The Bachelors: a tiktok story

134: The Trial Begins

The next morning you arrived at court bright and early. Nessa hadn't come home the night before so your nerves over whether you would be carpooling were settled at least. It didn't do much for calming the anxiety about where she was spending so many nights though. She'd told you before that she was going out with Vinnie, but when you questioned Bryce about it, he didn't know how things worked out with the two of them. There were just so many unanswered questions with Nessa and it made your head a cloud of uncertainty.

That uneasy feeling only amplified when she walked in and sat next to you at the table. She barely looked like herself. Still beautiful but a more tame version. You turned to look at Emma for reassurance that everything would be okay and saw that Bryce, Chase, Jaden, and your mother had all arrived and were sitting next to her in the gallery.

The doors opened and 2 girls about your age walked in. The first one was pretty but looked angry at the world. Not that you could blame the expression if she'd been through anything close to what you had.. The other was beautiful and even though she looked like she'd been through things no one so young should have, it was still obvious that she couldn't be a day over 18. You didn't have a clue who they were but could tell by the blank look on their face what they were here for.

The prosecutor walked up, proving you right as he introduced you:
"This is Nessa, Madi, and Lauren. You are all going to sit here at this table next to me and Mr. Beck will sit over there-"

Madi looked like she was going to be sick:
"He's going to be here?"

Prosecutor: "Yes, he will but he won't be allowed to speak to you. He is going to sit at that table over there."

Your phone vibrated with a text from Chase asking about the other girls and you quickly tried to explain but didn't want to give out too much information. Before you could hit send, the prosecutor side-eyed you and warned:

"No phones allowed while in the courtroom."

You gulped as you put the phone away in your purse wishing more than anything that you could crawl in there with it. 

Everyone was still waiting for the judge when the doors behind you opened again. It was Josh walking in but before you could settle on how that made you feel, Nessa turned and waved to him. He smiled across at her then looked to you. Your nerves got the best of you so you quickly looked away. As you tried to play it cool, you heard Nessa say, under her breath:
"I knew he'd come."

You: "You told him?"

Nessa: "It wasn't me, I swear."

You: "Then how did you know he would be here?"

Nessa smiled:
"I just knew."

You: "So much for you're not interested hmm-"

You were interrupted by the side doors to the courtroom opening and Noah being led in, handcuffed. He looked tired and a little thinner but not at all like the last few weeks had phased him in the slightest. It made your blood boil because everything that had gone down with you and in your life over the last month had been a direct result of the awful thing he'd done to you.

You looked next to you and Nessa's previously happy demeanor suddenly melted away into a trembling shell of a girl that honestly looked as though she might wet herself. Instinctively, you reached across the table and grasped her hand. She squeezed it tight as she tried to mimic your relaxed breathing pace. For the first time in- Well ever- You saw a glimpse of the girl that you'd imagined Josh must have fallen in love with.

Jail hadn't seemed to phase Noah who still carried a megawatt smile and an attitude that made it clear he regretted nothing he'd ever done. He sat down at the table a few feet to your right and looked over at you with a smirk. Your imagination got the best of you as you played out a scenario in your head of him charging across the courtroom to drag you back down to the ground where he'd left you. You shook the visions away as you felt Nessa squeeze your hand back.

The prosecutor leaned over to say something to Lauren but you were too focused on Nessa and making sure she was matching your breathing still to actually hear his words. You looked back at Josh to see if he was still looking but he was nervously talking with your mom. Nessa finally looked up to make eye contact with you and shocked you by saying:
"He hasn't answered any of my calls in the last week. He's not here for me."

The entire courtroom was a chatter after Noah walked in. You couldn't make out anything specific being said though. None of it mattered anyway because the moment the judge entered the courtroom, a hush spread throughout the gallery. Everyone rose then sat back down as the judge announced:
"We are here for the pre-trial motions relating to The State vs Noah Timothy Beck. I will be making a decision today about whether there is enough evidence to warrant a full jury trial moving forward."

The prosecutor sitting next to you, stood up to begin his opening statements:
"I plan to give statements from the victims that will prove to the court that Mr. Beck is a serial offender who preys on young girls in our community. Four of those young ladies, bravely sit to my left. The evidence that will be discussed today that backs each of their statements is detailed in the packet I've provided the court. Thank you, your Honor."

The defense attorney had sleazy car salesman written all over his over-priced, ill-fitting suit and his lack of class was further proven by the way he stood to give his opening statement before the prosecutor had even finished. He cleared his throat, cutting off the tail end of the prosecutor's opening statement, and then smirked as he spoke:
"My client will take the stand to prove that he is a charming guy who dates a lot of young ladies, all consensually and the four liars over there are nothing more than exes scorned."

The prosecutor jumped to his feet:
"Your honor, objection!"

Judge: "Sustained. And you'd do well to watch how you speak about anyone in my courtroom moving forward, sir."

You turned towards the gallery and made immediate eye contact with Josh. You couldn't help but wonder if he believed Noah's stance on what happened. That you were a willing participant who just changed your mind after. He'd seemed to believe Nessa with her version of events the night he'd caught her in bed with Noah but the two of you had been at such odds lately, you were plagued with fear. What if he didn't believe in you because he didn't love you the way he clearly had loved her at one point. He smiled a comforting smile and it settled your stomach enough to turn back to the proceedings.

The defense attorney continued:
"I will end by calling character witnesses that will once and for all settle the question of the type of alleged victims the prosecutor has paraded in front of the court."

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