This short piece is a darker tale than those I usually write. Some code has been omitted so as not to give away the content. However, it hopefully demonstrates that positive things can arise from negative situations. Please note that some of the conduct portrayed in the narrative is personally morally repugnant and cannot be condoned outside of the fictional context it is placed in, nor should it be trivialised as the text may appear to do.
Size: 11 KB (2,388 words)
Genre: Fiction
Sex Contents: No Sex
Tags: mt/ft, Fiction
Review by ausie-import [other reviews by ausie-import]
Reviewed: - (Review Updated: )
Amnesia, of the sort described in this story, is unusual if it ever does occur in real life. That having been said, as a plot device it's well above the old, "....and then he woke up", chestnut.
The story is all about the interaction between two new Uni students who have a past. And not just a little past, but arguably things that should never have happened.
[possible spoiler section]
The level of interaction between Jenny and Brian seems somewhat thin for the size of the gulf that they are trying to bridge. Either that, or Brian does "sincere" to a degree that Richard Chamberlain could only dream about when he played Dr Kildare.
Alternatively, Jenny may just be really trusting and inclined to think the best of others.
[end spoilers]
You may see the story differently if you consider that, while it is a conversation in the present, it is also rooted in the past. All of the real action happens 4-5 years ago. And this past focus is part of what is interesting about the story. Generally when a story is in the past, the author lets us see more of the thoughts and motivations of the characters, not less. But, in this story we only see glimpses of the past and even these glimpses are filtered through Brian's amnesia.
It's a short story, though, and to an extent this gets the Kid a pass on the sketched dialogue which can be argued tells the direction rather than the detail of a possibly long conversation. The other interesting point about it being a short story is that there is an uncertain future out there. The loose ends are not tied up, but left for the reader to play with.
But to me the most interesting loose ends are in the past. What was Brian's father like? What was the effect on Brianof his interaction with him? And why were they driving through France before the end of the school year?
Read it asking these questions and you may see a different story.
