ooooooh. i've read through this a couple of times now, and it just gets better. i like bob, like this (no surprise there) - maybe not knowing exactly what mikey needs, what is enough, what he wants - but also knowing that mikey will let him know, that he will do what he can, and the rest will follow.

i liked that the pain wasn't about sex, that the pain was more about a headspace, separate from pleasure, something to focus on - it's something you don't see as often, and you wrote it well.

i like the little invocations of gee too - at the concept of 'normality' particularly.

excellent, excellent!