Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Hello All,

 

Here is the forum thread for the sequel to 'Button' called 'Barbed Wire Heart.'  Feel free to ask questions, predict who characters may be, or brainstorm about what's going on in the story.  There are several riddles throughout the story.  Our first one is who the hell is "Killer?"  This is followed up by what happened at the Humble Braggart?  The restaurant where a man got raging drunk and had to be driven home.  I hope you enjoy the story and all the surprises I have planned for it. 

 

Let's talk!!!!

 

The story can be found here.  https://www.gayauthors.org/story/cole-matthews/barbedwireheart

 

 

Link to comment

Here is a brief dramatis personae of the sequel characters from Chapter One.  Columbus Guy's suggestion is excellent.

 

Craig (Button) The twenty year old star of the story 'Button.'  He has two gay dads, Craig and Graham, and married his high school sweetheart, Mirabelle after finding out she's pregnant.  He's in college and getting a handle on being a dad, a husband, and a full time student. 

 

Mirabelle This nineteen year old woman is married to Craig and mother to their little baby, Andy.  She is settling into her new role as well, but it's not easy for her as all her friends are going to college, working or both.  Craig and Mirabelle's son is Andy, who was born only two months before the beginning of this story and named after Button's best friend, Andy, who died of a heart condition.

 

Brent This young man is eighteen and graduated the same year as Craig and Mirabelle.  He's Andy's boyfriend and has struggled to get past mourning him.  He attends college and works part time at Craig's parent's restaurant with Craig.  He used to date Craig's archnemesis, Kevin, who was last seen on drugs in a gay bar with a domineering boyfriend. 

 

Brody This tall, hardworking young man wasn't in the story, 'Button.'  He starred in the '1550 Loring Lane' story, "Voice of the Garden."  After the death of his mentor, Louis, Brody took over as part time gardener and maintenance man at the 1550 Loring Lane apartment building.  His new career is as a home healthcare worker and who also fills in at a restaurant called, "The Humble Braggart."  Brody's a bit gunshy when it comes to relationships after he was burnt by a guy named Trey who Louis warned him against. 

 

There we have it.  The first chapter characters from Barbed Wire Heart.  Next chapter, I'll give a brief rundown of the next ones introduced. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment

Quoted from Irritable1's review:

 

Must admit I'm a bit surprised that a counselor would tell any parent that it's too soon after their baby to attend college--as long as daycare is available, either a man or a woman should be able to pull it off.

 

Something you need to remember, at only 8 weeks postpartum, Mirabelle could very well be feeling the effects of postpartum depression, a chemical imbalance common in first time mothers, and can be quite severe. So much more than a simple case of the baby blues!

 

I think the advice to take a very light credit load was spot on, more could always be added next semester. Mir had already shown signs of depression and moodiness. Taking on the stress of a full credit load on top of being a new mom and a new wife all at the same time could add up to disaster. Can it be done? Certainly. Has it been done? Probably. But the real question here is SHOULD it be done?  

  • Like 1
Link to comment

Women go back to work at 6 weeks PP-- have to, if they want to keep their jobs--all the time. I did it myself. It's extremely common. Edit: it was an opportunity after a year of unemployment, in a recession, that led to my current career. I could support all four of us now if I had to. The idea of having lost it all because someone decided I couldn't handle it makes me feel kind of sick.

 

Edit: and this is getting a bit grim now, but lets face it: by having a baby before she was out of her teens Mirabelle made a choice that could lead to poverty for herself and her kid. If she came to me looking for help in establishing a stable future, I sure as heck wouldn't pat her head and send her home.

Edited by Irritable1
Link to comment

Not saying someone can't - or should not - Just saying there are lots more factors. I went back at 6 weeks too. A friend of mine did as well. I had no issues, she ended up in an inpatient therapy program by the time the baby was 3 months old.

  • Like 2
Link to comment

But kitt, we live in a society where entire families become homeless on the basis of whether mom can or cannot pull it together at 6 weeks. It shouldn't be in a counselor's hands to lock the door like that. Especially for people who are trying to get out of poverty, there are only so many chances.

 

I'm probably getting too heated. It just seems really wicked to me.

Edited by Irritable1
Link to comment

lol would take more than that to kill the thread!   

 

 

Edit to add:    I can totally see a major case of PPD becoming one of her issues!

Edited by Kitt
  • Like 2
Link to comment

Now this is a discussion! Irritable1, Mir isn't alone nor is she applying for a job. She was advised by a counselor to take a light load as a transition. My friend who faced this situ said it was due to studies showing new mothers tended to drop out if it was too soon.  Her counselor, like Mirabelle's, informed her of the difficulties. It was advice for a best result.

 

As far as the rest, Kitt's figuring this out too. I am notoriously close mouthed! Trust me, it will open like a flower in spring, quite slowly. Chapter two comes out next week. We are at early stages. ☺️

  • Like 1
Link to comment

I am confused. Is Samuel the target or is he Killer, who took one of the three pills meant for the target???

 

 

Samuel was the drunk guy. Killer wanted a taste of something he was given. We don't know anymore as of yet. 

I killed the thread  :blushing:  I felt like Mirabelle was kind of passive in the last story and I'm probably over-excited now that she's bringing her own Issues to the story...

 

Oh, Mirabelle is one of stars of this story. Her issues are prominent!

  • Like 1
Link to comment

Oh, Mirabelle is one of stars of this story. Her issues are prominent!

 

Oh boy. I'm already in this huge tizzy over a mother's right to work and it's only Chapter 1. I don't know about this, Cole. And I need to keep you sweet, because I'm trying hollandaise again this weekend...  :lol:

Edited by Irritable1
  • Like 1
Link to comment

Ok....so I go out for the evening and drink my face off (stayed true blue despite some very nice guys trying to convince me otherwise) and I miss all this. I am still confused but I trust Cole to set me straight....eventually(not easy to type or spell when you are drunk). Postpartum Depression is serious stuff....a girl I taught riding to gave up her daughter for well over a year because she was afraid she would kill her and she already had two kids with no problem. Irri...I get what you are saying because poverty is real and moms have a lot of pressure just to survive....and Kitt you are right too as my riding student illustrates...the ideal is to keep the pressure to a minimum....hope this makes sense....cheers....and Cole! Don't make us wait a week!!

  • Like 2
Link to comment

How does one "drink their face off"?

 

Cole - the trick to my being able to play here is that I need to remember what chapter the readers are at, and not say things that might relate to chapters that I have edited but have not yet posted.  In this case you haven't gone into Mir's issues too much yet so I get to speculate and play like the rest.  Some of the other comments I can't touch cause I know too much!

  • Like 1
Link to comment

And here are short reminders of previous characters who appear in Barbed Wire Heart but I've introduced in other stories. 

 

Trey - This young man is a devastatingly handsome man who appeared as Brody's new boyfriend in Voice of the Garden.  He wasn't well received by Louis, who didn't trust him. We get to know a little more about the man who dumped the 1550 Loring Lane maintenance man in a text message.

 

Kevin Dooley - As previously mentioned, Kevin is the 'archenemy' of Craig (Button) and also the ex-boyfriend of Brent.  Kevin's life hasn't been easy.  We find out more about him and how he's dealing with things now that the gang is out in the world on their own.

 

Guy and Ian -- They don't appear in Chapter 2, but are present in future episodes.  They are married and manage the apartment building that is 1550 Loring Lane.  These middle-aged men are in a couple of those stories most notably Voice of the Garden. 

 

That rounds up the cast from my other stories.  We are in the early stages here, but rest assured, there will be lots more coming up.  Thanks for joining me.

  • Like 1
Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Our Privacy Policy can be found here: Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue..