Pavane for a Lost Boy (Or Rather, How to Survive Loss after Rejection)

COMPLETED NOVEL!!

Demario Bader, after a failed suicide attempt, struggles with self-esteem issues as he adapts to being in a group home, overcomes the scars of his past, and finds love.

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My name is Demario Bader. And if you think that being a Black teenager is bad while living in Dallas; then take a look into my uncharmed life.

1. I have a dysfunctional family that relies on favoritism over unity. And they loved being bass-ackwards and belly-up as much as they hated me for being straightforward and straitlaced.
2. My domineering mother hated me for being the middle child that she never wanted while my father was a hen-pecked husband who agreed with her on everything she said bad about me.
3. I wasn't bullied in high school, yet I never had any friends (much less bullies) or mentors on my side.
4. And just recently, I had lost my parents, older sisters, and younger brothers to a freak accident before being disowned and my relatives (who were as bad as my mother) never offered to take me into their homes.

So where does that leave me? Preparing to end my life with a bottle of antidepressants and some of my father's vodka. But fate in the form of my landlord, my court-ordered therapist, my foster family, and a new love interest had other plans for me.

Fate, you had screwed me over one time too many. But I might as well take advantage of this do-over. So...this is your last chance as well as it is mine.

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Started: June 7th, 2023
Finished: December 19th, 2023

Total Word Count: 126,752 words!