They won.
Nick couldn't believe it.
He felt like he was dreaming. It was all over.
They had actually, genuinely won.
He looked back at Jeff, who looked as stunned as he felt.
His mother was still crying, keeping up her facade.
The trial was over. Everyone was beginning to leave.
Nick just stood there, frozen as the world moved around him.
The words repeated in his head, like a record that kept skipping to the same spot.
Not guilty.
He didn't ask any questions. He went home with his family.
It was when they got home that they actually spoke.
"Nick, what was that?" his mother asked.
The words spilled out of his mouth. From the meeting day, to his freudian slip, to his talk with Mrs. Webster, all of it.
For once, they listened without interruption.
When he finished, he stood there, braced for what he knew was coming.
He heard a punch but didn't feel any pain and opened his eyes, confused.
His father had hit Aaron, not him.
"You fool! Why would you do something so stupid?!" he yelled.
Aaron looked shocked. They hadn't ever hit him before. "I– I don't–"
Another hit. "Answer me!"
Nick couldn't just stand there and watch. He knew Aaron had been a complete asshole to him, but nobody deserved this.
"Dad, stop it!" he shouted. They all went silent. "If you want to hit someone, hit me. I'm already ruined. He's still got a chance to make it out of this hellhole and have a life."
YOU ARE READING
Back To Our Roots, Book One
FanfictionThad hasn't had the easiest life. It doesn't help that he's been called a 'she' for most of it. After attempting to end it, he enrolls in Dalton Academy. Meeting an old friend whose life he saved without knowing it, his old friend's boyfriend who i...
