Post by ShadowHaven93 in Straight!? comments

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ShadowHaven93262 days ago (2 edits) (+1)

SPOILERS:

I'm almost done reading and I love it but I'm so emotional over it, too! I'm seriously about to cry. Understandably, nothing last forever, but I REALLY don't want this to end. Braden just left and a huge part of me wants Zack to go with Braden to support him and maybe they even get an apartment together during the summer break.

On a separate note, I can relate so closely to the feelings of both of these characters. Currently, I have a wife and she knows about my attraction to men... she just doesn't know how much I desire thekind of relationship you have portrayed between Zack and Braden. All of their insecurities, their personal battles, EVERYTHING, I have felt over and over again. But I love their acceptance of each other and their willingness to work through challenges together.

Admittedly, I started reading through this for the sexual aspects of the story. However, it did not take me ANY time to feel an attachment to the characters and desire to know them better.

I really hope that the story doesn't end at the end of the semester. My heart is already shattering at the thought of Zack and Braden separating.

ShadowHaven93262 days ago(+1)

Ok, so no more spoilers, but I just finished the epilogue and I am much happier, but I still DEFINITELY want more of Zack and Braden.

Aaryn262 days ago

Heya, glad you liked the story and i'll take all the emotions as a compliment. I will say that you may want to edit your original post to state there are major spoilers. lot of people come down here and read the first few comments first before even starting the game and I'd hate to see others get spoiled with your post just from generally reading. Thanks in advance :)

ShadowHaven93261 days ago

No problem! I didn't think of that beforehand.

I'm actually reading the story again with different choices. I really want to get to know the characters better!

I know you had mentioned not having any plans for a sequel, but I really, really hope you make more!

Aaryn261 days ago

Heya, thanks. i appreciate it. hopefully, i didn't come off too strong on that but when this story came out, the Discord server was buzzing with every update. people were on the edge of their seat and that was just fun. i think the anxiety of not being able to control certain things-- unlike most VNs-- is fun here because it actually creates tension. But sorry if i came off strong about the spoilers. I just didn't wanna ruin that for someone else if they were having a good experience :)

So back to your other comments that i think were removed now so if that was a privacy thing, i'll just vaguely acknowledge that I'm happy given your relationship status that the story tracks. it's always nice to hear from different demographics that read this story and how it related to them. i'm truly happy it held up for you as well. i know you said you're going through the story with different choices now but also consider checking out the Revamp if you want to relive the whole thing again but as a massive upgrade. i'm working my ass off on that version right now and i'm way more satisfied with it than the original

ShadowHaven93261 days ago

I definitely checked that out, too! That's just the first part, though, right? I love the audio additions!

Aaryn260 days ago(+1)

yep but it's still in production :) i just dropped the first half of chapter 5 on patreon a few days ago so that will be over here free on March 27. on average, i'm trying to do 1/2 a chapter per update and each update is taking ~ 2 months. but that also depends on what i'm adding and how complicated i make things on myself :p

ShadowHaven93260 days ago

Lol that makes sense! I actually just subscribed to you on Patreon! I really, really love this story and the work you are putting into it! I can't wait for the final result and I hope you consider continuing the story after you finish the revamp. I seriously cannot get enough! (I've actually been sick this week and am reading the story for the THIRD time in a row now!) Braden is definitely my favorite character (I mean, he is cute af lol) but Zack is the most relatable by far.

As for my previous comment, I didn't remove anything so it's not a secret. I am 30 years old and married to a woman right now (for 7 and a half years). I knew I was gay before getting married, but with a VERY complicated series of events, I stuffed it down and married a woman. I mean, I HATED that I was gay. She knew also, because I had told her but she refused to believe it (the whole gay-acting-straight thing) and it just helped me to further suppress those "feelings".

Honestly, if there was a way to talk to you more in private (given your psychology degree), I would honestly love to. Not in a weird, creepy way. But your story has helped me see a lot of the toxic things in my marriage that I've continued to suppress and it's helped me realize more and more what I want in a relationship... something my wife can't offer (actually, this is where I feel like Braden, just opposite... being gay and marrying a woman)... I've actually been considering divorce... I've mentioned it to my dad (today) and a close friend from work, but neither of them really understand OR have a background to be able to help. And it's impossible to get into any counseling programs around here (other than the one I tried at church, but as you can imagine, they just told me I was being sinful and it was wrong to be gay and I just need pray)

Sorry for the really long message btw. I've been incredibly emotional this week thinking about all of this...

Aaryn259 days ago

yeah, so apparently when i looked at your original post after you edited it, something borked on my end and it only loaded half the post so i thought you cleared all the personal stuff out. it's all there again now so that was something jacked up on my end. sorry about the confusion.

You definitely sound like you have a lot of feelings and things to unpack here-- a lot more than what a comment sections is really going to be helpful for. life is detailed and when you're talking about things like this, those details really matter to you and the people it can impact. While i have a background and license in therapy, there's a ton of ethical stuff that comes into play here and there's a litany of limitations with chatting about these things on the internet. since itchio doesn't have a private message system i'll point you in a couple other directions. 1) Our Discord has an option to DM if you happen to already have discord. Another option is using the DMs on patreon since you mentioned you had joined up over there ( you should also be able to DM on patreon even without a subscription). if you want to reach out, i may be able to help connect you with some resources and stuff. imo, really finding a professional that you spend some time with, learns who you are, your situation, and all the complexities that come with your unique situation is going to be the best way to unpack stuff, work through it, make decisions, etc. just getting random "advice" can be a really oversimplified way of looking at a really complex situation.

ShadowHaven93259 days ago

I actually appreciate that a lot! Thank you for your input! I'm definitely trying but struggling. I guess that's why "Straight!?" is helping me so much! Kind of just reconfirmed everything I had already been thinking about...

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