Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket Thanks: Eks for the banner, my wonderful beta's Los and Helen, and our readers for their unwavering support. AN: This chapter is very long by the standerds of this story I don't know why it just happened. Later Brian’s POV I lay curled up with Justin and think about how fast things are moving. God I’m so scared, not that I don’t want this because believe me I do but this is actually everything I have always told myself that I never wanted. I don’t know what to do about it, I’m scared that this will all end and it will be the worst thing that has ever happened to me but I’m also worried that my parents were right and I don’t deserve this. “Brian, stop thinking so much and go to sleep; we will deal with it all tomorrow.” Justin says while placing a kiss on my neck. Two Weeks Later I look over at Justin and I can’t believe that we are really here, that this is really happening. He doesn’t look at me, he just keeps staring straight ahead at the doors to the courtroom but he obviously feels my eyes on him because he reaches over and laces his hand through mine. We are both terrified at what today will bring. The last couple of weeks have been busy as hell with dealing with combining our lives and looking for a place that will be ours and as well as dealing with the baby stuff, court stuff, and stuff to make sure Shane is a part of our past. There has been no movement from Shane and the doctor says the baby is doing great and here we are at the day of reckoning about custody of Gus. I know Justin still doesn’t feel confident that I will get even joint custody but I can’t help it; somehow I know that this will be in my favor. “It’s time to go in.” My lawyer announces and then puts a hand on my shoulder, lending his support. We go up to the table and Justin sits right behind me and I wish immediately that he was sitting right beside me. I look over at Lindsay and Melanie on the other side and I can’t believe that it has actually come to this but when Melanie glares at me and I get an icy stare from Lindsay, I’m reminded why we couldn’t come to a compromise about Gus. “All rise, the honorable Judge Jake Mathews presiding.” “Be seated. Alright, I have gone over all the papers in this case which is a custody dispute between the biological father Brian Kinney and the biological mother Lindsay Peterson of the minor child Gus Peterson Kinney. Also in attendance is Melanie Marcus, the partner of the Ms. Peterson. Is that all correct?” “Yes sir.” Both the lawyers jump up immediately. “I see here that some of the concerns mentioned center around Mr. Kinney’s partner, one Justin Taylor, but he doesn’t seem to be here. Why is that Mr. Kinney?” The judge questions, looking right at me. “He is here, sir.” I answer motioning to Justin and Justin stands up to make his presence known. “Well, why isn’t he up here at your side just like Ms. Marcus is for Ms. Peterson?” “Because he is nothing like Melanie is, he’s just a trick. I don’t even know why he’s here. He’s the reason that Brian’s doing this in the first place.” Lindsay says haughtily. “Do not speak out of turn Ms. Peterson or I will hold you in contempt. Do you understand?” The judge says, glaring at Lindsay while both Melanie and their lawyer are both trying to get her to shut up as well. “Okay, I will now hear opening statements.” The judge says and we all look over to the girls’ lawyer wondering what they are going to use to rip me apart. “Your honor, this is a very simple case, my clients asked Mr. Kinney for a favor seeing as they couldn’t have a child without help from a man and he agreed with the stipulation that he would have nothing to do with the child after his initial contribution. Now because he wishes to further his control of my client’s lives, he is trying to get you to give him custody of a child he has no real interest in. I will show that not only does he have no real interest in the minor child but also that his life and that of his partner Mr. Taylor is not only a detriment to a child but is also extremely dangerous. To the point that Mr. Taylor’s daughter, whom she was about to get taken from him, has been killed by the actions of an ex-boyfriend of his. My clients are asking that you make it so that Mr. Kinney and Mr. Taylor will not be able to see the minor for fear of what interaction with them could do to the child.” I was seriously prepared to hear all that. I swear I was; but really hearing it, really watching as Lindsay allows someone to tear into me, well not only does she do nothing about it but to know that she fed him this stuff to say, is heart wrenching. I know now that my lawyer will fight dirty as well because I gave him the ammo to do it but told him he was only to use it if they did it first and they have, so now every little thing will be aired out in public. I hope they realize that just because I have always protected them doesn’t mean I’ll continue to do so, it all ends now. “Your honor, Mr. Kinney and Mr. Taylor do not deny a past that they share with Ms. Peterson and Ms. Marcus and they also don’t deny that they have a more recent past than Ms. Peterson and Marcus, but that it is in fact the past, that is the point here. As for the fact that Brian wasn’t interested in having children, he concedes that this is also a fact but that his views changed when his son was a reality. It is also a fact that since Gus, the child in question, was born he has played a role in his life and acts as a father to him. What’s more, he also supplies money to Ms. Peterson and Ms. Marcus far in excess of what it takes to raise a child. I will prove that, unlike what my opponent said about this being a way for Brian to control Gus’ mother, this situation is actually the exact opposite. When Mr. Taylor entered Mr. Kinney’s life, Ms. Peterson became jealous and tried to use Gus as a way to break up Mr. Kinney and Mr. Taylor’s relationship, which they actually allowed for a while because Brian didn’t want to be refused access to his son. Mr. Kinney is asking for at least joint custody, although he is now leaning towards full, after the stunts that Ms. Peterson and Ms. Marcus have been pulling lately.” I listen to the words I knew were coming but still I’m surprised at how much it hurts to be here and listening to this. I hate that it’s come to this but I can’t lose Gus or Justin. The judge tells the girls’ lawyer to make his case and I wonder if he will just call up the girls or if they are going to use other people to rip me to shreds as well. “I call Debra Novotny to the stand.” Well fuck me, is all I can think as I watch my mom, for all intents and purposes, walk up to the stand and notices that she doesn’t look at me. Fuck, she is going to fry me. Shit, I don’t know if I can deal with it if she rakes me over the coals. I sit completely still as Deb is sworn in and the girls’ lawyer approaches her. “Mrs. Novotny, you know all four of the people involved in this court case, is that correct?” “No, I know all five of them, the girls, Brian, Sunshine, and Gus as well.” Debbie stated in her brash way that was good at making grown men feel about five years old. “Yes of course, five and you also know what we are here for today right? Because Mr. Kinney wants to take Gus away from his mothers. Ma’am, do you believe this is right?” “No, of course I don’t think it’s right to take a child from his mother unless there’s a very good reason for it,” I feel sick to my stomach listening to her and the girls’ lawyer looks satisfied but Deb doesn’t seem to be finished. “But I don’t think that’s what is going on here today.” “So you believe as Ms. Peterson and Ms. Marcus do, that Brian is only doing this to control them and not for sake of the child?” The lawyer questioned. “Oh no, as much as Brian likes to control things, that’s not what this is about.” “Okay then, what do you think this is about?” The lawyer asked, clearly exasperated that he wasn’t getting the answers that he was looking for. Debbie wasn’t saying anything really, one way or the other, which I think is strange considering it’s Deb and she is nothing if not blunt. “I’m not really sure; none off them are being all that forthcoming, sorry.” Deb answered though she didn’t sound very sorry. I wonder what her plan is here because I can tell just by the way she’s talking that she has made up her mind as to what she is going to say. I just can’t tell if it’s going to be good or bad, “Okay, well, you have known Mr. Kinney for a long time, haven’t you?” “Yes, since he was a teenager, he’s best friends with my son, Michael.” “So, does he know how to care for a child twenty-four seven, which is what he would have to do if granted custody?” “No, I don’t think he would…” Debbie was cut off by the lawyer, “Thank you very much, so why…” “You didn’t let me finish; no I don’t think he will know but he would learn just like any other parent,” “That’s all Mrs. Novotny,” the lawyer interrupted her again and you can tell she was pissed but she quieted down. I can see whatever Deb was about to say would be important and I see Justin lean over and nudge my lawyer, when he leans towards him, I hear Justin whisper to him to ask her that when he’s up there and he nods. The girls’ lawyer continues to try to get Deb to hurt me in some way and while she is honest with what she said, she is indicating that she wasn’t sure what the right answer was but that both the girls and I are good parents. Then it’s my lawyer’s turn with Deb. “Good afternoon Mrs. Novotny,” my lawyer addresses Deb and she smiles and nods at him. “Now I would like to revisit a question my opponent asked you, if I could. Talking about how you think Brian will be as a twenty-four seven kind of father, seeing as he has no experience.” “Well, as I was trying to say before, you don’t know how to take care of a child twenty-four seven until you have to do it. Raising children doesn’t come with a manual but Brian loves Gus so if that happened, he’d learn like everyone else.” Deb finished. My lawyer went through a couple more questions and got similar responses as well. Debbie didn’t quite understand what we were fighting about but she voiced her opinion that we should be able to share custody of Gus because she felt he was the one that would suffer here either way. All the members of the gang are called and have similar thoughts, although some are more against me and some are more for me than Deb. Basically they all thought we should be able to work this out so all of us could see Gus and while I had no problem with that, it was apparent that this distresses Lindsay and angers Mel. “I call Mrs. Joan Kinney to the stand.” the opposing lawyer states and my whole body clenched and I murmur ‘shit!’. I watch as my mother headed up to the stand with a glare in my direction as she did and I knew I was fucked. As she sat down I closed my eyes and tried to hold in the tears I felt welling, I knew her being up there would probably mean I would lose my son. Even though I should expect nothing of her after my childhood, I felt like crying at what I knew would be her betrayal. I feel Justin’s hand on my back offering me the comfort that only he can give and I try to calm myself. “Mrs. Kinney, we are here today because your son is trying to take his son away from his mothers, how do you feel about that?” the lawyer asked with glee in his eyes and I looked over that Lindsay and Melanie with a look that I know anyone could read as pain and betrayal. “My son should never have a child; he is the most selfish person I have ever known. And I have no idea why he is doing that because it can’t be that he wants this child because no one even knows that he has one. I mean, if he loved his son, why wouldn’t he tell people he had one? I don’t know what he is trying to pull off here but you can bet it has nothing to do with that child. My son is a sinner and he is going to hell and I would hope the court wouldn’t subject a child to that.” she answered in an ice cold voice. The lawyer was gleeful as he kept asking her questions and she kept running me into the ground. My lawyer sat beside me and was scribbling furiously about what she was saying. Every once in a while, either myself or Justin would also tell him quietly, things to counter what she was saying but everything she is saying was so bad I didn’t see anything that could be said or fixed. After about twenty minutes the lawyer rested and my mother had ripped me apart for the entire world to see. I looked over at the girls and Mel looked like she was in extreme pleasure and Lindsay looked a little cringing but she had made no move to stop it and I knew I would never forgive her for this. “Hello Mrs. Kinney. You seem to have a lot of bad feelings for your son, when do you think those started?” my lawyer asked as he walked up to my mother and I glare at his back, not sure what he is getting at. “Ever since he was a little boy he has had a superior attitude. It’s extremely offensive and even in the good Catholic home he grew up in; he was never a good boy.” Joanie sneered. “Is that your excuse for the continual physical abuse that Brian was subjected to in your home? Abuse that you were present for but did nothing to stop?” my lawyer shot back. “I don’t know what you are referring to.” my mother said while stiffening her whole body. “Really, you don’t know about dozens of hospital visits as well as social service calls?” “You don’t know what you are talking about; Brian was always trying to get attention. The only time that Jack laid a hand on him was in discipline; the other injuries were from sports and he was a trouble maker and constantly got into fights.” she lied in her holier than thou way. “Really? So why if these were sports injuries and fights was Mrs. Novotny the person who brought him to the hospital more times than not?” my lawyer asked, not letting up. “Because she is a meddler and she wished Brian was her kid cause her son is a little weakling, so she brought him to the hospital even when he didn’t need it.” she says, raising my anger at her harsh words about Debbie. This continued for a while with her trying to make me out to be the bad guy but by the look on the judge’s face I could tell she wasn’t selling her story to him. And finally there was one last question and I watched my lawyer go in for the kill. “So you said that Brian never told you about his son, did you realize then that both the women on the other side of the room are his son’s mothers?” “What?” my mother asked looking confused. “Ms. Peterson and Ms. Marcus are lesbians and they are your grandson’s mothers.” he informed her with pleasure. “What? Oh God, that poor child, you have to take him away from all of those Godless people. I can’t believe that Brian would stoop so low as to bring a child into that sort of environment. You have to take that child away, they are going to hell.” she screeched, rambling on and on about how the girls were going to hell and that they needed God and that someone needed to take Gus away from them. Finally after a couple more minutes of her ranting, the judge and the bailiff are able to get my mother off the stand and out of the court room. And then the girl’s lawyer calls Mel to the stand. I’m listening to her up there going through every story that she knows about me that would make me look bad. I wish I was surprised with how callously she is cutting me down and making every single event in the whole gangs’ life my fault but I’m not and I already went over all this stuff with my lawyer so I know he has rebuttals for all the things she is saying. “Hello Ms. Marcus,” my lawyer said as he walked up to Mel, as always polite if you don’t look at the shark like look in his eyes. Within minutes he was tearing through the stories that she told, making sure both sides of them were heard by the judge. He wasn’t taking the blame off of me because I take responsibility for my actions; he was just showing that the girls weren’t as lily white as they would like to come across as. Soon he was done with Mel and the judge called a break before it was time for Lindsay to testify and I can tell, just by looking at the other side, that they are not happy with the way things are going. I know they wanted me to look like a demon to them as angels but I wasn’t about to let them get away with that like they always have, not when it comes to my son and my relationship with Justin. About forty-five minutes later we are sitting back down at the table and waiting for the judge to come back into the court room and I know Justin is worried about me, but I just can’t help how freaked out I am. To hear everyone else was hard but I know Lindsay is only going to be saying bad things about me like Mel and her betrayal will hurt the worst. Fuck Mel and my mother, Lindsay is someone I have loved for a long time and she is supposed to be one of my best friends, even though she doesn’t act like it a lot. But I know now she is going to be ripping me to shreds and I don’t know how I’m going to be able to deal with that. “It’s going to be alright, you’ll see. Don’t worry about her, if she is any kind of friend to you she won’t say anything bad and if she does, she isn’t your friend. But don’t worry because you still have me and obviously the rest of the gang doesn’t share their opinions. Hell, even Ted didn’t have anything bad to say about you really.” Justin assured me quietly. “I know, I was shocked as hell.” I laugh a little at that. Within minutes, the judge walks in and Lindsay is called to the stand. As she is answering her lawyer’s questionings and making me out to be a monster just like Melanie did before her, I feel Justin’s hand creep onto my back and he starts rubbing soothing circles on it in an effort to calm me and give me support. Their lawyer spends his time trying to get all the dirt on me and why she doesn’t want me to see Gus; and Lindsay has more stories because she has known me longer than Melanie has. I can see the look on her face and I know she is at least uncomfortable doing this but it makes no real difference because she does it none the less. I stare at her hard the entire time she is testifying and I know it is making her uneasy because after catching my eye a couple of times she refuses to look in my direction, so I keep doing it knowing she can feel my gaze. And then once again it is my lawyer’s turn. “Hello Ms. Peterson. Now, you have stated that you don’t want Brian to have contact with Gus for many reasons, one being his recreational drug use, is that correct?” “Yes, we don’t think that is the right thing to expose our son to.” “But isn’t it true that his recreational drug use was more prominent before you asked him to father your child? So much so that you could not say that he even uses now?” “Well, we saw it more before our son was born but just because we aren’t there to see it anymore doesn’t mean he has stopped using.” Lindsay replied haughtily. “So I guess it would surprise you to know that I have a drug test that was administered to both Mr. Kinney and Mr. Taylor yesterday that came back negative for any drugs?” he pressed. “I umm, really? Well, umm,” Lindsay stammered, not knowing how to respond to that. “So if you were given the same test Ms. Peterson, would you or Ms. Marcus come out clean as well, for everything, including marijuana?” “I…well…you see…umm,” Lindsay mumbled again. “Shall I take that as a no Ms. Peterson? So what environment isn’t good for Gus, seeing as you have him in your home and you’re doing drugs.” he pauses for a moment but Lindsay seems to have no reply for that, so he pushes on. “Now I can’t help but wonder why, if you have such a problem with Brian and the negative influence that you think he will be on Gus, you tried several times to make an agreement with him that if he stopped seeing Mr. Taylor you would give him as much access to Gus as he would like, to the point where they actually tried separating so that Brian would be able to see Gus. Can you explain that Ms. Peterson?” “Well, umm…” Lindsay pauses and you can see she doesn’t want to answer the question by the way her eyes are darting around to Melanie, her lawyer, and then the judge but when she sees no help coming, she continues. “Justin is a bad influence and his life is dangerous. So much so, that his own daughter was killed just recently by a disgruntled ex or something.” “Isn’t it true that you started making these demands on Brian before you knew anything about Justin other than his name?” my lawyer questions again, ignoring her damning words. “Well yes, but that was for an entirely different reason.” Lindsay answers, trying to dig herself out of the hole she’s in. “And what reason would that be Ms. Peterson?” he asks, not willing to let up on her. “Well, I didn’t want tricks around my son. It’s not good for him and he shouldn’t have to be exposed to that,” “But didn’t Brian tell you in that conversation that Mr. Taylor wasn’t a trick?” he pressed. “Well yes, but he couldn’t have been serious.” she answers in defiance. “So Mr. Kinney has said the same about many men before and that leads you to doubt his words?” “No never, so he can’t be serious about Justin. He doesn’t believe in love or relationships, the only person he has ever gone out with is me.” Lindsay answers in a huff, not realizing she had just given my lawyer the ammo he needed. “He dated you? When?” “It was in college and we both made a try at being straight but it didn’t work, not because we don’t love each other but because we are both gay.” She answers happily. I sneak a glance at Mel who is glaring at Lindsay so hard that it looks like she’ll stare a hole through her but Lindsay doesn’t seem to notice because she is basking in talking about us. “So you don’t think he loves Justin because he loves you like you love him but you can’t be together because you’re gay and that’s why you have to do this, to get rid of Justin?” my lawyer asks, hoping to sneak the real question by her. “Yes of course, he needs to go. Brian is mi…” she starts but she is cut off by Melanie who stands up screaming. “Shut up you stupid bitch, do you have any idea what you just did? Of course it all comes back to that asshole, God I wish he would just die. I fucking…” “Enough Ms. Marcus, one more out burst and I’m finding you in contempt of court.” The judge growls, cutting Melanie off. My lawyer quickly wraps things up because truthfully both Lindsay and Melanie have fried themselves and don’t need anymore help from us. I know now that if we can get through Justin’s and my testimony without too much trouble, that we are looking good. My lawyer calls up Justin and I know that all the bad things that could be said he is going to go after first, so that it doesn’t seem we have anything to hide and that we can put the spin we want on the stories. On the stand they go over how Jamie came to be and the relationship that he had with Daphne. They also talked about Daphne wanting to get into a relationship and that the other guy was going to be her dad and that although he wasn’t pleased about it and it hurt him; he was going to try to go along with it for Jamie and Daphne’s sakes. They also went into Shane and what happened to Jamie at his hands. Everyone in the court room could tell that Justin was trying not to cry and I wanted nothing more than to go up there and put my arms around him. Justin has been trying so hard to keep a tight lease on his emotions about Jamie, to the point that at sometimes he seems cold about it. I know that it isn’t good for him to bottle up his emotions but how do you deal with your child dying. I don’t know and that makes it so I have no idea how to help Justin but I know that I have to. Now if only he can get through talking about it without breaking down. Finally it’s the girls’ lawyer’s turn with Justin and I’m more afraid for Justin’s mental state because whereas my lawyer was pretty easy when talking to Justin about Jamie’s death, I know that opposing counsel will not be nice about it. Jamie’s death is a huge thing and they are going to push it as Justin’s fault and although my lawyer warned him, it’s different than actually having someone do it. “So Mr. Taylor, you spent a lot of time talking about your daughter and her death at the hands of an ex who is still at large. What makes you think the court should give Gus to Brian when the boy will be exposed to you and the danger that your life obviously is, as it already killed your daughter?” the girl’s lawyer sneered at Justin. Justin spent a lot of time defending himself and explaining, as was the strategy, that he was not responsible for Shane’s actions and that as soon as the police found Shane, he would be going to jail. The lawyer wouldn’t let up and everyone could tell he feared losing his case because he was getting nasty with Justin. The man was starting to piss me off and a couple of times I wanted to jump out of my chair and scream at him but my lawyer grabbed my arm. After a particularly nasty remark, not even my lawyer’s hand would have stopped me but before I could move to stand up, the judge was talking. “Enough with this line of questioning, if you don’t have anything new to say, dismiss your witness.” He growled. He dismissed Justin and now it’s my turn. As I walk to the stand, I can see both the girls’ eyes on me and when I sit down, I catch sight of Mel’s glare and Lindsay’s eyes filled with tears that she manages to keep from slipping down her face. “Hello Brian. My first question for you is why are you here? Why have you brought this custody suit against the mothers’ of your son?” “Well, when Lindsay came to me about having a child, I didn’t want to have one because of the way my father was and I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to be a good father. But as soon as he was born I loved him and vowed to do whatever I had to, to make him happy and make sure he knows that he is loved. Melanie had a problem with me not signing over my rights but it was dealt with and it was going okay until I started dating Justin. As soon as Lindsay heard that I was dating someone, she had a fit and told me if I wanted to see Gus I had to drop Justin and although I didn’t really want to do it, I didn’t want to lose Gus and Justin refused to be responsible for me not having my son.” I continued to tell all about my problems with the girls and all the things that have happened. My lawyer asks me about partying, tricking, and drug and I’m completely honest with him about the fact that until recently it was a big part of my life but now it’s a thing of the past because of Justin, Gus, and the baby. Finally it’s the girls’ lawyer’s turn and although he tried to make me out to be the bad guy, we had laid the ground work so well there was really nothing he could do but reiterate what was already said and then it was over. I was dismissed from the stand and the judge left to make his decision saying we were to be back in his court room in the morning for his ruling. The Next Morning All of us are back in the court room waiting for the judge to tell us his decision and I’m holding Justin’s hand lending support and receiving it as well. I look over at the girls and they look like they have had about as much sleep as Justin and I. Justin and I were up almost all night trying to prepare ourselves either way and just being there for each other. We once again talked and planned what to do and it was close to dawn before we finally fell asleep; we made love slowly, expressing all we could to each other through our bodies. “Okay, this is a very complicated case because when the child was conceived, it was with an agreement that he would be the child of Lindsay and Melanie. Right there my first thought would be to honor their request because the father wanted nothing to do with the child.” The judge says and I want to scream at how fucked I am. “The problem with that is, that even before the child was born, Ms. Peterson was making Mr. Kinney involved with the child by making him pay for things and go to appointments with her and for whatever reason, he did it.” the judge continued and I watched as Mel’s face grew red with anger and Lindsay’s paled. “Also from the moment that Gus was born, Mr. Kinney expressed that he wanted to be involved and even kept his parental rights. Mr. Kinney has also been paying for Gus, far more then he should of, but we’ll get to that later.” He said, sending a dry look at the girls. “There also is the worry about this guy Shane but as they have pointed out, they can’t be held responsible for the actions of someone they have cut out of their lives.” The judge says and I can see the girls get more agitated. “I had to take into account the reasoning that Ms. Peterson gave for her need to get Mr. Taylor out of Mr. Kinney’s life as well.” He says, reminding the girls of Lindsay’s out burst about us loving each other. “So I have to ask a question of you. Mr. Kinney’s first thought was joint custody, how do you feel about Gus living in your home but Mr. Kinney having visitation rights a couple days a week?” The judge asks and I feel relief that we are both winning and with visitation rights, they can’t stop me from seeing Gus but Melanie doesn’t seem to see it that way. “I don’t want that asshole around my son, much less in my home.” Melanie growls, once again losing control of her temper. “Okay, well then, I guess I will have to go with my other option.” The judge says and looks down at his notes, scribbling something and I fear that Mel just fucked up my chances with Gus and I want to cry. “Okay, so I’m awarding joint custody and physical custody goes to Mr. Kinney with visitation rights for Lindsay for every other weekend and one day a week; any more to be agreed upon by Mr. Kinney.” “What the fuck? You can’t do that…” “No, please. I want my baby. I…” “Enough ladies, that is my decision and no more outbursts Ms. Marcus or you will be in contempt, I promise you.” The judge went over the rest of his instructions but I didn’t hear a word after his orders for the girls to surrender Gus to me before five o’clock tonight. I was overjoyed and I had my son and my lover and no one could take them away from me again.