“They will?”
“Yes, Cassia is about to remind them of that fact—look.” The Dweller pointed towards the stage.
Cassia walked up the steps on the far side and approached the floating microphone waiting there at the center. “Listen up, you cockroaches.”
Seri choked, eyes widening.
“If you all know me, you know I have no leniency when it comes to my rules. You were informed before coming here, there is to be no talking, and no questions. You are here to listen, and that is all.
“To add on, while you may film and take pictures, there will be no flash photography. You utter so much as one syllable and you are out. A flash goes off, and you will be going off with it. Know that the only reason you are here is because your kind don’t know how to not cross the line of decency. I’ll be watching you all.” With that, she turned and started walking towards them with a kind smile on her face.
“I feel that was more antagonizing than anything,” Seri whispered.
“More her stressing that they will be dragged out if they try shit.”
“It’s time, boys,” Cassia said on reaching them. “It’s going to be fine, you two. I promise. I’ll be monitoring everything.” She walked past them, waving them on.
Seri took a deep breath and stepped out into the open. The crowd of reporters remained silent, even if the energy in the room felt like it had changed.
Reaching the microphone, with Severo by his side, hand linked with his, Seri took a deep breath, and then another. After about five, he forced himself to speak.
“I’m Seri North. I grew up an orphan. I worked hard to get my Bachelors, and then even harder for my Masters, until I finally managed to enter a world-renowned Doctoral program. And I did, I got in. After years of struggling, a few of them where I was homeless, I made it.
“But then, six years ago, when I had finally gotten close to where I wanted to be in life, I made the unfortunate decision to go on a date with Preston Chanway. That date led to my imprisonment. And even though I am free now, it still feels like I am in a prison.
“Hounded in public, no moment outside is ever peaceful. I spent six years locked away. Six years afraid, and in pain. And when I thought—” His voice caught as his eyes flooded with tears. “When I thought I was finally free, instead I find out that I’m just as trapped as I was before.
“You all, the media, have made me feel like the outside world is just as much of a prison as that gray, gloomy house was. You even broke into our apartment. I want to live my life without being followed, without looking over my shoulder, without fearing someone is going to accuse me of asking to be raped, abused, and imprisoned by a monster for years. I have done nothing to you all… I…” His tears fell as his voice broke and his words stopped coming.
Severo's hand slipped from his, and the man pulled him tightly to his side, arm wrapping around him. “Enough is enough. The fact is, the actions of the media the last few weeks have been shameful. Seri is a survivor. He survived what was done to him. He doesn’t deserve to be bombarded by people who are trying to make a quick buck. Because that is all it is. You aren’t here to spread the truth, you are here to make money. What you are doing is serving no purpose, other than to retraumatize someone who has done no wrong.
“You make rumors, and spread them as fact. And then after making them up, you act as if you had a source, when you have none. Now, before you go accusing Seri of a horde of awful things, especially when it comes to things involving my name, let me tell you this. Yes, we are dating. No, Seri didn’t cheat on Preston, as they were never married, never in love, and never had anything consensual. The marriage license forms were forged, and that ‘marriage’ has already been annulled.
“We fell in love while being chased by corrupt police officers, and Preston’s random thugs. We fell in love while in hiding. I fell in love first, as how could I not fall for such a brave man fighting to protect his child.” Severo lifted one of Seri's hands up, and kissed the top of it.
“There is nothing to twist. Because it will only be the truth you are twisting into lies. Now for the point of this whole thing, if you try, I will be suing for defamation. We will no longer be sitting back and letting you spread whatever you want about us. And if you continue to stalk us, I will sue for harassment.”
Eyeson the young man on the small screen floating near the wall, her hand trembled as it wrapped tightly around the locket around her neck. It was him…it had to be…
Seri stared blankly at the TV, mind elsewhere as he cuddled against Severo’s chest, Skya asleep on his. He took a deep breath and said, “I want to go back to school. I want to find a house, and I want to live my life with you and Skya, without being hounded.”
Severo was quiet for a moment, before the TV flicked off and his arms came more firmly around him. “I know you do, Seri. I know. And we will get there. I hate saying it will take time. But fudge, I’ll sue every reporter in existence to give you the peace you need.”
Seri snorted. “You’ll go broke.”
“Fine then! I’ll use my mommy and daddy’s money to sue every reporter in existence!”
He giggled. “What nonsense.” Before a thought had him sobering. “I haven’t met them yet…”
“I told them about you… I was hesitating to reach out for help, but the day we tried to eat breakfast, I told them… I realized that I kept telling you that there was nothing wrong with needing help, while never reaching out for help myself. I didn’t tell them all that you told me. But they know enough. It's why Cassia was there. She works for them. I should have mentioned that. But, yeah.”
Seri gulped. “So, they know about me…”
“Well, I mean, they knew something was going on before that. When you were taken, I had Ender tell them what was going on. He didn’t explain in detail, of course. But then I forgot that I told him to tell them.
“Honestly, they should have been here by now, but a mix of a bad solar flare storm, on top of a few other space delays, has kept them away from Earth. Us appearing on the news that one time, alerted them to more. I may have…sort of…been ignoring their calls before the restaurant incident. So, there is a possibility that I’ll get yelled at when you finally do meet them.”
Seri gasped horror. “Severo, how could you ignore your parents’ calls?! Wait! What if they think I made you ignore them?!”
