A Love Like Fireflies

awesome.. I love how you write and built the story from the beginning

but part of me kinda hope that Nick and Pete will be together, I mean as a couple..after all they've been though. But they still young, so it's better not put 'happy ever after together' first though. I do understand Nick's character and for his needs to be with woman.
It was a very good story. I love it and thanks for sharing it. Hope to read more from you

Good read!

Enjoyed your story very much! Laughed out loud several times. Keep it up.

What a nicely crafted story. Just long enough to flesh out Pete's feelings and the intricacies of the relationship, but not so long that it was tedious. (And, can I say how refreshing it is to read a complete story in one go- thanks for that!) I also like that it wasn't just about sex, THOUGH I would be curious to know how the boys would navigate that particular minefield seeing how once sex within a loving couple takes place, it has the potential to color relations outside the central one.

Excellent Story, but i was so hoping that Nick and Pete became a fully-committed couple! And poor Josh was left out in another story! You just have to make a story for him! Cheers :)

I'll be honest here…

I absolutely loved the story…right up until the end. That last scene with Josh, even before that with Nick and the women… that made my blood run cold and made me feel ill. The abrupt change in the theme of the story—from romance to porn—did not have the intended effect on me at all. Then it ended all so quickly like the betrayals meant nothing to either of them and that humming flow of love just snapped like a broken bunjee cord and the soul of the story plunged to a mangled bloody death. It was an incredibly beautiful, hilariously funny love story, shaping up to be one of my all time favourites, that suddenly turned into a gay porno crossed with melrose place at the end. You had this stunning, precious vibe going with the romance and the love and the sex and then all of a sudden, lets have one of them lie and be an internet whore and spread intimate details while the other one feels betrayed but still gets horny and is okay with it. I can see where you tried to build this ending, the numerous references to being a whore and selling one's body, but still I expected until the very end that it would turn out like it should have. An unexpected ending is fine, but even then, there's an expectation placed on unexpected endings—that they should still hold the same emotional intensity, be it a tragic death, a breakup and lessons learned, or what not. This ending just dropped all emotion which is why I felt physically ill. Now that's a compliment as well as a criticism because only the best stories can build and build and build a physical response (and I dont just mean lust, i mean an emotional tension) and this story had me wound up so tight and unable to separate emotional from physical, that when you dropped me, you really did drop me. I believe that you consider yourself a serious writer and I consider you one also so you should be able to handle the strength of this criticism and find a way to use. Therefore, from a critical point of view, and believe me i'm holding you to the highest standards here because you earned it in the first part of the story, the ending was a major mistake that you should consider going back and changing. My advice is to take it down, reconsider the ending and repost. I'm happy to discuss it with you if you like and also go over the many things I loved about it too (I copied and pasted four pars of text for later because they made me laugh so hard) and I hope that I'm not overstepping my bounds and that i'm doing your a service by taking it seriously. Or you can tell me to shove it :) either way, you're more than welcome to message me back :)

the ending

i loved everything about this story, except the ending. it did not fit. it was not in any way happy and it certanly sucked. who would want to be with someone that they had to share like that. i loved the story but there could have been a better ending.

Josh

Yo, is this the same Josh from your other story (Cupid's Big Weekend)?
Why is Josh always getting the short end of the stick? :(

I really like everything about this story, except the end.. have to agree with what no_luv said. Still, nice one, cheers.

I've Been Reading This Story For Hours and...

15 pages for an ending like that was ridiculous. I fell in love with the characters and was only slightly annoyed with their difficulty in labeling their relationship but the last couple pages were so...awful. Nick's "oh, by the way im still gonna bone girls" subracted from the character growth we saw in him in the meadow scene and Pete's indifference was disturbing. The way the relationsip ended up actually turned my stomach; it just didn't seem healthy. I had really high hopes for them and I understood the need for them to go through a few bumps before they figured things out...but they didn't and things just got really dark. This bothered me.

ANYWAY

The writing itself was superb and I very much enjoyed the first 8 or 9 pages of this. I read the other story you posted (which was also very well written) and was delighted and suprised to see Josh again. You are an amazing author and I look forward to reading more of you're post.

-T.

ugh

Loved that whole story up until the end..that never works out when hearts are involved. You had such a good story full of love and then it just turned cheap. You do have an amazing talent of hooking the reader though.

@EMArnold

The problem isnt the lack of a happy ending, I've read plenty of stories where the characters didn't end up together, or died, or had any other sad and unexpected event happen but I till enjoyed them immensely. The problem is that the end is a complete curve ball. It takes away from everything Pete and Nick had built together and even has the effect of turning the stomach. I can say I went through 14 pages of one of the best storis I've ever had the pleasure of reading and got to the end and completely forgot everything about it that made it good. That's how terrible the ending is; it doesn't even seem like it should be apart of the plot. So, you see, I wasn't expecting a happy ending, I was expecting some sort of resolution like Pete and Nick finally saying that they didn't need any definition when it can to their sexualities and their relationship or maybe even a break up. I would've been fine if they'd decided they couldn't be together. I'm okay with that. Really! I AM!!! But it became really twisted when Nick told Pete that he would sleep with women whenever the need came over him and he knew this when he got with him. What? Huh? And then for him to go on and tell Pete that he would never be enough fo him and for Pete to just accept that.... I must've missed the part where Pete became such a pushover. We saw Pete morph from an extremely stubborn guy that got physically ill at the very thought of men on men love to a strong, accepting man in love. Nick said Pete needed him and in turn he needed Pete. We SAW this. Pete gave him a place to stay, love he'd never had, and everything he was really and suddenly, after 14 pages of bonding and love and outstanding character growth, this isn't enough for Nick? The ending undermined everything they'd gone through to get together. It made the meadow scenes null and void, sweet acceptance of love seem empty and false, it made every kiss, every touch, every sweet nothing murmered seem....not worth it. Quite frankly, it left a bitter taste in my mouth.

But this is not because it wasn't a "happy ending".

To the author: You are amazing. This story made me FEEL, so you did your job :)

Good writing and character/plot development. Can't wait to read the next story !

:-)

I literally almost cried at how this ended. :-( it makes me fell like nick is just treating him like a cheap slut or something. i have to much respect for myself and what i have to offer to ever let myself be in the position nick is forcing pete into. i guess thatd why I'm so sad for the end. no offense or anything, i just wish it ended differently. oh well.

thanks for the heads up guys

I really enjoyed your first story which showed great promise with prolific output but I will not waste my precious time reading this thanks to the comments which all sound pretty honest to me.
You have the capacity to carve your own niche on this site and own it but you have apparently abandoned that prospect. Perhaps you have been influenced by other writers on this site, few of which have your actual talent, who find these kind of endings necessary to prove a twisted reality. Some like WickedWendydru who openly advocate to make their readers bleed may have led you to choose a different path for your characters and their story but that is what the readers have objected to.
Think again how to be true to your own vision and maybe you can salvage this and your future stories of which I hope you write many.

After chatting with the author…

In my personal opinion, this story should be a love story with a happy ending. However the author's intent was to show the fluidity of open relationships based on love. Putting aside my opinion, the ending could still hold with a little rewriting if more connections were made between the idea the author wanted to get across and the building of Nick and Pete's relationship. For instance, rementioning Imre amd Karvaly would've helped contextualise what the end relationship was going to be. Also, instead all of one-on-one dates between the two and a honeymoon period at school, along the way there should have been a nice threesome, or a scene where Nick, Pete and Josh all bond and flirt. If porn was part of Nick's character and he enjoyed it, then he should've given Pete a magical porn experience instead of shutting him out and acting as thoygh he were ashamed of it. They could've spent idle time playing a harmless game of 'check out this chick' or spent time devising hypothetical group sex to ease the way for the ending. The point is, the ending can work but the character development needs adjusting toward that goal instead of a romantic committed storyline.

That said, I still think the author should perhaps consider that his unintentional romantic story was a happy accident and go with it til the end instead of forcing a point of view that doesnt really fit. Go with the flow, write the perfect happy ending and complete the emotional journey and save the open relationships point of view for another time :) its good to write all kinds of stories, even the ones we never meant to write :)

By the way, interesting to know that I wasn't the only one who had a physical reaction to the ending :)

Wow.

These comments are intense (and very constructive if I may say so myself). Unfortunately, I have to agree with some of the other commentors when it came to the ending. I can see (if I squint my eyes and turn my head sideways) how it could've fit because it seemed you'd started that way from the get-go (Pete seeing the two foriegners loving each other but still knowing that they would marry women). But you didn't stay that way for very long. Instead we were set up (at least I was set up) to believe that they could be together without a label, or maybe not be together and split and marry women, but what we were given seems really random. I also don't believe Pete was completely blameless here. I mean, he was intimate with Josh in retaliation to what Nick was doing to him. Revenge just didn't fit here. Despite this I find myself a fan of your writing style and how you built the characters and the plot. It was excellently executed (whoop whoop alliteration!). Looking forward to more of your stuff!

I've read it

I've read it before, and truly enjoyed this story when you first posted it there, and you probably expected the kind of comments about the ending here, you're brave!
(>_o)

----- I didn't like the ending, not before, not now (Seems random, or sudden) but hey!, It's your story, you know what you liked for pete and nick ----

Am I the only one who doesn't find the ending strange? Who has the Josh character been since the beginning of the story? A man who uses his body to get what he wants/needs out of life be it through modeling, taking his shirt off, or bending over? Therefor, why is it so strange that he would continue this type of behaviour through the end of the story? Because he has fallen in love with Pete? What does one have to do with the other? It's like saying porn stars don't have the capacity to love because they sexually perform in front of an audience.

From the beginning this story hasn't been about monogamy, it has been about free love! An intimate love that best friends can share in a foreign land that is no less strong because each shares the knowledge that they will eventually meet and fall in love with a woman in the future. I think Pete's aversion to this idea is like that of many- we only see love in terms of one. One man, one woman, one partner, one lover, one husband, one wife, one mistress. :) Yes, Pete blindly trusted Josh at the end and Josh let him remain in the dark, but you know what? Pete hadn't even realized Josh had been "performing" the previous week because the intensity of Josh's love had not changed... Doesn't that say something? I agree that Pete's act of revenge was a reaction but he wasn't coerced into it, he actually enjoyed himself! Was he then a little less in love with Josh? I don't think so.

I contend that Pete is following Josh for most of the story, but I don't think he's a sheep for doing so and being okay with their arrangement at the end. An open relationship works for some couples and it doesn't make the love of the core couple any less so. Maybe in a hypothetical part two Josh and Pete are just happy together in monogamy, or Pete decides that he isn't okay with sharing, OR maybe Josh no longer wants to share and Pete does!!

Love doesn't follow one path, and as I said in my previous comment it is an imperfect happily ever after...

And, why is it "imperfect"? Because people are imperfect, life is imperfect, love is imperfect...

Oops! I meant to say I find the ending "not strange" in my comment above!

Mea culpa. :)

amazing but still...

What a crushing ending for me...maybe your next story. *cries more*

O.

.....um im sorry but come the fuck on are you serious? Beautiful story up until the AWFUL ending look im not saying every story has to have a happy ending but you could hav written that soooo much better did you get bored with the story and just went fuck it let me ruin this? oh my god im sorry but that was a complete dissapointment look im not trying to be mean and say this story is shit this is constructive critism but that ending is shiiiiiittttttttttt you have an amazing talent for writing i could see that from page one and that why this is so awful this is beneath you and im sorry you dont see that
but w.e i look forward to whats next for you
-9

yeah

good story, a little unsure with the ending. Didn't hate it, good writing. Maybe you're setting up for Josh & Pete to get together later in life?? Mmmmmm. Love your use of the word "porny"!!!!!!

Great until Josh

As I was nearing the end, I must say, especially after reading your first story, that I fully expected an about face between the characters, and have Pete end up with Josh. I'm glad that DIDN'T happen, but I wish the story had simply ended several pages and plot twists earlier, BEFORE Josh joined the plot line. That twist just left me frustrated.

I know relationships are complicated & messy, but all too often, people read & escape into these stories because they WANT it to end with the happily ever after. And this one just ended with a 'happy enough'. And your first story (beautifully written), ended up with everyone but the protagonist happy.

Your writing style is truly engaging. I grew attached to your main characters, felt what they felt, but I hated the endings.

Are you kidding me????

There are times when it simply feels like those around me just don't have their heads screwed on straight...why I wonder do we insist that everyone accept our own personal preferences (kinks and all) yet get all upset and bitchy when a story we're reading...on a website which seems (to me atleast) to embrace any and ALL sexual preferences...doesn't end the way we expect. There are those in this world who aren't ever going to fit into the tight neat little box of one and only forever. Be it "playtime" as Nick calls it or something more emotional just because a relationship doesn't involve only 2 people doesn't make it less of a relationship or the love those people share anything less. If you don't like the ending folks go read something else or suck it up and try to expand you point of view. Or am I the only one who got the whole point of taking a repressed little boy and turning him into a man who accepts all his personal needs the pleasures life has to offer him as well as the needs and pleasures of the one he loves.

I enjoyed this story from the beginning. I thought you did a great job of character development and there was humor. It was a great trip with characters who grew. The end didn't leave me as satisfied as I hoped. I just don't think I believe that Pete can be okay with sharing Nick with anyone, male or female. That's great lip service that the sex with girls would be just physical and that with Pete it's love, but it's still that like Pete said, he isn't enough for Nick. Pete is clearly a monogamous person while Nick is a polyamorous or whatever you want to call it. I just don't buy that it will be enough for Pete. I guess I felt like they were still one slip from broken up. I felt Pete would work better with Josh in the end b/c Josh would want to be with only him. Aside from that feeling about the very end...the rest was a wonderful story and I was very impressed with it. Thanks.

@c_angel

Will you calm down? Like seriously, what the fuck is your problem? People are allowed to voice their opinions without your nasty attitude nipping at them. The main issue is not that they had an open relationship because that was set up from the beginning, but that that message got lost somewhere in the storyline and we were led to believe Pete and Nick were going to maintain a monogomous relationship. I can't say that I am perfectly fine with them sleeping with other people, again I don't believe we were prepared for that, but I do know that 4 or 5 pages in we knew that was going to be the moral of the story. It's HOW it happened that's the problem. The ending was rushed, Pete and Nick didn't really address the cheating issues, and the whole thing was kinda empty.

I think it works

I mean they've never had sex (Pete and Nick) in the Bill Clinton explanation sort of way. And if they can get their jollies elsewhere without getting emotionally attached outside of this relationship...

It works, I mean sometimes getting physical just brings in a whole another level and set of issues that they're not ready nor prepared for. They have an open relationship, and maybe later, somewhere down the line it might change, but right now... It works. Different strokes, for different folks.

Disappointing Ending

The story is beautiful and well crafted but the ending is a major disappointment. Perhaps you intend it to be a metaphor for the lack of happy endings in real life but I might have been less disappointed myself if the story had not been fifteen pages long. In the future I'll read the endings of your stories first to decide if I want to invest the time and emotion in the whole story.

mmmm controversial... HOPE YOU CONSIDER A SECOND PATR

the story it´s lovelly, but the ending does live much to desarie... we all love happy ending and I agree with some of the coments how can they know there not enough for each other if the haven´t had sex all the way...

And way don´t they really talk to each other and tell it how it is?

You know i think there should be a second part were all it´s cleare, cause PETE desurves better way better than a half realtionship even if it is with a hot way... like someone sade maybe JOnnhy or some one else...

HOPE YOU CONSIDER A SECOND PART and hope to read some other stories from you because the 2others i like better

Really great work

I'm kind of with everyone else about the ending, but that said, I can see what you're trying to get at with the open relationship but I did thing you rushed the culmination of it. Your construction and character development is excellent and I really did enjoy it! Controversial, but great! X

I really liked the story alltogether, even the kind of heartbreaking "good, but not really happy" ending. It's different, a verbal slap in the face of romance, and surely not something I anticipated. Sometimes a little heartache is a good thing to get out of a story.

Loved the story--and I'm fairly amused by the comments. My biggest objection to the plot was the point where Nick tried to hide his online "modeling" job from Pete. Relationships are unique and no one can say what will or won't work for someone else...as long as the two people involved are open and honest with each other. Lying is the one thing that can destroy the trust that is the foundation of a relationship.

Whew....

Now I get it. These weren't four separate stories they were just parts from a novel. Your story is very good and well written but far, far too wordy for this venue in my opinion.

Staring at a laptop screen for hours on end with a stiff cock isn't that much fun I found out.

I didn't care for the ending of "Fireflies" but I understand it, having read these four in reverse order because I didn't realize that they were all from the same 'book', I see how the ending fits in.

One thing your stories have taught me is to check the length BEFORE I start reading. For myself, a four part story such as this should be printed and bound into a book. It's just too much to read on a computer screen or to print out from the PC.

I give you 5 stars for the story and 1 star for making it too long for this venue. Just my personal opinion.

Hmmm continuation would be nice...

Hmmm this story is good but I believe Pete deserves so much better than whatever the hell that Nick is giving him (perhaps he has commitment issues?). A possible candidate for Pete could be Josh or Nick can finally settle down, either or it would be nice to see Pete be devoted fully.

Hmmm

I was laughing out loud for the early part of the story. Nick was outrageous, and Pete's uptight reactions were hysterical. I was laughing almost constantly. You get a hint that there's more to Nick than meets the eye. Then the story took a dramatic turn with Nicks issues. Turns out Nick has a huge heart and hidden depths. Once they get to college Nick reverts back to being a shallow guy who needs to sleep around with women. I was really digging him until that, having Pete hook up with Josh was a total turnoff. I kinda stopped caring about either of them at that point. I was hooked all the way thru though, I just had to know what happened next. And after all that, they never actually fucked. Hmmm....

I liked it at first

Well, I liked the first part where Pete is in denial and being teased by Nick and thing, after that it's kind of a mess...

I liked it

Well done and very imaginative..

Disappointed

I loved this story--- all the way until the ending. I absolutely HATED the ending. I just can't understand the concept of supposedly being in love, yet needing to fuck other people. That is so stupid. That is NOT real love. It would be nice to see a continuation of this story, where Pete gets fed up with Nick getting with other people. I'm not trying to be mean or harsh, but I have to express my opinion. And my opinion is that this ending sucked. If they're truly in love with each other, then they should be enough for each other. I, for one, was hoping that Pete would demand exclusivity.

Again, I'm not trying to be mean. I loved the other two stories I read by you, Frat House Troopers and Cupid's Big Weekend.

I failed to mention in my first post that I think you are an amazing writer. Truly. You made me feel, which is always great when I'm reading something. I WANT to be able to feel the emotions of the characters. That is something I take into consideration when I form an opinion on whether or not a story is good.

In this story, I felt Pete's anxiety about being around naked people, and I felt his horror at enjoying what he saw Karaly and Imre doing with each other. I felt the love he and Nick shared. And I felt Pete's anger and feelings of betrayal when he found out that Nick had lied to him.

With that said, I still think that the ending sucked. I was also let down when Pete didn't confront Nick when he smelled the girl on him. As others have said, the ending in no way matched the rest of the story. And the whole revenge sex with Josh? It didn't flow very good with Pete's supposed feelings when he first heard Nick's voice on the computer. I mean, not for Pete. Pete just does not give off the revenge fuck vibe. And my heart literally stopped a second when Nick that Pete wasn't enough -- and then that Pete just accepted that. And then that Nick should be so accepting of it after that scene where he got jealous and asked if Josh was somebody he had to be worried of? When he threw the "only you" thing in Pete's face? Didn't fit either.

But I digress. You are truly an amazing writer. I love the fact that you made me feel. I also quite enjoyed that they were both straight until they fell in love with each other. Although, Pete seems to be more gay now, or at least bi, given his attraction to Josh. But again, you are a great writer. I look forward to reading more from you. In fact, I'm heading on over to Hope Among the Deserted right now.

P.S. Please don't be offended by anything I've written here or in my previous post. I meant it as purely constructive criticism. Happy writing!

Hurried

The ending was sounding very hurried...all through the story, the love was evident between the protagonists...but the ending seemed like it was picked up from,a different story...nevertheless...amazing writing...also a word to soullesscynner...more stories plz...
:-)

Loved it but then....

enjoyed the the first 2/3 of the story but then at the end its as if you went offside on the whole thing. if you wanted to end it that way you shouldve incorporated it all earlier into the story so that it was believable i.e. nick's desires for a woman. but because you didnt, it kinda ruined the story. due to the messed up ending (and its because of how the ending seemed to belong to a whole different story with no relation to the first 2/3 of it whatsoever) i had to give it a 3 star as opposed to the 4/5 star that i intended to give earlier.

I loved most of the story, up until the ending. The characters went from a 10 (1-10 on needing each other) to suddenly slipping down to a 6 or 7...

I loved how the story grew and Pete & Nick needed each other, they were both what they were missing in life.

I think it would have been better ending when they got to school, sort of a "they lived hapily ever after" sort of ending. But the end they sorta... seemed to loose each other.

Your writing is spectacular though, I look forward to reading more submissions.

The Ending

I think this story fits right into the romantic with a twist genre. I find this story representative of the state of love today. I'm not saying this is right or wrong, but arguably one can love one partner and still sleep with others without emotionally investing in these others as long as the main partner is aware. That's one couple's reality. Another couple's reality is there is no gray area, they are committed only to each other. Who's to say one way or the other if the strictly monogamous couple is any more in love than the open-relationship couple...

Like the author's first story, ALLF has sort of an imperfect happy ending. In a perfect world Pete's love would steer Nick onto the straight and narrow path of honesty and monogamy, however life nor love always convenient this way. Nick had already proven himself a liar and a slut, and Pete had been in emotional flux since the kiss. If it was the author's aim to blur the lines between what is straight or gay, or to question whether desire compromises love, or if love equals monogamy than I think he has done this. I think it's supposed to be jarring that Pete gets this bj at the end of the story considering his previous uptightness, but then he's finally giving into his own personal desire which is the point. I think he accepts Nick in the end, lies aside, because he (Pete) realizes that he doesn't love him any less after being with another guy (Josh)....

Torn

Like many others, I'd prefer there to be a "happily ever after" but I'm also realistic enough to know that for someone people, an arrangement like this works. But I wish there were an epilogue, something that gave the reader insight into how this relationship worked over the long haul. Does Nick realize he doesn't need women, does Pete get over his crush on Josh, etc.

You're a great writer and I look forward to reading more from you.

this is the longest story i have every read on here! im glad you made it long tho! awesome story 5 stars!

Nice!

Great story as always, though i didn't much like the ending. The tension a little too unresolved for me. Besides, i hope you could write a story where Josh gets a happy ending. Please do continue showing off your mad skills... writing for Literotica :)

Not finished?

I wish we could hear more about these guys. Will they be able to live in an open relationship for ever?

Well this was an unexpected ride.

I have deleted this comment 5 times already, as i wanted to make sure i explained my thoughts correctly. I am so glad that you put in words and explained how labels can confuse and hurt people.Humans are just sexual and one shouldn't put a label on ones sexuality at all. Its all a matter of degrees.We are not all to be pigeonholed.
Your writing is exceptional,the plot and story had great flow. The tension you built was felt. The ending I was not ready for and to be honest ruined a beautiful story for me. I felt it in my stomach. i guess that's a good thing for you as a writer, but it wasn't good for me. I don't know how better you could have prepared me for that, i dint pick up the clues you wound in there. it din't seem right to me at the end and really i dint expect that in the least. I know there are a whole lot of different relationships in this world, and the HEA does not always exist. It just felt empty after all that beautiful beginning in story.

I thank you for writing, thank you for sharing with us. I await your next story.
J~

Mostly great, but the ending needed work =)

First let me start by saying that I really liked this story – if not I could never have finished all 15 pages, but like some of the other who commented I must admit that the ending did not feel right for me.

The vibe I was getting towards the end was actually that they were drifting apart and not really right for each other (mostly as they both seemed more interested in them selves than the other). And Josh did seem like an obvious second boyfriend for Pete. It would have made perfect sense to me if this was a story about two young men who fell in love and helped each other in a time where no one else could. I don't think their love would be less important or beautiful if they came to an agreement to move separate ways after some time; after all it is a small minority that find their life partner so early. For me this would also fit the title nicely as their love was short and intense like fireflies.

A HEA could have been nice too, but for me it would only be believable if the the story after Pete helped Josh had focused more on the relationship of Pete AND Nick and not just on Pete.
Ultimately I guess I just did not believe they actually faced their problems, but rather pushed them under the carpet, and so I feel sure their relationship will be filled with them tripping over that bump in the carpet...

I really really loved the Frat House Troopers story, and I feel what you accomplished there was moving the characters closer together throughout. In this story they moved closer until they suddenly said – oh well whatever; we will fuck others when we like. All the emotions that I so loved in the rest of the story suddenly forgotten, making me feel slightly cheated.

I hope you can use what is meant as constructive criticism, as I do really like your writing and enjoyed most of the story very much indeed!
Looking forward to reading your future submissions as I think you have a gift for creating a mood and good characters =D