Bent Part 10

[concupiscence66]

Title:  Bent
Author:  Concupid
Pairing:  Howard/Vince
Rating:  R
Warnings:  dub-con (manipulation not violence), very, very mild violence, language, angst, suggestion of emotional abuse, manipulation, general unpleasantness
Summary:  Vince reflects on all the things Howard doesn’t know

Comments

Part II, because word limits suck

[bluestocking79]

(Continued from previous comment... I spent too long on this, I'm not chopping up these thoughts!)

So it's heart-achingly sad, all the dysfunction and unmet needs that must have caused Vince to develop these issues and this rotten self-esteem and the belief that the only way Howard will stay close to him is if he's manipulated. But I think... I think Howard is, post-switch, seeing more than Vince thinks he is, and certainly more than he usually does. He's learning how to read Vince a little better, and that shows in him asking the right questions. It will be interesting to see where the coming revelations are going to leave them both! You've handled so many complicated and difficult emotional issues in a way that is, frankly, blowing my tiny little mind. I love this story! And your writing. And the mind that creates it.

(And on another note: the fact that Mr Smith works for Rumbelow's and made that offer of a future job to Vince as a bribe makes me wonder if that isn't how Vince would have got the job at Rumbelow's when he "went straight"!)

Edited to include a thought I meant to work in but never did: you have to wonder where Vince honed that particular skill of being able to figure out where exactly the vulnerable spots were and how to devastate them the most. He's great at intuitively getting people, but I'm pretty sure that finding weak spots to hurt and exploit isn't a skill set he developed all on his own...

Re: Part II, because word limits suck

[concupiscence66]

Your response is entirely too insightful for a proper response because I would end up telling the story here, but I can say, the Rumbelow's reference was intentional. I liked the idea that there was a reason he could just walk in and not only land a job but be able to bring Howard on. I also wanted to let Vince use his powers for good and torture someone who really needed it!

Hopefully the story of Charlie will shed light on Vince. We'll see how well I handle it! With kids, it's not so much what happens as how they interpret what happened. You make those connections as a kid and you often don't question them later because they just float around in your subconscious.

Re: Part II, because word limits suck

[bluestocking79]

I'm glad I mentioned the Rumbelow's reference, then! It's brilliant and makes total sense. It seemed way too specific to just be a coincidental mention.

Re: Charlie and it being more about Vince's interpretation of what happened versus the actual incident, that was my gut feeling, especially since he automatically felt guilty about bringing it up. Since it happened when he was a kid, there's no LOGICAL reason for him to feel guilty, but there are obviously some deeply-buried associations and assumptions there. When Vince thinks that it wasn't really Charlie's fault, the implication is that he thinks it was his. You're right: kids absorb all these emotional impressions of things and events (especially when guilt/blame/shame/responsibility are concerned) and tend to internalize them, so those unconscious associations stay there as they grow up and never get examined more closely. I'll be interested to see what Vince has to say! I'd bet he's never willingly talked about it as an adult and is still thinking of it with the emotions of a kid.

Re: Part II, because word limits suck

[concupiscence66]

I was always going to have Vince scare the crap out of the guy, but the Rumbelow's bit was a last minute bit of inspiration.

This whole story us a therapy session because I am trying to tap into the kinds of things you don't examine until it is brought to your attention that your feelings/thoughts aren't universal or that your understanding of a subject never actually matured since childhood. Like how people have no clue about the electoral college. I honestly can't count how many times I have explained the electoral college! Until it stops being an academic issue and becomes personally relevant, the concept just lies in the corner of your mind. Like a pink bitch.