Hearts entwined, forbidden love ( Book 5 of Floyrince)

9

Sammy scrambled to grab the laptop. We all froze, unsure whether to laugh or take him seriously. Dad’s voice had that mix of intensity and enthusiasm that meant he was in full-on “lecture mode” now, and no one was getting out of it. Sammy handed him the laptop, and Dad immediately started typing with this fierce determination.

He opened a browser and began searching for something, muttering under his breath. Non-binary people… Okay, here we go.

We all exchanged awkward glances as Dad finally found what he was looking for. He turned the laptop around so we could all see, his expression a mix of pride and seriousness.

On the screen was a brightly colored video titled, *Understanding Gender Identity: A Guide to Non-Binary Experiences!* The thumbnail alone had cartoon characters with exaggerated facial expressions, and I could already tell this was going to be cringeworthy.

The video started, and the voiceover was overly cheerful, the kind of voice you hear in kids' educational videos. It was filled with animations of little stick figures morphing between different gender symbols.

As you can see, gender isn’t just male and female! Some people identify as non-binary, which means—

Dad stood in front of us, arms crossed, nodding like this was some groundbreaking revelation. See? Gender is a spectrum! It’s about time you all learn something beyond the binary nonsense you’ve been stuck with he said.

I could feel the secondhand embarrassment creeping up. Sam and Emma squirmed in their seats, trying not to laugh, while the rest of us tried to look anywhere but at the screen. The characters in the video were now dancing around holding banners that said, *Gender is fluid!*

And that’s not all! Dad continued, pausing the video as if he needed to add his own commentary.

It’s about respecting people’s identities, okay? Now, watch this part carefully. This explains everything!

The video resumed, and I swear it only got worse. The animations showed these cartoon characters having conversations where one would say, I’m non-binary! and the other would respond with exaggerated surprise, Oh wow! That’s amazing! Tell me more!

I heard a couple of snickers from my sides, but Dad shot them a look, silencing them instantly. He wasn’t letting anyone off the hook, we all knew that.

By the time the video ended, the room was dead silent. Dad stood there, satisfied.

Any questions? he asked, looking around like he had just given us the most important lesson of our lives.

We all just shook our heads, avoiding eye contact, praying he wouldn’t pull up another video.

Good, I have another vi....

Babe....we got it please, spare us, we are tired and hungry and We should be happy Levi didn't get an attack Father said.

You are right, sorry, I was in that mode, okay everyone go freshen up, dinner is in an hour, Dad said.

I wonder what the cook's made today, Sam said as he and Emma left.

Let's go baby, Uncle Kenny said, helping Uncle Kim stand up.

Brother Uncle Kim said looking at dad .

You better not say shit Dad said.

It seems like only yesterday when you and your husband didn't want kids and swore to never have any then boom three in one day, Uncle Kim said laughing. Both my dads threw cushions at him.

Fuck off dad said laughing.

We are never going to live that down are we , Father asked.

Nope, Uncle Kenny said as they both headed up stairs.