Flicker | ✔️

Author's Note

Hey guys! Well that was the final chapter of this story! Hopefully you all enjoyed it and depending on you guys, I might or might not do a sequel. All up to you.

So tell me what you think!

Sequel.

No Sequel.

Comment on the one you prefer!

Anyways, going back on the fact that this story is now ended. I kinda feel sad about it but I have to admit, I'm mostly SO HAPPY! I finally completed my first long story and trust me when I say this is an accomplishment! This has been a New Years Resolution since I was 11. And yes, it's crazy to think I started writing when I was 12, but then again that was a whole other story haha! Back then I was truly much more of an amateur and made mistakes every two sentences.

I really feel accomplished for having finished Flicker! To be honest, I really thought I would complete The Refugees, another one of my stories, before this one but on that one I kinda feel like it needs a lot of editing so that's what I'm doing.

Even now, as I think back on Flicker, I feel like perhaps there weren't enough scenes to develop Cale and Maya's relationship but maybe that's only me.

Anyways do tell me what you think and I'll try editing a few scenes or adding more here and there. I'll also go back and correct any typos or grammar mistakes I may have done so it doesn't leave a bad impression haha!

Overall, it was an enjoyable journey hopefully for both you and me and a few messages I wished to convey are understood. First of all, assault, whether it is sexual, physical or mental, is not okay and I do not promote this in my story. This is not meant to show this. What I wanted to properly convey is that anyone could be a victim and raise awareness about it. What happened to Cale probably happened or is happening to millions of boys and girls whether it be by their mother or father.

The reason I made Cale and his mother related is because in other areas this is probably the case. Sugarcoating it or making it "less harsh" by making her a stepmom wouldn't properly or as effectively convey the message I wanted to send. If you felt disturbed while reading scenes with the both of them, then it's normal. That was my intention and to be honest it was also disturbing for me to write at first. But the more in depth I understood Cale and his mother, the less disturbed it made me because I could understand that this is a problem that affects a lot of people and I simply wanted to put myself in their shoes for a while.

As for Maya, I wanted to challenge the idea that although people seem perfect and happy from the outside, they may feel rather hollow and depressed on the inside. Maya is a perfect example of this. I think in most stories, the death of a parent is often used as an excuse as to why they aren't "normal" but in this story, I really wanted to show that the death of Maya's father really affected her even years later. I wanted to add the scene where Maya cuts her hair but I guess I left it out and forgot about it when I was writing about it. Might add it later.

I also wanted to challenge the concept of richness and happiness always go hand in hand. I think for most people, it might ruin them. Of course this isn't always the case but for Maya it is. Her whole life was affected because of money. If Maya and her family had never been rich she wouldn't have been bullied, her father wouldn't have had to go look for comfort with alcohol and cigarettes (because of the fake persona he had to uphold in public) and Maya wouldn't feel so empty whenever her mother gave her gifts or anything she wanted as a matter of fact. Money plays a big role in her life and she hates it. Of course this is all hypothetical because of course, if she weren't rich, she wouldn't have met Gigi and Cale and she wouldn't have been shaped into the person she is now.

Another thing I was very subtle about, and you may or may not have noticed, is the register I used in various occasions for both Maya and Cale towards their mothers. You can especially tell with Cale when he calls her "mom" which isn't something he usually calls her. Instead he calls her "mother", "that woman" or "she". With Maya, I tried to be more subtle about it. She always calls her mom "mother" but notice that in the flashbacks she calls her "mom". This really shows how her mom has changed in her eyes that she feels she has become a stranger to her.

Anyways, I'm done with the story analysis lol, sorry if this bored you!

Some of the things I'll tackle in the sequel (if requested):
- Maya and Cale relationship rebuild
- Breaking news about Cale's mother
- Maya and Harvey (secret)
- Gigi and Maya (what are your guesses)
- Daisy, Maya and Gigi (any other guesses)

To all the readers that have read up to this point, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ THIS! And omg 1k!!!! Wtf?! Thank you so much!!!

Have a lovely day! 😊😘

- Natalia ❤️