Author’s note: This short collection of stories comes from a novel I have written. I had to write out these tales to work out the intricacies of the characters’ histories where they are coming of age as young adults, but also deal with a dying family member. However, the level of detail and the subject matter would have been quite out of line with a mainstream novel, other than as summary. These are, literally, unpublishable chapters for a regular publishing house and were never included in the novel, but I’d like them to have an audience, and Jason thought his site would be the right place to host them, where I now have other stories posted. Each chapter can stand on its own, but they work better if you read them in order, at least the first time.
Alex and Tess
