UPDATE: The author for the middle part of SteemShort #7 has been chosen (2018-May-26)

There were 10 valid summaries submitted to the jury.

And the jury chose the summary submitted by @no-won.

Congratulations, @no-won.

Here is the summary:

"Did we commit incest?" Mason asks, standing in the firm’s storage room, facing Mabel with utter trepidation, beads of sweat all over his shirt. "Nothing happened." Mabel answers, her voice also an embodiment of fear and care and uncertainty. "Nothing happened,” she repeats, trying to convince herself. "But Magnus he's our -- how -- " "I don't know," Mason replies. "I ran out immediately he mentioned you. I -- I couldn't take it." "We have to go back,” Mabel says. "together." Later that day at Magnus' house, he narrated to them how he had lost his wife two years after Mason was born, and how it drove him crazy, making him an alcohol addict who couldn't keep his job, eventually having to put both his babies up for adoption. “You both haven’t changed a bit,” he said. And when he brought out the photo album it seemed true. They were all on the brink of tears as Mabel mentioned how happy they looked and how beautiful their mother was. But then Mason made an observation that could change everything: little baby Mabel had two round, dark-red birthmarks just below her jaw. Adult Mabel did not. Was this hope after all?

SteemShort #7 - Post 2: Request for the Middle Part of the Story

SteemShort are short stories written collaboratively by three differents authors and illustrated by an artist/photographer.
The process to create a SteemShort is described in this post, slightly modified bin this post. The rules to select the authors and illustrators have been modified in this post.

The first part has been written by @ablaze and can be found below.

This is the request for the middle part of the seventh SteemShort.

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Authors that want to write this middle part should send 0.001 STEEM or SBD to the @steemshorts account, with their proposed summary in a memo starting with the character '#'.

This summary must be between 100 to 200 words. Any proposed summary that is shorter than 100 words or longer than 200 words will not be considered.

It is important that the memo starts with the character '#': that makes this memo readable only by the author and the @steemshorts account.

Example of the beginning of a valid memo:

# It was a dark and stormy night ...

Note that it is recommended to send the 0.001 SBD/STEEM with the memo from steemit.com using a web browser, as we have seen several cases of "Invalid memo" when it was sent using an app such as eSteem.

There can be only one proposed summary per author. The proposed summaries must be received in less than 3 days after thist post.

After sending their summary, authors should tell in a comment that they have sent their summary, so that they can received confirmation that their summary is valid and they can be easily contacted if they are the chosen author.

After 3 days, all the valid summaries will be communicated anonymously to the 3 members of the SteemShorts jury, and they will decide which author will be chosen.

The chosen author will then be instructed how to submit their full constribution. The full contribution need to be between 500 and 1,500 words.
Once the full contribution of the chosen author will be received, another post with this full contribution will request proposals for the last part of the story.

All authors need to agree for a "Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike" (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode).

No title for the short story should be suggested. When the full text of the full story will be known, the three different authors will propose a title.

Rewards for each part of the story are half of total SBD payout, minus the jury fee of 15 SBD.

So, writers, send your summary proposals with 0.001 STEEM or SBD to the @steemshorts account.

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Here is the first part of the story, written by @ablaze:

Growing up in Millville, Kentucky was difficult for Mason. He was different. While his classmates were outside pretending to be the latest sports star, Mason would be inside reading Dickens, Hemingway and Dostoyevsky. He had a brilliant mind and it craved constant expansion. What could he learn from sports that he did not already know, he pondered one day in the yard? That was the last day he bothered with sports.

To be different at twenty years of age is considered quirky. However, to be different at eight years of age is quite a cross to bear. Mason was often the brunt of jokes, but he was much too clever for the bullies. Eventually, they left him alone as they were always made look extremely foolish by his razor-sharp responses. It wasn't that he lacked social skills. It was just that he knew what he wanted to do and had no qualms about doing it, regardless of what others might think. He carried this precociousness through childhood and into adolescence.

Mason felt that his parents never really understood him. When he learned at the age of four that he was adopted it all made sense to him. Of course, they don't understand me, he thought to himself as he came to terms with the news. He knew though that they loved him more than anything in this world. This is why, for once, he obeyed his moral compass and ignored his innate curiosity. He never sought out his birth parents. He felt that it would be a betrayal, especially to his Mum - he had made his decision that day and never gave it another thought as the years went by.

After high school, Mason received a scholarship to Harvard Law School. He scored the maximum 180 points on the Law School Admission Test. Having lived in a cocoon for many years in Millville, a butterfly was born at Harvard. He went from a town famous for its horseshoes and the "Hillbilly Daze Festival" to the city of Boston, where he spread his wings and felt truly appreciated for the first time in his life. The transformation was profound.

Mason excelled as he rubbed shoulders with like-minded people from the four corners of America and beyond. He had found his niche. He was blessed with a photographic memory that drove him. He needed only to read something once, and could recall it verbatim. This made the coursework a walk in the park for him. He would often challenge lecturers on incorrect information or argue a point until they had to come around to his way of thinking. At first, they disliked him for it but they soon realized they had a genius in their midst. College life was also fun for Mason with the usual nights out and fleeting romances. None lasted more than a month though as Mason was obsessed with learning.

When his third-year placement came around, it was not so much a case of Mason looking for a Law Firm but rather the big five law firms in Boston trying to attract Mason. Even at his young age, it was clear to see he was a future Supreme Court judge in the making. He could make a lot of money for one of these firms on his journey to the top. That was certain. Mason would make it to the top. His intellect, sharpness and ability to think outside the box was a rarity, and value increases with rarity.

In the end, Mason chose Jones and Maguire LLP for his placement. He went home to Millville for a weekend and told his parents the news about the placement. He could tell that his mother was about to burst with pride. After dinner, she brought him to a tailor and spent two-thirds of her meager savings on two new suits for the big job.

"You've got to look the part Mason", she said

"You know what I think about ties Mum!" he responded with an awkward smile.

"You can't climb the ladder of success dressed in the costume of failure Mason!"

"Ah Mum, give it a rest. Have you been reading those self-help books again?" He chortled.

She smiled at her son with his cheeky little face. It was the very same as the day she first set eyes on him.

"Come on, let's get home to see your Dad before you go", she told him.

Monday morning arrived and Mason begrudgingly put on one of the new suits. He had to admit though, he did look smart. He felt ready. He arrived at the offices of Jones and Maguire at 7:45 am. He waited in the reception area with the other interns. He made some small talk about the weather and then time stood still.

Perfectly still. No sound. Then there was nothing but sheer elation.

"Mason, Mason, Mason....", a well-dressed man said as walked towards him.

Mason snapped out of the daze he had been in.

"Come on, it's time for your induction", the man said.

They walked down the corridor to a small conference room. Mason was short of breath but he managed to keep it together. The eight interns all sat down. A tall man in his early forties introduced himself and gave the quick history lesson on the firm. He then introduced their mentor:

"This is Mabel, she will be your mentor for your summer work experience. If you have any queries, she is your girl"

Yes, she is my girl, Mason thought. The room was spinning again. Mason did not know what was happening but as Mabel began to speak, her soft sentences washed over him like a warm blanket. He hung on her every word. Over the following days, Mason and Mabel quickly struck up a close friendship. They had lunch together and often left work together in the evenings. They had so much in common. Their sense of humour was perfectly aligned and it was clear to see that there was serious chemistry between them.

It was the Friday of the second week and, as per tradition, there was a big night out planned for the interns. They all went for dinner at a Sushi bar in the city. There were a few revellers who stayed out and went to the bar next door and most of those ended up at a nightclub until the early hours. Mason and Mabel were among the late nighters.

The next morning Mabel woke up startled. Where was she and whose bed was she in? She thought. She could smell the freshly brewed coffee and crisp bacon. She got up and followed the smell downstairs. She walked into the kitchen and Mason smiled awkwardly.

"Good morning", he said.

"Ahh, hey... about last night, umm, did anything.... umm happen?" she responded uncomfortably.

"Oh thank god! That makes two of us! I had a complete blackout as well. Those bloody Jagerbombs!"

They both laughed it off and had some breakfast. Their friendship continued to blossom over the coming days and weeks. For the first time in his life, learning was secondary, unless it was learning about Mabel. Mason was infatuated with her and knew for sure that he was madly in love. However, he felt he didn't know for sure if his feelings were reciprocated. They spent a lot of time together after work and had some really deep conversations. It turned out that they were both adopted. Mabel told him about seeking out her birth parents and all about meeting her birth Dad when she was twenty-two. It was a life-changing experience for her. She finally knew something more about where she had come from. Her insatiable curiosity had demanded it.

"I released so much angst and frustration that day, and Magnus has turned out to be an amazing man. I have accepted why he had to abandon me and I see him at least once a week now." Mabel explained.

Her eyes lit up the room when she talked about him and Mason listened in silent reverie. For the first time in over twenty years, Mason thought about his own birth parents. Over the next few evenings, he opened up to Mabel about why he chose to never find out who his birth parents were.

"It would break my mother's heart in two if I decided to seek them out," he said

"Are you sure Mason? Did you ever ask her?" Mabel questioned.

Mason thought about this and his brow furrowed. He had assumed it all these years, but maybe Mabel was right, maybe she would be happy for him?

The day arrived three weeks later. Finding his dad had proved surprisingly simple. His mum had helped and wept tears of joy that he was finally going to find out after all these years in the dark.

He knocked on the big Oak door. A tall wide-shouldered man welcomed him through the door. The man smiled awkwardly and Mason smiled back.

"Mr. M. Crawford?" Mason asked.

They embraced.

"Call me Magnus"

No, it couldn't be...

Tears rolled down Magnus's face as he explained to Mason the intricacies of why he had to give him up for adoption all those years ago.

Time stood still.

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