling and putting out its last feeble attempt to reignite, Jon turned back to face the three of them with a stern look on his face. "I declare this meeting of the Midnight Society closed."

There was a moment of confusion, but he could make out that Samantha was first at connecting the dots by the fact her face went from worry to a painful attempt to not burst out laughing. In a blink of an eye everyone was laughing harder than ever, including him.

"That was not funny," Samantha said, wiping the tears from her eyes. "You scared me for a second."

"It was to me," Jon said, holding his stomach.

"I'm on his side," Matt managed to say before trying to stifle another laugh.

"We should get going though," Jon said, taking a deep breath, but still smiling. After he helped Samantha up, the four of them started to walk back towards the parking lot.

Saying their goodbyes to Matt, the three of them walked walked to the other end of the lot to Andrew's car, where Samantha said goodbye but Jon didn't and she caught it.

"I'll bring the car," she said, waving bye to Andrew again and giving an inquisitive glance at Jon before turning around and walking to her car.

"So you planned all this?" Jon asked once they were alone.

"Yeah," Andrew asked, finding himself surprisingly uncomfortable with Jon. "Well, I mean, I asked for advice from Sam, but... well, you know... I--I hope tha--"

"Relax, I'm not upset," Jon said, cutting him off. "I just wanted to know. No one has ever done something like this for me. Not since Martin...," he said, letting his voice trail off as he was unable to bring the words to voice. Even if he could stop himself saying a simple word, what he couldn't do was stop the emotions. Had he not experience one of his "episodes" this morning, he probably wouldn't have so much as flinched. Two extreme emotional situations couldn't be contained within him in one day.

"I'm sorry," Jon said, as he was now silently crying on Andrews shoulder.

Andrew was surprised at Jon's forwardness, but wrapped his arm around him nonetheless. "It's okay," he said, rubbing his friend's back. He rested his head on Jon's shoulder and just closed his eyes.

"I should go,"Jon said, taking a deep breath and letting go of Andrew a few minutes later. "I just really want to say 'thank you'."

"Any time," Andrew said shyly, giving a half-smile before he be put on a more mutual face.

"I'll see you tomorrow--I mean Monday," he said, correcting himself quickly.

"Alright. See you Monday," Andrew said, pulling his keys out of his pockets

Jon gave him one more hug before finally turning and heading for Samantha's car. When he got there, he found her sitting on top of her car, staring at the sky while moving her feet to the beat of the music. She turned her head and saw him coming and slid off the hood and turned off the radio.

"How are you?" she asked.

"Let's just go," he said as he entered the car.

"Right," she said, looking around at nothing in particular and started the car.

It was a short drive back to the institute parking lot so Jon could get his car to go home. She pulled up next to his car, but he didn't say or do anything.

"We're here," she reminded him if he didn't notice. "You okay?"

"Did he really plan this?" he asked, staring out in front of him.

"Pretty much. He only really asked me if it was a good idea, and who would be the right people to ask to come."

"He's good," Jon said, smiling to himself at some unknown thought before turning to look at her. "Anyway, thanks for dragging me out. I did have fun." He stepped out of the car after giving her a hug. "I'll see you later."

"Bye hun," she said and drive away.

A short while later, Jon got home safe and took a quick shower. Dressed in just his briefs, he sat laid down in bed He stared at the ceiling thinking over the day's events and happy that it happened. His mind soon drifted over to Andrew, and the reasons of why he would do such a thing. Thinking over things more, Andrew did many things to spend a little more time with him. At the same time, Jon felt something was different about him but just found himself unsure of what that really was. He knew Andrew cared; it was just the mystery of just how much and what he was looking for that drew him in further. What was he playing at? What was he looking for?

For the first time in years, Jon drifted to sleep without his last thoughts being about Martin.

===--{[_____]}--===​

This is a very realistic protrayal of both the insides and outsides of someone who has suffered a traumatic loss and is in the midst of depression. I don't know if you are an observant bystander/family/colleague of someone who has suffered, or if you are the one who has suffered, and are now far enough removed from the isolation chamber to be able to accurately look at it and share the feelings, emotions, sometimes seeming lack of same with us.

A lot of what I'm making Jon go through kind of feeds off of how I felt in Not Fade Away, and though the circumstances between this and that are obviously different, the situation is the same when it comes to not being with the person that made everything feel right (hence the title both figuratively and literally--my demon and angel never fades away in my mind or world). I still drift into those moments of solitude, loneliness, and a bunch of other emotions from that that pull me down, so I try to push it off to other, more positive activities. Writing is the main outsource of that "negative" energy. I don't mind though. It's what allows me to do what I've come to love, as odd as that might be.

A dash of the rest comes from knowing people who have lost someone or just general observations of people around me. I hope that anwers your question.

 

[DonQuixote]

Alphus,
This was another poignant chapter. It was nice to see Jon be able to start to open up, come alive again, and show appreciation to those who went out on the line to try and make it happen.

Thank you for sharing.

 

[Craiger]

Alphus,

The therapy you have set for yourself by writing certainly has giving all of us the wonderful experience of reading your story. I am a big believer in being able to release negativity through talking or writing. Thank you for sharing!

Craiger