All Comments on 'Hold Me Now - Alive and Kicking'

Well shit, Harrison's POV was definitely something. Didn't expect it at all, but that's life I guess. My mom is still fighting her demons as well, but we're with her.

BTW..... YOU'RE NOT TALENTLESS! It takes serious balls to post stories here and you always deliver. I always look forward to a posting from you and I reread stories quite often.

I love your Author’s Note preamble. I hate that you felt that you needed to explain yourself, your craft. I hate even more that it was penned, in some part, as a response to people who don’t understand the difference between ‘critique’ and ‘criticism’. One of whom should really know better and I took it personally on your behalf.

Now for the Fanboy stuff. I didn’t think twice about the title until I came to that first verse and then it hit me and flung me straight back to 1985. Nostalgic, yes, but those were scary times for a gay teen. I could rant about HIV and how it decimated my generation and others, but I won’t. I will say as soon as Ernie mentioned the rash it was clear where this was headed. Your treatment of the subject was intelligent and kind. Thank you for that.

I have to say the same about how you’ve written Ernie’s addiction. Really well done.

I had to laugh when I read ’Cue Simple Minds’ because I already had! “…don’t say goodbye”. Perfect. Goes right along with ‘I’ll see you again’. ☮️

Thank you!!! 😭

❤️ Wow! I'm pleasantly surprised by this follow-up story and overjoyed at the same time.

When I first read the comments under the previous part, I was feeling very dejected. I never intended for my first comment, where I expressed my strong desire for a happy ending for Harrison and Bailey to - in any way - contribute to adding negativity. The subsequent comments shocked me, and I truly empathize with you as a fellow author. I've also faced negative comments, including some regarding the fact that I'm not a native and how dare I even be here on Lit, believe me, I know how it feels to receive hateful comments, and it sucks.

😢

But I sooooo enjoyed this follow-up, appreciating how you crafted a complex and true-to-life narrative! It's a real masterpiece, a psychological journey that delves deep into the process of self-discovery. And you know what? It may sound bad, but I believe something positive emerged from those crazy comments. If you had only received positive feedback, perhaps you wouldn't have been inspired to write this exceptionally enjoyable bonus chapter, which I absolutely loved. 🥰 It was profound, genuine, and simply perfect! I wish I possessed even half of your authorial talent. By the way - some time ago I voted for your story as the best one in this forum thread: https://forum.literotica.com/threads/what-is-absolutely-the-best-story-you-ever-read-on-literotica.1580281/#post-96241745, and I stand by my choice. You're an incredibly gifted and uniquely special author! Please keep writing and don't feel discouraged! 😁

I remain in awe of you. Thank you!

Amazing. Definitely soulmates.

I didn't expect that! Nice :)

Thank you, drHenderson!

It breaks my heart that you even felt the need to explain yourself to critics when this site is free-read! Nobody is paying you for it, and it's nobody's business whether you write additional parts to your stories or not. On that note, I want to add that I really enjoyed this concluding chapter; it was truly brilliant work. Waiting for your next stories!

Wow, what a blast! A good one! Even though I'm sad about Harrison's fate(H+), I can only imagine what Bailey thought, that Harrison fucked the whole Melbourne, ha ha. Rockstar and rocking :)

That was a truly great and satisfying ending, and I believe it's the perfect culmination of the B+H journey. You've done justice to them and to us, the readers who invest our time in your stories. Best regards, and no hard feelings.

As for those who shed tears over the criticism of the previous chapter, they should wipe their eyes because life is too short for mediocrity, my dear hons. Guess who proved just that, um?

So, good job, drHanderson. 5 stars for you today! And let it be known, for the previous part, I gave you 3 stars, not 1 star! I still believe it was well-written, and I would never disrespect the amount of work you put into it.

Wow! I’d made peace with the previous ending but in my mind Harrison was once again that guy left in the store, head hung, while Bailey ran off to meet up the blond Adonis. This story did justice to Harrison, exploring the ravages of addiction and honestly looking at HIV with intelligence and compassion. It recognized the deep commitment between Bailey and Harrison cemented early in their relationship. Exceptional job! This is thought provoking and brings closure to two characters who are obviously beloved.

Your Author’s Note prompted me to ask; have you considered writing on GayAuthors.org? There are authors from around the globe and forums, blogs, etc for authors. Comments are moderated differently and are, overall, more meaningful and thoughtful. No drag in this site intended, just a suggestion for the next level of writing.

For what it's worth, I liked both stories. I really enjoy your writing so I'm along for the ride, whatever direction you feel the need to go. Hope you haven't been too discouraged.

Honestly, as much as I did like this story, I really didn't mind the ending of the last one. It felt pretty clear, especially with the earlier foreshadowing by his boss, that it was about Bailey finding himself and growing as a person; Harrison was a part of that, not the be all end all.

So that leaves me in an awkward position. I really like this story focusing on Harrison, on dealing with addiction and getting his life together. I also can't help but feel it kinda cheapens the ending and theming of the previous story by having them get together after all. Even with the explicit attention to the fact that Harrison got his shit together before he got back with Bailey. I liked the break from the usual formula, it felt more real, more relatable. That the first real love you have at 20 is probably not gonna be the person you're with for the next 60 years, and that's ok. Theres still value in that young love.

I think overall, as strange as this sounds to say about a romance writer who I read for the romances: the relationship between Bailey and Harrison was the weakest part of this story. I feel like you wrote it to appease people that didn't like the ending of the last one, rather than for yourself. If you don't want to write Cinderella stories that's fine, great even. You don't have to appease anonymous comments like they're stockholders.

Also great work on the dialogue. I can barely understand who's talking in some of your previous works but in this one I had literally 0 trouble keeping track.

Surprised and happy! I am :)

AlwaysDissingDaddies

You know what I think about "friends" who always praise your work no matter what and never tell you the harsh truth? Useless. They make you feel good, but you regress into mediocrity. So, don't whine about people pointing out some issues in stories. Now, imagine that the author merged the two parts into one story from the beginning. What a masterpiece it would be, probably the next candidate for the monthly contest winner.

Yes, yes, Literotica is free content, and nobody pays you for your work. So? Even more reason to deliver good stories because comments and votes are your salary here.

It's really simple. If you know that the story has a controversial and unsatisfying ending, don't expect people to mindlessly applaud you just because you put effort into writing, disregarding everything else. That would be silly adoration. Authors should work if they want their stories to be praised, not give us whatever and wait for roses to fall from the sky and readers to melt into puddles. And look, Dr.Henderson proved to us all that such a great story can still have a believable and "feel-real" ending, even though there are no rainbows, unicorns, and sunshine. H is living with H, so nothing is perfect, and yet, everything is perfect.

Dr.Henderson can pull off a superb ending, there is no doubt about it, and I'm happy he decided to do so. And I may be an asshole but at least I'm a fair asshole ;)

This is exceptionally well-crafted for something you (presumably) put together in a week. And very lovely.

Hey seakinklets- FWIW I agree that the first story was a better conclusion, and I think if I’d written it better, with more balance to the ‘after Harrison’ portion of the story and maybe just generally more nuance then I wouldn’t have felt the need to tag anything else on. Let’s face it though; it’s not a literary masterpiece, and a proper rewrite (so you have an equal chance to fall in love with Basil- or even just be ok with Bailey being alone) is way beyond what I could bring myself to achieve in a reasonable time frame. I think that story is worth telling, and I think this website was probably the wrong context for it in the first place. I think it was very fair to be mad at feeling like I was trying to be sneaky or clever and subvert expectations in the last two pages. That wasn’t what I was trying to do; but I think it’s fair to say what I was trying to do failed, which is ok.

I wrote this because even though I disagree with it being the ‘right’ ending- honestly, I don’t even think it’s a better ending- it is what many people here wanted and I can see why. Where Harrison manages to find music as his reason for being, I’ve managed to find ‘cheering people up’ as mine. So if people care enough to be sad that B and H didn’t get a happy ending, I care enough to hear that and change it if I can.

Nice time for me to say- I notice you and others like BlowPopJ, Edey, Laura1234, furluvrca… lol so many of you and you’re actually all in this comment section… Privatelifprivate, dnsontn… et cet et cet ALWAYS popping up in my comment sections with kind words and meaningful critique. I do notice and it is really nice. Thanks for commenting and reading!

I was fine with the original ending, but I really like this addition. Going through Harrison's addiction was rough to read, but he clawed his way out of it all and I love the ending here. :)

This was a tough read in parts, I think because in Part 1 (if we're calling it that) I actually identified more with Harrison, despite Bailey being the narrator. And then to have Harrison narrate the bit where his life fell apart...I read on, because there were redemptive elements threaded all through - how about those friends? Harrison thinks so little of himself apart from his musical ability, but to have friends that devoted is testament to him being an amazing person. I'm also really glad you had Harrison already well on his journey toward being sufficient in himself before reconnecting with Bailey, rather than have Bailey be the catalyst that 'fixes' him - makes for a much healthier relationship.

Seakinklets

I have a different perspective on the relationship between Bailey and Harrison in this story. I don't believe it was the "weakest part" as you put it. In fact, I think it gained a much more palpable feeling in the second part. We were able to see not only Bailey's point of view but also Harrison's, which made the story feel more complete and allowed readers to immerse themselves in their thought processes.

The weakest aspect, in my opinion, would be the sudden halt in their relationship. This could have been handled in two ways:

A natural and realistic ending where:

1) Harrison simply leaves, concluding the story.

2) The relationship could have continued, as it did in the second part.

Contrarian/forced approach might have included:

1) Suddenly shifting the focus to an unknown character like Basil, who wasn't developed (which many might consider poor writing).

2) The death of Harrison for a shock value ending.

Now Dr.Henderson chose the most elegant option by not giving us a forced, tragic ending, which would have felt artificial and designed solely to shock readers. Instead, he presented a complex and less-than-ideal situation with Harrison falling ill.

In my view, there's nothing cheap about this approach.

One more thing, while anonymous commentators may not be stakeholders, readers play a crucial role. Without us, there would be no authors, no voting, and no comments. Dr. Henderson would just have a file on his laptop, and that wouldn't be much fun. Think about it.

Wow, I like it so much! Wonderful journey!

I promised myself not to revisit the comments on this story, but I couldn't resist checking, and now, I'm no longer the only bad character here. Thanks, Seakinklets!

Seriously? You claim that "the relationship between Bailey and Harrison was the weakest part of this story"? The author crafted a 21-page narrative, delving into their struggles and development, and you label it as the weakest element? Or are you just expressing this viewpoint to be original in your comments? Because why not be a unique snowflake?

I urge you to please open the Gay Male category and read five random fap stories.

Then tell me that Dr. Henderson didn't do an excellent job with the H and B relationship. Seriously, dude, I believe this author has already faced enough criticism here. Do we really need to pile on more, just to set ourselves apart from the rest? It's almost comical that I'm the one saying this, given my prior comments, but can't we allow the man some peace and let him enjoy the fact that he's written a great story?

Soulmates, yes! Thank you!

I'll tell you one thing. I rarely see so many comments under any stories, except for very old ones. But this author is doing something right to attract so much attention. I also write timidly in other categories, but if I get 2-3 comments, that's the maximum. Maybe controversy is a good thing. I need to try it :)

seakinklets, I think it's unfair what you said about the story depicting a weak relationship.

Dr. Henderson, thank you for this ending. I truly liked these characters and wanted them to be together, even though I absolutely respected your original ending. Please don't allow yourself to be discouraged by people jealous of your talent.

Crazy! People will literally complain about everything, you can't please them!

No HEA, it's bad. There's HEA, it's still bad. The relationship falls apart, it's bad. The relationship is weak, it's also bad. What do you all want from him? Make up your minds.

If I were the author, I would delete all the comments. He's too kind.

what bastard gave him 4? The story had full 5!

Re- your reply to my comment:I think that's fair. I love stories about a character bettering themself and really getting into a character's internal feelings so that's part of why I felt the way I did. Ultimately it's about what you want to do. I don't come to literotica for masterpieces, but your writing is above many romance novels pushed onto me by Kindle, which is why I felt passionate enough to want to write out that long comment. If nothing else I hope my passion for your work shows

I wrote a comment yesterday and I can't find it. It was a positive comment, why it is deleted?

A lot of comments, didn't read them all, but I'm glad there is a good ending. Life is just too hard to torture ourselves even while reading stories on an erotic website.

Seakinklets, you're the perfect example of 'How to make everything about myself' :D

The author should be kissing your feet for the passionate comment you wrote; it's truly a godsend.

I love the path this takes, sometimes people are meant to be together and sometimes they are not. Personal growth and time apart to be individuals brought them back together. There is no sense in forcing something unhappy together and I think the space and distance and experiences they had apart has shown them a more mature way to be together

4.98? Wow. Well, the voting on this two parts clearly showed which type of ending people prefer :) Words not needed.

Redemption arc on Harrison! Rough stuff indeed. Honestly, another reason why I love your stories. I can see myself in some of these topics, feeling unworthy or like I'm broken, wishing someone would come and save me, but then feeling guilty and ashamed, not wanting to be a burden or to need someone, but rather they want me for who I am.

You write relationships where the characters build each other up, with great friends around, and even when it comes to the kinky stuff you lace it up with consent, safewording and aftercare. It's just so wholesome. Ticks all my boxes.

That being said, I see the point of the comment of Seakinklets to an extent, and here is what *I think* could be better: it was a delicious slow burn, but some key parts felt kind of rushed: in the first story, B and H breaking up, and Bailey and Basil getting together (really, was it just me who thought the name Basil Bich was kind of a wordplay or reference to Basic Bitch?? although the herb guy thing was cute). And on this one, Bailey and Basil breaking up, and B and Harrison getting back together. Not that it makes the love story cheaper or worse, it's just that for all the slow burn those parts feel rushed to me. It also might probably have to do with me being selfish and wanting to read these stories for longer, and keep enjoying your characters.

Still a 5 star story, and by all means keep writing, man. Ka nui te mihi for all the work!

I started reading the first part and got the feeling that something was missing. The ending seemed abrupt, as if it had been hastily cut off. However, to my relief, I later noticed that there was a second part (for some reason, I didn't see it below the first part—maybe a webpage error?), and I was thrilled to discover that there was more to the story. Now, it all makes sense! I want to thank you for the story; I was a bit surprised by the Basil subplot, but now I see how cleverly it was woven into the narrative. It's clear that both characters needed their own time before finally coming together. These two parts complement each other perfectly and were clearly well-thought-out. You are a talented author!

Great ending! Love good happily ever after!

That was good grand finale

There's a lot of support stuff I could say here but probably nothing that hasn't already been said.

I do want to say I like Romeos being a plural noun instead of a possessive :)

I stayed up all night reading the two stories. Thank you, this helps

I loved it! I've had your stories bookmarked for a bit and decided to read one which led to me reading another and then another, etc. over this weekend. I enjoyed the first installment. I didn't have a problem with the ending. Such is life. Things don't always happen like we would like. I'd dare say many of us would like to write a 2nd installment of pieces of our lives.

I love your characters. I enjoy watching self realization moments they have and the growth, honesty, fear, etc. they experience. I love your stories. I appreciate the all of the authors on the site take to post stories and I must say you are now one of my favorites. Keep doing what you are doing. It is appreciated!

Wow, DrHenderson, first you wrote a story about Bailey’s growth and learning to interact with others, and I loved that. As I love all your other stories. Then you go and write a fan’s request follow-up, stating in the intro that ‘Harrison has a little too much of (you) in him’. And it mainly shows us struggle with hollowness and addiction and about hitting rock-bottom. Well now you have me worried. Are you ok? Are you in a good place now? I truly hope that statement wasn’t a reflection of your self-worth. You are an amazing author. You are probably an amazing human being way beyond this site. Thank you for everything you’re putting out here.

What a journey! Amazing story! Thank you for sharing it!