My (31f) partner (36f) and I have lived together since 2020 (I know- that’s not how these kinds of stories usually start) but dated since 2015. Ever since she moved in, my gf- let’s call her Alex, has been very vocal about everything I do. It doesn’t matter what- the weather, my job, our cat, family- if something upsets her, she can hold a grudge until her final breath, and can be brutally honest, even if it hurts someone else. In fact, she still is angry at my mother for one time threatening to call the police on Alex because she called her a control freak (in her defense, my mom was a lousy parent who never had kids who stood up for themselves, so she probably saw it as a threat) and it happened almost a year ago. Alex is on the Autism scale. Her sensory issue is touch, and she isn’t very good with physical affections. She has had past altercations that involved punches and pushes- namely by her father- and that only added to the trauma. Her sister (32f) -let’s call her Amy- is really the only family my gf stays in touch with as their father isn’t in the picture and their mother passed away in 2022 from Covid and Pneumonia. Another issue with Alex is her ability to have empathy- her ability to read emotions is her greatest weakness. She gets angry over good news and bad news, and immediately worries for negative reasons. For example, my cousin got engaged and I told Alex I wanted to save for a trip home to the wedding, but Alex was worried about the money and food budget. Things are tight and we’re both working, and we’re already saving for Alex’s estrogen (Alex is trans female, so mtof). So she didn’t share my joy for this wedding when she was being realistic. I love that she keeps my feet on the ground when my head is in the clouds. Today, I had a car accident. It wasn’t my fault, everyone was okay, but my car’s backside is in need of repairs. Thanks to insurance, I won’t pay, and if I do, it won’t be too much. I told Alex and she immediately demanded to go live with Amy for the summer, since Alex can’t handle the heat and she was convinced at the time I’d need a new car- which wasn’t true. I got worried and called Amy, but Amy confirmed that Alex didn’t call her, and we agreed she’s just having a reaction. I asked Amy if Alex was always like this, and Amy said “no.” Amy told me that Alex wasn’t good at understanding feelings or social cues, as this was their sign of her autism. If Alex was mad, she’d make threats, but never followed through- all bark and no bite, I guess. Amy always knew Alex only had four basic emotions- Happy, Sad, Angry and Afraid. But apparently everything changed when I began dating Alex. Amy said video games were all Alex could enjoy and feel like a normal person, and they grew up playing together. My favorite thing is movies, and when Alex found out, she began researching my favorite movies and celebrities. Her mom asked her about this new fixation, and Alex said “it’s my girlfriend’s favorite thing to do.” And it was a surprise to them. And one time, Alex got sick and called for me instead of her mother (this was about year three in our relationship and I was living far away). The biggest giveaway was when we went out for thanksgiving in 2020- Myself, Alex, Amy, her husband and Alex’s mom. Alex and I did usual couples stuff and banter, like hold hands, hug, and even light teasing, and Amy told me in our call today that she never saw Alex being a loving or affectionate person who can act like that- not even to their mother. The things Alex and I do are small things like having dinner dates at IHOP or going for a short window shopping day- Amy said she never did those things with the family- only me. Amy told me that until I came into Alex’s life, Alex was not an emotionally atuned person. They approved of me becoming a key person in Alex’s life, noting that our relationship not only changed her life, but probably saved it, too. Alex is becoming someone she can be proud and comfortable in. And she’s doing it for me and herself. And Amy was surprised to hear that I had no idea about this. When I got home, I hugged Alex. I realized in that call that no matter what happens, Alex was a million percent my person. I had no clue I was such an important person in Alex’s life. TBH, I don’t if we’re ever going to get married, but I do know that Alex has plans for our future, and i’m going to keep fighting for us, because Alex deserves everything and more.
TL;DR: My autistic partner overreacted to my car accident, but her sister said by being in her life, I made her happier and more empathetic and now I feel like I was sent for her to love and be loved.

My friends mom let me stay in her beach house while I was homeless with my two cats.
I was VERY careful to be respectful of her things. I bought couch covers to keep them from scratching the furniture. I bought rugs to keep hers safe. I made sure to sweep daily, clean weekly and deep clean. I brought in her mail, kept her nicknacks in a drawer so they wouldn’t get swatted by the cats.
On the day I left I:
Cleaned all rooms in the house - even ones I hadn’t used
Cleaned the bedsheets
Cleaned out the refrigerator
Swept, mopped, wiped down all surfaces
Bought extra toiletries (tp, disinfecting wipes, bleach, trash bags, dish soap, etc)
Now, there were a few things I did not do:
I was unable to get the smell out from the comforter I had used. I washed it three times. I let it dry. It stayed. I figured I needed to let it dry out and then try again - but with the move I forgot to go back.
I was unable to keep the cats completely off her couch so there was cat hair.
However - I was told that she was having a crew go in to clean so… I figured they would do that.
I even paid for the crew - and gave a 100$ tip.
And she’s mad at me. She said the house smelled and that I didn’t clean the house.
I don’t know what to do.

so i (15, mtf) have been really worried abt how my transition will end up going. i'm closeted to everyone except a group of supportive friends (to whom i owe the world) and i'm thinking of coming out to my parents within the next month or two.
i really have two concerns when it comes to my transition, one of which obviously being family reaction. idk my mom said that she'd love a trans child but wouldn't let them get hormones (i'd love a child with cancer, but i'd never get them chemo) but my dad has made fun of the "tr---ies" before so... (he does very much believe in "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" though, so there is hope in that regard)
but my main concern is probably passing (which i'll probably never be able to do bc my face is already not only masc, but ugly masc). i don't want to have ffs, it's just something i have to do to fix my condition, but i'm worried it might leave my face disfigured in some way, even though if i get a competent surgeon i'll probably be fine (my wallet won't be though!). boymoding sounds like dysphoria hell and i'll probably have to do that from whenever i get hrt to at least 3-5 years after that when i can afford ffs. presenting as a boy, even a feminine one, might genuinely make me want to off myself. being a visible trans woman sounds like hell, i don't want to be a crude approximation of my own being i just want to be myself, and also being killed with rocks for taking a piss doesn't seem very nice. it doesn't sound like too much to ask for but i must've pissed off some god in a past life or smth because i've been cursed with this.
i have a strong brow ridge with very masc forehead projection, a square jaw, and a big nose and those are genuinely killing me inside. i know ffs could definitely fix a lot of those issues but at least 60k for that in a place where insurance or universal healthcare doesn't cover it (i live in alberta, canada) is so much money that i'll never have to a point where it feels hopeless. alberta just banned hrt and puberty blockers for those under the age of 16 (and the conservatives, who will probably be in power next year, want to ban transition to anyone below the age of 18), and the only pediatric gender clinic in the province is open for six hours a month with a three year waiting list. i don't want to wait at the very least another year watching everything in my body degenerate into a disgusting male form but i can't do anything else so i guess i'll just rot in self-loathing until then.
i just wished i hadn't spent my whole life until abt six months ago repressing this. i knew that i was supposed to be a girl since i was 10 at the latest. my earliest memory is me wanting to just wake up as a girl. if i just accepted it back in 2019, before my dad got radicalized, before everyone cared so much about trans people, i'd be on hrt by now or at least blockers. why did my entire life hinge on the stupid decision of a terrified 10 year old? who deserves that?
i just wish i could be cis, afab or amab i don't care, it doesn't matter. everything would be so much easier. no surgery, no hate, no dysphoria, why can't i just be in the right body. seeing ppl online being proud of their transness is so confusing to me, why would you be happy about being this way, it's a birth defect. seeing passing trans ppl makes me feel worse somehow. it shouldn't, if anything it means that it's probably possible for me too, but i just feel like they were born wrong right.
tl;dr: teenage trans girl in a hopeless situation wallowing in dysphoria, even though she's incredibly privileged in just having the possibility to pause her male puberty before it completely and utterly irreparably ruins her.
sorry i just need to get this out of my system, even if it just bounces off some wall of noise
i think im gonna cry myself to sleep to Romantic Vivisection now

So I’m supposed to go drink around the world with my cousin and mom at Epcot tomorrow, I decided to invite a good friend of mine (that I sorta like) bc she had wanted to do exactly that at Epcot.
The plans are all fine and dandy until tonight, the night before, she sends a text saying “I invited a friend is that ok”?
Bro what, she even had the nerve to say “well these are your plans” after I said it was a bit last minute. Jesus why does all the stupid shit happen to me whenever I admit to myself I actually like someone. I’d be ok if it were like just the two (or I guess three) of us going, but like no this is a family thing that I just so happened to invite her to.
She then went on to say like “well he’s new around here so I wanted to include him”. Like. Nice sentiment really, but like good lord why couldn’t you invite him to LITERALLY anything else.
This is hurting extra due to the fact that for whatever reason whenever I like someone I tend to “pedestal” them to the point where if they make any weird moves I immediately crumble.
Tomorrow is gonna suck and I already felt like it was going to. Leave it to circumstance to once again come in and steal all my joy.

Okay so I commented on another post basically citing some of my issues with Jumin’s route. Now I feel like just getting into the whole thing cause I’m a little high so whatever. If you haven’t played another story and aren’t looking for spoilers don’t read this.
Now to get started I love Jumin. I would most definitely say him as a character would be like in my top three for the characters in MM. (Seven is my fav and Saeren is second okay if you were curious). Now to what I’d like to discuss cause this isn’t about me hating Jumin. I feel like multiple times they fumbled him and his route could have felt way less creepy.
Jumin in other routes is calm, rational, and productive. He gets things done the most effectively and while his advice isn’t always the best cause of his lack of empathy. He’s just a silly cat mom at heart. I like Jumin way more in the first four days of deep story than in the actual route. I understand that there is a lot going on for him at the time so he isn’t acting like himself.
Elizabeth the 3rd going missing is the main problem. Now what I don’t understand is why he’s so stressed about his relationship with his father. Which is the second reason he’s acting so weird and the reason why I think it’s weird is because Jumin’s dad sucks. He prioritizes women over Jumin all the time and Jumin is a highly independent person. So I don’t even believe his dad could have contributed to his stress.
Like yeah Glam Choi and Sara are a nuisance but that’s all they were a nuisance. They were only that big of a problem cause Jumin was so focused on MC and neglecting everything else around him. Also treating MC like a cat who is like his child was so fucking weird. I would have rather we just used the bomb as an excuse to be at his place. Also woefully disappointed in the V content.
Sure I don’t have the favorable opinion about V but since it was “deep story” I expected a lot more involvement in V’s life. Also more information on Rika and V’s relationship since Jumin is their closest friend. Like I thought MC would play a crucial role in helping Jumin reach out to V since V needed a more emotional approach. The whole reason V didn’t confide in Jumin is cause he knew Jumin wouldn’t understand the emotional aspect.
But instead of that happening I got Fifty Shades of Grey: Jumin Style. With you being treated like his f*cking cat. Like if it was gonna be like that Jumin should have been in the Casual story mode cause we got no deeper story.

Before you say "drugs", they are usually people in nice cars and look like soccer moms / dads, usually. It's older folks usually driving a minivan, BMW, or Lexus haha! What gives? Those of you who run red lights, why? And why now? Are you from here or did they run Red lights where you're from and you brought that dirty habit here?

So my parents finally had a divorce in 2020. I say "finally" because I saw it coming and honestly wanted them to. They have been fighting for years and other problems made me just want them to get a divorce because the tension was horrible.
They got a divorce because my dad fucked up, but my mom was the one to move out. For years now my mom has told me that if they ever got a divorce she would take me and my brother and we would live happily alone. But because she already found a new partner while the divorce was still in motion, me and my brother did not want to go live with her because she promised it would only be the three of us. It's childish, I know, but me and my brother have been through a lot.
So me and my brother live with my dad now and it's fucking awful. Even though my dad messed everything up he pretends to be the victim. He acts like we have to pity him. He has always had an alcohol problem but ever since the divorce it got worse. He would always say "your mother did this to me". My dad stopped receiving a bonus at work because he's been slacking off and we spiraled down a financial disaster. He actually quit his job a month ago, making me even more worried about our financial situation.
My mom has always done the cooking and cleaning around the house so when she left I had to take over. I taught myself how to do the laundry and I had experience doing the dishes but never liked doing it because it's gross. My cooking was sometimes good but ive never made something disgusting. I always made sure my brother had clean clothes to wear to school and I would even spend the little money I had to buy something if we really needed it. Where I always spent my money for pleasure I now have to use it like an adult.
So, about my dad... Yeah he's acting like the victim but he also acts in charge, and I mean he felt like he was the boss of EVERYTHING. We had to ask permission for things that didn't need permission. We weren't allowed to do the dishes. He would tell us to leave the dishes because he said he would do it. And because we were scared of him, we listened. The dishes would just pile up for days and when I decide I'd had enough I would do the dishes, only to get yelled at afterwards. Other chores and activities would have the same outcome.
We weren't allowed to be sad. If we had a bad day at school and just wanted to stay in our room and be upset, he would for some reason always accuse my mom for being the reason for all sadness. If we had a disagreement about something he would always say "Why don't you go live with your mother!" "Why am I the bad guy?" It's exhausting.
My dad obviously has a smoking and drinking problem. My mom was strict about the smell of smoke in the house but after she left, my dad didn't care and would smoke indoors and his room was full of askes. A teacher even asked me one day if I was smoking because I came to school smelling like smoke. My dad could easily drink 1.5 litres of alcohol everyday. He would start drinking early in the morning untill he went to sleep so he's never sober. It made me and my brother not want to hang out with him, which made my dad mad.
My dad was emotionally abusive. He never physically hurt us, but his words has a huge impact on us. My dad is the cause of our trust issues, our paranoia, and our insecurities.
We are not allowed to make jokes. We are not allowed to have friends over. We are not allowed to go out with friends. We are not allowed to take part in school activities. We are not allowed to be children. We are not allowed to talk seriously with him. We are not allowed to have problems.
I hate my dad, and I'm sure he hates us as well.
I just finished highschool, so you might think I can finally start my own life, but no, I'm not allowed to leave. I'm not allowed to go to uni. I'm not allowed to get a driver's license.
I'm stuck here

Cover Art!
Just because you’re transported to another world, doesn’t mean you’ll escape from your pain.
Abused by her parents, thirteen-year-old Frances only wants to be safe and for her life not to hurt so much. And when she and her class are transported to the magical world of Durannon to fight the monsters invading the human kingdoms and defeat the self-titled Demon King, Frances is presented with a golden opportunity. If she succeeds, Frances will have the home she never had. If she fails, Frances will be summoned back to the home she escaped.
Yet, despite her newfound magic and friends, Frances finds that trauma is not so easily lost. She is dogged by her abuse and its physical and invisible scars. Not only does she have to learn magic, she has to survive the nightmares of her past, and wrestle with her feelings of doubt and self-loathing.
If she can heal from her trauma, though, she might be able to defeat the Demon King and maybe, just maybe, she can find a home for herself.
[The Beginning] [<=Chapter 216] [Chapter Index and Blurb] [Chapter 218 May 28 or see the next chapter now on Patreon]
The Fractured Song Index
Discord Channel Just let me know when you arrive in the server that you’re a Patreon so you can access your special channel.
Frances and company catch up before the final battle.
***
“Hold on. How would he win this battle if we outnumber him and surround him?” Ginger asked.
“He could target our leadership. Focus on killing Titania, Antigones, you and Martin,” said Ayax.
“Only, he’d have to kill Sebastian and Megara, as well as Edana and you too, Frances, along with a whole list of targets. I’m not sure how he could pull that off,” said Elizabeth.
Ayax grimaced, brow furrowed, but Frances knew the answer to that question.
“Thorgoth doesn’t need to find half the targets he’s after. Myself, mom, Titania, our strongest mages and the rest of the people that will be on his list have leadership positions. Like it or not we’ll be involved in the battle and he just needs to find us on the battlefield. A well-placed spell and he’d snuff any non-magic person out,” Frances said.
“So what do we do then?” Martin asked.
Frances’ heart was pounding, for she knew the answer, but was afraid to give it life. Yet what could she do but tell what she knew was the truth?
“Take the battle to him. Thorgoth will have to operate by himself with maybe just his Royal Guards. We need to hold him and his escort and defeat him before he hurts everybody else.”
“So, all the Otherworlders, our best mages?” Ayax asked.
“Not all of them. But my mother and I, Jessica and Leila, Dwynalina and Jim and Nicole, with a few Otherworlders holding off his guards,” said Frances.
Elizabeth pursed her lips. “Ayax and I can go after Queen Berengaria. I can’t imagine her going far from her husband.”
“This is assuming we can at least split the attention of the dragons and keep them occupied of course,” said Martin. He touched Ginger’s elbow. “Not that I don’t trust you dear.”
“Oh I know, but it is a consideration.” She swirled the wine in her cup. “That means Martin and I will be directing the battle with Sebastian and Alexander.”
“It’s likely you’ll be the overall commander with Martin. Alexander and Sebastian would then take charge of their own contingents,” said Elizabeth. She bit her lip. “Do you feel up for it?”
Ginger shrugged. “I mean, we have to—”
Elizabeth reached out to pat her friend’s shoulder. “Martin, Ginger, you know we have every faith in both of you, but if you need help, there is no shame in asking for it.”
“Besides I think we’re all scared. I know I am,” Ayax said with a smile. Even so, they could all see how her tail looked like it was trying to twist itself into knots. Frances figured her cousin wasn’t trying to hide her fear, just trying not to alarm or panic them.
Martin sighed. “I think that’s the problem, Liz. Duty compels us. Love binds us. So I know no matter what happens, I know we’ll stand together to face him. Still, we are afraid and while I know I won’t run, I worry that fear may cloud my judgment at a crucial moment.”
Ginger wiped her eyes, but her tears now flowed freely down her cheeks. “How do I know I won’t panic, and make a bad call? How do we know we are all coming back? We can’t. I…I guess we have to accept that, but I don’t want to lose you. Any of you.”
Drawing her friend into a tight hug, Elizabeth gently patted Ginger’s back. “I don’t either. I suppose that for me, I’ve always looked to my faith in God, and in you all. Have we not triumphed in all we’ve faced?””
Frances found herself nodding, her throat unclenching and the tight nervousness in her shoulders and neck fading. What remained was a faint feeling of lightness that lifted her chin.
“You’re right. We should believe in ourselves, and hope. Hope for a future when we win this war. Hope that our good will triumph over Thorgoth’s evil. Hope that in a few days, we’ll be home with our family, and our friends.”
Martin gave Frances a wondering look. “How are you able to hope that?”
Frances smiled. “I think that I have always been good at having hope. I didn’t realize it until now, but even in my darkest moments, I always hoped that I would find a place where I could be me.”
Ayax stood up, raising her glass. “To faith, friendship and hope. May it see us all through our final trial.”
Rising to their feet, the five touched glasses and drank deep. They all were smiling. The pain and fear in their hearts soothed by the hope they held and the determination to see each other once again.
***
“Frances, can I walk with you?”
Frances would never have said no to her best friend, and she could tell that past Elizabeth’s bright smile, her friend was worried. There were just too many small signs learnt from years of friendship. She was scratching behind her ear, and her eyes were narrowed just slightly from the tension in her face.
“Of course,” said Frances, falling in beside the tall Otherworlder. “How are you and Ayax?”
Elizabeth giggled. “We’re great! Fantastic even. She and I are even talking about what we might do after the war. We have so many plans and well, I kind of wanted to talk to you about that.”
Frances waited as Elizabeth continued to walk beside her, lips pursed.
“I know that after the war, I’m choosing to stay here with Ayax, with all of you. I just…” her voice trailed off, and her walk slowed to a crawl.
Taking a slight breath, Frances touched her friend’s hand. “Liz, you know it’s okay for you to doubt that.”
Elizabeth stopped and shook her head. “Oh no, I don’t have any doubts about my decision. At the very least, I’m past the point where my doubts aren’t going to change my decision. I know I’ve changed too much in the past seven years. I’ve come to terms with my sexuality. I’ve fallen head over heels in love with a woman who loves me just as much. I’ve commanded armies, led soldiers into battle and helped to make decisions affecting hundreds of thousands of people. I can’t go back pretending I’m Grade 8 and neither do I want to.” She squeezed Frances’s hand. “My decision is the right one. I know it in my heart and I’ve prayed about it. I can do a lot of good here and me going back? That won’t just hurt the people I love here, but it’ll hurt me and my family at home. I can’t hide who I’ve become and I’m proud of what I’ve grown into.”
Frances closely studied her friend knowing Elizabeth wouldn’t mind her staring.
“So what are you feeling, Liz?”
Closing her eyes, Elizabeth sniffled. “Guilt. It’s stupid. I know I’m making the right choice. I’m sure in my heart that God is encouraging me to make this choice, but I still feel guilty.”
“How could you not? You know your family loves you.”
“And I’m abandoning them. I know I’m doing the right thing but I still feel like I’m doing something wrong,” said the Otherworlder.
Frances hugged her best friend, squeezing her tight, hoping that her warmth and touch could comfort the woman who she’d trusted as much as her own mother.
“Liz, if they are everything you told me, they’re going to be alright. Have faith in them, like your faith in me and your friends.”
Elizabeth let out a sigh, but returned the hug. “Thank you, Frances. If…if the worst comes and you are sent back without me, go to them. Tell them I love them.”
Tears in her eyes, Frances nodded. “I promise. If you are sent back, I will take care of Ayax.”
Elizabeth let out a gurgly hiccup. “Thank you. I know you will.”
***
The historic coronation of King Martin and Queen Ginger would found what would be known as the Congrey dynasty. Con for Conthwaite and Grey for King Jerome’s dynasty.
It was an unusual coronation as King Martin and Queen Ginger were long-betrothed but not married. Yet King Jerome and Queen Forowena’s wills had been clear. Apart from that, the coronation involved as many of Eridale's traditions as possible in light of the circumstances.
Down the parade route attended by all those that could be mustered, King and Queen marched in at the head of an honor guard composed of their closest companions. These included Frances, Elizabeth, and Ayax, who held three poles of a crimson banner that hung over the pair. The fourth corner was held by Martin’s sister Mara, who wore a slightly undignified grin. Yet, nobody could really blame her.
Martin wore a black-white checkered tunic with red-gold trimmings and shoulder epaulets. His trousers were dark gray with again red-gold tassels. Ginger did wear a dress. It was of a dark maroon with silver lacing. A bejeweled gorget studded with emeralds hung from her neck and her ears sparkled with dark blue sapphires.
There was one minor alteration. As the procession marched up to the entrance of the old Goblin Empire palace, on a raised wooden dais dressed with elaborately embroidered carpets stood the attending dignitaries. They included all the other Erisdalian lords and ladies such as Viscountess Katia and Lord Tarquin, dressed in all the finery they could muster. Other notables such as Prince Timur, representing the Kingdom of Alavaria, Grandmaster Edana of the White Order and Alexander and Eloise of Erlenberg stood proudly side by side.
Towards the center of the dais were three figures. King Sebastian and Queen-Consort Megara, and the former Queen Janize. Sebastian and Megara were standing, holding Queen Forowena’s crown, whilst the heavily pregnant Janize sat, holding King Jerome’s crown. Thorgoth may have taken their decorated helmets, but he did not have their ceremonial attire.
Martin and Ginger stepped out from under the awning, giving their bearers a brief nod, before taking the last steps up the dais.
Whistling a spell, Megara touched her throat with her wand. “Who stands before the crowns?”
Martin knelt to one knee. The bearers of the awning followed. “Sir Martin of Conthwaite. A Knight of Erisdale.”
Ginger curtsied low. Frances nearly split her lips as she grinned at her friend’s perfect form. “Ginger. Just Ginger of Erisdale.”
Janize’s expression was unreadable as she rose to her feet. There was a slight archness to her features, and yet that could just be how she lifted her haughty cheeks.
“As witnessed by all, and by the King and Queen of Lapanteria, do you swear to defend Erisdale with all means at your disposal including force of arms?”
“We do.”
“Do you swear to uphold the laws of the land and the rights of Erisdale’s citizens?”
“We do!”
“Do you swear that until your dying breaths, to govern and reign over Erisdale not for your benefit, but for the benefit of the people and for their future generations?”
From her kneeling position, Frances frowned. That wasn’t quite the right oath. The wording was “Do you swear to govern over Erisdale wisely and justly?” She supposed that she might have missed it, or maybe there was a variation.
Yet as she noted her fiance’s face, she noticed his eyes were wide and her mother’s eyebrow was arched.
Not skipping a beat, Martin and Ginger bellowed. “We do!”
“Do you swear that you will do your utmost not to make the same mistakes as your predecessors and do whatever it takes to preserve Erisdale’s peace, even if it may cost you your lives?”
Frances blinked. Janize had gone completely off script. There was no fourth oath.
However, Martin and Ginger only hesitated for a moment as they exchanged a glance and looked up to meet Janize’s gaze.
The blonde woman’s eyes were bright and the hands holding Jerome’s crown were trembling ever so slightly. Frances had wondered why she’d insisted on doing this. Martin and Ginger had wanted to approach her to ask if she was willing, but the enigmatic former queen had surprised them by demanding they allow her to crown them. She now had an idea as to why.
“We do,” said Martin, smiling.
Ginger returned that smile. Blinking back her own tears, she took a breath. “In the name of Queen-consort Forowena and your brother, King Jerome. We solemnly swear.”
Janize closed her eyes, a single tear running down her cheek.
“Then as the last heiress of House Grey, I pass the crown of Erisdale on forever. Long live the Congrey dynasty. Long live Martin the Hero of Erisdale and his queen to be Ginger, whom I dub Erisdale’s Burning Heart.”
Lifting Jerome’s crown high, she set it onto Martin’s head. Swiftly taking Queen Forowena’s crown from Sebastian, she set it on Ginger’s head.
“Hail King Martin and Queen Ginger!” Janize bellowed as Martin and Ginger rose to their feet.
The crowd chanted back, their voices filling the great cavern. “Hail King Martin and Queen Ginger! Hail King Martin and Queen Ginger!” Frances could barely hear her own voice over the crescendo. The call that they all raised. Like the sound carried up into the void, she could feel herself be carried up. It was like she was floating on the power of their united song.
Turning around, Martin and Ginger smiled at Frances. Their eyes were wide, and she could see them clasp each other’s hands tightly.
Frances found herself standing on her feet, the pole to her awning in her hand. Without a second thought, she stabbed the pole’s spike into the ground. As her hand dropped to Alanna, she paused for a moment before her mind caught up with her body, and she nodded as if to herself.
Drawing the estoc, Frances raised her blade high, saluting her two friends.
“Long may they reign! Long may they reign!”
Elizabeth was right behind her, hammer raised high. Ayax followed suit with her staff and Mara and the rest were soon drawing their weapons. From the corner of her eye, Frances even spotted Morgan and Hattie raising their wand and staff.
“Long may they reign! Long may they reign!”
***
Helias glanced over his shoulder toward the accursed city. Despite the distance, there was a tremble in the air of Kairoun-Aoun itself.
“Helias?” Sara asked.
“Sounds like they crowned Martin and Ginger. They’re going to attack soon,” he said.
Sara nodded, her tense jaw the only sign of the worry that had seized the harpy-orc. As gently as he could manage with his rough, scarred hands, he wrapped his arm around her waist.
“Sara. We’re going to be fine.”
“You’re lying,” she said with eyes fixed forward.
The general couldn’t help but wince. “Sorry.”
Slowing in her stride, Sara placed a hand over Helias’s. “I still appreciate you trying to comfort me but I would prefer you to tell me the truth. How bad is it?”
Helias looked around. “Thorgoth may pull off a miracle and get himself and Berengaria out. However, a lot of Alavari are going to die.”
“What are you going to do?” Sara asked.
“I’ll have to attend this meeting and see what Thorgoth is planning. We’ll make a plan after that.”
“You and I know it’s not going to change anything,” Sara said, looking up at her husband, who could not meet her gaze. Yet, she didn’t push him away. Instead put her hand around his waist, drawing him closer.
“I know, but I want to be sure,” said Helias in a low tone.
“I understand. See you soon,” said Sara.
***
Helias found himself exchanging side-long glances with Glowron. The pair sat, both leaning forward toward King Thorgoth and a pacing Queen Berengaria, who’d finished explaining tomorrow’s strategy.
“Do you have anything else to add, my good generals?” Thorgoth asked. The king still smiled easily as he swirled a cup of wine in his hands.
Glowron shook his head. His tone was short but he kept this expression neutral. “No sire.”
The goblin general was Helias’s superior in rank and social class. The fact of the matter was that if Glowron had no objections, then there was no way the tauroll could object.
And still, Helias felt bile rise in the back of his throat. He froze, ever so briefly. Closing his eyes, he shook his head. Nothing mattered, except for Sara and Gwendilia.
“No sir. I’ll have my troops ready for tomorrow.”
That should have been that. They would have been dismissed to prepare for tomorrow’s suicide mission, but the king’s whims had other plans.
King Thorgoth put his cup down and leaned forward. “Oh come on my good generals. Surely you have something to improve on this plan.”
Glowron’s expression remained blank, whilst Helias smiled. “Your Majesty, you were the one who taught me everything I know. I can think of nothing I can add to your strategy.”
Queen Berengaria strode toward him. “You’re usually so talkative, Helias. Are you sure you have no other thoughts?”
“I beg your apologies, but I do not have any further additions to your plan, Your Majesty. My lord Glowron?” Helias asked.
“I do not either, my liege—” Glowron fell silent and Helias’s tail stiffened.
Thorgoth and Berengaria were no longer smiling and with a few more steps, the harpy queen had put herself behind the two generals.
“Let me be plain, we are now not asking you about how to improve the plan. We are asking for your thoughts. Give them.”
The Demon King’s remaining dark eye was narrowed. The other was now covered with a black silk eyepatch, the remains of the scar that Queen Forowen had given him, a discoloration scouring a line along the side of his face and right over his ear. In spite of the king’s injury, Helias felt nothing but cold dread dry his mouth.
“Your Majesty, my only thought is that we have no option but to follow your plan. No matter how we got into this situation, the only thing we can do is go forward and try to win this day,” Glowron said.
“And do you blame me, Glowron?”
Helias watched, eyes wide as somehow the much smaller goblin general continued to meet the king’s eyes. “I would be lying to you if I said I didn’t assign some responsibility to you at all, but I believe we ought to have thought of the possibility of such a trap. So the responsibility is mine as well.”
Thorgoth nodded. Out of the corner of his eye, Helias saw the slightest of nods that Berengaria gave to her husband. Alarm shooting his gaze back toward the Demon King, Helias found the full attention of his sovereign and sometimes uncle directed right at him.
“And you, General Helias?”
Lie and he might not be able to make it convincing enough. Tell the truth about what he thought about this war and he was never seeing Sara and Gwendilia again. Thorgoth hadn’t just been hurt, his pride had been wounded and he was now backed into a corner. It would be unwise to anger him, but what to say? What could he say?
All he could think of, and see was his child and her adoring gaze. All he could feel was the touch of Sara’s hand against his. They’d become closer than he could have imagined and were more than just companions with mutual goals now.
If he was to die, then maybe he could tell this truth.
“I am mostly thinking of my wife and my child, my king. The coming battle has me greatly concerned with how dangerous it shall be.”
Thorgoth narrowed his eyes at Helias for a brief moment. The tauroll, staying very still, waited for the presumed reaction by Berengaria.
Whatever Berengaria did made Thorgoth arch an eyebrow.
“I thought you didn’t consider your wife to be worth much,” said the king in a mild tone.
His mind racing, Helias ran with the idea. “She has responded well to the constraints and discipline I’ve enforced on her. She does nothing but facilitate all my needs and has served me well.”
He could feel Berengaria’s eyes narrow, but Thorgoth was already leaning back onto his chair. “Good for you. You are dismissed.”
“Thank you, sire,” said Helias, almost unable to hide his sigh of relief.
***
Author’s Note: While I wish I could have spent more quality time with Martin, Elizabeth, Ginger and Ayax, I do love the best-friend/team that I created for Frances. This chapter and the last was my little way of giving each of them a bit of time with Frances before the final battle.

So my boyfriend invited me to come with him and the soccer fanclub on a day trip (leaving 10am, home by 1am) to watch the team play in Seattle. It's free and they have some spare tickets, but I'm under 19 (18F) so I need to sign a waiver from my parents. We're from Canada. It's a recognized fanclub of the soccer organization, and its all funded by them. Except for food lol.
I ask my mom and dad nicely if they can sign it, my dad is chilling. But my mom is not comfortable with the fact I'm going into another country. She's worried something may happen to me , and I'll be home quite late. She's HELLA religious, and( traditionalFilipino mom)to be honest I'm not. Idk, I'm figuring it out but it's a quite traditional Christian church.
I get my father to sign it since he's okay with it and excited for me. Hes not religious but jokes that "is Lord going to be with her!?" My mom just leaves the living room going like " she never sets aside time for God!" And locks herself in her room. Whenever she gets upset with something I do she'll give me the silent treatment.
She usually keeps our passports and I'm worried she would not give it to me at all cause I didn't "obey her". I was talking to my boyfriend about it and he sent me the law about how it is a crime to keep/conceal ones travel document.
She starts sending me texts "ur Dad consented to it I m saying I m out of the picture cause what you did is an outright act of disobedience of my will....yeah ur 18 and can go anywhere u want..abd whatever I say is garbage! Shame ur telling me about crime stuff...what about disobeying God s law? It s a crime more than a crime! "
I didn't realize, and she actually gave me back my passport, threw it on my bed. Didn't realize because I was in the kitchen. Apologized for making an assumption about a crime but, honestly. 😒😒😒
It feels like she is pulling the "God card" into making me feel bad for going to travel. I'm like 18, I have a part time job. I just passed and finished my 2 semesters in college. I'd like to travel more this summer and explore beyond my hometown.
I know parents aren't always going to agree with everything you do, but this is daunting. Like okay if I want to do something of my own, in this case traveling, she's going to make me feel bad about it? Even worse saying I'm "disobeying God" 🤣😭 Since I do live under her house, I have no choice to go with her to church. I've been going consistently, so I don't get why she's getting upset over a day trip.
Anyways, she's ignoring me full out. Silent treatment as always. I appreciate if you read this far, don't know what to do at this point. Part of me feels guilty for doing what i want, but I'm also tryna embrace it and not let her disapproval get over me. Not sure what to do and how long she's going to be acting like this around me. It's so annoying and makes me feel like she doesn't care about me because I chose something for myself.

I don't even know how to start this.
I've had a strange life so far. I was born and raised to the age of eight in a Baptist, homeschooling, cult along with my nine siblings. My parents divorced when I was nine, Dad won custody, Mom moved three states away to build a new life. We still called ourselves homeschoolers, but we kids were on our own. I spent the next decade as essentially a full-time employee of my dads Business with absolutely no education, no friends, and no social engagements at all outside of church and work.
It's very hard to express the position I was in at 16-17, I thought my life was over. Genuinely, what could I do?? I couldn't go to college, I'd never even written a paragraph, or solved an equation. I loved science, always had, but accepted the fact that my passions were not compatible with the life I was dealt. Even so, I did what I could to pursue my interests. When I was younger I stole a college biology textbook from one of my older sisters, and discovered the theory of evolution, which was a real door opener for me. With lots of roofing jobs, and some audible credits donated by another sister, I pulled that thread for a while, listening to so many books on Evolution.
I wanted to be a biologist. I didn't think it was possible, but I decided I'd take it one step at a time until I hit the wall couldn't pass.
I took the ACT, and scored a 14. That's okay, I'll enroll in pre-algebra and pre-composition courses at the community college. Embarrassing, yes, incredibly difficult, yes, did it need to be done? Yes. I worked hard and survived it, what's next?
Let's play catch-up! I did an entire associate of arts and a certificate of general studies, struggling all the way, to make up middle and high school. Finishing my AA, and gearing up for a transfer to a 4-year, things seemed less impossible. But here comes covid!
I transferred from my bachelor's 3.5 years ago now, The first two years were hell with covid, but I made it. I can't believe I made it. I have a BS in Biology, and a minor in mathematics of all things. I never thought I'd be here. I couldn't bring myself to walk in commencement, because to me it felt like a personal achievement far beyond any ceremony.
6 years ago I had never written a paper and couldn't do basic math, now I love to write, and can play with Non-Linear systems of differential equations all day long. I've been very emotional thinking about my past since graduating, and just wanted to share my story. I know getting a college degree isn't some Grand goal for most people, but I can't tell you how many times I cried myself to sleep at 16, because I'd never be able to do it. And now I'm crying myself to sleep because I have done it, and I can't believe it. Anyway, that's it.
Pursue your goals. One step at a time. Anything is possible.

Hello so my family are brand new to breeding German shepherd’s and I wanted advice on puppy trading. We have two females one Ckc another Akc. We also have a Akc male as well that will obviously be our stud. My mom basically wants an all black male so we have four to start our program with. The current three we have fit our requirements and health checks that we wanted for our stud and bitches.
So naturally I’ve been looking everywhere to find the perfect breeder for us that fits these requirements. In total we have had 6 German shepherd’s and have literally bought them from everywhere. Craglist,Pet store aka puppy mill, reputable breeder you name it. So we are very firm on what we are looking for. Some of these requirements include purebred German Good hips eyes and no cardiac issues. While looking I came across a breeder I really liked on instagram so we began talking on the phone.
We honestly vibe with him as a person his dogs that he showed in his program were amazing. Also I loved the way he was talking about his program! Basically, these people checked all the boxes for us. So we are talking and he basically explains that he just started his program. Which I thought was also really cool because we were getting this dog to add to our new program. I told him that my females were in a heat a little while ago and we think one of them did successful get pregnant. So that after everything hopefully goes well with this litter we would be looking to buy.
He found out that his puppies do date wouldn’t be until around June. Which is the same as us if our female was pregnant which she is. He also liked my program. With the current male and females we have and said hey, if you’re up for it we would be more than willing to do a puppy trade. So I’m trying to find as much information as possible. This is because I’m not trying to be irresponsible and say yes, without knowing what this means so any information please do let me know. Thank you.
Edit: I just want to state we will absolutely not be getting a puppy from this person unless the medicals and The other requirements we have checks out. This post is just if that stuff does happen if you guys have ever done a puppy trade what happens because I want to be as prepared as possible! Also thinks in advance for even responding

I am NOT OOP, OOP is u/WholePomegranate5342
Originally posted to TrueOffMyChest
My Parents Tried to Screw Over My Dying StepMother, Blew Up All Of Our Lives Instead
Trigger Warnings: infidelity, imminent death, terminal illness, financial exploitation, physical assault, emotional abuse and manipulation
Original Post: February 13, 2024
Throwaway for obvious reasons.
My (17F) stepmother "Jane" is a wonderful, wonderful woman. She and my father got married when I was 4, and she's been a rock in my life ever since. My mother was always my primary caregiver, but up until that point her relationship with my father was acrimonious and I basically never saw him. Jane was the reason they developed a stable co-parenting relationship, she encouraged everyone having a good relationship with each other and was always there to support me and my mom when things got rough.
Jane was always a really hard worker. When she met my dad, he was living out of a hotel and my mother was doing everything in her power to keep me away from him because she was petty and angry that their relationship didn't work out. Meanwhile Jane had a great job, a nice house, helped my dad get back on his feet, negotiated a visitation schedule with my mom (who hated her for a long time), and made sure my dad sent us money every week because neither one of them could afford an attorney to negotiate child support payments. Jane had no reason to do any of these things but as I got older she made it clear that she loved me as much as she loved my (half) brothers who were born a few years later. I even have my own room in her house because at the time we lived with my grandparents / various boyfriends of my mom and Jane felt that I needed a more stable environment than that. She's like the opposite of the evil stepmom.
When I was 15, Jane won a big lawsuit against an airline company and got awarded upwards of a million dollars. She used the money to build sizable trust funds for me and my brothers so that we would be taken care of later in life. Despite having a lot more money she still wanted to live a fairly modest life, so she paid off the house she has and has been living there ever since with my dad. Sure she bought a new car and they went on a few nice vacations but she didn't blow all her money on stupid things, which I respected.
About a year ago, things started getting really weird. Whenever I saw Jane she seemed to look sicker and sicker, but no one would tell me or my brothers why even though I know they knew. All we knew is that she was at the hospital a lot. Around the same time, my mom has been coming around my dad a lot more and acting really strange, basically like she was trying to romance him. Whenever Jane was in the hospital my mother would insist on spending the night at their house and playing mom to my brothers, which was so weird to me because she never liked them or Jane. She'd be the perfect little housewife and my mom is NOT like that at all. It was super fake.
Worst of all, my dad started falling for it. I'm not stupid - I'm pretty sure they were sleeping together. I tried to shield my brothers from it but they're not dumb either. I tried talking to my dad too but he insisted it wasn't like that.
Then a few weeks ago, my mom started talking about all the places she'd like to visit, how she wanted a new car and was looking to invest... which is weird because my mom has been a bartender her whole life and has lived paycheck to paycheck since before I was born. She was acting like she was about to get a lot of money, which started to make me really suspicious. Between Jane being sick and my mom acting all nouveau riche, I had a lot of questions.
Finally I decided to visit Jane in the hospital and ask her about my trust fund. I found out that if anything happened to her, that my dad would inherit all the money including full control of the trusts for me and my brothers. She asked me why I was so interested in the trust fund so I told her what's going on with my parents and how my mom has been acting with my dad. I didn't want to but after everything she did for me, she deserved the truth. It really hurt me to break her heart like that, especially once I found out that she was basically in hospice at this point because of irreversible kidney failure. She's only got a few more months. We both cried so much.
Then, two days ago everything came to a head. My mom stormed in furious and started arguing with my dad. Apparently Jane met with her lawyer and changed the trust so that my dad would get nothing and all of the trusts would be controlled by my step-aunt. She demanded to know how Jane found out about their relationship and I came out and told them that I told Jane everything. I told them that if they wanted to play stupid games they would win stupid prizes and that I wasn't going to let them screw Jane over after all the help she gave my family when she didn't have to.
My mom slapped me and my dad just looked so defeated. Then my mom told my dad that she didn't really love him, that she was just pretending to so he would marry her and she could get all of the money. The worst part about it is that my brothers witnessed the whole thing and now on top of their mom dying they have to deal with a cheating dad and his vindictive ex. Our whole family is in ruins and I feel like it's my fault even though I know it's not.
Yesterday I visited Jane again and told her about the fallout. She apologized and said that she had to dissolve my trust fund to make sure my mother didn't get a hold of the money, but that as "her oldest" I will inherit the house/property after she is gone and that's worth more than the other two trust funds combined. My father won't get anything because she's going to divorce him before she dies, and honestly I'm happy for her. She made me promise to take care of my brothers and told me that once I turn 18 this summer I can kick my dad out of the house if I want to. And I FULLY plan to do that btw.
I haven't talked to my dad since and I can't even look at my mom. I can't believe they would conspire to do this to Jane after all this time. Just proof that they deserve each other and I'm embarrassed that they're my parents. Once I turn 18 I'm going to cut my dad out as much as I can and cut my mom out completely. I hope she rots. Meanwhile I'm going to try and be at the hospital as much as I can until Jane passes away.
Anyways. I just needed to vent. I'm really messed up about the whole thing and I feel super betrayed, although I can't even begin to imagine how Jane feels. I'm gonna be so f-ed up when she dies. I can't even think about that right now. But at least she's not surrounded by people who just want to bring her down.
Thanks for reading.
Edit: Some people are asking a lot of the same stuff so I'll just clarify here --
My brothers - My plan is to use some of the estate money fight for guardianship for my twin brothers so that they can live in the house while I kick my dad out. If I can't get guardianship then I will have to let my dad stay in the house. However once I turn 18 I will technically be an adult so even if my dad leaves I'm still legally able to be responsible for them. The only thing I won't be able to do is stop him from taking them if he leaves. But they will be 18 in six years so even if they do have to leave they will always be able to come back whenever they want. In a perfect world my dad would just leave and let my brothers stay with me which I'm sure my bio-mom would be very supportive of because right now she hates all of us and I doubt that will change anytime soon.
The trust - from what I understand, my brothers will inherit 1/3 each of the estate and the remaining 1/3 will be used to keep the house running until they turn 18. After that it will be up to me if I want to keep the house or sell it. At that point my brothers will still have money left in the trust so they can branch out or do whatever they want, otherwise I will not sell the house and just pass it on to them or keep it and maintain it myself and they can just stay with me as long as they need to.
(Edit to the edit) So I just spoke to Jane and she told me that the reason she dissolved the trust is because originally it was going to be split 3x between us kids and my dad would inherit the house. She dissolved my 3rd and switched it over to make it to take care of the house maintenance, and instead put the house in my name so my dad wouldn't get it. Plus by doing that at least financially I would be getting a much bigger share (the house is worth about 1.5x the amount of my brothers trusts) I just wouldn't be able to do anything with it until my brothers are 18, which I'm totally cool with. Sorry if I don't have a better answer but I'm just trying to translate what she told me.
My parents - The big fight happened on Sunday and I haven't spoken to either of my parents since, I think they're both at my mom's place right now but that's fine with us because we're all still mad at them so they can stay gone for all we care. I know technically that's not legal to just leave us alone but I've been taking care of my brothers for over a year I can handle a few days while he gets his shit together. Screw both of them.
Hope that clears some stuff up.
TLDR; My bio parents tried to screw my terminally ill stepmother out of trust fund money, but she caught on and now no one on my side of the family gets anything.
Additional Information from OOP on her parents, stepmom’s health, trust funds

OOP: (Why isn't Jane on dialysis) - I don't remember the exact details but Jane has a genetic condition where she gets cysts on her kidney. She already had a transplant a few years ago but now she developed problems with her arteries or something in her legs so she doesn't qualify for dialysis. She could get another transplant but she doesn't want to because the last time was so traumatic (rejections, etc). So she decided to just let herself go onto maintenance medications to prolong her death until she gets her affairs in order. She has a few other health problems that make the typical treatments really dangerous and according to her she'd rather die surrounded by loved ones than on an operating table.
(Dissolving the trust fund) - Jane told me she didn't technically have to do it, but she didn't trust my bio parents not to do something shady and get a hold of the money before I turn 18. Even if my aunt controlled the fund my dad would still be able to collect if something happened to Jane before I turn 18. Her lawyer suggested it's better safe than sorry and I agreed that it was the best option. I'm not an expert tho I don't know the details.
(How my mom knew) - Like I said before I'm pretty sure Jane told my dad, who then told my mom and that's how the argument started. I can't think of any other way and I didn't really care enough to ask.
(Jane's thoughts on my mom) - she didn't know my mom was doing all of that. My mom has her own place and would only come over whenever Jane was in the hospital for a few days at a time. I've been living with my dad for a little over a year so he probably told Jane that my mom was there to spend time with me, if he told her at all. Besides she didn't "move in" until a few months ago, which I guess is when they started hatching their plan. Jane never outright banned my mom from visiting so there really wasn't anything she could do.
Hope that helps.
Edit for the last part: The remainder of the money belonging to the estate that hasn't been put into trusts for my brothers is going to be used to maintain the house (utilities, taxes, etc) until my brothers are 18 and then I can either choose to sell the house or keep it and maintain it myself if I'm able to. I plan to go to school in that time and get a better job with the goal of keeping the house, but if I can't then I have the option to sell it. Not that I will but that's how it was explained to me.

OOP on her stepmom and their relationship, provides thoughts on her bio mom

OOP: Honestly it's because she's more of a "real" mom than my actual mom.
My bio mom is kind of ambiguous about my existence but Jane was always extra involved, sending me to sports teams and paying for dance classes and just showing interest in my hobbies as I got older. Plus as the only girl I think we bonded on a level she can't with my brothers so she always made sure to let me know I was on equal terms with them. When I was younger we would watch movies and have girl time where it was just us 1:1 and those are some of my best memories with her.
Jane is also really mature and someone I wanna be like when I get older whereas it feels like my mom is a teenager in an adult's body. She was constantly picking fights with my dad about dumb things and Jane was always there to smooth things over and keep my best interest at heart over her own feelings. I know my mom made Jane's life really difficult for a long time but Jane never complained or said anything to me about it whereas my mom CONSTANTLY complained about Jane. As I got older I just always felt more at peace when I was around Jane than when I was around my mom.
If you want your step kids to love you just be there for them and treat them like your own. Ignore whatever drama you have with your husbands ex and just love your kids. Trust me if you really care about them they will know.

Relevant Comments
mattdvs1979: My only advice is make sure you work with a lawyer once she passes so you get your inheritance and your parents can’t try to intervene, and then you keep your promise to use that money for you and your brothers’ welfare.

OOP: Oh absolutely, Jane already gave me the lawyer's info and between him and my step-aunt I'm sure I will be able to do what I need to do for them. I don't even care about the money, most people don't have trust funds and turn out just fine. I'm actually more glad that she gave me the house because you can be damn sure it's going to be a safe space for my brothers whether I end up getting custody of them or not. My brothers are basically Jane's legacy so my goal is to give them the life and guidance that I got from her, and that they won't get because she'll be gone.

OOP on the relationship between her father and her stepmom before they got exposed

OOP: Honestly it hurts a lot because before Jane got sick they seemed to have the perfect relationship. Until my birthgiver (I like that) came in and fucked everything up with her toxic personality. Honestly in a perfect world my mom will end up broke and alone and in a shitty nursing home with bed sores. And when she calls me and begs me for a relationship (because she needs the attention) it'll feel so good to hang up on her over and over again.

OOP on Jane (stepmom)’s health and if Jane is mentally okay on the whole situation

OOP: I think so. Apparently it's a genetic disease so she always knew she was going to get sick she just didn't know when so mentally I think she was prepared for it. I just hope that she can find peace knowing the truth and knowing that I'll be there to make sure her sons don't grow up all fucked up.

OOP on her brothers getting therapy to deal with their mom/step-mom’s health and her imminent death

OOP: Yeah. I've already sat them down and talked to them about what's going on, they seem to understand but they're understandably really sad about the whole thing. I told them that when they go to school they should ask about a grief counselor and I'm trying to get their health insurance info from Jane so I can find them a therapist for kids. As much as all of this sucks I think it's brought the three of us a lot closer together.
Thanks a lot. I really love my brothers and I know it's my job to take care of them properly now that they won't have a mom around. Jane did so much to raise me and my brothers won't have the opportunity so it's only right that I help them.
Since finding all of this out my plan has always been to have my brothers live with me, I'm already in charge of taking care of them and the house for the most part the only thing my dad does is help pay the bills. Unfortunately I won't be able to kick my dad out as long as he's their legal guardian which is why I'm trying to find some other solution to that. But if/when that gets resolved he can live under a bridge for all I care.

 
Update: May 8, 2024 (3 months later)
Please check my profile for my previous post. :)
Hi guys it’s me again, a lot of you asked me for an update on my situation with Jane and my family so I’ve come back with a few things that have happened since I initially posted. I will try to organize this in a way that addresses the major points of last time.
Jane is still alive and doing surprisingly well considering the circumstances. She’s always been a fighter and although her disease has been progressing she’s keeping a positive attitude with everything that is going on. She says she’s grateful that she was able to see everyone’s true colors before she passed so she could go into the next life knowing the truth. We have become so unbelievably close in the past few months and it’s getting harder and harder to know that she’s getting close to the end. She doesn’t ever talk about it though and I know it’s because she doesn’t want to hurt me but we both know the situation so we’re just making the best of our time. I'm also not being completely transparent about all of the drama at home but tbh I don't think she needs to hear all of that.
We did end up having that surprise celebration of life that I planned, a lot more people showed up than I thought but they all got an airbnb near the hospital where Jane is and we were able to take her out and spend some time at the lake near the facility. It was super lowkey which I know Jane preferred and I was even able to get her old college friend to come after I found him on Linkedin lol. We had food and there was music and we played games and it was overall a really great time, except Jane started crying at the end but she promised me it was just because she was grateful.
My brothers are also doing okay, my aunt (Jane's sister) is currently paying for them to go to therapy and they've become a lot more open about talking about the situation. They just turned 13 but a lot of the time it feels like I'm talking to actual adults lol. They've become really independent lately (in a good way) and aside from me driving them places I don't really have to do much for them anymore. Their grades aren't super great but they're not failing and considering the circumstances it could be a lot worse. They still hang out with friends and I'm keeping an eye out for like depression symptoms and stuff.
The situation with my mom is as funny as it is embarrassing tbh. She spent a few weeks ignoring us and then she tried to crawl back into my life basically begging me to let her move in because her lease is about to expire and she has nowhere to go. That convo went about as well as you'd think and she ended up calling me an ungrateful b**** and that I couldn't just ignore her because she's my mom. I told her to get out of the house before I call the cops and to go back to my dad (who at that point was only coming home every few days to "check on us" and grab some clothes.)
After that she tried coming by a few times and when I wouldn't open the door she would lose her mind and start yelling through the neighborhood. After three instances of this I finally called the cops but because I'm 17 they told me there's a possibility that I would have to go home with her since technically I'm a minor and need to be with the custodial parent. I told them no way because I was the only one watching my brothers atm. That led to a whole thing where after a few hours my dad basically showed up and I was allowed to stay there because there was finally an adult present and I'd basically lived there for over a year.
After that the cops firmly told my mom that if she keeps showing up and causing drama (my neighbors confirmed that she'd been there a few times screaming) that they would arrest her for trespassing since technically it was Jane's house and not hers. She left and hasn't tried coming to the house anymore but for a while she would call me constantly telling me I owed her and all kinds of stuff. She's now blocked on everything and anything she needs to say to me gets filtered through my dad.
As for my dad... well, since he's basically required to be here for another 2 months until I turn 18 we've basically just avoided each other. It's not too bad though because I've been heavily relying on guilting him for everything to get my way. For example he was going to contest the divorce but I threatened to kick him out when I turn 18 if he does that so he just signed all the paperwork for a "quickie divorce" and is basically doing whatever Jane tells him to do. I don't openly disrespect him or anything (he's still my dad) but I've made it clear that I have no intentions on doing anything he says ever again and he doesn't fight me on it. Most of the time he's just in his room and sometimes he'll go back to my mom's but only for a day or two before they argue and she kicks him out again lol. I haven't decided whether or not I'll kick him out yet and we haven't talked about it either so I'm kind of playing it by ear.
As for me, I'm handling everything as good as I can. I found a new job where I make a little more money so I've been focusing on saving as much as I can and just being there for my brothers. Between working and school and visiting Jane I've been so busy I haven't really had time to really stop and think about everything, but I know it'll come. One of my friends has really stepped up and helped me manage everything and I'm super grateful to him for being there for me and my brothers so we'll see how that goes.
Anyways I wish I had something more exciting to share but that's what's happened since my last post :) Thanks again for all the support on my last post.
Relevant Comments
OOP on the possibility of her stepmom being poisoned from her parents to get Jane’s money

OOP: Hi there,
A few people have mentioned this and yes we are absolutely certain she is not being poisoned, it’s a genetic disease causing her kidney failure and we have known about it for a long time but she shielded us from the worst of it hence why her “sudden” decline in health was such a shock to us, we thought she had more time.
My brothers have also been screened for this disease and thankfully neither of them have it.
Edit to add: I’m turning 18 in a few weeks so I don’t need to get emancipated and my dad has already agreed that my brothers will stay in the house with me because they have nowhere else to go.

OOP on Jane making video clips for her brothers

OOP: Yes actually a few people suggested this on my last post and we have been doing this for a few weeks now. Jane has a little digital recorder that she’s been putting her thoughts down on and she’s also written a few letters to us for major milestones. My brothers do not know about this as we want to surprise them but that said they have been coming to the hospital more now that they’re in therapy and able to deal with it. I know they do not want to have any regrets even though it’s a difficult situation.

OOP on her father after being exposed and her bio mom trying to manipulate him

OOP: I do think he’s remorseful, he hasn’t said it but the way he’s acting is telling me that, he’s being really passive when normally he gets a little belligerent if he really feels like he didn’t do anything wrong. Also I know I have every reason to kick him out but he’s still my dad even tho what he did to Jane was terrible. He’s just kind of a weak minded person and my bio mom really manipulated the crap out of him and continues to manipulate him but I can tell he’s getting tired of her BS because he’s spending less time with her.
He didn’t know she was showing up at the house and when he found out he was super pissed at her, they’ve been fighting nonstop and I can tell he’s not as much under her spell anymore because he’s at home more but who knows.

 

DO NOT COMMENT IN LINKED POSTS OR MESSAGE OOPs – BoRU Rule #7

THIS IS A REPOST SUB - I AM NOT OOP

Sarah had mentioned Paradiso before and it sounded nice enough. When she said she wanted Aja to officiate our ceremony...well, we had some time while the Cabinet got ready to quiz us about what happened on Tau Ceti II. I set a course for the Porrima system by way of Volii and off we went.
I wise man once said, "you'll get distracted by bullshit every time." Well, we barely arrived when we got a strange request for assistance from resort security. There was also an unknown ship in orbit that didn't match anything in the database. Sarah and I shared a look. "After the wedding...and the honeymoon," she said. Yeah, there was a reason I was marrying her.
Arriving at Paradiso
It turns out the welcome robot at the spaceport will take your picture (for a "reasonable" service fee, natch). We got there just before dawn, which was perfect timing for what we had planned. Sarah wasn't thrilled with what was open at that hour for food, though.
\"Gourmet\" Chunks...right
Sarah's mentor, Aja, and her mom were waiting for us on the beach when we got there. Aja was everything Sarah described. Her mother was actually...well, I expected her to be nice. She wasn't as abrasive as Sarah implied. In fact, she seemed to share a lot of personality with Sarah, which might have been where some of the friction came from. The ceremony at dawn, at least, was lovely.
Vows at dawn
The resort rooms were luxurious. They also cost enough that Sarah and I could have gone to Enhance! and swapped bodies. (She just read that and smacked the back of my head.)
Getting comfortable in the room
A hell of a view...and the scenery was nice, too
The amenities of the resort were almost worth the price.
Rooftop dining with a view
Chlling at the beach
That was good for a day or so...but there was no way we were going to just lounge around at the resort, no matter how comfortable. Sarah once told me she loves to explore for fun and that's one of the things we have in common. The staff let us know that most of the wildlife on Porrima II was docile and non-threatening. Sigh...that should have been a warning sign.
We headed out in the evening, since the night was bright under the stars and we were still adapting from ship-time. We followed a path outside the resort and discovered where the staff live.
Staff quarters aren't to the same level as the guest rooms
A little further, and we were able to wind our way into the jungle and start exploring the area. There were some interesting things visible on the orbital survey map and the wildlife was interesting.
This guy was the biggest local lifeform and was pretty inoffensive
The pods on this tree were filled with spicey seeds that were a little like cardamon
Things started to get...more typical of our experiences...when we discovered a large crystalline cavern.
Crystals big enough to climb
Sarah's eyes lit up when we wandered inside and discovered this massive crystalline cathedral. The insides of the crystal opened passages that were mazelike and gave us plenty of places to explore. Of course, we weren't the first people to find it...
Crimson Fleet pirate met a gruesome end
Of course, the body had a slate filled with final words. More people would probably live longer if they focused more on trying to heal their wounds instead of preserving their last thoughts for posterity. The unfortunate looter was gored by something that sounded a hell of a lot more dangerous than any of the local wildlife. We hadn't seen anything more dangerous than a small flying raptor-like bat in our explorations so far.
The telltale roar let us know exactly what we were facing and gave us flashbacks to Tau Ceti II. Luckily, Sarah and I came loaded for terrormorph, despite the assurances of the staff. We prevailed, but my wife came dangerously close to being eviscerated.
Terror in paradise
I would have been fine heading back to the resort, but Sarah wanted to continue our exploration. "We've dealt with the most dangerous thing for kilometers around already, love. Let's not spoil things by leaving before we've finished our survey."
Trekking through the wilderness, we came across some mercenaries fighting a SECOND terrormorph. It was easy enough to snipe the beast while he was fighting them. Then we had to snipe the mercs when they started shooting at us. Why does Ecliptic seem to only hire assholes?
A natural arch surrounded by predators
It was when we found the THIRD 'morph attacking wildlife near a natural stone arch that Sarah finally sighed and agreed to return back to the hotel. Three burrowing, mind-reading, chameleon-skinned super-predators was enough for a single honeymoon. In fact, the universe seemed to be telling us that we needed to head off to meet up with Hadrian before terrormorphs started showing up and asking for immigration visas in New Atlantis.
Of course, we had to stop by the resort security office on the way out...but that is a story for another time...
These guys definitely need some natural sunlight.

I have been working for a company the last seven years. In 2021 I became pregnant and was on maternity leave until beginning of 2022. Upon returning I had my yearly evaluation and with the change in pay structure (removal of bonuses) and I was given a raise to match what I was making prior to taking maternity leave. Three months later I received a 20% paycut and I was informed it was due to budget cuts and that the board thought I made too much. I was the only employee to receive a paycut. At the end of the day as I was getting ready to leave, the CEO came in the office and mentioned how they don’t see me moving up in the company anymore since I am a mom now and that they think I won’t be fully dedicated to the company because I will be more focused on my child. He also stated that being a mom was my choice, not the company’s. In 2023 I became pregnant again and told my boss and he stated “I thought you were not having anymore kids”. I am on maternity leave now and my husband received orders three weeks ago so we will now be PCSing (Navy) across the country in July. I set up a meeting with the CEO last week and informed him about the situation and he offered that i could work remotely as I informed him I also have a daycare already for both of my children so they wont be at home with during the day on weekdays. Yesterday he sent me a text to come to the office so we can discuss more about it. He retracted the offer letting me work remote and instead said they will be letting me go once we move. He stated that since I am a mom of two now I won’t be able to focus on work and we don’t know the different circumstances that could happen there. He said the board declined it because of the time difference and because he doesn’t want to ruin our professional friendship. Also that this would be good for me to be able to stay home and spend time with the kids and once the kids are older I can work for the company again. The way he worded it felt like the company does not believe I can work remotely solely because I am a mother. We have over 20 employees in his home country that all work remote and work during the US business hours, we also have an employee in Canada (who went MIA for six months and then popped back saying he wants to work again). So the excuse of the time difference does not make sense. I feel like I am being discriminated against because I am a female with children.
To add more to some back story, the CEO has been very vocal and degrading towards women often mentioning how they should not be working but be home with the children. He also has the females clean the break room and we are charge of clean up after lunches. There are currently 3 lawsuits against the CEO for other non-related issues.
My problem is that I do not have in writing the reason he retracted the offer to let me work from home. And he made sure to do this while the accountant/hr was out of office. I am wanting to send a follow up email regarding the meeting so I have it documented but I am not sure how to word it without putting him on the defense as I still am able to work there once my maternity leave ends later this month up until I move in July. I was just denied being able to work remote because they don’t believe I can work and be a mom simultaneously, which i find to be ridiculous.

I’m a fucking wreck today.
I distracted myself as much as possible, as I’m usually amazing at doing. My schedule is jam-packed, which I will usually complain about to seem somewhat normal. “Ugh, I have so much to do this week…” as if I didn’t plan every single thing.
It’s harder to feel down when you’re always on the go. When you look good, when you stay in the gym, when you surround yourself with friends and family, when you work your ass off… at least that’s what I’ve always told myself. That’s what works for me.
Usually works. About once a month or so, my feelings catch up. It doesn’t matter where I’m at or what I’m doing – they’ll catch up. Suddenly I’m overwhelmed and I cry. Female rage consumes me and I scream in the car. I’ll try to push through when I get where I need to be – sometimes it’s work, sometimes it’s running errands. Today it was the gym. But my energy leaves me high and dry.
My bright aura is no longer with me and I’m numb. My eyes that were once filled with tears are now narrow. I cut my day short and I get back into my car because when my energy leaves me, I listen to my body and my soul. I need a minute to sulk. My drive home that is normally a full-blown concert is now silence, and it’s never been louder.
I run a hot shower when I get home in which I sit down and cry. I bury my head into my knees and I hug my legs until I feel ashamed because I live a privileged life. I dry off and before I put on any clothes, I go to the kitchen and pour a glass of red wine. Priorities. Just one glass, I say.
I cook myself a nice dinner. Nothing cures sadness like self care, wine, and a good TikTok binge, right? Tonight it was loaded baked potato soup – and it was incredible. The wine was also incredible. So incredible that one glass turned into two.
I layed out on the couch and laughed my ass off at TikToks. Temporarily, I was happy. Then I got a text from someone I really don’t even talk to – “I know what you’re going through. I’m here if you need anything.” Suddenly I’m overwhelmed again – I’m grateful and I’m sad. Grateful because I am lucky enough to always have people in my corner, but sad because somehow I still always feel alone. I think it’s an immediate response because no matter how many times people have said that, I always go through it alone.
My mom is never there, my friends are never there, my dad is never there. I feel like since I was eighteen years old, the only person that has ever truly looked out for me is me. The only being that has ever been there for me since then is my dog. So my immediate response is, I’m alone in this.
Granted, I love my parents and my family and my friends. They’re there in the good times, and they make the good times so much better. Most don’t know about these times, except for my mom. I’ll call my mom occasionally, only to be disappointed that it never makes me feel better. Worse actually. It’s never her fault, we just don’t connect like that. We never have for as long as I can remember. I always make the mistake of thinking that one day, we can get on that level. My delusion often results in disappointment.
One glass turns into a hefty three and suddenly I’m writing. Writing has always been an outlet for me, and I feel better now. I feel numb again. My feelings have left me high and dry as I type and I drink. Tomorrow I’ll wake up early, put on a pretty ass outfit, do my makeup, and act like this never happened. I’ll make my matcha and romanticize the fuck out of my life.
I make it seem like I’m doing great, like my life is perfect. But once a month, I remember that I am 26 years old and I’m alone. No matter how much I travel, no matter how much I spend, no matter how good I look, there’s this overwhelming feeling that consumes me at least once a month. I cry so hard I fall to my knees, I laugh maniacally, I drink myself to sleep, and then I wake up in the morning like everything is okay. Because it is, right? It’s just a monthly wreck.

I’m a fucking wreck today.
I distracted myself as much as possible, as I’m usually amazing at doing. My schedule is jam-packed, which I will usually complain about to seem somewhat normal. “Ugh, I have so much to do this week…” as if I didn’t plan every single thing.
It’s harder to feel down when you’re always on the go. When you look good, when you stay in the gym, when you surround yourself with friends and family, when you work your ass off… at least that’s what I’ve always told myself. That’s what works for me.
Usually works. About once a month or so, my feelings catch up. It doesn’t matter where I’m at or what I’m doing – they’ll catch up. Suddenly I’m overwhelmed and I cry. Female rage consumes me and I scream in the car. I’ll try to push through when I get where I need to be – sometimes it’s work, sometimes it’s running errands. Today it was the gym. But my energy leaves me high and dry.
My bright aura is no longer with me and I’m numb. My eyes that were once filled with tears are now narrow. I cut my day short and I get back into my car because when my energy leaves me, I listen to my body and my soul. I need a minute to sulk. My drive home that is normally a full-blown concert is now silence, and it’s never been louder.
I run a hot shower when I get home in which I sit down and cry. I bury my head into my knees and I hug my legs until I feel ashamed because I live a privileged life. I dry off and before I put on any clothes, I go to the kitchen and pour a glass of red wine. Priorities. Just one glass, I say.
I cook myself a nice dinner. Nothing cures sadness like self care, wine, and a good TikTok binge, right? Tonight it was loaded baked potato soup – and it was incredible. The wine was also incredible. So incredible that one glass turned into two.
I layed out on the couch and laughed my ass off at TikToks. Temporarily, I was happy. Then I got a text from someone I really don’t even talk to – “I know what you’re going through. I’m here if you need anything.” Suddenly I’m overwhelmed again – I’m grateful and I’m sad. Grateful because I am lucky enough to always have people in my corner, but sad because somehow I still always feel alone. I think it’s an immediate response because no matter how many times people have said that, I always go through it alone.
My mom is never there, my friends are never there, my dad is never there. I feel like since I was eighteen years old, the only person that has ever truly looked out for me is me. The only being that has ever been there for me since then is my dog. So my immediate response is, I’m alone in this.
Granted, I love my parents and my family and my friends. They’re there in the good times, and they make the good times so much better. Most don’t know about these times, except for my mom. I’ll call my mom occasionally, only to be disappointed that it never makes me feel better. Worse actually. It’s never her fault, we just don’t connect like that. We never have for as long as I can remember. I always make the mistake of thinking that one day, we can get on that level. My delusion often results in disappointment.
One glass turns into a hefty three and suddenly I’m writing. Writing has always been an outlet for me, and I feel better now. I feel numb again. My feelings have left me high and dry as I type and I drink. Tomorrow I’ll wake up early, put on a pretty ass outfit, do my makeup, and act like this never happened. I’ll make my matcha and romanticize the fuck out of my life.
I make it seem like I’m doing great, like my life is perfect. But once a month, I remember that I am 26 years old and I’m alone. No matter how much I travel, no matter how much I spend, no matter how good I look, there’s this overwhelming feeling that consumes me at least once a month. I cry so hard I fall to my knees, I laugh maniacally, I drink myself to sleep, and then I wake up in the morning like everything is okay. Because it is, right? It’s just a monthly wreck.

Back in around 2010-2012 I had this gta like game that I cannot for the life of me remember the name to.
The game was on the PlayStation 2, it was a third person shooter type. I’m fairly certain that it was based in newyork since I remember the main menu being filled with buses and taxis, at a three way city intersection. The release date is likely before 2010-2012 as I didn’t get it brand new, I only had the PlayStation because it was my moms, the same with all the games we had for it. The main character wears a black leather jacket, and the game starts at some kind of courthouse I think, all there is, is the building you came out of, a black limo, and the city in the distance. I remember all I did was walk in circles around a construction site before turning a corner and getting jumped by a baseball team. If you have even the slightest idea, please let me know lol. This has been eating at me for years.

Male Ragdoll 4 years old. With history of intestines blockage. My kitty has been ill and lethargic for 4 days. At first he was not moving and he wouldn’t willing to eat. We took him to ER and turned our he had fever 104.4. Vet did bloodwork on him and everything comes back normal. With A/G ratio 0.6. I asked doctor if it could be FIP but he doesn’t think so. So he got injected Convenia and Onsior that day, and that night he came back from ER he looks so much better. But the second and third day he was still a bit down but he’s eating more and more active. We took his rectal temperature and turn out to be 102.5 for three days in a row, which vet said he isnt having fever anymore.
My question is if he doesn’t have fever and he doesn’t have anything wrong with his bloodwork, why would he be so lethargic and he even limps a bit because lack of energy. Almost feels like he cannot walk and jump properly with his back legs. And I heard FIP from my friend and the symptoms look really alike. If nobody can diagnose FIP, can I do GS/441 on him for a week and see if it makes him feel better?
Thanks for everyone trying to help. I’m really panicking now. I feel like I’m a helpless mom trying everything.

I’m stuck. I don’t know what to do. I’m 19 and pregnant, the babies father is my on and off boyfriend of almost three years. I don’t think I love him. Ever since finding out I was pregnant I was having these thoughts. I thought about abortion, but I myself, could not do that without having an extremely guilty and probably dangerous conscious. I live with him, and I don’t want to be with him. I have no where to go. I don’t speak to my mother, she has said and done some very bad things during my pregnancy, and living with her would just give her power over me. I can’t live with my brother (who I lived with before) he doesn’t want a baby in the house. I can’t live with my sister, she’s a slob and can’t handle her finances whatsoever. My best option is to stay put, but it’s ruining my mental health. I live with him and his parents. His parents are gonna help out while we go to school, financially and taking care of my daughter. His mom makes a good amount, and his father doesn’t work. So it works out perfectly, they’ve been very supportive this pregnancy, but he hasn’t. He’s been very self centered, and I know it isn’t all about me, but I am carrying his child. I have my doubts about him. Ever since getting pregnant I’ve questioned his ability as a man, a father and a partner. He’s not a good fit for me. I’ve had major sexuality issues. Since it’s been imbedded in my brain that I’m with him forever, I question my sexuality even more. I don’t find myself attracted to him, but attracted to women. I always knew I was attracted to bother genders, but now I question my heterosexuality. He’s still a boy, and I’m becoming a woman, I feel like I’m moving light years ahead of him. He’s so immature and impatient, and gets upset over very small things. It’s hard to be happy or content around him. I feel almost emotionally abused and drained. I’m struggling with suicidal thoughts. I’m on antidepressants. I call the hotline when things get bad. But the thoughts are there. I don’t want to just because I have another life inside me. But if I were to do anything life ending, well then I wouldn’t be in this situation. I love my daughter already so much, but I’m trying to think about myself too. I can’t take care of her when I can’t even take care of myself. I want a good life for her, and I’m scared me or her father is gonna mess that up. I grew up in a broken home, that’s the last thing I want for her. Some days I just want to sleep, and dream forever.

I was recently outed as trans to my transphobic dad while living with him, leading to emotional abuse. Three days later, I silently moved out during the night, knowing if he caught me he’d try to talk me out of it, gaslight, and shame me.
He’s been alarmingly silent since I moved out, and it’s left me in the dark on what he’s thinking. My gut says that he’s lost control by me moving out without his knowledge and he wants that control back. A few days ago I texted him happy birthday and he responded uncharacteristically kind and I knew it was a trap.
Today he sends my mom, who I’m living with, an email that he’s here to support her when the time comes for my intervention. I’m an adult. I’m sane. He just doesn’t like that I’m trans and taking hrt and he thinks I’m fragile and confused. My mom would never agree to an intervention.
He probably can’t do much to hurt me but it baffles and scares me. I’m sick to my stomach. I wish he’d just leave me alone. I’d like to finally rest and not live in fear of him.

I’ve (F36) been with my boyfriend (M34) for 2.5 years, long distance. In the beginning, obviously things were great. However, early on, I started to see some red flags.
He would lie about the stupidest things…things that didn’t even make sense to lie about. For example, I had visited him and made up a bunch of breakfast sandwiches for him to take to work. After I had gone home, he called me one morning saying that the sandwiches were great. He verbatim said, “I had one while I was running around the house getting ready and another one while I was driving to work.” Later in the day, I said “so those sandwiches were good, huh?” He said “what? I told you I was rushing today. I didn’t have any time for breakfast.” It honestly really scared me, and we never got to the bottom of it. His final comment on the situation was “it worries me, I don’t remember saying any of that to you.”
For reference…he has had multiple head traumas due to abuse by his mom and her boyfriends, abuse by his stepdad, dirt bike accidents, getting kicked in the head by his horses, and when he was married, he mouthed off and got whacked in the head with a frying pan by his ex…
Anyway, he’s VERY generous due to his high paying job and supports me with $1000/month which I apply to my rent (which is $1750). The other day I texted him saying I was craving a margarita, and he immediately sent me money to go get myself one. I didn’t need the money, but the gesture was thoughtful.
But lately, he’s just been really sketchy, mean, and self centered.
Sketchy: During the day, he is great about letting me know where he’s going and what he’s doing, usually; come evening though, he will sometimes just fall off the face of the planet and I cannot get a hold of him. He claims he doesn’t hear my calls or texts but he has a watch which is connected to his phone, so I know he’s ignoring me. We’ve talked about it a lot but he just says that he doesn’t need to give me an update every 10 min. And it’s like, no, you don’t…but once every 2 hours should be doable.
Mean: Today I was just having a rough day accompanied by a terrible headache. I called him because I knew he was off work and I just wanted to see if talking with him could put me in a better mood. Regarding my headache, he threw in a quick “you’ll be fine” line. When I told him I was feeling depressed and sad that he never asks how I was doing (more about that later in the “self centered” section), he said “you always tell me! I don’t need to ask! You BOMBARD my phone with 20 messages about your day so there’s no need to ask! I’m not gonna text you every hour and be like ‘how are you?’ I haven’t done that since junior high!” First off…I do text him sometimes, sure, but I do not “bombard” him. And the first thing that came to mind when he said that to me, was ‘he’s insecure that I actually DON’T text or call near as much as I used to, so he’s making things up to make himself feel more important and needed’. I said “well do you prefer that I don’t text you during the day and just wait til you’re off work to talk?” He said “umm no. That’s a game. Don’t play games with me.” I thought it was a possible solution…
Self Centered: Today, he knew I had a long commute in very stressful traffic. Instead of asking how my drive was, he texted me that he had broken his truck window, followed by a picture. Honestly, he’s not great at responding to my messages, and since I was driving, I didn’t respond. He eventually called to tell me the WHOLE story in FULL detail, not once, but twice! This is very common. He will tell me a story, and then tell me the same exact story again. And if I say “oh you already told me that”, he gets angry! So I just have to listen and come up with a new reaction, otherwise he will say I’m being rude. It’s like, he just loves the attention from his stories.
Later on, we were talking about my work and I started to tell him a story. He thought he knew what I was going to say so he tried to finish my sentence. I gently said, “oh, no that isn’t what I was going to say.” He said “oh, well that’s what I’M going to say.” I responded with an “ohhhkay…” which caused him to loudly exhale and say “FINE, what were you going to say?! My God!”
He can really be so mean. And we’ve tried talking about it, which just results in him talking over me, and not listening to anything that I say.
It’s been about three months since we have seen each other and I’m actually supposed to head his way next week for his niece’s wedding.
I know that he will be working the whole time I am there with the exception of the day of the wedding, so we won’t have to spend a lot of time together. Pretty sad to say that.
I just feel like he’s such a broken person who has been through so much trauma in his life. He really does have a lot of amazing qualities, but I feel like I just see less and less of them. I pray about the relationship all the time, but is there a point that I need to leave and just let God handle him when he’s not in a relationship?

I (18f)still live with my mom(55f).so basically my boyfriend at the time,(18m) were at a party.we quickly got bored and went back to my house. I was slightly horny and I think he noticed but I’m not sure.as we were driving, he put his hand on my thigh which turned me on even more.I started blushing as he kept going further.soon, we parked a couple blocks from my house and started making out. One thing led to another and we were doing it.i was about to give him head when my mom passed by and saw me fully naked with my ex. She started to bang on the window and when i saw her I rushed off of him and started to put my clothes on.he was confused at first but quickly noticed that my mom was there.he started to put on his clothes on too and he got freaked out.as i opened the door,i walked home with my mom shamefully.she was dead silent.when we got home,she was more angry then I’ve ever seen her before.i was grounded for three months with everything taken away.he broke up with me months later from the embarrassment of my mom seeing us.