Hello there! It's been a while. I hope you're all doing well. I know this is another updated author's note but I think it's important to read this so I hope you'll take the time to read this.
And I know I have announced this already but I think it's best to make this note because I have some plans for this story.
I am still in the middle of editing, finalizing, and updating other chapters by the way. But while I was editing current chapters, I sort of "accidentally" erased two characters - Lizzie (Steven's friend) and Miss Victoria.
After realizing what I've done and reading the updated chapters and comparing them to the old versions of the chapters (before all of the editing and updating) back and forth, I'm thinking of removing Lizzie for good since I think she's not really important in the story and she's just... there. But since I'm removing Lizzie, I might edit the sequel too (and improve all of the chapters) and that's okay since she's only mentioned in the sequel once or twice and also doesn't have an important role in the story. So Lizzie is out of the story.
And now for Miss Victoria, I still think she's important in the story because she's the one who's giving information and warnings about Steven to Aurora. I'll find a way to bring her back into the story. She also has a major role in the prequel (the prequel is currently on hold by the way since I'm too busy editing this story and writing a new chapter in other stories) so it's fair to keep her.
This also means that I'll be writing a new chapter (or chapters, it depends) so I hope you'll look forward to that.
I started this story around 2018 and finished this story around 2020 and three years later, I'm adding a new chapter (or chapters) and it is still under heavy editing haha. And hopefully, once I finish doing super heavy editing and updating and finalizing everything from top to bottom, I will put this story to rest and leave it as it is in the future, and proceed to the sequel and update that.
And maybe once I finish editing and updating the sequel, I'll try to update the prequel as soon as I can and finish "The Stepbrother" trilogy so I can move forward and proceed to write and update other stories such as "Bloody Mary", "My Summer's Solitude", and more stories to come.
When I started this story, this was supposed to be a "Killing Stalking" fanfiction however I said to myself to try writing something original for a change. And from start to finish, I never expect this story to be very popular/ to have a lot of reads and votes and I was so surprised when some of you commented or send me a message or leave a message on my board, telling me that you love and enjoy reading this story, and I'm forever and genuinely grateful for the never-ending love and support you guys have for this story and it will always make my day.
And the reason why I've been editing, finalizing, and updating everything from start to finish, is that I want to make this story better and improved for you guys, and never use this as an advantage of getting more reads and votes. This story is not perfect (even though there are times I want to make it perfect) but I just want to make this story and the reading journey better for you guys since my writing back then was so crappy and all over the place haha.
I'm gonna answer some questions you probably have in mind and I'll also just give my thoughts on some repetitive comments I've seen in some chapters and don't worry, I'm not mentioning anyone or pointing fingers at anyone (please don't mention or point fingers at anyone as well), I'm just gonna explain. But if you have a question and it is not written here, feel free to leave a question and I'll answer it when I can.
Question: Why is Steven still in high school when he mentioned that he's almost twenty? What's his reason?
- All I can think for the reason why Steven is still in high school is that he is under Grade Retention and he's being held back because of his bad grades and behavior in school. I honestly thought that it was quite obvious why but I guess not haha. I hope that explains why.
Repetitive Comment: Aurora's relationship with her little brother, Toby, is so sweet while in reality, it's different.
- I've seen a lot of these comments and from what I can tell, some of you have siblings. I am an only child so I don't know what it's like to have siblings or how siblings behave around each other haha. But from experiences or from what I have heard, I caught glimpses of relationships between siblings. I know siblings fight or annoy each other but you still care for each other. And from what you can tell about how their mother raised them, they come from a home full of love and I guess that's why they treated each other so sweetly.
Question: There are a lot of changes and I'm confused. Why change this chapter entirely or some parts of this chapter?
- I know some of you are rereading this story and you noticed some chapters are different because I want to put some sense into the chapter and make things less confusing. For those who are new and you probably look at the comments from 2 or 3 years ago or so, mentioning some details or things here and there and you cannot find it anymore, I just want to inform you that I am editing and updating everything from top to bottom. I am so sorry for the confusion and changes in the story.
Question: What happened to the part/chapter where Steven decided to throw a party because their parents are on their honeymoon for two weeks?
- When I read the entire chapter, it didn't make any sense at all and the writing felt rushed. So instead of Aurora and Steven alone in their house, I decided to add new characters, Grandma Abigail and Grandpa Walter, who will look out for Aurora, Steven, and Toby while their parents are on their honeymoon and edit a chapter or two. And instead of a party, the grandparents threw a gathering and invited some of their friends.
Trigger Warning: Mention of SA, Victim Blaming, Mention of Themes of Sexual Trauma (this could be upsetting for some readers).
Repetitive Comment: "Aurora is so dumb and weak for not telling her Mom and her friends about Steven and all of the SA.", "Why can't Aurora say anything? It's not that hard.", etc.
- Okay... I am a bit tired but entirely, still upset that I still see some similar comments that are stated above. Seeing these types of comments is mainly victim blaming and that is already one of the reasons why Aurora cannot say anything. I've experienced being sexually harassed a couple of times and I kept on blaming myself and the fear of telling and that no one will believe me was the reason why I didn't say anything. I've done a lot of research on the topic and the common reason is victim blaming. And I kept on hoping on the thought, if only people will try to put themselves in Aurora's shoes.
Imagine... Aurora,16 years old, was sexually abused multiple times and even threatened by Steven with a dangerous weapon and told her that no one will believe her and that if she will tell anyone, he'll do so much worse to her and hurt or even kill anyone including her family and friends.
That is already terrifying and traumatizing for her and she is young and she is still considered a child. She doesn't know what to do and yet she is aware that she needs to tell someone but she is scared and she is human. She kept on telling NO to Steven, but he refused to listen, and she tried to fight back but Steven is twice her size. It takes a lot of courage to finally tell someone and for some people, it may seem easy cause all we need to do is to open our mouths and let it out. You cannot force someone to do so, especially when they're going through a hard time.
Even while I was editing some parts of a chapter, specifically Chapter 9, I was very close to crying cause it felt so real and it took me some time to finish editing it. It felt so real to the point I ended up crying a little bit.
I hope there will be fewer victim-blaming comments cause it is never the victim's fault. Always believe the victim.
Repetitive Comment: Negative comments mainly about abortion
- Okay... there are a lot of negative comments about Aurora's decision to abort the baby. We are all entitled to our opinions and we all have different opinions and I respect that. I am not entirely sure if I am in the right place to say this but going through an abortion is not easy and even going through the aftermath of abortion is also not easy.
Question: Will the ending remain the same or will there be any changes?
- It depends actually but I think there will be some changes and I'll make sure to not change the ending entirely.
Question: As for the chapters, will there be a lot of changes?
- Again, it really depends on the chapter itself. There will be some chapters with major changes and there will be some chapters with minor changes.
Okay, that's all I could think of. And again, if there are any questions you would like to ask, feel free to leave a question and I'll answer it as soon as I can.
I hope you guys will wait a bit longer for the updated chapters and the new chapter/s coming soon! And I hope you will look forward to the new chapter/s!
That's all and take care! ♡
-emopastelgirl^^