My take on some of the more extreme comments is that they come from fans who put Jake on a rather high pedestal, and whether they acknowledge it or not, transferred a lot of the fictional dynamic of Jack and Ennis's relationship to Heath and Jake, despite real life circumstances proving otherwise (the fact that both men are unquestionably heterosexual and have had many relationships with high profile actresses and models.) The chatter that pervaded the Jake fan threads from early in 2006 have traditionally been full of negative feedback for any woman that Jake dated, some with a not so subtle urging for him to "admit that he is in love with Heath." Not only was the fantasy illusion of some secret affair between Jake and Heath permanently shattered with Heath's death, but the consolation prize of having a public witness to Jake's grief - the grief of a lover rather than a friend - was also denied to fans.
Whether fans want to admit it or not, Jake's decision to keep his mourning private did contradict the fantasy narrative that has been built up for a couple of years now and fed a frenetic and heavily-trafficked RPS fan base. I never had so many squealing comments to anything I have written as I did for my RPS drabble series, which was in no way explicit... it has always been something of a mystery to me how deeply devoted RPS fans have been to the Jake-Heath fantasy.