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***Neko's POV***

I tried so hard not to lose my shit on that stand. How dare they question my Koala's honesty. How dare they bring up our relationship. It's no one's fucking business. I don't give a fuck about anyone's opinion. Love is love. Period. As long as two consenting adult humans are happy, let them be in love.

Fuck!

This shit is bad for my blood pressure. I can't even imagine how Milo is feeling right now. Thinking of it, I squeeze his hand tightly and twirl his ring between my fingers.

"You okay, Batman?" My love questions me.

"I have you." I whisper quietly.

"Yes. You do." Milo smiles lovingly at me and I can feel the weight lifting off my chest.

"We call Natalie Bennett to the stand." The prosecutor announces. I watch Nat as she sneers at Marla and Steve on the way to the stand.

God, I love that girl.

They swear Natalie in and she takes her seat.

"How long have you known Milo Evans?" The prosecutor questions.

"We started Pre-K together. We meshed. My bean has been one of my best friends since that first day." Natalie smiles angelically at Milo, causing him to blush.

"You call him Bean? Why is that?" The prosecutor asks.

"He is the most precious thing ever. He reminds me of my favorite candy. So sweet. He's just like a jelly bean." Natalie smiles while she admits the reason she started calling Milo by his nick name.

"Has Milo ever been a trouble maker?" The prosecutor requests.

"I promise you, Milo Evans has always been just short of perfect. That boy would literally pull his shirt off and give it to you if you said you liked it. Believe me, he has given a few to me. Milo has the best manners. He's soft spoken, funny and any real parent would be delighted to call him son." Natalie throws her subtle insult at my parents and I beam widely at the sparkling angel.

"You have a high opinion of Milo." The prosecutor states.

"I do. He's on a pedestal. He earned it." Natalie agrees.

"Can you recollect a time when Milo's behavior or physical appearance differentiated? A time when you became concerned for your best friend, please." The prosecutor asks.

"Milo has always been a soft hearted boy. He wears his heart on his sleeve. It's easy to see when something is bothering him. As we got through elementary school, Milo went from a happy person to a closed off person. He never ignored anyone. He wasn't mean. He just wasn't himself. I guess it really became noticeable in high school. We would invite Milo to slumber parties or to hang out. He always said he would ask Steve and Marla. After a few times of offering, I realized he couldn't ask. After the times we would invite him, he would show up wearing hoodies, sporting a black eye or even not show up at all. Eventually, we quit inviting him. It wasn't fair to pressure him into approaching his parents." Natalie explains. I look over at Milo. His head hangs low. He probably didn't think everyone was so observant.

"Do you believe Marla and Steve inflicted physical abuse on their son, Milo Evans?" He requests.

"Yes. Milo was bullied from time to time at school. But, it was never physical. Kids picked on him for running slow, due to his asthma. A couple cruel kids made fun of his stutter, but he wasn't hit to my knowledge. Milo, Max and I are inseparable, together always. Therefore, we would know if he was physically bullied at school. However, there were times Milo had a busted lip, bruises on his swollen cheek, black eyes, strangulation marks and such. Neko was in Hawaii during most of that. It's easily deduced that if kids weren't causing it, he was receiving the abuse at home. We were never invited over. When there was a function that the Evan's had to attend, Milo didn't show up with cuts, scrapes, broken bones or bruises. But, shortly after the event passed, the evidence of cruelty would slowly show up again." Natalie breathes heavily while she explains things I didn't even realize.

"Why didn't you voice your concerns to a teacher or your parents?" The prosecutor asks.

"It was a theory, at best. If I voiced my opinion and someone didn't handle the fragile situation correctly, I wouldn't suffer. But, I knew Milo would. We approached Milo about it numerous times. He begged us to let it go. He said he would be 18 one day. He could handle it till then. I wanted to say something, but I knew if Milo wasn't strong enough to report them, it wasn't my place to drop that bombshell." Natalie admits apologetically.

"What happened the days surrounding the day you got notice of Milo in the hospital?" The prosecutor leads.

"We had just had a weekend together. The Evans finally let Milo spend the weekend away. Actually, they kicked him out from Friday to Monday stating that Milo's room would be used by guests. That he wasn't welcomed. So, we spent a wonderful weekend together. The week before, Milo came to school with a hoody tied around his neck. But, every time he moved you could see fingerprints where someone big wrapped their hands around his neck. They were so deep, it took weeks to fade. Anyways, during the sleepover, Milo had an obvious injury on his right hand. When we asked him about it, he said Marla had stepped on his hand with her stiletto. It was a deep bruise, the small center matched perfectly to the needle point heels Marla is famous for wearing. Then, while he was sleeping, he started whimpering. Max noticed he had a large, bulging knot on the back of his head. Milo never admitted to the circumstances leading to that lump. He came out to all of us during that sleepover. We were so proud of him. Still are. I left Monday morning to get ready for school. I met Milo and Max at Milo's locker, our usual routine. During lunch, Max kinda snapped. He called Milo out on his parent's crap. Milo got upset and ended up leaving school with Lux, Max brother and Neko's best friend. The next thing I know, I am ushered out of class and met in the halls by my parents. They took me straight to the hospital." Natalie gets quiet. She closes her eyes and the pain is evident in her face.

"What did you see at the hospital?" The prosecutor questions.

"It was the absolute most horrible thing I have ever witnessed. Can you imagine seeing your best friend hauled in on a stretcher? There were tubes everywhere. He was unrecognizable. Had I not seen him wearing those same clothes earlier in the day, I wouldn't have known it was Milo. He had needles poking out of his skin, it was black and blue. His body was covered in blood. His face was so swollen. His leg was hanging off the gurney in an angle that shouldn't be humanly possible. They took him back so fast, screaming for an open operating room." Natalie burst into tears and had to be lead off the witness stand and out of the side door of the court room.

Milo sat there quietly. I don't miss the alligator tears rolling off his cheeks in droves. I kiss his head and rub his shoulders.

"We need a minute, your honor." The prosecutor states.

"It's understandable." The judge agrees.

Natalie comes back with tear streaks and running mascara that she apparently tried to wipe away. Her face is red, eyes puffy and her button nose is continuously wiped by her tiny hands. She throws us a watery smile and climbs back, bravely, into the hot seat.

"Welcome back." The prosecutor whispers. "Are you okay to continue?"

Natalie nods her head and swipes at her eyes with a balled up Kleenex.

"How long did it take for you to see Milo after he reached the hospital?" The prosecutor softly requests.

"Hours. He had surgery, they ran Cat scans, an MRI, did X-Rays and had to stop his internal bleeding. When we finally saw him, I just cried. I couldn't stop the guilt from gnawing at me. We knew he wasn't safe. We should have done something. Instead, we stood by and let our best friend almost die. I will never forgive myself. If I live a thousand years, I will always feel guilty." Natalie lifts her head and mouths I'm sorry to Milo.

That's when Milo broke. He stood up and ran from the courtroom. I followed him quickly and caught him as he collapsed on the bench outside the courtroom doors.

"Hey. Look at me." I softly whisper.

Milo claps his hands over his eyes and lets out a gut wrenching sob. My heart was breaking.

"It's not her fault. She shouldn't feel guilty." Milo cries and the sound is absolutely terrifying. I had never heard such a distressing cry before.

"It's okay. Everything is okay, baby. Calm down." I whisper. I card my fingers through his hair and gently pick his face up. I softly press our lips together, silently pleading for this to pass.

"I'm okay. Let's get this over with. I'm tired." Milo whimpers.

I nod my head and pull him off the bench. I take a hold of his waist and guide him through the doors and back to our seats.

"Son, are you okay? We can take a break." The judge offers.

"No, Sir. I'm ready to continue. Please. Let's just finish." Milo pleads as he sits down in my lap.

I don't care if anyone stares. My baby is broken. It's my pleasure to hold him together.

"Miss Bennett, thank you for your testimony. No further questions." The prosecutor takes his leave and sits down in front of us.

He turns around and addresses Milo. "I'm so sorry. No one should have to relive this. I'm just sorry."

"Natalie, have you physically witnessed any abuse towards Milo from Marla and Steve?" The defense attorney asks.

The guy seriously needs new material.

"I guess that depends on your definition of abuse." Natalie states.

"If you mean did I see them hit him, the answer is no. I did not. But, I witnessed my best friend paraded around social events being introduced as the twin that's still breathing. Or, the bad seed. I saw the Evans scold Milo when he reminded them that he was allergic to peanuts. I was in birds eye view when Milo fell from a tree at a community picnic and broke his arm. The Evans told him to stop being a cry baby. I watched my best friend hollow out day by day because his parents told him they never wanted him. That he was the one that should have died. They never asked for a prince, they requested a princess. So, if by abuse you mean the slow decline of someone's self esteem, the increasing weight loss, the untreated dyslexia that fueled bad grades, yeah I witnessed that shit. I'm angry. I'm so damn angry. Milo didn't deserve that. No one does." Natalie huffs out the last sentence.

"No further questions." The defense attorney takes his seat as Natalie collides into my lap and snuggles her Bean.

"I love you Bean. So damn much. You're my hero." Natalie kisses Milo's cheek before scooting Lux over and cuddling under my arm.

"I love you Nattie Bug." Milo whispers. His voice is so fucking tired.

"We call Lux Wallace as our next witness." The prosecutor announces.

Lux takes the stand promising to tell the truth. He sits and stares coldly towards the defendants table.

"How do you know Milo Evans?" The prosecutor starts his questions.

"He is my best friend, Neko's brother. He is my brother, Max's best friend. I grew up with him in one form or another." Lux answers.

"You were the last one in Milo's presence before the event that lead to his critical hospitalization. Can you please take the courtroom through those last crucial hours?" The prosecutor tiredly requests.

"I got a call from Neko stating that Milo was upset, he needed to be checked out of school. Neko called the secretary, pretending to be Steve and had Milo excused. I picked him up. Milo was obviously upset. Apparently, Max had embarrassed him at lunch. I took him to the local diner and bought us lunch, in exchange for a heart to heart. Milo started crying while explaining that his parents were hurting him at home. I had pulled him into my lap and kissed him. We talked and ate. I took him home, to pick up Natalie and Max from school. I had a bad feeling but, I took it as my overbearing love  for Bean. Everyone knew I had a major crush on him. I figured I was just being protective. Either way, I should have listened to my gut. We got a call saying that Milo was being rushed to the hospital." Lux never takes his eyes off Marla and Steve.

"Did you witness anything over your friendship that caused concern?" The prosecutor requests.

"Honestly, I was shocked at the state Milo came to our house in, for the weekend. I knew that we had housed his belongings for a few years. Marla and Steve continuously stole money that Neko had given Bean. They trashed anything of value or meaningful to Milo. So, Max would bring his stuff to our house and take it school when asked so Bean had what he needed. In passing, I could see the sad eyes, the lackluster appearance. No one could miss the fading bruises. But, it wasn't until those last few days, when Milo was around me 24/7 that my concern became alarming. Milo was terrified of his parents finding out he liked boys. He was worried they would find out he had stuff at our house. Those are things you need not be worried for. But, Milo's fear was real." Lux looks at Milo and I could visibly see his sorrow.

"No further questions." The prosecutor rests.

"So, you knew Milo was worried, yet you kissed him in a public setting and became affectionate under watchful eyes?" The defense attorney bellows loudly.

"My friend was crying. I would have stripped down to my underwear and did the worm across the restaurant floor if it made him calm down." Lux argues.

Milo giggles and I can't help but laugh.

Fucking Lux Wallace.

"No further questions." The defense attorney sits his big ass back on his perch.