Following Kole’s testimony, while they still waited on Crista and Sky to give theirs; Kole was outside leaning on the courthouse steps and pretending that a cigarette could calm his nerves. It was then that Connor returned from the nearby coffee shop and moved to lean back on the steps next to Kole as he took a sip of his newly purchased beverage.

“Hi?” Kole greeted him a little warily.

“Still barely recognize you with the black hair” Connor shook his head, then added, conversationally “you’re done with your testimony then?” Connor spoke quietly to Kole, though mostly watched the other people moving around them that day rather than the young man next to him.

“Yeah, for what it’s worth” Kole mumbled.

“Guess Crista and Sky haven’t went in yet?” Connor continued after a slight sigh.

“Not that I know of” Kole returned in the same small voice, still having a bit of difficulty looking at the father of not one but two of his current lovers; not to mention other secrets that Connor knew about Kole and those lovers.

Connor took a breath then spoke, “you know, Crista came to see me on Monday. She was a bit worried about you. Then this kid gets arrested the next day” he shook his head, “haven’t really gotten a chance to talk to Crista again since the subpoenas went out.”

It was then Kole who took a wary breath, “yeah, she said something to me on Monday about stealing my glove and giving it to you.”

Connor bit back a small smile, then finally cast Kole a look, “so the blood test was all her idea? Not yours?”

“Crista is apparently more worried about me than I am” Kole mumbled and took another drag.

“I assume you’re sleeping with her, as well as my daughter?” Connor couldn’t help asking then.

Kole paled slightly, coughing to clear some smoke from his throat, “and I thought I was done being asked uncomfortable questions for one day.”

“Well, if a girl is more worried about a boy than the boy himself is, it goes to reason” Connor shrugged with a sigh, “and there’s the whole soul-mate thing; so it seems pretty likely.”

Kole just shook his head, “are you wearing a wire? Will my trial be next?” Kole scoffed.

“I really doubt you have to worry about me wanting to bring any attention to any seventeen year old boys sleeping with Crista” Connor returned pointedly.

“So you’re just asking cause you’re curious then?” Kole asked warily.

“I do have an inquiring mind. Especially when it comes to the four of you. And the whole soul-mate thing” he added again.

“So, did my blood test say I was dying, or what?” Kole finally made himself bluntly ask.

“Ah, so he does care” Connor replied wryly.

Kole just scowled, “was that a yes or a no?”

“I didn’t see anything in your tests other than... what we already knew” Connor informed. Kole let out a slightly relieved breath then as he took another drag. Connor just gave him another worried look before continuing, “so why was it that you or at least Crista thought that something may be wrong with you?”

“We really wanna have this discussion right now?” Kole scoffed, averting his eyes.

“Got somewhere else to be?” Connor returned.

Kole then finally gave in to what little worry he did have buried in there, “I got a nosebleed Sunday night and Crista apparently panicked about it.”

Connor allowed another sigh as he appeared to be in thought a moment, “have you gotten nosebleeds before?”

“Not enough to remember any” Kole shook his head.

“And that was the only one you had since... being with Star” he settled on, not able to help the slight disapproval in his tone about that encounter, still.

“Yes, that’s the only one” Kole grumbled before taking another drag.

“It’s most likely nothing” Connor allowed, “but if you have any more, I want you to tell us, immediately” he told him firmly.

“Yes dad” Kole smirked.

“Please, no more incest rumors” Connor grumbled.

“Pardon?” Kole had to call him on that one.

“Previous life stuff” was Connor’s only answer.

Kole raised a brow then, “oh, if that’s all” Kole replied with a bit of cynicism.

On the way home from the courthouse after the hearing ended, Connor drove with Brie in the front seat next to him while Sky and Star sat in the backseat. Both adults as well as Sky looked rather somber as they started home at around one pm that Friday. Connor’s and Brie’s eyes seemed to be glued straight ahead the whole time. And Sky stared blankly out the back window of the passenger side, while Star took turns moving her eyes from her parents to the floor to Sky, waiting for anyone to break the silence in the car.

After the first several minutes of the silent drive home, Star had to finally speak, “it sounded like it is probably going to go to trial, which is good, right?” she asked. Receiving no response from any of her family, she continued, “and they didn’t really ask any of us about Crista at all. So that’s good too, right?”

Sky continued to stare at the passing scenery, his voice quiet and emotionless, “they’ll save that for the trial. Then use it to prove that we all have questionable moral and sexual codes and discredit anything we say about Curt at all” he stated the words as though they were already fact rather than speculation.

“That’s a rather bleak outlook” Star told him quietly, eyes down again as she waited for either parent to agree, though they said nothing.

“Doesn’t mean it’s wrong” was Sky’s simple response, eyes still watching the world passing by outside the window.

Star simply sighed in defeat and turned to look out her own window then. After several more moments, Brie’s high-strung nature finally got the better of her, as it often did, and she turned in the seat to look at Sky.

Sky ignored her questioning and rather worried look for another several seconds before letting out a deep breath and finally acknowledging her eyes on him, “yes?”

“Didn’t that day?” she asked with a bit of accusation in her voice, repeating the words from Sky’s testimony that she and Connor had been allowed to watch from another room as he was still a minor.

“I don’t believe that’s a full sentence” Sky mumbled.

“You didn’t deny what that horrible Sullivan man asked you” she told him pointedly.

“Considering I wasn’t the one on trial, yet” he had to add, “it wasn’t really relevant.”

“Sky, now they all think that..” she just shook her head.

“That I have a questionable moral and sexual code?” he returned sarcastically.

“Yes, so why didn’t you deny what he was implying?” she asked him with further frustration.

“I believe it was because I was under oath, mom” he scoffed.

“Sky... letting them think... Well, it’s definitely not gonna help you if you do have to testify again!” Brie retorted.

That was when Sky showed his own frustration as he just gave her a look of disbelief. “We’ve already explained this to you, but I guess I didn’t go into enough details. In our other lives me and Star had sex with dozens, yes, dozens of people. Men and women both. And it was willingly. So me lying isn’t gonna really change that. It may not have been the case in this life. But it’s still who we are. And it’d be really nice if I could get through one fucking life without trying to explain and justify it away to my parents or teachers or classmates or any other fucking person who thinks they know the truth! Is that too much to ask?” he finished angrily as Star sunk slightly into her seat then as well.

Brie took another shaky breath as she and Connor both tried to take in everything he had said during his outburst. Finally, Brie spoke again, “I understand that things happened to you in those other lives that make those facts make more sense; in those lives. But those lives aren’t this life. The one horrible thing that happened to you in this life was what you were in there talking about. So, you should have given the answers that pertain to only this life. In this life you aren’t out having sex with other boys; so letting them think that is still you, this version of you, in this life... that’s what I’m so upset about you doing” she attempted to explain.

Star finally spoke up again before Sky could retaliate, “whether or not Sky is straight isn’t going to change what Curt did to him. And you thinking it will, that’s just like what the lawyer was trying to do.”

Brie shook her head, “I’m not saying that his sexual orientation is responsible for what happened, but it’s obvious that’s what the lawyer and a lot of the jury might think too. So why let them think it at all when it’s not true... in this life?” she made herself add.

“Brie” Connor interrupted then, simply saying her name to try and quiet her.

“What? It’s true. If they think Sky is out having sex with other boys, they’re gonna be just like that lawyer and blame him. Why should we let them think something like that? It only hurts us.”

Connor sighed with his own frustration, “didn’t Sky just say that being interested in both men and women is who he is? Not who he was? So, yes, it’s obviously true that that is still who he is in this life too; in every life. And if he denied it, he’d be committing perjury. And that would hurt us too” he finished with another sad sigh.

“But he’s not. Not in this life!” Brie argued weakly.

“God mom, get it through your head” Sky exclaimed, “Star’s not the one who infected Kole. And that was in this fucking life” he added as he looked away angrily again as Brie looked more than shocked. Star just looked down in sadness and defeat. And Connor was just beyond uncomfortable, though somehow, less shocked than his wife.

There were several long moments of uncomfortable silence before Brie tried to talk herself into some sort of acceptance at last. But she still had to ask, “didn’t Kole move here after what Curt did to you?”

“Yes” Sky sniffled slightly.

“So even after that... you let Kole...” Brie just shook her head.

Sky let out another long breath, “mom, Star’s the one who helped me get through it emotionally; like she helps me get through everything else. But Kole’s the one who helped me get through it physically; by proving to me that it didn’t have to be horrible, and that it could be wonderful. He did that for me. So don’t even think about trying to turn this into something bad. I needed that help to get through, and that’s what he gave me; what no one else could have.”