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chapter 5 does skirt a the rules slightly, but in spirit everything is consensual and enthusiastic so i think it's fair to include this! everyone and everything is so unpredictable in the best way possible. and just so sweet. a great find.
"they sing rain keeps falling on my head / but that doesn't mean that i am dead"
the unlikeliest of meet-cutes: a shower of underwear and other laundry detritus pulls a heartbroken man into the orbit of an older man - a mild-mannered, bi-curious divorcee who fills his suits like some Grecian god (is it bad that i'm picturing colin firth here?)
The first story (chapters 1-4) depicts a budding relationship, borne of pity and comfort, that has to navigate the choppy waters of growing attraction, past unrequited love, hesitation, and guilt. Aside from a brief pounce, which is resolved swiftly and maturely in chapter 3, this is a lovely, enthusiastically consensual relationship I can wholeheartedly endorse. CW: Chapter 5 (the second story) launches straight into dubcon territory.
Of the myriad other high school stories out there, this feels the most authentic. It's evident the author dug deep into his own past to write a story this emotionally layered and complex. I don't even mind that the ending was wish fulfillment. The meat of the story lies in the night the two boys share before their separation, the morning after--the hedging, the longing, the use of inebriation and the excuse of "youthful fumblings" as a cover for your truest desires.
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hey anyone who reads this, just a quick note b/c i'm not sure i made it clear:
what i'm aiming for here isn't just a list of yaoi without noncon and dubcon. there are several existing lists for that i can refer you to - compiled by lovely users who have expended far more time and loving consideration in their curation.
so i guess what i'm trying to clarify is: ENTHUSIASTIC consent. see: "Only Yes Means Yes" (also known as "Yes Means Yes" - an ancillary to the more common and popular "No Means No").
in this list safe sex is a must, and i'm actually looking for verbal cues that confirm the enthusiastic engagement of all parties involved. and it's not just sex that needs to pass the cut here. gestures of affection. touches. kisses. all consensual. all freely, enthusiastically given. so please, point out if i missed anything, or messed up on any of these entries. i'm not a perfect reviewer and sometimes i get too permissive and let my guard down. also, i try to notate in every review if a work breaches one small rule but still sticks to the concept of enthusiastic consent as a whole.
enthusiastic consent is a narrow field. day by day it feels narrower - vising like a boa constrictor - but that's exhaustion speaking.
fighting for this feels like a pedantic or spartan task sometimes, but if no one else does it, who will? will we consign ourselves to moving goalposts? we can and should enjoy in women-created work without compromising certain principles. we can and should critically engage
(DISCLAIMER: i DO consume and enjoy works featuring rape as motif - this list does NOT exist to shame those who do, which would make me a terrible hypocrite. but everything needs a counterweight.)
4. Negotiated, safe, sane BDSM is righteous. Remember the aftercare, to keep it holy and sexy.
5. Thou and thy partner(s) shall not be under the influence of drugs, alcohol, sex pollen, heat, or in an otherwise inhibited state.
6. The holy trinity of "no", "stop", and "wait" hath been decreed by MOSES to suspend any sexual contact or congress. All parties shall herewith abide by their most manifest sanctity.
7. No coercion, nay, no manipulative tendencies nor blackmail may be permitted in the realm of MOSES.
8. Thou shalt not practice unprotected sex without explicit, informed consent of all partners.
9. Thou shalt not covet thee any sex other than consensual sex (other than as fantasy).
10. Ye shall erect these stones which I command thee upon Mount Gay.