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    Mark Arbour
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

Poor Man's Son - 34. Chapter 33

August 2, 2000

 

Claremont, OH

Gathan

 

 

“I love this place, but it is still freakin’ hot,” Kristin said, as we lay out at the watering hole. I looked over and took in the beautiful sight in front of me. Sure there was the small dam and beautiful little pool of water, not to mention the waterfall that was formed around the dam. And there were the big trees that seemed to shelter the whole area except this rock, making it the perfect sunbathing spot. All of that natural beauty paled in comparison to Kristin Hendrickson, who was sprawled across the rock, stark naked.

“You’re beautiful,” I told her.

“I know,” she said, joking. “I should be out in California with all the movie stars.” Her words flew through my brain like an avalanche, knocking my neural pathways wide open.

“You should. Let’s go.”

“What?” she asked me, confused.

“Let’s go. Let’s go home and pack up, and leave in the morning.”

“We can’t leave,” she said. Then she looked at me and smiled. “Can we?”

“I have to go out there anyway. School doesn’t start for you until the end of the month,” I reasoned. “Let’s go out there now, you can stay until right before school starts, then fly home and stay with your parents. They can pretend that nothing ever happened.”

“I think they need to remember and face up to a few things,” she growled. She was still really pissed at them.

“We already fought a battle with them. Do we have to make it a war?”

“You don’t think you’re in a war? How clueless are you?”

I didn’t want to think about the Hendricksons and their issues, so I switched tacks. “Besides, El is miserable without Darius.”

“She is a major buzz-kill,” Kristin said. It sounded funny, but it was true. “God, I hope I’m not like that when you’re gone.”

“Not me. I hope you’re miserable without me,” I joked, then got her re-focused on leaving. “We can get Darius to fly out here and go back with us.”

“Two couples, travelling across the land,” she joked.

“Unless he bugs you,” I said. “We don’t have to take them with us.”

“I like being with them. They’re kind of like in-laws.”

I laughed. “Especially since we’re engaged.”

“Asshole,” she said, and rolled over on top of me. “This can be our honeymoon.”

“We’re not even married yet.”

“We’ll do it in reverse order.” I got up and started gathering our stuff together. “What are you doing?”

“Let’s go,” I prompted. Now that I’d made the decision, I couldn’t wait to get moving. I loved Claremont, but there was no reason for me to be here right now. Besides, here I was under the watchful eyes of Mr. and Mrs. Hendrickson, the concerned eyes of Wally and Clara, and the evil eye of Zach. I could shed all of them like a snake sheds its skin, simply by going to Cali a month early.

“I should talk to my parents about this,” she sighed as she took a handful of our stuff and followed me back to the Chevy.

I waited until we got back to the paved roads to call Stef, even though the Tahoe had so much better suspension than my Dodge. It was funny, though, that just thinking about the Dodge made me smile. I’d put a lot of myself into that truck. Brent had been saving money for a car, but now that he had the Dodge, he was putting his cash into it instead. It would probably end up being one sweet ride, for an old truck. I put my vehicular musings aside, flipped through my contacts, and dialed Stef.

“Hello darling!” he said, flirting.

“I hope I’m not bothering you,” I said.

“Not at all,” he said. “JP goes into surgery tomorrow, so we are all preparing ourselves.”

“He’ll be alright,” I said emphatically, like I had some control over it.

“You are most likely correct, but that does not mean it is not wise to prepare for the worst. He has acquired a lot of responsibilities along the way that he must decide how to deal with.”

“Aren’t you rich people supposed to be fighting over his money?” I joked.

“You watch too many soap operas,” he sniffed. “I am wondering if you actually were calling me for a reason, or just to chat.”

“You said I could call you just to talk,” I said, my voice deep and husky.

“Yes, and that is most certainly true,” he said, giggling, “but it would be unfortunate for us to run out of time when you have a point yet to make.”

“We decided to leave early and come out to California,” I said, blurting it out. “That is if it’s OK with you guys,” I added, remembering my manners. I got an approving look from Kristin. She was such a lady.

“You are always welcome. No permission is required. I am curious as to who this ‘we’ is?”

“Kristin and I, Darius and Ella,” I said. “Even though we haven’t talked to Ella and Darius yet.”

“You should call Darius first,” he said. “Bradley says he is mooning around the house worse than Will.”

“Alright.” I had one more thing I needed to cover with him. “Stef, I still have that business credit card Jeff gave me. I’m not sure if I have enough credit on mine for a cross-country trek. Do you mind if I use it?”

“That is fine,” he said dismissively.

“I’ll pay you back when I get there,” I promised. “We’ll see you in a few days. Give JP a hug for me.”

“At least,” he joked. I hung up and dialed Darius next.

“Dude, I’m so glad you called,” he said. “I was actually just about to call you. I have this sweet idea!”

“Oh yeah?” I asked, wondering what he’d come up with.

“I’m gonna fly out and drive back with you, if that’s OK?”

“Dude, that’s why I’m calling you,” I said, laughing. “Only we’re leaving tomorrow.”

“What? You’re leaving tomorrow? Dude, I can’t get there that fast. At least I don’t think I can.”

“He can’t be here tomorrow,” I said, repeating his comment to Kristin.

“Then we’ll leave the day after tomorrow. That gives me time to wrap things up with my parents.”

“Kristin has announced that we will leave the day after tomorrow,” I joked.

“Sweet,” Darius said. “I’m booking a flight as soon as we hang up.”

“Then book your flight,” I joked, and ended the call.

Kristin and I were both making phone calls. My last one was to Ella, and I kept it short so I could eavesdrop on Kristin’s call. Ella didn’t really want to talk anyway. She was just thrilled that she’d get to see Darius so soon. I picked up on Kristin’s side of the conversation in the middle of her talk with her parents.

“Mother, I’m going out until school starts, then I’ll be back home,” Kristin said firmly. “Fine, put Daddy on the phone.” I heard her repeat the same statement to her father. The next 15 minutes seemed to involve her addressing his various fears and objections. Yes the car was new, and checked out just fine. Yes we’d have a map. Yes we’d stop if we got tired. And so on, and so on…

I’d kind of zoned out when I heard her talking to her mother again. “I’ll see, Mother. We’re busy packing, so I don’t know if that will work.” I had no idea what evil lay in store for me, only that it was evil. Kristin listened to her mother’s rambling for a while. “He will probably be worried that you’ll have him arrested for trespassing.” More rambling. “Mother, I have to go. I’ll ask him and call you back.” Five minutes after that statement, she was finally able to hang up. She sighed and shook her head.

“They want us to come over for dinner tonight,” she said, as soon as she hung up the phone.

“What are my other choices?” I asked, deadpan. “I’m thinking that if another option is getting a toenail or two torn out, I might go with that.”

She frowned at me. “Would it hurt us to try and be nice to them?” she asked, not being bitchy, but being sincere.

“What are their motives?” I asked. “They hate me and they’re inviting me into their house? I’m worried someone will pop out and machine gun me down.”

“Gathan, be serious,” she admonished. “Will you go with me and give them a chance?”

“I’ll go with you,” I said grudgingly. “I just want you to know how this is going to play out.”

“What do you mean?”

“I want you to know what they’re going to do,” I said. She just looked at me, so I went on. “They’re going to be so fucking nice to me tonight it’s going to make both of us want to puke. Then when I’m gone, and you’re back here, they’ll start out by making nice statements about me, followed by ‘buts’.”

“Buts?”

“He’s such a nice boy, if only he didn’t come from such a bad family,” I said, mimicking her mother and making her giggle. “It’s very hard for a man to be faithful for that long when he’s in college.” That made her frown. “See?” I demanded. “I said it, and it pissed you off.”

“Is it hard for a man to be faithful?”

“Very hard,” I leered, emphasizing the double entendre. She gave me a dirty look. “It is hard to be faithful, but not with someone like you.”

“Smooth talker,” she joked.

“Always.”

“I’ll call them back and tell them we’d be delighted to attend,” she said playfully. “You can practice your smooth talking on them.”

“Great,” I said, with a total lack of enthusiasm.

“You’ll have to trust me to be smart enough to ignore their bullshit.”

“Now that I told you what I thought would happen, I totally trust you to handle it,” I said philosophically. She patted my leg even as she dialed her mom, so I grabbed her hand and tried to move it up to my groin, making her laugh and giggle just as her mother answered the phone.

We got back to JP’s house, made love, took a shower, then got ready to face the Hendricksons. I said nothing the whole way over there, and I could feel my stomach churning so badly I was worried I puke all over myself. I parked the Tahoe in the front circle of the Hendricksons’ house, just as Kristin directed. “I’m so glad you’re not nervous,” she said.

“You’re fucking hilarious,” I said. I’d been on edge for the past hour, the anxiety crawling around in my brain like a parasite determined to devour my sanity.

“You’re safe. You’re with me,” she said reassuringly.

“I feel like a pussy,” I told her. I had to hide behind my girlfriend for protection? What kind of man does that?

“No, you’re smart. I’m the only one with superpowers who is able to defeat them,” she joked. I snaughed, and started to loosen up.

“Alright Wonder Woman,” I smiled. “Let’s go fight the forces of evil.” I got out of the Tahoe and went around to her side to open the door for her.

She got out and gave me a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll show what I can do with my superpowers later, in bed.” I felt my dick twitch and willed it to stay down as we walked up to the front door. I instinctively reached for the doorbell, but then stopped as Kristin breezed right in.

“Welcome home, princess,” Chris Hendrickson said. He must have watched us drive up; he was waiting for us.

“Daddy,” she said evenly, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

“Your mother wanted your opinion on the table,” he said. “Perhaps you can help her out?”

We both knew he was trying to get rid of her so he could brow-beat me alone. I knew there was no reasonable way out of this without looking like a total pussy, so I gave her a slight nod and she left me there with her dad. “Let’s have a drink,” he said.

“Just a Coke for me,” I said, feeling like we were replaying our first meeting.

He led me to his study where he made our drinks, then directed me to sit down. The only thing that made me even remotely less nervous was the fact that he was clearly uptight as well. “I wanted to talk to you alone.”

“So talk,” I said, unwilling to cut him any slack.

“I want to apologize to you for having you arrested.” I hadn’t really expected that from him. I figured they’d just have us over and pretend as if nothing ever happened.

“I’m kind of surprised to hear you say that, since a couple of days ago you were ready to run me out of town.”

He sighed. “It’s hard to explain this to you.”

“Explain what?”

“How I, how we feel about all of this. It’s hard to explain because we don’t really have a common frame of reference.”

I took that as a slam. “I’m not a stupid person. I can understand things. Try me.”

“No, I’m not saying you’re a stupid person,” he said. “But you aren’t a father, and you don’t have a daughter.”

“That’s true,” I said, getting where he was going with this, and how he was going to try to play it off.

“I have all of these ideas about the life I’m going to create for my daughter, about how we’re going to guide her through school, about the kind of person we’ll help her become, and about the kind of guy that we want her to end up with. Slowly but surely, all of those ideas have been blasted out of the water.”

“And that’s all me?”

“No, it’s not all you,” he sort of snapped. It was funny that I’d eroded some of his patient and calm demeanor. “This has been going on for about a year now.” That must be why Kristin had suddenly felt pressure from them this past year.

“Maybe you should just let her be the person that she is, and that she wants to be. I think she’s the most awesome person I know. I wish you could see that,” I said sincerely.

“And as I said, it’s difficult for you to understand me, since you’re not a father.”

That pissed me off enough to be candid with him. “That has nothing to do with it. Let’s face it. You don’t like me, and you don’t think I’m good enough for your daughter. You ignore how good we are together, and how happy we make each other.”

“You didn’t make each other happy in Paris, otherwise she wouldn’t have booked a flight on the Concorde,” he said smugly.

“Couples argue,” I said dismissively. “You and your wife always got along perfectly? You never had disagreements when you were dating?”

“That’s not the point,” he snapped. “I should have known this would be a waste of time. I should have known that I wouldn’t be able to make you see where I’m coming from.”

“You’re wrong,” I told him. “I see very clearly where you’re coming from. And I understand your frame of reference.”

“How is that possible?” he asked with a sneer.

“Because I have a sister who is very gifted and very beautiful. No one in this town messes with her, and do you know why?” He said nothing. “Because if they do, they know they have to mess with me.”

“So all of the teenage males are too afraid of you to date your sister,” he said sarcastically. “Why aren’t you afraid of me? You should be.”

I ignored his arrogance. “My sister started dating Darius. You see any bruises on him?”

“No.”

“That’s because he and I get along real well.”

“He’s a great match for her,” he said, pissing me off with his emphasis on ‘her’ as if Darius wouldn’t be good enough for someone else. “He comes from a good family, and he’s on a path to be successful.” I so wanted to say that he wouldn’t be a good match for Kristin, though, because he was half-Persian, but I left that off the table.

“That made no difference to me at all,” I said, amazed at how shallow he was. “What made Darius OK where most other guys failed to make the cut is that she loves him, and he loves her. When the two of them aren’t together, they’re miserable. Incomplete. When they’re together, they’re happy, and she’s safe. I’m not sure what more I could want for my sister than to be happy.”

“Sisters are different than daughters,” he said dismissively.

“Ya think?” I asked sarcastically. “I’ve watched out for her my whole life, as much as I could. When she brought guys over, meeting with my dad was nothing compared with them meeting me. Tell me what I’ve missed; what I was supposed to add to that equation so I can be as righteous as you are.”

“Maybe in your family, it is more similar,” he said, but did it in a way that really pissed me off. His tone was full of disdain, and full of the implication that white trash people like us lived blatantly uncivilized and very different lives.

“Maybe it is,” I said, pushing my anger into the background. “How many guys has Kristin been in love with?” He didn’t answer me. “How many guys have made her happy?” He didn’t answer that either. “Do you think she seems happy with me?”

I waited for an answer, making him admit it. “She seems happy with you. For now.”

“Why isn’t that good enough for you? Why can’t you let this play out, give us some time to see if we were meant to be together or not?”

“That’s not what fathers do,” he said.

“Yes, it is,” I snapped. “I’ll answer my own question. The reason you don’t want to leave her alone to figure this out is because you know that if she does, there’s a good chance we’ll find out that we’re right for each other. You’re worried that we’ll discover we’re the perfect team. And then she’ll be with me, and you want someone for her with better breeding,” I said with a sneer, “who has a house next door to you.”

“What’s wrong with wanting what’s best for my daughter?”

“What’s wrong is that with you, what’s best is measured in lineage and balance sheets. You don’t stop and think about what will really make her happy.” I put down the Coke and stood up. “I know that you are going to do everything in your power to break us up. So does Kristin. If you do, will she be better off? Ask yourself that.” I stared at him intently. “I’m going to go find Kristin.” I stormed out of his study and walked toward the smell of food.

I found Kristin chatting with her mother. “Are you alright?” Kristin asked.

“Peachy-keen,” I said sarcastically.

“We’ve got a few minutes before dinner,” Kristin said. “Let me show you the house.” She led me away from her mother and we walked around their sprawling Tudor mansion while I re-capped my conversation with her father for her.

“I don’t get why your smiling face isn’t enough to make them mellow out and put all of this bullshit aside,” I concluded.

She smiled, but basically ignored me. “So that’s why they’ve been all upset with me this past year. I walked outside of the box I was supposed to stay in.”

“Boy did you,” I joked.

“I’m not talking just about dating you,” she said. “Although that’s probably the biggest thing.”

“Oh? What else did you do?”

“I got involved in the last election,” she said. She had been at all the events we’d organized for our referendum earlier in the year.

“Your dad didn’t support that?”

“My parents supported it because of the economic benefits,” she said.

“Because of the land they could sell,” I added. “It’s worth more now than it would have been.”

“Probably,” she said.

“How did such a bright, talented, and principled girl like you come from such mercenary capitalists?” I teased.

“You’re asking me how I got out of the box I’m supposed to be in,” she observed dourly. “It’s just who I am.”

“And isn’t it funny that they don’t even know you?” I asked, even though it wasn’t funny at all.

My stomach growled, and she giggled. “Let’s go eat.”

“Goody,” I said sarcastically, getting a playful smack for my lack of enthusiasm. Dinner ended up being a pleasant enough affair, primarily because no one said anything of substance. As we drove home that night, I thought about how nothing had really changed, and how hard it was going to be to fight off their attempts to break us up this next year.

August 2, 2000

 

Malibu, CA

Will

 

I was lying on my back in my room, with tears flowing out of my eyes like they were faucets. I’d just talked to Berto for about an hour on the phone, and it had made me really sad. More than anything, I wanted to be back in Rome with him. I probably would have just lain there for a long time, making myself even more miserable, but I was interrupted by a knock on my door. It opened after I shouted “Come in!”

My mother came in and caught me hastily wiping away the tears. “Are you alright?” she asked, concerned.

“I was talking to Berto,” I said. “I miss him.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, and sat next to me. She tried to lean down to give me a hug, but her stomach was too big, which made us both giggle. I sat up next to her so the hug would work.

“How long ’till you have this baby?” I joked. “That must get really old, carrying around all that extra weight.”

“You have no idea,” she groused. “So how is Berto?”

“He’s doing alright,” I said. “We talk on the phone, and it’s like an emotional roller coaster. And a linguistic one. One minute we’re talking in Italian, the next minute we’re speaking English. One minute we’re laughing, the next minute we’re crying.”

“So now would probably not be the best time to come down on you for stripping in a bar in Rome,” she observed.

“Go ahead,” I told her fatalistically. “I fucked up. I deserve it. Might as well get it over with.”

“I’m going to assume that your dad handled that with you, and we’ll leave it at that.”

I stared at her, stunned at her transformation. “Thanks.” She patted my knee. “You’re a lot easier to deal with when Tiffany is around,” I added.

“I could almost say the same thing about you,” she joked, “if you had just one guy you were with.”

I laughed. “I am Stefan Schluter’s grandson.”

“Now that does worry me,” she said. “You’re going up to Palo Alto tomorrow?”

I nodded. “I promised Grand I’d hang out with him while he recovers from his surgery.” I was making my contribution to his recovery sound a lot bigger than it probably was, but it made me feel better, anyway.

“I think that’s nice. Try to enjoy yourself too, if you can. You have a big year ahead of you in school.”

“I know,” I agreed. H-W was a tough school. She gave me another hug, and then left me alone.

Copyright © 2011 Mark Arbour; All Rights Reserved.
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

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Meh, I just don't find Kristin and Gathan as interesting as other characters. It also kind of ticks me off that Gathan couldn't have been more mature with Kristin's father. He thinks he mature and ready for a serious relationship, but he isn't smooth enough to handle the dad?

 

I also wonder if either really does know what love is at 17 & 18. If Gathan is going away to college, he ought to be able to enjoy himself and Kristin needs to be able to enjoy her senior year, go to Homecoming, Senior Prom and all the other senior activities you can't do with a boyfriend who is 2,000 miles away. I mean even Andy and Angie were split up during college.

 

This cross country trip is going to be interesting. I have to go to the history books and figure out what happened along I-80 or I-70 in August 2000 that the four stumble into or how the Kursk tragedy can be worked in :P

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Gathan has never been my favourite character and in this chap I have to agree with PrivateTim, he's not nearly mature enough to follow the path he has set himself. Scarily it's all a bit autobiographical for me - in my case the olds were ultimately right; it just took 10 years and 90% of what I owned for me to see the light, as it were.

In fact the entire Hendrickson/Kristin/Gathan soap just somehow doesn't work for me. either there is something much bigger behind it all or just about everyone is behaving more like drama queens than sentient humans. Perhaps things are different for the moneyed classes in mittel america????

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From one of my hero's, Samuel B. Clemmons, “When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished by how much he'd learned in seven years.”

 

Having been a bratty high schooler who pretty much had it all figured out by 18, it was astonishing to pass 30 and realize I was getting dumber every year.

 

PS. Someone really dislikes you Mark. This story was rated 5 stars this morning, I gave it 5, I am sure Tim gave it 5 and now it is 4? Someone must have banged a 1 on you...

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Gathan is not the most mature fellow, but in his defense, he does not suffer fools gladly and has already written off both Kristin's parents. That may be short-sighted as she might have differing ideas, but I just don't see them ever settling down in Ohio. Gathan is too outspoken to be a politician. I see him becoming Brad & Stef's protege in business down the road. But first I am anxiously awaiting how he interacts with the hockey crowd.

 

Will was love sick over his cousin, kidnapped in Paris, and found lust/love in Rome and is now lovesick for 'Berto while back in California. I'm wondering how school will play out for him as well?

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You're forgotting that Gathan's going to be hockey teamates with a guy who lives and breathes politics. I think Wade will be a good mentor for Gathan as he learns about political science.

 

 

 

 

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I have the feeling that this chapter is more transitional than any thing. Mark is setting us up for JP operation, Kristin's father is not going to sit on the sidelines, And what will happen to Will's love life?

 

Some people have thought Gathan was rude. I wonder if they had been dragged out of bed and hauled off to jail with false and trumped up changes they would be as forgiving. I would not. Saying you are sorry for something you did was wrong is one thing but really being sorry is another. Gathan does not believe him and either to I.

 

As this story develops I believe we can see into those characters I think we sometime judge them by our standards and not by theirs. Will is only 13 going on 14. Gathan just turn 18 and just met his first love. They both have some growing up. As for Gathan going into politics, he has street smarts and has got to be a lot better than 99% of these people in Washington today. Of course I'm from Minnesota, home of Michele, Tim and Jesse.

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On 08/11/2011 01:48 AM, PrivateTim said:
Meh, I just don't find Kristin and Gathan as interesting as other characters. It also kind of ticks me off that Gathan couldn't have been more mature with Kristin's father. He thinks he mature and ready for a serious relationship, but he isn't smooth enough to handle the dad?

 

I also wonder if either really does know what love is at 17 & 18. If Gathan is going away to college, he ought to be able to enjoy himself and Kristin needs to be able to enjoy her senior year, go to Homecoming, Senior Prom and all the other senior activities you can't do with a boyfriend who is 2,000 miles away. I mean even Andy and Angie were split up during college.

 

This cross country trip is going to be interesting. I have to go to the history books and figure out what happened along I-80 or I-70 in August 2000 that the four stumble into or how the Kursk tragedy can be worked in :P

Sometimes it's about the journey, not the destination. :-)
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On 08/11/2011 09:07 AM, Canuk said:
Gathan has never been my favourite character and in this chap I have to agree with PrivateTim, he's not nearly mature enough to follow the path he has set himself. Scarily it's all a bit autobiographical for me - in my case the olds were ultimately right; it just took 10 years and 90% of what I owned for me to see the light, as it were.

In fact the entire Hendrickson/Kristin/Gathan soap just somehow doesn't work for me. either there is something much bigger behind it all or just about everyone is behaving more like drama queens than sentient humans. Perhaps things are different for the moneyed classes in mittel america????

I don't know...I think the 17/18 year age level is prone to constant drama.
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On 08/11/2011 02:17 PM, Matthew k said:
From one of my hero's, Samuel B. Clemmons, “When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished by how much he'd learned in seven years.”

 

Having been a bratty high schooler who pretty much had it all figured out by 18, it was astonishing to pass 30 and realize I was getting dumber every year.

 

PS. Someone really dislikes you Mark. This story was rated 5 stars this morning, I gave it 5, I am sure Tim gave it 5 and now it is 4? Someone must have banged a 1 on you...

Thanks for the stars. I must have a stalker who disses me with star ratings. I appreciate you helping out.
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On 08/11/2011 03:06 PM, Daddydavek said:
Gathan is not the most mature fellow, but in his defense, he does not suffer fools gladly and has already written off both Kristin's parents. That may be short-sighted as she might have differing ideas, but I just don't see them ever settling down in Ohio. Gathan is too outspoken to be a politician. I see him becoming Brad & Stef's protege in business down the road. But first I am anxiously awaiting how he interacts with the hockey crowd.

 

Will was love sick over his cousin, kidnapped in Paris, and found lust/love in Rome and is now lovesick for 'Berto while back in California. I'm wondering how school will play out for him as well?

You're assuming nothing happens to Will before school starts? Guess again. :-)
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On 08/12/2011 01:14 AM, methodwriter85 said:
You're forgotting that Gathan's going to be hockey teamates with a guy who lives and breathes politics. I think Wade will be a good mentor for Gathan as he learns about political science.

 

 

 

I think Wade would be a good mentor for anyone.
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On 08/12/2011 01:44 PM, rjo said:
I have the feeling that this chapter is more transitional than any thing. Mark is setting us up for JP operation, Kristin's father is not going to sit on the sidelines, And what will happen to Will's love life?

 

Some people have thought Gathan was rude. I wonder if they had been dragged out of bed and hauled off to jail with false and trumped up changes they would be as forgiving. I would not. Saying you are sorry for something you did was wrong is one thing but really being sorry is another. Gathan does not believe him and either to I.

 

As this story develops I believe we can see into those characters I think we sometime judge them by our standards and not by theirs. Will is only 13 going on 14. Gathan just turn 18 and just met his first love. They both have some growing up. As for Gathan going into politics, he has street smarts and has got to be a lot better than 99% of these people in Washington today. Of course I'm from Minnesota, home of Michele, Tim and Jesse.

I agree with you...these guys are still maturing, but they're certainly not mature.
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Jeanine's conversation with Will was spot on. I will they would relate to each other that way more often.

 

I was a little dissapointed in how Gathan handled Kristen's father. I don't think he played it very smart at that point.

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Gathan just told Kirsten's father that he had no idea who his daughter was, mainly because he has perceived ideals as to whom she went with. As Gathan put it her father thinks in lineage and balance sheets. I really think that if they want a life together they need to get away from her parents.

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On 8/10/2011 at 9:17 PM, Matthew k said:

From one of my hero's, Samuel B. Clemmons, “When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished by how much he'd learned in seven years. ”Having been a bratty high schooler who pretty much had it all figured out by 18, it was astonishing to pass 30 and realize I was getting dumber every year. PS. Someone really dislikes you Mark. This story was rated 5 stars this morning, I gave it 5, I am sure Tim gave it 5 and now it is 4? Someone must have banged a 1 on you...

I had to quote Matt to fix his tiny font and to say, I think at 44 he knows even less today then when he was 30. It is a amazing to get older and realize how much you don't know.

On 8/10/2011 at 10:06 PM, Daddydavek said:

Gathan is not the most mature fellow, but in his defense, he does not suffer fools gladly and has already written off both Kristin's parents. That may be short-sighted as she might have differing ideas, but I just don't see them ever settling down in Ohio. Gathan is too outspoken to be a politician. I see him becoming Brad & Stef's protege in business down the road. But first I am anxiously awaiting how he interacts with the hockey crowd.

One thing I've learned about politics is you are better off being a Big Fish in a Small Pond. In a small town in a smaller state you can win statewide office or a mayorship easier. Pete Buttigieg is graduating high school, just like Gathan and Darius, and in 12 years he'll be mayor in South Bend. That would never happen in CA.

On 8/10/2011 at 10:06 PM, Daddydavek said:

Will was love sick over his cousin, kidnapped in Paris, and found lust/love in Rome and is now lovesick for 'Berto while back in California. I'm wondering how school will play out for him as well?

We now know how Will is three years from now. He stops falling for every guy he has sex with. Gawd I hope Travis sticks around.

On 8/11/2011 at 8:14 AM, methodwriter85 said:

You're forgotting that Gathan's going to be hockey teamates with a guy who lives and breathes politics. I think Wade will be a good mentor for Gathan as he learns about political science.

Is Gathan a narrator in any other story? By Gap Year Gathan should be a senior at Stanfurd.

On 8/11/2011 at 8:44 PM, rjo said:

Some people have thought Gathan was rude. I wonder if they had been dragged out of bed and hauled off to jail with false and trumped up changes they would be as forgiving. I would not. Saying you are sorry for something you did was wrong is one thing but really being sorry is another. Gathan does not believe him and either to I.

I would not call the charges "trumped up". He was naked in bed with a 17 year old. I don't know what the AOC was in Ohio in 2000, it is 16 currently. But again, a small town, a police chief, used to getting away with stuff, might have sent his officers to mess with Gathan and Kristin and could have found alternatives to stat rape. It is not like it was purely made up like oh...... Russian collusion....

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15 minutes ago, PrivateTim said:

Is Gathan narrator in any other story? By Gap Year Gathan should be a senior at Stanfurd.

No. Gathan was given a happily ever after with a long-term relationship and was essentially written off, although we do still see him once in awhile through the eyes of other characters. His storyline is done, though. That probably makes JJ happy as he didn't like him. Lol 

Edited by methodwriter85
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55 minutes ago, methodwriter85 said:

No. Gathan was given a happily ever after with a long-term relationship and was essentially written off, although we do still see him once in awhile through the eyes of other characters. His storyline is done, though. That probably makes JJ happy as he didn't like him. Lol 

I don’t remember that.  

Edited by Mark Arbour
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1 hour ago, methodwriter85 said:

No. Gathan was given a happily ever after with a long-term relationship and was essentially written off, although we do still see him once in awhile 

Well as I said, Gap Year is only 4 years later (in 12 years of real time) and Gathan would just now be getting ready to graduate from Stanford, assuming he stayed. 

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2 hours ago, Mark Arbour said:

I don’t remember that.  

I remember JJ bitching in Bloodlines about how he didn't like Gathan and it was the official end to your characterization of JJ as a sweet, cheerful kid. Lol 

Edited by methodwriter85
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2 hours ago, PrivateTim said:

Well as I said, Gap Year is only 4 years later (in 12 years of real time) and Gathan would just now be getting ready to graduate from Stanford, assuming he stayed. 

I'm pretty sure he did, but he doesn't seem like he associates much with the Cramptons/Schluters in 2004. Low-key dude and I can't blame him for avoiding the drama. Gathan seems like the type to happily settle in a Colonial in Shaker Heights, Ohio with his partner and starting a nuclear family.

Edited by methodwriter85
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2 minutes ago, methodwriter85 said:

I'm pretty sure he did, but he doesn't seem like he associates much with the Cramptons/Schluters in 2004. Low-key dude and I can't blame him for avoiding the drama. Gathan seems like the type to happily settle in a Colonial in Shaker Heights, Ohio with his partner and starting a nuclear family.

I don't think he could be in Palo Alto and not be part of the Crampton - Schluter scene. His character may not appear, but given JP's being a stickler on manners good manners alone would dictate a level of engagement. We shall see what the Master decides....

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22 hours ago, PrivateTim said:

I don't think he could be in Palo Alto and not be part of the Crampton - Schluter scene. His character may not appear, but given JP's being a stickler on manners good manners alone would dictate a level of engagement. We shall see what the Master decides....

I mean, I'm sure he's part of it, but he's a pretty low-key guy and  I can see him being on the periphery. 

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