I’ve been working nano hard, pretty much should cross over to 40K tonight and I’m splitting it between two projects one of them being These Haunted Hills which I should finish if not tonight by Monday. I’m also getting highly anxious that we’ll get locked down by this time next week and I’ll have to race to get my finals online. I suspect (and will act accordingly) that we won’t be face to face in the spring semester which both sucks and might be a bit of a relief. However, internet here is so unreliable we’ll lose a ton of students with no access. (if there is anything we need it’s good internet. We’re so disadvantaged here)

And since this is what I’m working on have a little more of These Haunted Hills. Brendan has broken down telling Josh the truth about his pendant and is thinking about his lost son.

Brendan came back, his face washed, and sat down with Josh. “Can you stay with me a while?”

“I can stay as long as you need me to.” Josh had hoped to spend the night in a much more pleasant way but Brendan needed him tonight. Josh felt as shaky inside as Brendan was on the outside. He’d never seen a man so vulnerable and he wasn’t sure he was up to the task of helping him. He wanted to be but he’d not lost anyone close to him. His grandfather died when he was young but he barely remembered any of it. Other than that, he’d been lucky.

If you’d like to play along, Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook community where we post up 6 sentences of one of our LGBT stories every Saturday. It’s been fun and you can find it here. Be sure to check out all the offers! It’s been a great supportive group!

Have to say the week ended better than I hoped on Tuesday but I’m still mentally exhausted so I’m just dropping more of <i>These Haunted Hills</i> and running. It’s picking up with them finding Brendan’s lost pendant.

Josh stood, holding out his hand. “Let’s get off the ground.”

Brendan accepted the hand up. On wobbly legs, he made his way back inside and collapsed on the couch. Josh sat next to him, taking his hand.

“Way to spectacularly ruin the mood.”

Josh raised their joined hands, kissing the back of Brendan’s. “Don’t worry about it. You still have wounds that haven’t healed. I get that.”

“Do you? It was part of what separated Kristen and me.” Brendan sighed, his eyes still watering. “Do you know what you’re letting yourself in for?” “Honestly, no but I’m willing to risk it.”

Running insanely late but it’s been a helluva two weeks. I’m just going to drop this and run.

Here’s more of <i>These Haunted Hills</I> picking up from when Josh learns that Brendan’s lost (and found) necklace is a pendant made with his son’s ashes in the glass.

<b>

A few tears of his own snuck past Joshua’s defenses. “I understand. I’m glad it was just in the truck.”

“I’m so sorry.” Brendan hiccupped, wiping his face. “What you must think?”

“I think you’re a father suffering the worst thing that could happen to a parent.” He rubbed Brendan’s back. “I wish I could make things easier for you but that’s more magic than even your books possess.”

“You don’t find it…creepy? I always wondered if it was but I thought it was a beautiful way to memorialize Connor.”</b>

And Happy Halloween everyone.

Running late on everything between online teaching fires, deadlines, midterms, hiking and breaking a tooth. SIgh. I will catch up.

Moving on with These Haunted Hills Just as they were getting close, Brendan freaked out over his necklace.

Josh put a hand on Brendan’s shoulder only to get it batted away. “Look around here on the floor. I’ll go check the truck.”

Josh raced out to his vehicle, flinging open the door. He checked the floorboard. He found the glass pendant on the floor under the seat. He turned to run back to the cabin only to see Brendan on his hands and knees looking under the stairs to the porch. “I have it!” he called.

If you’d like to play along, Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook community where we post up 6 sentences of one of our LGBT stories every Saturday. It’s been fun and you can find it here. Be sure to check out all the offers! It’s been a great supportive group!