Acquired Tastes (ePub)

Eighteen-year-old Neil Martin escapes his family and past by moving across the disintegrating country to participate in the Middleton Academy. A special ops-esque program, it promises an escape from poverty for anyone who manages to stick out the intense and traumatizing year, rewarding them with money, education, health care, and, above all, a chance to live without fearing for one's life, which is something worth pursuing in a world growing increasingly dangerous for the 99%. He quickly realizes all he's done is jump straight into the fire itself, as he attempts to navigate regular threats to his life, a partner who seems set on causing the two of them to flunk out and end up on the streets, and trauma from his past that he doesn't know how to deal with.

author's note on what to expect: although i've been writing my whole life, i mostly write poetry. so i guess my warning is don't take on this story expecting to see a plotline or world you've never seen before. instead, this is all about the characters trying to work through trauma in a way that maybe can resonate. additionally, i tried to bring in a religious trauma theme. as someone who grew up in a fundementalist religion, i wish there was more content with ex-fundie kids, without making the religion the central aspect. that's all this is: a few more silly little characters to contribute in hopes that people might more easily find themselves in what they read and watch.

trigger warnings: pretty much everything