Seasons of Change

48

Krist hadn't been shocked to learn that Naveah had requested the charges against her husband be dropped, stating that it was a one-off for them and that he was normally very kind and loving to her. The judge had refused though, leaving the order of protection up as well.

Of course, Marcus was back home within a few days despite all of this, claiming to be focusing on his sobriety but Krist seriously doubted all of that.

As for Krist's charges, he was put on diversion since he had a clean record. As long as he did not have contact with his "victim" or any additional charges in six months, the assault would be completely dropped. That was fine. He had zero intentions of seeing his father as it was and it wasn't like he was out doing dumb shit like he had as a youngster.

Nonetheless, he found himself annoyed over the fact his bitch ass dad didn't want the charges dropped and that his lame brother had acted like he had been the problem in the whole thing. And speaking of Brad's lame ass, Krist wasn't speaking to him either. Their short-lived friendship had fizzled out and they'd gone back to the way things had been before; Brad somehow looking down his nose at Krist and Krist despising him.

On a positive note, Madison had not yet gone back to Brad and from what Linda was saying, had zero intention of doing so. Something Brad was unaware of.

Also, per Linda, Madison had started to come out of her shell and was growing on her and the other women of the family. She was steadily making progress on herself, her sobriety, and motherhood. She even got a job at a local coffee shop as a part-time barista while Linda babysat Gwendolyn.

Linda had told Krist to keep it a secret but she and Bill were planning on buying a used car for Madison since Brad was showing zero interest in helping his wife with one. He'd even gotten a new Tesla financed somehow and was refusing to give her the old car, instead selling it for two grand.

Brad hadn't contributed jack shit to Madi or his daughter since she'd moved in with his mom. No diapers, wipes, formula. Nothing. Madison had gotten on both WIC and food stamps before her getting the barista job, anything needed that wasn't covered by those programs came out of Linda's pocket.

Atira had returned to work the first week of November, leaving Krist home with Audrey and Gabriel during the day. It wasn't a huge challenge, he set up baby gates since Gabriel was into everything and loved to go places he wasn't supposed to.

His schoolwork was online so he typically strapped Audrey to his chest as he worked since she was a giant daddy's girl and let Gabriel play on the floor. Despite being a complete dipshit, his grades were not too bad. Two B's and an A, not bad.

Life hadn't been going too bad for the Samson household, Krist's immediate family anyway. It was a year since he'd nearly lost his family due to his own stupidity and it finally felt like the trust was back. Krist had learned his lesson and had zero intentions of letting his own thirst destroy what they had worked hard for.

He'd also started making an effort to spend time with his friends again to learn to be an individual again. Jeordie and Cami were free on Monday and Tuesdays usually, he started taking the kids down to visit them.

They'd even gone to see Erika and Bryana at their food cart in Portland, shocked to learn that Bryana was expecting a baby boy. When Krist asked if they went to a sperm bank for a donor, she and her wife exchanged sly smiles before looking at Jeordie, "We had a friend volunteer," Erika a smiled.

"Well, I'll be damned," Krist grinned, "Congratulations!"

Erika then told him once their little boy was two or three, Jeordie would help them again and she would carry the baby that time. Krist being a nosey fuck wanted to know if they'd "done the deed" or what. Bryana gave him an exaggerated "Ew" face and told him to mind his business.

"Zoey would love to see Rocco one of these days," Bryana told him, massaging her lower back, "She still asks about him."

"We can definitely get together soon," Krist promised, "I need to stop being such a homebody my girl says."

Jeordie nodded, "That's right, we never see you no more."

"I know, I been a lame lately," Krist laughed.

Erika and Bryana gave him the info for the baby shower before he left, stopping at Cami's bakery to buy treats for the house and then Costco for dinner and house goods.

As he drove home, he thought a lot about his life at twenty-eight compared to what it had been in his early twenties. He'd been a little shitbag. Entitled, selfish, disrespectful to everyone around him. Yes he had been young, yes he'd been on drugs but it wasn't an excuse.
He thought about all the things that his mom and Bill, and Cami and Jeordie had done for him and he'd had such an ungrateful attitude about everything.

There had been one instance where his mom had told him she wasn't giving him cash anymore, she would buy him groceries and gas, pay for his haircuts but she wasn't going to give him money when it was going to drugs. He'd been a complete dick about it. even though she spent over three hundred on him and Lainey that day, he'd guilt tripped her into giving her another forty cash and even had the audacity to give her an attitude that was "all she gave him".

Linda hadn't owed him shit. She probably should have cut his sorry ass off well before then. And when Rocco was born? Well, when the DNA test came back, she made sure Krist had things for Rocco without a second thought.

Then there was Jeordie and Cami. They'd been nice enough to let him stay with them time and again with the condition he didn't get high in the house, something he hadn't respected and when they did tell him he couldn't stay, he accused them of being fake ass friends.

Krist thought a lot about stuff like that when he was lying in bed at night. Feeling guilty and shitty about the person he had been.

Of course, he'd apologized to all of them countless times and they always said "It's fine, you aren't the same person," but was it fine? It sure the heck didn't seem fine to him. Quite frankly, Krist didn't understand why people continued to give him chances when he didn't deserve them.