This is Fire

A COURT CASE (14)

A COURT CASE

MAYA POV

Today is Mason's first day of court. I feel like I'm at war with myself. I know that what my dad said was out of order and I can see how lost Mason has been over the last few weeks. I've been hearing that Mason has been seeing Amelia a lot recently which I'm guessing it's to do with AA, which is good but I hate that he's in a position where he needs to talk to her. I wish he'd talk to me.

Entering the county court room, I was met with the obvious separation between my family. My mum wasn't anywhere to see which was expected. I wish she was more present in our lives but I don't blame her for wanting to leave this place.

I find myself sitting a few rows behind my brother on the cold wooden benches waiting for the inevitable to begin. The rows start to fill up around me with strangers.

"bambina" I hear a whisper and breath fanning my ear, turning I'm met with Carina, a small smile taking hostage on her face.

"What are you doing here?" I ask, surprised to see her.

"We're in a relationship which means we turn up to support each other." She states proudly, grabbing my hand and directing my focus towards the front of the court room as the judge takes his place.

Not long after the judge introduces the case, I found us leaving the court room. The trance I was in obviously had distracted me enough to

"Case 34 please come up" the judge announces. Mason and our dad moves towards their opposing stands, catching the attention of our bench. Carina's hand reaches for my thigh, something I needed for me to feel calm.

"will the defendant please stand" Mason stands and is sworn in. For a split second our eyes connect, sensing a connection I see my dad turn and smirks when my eyes travel to him. "Maya breathe" I hear my girlfriend whisper into my ear.

"The plaintiff Lane Bishop was assaulted on the 24th of June at 2:04pm after leaving your work of place. Did you see Mr Bishop in your respected workplace on that day?" My dad's lawyer starts to question.

"Yes" Mason bluntly answers.

"My understanding is that Mr Bishop is your father, is this correct" the lawyer, what a stupid question.

"Yes" Mason again answers in a blunt tone.

-

The rest of the court day continued in a blur; I could hardly grasp what was going on until my brother said the one thing that would instantly break me out of my comfortable trance.

"My sister went through a lot of the same experiences as me. She was abused like me, potentially worse if there's a spectrum for that sort of thing." He shouts as he points in my direction, and a glare is sent my way by my father.

Maybe I didn't recognise quite what was going on consciously, my legs just started moving and my adrenaline starting pumping in sync. It wasn't until I was outside that I acknowledged the weight of the words Mason had shared in court. I was overwhelmed, everyone now thinks I'm some type of victim who has been abused. I haven't been abused.

Slumped against a wooden bench outside, I finally have a chance to breath, feeling like I've ran a mile I give myself a chance to look around. Flowers, butterflies, bees, and dog walkers have populated the vicinity. Hearing light footsteps, and an ambrosial smell are two things I associate with the brunette beauty I call my girlfriend.

"Don't you think you could allow the possibility that your brother's experiences happened, even if they feel different to yours?" Carina asks after a few minutes of silence. "Can you recognise that?" the questions stump me.

"I get that he was strict, but he never hit us. Never anything like that" I defend my dad.

"Abuse doesn't always come in the form of hitting someone, you know this" She reminds me, I huff and silence fills our little bubble.

"I know it's not always physical. He was strict, I wouldn't call that abusive" I again defend and I can see that Carina is.. I guess disappointed in my lack of awareness.

"What is your definition of strict then?" Carina asks

"demanding that rules are followed" I mutter, looking around the area and avoiding my girlfriend's eye line.

"Okay, and where does throwing plates and forcing you to run home after a track meet fall into this?" she ask, I'm sick of her questions and now using a private conversation as a means to prove a point.

"it doesn't" I reply, almost realising that maybe it was abuse but deciding that it's still too farfetched. Carina leans in my direction and kisses my forehead before standing up and offering my hand.

Entering the court case, we interrupt the most important pinnacle of the whole day.

"How do you plead?" The judge asks after a gruelling 45 minutes.

"Guilty" Mason mutters, just loud enough for the people in attendance to hear. My dad turns around smirking, winking in my direction before walking out of the room. He doesn't want to stick around to see the sentencing.

"Mr Bishop, you are being charged with assault and battery. You have been sentenced to a year imprisonment. Court adjourned" the judge announces matter-of-factly before slowly leaving the court case. Mason is handcuffed and lead out of the court with one police officer guiding him. There's a melancholy look shared between the two of us. 

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A/N

The next few chapters will be fillers, and maybe some fluff mixed in.

I am stuck! Does anyone have any ideas for a future storyline? I'd love any ideas!