Made of Stars
When eighteen-year-old Hunter Jackson and his half sister, Ashlin, return to their dad’s for the fir
Disability/Mental Disor., Romance Colin Dereham 89 19th Jul, 2022
Gary’s lived with bipolar disorder since he was eighteen. He’s
stable and has a great career, family and friends, but at forty he’s
never had a relationship. Casual sex has always been the easy
option—fun, plentiful and no risk of upsetting the unruly emotions that
simmer below his calm exterior.
This all changes the moment he
meets Jeff. There’s no doubt in Gary’s mind that Jeff’s The One. But
even though Jeff seems to be equally smitten, he only wants a part-time
arrangement. Jeff works long hours, travelling constantly, and his last
relationship was so abusive he’s seemingly ruled them out for good.
Gary
does his best to settle for things the way Jeff wants. He’s not going
to give him an ultimatum. Losing Jeff would be unthinkable. In any case,
Jeff will come around. But each time Gary feels they are making
progress, Jeff restates his position. Gary struggles with the way Jeff
can be so loving, yet still maintain that he doesn’t want a
relationship. Gary’s confidence begins to erode. Maybe he doesn’t
deserve more. After all, he’s flawed. Damaged goods. Bipolar.
Time
is running out for Gary—he knows these arrangements have a limited
shelf-life and he can see Jeff is slipping away. Things reach crisis
point when Jeff makes a devastating announcement, plunging Gary into a
pit of despair. Gary is forced to resort to drastic measures to find a
way through his quagmire of self-doubt and fight for the relationship
before it’s too late.