AC Benus - Stories

It is the summer of 1839. A 19-year-old boy sets out to be a man. He chooses the sea, or it chooses him, because it is a place where men who love as he does can escape society's pronouncements upon them. The boy unknowingly begins a classic hero's journey of self-discovery – travels 'there,' discovers his task is a deeply personal one, then returns 'home' to find home is not where he wants to be anymore.

In many ways Sloan Stevenson is a regular guy. A product of the modern world of Studio 54 and the 'do your own thing' attitude of the swinging 70s, he has his thoughts of independence shaken by meeting a great guy and his twelve-year-old daughter, Katie.

The first Christmas in six years without the world being at war; there is hope, there is remembrance, and there is uncertainty.

The store's family-feel is reinforced weekly with the publication of "Store Chat," but it takes effort. So does social justice. The Elevator Captain, the Editor, the Columnist, an Elevator Operator and her young son all strive for the renewed potential of Christmas in peacetime.

Winifred Barrett is good. She was brought in to help meld two corporate identities into one, and winds up taking on more and more responsibilities. Could a career woman back then have it all? One would think not….

Through a series of her letters and journal entries, we learn the answer.

Denys, a journalist, drifts through his days sad and desperately alone. By a stroke of unexpected chance, a runaway appears in his life. However, teenage Theo carries a lot of anger in him, and his feelings of loss are just as palpable as Denys’.

Yet, perhaps – somehow – man and boy can help fix what's broken in the other. That is, if they're able to survive what the Russians have planned for their city.

Thirteen-year-old Simon sits face to face with Father Strathmore, but what has he done wrong... experimented with drugs, kissed a boy, or lied in Confession? The priest has a vested interest in finding out, and it is a deeply personal and troubling one.

Remembering summer nights and lakeside settings, best friends come together to renew their camping traditions one year after graduating high school. Lee is nervous his drunken coming out via Skype has ruined everything. But an invite and the glimmer of hope they can repair their friendship is impossible for him to turn down, especially after Lee spent a lonely year at college.

Twelve-year-old Simon stands in the play yard breaking his best friend's heart, and is doing it for all the 'wrong reasons' – reasons of fear-based bigotry and homophobia. He must decide whose side he is on, and remembers the school year as a series of ups and downs, and of joys and sorrows. One memory may be able to make him do the right thing after all, if he can accept its message.

Fourteen-year-old Simon is getting a haircut. He has choices: a crew cut or a mullet; to continue his isolation, or to murmur a personal 'open sesame.' Later, with a little help from his friends, he finds out he is not nearly as alone as he imagined. And he suddenly can face the prospects of a long summer and entering high school in the fall with hope.

An online relationship turns real, but they only have five days to savor the sweetness of love in person.

From Stinson Beach to McLaren Park and The Castro, San Francisco guest stars in this erotic romance, and who knows – many things can happen in five days.

**this story contains graphic sexual situations**