"Is complicated," I told him. "When Cy first arrived at Southwind, he and Ash were not together. Since then, they have begun dating again."
Cessily said to keep my answers short. Yes and no. I was failing, but I was rattled. She'd drilled me on all of this - on anything and everything that could be asked. I'd told her I was ready, but I wasn't. I was fumbling and ruining it all.
"Are you having an affair with that man?" Russell demanded.
"No," I told him, because what we had wasn't an affair. It had been discussed and worked out. If he'd said relationship, that would be different, but it wasn't an affair.
"So what is your current relationship status?" Russell asked.
I saw Cessily's shoulders relax, and she smiled at me. For a moment I didn't understand, and then I thought back to the last conversation I'd had with Cy, and then the one in Violet's room the next night.
"I don't know," I told him. "Right now, I've decided to put things on hold until I am able to explain it all to my daughter and discuss this with her in an age-appropriate manner."
Cessily nodded at me proudly, proving I'd answered right. It was just the truth, though. We'd discussed breaking up if we had to. We'd talked about fighting to stay together. I was with them, and yet every single thing about us was up in the air. Desperately, I looked over at Violet, just to find her leaning up against Ash's side, making it clear she was not upset.
Russell scoffed. "And you honestly think that dating a man and living with your ex-girlfriend would be stable?"
"Yes," I told him. "With them, I do. None of this is a secret. Like I said, it's complicated."
"Would you like to explain that complication to the court?" Russell asked.
"No, sir, I would not. I think I have the right to discuss this with my daughter first."
Russell opened his mouth to ask something else, and Cessily stood. "Is this necessary? Luke has admitted that it is him in the photos, and that they were consensual."
"Move on," the judge said.
Russell walked across the small space between the tables and the desks for the attorneys. "Your honor, we ask you to find that Luke Barrett, due to the promiscuity in that house, is not a fit and stable home for Faith at this time. We ask you to dismiss his request for primary custody in light of the recent revelation that he is in a 'complicated' relationship with multiple people in the same house where Faith would be living."
Once again, my heart stalled out, and I turned to look at the judge. The man was looking at me, and then he looked over at the screen still scrolling through images of Cy and me making out.
"When did this occur?" the judge asked me.
"I'm not sure," I admitted. "A weekday when Faith was at school."
"So there's no way she would've been exposed to the indecency?" His tone was calm, completely devoid of any hint as to his opinion.
"No, sir - Your Honor," I corrected.
"Someone turn that off!" the judge ordered.
Almost immediately, the screen went black and I breathed a sigh of relief. If they were going to take her from me, that was fine, but for her to see that? No kid should ever have to see their parent being intimate. It was the sort of thing that nightmares were made from.
Then the judge turned to look at Russell. "Overruled. Before you show images of an adult nature again, Mr. Fry, you will clear the courtroom of all minors. Am I clear?"
"Yes, Your Honor," Russell said.
Then the judge flicked his fingers at Cessily, making it clear it was now her turn. She stood with a lazy confidence and didn't even bother approaching the bench. "Luke, how would you classify your sexuality?"
"Bisexual," I admitted, struggling not to mumble it.
She nodded. "Is this a secret?"
I stammered, trying to figure out how to answer that honestly. "I've been in the closet until I can explain this to Faith."
"So, you're saying that you've just been outed by the questions today?"
"Yeah," I breathed.
