Great one-shot! Alcoholism has brought so much drama in my family too... I love stories about Booth's past and I can imagine those flash-backs are haunting him all the time; I wish they bring that up in this next season. It made me so sad to imagine that little boy, who does not even understand what's going on, see all that... The ending is depressing and so real in many RL cases :-/

thanks for writing :)

K

wow that was very...hard to read but it was great insight into Booth's past...I hate what he had to endure or what any child has to go through when in that kind of situation

Thank you

Cindy

Of all the Seeley childhood scenarios I've read, this one is amazing. I like how innocent he is; the way he knows nothing but still blames himself for his father's faults. And at the same time it's like he seen it all and he's matured quickly because of his expiriences, like when he protected Jared and when he was in doubt he prayed. Swallowing Stars was a good idea for the title because while swallowing stars sounds like a magical expirience that can make you fly it also kills you and burns you on the inside (like alcohol can).

PS: I never really imagined Seeley as a chubby kid. But I guess taking into consideration his love of cake and pie that was certainley a possibility.

wow, now that's intense. i grew up in a similar household, so this really hits home for me. fantastic job, capturing the feel of the situation.

This.. was amazing. Yeah.

This is one of those stories that sticks with you because it is so real, you can't remember that it's not canon. Beautiful job.

WOW heart wrenching stuff poor booth having to go through that as a child. don't blame him for turning to the bottle when he woke up. look forward to more from you

Intense and wonderfully written.

Touching.

But kinda sad. (Duh.)

Anyway, I liked the writing style. IT wasn't my type, but the stryline was nice. Soft is the word I would use to describe it. DO you know what I mean. Anyway, good job.

Regan

OMG! Such a good story. It made me cry

Very good...good Booth POV!

Oh My God. It was so normal, and then it turned, fast. I hope you didn't have too hard a time writing this, seeing as it was a little close to home.

Good story! To be honest, I really liked it up until the end. Personally, I don't think he'd drink after waking up from that dream. I think that gambling is his version of alcoholism, but I still think that if he were to do anything with alcohol at that moment, it would be pouring it down the drain. Or spitting it out. That said, it's not my story.

:)

WOW, great job. Is this going to be a one-shot?

Wow, your glimpse into Booth's past was just as poignant and moving as your delving into Brennan's earlier years in previous stories.

After 'Con Man' I'm interested more than ever in meeting Booth's mother. After what we've found out I'm not too keen on meeting his father, but I hope we get to meet the woman who was forced to endure so much and raised a kid like Booth who turned out so differently from his father. Although I guess he's got an addictive personality as well.

I would agree that he probably was a pretty good dad until he got a few drinks in him. It was heartbreaking to see how Booth looked up to him only to have that shattered.

Seeing where it all started, when he started to recognize that instinct in himself to protect the people that he loved, that was very moving. Terrific insight into what we're learning is a much more complex character than we were led to believe.

It hurt to see him drinking at the end. As great as he is, I guess you can't escape those who shaped you although Booth's done quite the job overcoming what his father and Jared couldn't.

Thanks for such an awesome story!

Leah