***TRIGGER WARNING: There may be references to various forms of abuse and graphic details.

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The courtroom played out like a field with the offense and defense occupying both sides with tension wavering between them. Jade and Zoé most definitely stood on opposing sides, but the redhead couldn't help herself from glancing at the brunette every other second in longing, as if reminding herself of what could have been.

Baseless fantasies roam her senseless mind. Images of how cute of a couple Jade and her would have been if she could have accepted all of herself back then.

The glint in her eyes gave away everything, showing the depths of Zoé Abrams' feelings. The emptiness in her eyes allowed the courtroom lights to glimmer against her mellow blue saucers, exposing the morsel of a soul hidden beneath.

Her usually composed, straight bob is a frazzled, loose-curled mess. The hair nearly reaches her shoulders, cutting off right at her visible collarbones. The redhead's composure was sullen and fragile almost.

Has she not been eating? Wait... why do I care?

Jade nearly vomited with each glimpse of Zoé, peering at the defined feline-shaped eyes that pierced her from the other side of the room. Despite her sickly disposition, Zoé remained smug. Jade loathed to see how strong Zoé stood in her conviction. She didn't forget to flick Jade an arrogant wink once they made brief eye contact. The seductiveness in her composure oozed from the simple gesture.

Jade winced and felt a pit of hot lava form in the depths of her stomach. She wanted to curl up and lie in a dune in the middle of the desert, to shrivel up from dehydration.

But, that would be too easy. If Jade learned anything from her rich collection of trauma-filled life experiences, it is that there is no running away from conflict. It will rear its evil head at you until you confront it. Here, in this cold courtroom, Jade is tasked with following through with all that Mr. Scott and her expensive legal team had taught her.

All Jade had to do was tell her story. And that she did.

In all its confusion and gore.

It began with the fairytale meeting of the two star-crossed lovers. Maybe not precisely lovers but star-crossed misfortune most definitely highlighted the entirety of whatever deranged situation-ship they had formed. Through Jade's storytelling, it seemed some fucked-up type of destiny had a role to play in their introductions to one another.

Jade, the bullied, introverted girl terrified of standing up for herself, and Zoé, the strong-willed, stubborn character who saved the depressed damsel in distress.

Doesn't this sound familiar?

Instead, in this version, Jade's world was annihilated.

Jade told a tumultuous story that involved two young teen girls desperate for a distraction, whether it be a person, place, or thing, to misplace their disparate feelings onto. Restricted emotions clouded their ability to function. They couldn't experience the beauty of life, and what it meant to love and indulge in the small things because everything in their world was substantial and intense.

Divorce, cheating, lies, mental and physical abuse.

They weren't allowed to be children ever.

Jade, with simultaneously absent and present parents who left her stranded to fend for herself with no shred of self-esteem.

Zoé, with equally absent parents who prioritized their relationship with one another over their relationship with their daughter. Parents who felt an obligation to society to bring a child into this world despite never really loving the idea of having kids. They did all that was expected of them: give her money, provide the best education and any material objects she wanted. It seemed alright to the Abrams, as long as they did not have to love her.

They couldn't even bother to make it to the court hearing, leaving Zoé's vulnerable, juvenile entity sitting behind the defendant's desk with a team full of big-shot lawyers crowding around her, minimizing her average-size build for a young woman athlete.

Jade seemed to be the only one who noticed from her view on the stand but she couldn't find it in herself to feel any more pity. Her lack of sympathy for Zoé shocked her. This girl used to be her entire world, but she could not find it in herself to feel bad for someone who betrayed her so viciously.

Jade's momentary compassion did not bar her from illustrating Zoé's abuse from start to finish. She filled the small courtroom with her soft, shy voice. A pin could have been heard dropping onto the carpeted floor as everyone hung on to each stuttered word. Her eyes darted back and forth across the room, scanning, to view not only the lawyers and police officers but also the people closest to her. Her mother, Kinsey, Lucia, Alexander, Mr. and Mrs. Scott, and... Melanie.

Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest at the distress in Melanie's face. She had never seen the older brunette appear so utterly miserable, and in disarray. Her eyes filled with intense streaks of red. She had been crying all morning when Jade decided to take the initiative and invite her. Melanie had not known what went on between her sister about Zoé. She was angry, at herself and all that her sister had gone through under her watch. But she was also mourning.

She had not realized that she lost her baby sister a long time ago. Jade had never been the same following those years of endless bullying and undercover depression. Melanie noticed but never completely understood what it was until then, in that courtroom.

Luckily, Mr. Hill did not have to experience such mourning since he had not bothered to come. One would expect a father to be rightfully enraged by all that Jade had gone through but unfortunately, Jade could not confidently say she could expect any strong feelings from her own. It is wretched to say, but Jade does not know if that man cares for her anymore.

Taking in the sight of the people who came to support her, Jade outlined, to her audience, how the abuse started. How she didn't think of it as abuse at first. The aggressive and assertive tendencies were Zoe's little quirks that made Jade slightly uncomfortable, but it was worth withstanding to receive attention from someone who confused her immensely.

Jade never romantically favored Zoé. She confused her feelings of attachment toward her best friend with romantic feelings solely reserved for lovers. Jade never loved Zoé then the same way she loves Kinsey now.

She is not sure she loved Zoé at all for that matter.

When you are first developing an understanding of your sexuality, you are faced with the difficulty in distinguishing your feelings for a friend or someone you are genuinely attracted to. It is hard to understand which is which and Jade fell into that trap. When Zoé was the first person in Jade's life to accept not only her but her sexuality, the unsuspecting Jade latched onto her for dear life, never imagining that there could be anyone else, ever.

Jade thought that Zoé was the one, so she let her dominate and push her around, physically and emotionally. Jade was not aware that the reason Zoé protected her from all the bullies was because she wanted Jade all to herself, to own exclusively.

Jade remembered everything that happened the night the half-naked, barely conscious pictures of her were taken. Too clearly.

Jade recalled Sophia's fourteenth birthday party in the ninth grade. A lot was going on with pre-teens running around, test-tasting stolen, bitter alcohol from Sophia's parents' stash in the cupboards. Their small faces winced at the unsavory taste of the drinks that were too mature for them. Despite not being fans of the taste, they enjoyed the warmth the concoctions made them feel. Their normally restrictive, pressure-filled lives as affluent, academically-driven teenagers became less and less like a pressure cooker and more like a bouncy house. Their bodies felt relaxed and free.

But there was a small-framed brunette who refused to indulge because her fear of her mother was far greater than any drunken temptation.

This notion did not apply to Zoé.

Fuck you!"

The girl with fiery scarlet hair reprimands as she shoves the brunette backward into the tiled wall of the half bathroom.

Following the impact, Jade clutches the back of her head before staring up at the piercing, electric blue eyes in disbelief. The tingling pain in the posterior of her scalp amplifies into dozens of painful sensations. Her entire expression conveys confusion as the girl continues to berate Jade with insults.

"You're fucking confusing. I thought we were on the same page." The girl continues as Jade tries to find something, if anything, to say at all. Her eyes blinked rapidly, instead.

"W-What? What the fuck are you talking about?" Jade stutters, trying to understand the situation at hand. "Y-You came onto m-"

Jade isn't able to finish her claim as the cupped hand of the girl comes into contact with her cheek, completely knocking her out of any sense of reality she had left. Her eyes shut immediately as the pain roars through her cheek, causing involuntary tears to well in her eyes from the sudden pain coursing through her body. It isn't just her cheek that feels the sudden pain, but her heart as well, as it pounds heavily in her chest. Is she having a panic attack?

Her smaller body limps to the ground as she struggles to breathe rhythmically. The loud music roaring in the background makes her sobs seem silent as the girl stands before her, watching her be pathetic.

Jade is too afraid to look up, fearful that she will be attacked again. Her body feels fragile and hollow as shock overtakes her entity. She wants to fight back and stand her ground but the chills running through her veins leave her frozen and too afraid to defend herself.

The girl that stands before Jade, rolls her eyes at the scrawny girl beneath her.

"You're no fucking fun. I can't believe I wasted my time with you," The girl spits at the brunette that cradles herself on the dirty floor of the bathroom, in immense pain and apprehension.

The girl opens the door, intensifying the magnitude of the blasting music in the background. She steps out in frustration, slamming the door shut behind her.

Jade allows her body to slump onto the cold tile. Her legs froze up as the short, black pencil skirt didn't cover as much as she needed it to. Her hand remains on her cheek as her heart rate increases and increases and increases...

The girl with the fiery scarlet locks was Zoé Abrams.

Zoé, already high on weed, had slapped Jade while she was already down on the bathroom floor because the brunette didn't want to kiss her back. Jade felt the temptation to give into it and just kiss her best friend at the time but her heart was not in it, she didn't want to ruin their friendship by engaging in such an act when she thought Zoé was straight at that time.

After Zoé had embarrassed Jade in front of the whole party, the redhead left, rushing home. She left Jade on the bathroom floor in tears with everyone glaring at her in disgust and confusion at the girl that had been known to be bullied. Instead of viewing her as the victim, they all saw her as the perpetrator.

Maybe that's why she gets bullied.

Damn, I didn't think she was a freak like that.

That's disgusting. Why would she do that to Zoé?

Asking for consent is free, asshole.

The words made Jade further bury into herself with warm tears adding to the inferno blazing on the soft skin of her tan cheeks.

Jade could not only dwell on the pain but needed to make sense of everything. She had to make things right, so she gathered herself and walked to Zoé's house that night. As the hem of her short pencil skirt would barely rest above her knee, Jade suffered against the elements. The stiff, cold breeze relentlessly swung in her direction.

Zoe's home wasn't too far from the party but it gave Jade more than enough time to ponder on her actions and how she could not afford to lose a friend like Zoé, someone whom she thought would always have her back.

Jade arrived at the house to find the door left slightly open. She walked in, warily calling for "Zoé?"

There was no response after a good moment of silence so she stepped further into the massive home she'd become accustomed to, careful not to make any noise in case Zoé wasn't alone. It wasn't the smartest idea for Jade to do this without being sure Zoé wasn't being robbed or anything since the door was left unlocked, but the brunette with red streaming veins across her eyeballs from crying so hard had no common sense coursing through her at the moment.

She finally made it upstairs to Zoé's room to find the door ajar. She found the lonesome redhead lying on her back chewing on something as she stared mindlessly at the ceiling above. The chews sounded crunchy and grated harshly against Zoe's teeth amid the silence.

"Zoé, what are you doing?" Jade asked, stepping further into the room.

Zoé's head snapped up in Jade's direction with the largest smile gracing her features like Garfield the cat. Her eyes appeared sunken with smeared eyeliner that ran across her cheeks. "Jade, I'm so sorry!" Zoé hollers squinting her brows together sympathetically.

Jade was stunned by her sudden composure until she noticed that Zoé was chewing on little white pills as she stepped closer and closer to the girl who lay on the bed. The aluminum packaging of the pills rested between Zoé's index and middle finger.

Jade immediately stepped forward and snatched Zoé's hand to find that there were no more pills left. It was a six-pack.

"Chill babe, I only had like... four. I'll be fine. I'm just glad you came for me. I knew you cared," Zoé continued, slurring her words in the most optimistic tone with a desperate, faded smile, fighting for her eyes to stay open.

Jade zoned out in the courtroom at the retelling of a moment that was so intimate between the two ex-best friends. This is the first time life and death had become a factor in their friendship.

Jade felt so attached to that moment because at that point she had given herself to Zoé simply because she felt pity for her.

They slept together that night.

Zoé was Jade's first. And vice versa.

Frankly, it was more of Zoé exploring Jade's body as she pleased while the brunette drug herself through the motions.

Zoé was having a field day while Jade froze like a statue.

It was Jade's first time and the brunette regretted every moment of it. She tried to block out every memory of it since it felt so forced and passionless. Her first time had been taken from her. Her only goal was to please Zoé and make her feel better after being the "cause" of her feeling so shitty in the first place.

That is why Jade resented ever coming out in the first place when she got to Kingsman Bounty. That is why she could not stand it to even come out to Kinsey and refused every advance with fervor. She did not want to make that same mistake again, especially when she didn't have to.

Jade fell asleep after the events of the night but Zoé was awake. The high from the drugs would now allow her to sleep, despite them causing her muscles to relax all over her body. Her eyes were bloodshot. She thought it'd be a good idea to never forget the beauty that was Jade Hill.

Zoé did love Jade, or at least the idea of her.

She loved how much control she had over Jade but also how much Jade forgave her every fucking time. How she would not abandon her and would come back every single time no matter what she did. She felt that unconditional love that she required so dearly from her parents but could never have. That love that persists no matter what you do, or at least that's what Zoé's definition of unconditional love was.

She didn't know how to give love since it was never given to her. Parents have the power to bestow few things that matter in this world. Love being one of them. They can pass down money, riches, and wealth all the time but love is the rarest among them all. It is precious because only a select few get the opportunity to receive it from their parents. An unconditional love that in turn teaches them how to love others.

Jade became Zoé's girlfriend a week later and gave into her every desire because she wanted to be loved. Her mother was nowhere to be found, her sister tried her best, and her father did not even try. They were both fucked up, but Zoé took it too far when she manipulated the brunette into having sex with her and proceeded to take half-naked pictures of Jade after they'd slept together the first time.

As Jade wrapped up the story in that courtroom... silence. Pure, unadulterated silence. She not only illustrated what had happened but told a story of what an absence of love can do to people in the world. She told the truth of what happened to her and she could only hope that others were able to see how a lack of love in the world resulted in her suffering.

"You've got to be shitting me!"

The sharp hiss disrupt Jade's hollowed daze and captures the attention of the entire room.

"Kins, calm it with the language please!" Mr. Scott yells from the kitchen.

"This tinsel thing keeps wrapping around my ankle. It's so annoying," Kinsey groans, fighting the bright red string of tinsel looping around her ankle. Her brows furrow as she nearly loses her balance.

One would think a star wide receiver who specializes in footwork would be able to handle some tinsel, but the blonde ceases to surprise. She frustratedly glares at the inanimate object as if the imaginary lasers from her eyes will burn right through it.

Jade grins, settling her consciousness in the present. Her memories of the court case from nearly a month ago dissipate as she takes in Christmas at the Scotts'.

Decorations consume everything in their home as if Christmas quite literally had been vomited everywhere by Rudolph himself. Tinsels in every single color hang from hallway corridors and door frames. Wreaths not only on the front door but back doors, even the doors leading out to the patio. The obnoxiously colossal Christmas tree occupying the cozy living room is a site unto itself. It sits at a whopping ten feet stretching out some three feet at its base.

Various unique ornaments hang from every fake metal branch, glass ones from the store, and some that have been designed by each of the Scott children from their elementary school arts and crafts days. Mrs. Scott seemed to have kept every single one from Kinsey's all the way to Tracy's. Additionally, miniature portraits of family pictures add to the mix of memories hanging from the monstrous, store-bought tree.

A particular image stands out amongst the tree of memories. A new family picture stands out the most since a certain brunette is present with Kinsey's arms wrapped around her waist from behind. The blonde's head resting on her shoulder with the largest grin anyone has ever seen on Kinsey Scott.

It is true. Mrs. Scott said herself that Kinsey didn't even smile that big when she found out she got on the Kingsman Bounty team.

This was most definitely true as Kinsey's smiles in all of her other family portraits resemble Wednesday's signature poker face.

Everything seems to be so right in this moment and the old Jade would have never been able to enjoy anything like this. But this newly developed, mature Jade wants to live in the moment for once and embrace the people who care for her. The people she's allowed to love her purely.

"Babe, give me that," Jade whispers into Kinsey's ear as she suavely grabs onto the tinsel, swiftly unwrapping it from her girlfriend's ankle in one movement.

The blonde fights a smile but cannot stop the blush in her cheeks at Jade's naturally sensual voice.

"Stop, before I drag you upstairs," Kinsey informs whispering through her smile, trying to maintain her composure in front of her family as her heart continues to flutter at her girlfriend.

"I didn't even do anything," Jade pouts, purposely batting her long lashes at her girl. Adding fire to the flame by biting the corner of her lip modesty.

Kinsey sighs with a tight-lipped smile and stares up at the ceiling, proceeding to clasp her hands together. "Dear Lord, please forgive my unholy thoughts. The temptation is too much."

Jade smacks Kinsey's shoulder, causing them both to erupt in laughter. Kinsey swiftly grabs a hold of Jade's hand and raises it to her lips to plant an affectionate kiss on the back of her hand. Jade watches Kinsey carefully as the pair maintain eye contact. The brunette had never felt more like a princess before in her life. Jade pulls her lips to the side, biting the inside of her cheek to cope with the intense feelings brewing within her. The two proceed to join the rest of the family in the living room by walking through the corridor.

Once they walk through, there is a unison roaring of gasps mixed with squeals and a yelp. Mostly from Mrs. Scott.

Jade flinches back, startled while Kinsey doesn't flinch at all but squints hard at her family's strange reactions before her.

They all smile deviously as their eyes dart at something above. The girls follow their eyes until they see a strange-looking plant hanging above their heads.

A mistletoe.

"Now Trace, I told you not to put that up," Mrs. Scott slightly scolds, fighting the endearing smile on her face while crossing her arms.

Tracy bites her bottom lip childishly and shrugs her shoulders, "Oops, must've forgot." She forms the most devious Grinch-like smile ever while staring at her sister.

"You were only born to be annoying, right?" Kinsey directs at Tracy, rolling her eyes before turning, "Babe, we don't have to do this stupid sh-"

Jade's hands cup Kinsey's face as she plants the most innocent peck on the blonde's plump, unsuspecting lips. Kinsey's entire face immediately lights up like Rudolph's nose. Once Jade lets go, cheers can be heard from everyone watching, except Tracy.

"Ew, so that's how you get cooties? I don't want that!" Tracy pouts her bottom lip, disgusted by what she has witnessed. She marches away in disappointment back to the living room to continue her Star Wars puzzle.

Kinsey is too flustered to care. She raises a brow at the girl before her. Who would have thought that Jade Hill would have become her girlfriend by Christmas?

The blonde carefully absorbs Jade's image, taking in the soft lines forming by her soft lips as she smiles and shows off those perfectly, white teeth. Her delicate eyes smile as well, highlighting her sharp brows.

"Trace, cooties disappear once you reach the age of ten, so don't worry about it too much," Jade jokingly informs with a carefree smile.

"Wait... that's next year!" Tracy's wide eyes travel up to Jade's. "So, you're saying that I'll be trading drool with someone by this time next year?"

Jade squints her brows, "Um, I don't think that's what I mean-"

Kinsey rolls her eyes and drags Jade away from the scene by hooking their arms together. They arrive at the snack station on the kitchen counter.

The blonde digs in while Jade hesitates a bit. The food consists of heavy snacks like salty potato chips, various chocolates, and Christmas cookies. Jade is still working on her relationship with food at the same rate as her relationship with her mother. The two seem to coincide since it was her mother's comments about food and her weight that made eating a task in itself.

Jade feels her stomach turn as she thinks of eating the calorie-dense snacks. She mentally decides to not eat until Kinsey is already waving a broken piece of milk chocolate in the shape of a snowflake in her face.

The blonde successfully drives the piece into Jade's mouth with no hesitation from the brunette as the food becomes associated with Kinsey's care for her.

"Jade."

Mr. Scott's deep voice drives Jade out of her bliss.

"Yes, sir." Jade straightens herself up as she addresses the older man in the manner she's been taught.

"What did I tell you about calling me, sir? It makes me feel older than I look." The man strokes his beard as his jolly smile appears.

"Old habits die hard."

"Fair enough. Well, I just came back from the bookstore and picked out a few books that I thought you would like. They just reminded me of you so heck I thought I'd get 'em for ya." Mr. Scott shrugs as he presents that white plastic bag in his hand, filled with a handful of books of all sizes.

The jolly appearance of the head of the Scott household afforded him many opportunities. One of them was being the seasonal job of volunteering as Santa to read to children at the local bookstore. This gig gave him access to free books from Mrs. Octavia, the owner of Freddie's Bookstore for a solid thirty years now.

"Oh my gosh, you didn't have to do that!" Jade yelps as she instinctively steps closer to the books. Her eyes glaze over as if under a daze by the magic of books.

"And why don't you ever get me anything? The most I've gotten from you was a new hot pink headband," Kinsey complains, crossing her arms as she secretly indulges in Jade's happiness.

"The last time I got you a gift, I found it being used as a weapon against your younger siblings."

"And... I find no problem with that," Kinsey widens her eyes at her father.

Mr. Scott ignores her and focuses on Jade. He reaches his hand out to squeeze her shoulder as she takes hold of the bag of books. The man has not been the same since the court hearing and he knows it has been the same for Jade. He's seen the numerous breakdowns Jade has had following the court session where she had to relay her most sensitive traumas to strangers.

Even though, Jade was not granted the restraining order because it was Zoé's first criminal offense and there was insufficient evidence. The texts between Zoé and Jade were all deleted throughout the years by Jade, during multiple anxiety and depressive episodes, and Zoé, just to cover up her tracks.

Additionally, there was no way to explicitly prove that Zoé had taken the images she admitted to posting online. She received a fine and some community service time for posting these images online because of loophole arguments made by her expensive, con-artist lawyers.

It took a while for Jade to accept the verdict. She cried for three straight days at one point, not eating or sleeping because the pain was too much. It was hard but Jade was able to cope by understanding that she spoke her truth in front of her assailant. A truth she has been holding in for way too long. A truth that nearly broke her.

Zoé was essentially left with a warning but the judge made it a point to inform her that if she were to engage in any aggravated manner towards Jade, she will be subject to a more severe punishment.

All that had transpired in the past couple of weeks is what has encouraged Mr. Scott to be there for her the best he could, along with the rest of the Scott family. Jade basically lived with them at this point and they don't mind. As long as Jade felt safe, she was more than welcome to use their home as a safe space.

"Thank you," Jade croaks, raising her eyes to the tall man before her. The lids of her eyes form soft red linings to signal the tears pooling within them. Her eyes glisten as her wide smile raises her cheeks to keep the tears from spilling.

"It's never any trouble. You're very welcome."

The older, white-haired male stumbles back a few steps as Jade bombards him with a sudden embrace. She wraps her thin arms around his larger build, resting her head on his chest as she fully hugs this male figure. His body is warm and that radiates onto Jade's body, making her heart rate slow down as she feels calmness and tranquility in this moment.

She's finally safe.

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I know it's been a while. I have been going through a lot of life changes right now but I'm happy I could post this chapter. There is more to come and I hope enjoyed it!

...

How does it feel to learn more about Zoé and Jade's story?