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***Neko's POV***

Listening to that vile account, the blanks all being filled in, was catastrophic to my soul. I didn't know what exactly transpired the night Milo landed in the hospital. I was too focused on watching my brother fight for his life.

The pain he described was far worse than my mind could materialize. My heart hammers against my chest while listening.

I immediately approach Milo to console him. My hands swipe his tears with a tissue and my lips kiss his temple. I needed confirmation that he was still here. He shouldn't be. I can't believe he survived.

My eyes scan our friends and family.

Kyle is being comforted by Lux. His body violently shaking as broken sobs tear from his throat.

The Wallace's are embracing one another and look a lot like the Bennett's, worse for the wear.

Natalie is in Max's lap. Her tiny angel body vibrating as he rubs her back.

It was too much. Nobody should have heard that. Nobody should have lived that.

I take my seat again as the defense attorney snarls at Marla and Steve. His snarky smirk is gone. Anger radiates off of him in palpable currents.

"Milo, I have no questions. You may step down." The defense attorney releases Milo and he finds his way into my arms.

"Steve Evans has chosen, wisely, not to testify. However, I call Marla Evans to the stand." The defense attorney shakes his head and visibly rolls his eyes.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God." The bailiff requests from Marla.

Marla agrees and sits down in the witness chair. She runs her fingers over her blouse and skirt before folding her hands in her lap.

"Marla, everything you say can and will be used against you. Let the record show that I vehemently oppose Marla testifying in her own defense." The defense attorney turns to the jury as they nod.

"Are there any accounts that you have heard today, in which you wish to deny or elaborate. Please be aware that you are expected to give supporting details with your testimony." The defender makes his feelings for Marla clearly apparent.

"I wish to explain my side. Nothing more or less." Marla softly whispers in a sweet tone that I could swear didn't reside in her vocal range.

"Begin." The attorney instructs.

"Twenty years ago, we were given the devastating news that I couldn't bare another child. Our dreams for a precious little girl were destroyed. Our world came crashing down around us." Marla sniffles as my eyes painfully roll into the back of my head.

Bring in the Emmy.

"My husband, Steve, he wanted a little girl to be Daddy's girl. We had Neko and he loves me so much. Steve often felt like he couldn't compete with our sons adoration for me. As Neko's mother, I was so enamored by the dark hair, tan skin and dark eyes of my beloved son. I showered him with hugs and kisses every day. I thanked God for our beautiful son. We were blessed immensely." Marla sends me a disgusting smile and my stomach tries to claw it's way up my esophagus.

Fuck, she is good.

"Wanting to please the love of my life, I agreed to adopt a little girl. We found a perfect carrier. She was young and willing to give us her unborn daughter. We were so happy. We would finally have a little princess to add to our perfect family. At the last ultrasound, we were informed that the girl was carrying twins, both a boy and a girl. We already had a prince, but we accepted the second child as long as we got a princess as well." Marla let's a fat tear squeeze from her demonic eyes. She shakes her head and exhales slowly.

"We welcomed Laila Renee Evans into the world, 18 years ago, today. We were so ecstatic. She had beautiful brown curls and precious angel eyes. They were hazel. She had creamy tan skin and the smile of a cherub. Everything about her was ridiculously perfect." Marla swipes at her eyes. Her face beaming with a pride I didn't realize she could manifest.

"We joyfully took her home from the hospital. We were welcomed by family and friends. They oohed and awed over our gorgeous princess. Laila made a smile appear on everyone's faces that day. As the months went by, Laila showed signs of breathing difficulties. The cord had strangled her tiny little throat during the  delivery. The doctor's were adamant that no permanent damage had resulted. They were wrong. Laila struggled with weak lungs. She ended up in and out of the pediatrician's office and often spent days at a time in the hospital. She was plagued by pneumonia and bronchitis. She had asthma as well. It was heart wrenching. A small child shouldn't struggle for breath." Marla calmly introduces Laila.

I guess Milo having asthma was too much to comprehend.

"When she was two, we rushed her to the emergency room. She had spent the evening before gurgling. She choked on fluid as her body fought for oxygen. Her temperature spiked and her lips were turning blue. By the end of that hospital stay, we had a funeral to plan and no baby to come home to." Marla wipes furiously as her head falls and genuine tears are wept.

I can't help but hear the dismissal of Milo's existence in her story.

"Didn't you have a two year old son at home?" The defense attorney leads.

"Yeah. But, we just lost our little angel. Our baby girl died." Marla hastily excuses her lack of attention to detail.

"Okay. Moving forward. What else?" The defense attorney could be heard ushering Marla to get to the point.

"Every time I saw that kid he reminded me of our buried angel. They look so much alike it's disgusting." Marla sneers.

I am literally flabbergasted at her change of tone.

"That boy would giggle or smile and just rub it in our faces that our Laila was gone and he still had the audacity to exist." Marla grunts out her peculiar word choice and the jury gasps.

"You are saying a toddler was viciously taunting the fact that you lost one of your children?" The attorney looks like a feather could blow his stunned form over.

"You weren't there. How do you think I felt? I had to raise that brat while my little girl decayed in a wooden box. It wasn't fair. It still isn't." Marla explains.

"Ms. Evans you aren't doing yourself any favors." The judge decides to interject.

"I don't care. I lost my child and was stuck taking care of a kid I didn't ask for. It was pure hell. He stuttered all the damn time. He had to be hospitalized, making me miss days of work because he pretended to have the same breathing issues as my sweet angel. He's an attention whore. The doctor's fawned all over the little scum saying how beautiful, sweet and mesmerizing he was. All the while, I had to stay up late. I had to feed him. I had to bathe him. I had to watch as he grew, knowing he shouldn't be here. My Laila deserved a chance to do all those things." Marla huffs as she crosses her arms stubbornly.

"You know. I'm just gonna let you have this. Continue." The defense attorney waves his hand in frustration.

"As the years flew by, Milo became a handful. He expected us to help him with homework. He required new clothes and attention. He asked us for special testing for his made up dyslexia. The boy was so lazy. Making up excuses and illnesses for not wanting to do reading and gym. It was exhaustive. I was so tired." Marla sighs as if the weight was too much to bear.

"So, the kid you adopted, he expected you to be a parent?" The defense attorney asks incredulously.

"Yes." Marla sneers.

"Alrighty then." The attorney shakes his head.

"Then he got this attitude that stunk up the whole house. He complained about needing to see the doctor. That he needed his meds. That his clothes didn't fit correctly. His grades dropped and he blamed it on not understanding the material. He refused to go to school when he had minor bumps or bruises. When he fell, he cried saying that something was broken. The list went on and on. He is fucking dramatic. Always saying he is allergic to this or that. I watched his reactions to the foods he complained about. It didn't seem too substantial." Marla went about sounding like the total bitch she is.

"What were his reactions? Name the foods and the penalties Milo faced to eat those particular substances." The defense attorney continues mocking Marla and building our case.

"Peanuts. It wasn't a big deal. Yeah he choked, wheezed and turned blue the first time I fed him a peanut butter cookie. It wasn't as life threatening as the doctor portrayed. Then there was shellfish. The boy looked like a cherry. An ugly one. His face swelled up, he couldn't talk. He grasped at his throat and little pimples littered his skin. It was quite comical. I couldn't contain my laughter. He ate papaya once and threw up the minute it touched his throat. He got in trouble. You shouldn't be rude and spit out your food." Marla looks thoroughly amused as a room full of people balk at her recounting my baby's harsh reactions to foods that poison his system.

"I'm sorry judge. She's too much." The defense attorney sits down and the prosecutor stands up to approach.

"If your delusional recount of Milo's life is half as bad as realty, the boy deserves a Nobel Peace Prize for surviving you." The prosecutor states. No question forms.

"Explain why you are witnessed on tape taunting Milo about choking him that last night, before you were arrested." The prosecutor instructs.

"Oh. That? Yeah, well I was, um." Marla starts tripping over her lying ass tongue.

"Look. I snapped. I admit. We went a bit over board. But, the kid had it coming. Years of pent up frustration finally bubbled over. I was a pressure pot. I had watched that kid grow up without a care in the world. He had everything handed to him on a silver platter, yet he cried over Neko relentlessly. He never stopped sniffling and complaining that he missed his Batman. It was unnatural. I had a feeling the disgusting homo had a thing for my son. When Steve told me what he saw, I knew it was a matter of time before the slut seduced my baby boy. I couldn't allow it. I had to stop him before his depravity leaked on to my Neko. Neko isn't even gay. Milo manipulated him over the years. All that attention Neko showered innocently over that boy. Milo made Neko call him sick pet names like Koala. I was done. So, me and Steve planned on coming home and roughing Milo up a bit. We wanted him to be so heartbroken that he ran away and never returned. It almost worked." Marla sits back with a nod of her head, acting like she just revealed the answer to Who came first? The chicken? Or, the egg?

"I'm ready for closing arguments." The prosecutor heaves out a large breath as he faces the jury.

"I don't have words for what we have been subjected to today. But, I will try. Milo Evans is a strong kid. Probably the strongest boy I have ever met. The fact that he is sitting in this room today is a miracle in itself. Despite the severe mental, emotional and physical abuse, Milo got on the stand and faced his assailants. That takes courage, strength and a fantastic moral support system. Don't let his sacrifice be in vain. Convict Steve and Marla Evans for their transgressions. Allow Milo to move on with his life without fear that these two vile creatures are a threat any longer. I implore you to serve justice in this case. Milo deserves justice. These two behind me, Marla and Steve, they deserve to rot eternally behind bars for the scars they inflicted on a child they accepted into their home. Do the right thing. Give Milo a fresh start at a new life." The prosecutor sits in front of our family and turns around. He finds Milo's hand and squeezes it reassuringly.

Milo was silent throughout Marla's outlandish testimony. His eyes are red and swollen. Silent tears continuously trailed down his face.

"My closing argument is this, you decide. Search within your hearts and come to a conclusion that you can sleep with at night. I however, won't rest easy tonight. The information that has been divulged has shook me to my core. I regret that any one of us had to play devil's advocate today. Milo I'm sorry. Forgive me." The defense attorney walks reluctantly back to the table containing the people that gave me life.

"We have time for a witness impact statement. Boys, Milo and Neko, please stand up for the courtroom." The judge announces.

"Neko Evans, do you have anything you would like to say to your parents before the jury adjourns to find a verdict in this case?" The judge questions me.

"Yes, Sir." I walk over to Marla and Steve and stand stiffly in front of them. I make sure I have caught their attention. "The day you brought Milo and Laila home was one of my best days. I finally had a brother and sister. When Laila passed, a tiny part of my soul got buried beneath the dirt with her. I was given a choice to love Milo, cherish him. Or, I could have punished him for the loss that was not at all his fault. You were given that same choice. You chose wrong. Milo is absolutely stunning. I love him with every cell in my body. Milo did turn me gay. By making me happy, the true meaning of that word. Milo didn't seduce me. Not sexually. He didn't seek out to make a straight man sexually and emotionally stirred. I was born this way. I'm proud as fuck at who I am. Milo's existence reminded me that there are things too precious on this Earth to lose. His heart captured me before he could even talk. He gave me everything I needed before I knew to want it. I found myself so drawn to MY Koala that I couldn't think around wanting to be with him. He consumed me. He burned me alive. He filled me with love, hope and life. So, do me a favor and lose my name. Forget I exist. Much like the boy you burned with your words of hatred, your fists of fury and your lies; I no longer exist as you once knew me. I am new and I am better. I won't shed one tear for your absence in our lives. Our lives. Our kids will never know your names. Our wedding will be one of beauty, love and commitment. Forever, the boy you so vehemently hated, will be the guy I spend the rest of my life honoring and adoring." I turn without another word, having said all that needed to be admitted.

"Milo, you may speak." The judge encourages.

Milo comes to stand beside me and grips my hand with iron strength.

"Marla, Steve, I will never understand why you did to me what you did. It's done. That can't be changed. I hope that your security in your excuses gets you through all of your days, how ever many that may be. I pray that you never regret your actions and choices. They can't be undone. Me? I regret spending every night of my miserable past wishing you two loved me. You didn't deserve me. No matter how you justify your actions, you both were horrendous people. Judging from the words coming out of Marla's mouth, you still are. I will carry the scars, that you two so happily seared on my flesh and soul, with me all the days of my life. They will serve as a reminder of hate, bigotry and unbridled fear. You feared losing sight of the child that passed away so much, you couldn't love the one you were left with. It sucks. I wish it could have been different. You both are thieves, of the worst caliber. You stole my identity. You shoplifted my childhood. But, one thing you failed to lift was my Batman. Thank you. Thank you for bringing this incredible man into my life. Thank you for solidifying my future in this world. Thank you for supplying me with the most happiness I could obtain. While I'm enjoying the fruits of your labor, literally, you will be left wondering where your real son is and how he is doing. Don't worry, I won't taunt you with evidence of our existence. I won't be around to rub it in your faces that I won. Because, I did. In all of this, the only thing you have gained is a real hatred by those who once sought out your approval and adoration. Rot in hell. I'm happy to say I won't be there to join you." Milo walks out of the courtroom with a genuine smile and me closely on his heels.