(The other chapter was probably the most significant one. A few of you guys understood the title and what happened, but in general, it gave Jana something he never had. Normalcy. That gave him something to actually look forward to, even if it is just another simple phone conversation. Orion was someone who didn't show that he was affected by what Jana had done and instead, treated him like anyone else. Oh yeah, I totally pet the leopard kittens today... be jealous. Sorry, no pics. Not allowed to post them online.)
Jana-
Sitting down in front of a panel of four people who were completely in charge of determining his fate within the next two hours was taxing on his already-fragile temperament. Jana knew that getting angry or stressed wasn't going to help him nearly as much as it would hurt him, but he couldn't help but start to fidget seconds after he sat in the designated black plastic chair. It was uncomfortable, but that was the least of his worries.
He only briefly looked at each member of the panel. Christopher was wearing his lab coat and appeared slightly out of breath, almost like he'd had to run to catch the meeting time for the hearing.
"Alright Jana, I know you haven't been briefed on how these things go, but they're really quite simple." The little woman all the way on the left, so to Jana's right, said as she glanced down at several papers, then back up at him with a warm smile.
He knew that she was the head of something at the prison. Likely communications or inmate handling. Something like that. All he really knew about her was that she was a higher-up and was one of the nicer ones if you didn't get on her bad side.
Jana wasn't sure what side he was on with her, but considering she just kept smiling, he figured that he wasn't too bad off.
"Myself, Mr. Richards, Ms. Amberlane, and Mr. Caroy will ask you several questions based on your history both before and after your arrival here. You do have the option to decline answering any question you wish, though skipping some of the more important ones could dictate the outcome of this hearing. Do you have any questions about what I've just told you?" She asked, clearly wanting an answer.
Jana pursed his lips and gripped the edge of his chair with his left hand hard enough to feel the plastic begin to bend. "No." He ground out through clenched teeth.
He could tell that they didn't like the tone, but there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. He was fucking stressed out of his mind, even though he had sworn not to take the stupid hearing seriously. His body refused to listen... or maybe it just knew that the questions were coming. The ones they finally expect him to answer now that he had something worth putting effort into. A chance to get out. Like hell I do. He thought sourly as the woman continued on with basic information about hearings in general. Jana just tuned her out and tried to force his mind to quiet enough so that he could think straight.
"Hello. Sorry I'm late, had to get more clearance than I thought. I'm here to help him."
Hearing Domino's voice put into perspective how badly he needed pain right then. As soon as Domino sat beside him, pulling up his own uncomfortable plastic chair, his hand moved to settle over Jana's. He almost immediately began to dig his nails into Jana's skin, but Jana tucked his hand slightly, trying to keep the action from the panel's attention.
"What is your status here?" The older woman asked.
Domino smiled and straightened in his chair. "I'm an inmate, Ma'am. In for battery. Jana is my cellmate and I understand him and think he might benefit from me sitting with him during this panel, if you would allow it."
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Reckless
Romance(Book 2 of HomeLess) Domino has always lived his life exactly the way he's wanted to. No one ever stood in his way or bothered to intervene. Unfortunately, his possessive, aggressive, and down-right nasty way of treating people has finally landed h...