University Wars

Chapter Eight

Rome's POV

"Okay. How about we all sit and calm down. Then you guys can ask me questions one at a time." I tell them. I already feel the stress piling on.

"That's fair." Pick says. Since when was he reasonable and nice.

"Okay." They all agree. They still seem a little shocked.

We sit down at the dining table. Pick sat next to me. Didn't scoot his chair as far away as possible. Didn't roll his eyes. Just sat down next to me and waited for the conversation to start.

When it didn't he asked the first question. "Are you actually his dad?" He asks me.

"That depends on what you mean by actually." I respond.

"What do you mean?" Knott asks.

"There's only one meaning of actually." Prem starts.

"No there's 2. People usually use actually when they mean biologically. If you mean 'Do you have custody and papers that the child is yours?' Then yes. He actually is my child." I explain to them. A little annoyed by their ignorance.

"You mean he was adopted by you." Pete says. More stating it then asking.

"That is correct. Since I was 16." I tell them.

"Why at 16?" Pha asks standing against the doorway. When did he come down here?

"That's when I had the ability to be emancipated." I told them. A little to casually.

"Why did he need to be adopted?" Ming says processing this information better than the rest.

"It was on his mother's Will. Even if she didn't die we all knew at 16 I was going to be emancipated and adopt him." I tell them.

"May I ask where is his biological dad?" Forth seems hesitant to ask.

"That man is not my dad!" Pian startled us all when he burst out like that. "He is." Pian hugs me.

I hug him back. He's some how ends up on my lap without me noticing. "Does Aunty Yo know you're down here?" I ask him. He shakes his head.
"Go back upstairs. This is an adult conversation. Okay baby." I tell him. "It's your bed time anyway."

Pian whines. "No. I don't want to go to sleep without you."

"Then go with Aunty Yo till I'm going to bed." I tell him. He's about to say something but I stop him, "Go."

"Fine." Pian heads upstairs. Thank lord I don't want him to hear the next part.

"His father was going to be bailed when I was about 16 and a half. We didn't want him to go for Pian when he got out, so he was adopted by my friend Kine when his mother died. Then a year later by me as well." I tell them.

They seem to understand then all of a suddenly realized what I had said.

"Bailed!? As in he was in jail?" Korn seems a little shocked.

"Yeah he was in jail for kidnapping and putting a child in harm's way. That child was Pian." I try to say this without thinking about it too much. I still remember that like it happened yesterday.

"Well that explains the reaction." Pick says.

I feel someone come up behind me and put his hands on my shoulders. "Pian fell asleep. I put him in your bed." Yo tells me.

"Okay thank you." I tell Yo.

"Any more questions?" I ask them I kinda want to go to bed.

"If he was adopted by you at 16, then why didn't he stay with you?" Knock asks.