Reviewer: It Was Me Signed [Report This]
Date: March 13 2024 4:00 AM Title: Chapter 11: Absence

I was about 50-50 on whether we'd see a quick reconciliation between our two protagonists or the issue between them would be stretched out for a while. I could have easily seen a split between Thomas's anguish and the government continuing to fuck with an isolated Trish tormenting us for a few more chapters at least.

I was pretty thrilled to see that it was the former instead. The slow burn that this story has been, with Thomas and Trish finally admitting their feelings near the end of the chapter before everything went to hell, built up enough anticipation for their reunion that it was extremely rewarding without having to draw things out. It legitimately felt good to see her forgive him and apologize for jumping to conclusions herself.

I really like how that confrontation was handled. It was made clear that Trish was really struggling to get over her feelings for Thomas, yet she still held on to that anger when she saw him for the first time in a month (and really talked to him for the first time in three months). In fact, those feelings seemed to motivate that anger, as she felt used and betrayed by the man she loves (and she still loved him through all of that, even if she couldn't admit it until they made up). And while Thomas's honest answer and physical contact certainly helped break through that cloud of anger, it was her own feelings that ultimately led her to forgive him.

When she picked him up and looked at his face, she saw everything she needed to see. It reminded her of why she fell in love with him. After basically being tortured and shown what were most likely the worst aspects of Thomas's fetish (I like that this was confirmed that the agents showed her particular aspects of it, as opposed to just being told that he was into giants; it shows just how manipulative they were) for two months, it was easy to forget that she saw how much he cared for her as much as she heard it from him. This was mentioned multiple times in previous chapters, and it was a nice touch to circle back to that here.

Trish conducting her own "research" was pretty interesting as well. The fact that de facto confirmation that she was "TheRealPatriciaHolsettler" was grouped in with her reflecting back on the agents' showing her things about Thomas's fetish implies that said research was her way of trying to better understand Thomas. Now whether that was in hopes of discovering something that would prove the agents wrong or it had more to do seeking some odd sense of closure, it's tough to say. But I think her last reaction on the site says a lot about a deeper reason why Thomas's "betrayal bothered her so much.

Yeah, obviously her thinking he saw her as a monster bothered her, but I think that the thought of him only wanting her because of something that terrifies her is upsetting as well. She's scared about what's happening to her, and her belief that the only one who ever gave her comfort against that fear was really only ever in love with what was causing it cut deep. I think his admission that he is attracted to that but also that his attraction to her ran deeper, as well as the reaffirmation of his love for her, helped her realize that he can both be into her growth and care about her as a person at the same time. That might actually do more to quell her fear than his previous support, at least in the short term. We kind of saw that when she compared her growth to her curves coming in before all the other girls; she's starting to view it as a positive rather than a negative.

That might not hold up if/when she hits some truly massive sizes, but I feel like we're in for a more confident Trish who's eager to explore Thomas's attraction to her size in the coming chapters. At least, that's the hope!

And I kind of go back to what I said in my last review, that this challenge would ultimately be a good thing for the two of them. In a lot of ways, I feel like they're in a better place now then they were two chapters ago. There's no more need to hide the relationship, no more guilt over cheating, no more hidden fetishes, and I feel like, between the time apart and the fighting, that those unintentional grooming and manipulation concerns are out the window now. Other than Thomas being more or less unemployed (he was suspended without pay and this chapter made a point to note that he had done nothing about that yet, so I suppose he still technically has the job, but he can't go back after all this, right?), things have turned out pretty okay with him. I still do think the whole Melanie thing could come back to bite him in some unexpected way, though.

But overall, it feels like Trish and Thomas have gotten off to a fresh start, which is exactly what they needed if this thing was going to continue long term (or as long as Trish has before she outgrows intimate human contact).

Lastly, I again want to commend you for writing intimate scenes that capture the awkwardness of the size difference between Trish and Thomas without making them feel, well, awkward. That bit about Trish and Thomas trying to French each other perfectly encapsulated that they aren't used to doing stuff like that at Trish's current size, but, at the same time, that didn't take anything away from the passion of the moment either. I feel like that's pretty hard to pull off, so I just wanted to call attention to it again. Great work!

Now, it'll be interesting to see how Jeb reacts to the news that Thomas is moving to the ranch, given the indirect threats he made both with his gun and his own giant daughter.