All Comments on 'The Gift of Abstinence'

A most delightful story! Glad to see another story by you after such a long time.

Boyd

This story was awesome. A little sad in the end but very well written

Gonorrhea is probably the easiest of the 'social diaseases' to cure. A shot of penicillen(sp?), wait about a month & you're good to go. Like I said, what's the big deal?

Even a 19 year old can forgive. He loves her and should go to her. That is what friends do

Wonderful story, many truisms for "the beautiful people." The important caring that escapes so many relationships for the too beautiful. Gentle truths, nicely written.

That was such a sweet story. Too bad about the end.

It seems the ending could have gone in many other directions, but it has the ring of truth. Too bad they could not have communicated a bit better, but then again he could have pursued her and why he didn't is not explained.

...but very well written.

Thank you and welcome back.

Brilliant job - giving them gonorrhea was good. Though really, she should have given those jerks AIDS or something even more uncurable.

Anguish versus social status, seem to drive many interesting yarns. I like the suprise ending. It reminds me of one of the more popular urban legends that ends in aids rather than the clap.

She did the compassionate, kind thing! She was a true friend. There was no hope for a loving relationship between them. All she would have ended up doing was to hurt him very deeply. For whatever reason, which I wish had been explored in the story, she was one of those women who are highly sexed to the point where they are self destructive. And that destructive force would have extended to anyone who truly cared for her. Those who blamed his fraternity brothers and the other men on campus for using her missed the point. She was not forced to have sex with them. Indeed, she was the one that sought them out at the party where she was supposedly the date of the man she loved. Loved? Well in her own way she did love him by cutting off all contact with him.

superb!!! :)

O.Henry type short story..........

I think you were honest to the character of Margot. She was who she was, and she never pretended to be anything else. I was a little surprised at first she was going out with the fraternity brothers while spending time with him, but then it was a friendship. She was never actually romatically involved with him.

I got the feeling that she was one of those girls who maybe had sex with one person or not at all, but then HE started telling everyone the did it, others started having dates and covering with stories about her, and suddenly she had a reputation. Rather than fight it, she went with it.

I liked that as much as he loved her, she knew the best thing for him was to let her go. She knew her reputation was going to suffer a huge blow on top of what it already was, and he was going to be a casualty if he stood by her in friendship.

At least it felt like back then - about the time I was going to college and pledged a frat etc. The Greek Council held a lot of B's & B's - bitches and bastards who felt above all else - I like how you leveled the field heh

She loved him and didn't want to give him the clap. OK. But with a simple course of treatment, she's healthy. My BIG problem with the ending is why didn't she give him her contact information? Just doesn't make sense.

He should have got her contact info.

Nothing in the story showed her as being an unfaithful lover, so if she had someone that she loved could she stay with that one?

If she gave them blowjobs, she would have gonorrhea in her mouth. He would get infected by just kissing her.

Initially found it to be ok but it sat down in my mind and I had to Google the story back to rate and comment about it.

It really hit somewhere deep down.

Loved it, but like others, would have liked their very real intellectual connection to grow stronger instead flaming out in a death spiral.

Still a fine story, thanks!

Wow, what a sad story. A sequel might be nice, maybe a reunion a few years down the road.

Why doesn't she stay in touch? Why doesn't she tell him what she's doing, going to do or done? Why does she have to end their relationship? Even if she goes home and gets the Doctor to take care of her health issues that doesn't preclude her from seeing him again. This ending made no sense.

I realize it's based on the author's true experiences but the injustice of what happened to these two characters really gets to me. Margot was an excellent character and, if their interactions are to be believed, she was a wonderful woman. Why she behaved the way she did with men remains a mystery, whether she had a problem with hyper-sexuality or it was the product of past abuse or even if she knew she had a venereal disease and was getting revenge against all men who objectified her and used her for nothing more than temporary sexual gratification. In the end, though, regardless of her behavior and motivation, she was mature enough to realize that she was in love with David, and even though she felt she needed to part from him for his own good, losing the chance at having a lasting love with someone wonderful is always a tragedy.

Again, even though I know it's based on true events, I wish this could have had a happier ending for David and Margot. The romantic in me insists that they could have gotten past their issues and found a way to make their relationship work. They both recognized the best qualities in one another and that's the very foundation on which a relationship is based. It just seems a terrible crime that these two had to end their love this way.

It's a great, heartfelt story but I'll always wish it had ended differently.

Painful story. Wish I could get the wasted reading time back.

SAD sAD saD sad ...

Sequel please!!!!! bring them back together.

Well done e. This is a story you can go either way with, and since you apparently wrote over three years ago, I doubt there will ever be a sequel. Tbh s no comment. Keep writing.

XYZ

Good beginning, but it needs a more complete end.

D