Togetherness Part 2 free porn video

Dinner was solemn as none of the family wanted to talk about the upcoming interviews while Jasmine did her best to keep her other in-laws from trying to intervene to help the kids and potentially harm the investigations by hiring their own people to investigate. Her own father was the worst, he had access to a lot of people who could get information but it came at a cost- bruises, bloodshed, and confessions. The duo went to bed with their puppies helping them sleep as their pets knew how to make them focus on them while loving the attention that they received. The two slept in, with Walter and Jasmine taking the puppies for their walks allowing the kids a chance to regain their energy before the two were driven north to Endicott for their unfortunate interviews. After feeding the kids, Gabby got them ready for two nights at the Bailey home with both afraid of the two adults' reactions to their being there. Jace didn't have to say it, they knew his deep secret and had a strong inkling that he'd be forced to be Jaycee for the girls to satisfy their need to dress him up as a girl even if he was just a normal boy. Gabby didn't have the heart to tell him that they wouldn't do that- the two knew exactly what was going on and were fine with him just being himself with them and that the girls wouldn't force anything on him even if they hoped to have fun with him. The kids were silent throughout the drive, with Gabby wisely not pushing them while Zeke kept texting someone about what was going on and why. Just before they arrived, he told Gabby, "John knows about what's going on and isn't happy to back away but won't interfere unless he has to. You know how he is with the kids, especially newcomers in need of help. He'll defer to Alexandra and Isobel but expect us to update him when we get the chance- preferably in person." The group were met at the door by the towering Ian Bailey, complete with uniform and scowl. Jace had a look of fear while Zeke shook his head and boldly told Ian, "It's being covered. Just be ready to rip the troopers who ignored your report to shreds and don't skimp on the facts: Patricia Parker will need all of the facts to ensure convictions that won't get overturned by greasing the right judicial palms." Ian moved aside and went on his way, with his wife Sheila hugging the foursome before giving Jace the once-over followed by a big kiss on the cheek. She did the same to Joy, only adding a hearty, "You're a bit too big for your own good. I think Eli will have his hands full keeping the boys away from you." Joy tried hard to not say anything while Jace knew that she'd embarrass him next. She wisely added, "I know she's already met you but was told by Stacy not to push things. She's scared for both of you, it's different with you than the others- she doesn't know the boundaries yet. She does like you, though." Megan was upstairs and was caught by surprise when her in-house phone rang causing her to rush out to see what her parents wanted. Seeing Jace and Joy caused her to scream, with her rushing to hug them while fighting tears over seeing them again. Jace didn't react to her, he let her get her needed tears out. Megan needed an explanation, she was scared and was sure that something bad had happened. Seeing a needed opening, Sheila explained to her daughter, "Jace and Joy are staying with their paternal family. I know you haven't heard much about them since their grandparents did something horrible last year, it's gotten worse for them and a few days ago their grandparents went too far and in front of people who're not going to let them get away with anything anymore. You wondered why your uncles David and Miles was here a couple of days ago? It was because of Jace and Joy." Megan shed a tear and asked, "Are they going to prison for having sex with her friend and covering it up like we told you? I don't want Jace and Joy hurt by them! Please tell me they aren't going to get hurt." Sheila wisely explained, "Your aunt and great-aunt are helping protect them. They are being interviewed by the State Police about what happened and are going to spend the next couple of nights here. I trust that you will respect Jace's privacy and won't force him to do anything that he doesn't want to do even if you did it with him before. He might not want to dress for you anymore, he's his own boy now. Your brother will be around so he isn't inundated with girlishness but don't think that he's pushing you away for not dressing. He had his reasons for doing it, he isn't going to do it anymore." Megan looked sad, Jace looked away in shame proving that Sheila was right in asking her to not force it on him. He didn't want to do the wrong thing with Megan, but he didn't want to dress anymore. They had done it in the past, but his feelings about it had changed in recent days. Megan led Jace and Joy to the guest rooms and noticed Jace looking at her differently. He blushed as he got caught looking, Megan smiled and happily told him, "They finally started coming in last year. Mom is happy that I'm not that big and will be about the same size as her, Deborah takes after daddy's side of the family and he hates that she is so big. Mom is small, I'm happy to be her daughter in body." He blushed again and mumbled, "You look so different yet the same. The girls were bigger than you and were making fun of your smaller size when you weren't around. Joy told them to stop it or you'd kick us out but they didn't listen. You look bigger than any of them, they stuffed their bras last year." Joy blushed at him knowing that fact about the girls. Megan happily told him, "I know they did all of it. I didn't want to upset you two. I only let them come because it wouldn't look good if you were here and they weren't. Your grandparents were perverts, daddy wanted to go after them but nobody wanted to help him. I guess Uncle David changed things. Uncle David hates people like them." Megan asked about what they had done since being in Gabby and Zeke's care, causing her to laugh as it was clear that they had soft introductions to a few people while enduring some of the worst so far from Scott and Stacy. She smiled at hearing about Wendy and Jace, with Jace looking ashamed at Megan and Joy teasing him over his crush. Wendy had already told Megan about their meeting but not who she had met, and was happy that Jace was proving to be just like she had described him to Wendy. Jace looked away in shame but Megan gave him a big kiss on the lips and cheek to show that she was happy for him. She then told him, "Wendy likes you a lot. She really does, it's more than what she has felt towards boys before. She needed a boy who didn't know her to treat her like she's a normal girl." Jace quietly whispered, "She's better than just any normal girl." That earned another kiss, with Jace then telling Megan, "I couldn't treat her bad because I thought about you. I couldn't make fun of her or insult her for being a girl because I would be insulting you. You are a girl, she is a girl too. I don't care that she has a penis, I like her for her and she's the prettiest girl that I have ever seen. I can't help but see a girl, even if I saw her bulge. She's all girl." Megan hugged him tightly and gave a glare to Joy to stop her from teasing him over all but admitting that he had a deep crush on Wendy while paying respect to Megan. He was breaking down over confessing his true feelings about Megan, even if it was platonic to him. He needed to treat Wendy as a girl because he only saw her as a girl and she reminded him of the first girl who treated him like he was a normal boy even though he dressed like a girl most of the time that he was around her. Megan softly told Jace, "This is why she likes you: you understand her better than most boys. You aren't a masculine boy, you are a soft boy who understands girls. You aren't a girl like us, you just loved to be a good brother to your sister. She needed someone to be a little sister, she has that now with cousins. It will take time to get used to being a normal boy, but you are you and nothing like other boys." She looked over at Joy and proclaimed, "My brother is home later on. He was never around whenever it was a sleepover. Mom sent him off to our cousins to stay out of the way, he's more like Jace than others are. He takes after daddy and Uncle Kyle in size. Daddy is big, Uncle Kyle is a little smaller but he's a huge man. You never met Uncle Kyle, he probably knows about you already from Aunt Amy." Looking at Jace, she happily told him, "He's the same size as you. He has a smaller penis but I know of it because he lost his swimsuit in the pool last week. He forgot to tie it and they fell off when he tried to climb out of the water. Mom was upset- he was told to tie them twice before going in!" Looking over at Joy, she added, "He dresses every few months for me. I think I'll ask him to do it tonight so we have something more fun to do than watch the movies mom wants us to watch. He was going to go play his game system all night but mom hid his controller and Aunt Al bought all of the old ones off of mom for her own house so there isn't anything else to do here for him except play what I want to play. He still hates Aunt Al for buying the systems- but mom said she could buy them off of her years ago before we were born and only got around to doing it when she bought her own house." She was casual about all of that, Joy got the gist of it and knew not to press Jace. More than likely, he'd end up doing whatever Megan had planned and without a fight. At least he wouldn't be alone, but she'd ensure that Jace was involved voluntarily as she always did. Megan got them settled in the rooms, with Joy being told, "He sleeps alone. I know you are used to him being your cuddle partner, but he's too big for that. You can sleep with me if you want, mom said it's a good idea since your puppies aren't here. Dad hates puppies, he banned them from the house ever since Wyatt and Deborah brought home a stray dog from school and she gave birth in his office." Jace remembered the whole incident, it was Joy's friends who encouraged Megan to try to take care of a stray dog but ended up having her siblings take the fall for her. They did it willingly, even if it meant a weekend at home and helping their aunt Claire clean her office. It was funny to them, but Ian had to be the bad guy because of peer pressure on Megan The trio walked downstairs and saw Megan's brother blush deeply at seeing Joy. He tried hard to not be noticed, but he was taking quick glimpses at her. She had to hide her smile: he had a crush on her. Ryan Bailey was his father's son and was always blushing around girls, especially ones who were very pretty in his eyes. Joy didn't take notice of it while Jace kept a close eye on him to make sure that Ryan didn't do anything to his sister. He might be a guest of the Baileys for the night, but he wasn't about to take chances with his sister- especially with a boy that they didn't know. In the dining room, Gabby asked about Ryan and Megan's elder siblings. Sheila smirked while Gabby gave a gasp. Sheila happily explained to her, "Johnny is making his move on Deborah while Wyatt has a date with one of his classmates at UMass. Johnny got pushed into it by Wyatt, since Chance and Sylvia are all but engaged they didn't want her to upstage her cousin yet again. With both sets of Smith twins engaged it was only a matter of time before they forced Johnny to man-up and ask her. Johnny is also the only guy who can stand up to Ian and mean it, even if Ian would never back down from him." Megan was going to tease her siblings but Ryan angrily told her, "It's because of you that no girl will be after Wyatt. You stupidly got every girl to stay away from him because of your friends! He couldn't get a girl within 20 miles to look at him after last summer! It's all your fault!" He was angry and showing his frustration over something that happened to him that he hadn't yet told to his mother. Megan was in tears while Joy was trying hard to not fight him over being an idiot. Gabby had to hold off Jace from defending Megan, it was clear that Sheila needed to talk to Ryan in private. Ryan fled the table in tears. Sheila went after him and found him punching his punching bag while the tears flowed, stinging his eyes and making wince in pain. She did the only thing that she could do, she hugged him tightly as he tried hard to get away from her. When he calmed himself, she sat him down and slowly explained to him, "Your sister didn't cause any of what you accused her of. Your brother didn't date any of the local girls because he just didn't like any of the girls who were throwing themselves on him. You weren't able to hear any of what was being said about your sister behind her back, but he did. You didn't hear any of what actually happened to the girl who was actually raped by Jace and Joy's grandfather. None of it. You were purposely kept in the dark by your father and I because you would have fought the boys in school or the idiots in town. We love you too much to let that happen. Your brother kept you away from all of it at our request, it's why you were down in Winnisimmet with your grandmother and great-aunt or your uncle." She sighed deeply and further explained, "Your sister is transgender. She has always been a girl, she told us that she was a girl when you were in preschool. You never noticed her trying to be a boy before she could no longer handle it because you were too young. She has never been happier than she has been since she had her breasts finally develop. She makes all of the boys and girls jealous as well as question their sexuality and the nature of gender. She didn't cause people to do anything, they did it themselves. They acted like asses to people, they caused fights that got themselves banned from stores and parks. All she did was act like a normal kid and forced people to behave or show the world their true colors and show just how sexist, homophobic, and transphobic they really are. You love her, but you are in the dark about what's really going on with her. What you blame her for, she didn't actually do." Steeling herself, she added, "What she was blamed for was actually done by Joy's grandfather. He did it a year ago and got caught by Jace who told your father. He then told the State Police who tried to keep it a secret from your uncle Reed and aunts Jessica and Jenna. She was raped, she was 13 so therefore is underage no matter how mature she looked. She told the truth and got taken away from her parents who tried to get her to claim that it was a lie. The case stagnated, but everyone knew the truth. It's why Jace and Joy haven't been here since. It's why the Williams family have visited your sisters' former friends. It's why Jace and Joy are here: the two are finally going to tell the State Police their story." He still didn't believe her. She shook her head and blurted out, "Your great-aunt is in town for a reason. I know you were asking about your cousins, they wouldn't let you come over because of what's going on tomorrow. Your sister needs your support, as does Jace. You have a job to do: be a cousin to him for the next two days. You two should have been around one another before but going to Winnisimmet was keeping you two apart. He couldn't go with you because of his grandparents, and you weren't allowed to go over his house because his grandparents would have caused a big fight with your father." Ryan started to understand but asked if Megan really had any friends left. Sheila nodded and explained, "She has a few friends who she hangs out with after school. They work on the weekend, not everyone is rich and has a large trust fund. They have known her since she was a baby and actually care about her, which is unlike those girls that you knew. Those girls acted like friends until last summer then showed that they were really trying to get her to do something immoral and illegal to get at our money. When one of the girls actually did what they were going to accuse your sister of doing they started to show themselves to the entire town and have isolated themselves from everyone else. She needed her real friends to help her get through it, you never saw any of that because you were busy helping at the restaurant and store. I wanted you to stay away and in the dark, unfortunately it led to you blaming your sister for what she had no control over and wasn't responsible for causing. Now you know the awful truth: it wasn't her fault!" He tried to apologize, Sheila simply hugged him and lovingly told him, "You are your father's son. It's a tough situation for you, you want to believe the worst but you know the truth. Your sister is a target and will always be a target, but you need to see beyond what others say about her and see the truth." She waited for him to stop hugging her and added, "You have another job to do. I want you to be a good host for Jace. He is finally able to be his own man and not the little sister that Joy usually had him as. I know it's tough to see him as a normal boy, but he loves his sister deeply and is willing to be a girl for her for a bit so she is able to enjoy time with another girl. Now, she has cousins who fulfill that role so he is going to be a normal boy- like you. He isn't looking for much, just being treated like a normal boy for the first time in a long time. You have seen just what happens when you believe rumors and what it can do for people. He has had nobody except Joy for years and it didn't help that we made a mistake in keeping you away from him when he could have used a boy his age to show him that he is normal. Can you be that for him? Can you be like your father- be the guy who shows someone in need what being a male actually means? If you aren't up for it then I'll ask your cousins to do it." He didn't give her an answer. He couldn't. Jace was what was wrong with people, none of his friends in Endicott would accept him for being good to Jace when Jace was what they hated about people from out of town and not "like them." Sheila knew that it would take time, but the request was already making him question everything that he had known about the situation. He needed answers and he would seek them from outside sources as his father had always done in the same situation. It was his father shining through: he was a Bailey by blood and was someone who had his own sense of right and wrong and would find his own answers. Over in the TV room, the girls were enjoying a movie with Jace stuck having to endure it alongside the two. Joy asked what the big deal was about the movies, to which Megan blurted out, "It's our family in it. It's Gruncle John's story, all of us watch it once a year on the 'Jaimieversary' since it reminds us that we were all brought together because of her. Mom hates seeing it, she doesn't like remembering that we all came after and some of us might not have survived if not for Jaimie. Daddy hates seeing it because it reminds him that he was a lowly beat cop and knew Gruncle John before he met mom." Sheila gave her daughter a look of sadness as she started the movie, but sat with Jace while Megan had Joy alongside her in a hug. Megan had tissues ready, with Sheila telling Jace to not react to the movie as it was something that he needed to see and would understand the girls better. He didn't care, it was a movie and he never really cared much for dramas especially not ones involving kids. The movie took two hours to show and saw Joy hugging Megan tight when it came to the infamous big fight that cost the future Dr. Jaimie Samuels her testicles just a day after being outed as a girl to her entire town. Jace fought a brewing rage at the character, with Sheila hugging him and kissing his cheek soothing him but having a tough time keeping him from exploding. He had the reaction that he needed to give, he was upset for all of the right reasons at someone that he didn't realize that he knew. Megan knew that they'd have questions so started the next movie, one that she told them would have a stronger impact. Sheila wisely told them, "Your older cousins were in the movies. Johnny refused to be his own father so he settled on one of the nasty boys alongside Scott. Yes, that was the same Scott who is Wendy's father. Scott is nothing like he appeared then, I won't spoil it but keep watching. As for the others, your aunts were in it as mothers of other kids. Ian complained about his casting, he ended up as a corrupt cop. Did you notice the judge and John's aunt? That was John himself and his sister Karen. It was the judge himself who requested John portray the judge as he needed to help with the emotion of the scenes and needed that bit of therapy. And you'll never guess it, but John's wife Valerie was played by none other than a young woman like Megan: Taylor Turner, the pro wrestler." Megan giggled and added, "Your aunt Francesca and uncle Donald were Aunt Francesca's parents. Mom was Great-Granty Cynthia. Mom played her younger at her request." Megan quickly started the next movie and saw the duo being enthralled over the stuff that happened as it was clear that a lot happened quickly for the family. What was shocking was that they saw a trio of boys featured leading them to ask about them. Sheila sighed and told them, "One was your father. The other two were your uncles. You saw why they left your mother and sisters, it was watered down but it was down to them being under the influence of a nasty family. That young man who was crying at the dance over his mom's actions? That was your uncle Reed. His story couldn't be told because of what it would do to a lot of people who are still in prison. Plus it takes place a couple of years after the movie." The two blushed at seeing their aunts in the movie, especially as it was told to them that they were both played by Megan's sister Deborah and to their shock: Jasmine. Jasmine was a darker skin tone but that wasn't relevant to things as she was cute, causing Jace to blush at the thought. Neither could ask why it was Jasmine's role, she was just slightly older than the other girls but less developed at the time making it easier to have her act as Jessie instead of Courtney. The last few minutes of the movie caused Jace to grow angry as he saw Ian hurting Jaimie making him think that Ian was dangerous. Sheila hugged him then kissed his cheek, soothing him and giving him a chance to release anger without exploding. It took a few minutes and he missed much of the rest of the movie but he calmed himself allowing Sheila to lessen her hug. When Megan started the next movie, Sheila explained to Jace, "It's why he did the part. He could play a bad guy but is nothing like the man he portrayed. Ian loves Jaimie and was one of the few who could be trusted to keep her safe in school. It's why his cousin played him in the role: that was his cousin Kyle in the scenes in school, he's only slightly smaller than Ian but happily married to Al. You aren't yet ready for her story, but he knows Jaimie's plight better than most even if he isn't transgender. Same with your uncle Reed. A lot of people were impacted by people in these movies- for good and for bad." The last movie saw them having to stop as Jace was clearly upset at one part. Sheila sighed heavily and told him, "Yes, those are your relatives. Yes, they did try to hijack John's mother's funeral. Yes, Victoria Castillo did stand up to them. Yes, your grandparents are among them. Yes, your grandpa Zeke wasn't there. He chose to not go, even though he would have been accepted among his friends and coworkers. It's the one thing that sets him apart from your other relatives: he is his own person and tried hard to be a better person. John knew his familial connection but respected Zeke's wishes. That changed later as it was your aunt Amy and uncle Donald who finally got him together with your grandmother." Megan giggled at that while Joy asked what happened. Sheila shook her head but finally admitted, "They got forced by the kids to date, Walter was the result of it. They loved one another for over 24 years but it took their kids forcing them together that they stopped fighting their love for one another." She restarted the movie and let them see the major event that shook the family to its core: Scott and his plight being exposed, his family having to flee for their safety, and the family growing stronger through their helping of a boy in need of help despite his past. Sheila wisely told them, "You are who you are. It is up to you to make your life better or hurt others. Scott needed help and received it, despite what other people thought about him. You two are the same way, you aren't your grandparents nor father nor your mother. You are Jace and Joy Williams, the grandchildren of Abigail and Ezekiel Bollinger. You have a large group of aunts and uncles, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th cousins ready to help you be the real you. Family is more than blood, family is your friends and loved ones. You are family to us, if you choose." Jace was in tears as he hugged Sheila, with Joy doing the same to Megan. Ryan tried to see what all of the crying was about and had to walk away in anger as Jace was acting just like Megan again. He could see the tears, he hated it when someone cried- especially a boy. The group had a late dinner, with Ian returning and looking exhausted. He saw his son's look and gave a glare to Ryan to tell him to not cause trouble or else he'd face immediate punishment. Ryan didn't try to push things at the time, but Ian knew that he'd set off Jace in some way based on Jace's sad look. After dinner, the girls went to enjoy some time in Megan's room which caused Jace to join them as it'd be safer for him with the way Ryan was glaring at him. Going with the girls only made things worse as Ryan growled that he was another freak which Jace chose to ignore but Ian didn't. Ian sent Ryan on his way, telling Ryan that he could kiss his game system goodbye for a month. Megan asked Jace to dress with them, then helped him with makeup as Jace was quickly replaced by an upset Jaycee. Joy hugged her sister and kissed her cheek, with Megan telling the upset Jaycee, "Ryan is a jackass boy. You aren't like him, dad is going to see if he can get Ryan moved to another class as it's clear that the boys in his class are assholes to him. He isn't that bad, he just believes what they say and it doesn't sink in yet that they're lying or exaggerating what happened. We know the truth, Ryan isn't a bad person but needs a smack in the face to snap him out of his idiocy." Megan and Joy went at Jaycee with a makeup set and got her to calm herself while Megan explained to her what girls had done with her since they had last been over Megan's house. She ripped into some of the girls that they knew, with Joy understanding why she wasn't invited over since: the girls who had a hand in bringing the duo to Megan's sleepovers were the ones who were banned by Megan after all of the chaos over their other friend having sex with the duo's grandfather. Jaycee wasn't surprised that the two were banned, what really shocked her was that they were also the ones who helped get their friend to sleep with their grandfather in the first place! The girls raided Megan's closet and went about doing a simple fashion show, with Megan happy to be a big sister to Jaycee while Joy enjoyed her advice as the two talked freely while Jaycee listened quietly. Jaycee was only really there for Joy's benefit, Jace had calmed himself but didn't want to face an upset Ryan as Jace left the room to go to his own room for the night. Eventually the girls ran out of steam so Jaycee left to seek Sheila out for makeup removal wipes and to let her know that he was doing better despite Ryan's anger. Sheila didn't ask what they had done, only if they kept it chaste. Jace nodded and added, "I don't see her as anything but a big sister. Joy likes her a lot even if we know that she can never be our sister." She hugged him tight, then offered a soothing, "We know how you feel. Trust me when I say this: many of us have felt the same way when we first joined the family. We would have taken you in as our own if you didn't already have aunts and uncles ready, willing, and able to do the same for you." Jace was in tears as he had confessed a secret that he had held for several years and only just now had a chance to vocalize. Sheila softly told him, "Courtney, Donald, Jessie, Amy, and Walter are your family. I know they will be the parents that you need in your own parents' absence. I don't think that anyone will adopt you as it wouldn't feel right to do so. That isn't a sleight to you- it's because they love you and it wouldn't feel right stripping away that final part of your past. Your mother's family is still your family even if they rejected you. Your aunts and uncles love you enough to respect your heritage." Sheila then added, "We are your aunt and uncle. All of our relatives are yours now. You aren't alone, we are there for you. You are family, more than blood to us. Ryan will come around, Megan already loves you as a cousin even if she hasn't yet told you directly. Actions speak louder than words with her." He walked out and was confronted by Ryan. Ryan had a look of pure anger over Jace still wearing one of Megan's blouses and a skirt, especially as he sported one of her old bras and had his hair pinned back with barrettes. Jace looked him straight in the eyes and told him, "Move out of the way." Ryan screamed at him, "You're another one of those freaks! You're a faggot like Megan! You're going to be a girl like her! She did it to another girl, first Wally now you! The boys were right, she's making all of the boys into girls to be just like her. I'm going to be next!" Jace didn't react, letting him make himself look stupid before calmly telling him, "I'm all boy. I'm man enough to dress like this to help my sister. She is trying hard to not break down, what grandpa did hurt her a lot more than anyone knows. You have no idea what he did to us, you want to believe what those idiots say because they seem like they are cool. They aren't, they're leeches who want you to buy them things because your family can afford it. They know that you have money, your family are billionaires! I know that you are, grandpa said that your mom is super rich from her family. I know that none of the boys will be more than day laborers or go into the military- you don't have to do anything and it makes all of them jealous of you. They don't want anything to do with you, they just want money." Growling, he blurted out, "I see why your parents kept you away from us: you are an idiot who doesn't see what's right in front of his face. I chose to do this tonight, just as I did it all of the other times that I came over. I like your sister, she has been the only person who treated us like we were friends and not just poor white trash. She treated us like we were her family, so much so that she wanted us to be part of her family. Your mom told us that she would have done just that but wasn't allowed to. I know why it never happened: it was to keep us from your family and what they'd do to your so-called friends!" Jace was foaming at the mouth but continued, "I have no problem with girls, their clothes, makeup, and I am happy to let them enjoy practicing makeup. I understand girls, I know how hard it is to make them look pretty for us. Your sister is struggling to get things right while Joy is barely able to put on mascara without poking herself in the eye. You would know this if you ever tried to get close to her. It's clear to me that you ignore her because you never do this stuff with her. She accepts that you are influenced by a bunch of idiots but didn't say anything to you. She loves you, just as I love my sister. I'd do anything for them even if it means I have to put up with your stupidity. If I didn't care about what your mom and dad would do to me I would have beaten you where you stand. But I won't. I like Megan too much to put you in the hospital. You deserve it for what you are saying about Wendy and Megan." He closed his door and broke down on the floor. Ian entered and hugged him tightly, telling the sobbing boy, "He needed that reality check. You are more man than he is. His brother did all of what you did and did it without complaining. He knows about our annual dressing, but I haven't joined in on the fun due to my work and he has been conveniently away most weekends whenever we did it. He refused the last couple of years- now we know why. He is going to change or he'll find himself all along among all of us in our family. Not just Baileys- Petersons and Jameses. He'll lose a lot of friendships and family just because he refuses to see that people that he knew for years were simply not what they appeared to be." Ian's hug was exactly what Jace needed. Ian was a huge man who made all others cower in fear when he raised his voice To have him hug you and not make light of your crying showed that it was accepted by him and Jace wasn't going to be harmed for doing what came naturally after an emotional outburst. Over in Ryan's room, Sheila sat him on the bed and authoritatively explained, "You are grounded for the next month. No gaming, no computer, no TV. You have to work in the shops for two months. You won't be attending any football games, and you sure as hell won't be dating. This isn't his fault: this is all you this time. You believed their garbage. You have known your sister since you were born, she's not now nor has ever forced anyone to be a girl. If that was true, wouldn't you be one already? Jace chose to be a girl for a bit for his sister's sake. He did it because it's something that many boys do for their sisters. I know you haven't seen it with your brother, but he did it for both Megan and Deborah. He is no less of a man than your father is. Your father has done it for your sister and cousins countless times. You're not that sly, you avoided it for years but I know why you did: your friends are behind it. That changes now. I am moving you to another cluster in school, one that I know is better for you as you won't have to do all of the work for your so-called 'friends' just to keep them from failing. You are smarter than you are led to believe, perhaps with others like yourself you can show your brilliance. You are also barred from seeing your 'friends' anymore. I'll tell their parents myself, and if need be I'll ensure that the school is aware of just how much the kids were hidden under your help and ensure that they they repeat the 7th grade. You are finished with them, you showed just how rotten they are. Jace is family, family doesn't do that to other family. You are going to learn the hard way what family truly means." She looked at the morose Ryan and left, returning a few minutes later with several books and told him, "I know you haven't started your summer reading. Well, you have incentive now. You aren't going out so you have no reason not to read these books. You will do the work and have your sister check it. I'm not going to accept anything less than a complete report on the books." Sheila left and checked in on the three kids. Jace was fast asleep, dressed in his normal pajamas and not in any way looking like a girl that he had appeared minutes before. Joy was hugging Megan tight, with Megan hugging her stuffed monkey tighter- a joke from the girls of the family since she coveted Liv's own stuffed monkey back when the two started to get to know one another years before. Ian was stewing in their room and hugged Sheila tight, kissing her cheek and offering a consoling, "He's going to talk with the guys tomorrow: the combined Peterson/Bollinger/James/Perez males. He needs a strong talking-to from the ones he respects the most, I can't do it but they can. He's good at heart, it's a tough thing to do to listen to those who love you when others are telling you differently." The duo eventually fell asleep and woke before the kids the next morning. Ryan was the first down and was remorseful about what he had said the night before, especially when Ian told him about where he was going and why. Megan heard what was said and tried to hold off Jace from saying something, with her nodding to him that it was alright now. After breakfast, Ryan awaited his "execution" and begged his brother Wyatt not to make him go. Wyatt ignored his pleading, leading the boy out after hugging Jace and kissing Joy's cheek. It was clear why it was done: he wanted Ryan to see that the two were family no matter what anyone said about the two. They weren't left alone for long as Alexandra James entered after Wyatt pulled away. She took a look at the kids and shook her head then stated, "I see the bulk of the issues right here: Bollinger blood runs strong in them. Williams blood is almost diluted thanks to stronger blood, you two are the proof of it." The two blushed at hearing that. Alexandra offered them hugs and sat them down, telling them that she would ensure that their grandparents were imprisoned and grandfather made to pay for his crimes. They were happy to hear that, even if it wasn't fully believed. The two were told that Isobel was delayed but Sheila shook her head and asked if Isobel was doing things on her own with her father forcing the state to do things fully or else face his wrath. Alexandra nodded and added, "He worked over the DA and spoke at length with Patricia Parker over his suspicions from previous meetings with a few of the girls. Something is way off about all of this, he put out feelers before but they fell silent. He has a long list of people who are going to end up on the chopping block because of this disaster. Both of the kids are likely to be interviewed at length with a lot of things put on them to make them seem as if they were at fault instead of their grandparents. I won't let them do that, they'll investigate the truth or they'll lose their badges. This is a major crime, you don't brush away a rape and blame an innocent." Isobel arrived two hours later, telling them, "The detectives are doing their best to play this off as just a big misunderstanding. They hoped to sweep this under the rug and claim that the kids made it up, but Reed being involved caused them to get sloppy and try to cover their connections. They are getting removed this afternoon after you meet with them. The newly assigned detectives are coming tomorrow and have most of the evidence ready: the initial reports, the doctor's report, the rape kit, DNA results, statements from the girls taken under supervision from social workers from here and Maine. They know the who, where, and when- they are only now looking for the eyewitnesses. That's you two. They know that you saw something and were told by her what happened, they need confirmation." The kids were fed then led next door to the James home where they met Isobel's husband Fabian Perez. The two didn't look up from what they were doing which caused Jace to grow concerned that the two were going to be in trouble. Alexandra led them further inside, with Jace specifically being told, "I know that it looks like they're upset but they aren't. They're focused on something big right now." Alexandra asked the kids what they knew about her family, knowing that they were in the dark about a family who were closer to them than they realized. Jace softly told her, "Only that you are Sheila's aunt, your husband is a Senator, and your father was Governor. Everything else is just rumors." She grinned then explained, "You haven't met our four youngest. You've met our eldest, Zoe, repeatedly over the years and Sela, our 2nd-oldest multiple times. Our daughters Isobel and Sela live nearby to you in Winnisimmet with their husbands and kids. Our youngest daughter, Phoebe, lives in Boston with her husband. Our three sons are in college in California, they're their father's sons and wanted to be among people who don't want to use them. I'm proud of all of them, especially Phoebe. She was adopted by us after she was hired to be a surrogate for our three sons but has since grown to be an independent yet reliant mother and wife. She loves us deeply, and respects that we need to help her from time to time for our sake but still tries to go it alone for much of the time." She had Jace enthralled. She went further and added, "You haven't met our niece yet. She's married to a fine young man whose family are among the cleverest people you've ever encounter. Our niece Avery is a businesswoman, much like her mother. Her husband is a railroad mechanic, he's the oddball among the family as he's the only one who found his profession by accident- he talked with some folks at one of the train museums about electric traction systems and knew a lot more about mechanical engineering than they did and parlayed it into a career working on the newest trains for the T." Isobel was finished, with her husband giving the duo a double-take as he walked by. Isobel had to give a light swat as he got caught by them, but it was hard to deny why: they were clearly related to Jessie as well as Walter making it clear that someone kept them away from the Bollingers. She wasn't happy, but someone would pay for their actions- especially DCF and the State Police. With Fabian looming in the background, Isobel asked about their grandfather and his actions with girls. Joy blushed as she tried to form words, Jace took the lead and blurted out, "He was different around the girls than he was around other people. He'd fondle them, he thought that he was sly but I saw what he did with their butts and boobs. He'd be quick, but he copped a feel on the girls. Two smacked his hand and they never came by again. I was told by them later that they told their fathers who screamed at him for doing that to their daughters. They were barred from going near us, grandpa hated that and yelled at me for creeping the girls out. He didn't do it for several weeks but did it again and again to them." Isobel asked if he had proof, Jace showed social media posts from the girls complaining about creepy old men trying to feel them up. The key there was that Joy and Jace were in the pictures and after that it was clear that they weren't friends anymore. The girls had some remarks about Jace being OK to date if you could endure his grandfather trying to molest you, putting it into perspective perfectly. Joy looked like she wanted to say something but kept silent. Isobel wisely asked her what they had told her after the incidents, getting Joy to blurt out, "Their fathers went to the police. Ian tried to investigate it but he got stonewalled by troopers claiming that they had jurisdiction. Ian had to drop it or else he was going to be investigated by the state for impeding a serious crime." Isobel let it go, but it was clear that the two had just caused a carefully kept secret by multiple people to fall apart and that their own investigation was justified. She went to the heart of the matter and asked about the girl whose incident caused everything to initially crumble as well as being the heart of the new investigation. Jace was silent, Joy needed a bit to compose herself for the confession that she had held onto for a year. When she finally got the strength to speak, she told Isobel, "Grandpa and my friend were always around one another because her parents had to work and Grandma volunteered us to care for her after school. I was always around her anyway, and her parents didn't know Grandpa's reputation. Grandpa let us go to the trailerpark pool then required that we shower after. She was always the last to shower, Jace the first. I think it was because Jace wouldn't be able to see what Grandpa was going to do. Grandpa would have her change in his room, then go inside as she was naked. I caught him in there a few times, he had his penis out and was doing something with it. He'd quickly finish while she danced around flaunting her body for him. He didn't say anything, but she smirked at me. I asked why she let him do that as it was wrong, she told me 'he said I'm the prettiest girl in the town. I like to show off for people.'" Isobel asked about later instances. Joy shed a tear then told her, "They would do it more often, especially if Jace was out with boys. She tried to get me to do the same, I refused. She eventually started to fondle him then let him fondle her. After two months, she was having sex with him. Grandma knew about it, it was her insistence that he did it with her instead of me! Grandpa really wanted me and used her!" Jace took over and told her, "This was when Ian started to have us go over his house for sleepovers so it was safer for us. She came a couple of times, but after Joy told Ian that her friend was having sex with Grandpa it all stopped. We were having a sleepover with Megan at another girl's house but I got kicked out because the girl had her first period and her parents didn't want him there. I went home and saw the two having sex, I called Joy and told her friends who told their parents. Grandpa got in trouble with the state and she was sent to live with family up in Maine. She admitted to wanting sex with him because he was nicer than her father and the boys around her, she didn't know that it was wrong or that Grandpa really wanted to do more with her. After Ian got involved we were banned from leaving the trailerpark and only left for school. Grandpa would let us go to afterschool activities and kept us away from other kids. Grandma started to tell others that I was bad and Joy wanted to have sex with their sons, we were all alone and had no friends after that. They'd hit us and claim that we were clumsy or tried to hurt them, nobody did anything about that even though it was reported by our teachers to the police. The police ignored it, they said Grandpa was right." The two didn't know it yet, but they had sealed the fate of several people. Byfield's police chief was in a tough situation and likely would have to resign in disgrace while multiple State Police detectives and troopers were going to be terminated and reassigned after suspensions. The paper trail was clear, but it was even clearer that people intentionally refused to act to protect the kids and investigate a rape. Isobel was stoic after that, letting the kids go upstairs to decompress while awaiting the State Police to take the kids' statements and spring the trap against them. Isobel sent the recordings of her questioning to Miles, David, and Ian allowing them to coordinate resources and find everyone responsible. She had a strong sense that this was going to be yet another classic Massachusetts corruption case, with troopers again using their clout to get what they wanted and protect someone paying them to look the other way. Fiona was next to arrive, bringing her wife Mia with her as well as their two sons. The two had a look of exhaustion as well as complaining about their sons being too girl-crazy for their own good. It was quickly followed by laughs from everyone but Jace and Joy, karma was strong with the Nelsons. Joy blushed at seeing the tall, muscular, and handsome Juan while Jace squared-off with the smaller yet still heavily built Franklin. The two boys were the same age as Jace and Joy but were miles ahead in the size department- much to Jace's disappointment. He'd get beaten easily by them, which only caused the two to know not to provoke Jace as it'd be their own fault for causing it. Juan blushed as Joy kept glancing at him, while Franklin kept to himself but kept an eye on Joy. It was almost sweet as she had them unknowingly enthralled- simply by being a girl. Jace understood what the two were feeling, it was her being normal and having people fall for her without trying. He once again felt the sting of being a third wheel with his sister as she had guys all over her and had not even tried to do anything to get that attention. He had to get away, going downstairs to where Sheila was only to be enveloped into a deep hug by Mia. He tried to get away, but Mia wasn't about to let him push her away and gave him what he needed most- affection. Mia asked what was going on. Jace tried to look away in shame to which Mia explained to him, "You're different than them. I hate that they are like this, but the boys are hormonal. It's something that runs in my family. My birth family, not my adoptive family. I love them, but they are just too much like me or my 2nd-cousins. You know Reed, you haven't met Kylie or Billy. They're both girl-crazy, Reed wasn't. It's because he met your aunt early on so she stole his heart and he couldn't see girls the same way after that. Kylie found love with her wife Jordan in 6th grade, but she still had a lot of lust for years. And it's toughest on Billy- the son of the police chief and the deputy attorney general makes things tough to get a girl who doesn't want to use you for their own needs." Mia happily added, "You aren't the same. We all know how you got along with Wendy, you aren't acting like other boys and you haven't once tried to look at us. Maybe we've finally gotten 'old' but she's the right girl for you if you haven't tried to look at my body like you did hers." She was teasing him, which achieved the right response. He wanted to get away but was hugged by her and given a kiss on the cheek. She then wisely added, "Yes, I'm transgender. I owe my life to mom and dad. Fiona was love at first sight for both of us, I love that about her even if she hated why she had to be with her family at the time. She never told you, but she survived a situation like your sister and that friend of hers were going to be groomed to be in. He was a predator, now he's prey." Jace shook his head and demanded that they stop lying to him. He couldn't believe that Mia was ever a boy, there was non way! He saw a beautiful woman, someone almost as pretty as Wendy. Fiona hugged him again and confessed to him, "She's telling the truth. When I first met her, she still had her testicles and penis. A bunch of us were kidnapped by a group of kids and their thugs, she and Kylie and our friend Maisie were badly beaten while I was raped and beaten. Kylie and Mia had to have their testicles removed, Maisie had to undergo emergency genital surgery finishing her transition to female. I had to see them beaten in front of my eyes, Mia's own sister was molested alongside her and endured a harsh reality of what happens to girls like them at the hands of people who are nothing more than scum. I hate that we were raped and molested, but they are rotting in prison while their fathers are dead from a series of beatings in prison. Mia came out of it with a complete body, even if she couldn't give birth. I am happy to have had her children, even if our parents were upset that we didn't wait to have them." Mia then added, "We weren't the first who had to have our surgeries early, nor were we the last. The last one was Brady Carter, the first was Nichole Smith- our close friend. The worst was Tatum Toro- hers is one that was caused by abuse that happened years before that she endured and could have killed her. It was a bad joke among people trying to harm our family that kids in our family skirted the rules to have surgeries early, they ignored that none of them wanted it early and it was only caused because others in power or who were trying to kill them or who wanted to do worse with them caused it. You are lucky to not have had anything horrible happen to you, you are all boy and you are happy to be one." Jace looked away in shame, Mia added, "That actually did happen to one person. Al Douglas. She was in a bad accident caused by people trying to kill her parents and accidentally caused your aunt Francesca's mothers to die instead. She was a boy before, she grew to love being a girl after. She's a mother, one of the best among us as she understands her sons better than any of us could. You aren't a girl, she wasn't but she took to it naturally. You won't ever be like her, you are all man and proud of it." Fiona gave her wife a big smile as Mia had done more in a few seconds with that last part than others had done in years. It was something that he needed to hear, he was a young man and proud of it. He's a boy in body, but he was maturing into a man in personality and emotionally. Mia went upstairs to get Joy, catching her sons ogling Joy while she flirted with them. Mia gave Joy the look of a mother protecting her sons, one that Joy took to mean, "Get out of here now" causing her to go downstairs fast before Mia had a go with her. Mia didn't need to say anything, the boys knew not to ask what was going on or try to listen in on what was being said by the adults. Downstairs, Mia explained to Joy, "The boys are trying to find any girl who'll date them regardless of it being too early for them. They have a lot more maturing to do, some time with their uncle and grandpa will cure them of that urge. Please don't lead them on, they don't know how to see that yet. And try not to break their hearts, Juan is a good guy but he needs to find his own girl outside the family." Joy blushed and blurted out, "They said they couldn't do anything because Mario claimed me. They said Eli wouldn't let them date me anyway because it was too early for me and their mom is my counselor. I don't mind being ogled by them, but I don't want to date anyone yet." Mia knew otherwise, she was starting to see Mario as a potential boyfriend already and didn't want the boys to fight over her. It was her subtle maturity shining through, she was ready to date and had Mario in mind thanks to everyone all but pushing the two together. The kids were good fits with one another, something that was a lucky break as neither Eli nor Juan were right for Joy in their parents' eyes. The group awaited the arrival of the troopers as well as the DCF social worker. The social worker was the first to arrive and greeted the kids and was taken aback by all of the people around them. Mia left to get the boys and take them next door, while Fiona calmly explained, "This is standard for a major case. I am the duly appointed state psychologist who is here to keep the questions from getting out of hand as I am sure DCF is well-aware of possibly happening thanks to decades of issues. Mrs. James is here as the appointed legal representative for the children while Mr. and Mrs. Perez are here on behalf of the two children's duly appointed guardians- Mrs. Abigail and Mr. Ezekiel Bollinger." The DCF social worker asked Gabby and Zeke's relationship to the kids. Isobel explained, "They are the paternal grandmother and step- grandfather. Ezekiel is also the children's great-uncle. They are next of kin at the request of the children's five paternal aunts and uncles." She was asked about the specific placement, Isobel smirked and explained, "Jessica Vincent, the Salem DCF office's assistant supervisor, placed them there after taking custody of the children following their maternal grandparents' arrest. She was directly told by the arresting trooper, the children's uncle who at the time had no idea of his relationship to them. Their maternal family have been kept at bay by DCF as it was determined by Jessica and her supervisor, Jenna Daniels, that the Williams family were going to be an immediate danger to the children. The children have a right to be with their blood family, and it is DCF's belief that they belong with their grandmother. Barring that, their aunts and uncles have all stated that they would take them in as their own if it meant that the children were safe." The list of just who was related to them caused the social worker to ask if it was a joke when Reed was spotted among the names on the list. Isobel happily shot back, "He is related to them via their aunt. He is also directly related to them via his 3rd-cousin." This was a lot more complex than the social worker had realized. Having Reed as a relative and having him being involved in their case meant one thing and one thing only: it had to be done by the book and it would have Reed in court fighting for the kids. Nobody wanted him after them, especially someone who had harmed a member of his family due to ignorance or bribery. Isobel saved the best for last. She casually added, "The order for you to be here came from above Jenna. It was direct from Mark Sylvester, Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families and who is also a relative of the children through his wife. That isn't a joke, he gave strict orders to your boss to investigate fully and would read all reports from all parties involved with the State Police having to go before a judge to explain any improprieties in the case. The children are witnesses, not suspects." The social worker asked for a minute alone then made an immediate phone call to her supervisor. What Isobel had said wasn't an intimidation tactic: Mark had personally called the supervisor to ensure that it was handled by DCF according to the rules and laws and any falsehoods would result in both the social worker and the supervisor being terminated and prosecuted. He didn't have to say it, the claims that the kids were about to make were the truth and what was being done was a whitewash by certain people in power who had an interest in making the situation go away by going after the kids. When she returned, she sat down and explained to them, "I have been ordered to be truthful in all of my reports to the extent that I fear that any deviation or allusions to alternative theories would result in my being fired. I'm no fool, if Mark Sylvester is involved then it's serious enough to be dangerous to me. I will play this by the book, but I don't like being threatened by anyone." Isobel swiftly added, "That isn't a threat, that is a promise. The deputy attorney general is taking over the case and is aware of all involved. She was the one who told Mark to issue the order to cooperate and to not sanitize the reports then had him recuse himself. This hasn't been revealed yet, it was done over the last two days in secret in court with the Supreme Judicial Court giving its blessing. Anyone involved is going to have to play things right or they will be gone. The judges aren't fooling around, federal judges are taking over if this should falter and everyone is going down- you'd be the first of many." This left an uneasy feeling in the social worker's stomach. Playing it the way that the State Police had it setup and she'd be in jail alongside the troopers, play it by the books and she'd likely get a State Police visit to her home. Either way, she had to consider the outcome- freedom and a clean record was better in the long run than having to explain to people why she was a convicted felon. The social worker made her decision right away, but didn't have a chance to act on it as detectives had arrived seeking the kids. They weren't in the mood to be nice, they demanded the kids right away then told everyone else to leave. There was a standoff, the social worker was being played against Isobel and Alexandra and realized that the threats against her by Mark were for this very reason. Alexandra gave them a shark-toothed grin and boldly proclaimed, "Nobody is going anywhere. You are, in fact, out of line to demand our removal. As legal representatives of the children, my daughter Isobel as well as myself are permitted to observe to protect them from undue claims and badgering. As a hired professional psychologist, Dr. Nelson is here as per court requirements as anything learned from these kids would be inadmissible in court- as either defendants or witnesses. And as they are under 18 as well as wards of the state, they require supervision by a DCF social worker. My son-in-law will be speaking to the Attorney General as well as his deputy about this case and taking all copies of your notes so that it is on record what was said and what was being done about allegations may arise from today." They were caught in a bind and knew it. Alexandra had just called their biggest bluff without trying to and forced them to have to rethink their attacks on Jace while figuring out how to get access to Joy to get her to turn on her brother. Alexandra James wasn't going to budge and the troopers knew that she was right on all accounts. If they didn't do things by the book they'd end up being prosecuted instead. The troopers played the game and asked for the children to be brought in one at a time. Fabian sought Joy first to get Jace a chance to get himself together while trying to figure out what he would say to the detectives. They had the disadvantage of having Joy's own words against them as they couldn't put any words in her mouth nor could they force her to admit to something that they wanted her to admit to or it would end up hurting them as Jace contradicted them and Isobel and Alexandra intervened. Jace also had the benefit of knowing that Mia was communicating with Fiona and would tell Jace what to focus on as he could prepare ahead of time while Joy's recollection of events were picked apart and a timeline of what they wanted her to say was revealed to all. Joy wouldn't let them badger her, and with a strong sense of manipulation thanks to being a big manipulator herself she could easily fight back and make anyone who wanted to get at her pay a heavy price. The two would be doing the bulk of the work for the state without realizing it, they were about to bring down the State Police bad apples. Joy was sat at a table with troopers on either side and both Alexandra and Isobel behind her but telling her that if they said stop then the interview was over. The troopers had a look of anger as their plan for the day had been changed and Jace couldn't be caught in a lie that they created, so had to improvise and would try to get her to say that he was the one who raped her friend and not her grandfather. The questioning was brutal as the troopers kept trying to get her to admit that Jace was the one who had raped her friend. No matter how many times she stated that he didn't do it as she wasn't there and her grandfather had been doing lewd things with the girl for months before Jace caught them in bed. There was little wiggle room, she told the same story that the previous police reports stated and gave details in a way that could only mean that she wasn't there but was aware of what was going on and what had actually happened leaving them with no way to blame it on her brother without calling her a liar. So they did. They tried to claim that she made up the story to go after her friend and that her brother is the actual rapist. Joy wasn't sure if she should laugh at them but held herself together and calmly told a shocked detective, "That's bullshit, complete and utter bullshit. You know damn well that there is a rape kit that was done and that my brother neither had public hair nor created semen yet so both of those had to have come from my grandfather. I know about those as I was there alongside my friend getting one as the DCF social worker insisted on one to see if I was also a victim. My brother wasn't able to make a sample, I know damn well that he only just recently was able to make some as we were forced by our grandparents to share a bed in the trailer. He had a wet dream, his first. He doesn't have hair, I've seen him naked enough times to know that and I know he hates that he's slow to develop." She had them there, the kits were taken and Jace wasn't able to submit anything. The only DNA Jace had been able give came from a blood sample that hadn't been legally obtained- it was taken from one of the swabs done on him to check if he had any diseases as part of the same exam his sister received. It was a bold attempt to pin it on Jace, which only backfired on them as it was unusable. Joy had all but ruined their attempts to pin everything on Jace. It got worse when Alexandra asked the upset Fiona if what Joy had said matched what was told to her in her previous session. Fiona gave them a terse, "It matches. She didn't go into detail, but those are things that only the victim would know. And before you try to pin this on her brother, he told the same story without prompting making any of your attempts to go after him moot as you would be going against your own investigators' finding." The DCF social worker added, "Her story matches our reports. She expanded in a key area, that test of both is key. Despite it being a year old, it is evidence of a crime against that girl by heir grandfather." Joy was released and saw Jace trying to look stoic but not hiding it well enough from his sister. She had a look of anger which he knew to mean that he was going to be targeted by the troopers even if he was innocent and had been cleared by the DNA tests. It didn't matter, they wanted him and would do all of the dirty tricks cops did to get at a suspect even if they knew that he was innocent. Fiona was ready to intervene more than ever, with Isobel and Alexandra ensuring that all knew that the interview was being recorded as had been stated earlier just to ensure that the troopers knew that they'd be answering to the brass if the stepped over the line and went after Jace unfairly or illegally. There was no chance of refusing to do the interviews without being recorded, they couldn't legally anyway so the entire interview was in the hands of Isobel, Fiona, and Alexandra without the troopers knowing. Jace steeled himself as the sat down. Seeing Fiona giving him a nod let him know that things wouldn't get out of hand and they would help him. He accepted his fate and got ready for the questioning. Right away, one detective demanded to know where he was on certain days the previous summer. They were bluffing, they didn't know and he was likely to try to make things up to try to show innocence. It backfired as he recalled exactly where he was and who he was with- with Alexandra happily telling the trooper, "I have confirmation from my niece of his visits on those days. He was with Sheila and chief of police Ian Bailey at their home spending the night." A second trooper tried to play up his being with the girls and trying to get them into bed. He scoffed at that, angrily telling the trooper, "I had no shot with any of the girls. Megan is too old for me and all of the other girls have known me since preschool. I'm just a little brother to them, Joy's little brother. I'm only around them because none of the boys would have anything to do with me because of grandpa." That was the opening that they wanted and tried to claim that he was just like his grandfather. Jace gave a glare and firmly told them, "I look nothing like him. I act nothing like him. I'm a Williams by name, I have never been one by actions. Mom told me that. Grandpa loved telling me that. I'm just a Bollinger and not a good one at that. You should know: you were told by him yourself last summer!" He turned it around on the trooper by adding, "I saw you with him multiple times, you were always in a rush to get away when I saw you. I know that you got money from Grandpa, it's why you're really after me: I caused you to have to back away from him! You swore you'd get me, I guess this is how." The other troopers ignored the outburst and demanded to know about the rape. Jace looked down at his hands then slowly told them, "I told you this last summer. I walked home from Joy's friend's house due to the girls having a sleepover and one not wanting to be around a boy when she had her period. I was supposed to be there all night, but I came home suddenly and caught Grandpa in bed with Joy's friend. I knew that she had been letting him grope her boobs and but for a year and warned her to keep away as he was going to do worse, but she ignored me. She had him inside of her, she was naked and moaning that she was making her feel good. He saw me and yelled at me to get out, I ran to where the girls were and told them. They called the girl's parents, I told them what Grandpa was doing and got them to take me home while they got their daughter. She was supposed to be at the sleepover too, she lied to them. I had to endure Grandpa yelling at them then at me then Joy and me being banned from leaving home. It wasn't until two weeks ago that we went out for anything other than school, with Grandma losing her patience over the state trying to take us away and hit us while Grandpa nearly ran the car off of the road. Uncle Oscar has the rest of the story in his report, he arrested them after a bunch of people stopped our grandparents as they tried to chase us down and hit us again." He expected more attacks on him so he shot back an angry, "I didn't do anything with any of the girls. I did one thing and one thing only and I freely admit to it: I was always dressed as a girl whenever all of us were together. I was their 'little sister' since none of them had a little sister. Grandpa hated that they did that with me, but I liked being their 'little sister' and it made Joy feel better knowing that one of the boys understood how it was to be a girl. I'm not gay, nor am I transgender. Megan might be, but I am a regular boy. Save the homophobia and transphobia, it isn't a crime to dress as a girl and none of them is going to claim that I did something with them since I always stayed in another room whenever I was at their houses for the night. I didn't even see them change, I actually only saw Joy change and that was a normal thing for us since we had to share a bed since we moved in with Grandma and Grandpa. As for me touching them? That never happened. If I ever tried, they'd break my fingers and legs. They made it clear long ago that if I tried to do something with them then they'd hurt me badly. They meant it, one of the boys in school groped them and ended up with a broken leg and ruptured testicles!" He smiled at the memory, then added, "Their parents knew about the consequences and encouraged all of the girls to take self-defense classes to ensure that they could protect themselves. I'm not stupid, I'm not going to touch one of them and earn a beating then get beaten by the rest of the girls. I was allowed to feel the girls' developing breasts once, and that was only after they had a comparison among them. I was their judge, and I refused. Their parents told them not to do that again, I didn't get in trouble and I didn't have to stop staying over. The only time I didn't stay over was that one night and it was clear to all of us that it was time for me to start being myself and not their 'little sister' anymore since it was the one thing that I could never understand and it marked the fact that I could get them pregnant now even though I couldn't make semen yet. I tried, I couldn't do it until months afterward." He covered everything possible without realizing it and had the detectives backed into a corner as there was only one way to refute his claims and that was covered the year before. He was innocent and had a strong backing by multiple eyewitnesses including his own sister and her friend's parents. Jace wasn't able to be sought by them, he was in the clear in all ways with the DNA test being the final nail. The DCF social worker ended the session as it was clear that the two stories matched one another and it was getting clearer that it was a setup to blame Jace for what happened. The detectives didn't have any information to use against him and once the intimidation didn't work they were defensive to the point of making fools of themselves trying to work Jace into a corner. The bulk of the case was really just the word of one man against multiple eyewitnesses including his own grandson, backed by DNA that had a clear indication that it wasn't Jace, and the victim confirming that it was Jace's grandfather who did it. The detectives were angry that the social worker ended things. She stood her ground and boldly told an equally upset Isobel and Alexandra, "The children have had their say and there is nothing further for you to ask. As de-facto guardian for the children, I am ending this inquisition." Fiona added, "Ezekiel has spoken the truth here. He knows that you are trying to target him and told the truth despite it not being believed. You are no longer questioning him, you are badgering him. You have put words in his mouth and tried to manipulate his statements into something else. You are done here, I am refusing further questioning as you are purposely trying to harm him until he confesses to a crime that he clearly didn't commit to protect someone who is guilty of that crime. Do not attempt to harass him further as I will personally lodge a federal civil rights violation complaint against all of you." Fabian entered and told them, "Answer your phone. The colonel has spoken with Patricia Parker, Deputy Attorney General. You were suspended pending inquiry. You had no reason to be here today." His grin was followed by a ring of their phones followed by the doorbell. Fabian showed multiple men inside, with David telling the detectives, "You are under arrest for obstruction of justice, civil rights violations, lying on official reports, theft of public property, and evidence tampering. You have no right to investigate this case and have tried to badger two key witnesses in a sexual assault case." Miles spoke to the social worker, "Assistant Commissioner Chloe Daniels expects you report later this evening and will debrief you on what happened here today. There is to be no attempt to remove both of the children from their paternal grandparents and any attempt will result in suspension with intent on a termination. The children have committed no crime and are with their closest relatives and should have been for the past six years. An internal investigation is being conducted with your notes added to it." He led her out while David entered to tell the good news. He sat Jace and Joy down and told both, "You have to be interviewed officially by us tomorrow. We only want the truth and are looking at everyone in the case closely. You two are not under investigation, it revolves around both of you. Jace, you were the target for those detectives as you were the scapegoat for your grandfather's activities being exposed. It is a long and dirty history, nothing new for your family but one that finally got exposed. Joy was bait to them, they wanted you and with you out of the way the cases against your grandfather would fall apart and everyone involved would have gotten away without charges. But you stood your ground and it was something that they never expected: the truth backed by your sister and the facts. The social worker the detectives tried to have assigned knew that she was outmatched and chose her career over politics and a criminal enterprise. She would have been the next scapegoat, they weren't as sly as they thought and it was caught by us before they could spring their trap. All of you are clear, we'll see charges against all of the people involved including your grandfather. Sadly, your former friend will have to tell the truth in court even if it's embarrassing. I know she wanted it to happen, but it's still a crime." Jace asked if he was going to be arrested. David laughed and countered, "Why? Your statements match all of the statements from the witnesses. Your being there was confirmed by three mothers, all of whom were grateful that you were there to stop your grandfather from doing worse to her. The DNA tests all showed that your grandfather was the one who had sex with her while your own wasn't found on her. It was curiously added later on after the test was conducted making it clear that it was meant to give you a false positive making you the prime suspect once your sister confess that you did it. That changed when the doctors confirmed that the DNA wasn't from a semen sample nor were there any hairs or skin cells from you found on the girl. That caused outside forces to stall the investigation until now. Both of you made a lot of people happy today, all you did was tell the truth and it made those who wanted to harm the truth do something stupid and get caught. You are just like your aunts, all of them." David received a phone call that caused him to growl to the person on the other end, "If you try to do it you will end up facing both Commissioner Sylvester and Assistant Commissioner Daniels. You do not have a reason to remove them, there is no basis for any allegations against the boy. I know for a fact the report that you are using is falsified and filed before an actual interview. We shall see you shortly, don't try to leave town or an arrest warrant will be issued." Isobel sensed trouble. David growled, "The detectives did an end run around the social worker and had a second social worker file for custody of Joy while seeking sexual assault charges against Jace. He was accused of molesting his sister then forcibly raping her repeatedly while in their grandparents' care. It's based on the claims from the interview with the detectives, so it's easily proven false. Unfortunately, I have to force them to recant the claims but until then they can't go home." Alexandra nodded then added, "We figured on a two-night stay so they are staying with Sheila and Ian tonight. Do what you need to do to cover Gabby and Zeke in case they get targeted next. Reed will be in court filing on Monday, this needs to end immediately. Judge Parker won't let this go unanswered, it was the best situation for all even if it means the kids have to stay with me until Monday." David immediately called Mark Sylvester while Miles called Chloe Daniels. The two DCF heads had a war of words with the two for not anticipating that but David's cool and collected counter caused both to back down and demand that the social worker who made the filing show why she did it then why she ignored proper procedure. Miles went one better and told the social worker, "We will be investigating all possible connections. Any payments will result in tax evasion and criminal conspiracy charges. This is no game, you just tried to rip apart a family and did so without any justification!" Ian was told what was happening and called several officers, all of whom would refuse to assist any of the State Police troopers trying to use them to get at the kids. Ian then sent word to the major in charge of the northeast State Police region that any attempt to remove Jace from his home would result in the troopers being arrested for attempted kidnapping. The major tried to call his bluff but a call from the lt. colonel and colonel caused him to see that it was well above his pay grade and in the courts now. The kids were led over to the Bailey home after a quiet dinner with the combined James/Nelson group. Juan and Franklin were still hormonal and almost leering at Joy, but tempered things when Fiona and Mia told them that she had a rough day and the last thing that she needed were boys ogling her. She did blush at hearing that, which led to her pushing her chest out to show that she heard everything. Ryan was remorseful over seeing the duo again. Sheila had told him what had happened and why after he returned from his talk with his male relatives, leading him to try to not provoke Jace again. He looked over at Joy who gave a big rebuff of his look causing him to see that he was in serious trouble with her over his actions. Megan came out and hugged both, kissing Jace while giving her brother an angry stare that told him to not bother making any jokes about Jace. Megan led Jace away and happily told Jace, "He got told off by Wyatt then dragged down to Winnisimmet by Deborah. He had to endure our cousins talking with him, especially Brady. He hates making her mad, but mom insisted that he go and Brady doesn't hold back if she needs to tell you something. She is the best cousin, I love the others but she's so much cooler!" Jace walked away while Joy and Megan did some "girl talk" so Joy was brought up to speed on all of the girly things that were happening among the family members. Jace wasn't in the mood to be Jaycee that night so let Joy enjoy Megan being Megan for her. He didn't want to end up in another fight over a thing that he did for others, especially with a boy who just didn't get it. Jace went to the entertainment room and watched TV, with Ryan sulking nearby trying hard not to set an already volatile Jace off. Sheila wisely asked Ryan if he remembered what his cousins had said then saw Ryan in tears begging her not to send him away. He was nearly wailing over whatever happened, it was nothing like the jerk who was there that morning. Steeling herself, Sheila explained to him, "Ryan has been sentenced to a weekend with kids like Megan and must endure talking with them as equals. He isn't the only boy doing that, several other brothers of girls and boys like Megan are attending. It was a spur of the moment idea that snowballed into one that might open up a lot of eyes about what kids have to endure and how family needs to support them. It's a humiliating situation for him as he had to face multiple people that he loved and who were upset at him for what he said to you and about your being Jaycee at times. It's not the real Ryan who made those horrible complaints about you, it was his friends talking and he has to see just what happens to normal kids outside the bubble that our family lives in from the kids who experienced it." Jace asked if he could go, he didn't want to do the wrong thing to upset Megan or Wendy. Sheila shook her head and explained, "That request is exactly why you don't have to go. Your heart dictates what you do, not what others tell you. You want to help them, but you'd only end up in fights with the kids. He is going because he is exactly who the trip is targeted at: siblings who let others tell them what should be done instead of thinking for themselves. He needs to learn to ignore idiotic claims and see people as the people that they are. He loves Megan, but he still hasn't accepted that this isn't a phase. His day today proved that he can be a better person, he just needs time and people around him to learn." Jace softly mumbled, "I still want to go. I don't understand Megan and Wendy, I don't know why any of the girls can give up being boys or why they are so different than anyone else. I know it's not a phase, I just want to know more about them and why everyone hates them even though they are good people." He was starting to break down. Sheila hugged him and offered a soothing, "I'll talk with Aunt Gabby, it might suit you to just go as moral support and a friendly face among the siblings. Ryan might need help to keep him out of trouble and someone to talk to after, Eli and Wendy's brother Quentin would be the best people to talk to him but Eli is busy with football and Quentin is doing an internship." Juan and Franklin came over, with Mia and Fiona asking for them to spend the night. Their sly grin had a tinge of ulterior motive, one that showed that it was for Ryan's sake as the two were bigger, stronger, faster, and more protective of their mother, aunt, and cousin than anyone else. Ryan's words about their cousin Wendy only made things tougher on Ryan as the two were outraged to the point of violence. The two saw Jace and didn't say anything, making their way right for Ryan's room. Within minutes the boys could be heard yelling at one another, with Ryan being taken to task by the two but shockingly to Jace no blows were being landed by any of the trio. Jace went to sleep without speaking to anyone else, not wanting to get involved in any of what the brothers were doing to Ryan. In the morning, Megan whined about Ryan having a sleepover. Ryan glared at her while Franklin gave her a terse, "We didn't want to stay over but mom and momma wanted us to talk with Ryan about a lot of stupid crap his 'friends' were saying about him. You never heard it, they only talked trash about a lot of girls whenever you weren't around. They said nasty things, stuff that he spouted off to Jace and it got him sent to camp for a weekend to help. Mom set it up and Momma is getting Aunts Sam and Iris to be the ones who run it. We wanted to help, but we have to work with Aunt Carmen." The two knew that they had Ryan there as the names were big names and ones that carried heavy clout. John Finn loved those kind of programs and Iris and Sam York were the best at running them. Carmen was also someone who demanded discipline from her employees, even if they were kids- to work in the restaurant with her was a mark of honor among the kids and one Ryan wanted to earn for himself. Sheila smirked at Ryan's realization that he had destroyed all chances of working for Carmen, with her wife and daughter being transgender like Megan it was doubly devastating to his chances of working in the restaurant and earning a nice paycheck and tips. He started to see just how serious things were, and a nod from Sheila confirmed that it was more than coincidence- the brothers got his job. He blew it and now had to see others reaping the rewards for good behavior and maturity. He wallowed in his room while Sheila cleaned the table. Ian was in his office and talking on the phone with people, with Miles and David coming by not long after to prepare for the official interviews. They were in a better mood, with Miles complaining about Liv and Eli inquiring about Joy and Jace to him. Gabby and Zeke arrived, Sheila was about to say something but Miles explained, "DCF isn't needed for the interviews today as we have much of the information already and are only verifying what was said in the past. Yesterday was different, it was serious enough to need someone looking out for them. It's a tough situation made tougher in that the social worker could have removed the kids but wisely chose to not forgo her job and freedom in favor of stupidity. DCF isn't going to take the kids away, but there's a challenge coming from the Williams family and someone else in DCF." Gabby was clearly shaken by that while Zeke asked if there was a way around that. Miles nodded to the quiet Ian who told them, "Talk with Donald, Jessie, Amy, and Courtney. The only way to get DCF off of the kids' backs is to remove DCF from the situation. You know what that means for you." Gabby nodded while Zeke grumbled, "I'll tell Reed. This impacts him most but Jessie and he are best to help them. We love the kids, but if this is going to continuously hurt them then we need to end it." Gabby went upstairs to see the duo then sat them down in private. Megan was reluctant to let Joy go, it took Ryan realizing that things were serious to pull her away. Gabby thanked him for his maturity, then waited until he was out of earshot before hugging both kids. When she composed herself, she explained to them, "Miles and David have made a suggestion that we have to take seriously. DCF will try to get at you until you are 18. We don't want them to hurt you, but it requires something serious being done first. Are you two willing to be adopted?" The two were trying to understand what she meant. Gabby shed a tear and told them, "Adoption removes you from foster care and permanently places you with a family. You would be their children in full, not just until you turn 18. Your aunt Jessie and uncle Reed are the best choice, do you agree to that?" Jace was trying to understand the situation while Joy softly asked, "Would we be Gabriela and Lee's big brother and sister?" Gabby nodded, adding, "You get the younger sister that you always wanted, Lee gets an older brother. It gives you parents who love you and makes you part of a bigger family: lots of first and 2nd-cousins and puts you firmly into the Finn family through your great-uncle John. You would be family to him: his cousin's grandchildren. You'd have two more aunts, an uncle, cousins, and a grandma and grandpa who love you for you and not what you bring to them. Nobody dares go after you now, you'd be a Pena and it carries an even bigger honor: a Castillo. I told you about Uncle Jorge, I meant every word of it. You'd be one of his great- grandchildren and someone special to him: his wife's blood. You would undo what had been done decades before against Victoria by your great- great aunt. You'd bring Victoria back into the family by letting her be family to you again." The two were in tears, Gabby hit them hard. Joy asked if she was OK with what was happening, Gabby shed a tear and confessed, "It's for the best. I'm still your grandmother, Zeke will no longer be just your step- grandfather but your grandfather in full. You are not changing who you are to us, you are only just being brought closer to us. We are happy to do this for you, it's worth the hassle." Gabby led them downstairs and saw them hugging Zeke and tearfully crying into his chest. Zeke kissed Joy's cheek and let Jace give him his needed affection even if Jace didn't want to admit that he needed to give it to Zeke. Jace was happy that Gabby and Zeke would make Jessie and Reed adopt the kids as their own, it was the truest example of the family showing what family is all about. Once everyone was calmed, Miles texted someone and told the kids that they would have to talk with a detective shortly but they were in no trouble and everything was taken care of. David firmly added, "It's to verify everything that both of you have said in the past. You aren't being removed, you aren't going to jail, you aren't in any trouble at all. This is against others, not you. We know the facts, what you say is only adding onto what we already know about what happened." The doorbell rang shortly after, Miles led three detectives inside with each being introduced to Jace and Joy as colleagues of theirs from their Worcester office. David happily added, "They have no ties to us so are free of any claims of favoritism and trying to keep you from being prosecuted. They have seen what we have seen and heard what we have heard, they only need an interview to complete things." Joy was talked to first to get her statement and once it matched what she had said the day before as well as the previous summer. This didn't surprise the detectives, it was clear that she wasn't a direct witness to the crimes but had knowledge of them and provided them with proper background that verified what others had said about Jace's involvement. Her other accusations matched what was stated by Jace and a couple of the other girls, including the suspicion that her grandfather was grooming her for sex. Jace's interview was faster than anyone expected. He only had to verify that he was kicked out of their sleepover and that he wasn't able to create a semen sample when he was forced to by the detectives the year before. He blushed deeply at admitting that, with the detectives not trying to make him feel horrid over being less developed than other boys despite only being 12 at the time. The detectives reiterated what both had said, with the lead detective explaining to them, "You gave us a strong case as all of the claims against Jace are baseless while the claims against your grandfather is as strong as you can get. He has DNA evidence backed by eyewitness statements. DCF has to explain why you two were never removed once the allegations against your grandfather were made, it's automatic in their books as it's a major allegation of abuse against a child. Our colleagues have to explain why there was no followup on any of the claims and why the investigation stopped suddenly when an indictment should have happened within a day. Then they have to explain why he was never arrested at all as there was more than enough reason to arrest him given that he was caught IN THE ACT by her parents. I'm more upset at the outside influences working to kill this case than anything else, I am happy that all of our colleagues in the Boston office saw the crimes beyond the obvious and asked for our help." Jace asked if he was in trouble still, the detective firmly stated, "You are innocent. In fact, you can make a strong claim that your rights were violated by being railroaded by our colleagues. You are free, it was clear immediately that you were actually the one who stopped a sexual assault in progress and helped to get a predator caught before he could harm others- especially your own sister." The detectives left, with Jace in tears over hearing the news. Ryan wanted to say something but both of the Nelson brothers had looks that told him to not say a word. Ryan looked over at Sheila who told him more with her look than words would say: leave him alone, it was OK to cry then. Miles caught the looks and moved everyone away from Ryan. He sat the boy down, gave him a look to show that he wasn't in the mood for any attitude, then angrily told Ryan, "Enough with the whole 'super macho masculine guy' act. I know that isn't you, that's the idiots you go to school with. I've seen it my whole life: I lived it. I've been the victim of it. Sensitivity, especially under serious circumstances, isn't a sign of being a girl. The strongest men I have ever known have cried over the birth, and marriage of loved ones. Are you going to tell me two Green Berets aren't masculine men for crying?" Ryan growled, "Real men don't cry. Only girls and sissies do. Real men don't show emotion." Miles smirked then told him, "They not only cried, one wept. He lost his brother, the only family that he ever knew. He lost him while surrounded by people who were all crying. My own father cried hard, he loved the man like an uncle. Sean Kelly was a man who worked his life to make others safe and died as the unofficial head of our family. You were young when he died, his death hurt all of us and led to most of the men who attended to cry. Your great-grandfather was one of them, as was your father. He was the man who made people see that being different isn't a crime, but being horrible to people is. He was the man who caused many grown men to cry as he forced them to act like good people or face the wrath of his brothers. Jace's family were the biggest abuses of that, they received beatings that led to many lost teeth, broken bones, and one- lost testicles. Sean was a man's man, and was proud of me, my father, my cousins, your own father, and your elder siblings. He loved this family and for you to go after Jace for being just like so many of your family members is despicable. He would be insulted that you mar your family's teachings and listen to people who are jealous of you for being a Peterson, a James, a Finn, and a Bailey. You are better than them for one reason alone: you were raised right. How you are acting is not how you were raised, it's how they were and you are parroting what they are saying. They hope it gets back at the family and hope that you get taken down because of your actions. We have been at this game far too long and know that you aren't like that and you just need a hard reality. You'll get it." He walked off, with Sheila telling Ryan, "You are going south for two weeks. Your great-aunt is hosting you, she is the only one keeping your aunts Claire and Daisy from having a go at you. They aren't in a good mood and won't hold back any longer. If they get set off, it's the end of you as family to them. It's only going to get worse from there, your aunts are doing the same in solidarity. This is complete cut-off from everyone, you will be all alone as none of the family will allow you to be near their kids again." Jace was upset about hearing that, but David explained to him, "It's the only non-corporal punishment I think anyone could do to get the message across to him. It's the ultimate 'tough love' and is serious. It's his last chance with the family. He lives in Endicott and can easily be cutoff from everyone, with only a few bothering with him and only because it's unavoidable. He has to show that he can be his own man or he will risk having everyone who ever cared about him push him away for good." Jace asked if this had ever happened before. David nodded, but added, "It was only done once before as it is something that has never happened any other time. He is seriously shaking the family to the core, I hope that he understands the gravity of the situation and doesn't listen to those idiots. He needs to be in a place that will help him see that things aren't as they appear and what he thought he knew isn't what he actually knows. That means being around Liv and Anne. That means talking with Brooklyn and Eli. He'll probably need you to be around him too, especially as he needs a friend more than ever." Joy asked why Brooklyn could help. David rolled his eyes then explained, "Her mother was just like the boys who told Ryan those nasty things. She was the worst person we have ever encountered: amoral, a complete slut, manipulator, vain, and dramatic. She tried to have your uncles Thomas and Michael sent to jail for trying to rape her then tried to claim your aunt Deborah molested her in class. She said a lot of nasty things about your new aunt Kylie trying to hurt your father and destroy the school play." David laughed then added, "She got what she deserved in the end: she was arrested for assault after she tried to ruin your aunt Jaimie's dress but was later found to have had sex with several underage boys. It was worse for her as she was over 18 and recorded it. She then tried to go after Anne when she started school and was sent back to prison. She is still in there, serving a 10 year sentence." Ryan listened and tried to decide if it was a lie or true. Miles showed him pictures of everyone involved back then and pointed out Brooklyn's mother. He then explained to Ryan, "Brooklyn's grandfather got involved with our family through her aunt. Her uncle just happens to be your uncle Raul. Her mother is not actually part of the family, but by choice Brooklyn is. Her father is a great man who fell for a girl in the midst of a crisis yet was actually a predator trying to something from him. Brooklyn was born, but it was an unhappy marriage and the only good to come from it was her. Her mother is technically part of our family, but she could easily be like you: an outcast, related to members of the family but not part of it beyond that relationship. Brooklyn tries hard to be family to go against her mother, you are trying to do the opposite- go against the family to be like people who don't want to be family to us." Gabby and Zeke ended things and led the duo out while Ryan endured a long drive in silence as Sheila gave him a look that told him to think about what was happening and why. He had a strong example of what can happen if you go down the path that he was going down, Brooklyn wouldn't let him go down it further and would ensure that he knew that he was hurting himself if he did. He needed to be away, in a place that was nothing like Endicott and among people who wanted to help him see things clearly. Lilly Peterson met Ryan at her house and informed him, "There has been a change of plans for you. You are going to stay with the Penas. We felt that it was best to give you a chance to be around people your own age and not feel like you are cutoff completely. Reed won't let you insult his sister, mother, or any other person because they are transgender. Lee has no problem battling you for calling him a sissy for being a dancer and artist. And Gabriela won't let you harass Jace for doing things with her and Joy. It's his choice as to whether he dresses for them or not, she won't stand for anyone insulting her brother." She smiled as she said that, Ryan meekly agreed and sat in the car. Zeke asked what the real reason was and got a happy, "He needs more bonding with people his own age, Jace and Lee will give him that. He is so used to being alone that he wants to do what others do but fell for the influence of those people. It is also for the kids' sake, they need to adjust and he'll give them a reason to grow closer." The drive to the Pena home was in silence, with Jace and Joy seeing that they were on display for all of the neighbors. Gabby and Zeke hugged the neighbors and once inside the Pena home told them, "All of the neighbors have at least one relative who is transgender. This is the unofficial family stronghold: the Finns, Penas, Hermans, Yorks, Lopezes, Millers, and Sylvesters live here. Many of the people who you have met are related to them: Miles, Michael, Jaimie, Scott, Stacy, Fiona, Mia, Reed, Jessie, Francesca, Donald, Jenna, and Jessica. Your uncle Oscar's parents as well as Jace's principal live a block over, as does Jessica's in-laws. The largest house is John's home, he has kept away out of respect for us but he's going to be close by and won't let either of you get into trouble. Same for you, Ryan. He understands you more than you realize, his younger brother is the only person ever exorcised from the family." Ryan was quiet and contemplative. He didn't have long to think as Lee came home followed by Jessie, with both hugging Gabby and Zeke before doing the same to Joy and Jace. Neither bothered with Ryan, he felt a pang of guilt and understood that he deserved to be pushed away by them. His reaction was what Jessie wanted, remorse was starting to show in him and he was starting to see the impact that losing family would have on you. He wasn't going to be excluded completely from all family outings and events, he just had to show that he was trying to change and learn what wasn't right. He was on the right track already and it was only just a simple hug from the two, the tough guy exterior was hard to keep intact when you were being given the cold shoulder from loved ones. Reed entered with Gabriela and Brooklyn, with the girls going right for Joy and leading her upstairs to talk alone. Ryan was again ignored, but Brooklyn did give him glimpses that showed interest in him- it was inevitable, she would have to talk with him alone at some point. Jace was simply left alone, but it was only because Reed and Lee were busy doing something for Lee's friends. Jessie sensed his boredom and hugged him, kissing his cheek leading him to unintentionally say, "Thank you mom," to her. He ran off after he realized what he said, Jessie found him in his room and hugged him again, then told him, "We were asked to take you in to be your parents and that is what parents do. Reed did the same to ma when he was your sister's age. He was worse off than you but he still needed parents and a loving home. You are more like him than I'd like to remember, right down to legal issues forced on you by the same people who are supposed to protect people. He cares about you deeply, what has been happening to you has hurt him and dragged to the surface things that we haven't dealt with for over 24 years. You are our child now, you are showing it without realizing it. Gabriela loves having a sister and Lee wants a brother. You are a big brother, you have shown it already to him." He sniffled and cried, with Jessie telling the listening Ryan, "You have never experienced abuse. Many of us have. My dad abandoned us on my 5th birthday only to come back a decade later trying to force us to be a family again. Reed's birth parents were monsters who abused him and his sister. Your mother had her parents die suddenly after illnesses and your father had all but his cousin die an early death. We are all broken in some way, you haven't seen it because we have tried to keep as many of you kids out of danger and away from trauma. Jace and Joy have experienced it four times now, Brooklyn, Anne, Eli, and Liv once. I won't even being to tell you about the other ones, those are scary to think about and to this day it torments them. When you see your friends being sexually abused and are helpless to stop it, it never leaves you. You are lucky, you have only endured idiots talking trash behind your back." He asked what she meant. Jessie knew that he was starting to understand and told him firmly, "Ask Mia. Ask Kylie. Ask Reyna. And most importantly: ask Fiona. All of them experienced things happen to their loved ones and friends right in front of their eyes and were helpless to do anything to stop them. Reyna had it worst: she was the one who was harmed while we all watched." Jessie was in tears causing Jace to hug her. Jessie pulled herself together and told the boys, "Reyna was kidnapped in 8th grade. She was taken right in front of us, we tried to help but couldn't stop it. The men who kidnapped her wanted to kill her because she caused their fraud to be exposed. She was what they hated: a girl who was born in a male body and who made them question everything about themselves. They were about to murder her, but first they wanted to humiliate her. They broke her legs so that she couldn't run away then they shot her in the privates. They destroyed her testicles and she had her penis all but blown apart! She had to have emergency surgery to make her into a female, alongside having the pellets form the blast removed and her legs set. That wasn't the worst- they broke her jaw so she had to drink her meals for two months while her jaw healed! She couldn't talk, couldn't eat right- she lost a lot of weight making her thinner and causing her breasts to recede. She could never be a male, she was all girl and they forced her to have emergency surgery making everyone claim we forced it on her!" Ryan was upset at hearing that, Jessie angrily told him, "There are people who claim that just to make us look bad. They don't care about the truth, they don't care about the suffering that the girls went through that brought the doctors to allow surgery. All they see is us mutilating boys. They didn't care that Mia or Maisie or Kylie were brutalized. They didn't care that Nichole jumped in front of a man trying to murder Jaimie. They didn't care that Tatum would have died from a blood clot. Nor did they care that Al couldn't be a boy again. They said that they were mutilated!" She was panting, Ryan mumbled an apologetic, "I'm sorry," then walked away in shame and tears. He was truly morose, it was something that he didn't expect to hear. He didn't know the whole story, but it was enough to cause him to start to feel terrible about his actions and what he said to Jace. Reed caught his action and texted Ian that his son was already on the mend and going to need less time with them. Ian asked if it was caused by the hard truth, to which Reed texted, "Family history told to him by Jessie. He didn't know anything about the past, he is seeing what the trouble that he caused." Jessie calmed herself after Jace hugged her for a while. He unknowingly pinned her in place as he slept, giving her a chance to calm down and mother him without realizing it. She looked down at his sleeping form and smiled, he looked like Walter used to and actually looked happy. Reed texted Gabby a picture and was immediately told, "Miles is something else. He needs a mom and dad, she needed to talk about what happened years before. You deserve to be their parents." When Jace started to stir Jessie gave him a kiss on the forehead then led him up to his room to quell his brewing embarrassment. She softly told him, "It's been a trying two days for you, you needed mom and I guess I needed to vent what I was feeling for so long. I am happy to be your mom if you really want to be our children, we won't force it but I loved mothering you." He looked over at Reed and was scared. Reed softly told the boy, "You are me. Your sister is Kylie. We are happy to be your parents and want to give you a home, family, and love." He hugged Reed and cried again, asking if they could be their parents. Reed hugged him back and told him firmly, "You asked, we shall do as you asked. We are mom and dad now. We'll hold off introducing you to mom and dad but I don't know if Kylie and Billy will be able to hold off for long. Jordan will be happy to have a nephew who isn't spoiled rotten by Uncle John...well, not yet anyway." Jace didn't believe him, Reed shook his head and then laughed as he read a text and told Jace, "He's on his way with your phones, laptops, and tablets. He's probably got Aunt Valerie shopping for clothes. He won't let you refuse, this is personal to him as you are family. Now you are closer family and he won't let you do without the basics. Joy has it worse, she has to endure 'the talk' with Jessie. Gabriela has to endure alongside her so she isn't alone. I'd also suspect that it's to get you two ready for all of the kids to seek you out now that you are closer to them and can visit them easily. Mario and Wendy will have to wait, both had family with eyes on them and won't be able to do anything with them eyeing them." He smirked at saying that, while Jace blushed deeply. Ryan asked what the big deal was, Reed happily told him, "Her grandparents live across the street and his great-aunt and uncle live a couple of houses down while his great-grandparents live around the corner. His sisters are dating your 2nd-cousin Simon and one of the Smiths putting Uncle John onto things as he'd be happy to oversee their dates." Ryan left it alone, he had nobody while Jace and Joy had people ready to date them without having to do anything to get them to date them. He again felt horrible, only now it was coupled with loneliness as he couldn't get a date with a girl in Endicott and wasn't likely to get one in Winnisimmet. He hated that he was stuck there, but he knew that it was his own fault and that he had to pay the penalty. In the guest bedroom, Ryan was in tears and hugging a pillow. The little boy in him came out, he could act older but he was a little boy still. He was 13, but closer to 12 than 14 and maturity in his eyes. Ryan was sniffling in his bed when Jessie went to get him for dinner, leading her to back away and tell the others to not bother him. She took his meal up to him and hugged him, then told him affectionately, "We're proud of you. It's tough to see the truth after years of believing falsehoods. You never got to see a lot of what happened thanks to being up in Endicott, you never heard the stories or met anyone who's not your direct relative. You didn't know, which would have changed everything about you as a person. Bad people don't feel horrid after hearing a story about others. You did. You genuinely cared about me and Reyna, about Mia and Kylie and Maisie, about Al and Nichole and Tatum. Deep inside, you are a good kid who is tainted by years of jealous boys telling you about how bad your sister is. They'll never know Megan like you know her: the caring sister who helped you when you were sick and ensured that you passed a test even though she had her own the next day. The girl who made others feel bad for teasing you over a bad grade because your teacher made a mistake that nobody caught until the test. The girl who faced an entire class because you got the top grade on your own and made everyone else in class look bad. This same girl who loves you despite all of what others have tried to do to her. She loves you, but got nothing but grief from you. She understood why, she still loved you regardless." He hugged her, begging for forgiveness. She hugged him back, letting him get his tears out before she softly told him, "Your parents love you no matter what, as do your siblings. Nobody gave up on you, we wanted you to try to change. And you have, you just needed a reason to do so." He loosened his hug and asked what would happen to him. Jessie shook her head and explained to him, "Your parents are talking with Pop about something. I'm not as oblivious as they think: Uncle Willie is going to retire after 35 years with the city and hand the job to your father. This will mean that you and your sister move here, to be with the rest of us. I doubt that your house will remain vacant, Wyatt and Deborah are probably going to have Johnny move in with them. Brady and Chance are going to join the three so they don't get too out of hand. It'll stay in the family, but your home will be in Winnisimmet." Jessie left him to eat alone, the news was heavy and it was clear that he needed time to think. She had a strong hope that he would be different in the morning, especially as his look told her everything: Ryan wanted to live there. Winnisimmet was his home in all but name. The girls went up to Gabriela's room for a little sleepover while Lee and Jace went to the entertainment room to play Lee's game system giving Jessie and Reed a chance to talk alone. Jessie walked over to her in- laws' house, walked in, then asked Willie Pena point blank, "Are you going to retire?" Willie shook his head while his wife Kennedy laughed then countered, "He filed the paperwork. He had a committee look into a replacement and you know damn well whom he wanted for the job. There was a single sticking point: he had to move here. That was easily fixed thanks to Ryan's antics making all of it moot. He has the job, he need only get interviewed. The town knew that he would leave eventually, it wasn't dumb enough to not groom someone to replace him and he had only one guy ready to go. He is being told tomorrow that Ian is resigning to take the job in Winnisimmet with him being appointed as the new chief with Ian's personal blessing. There's no jockeying, just a quick transfer." Jessie asked if it was legal. Kennedy smirked which caused Jessie to groan at Kennedy being subtle in her manipulations. Kennedy happily explained, "They announced it at the town meeting and sent out all of the required announcements. Nobody fit the bill and most were discarded due to being part of many criminal activities including the same probe your kids are involved in. Only one viable candidate put in an application: the man chosen to succeed Ian. He was told today after the kids met with the detectives. He is taking the job only because Ian asked him to, it's more of him keeping the seat warm for the next guy to take it once he himself leaves for a better job in Salem or Beverly." Jessie was happy to hear the news, but asked, "Where are they going to stay?" Kennedy sighed and then explained, "The only place they can stay is next to Mark and Leslie. Ian has to stay in this neighborhood, it's the safest place for Megan and Ryan could use a few people around him his own age who don't want anything from him except friendship and family. It's also best that Megan have people close by who understand her, as nice as Endicott was to her I doubt they truly accepted her as one of them even though she lived there her entire life." Jessie left, feeling satisfied that things were going well and that everyone had the kids' best interests at heart. Ryan's plight sparked the Baileys to move, but the way it sounded to her his situation was just an easy excuse for them to move back to Winnisimmet. It was sly, but it was also smart and helped him. The kids were asleep as she entered, with Reed smiling and telling her, "The girls were exhausted from a long talk and the boys played themselves out. Ryan was out as soon as you left, I trust that everything is going well with dad? Mom is sly, but not sly enough for me to catch wind of it." She nodded and added, "They're moving here soon, likely a couple of days. He needs us, as does Megan. I hope that Pop knows what he's getting into, retirement isn't for everyone." Reed happily told her, "He wants to travel and mom wants to do things that she couldn't do before. They love us, but they have been focused on work and the three of us for 24 years. They need a break. Dad is going to get offers for consulting to keep him occupied, mom has the same. She is looking at accepting a judgeship to round out her legacy, it's just 10 years but it's still something big for her." The next morning saw the kids awakening late and Ryan being sat down by Ian and Sheila. Megan and the twins were also there, making him fear for the worst. Wyatt and Deborah rarely were home so if the two were there then something bad was going on causing him to fear the worst. Ian saw his concern then boldly told the foursome, "Uncle Willie has decided to retire. He asked me to be the new chief of police, with the blessing from your uncles Fabian and Sebastian. I accepted the job, it comes with a major requirement but I am happy to agree to it: we have to move here. We're going to move across the street so you are close to the core of the family. Megan, that means you have many of your teachers within three blocks of you. Denise Herman is also across the street in case you need to talk to someone who is going through the same as you. Ryan, that means your principal is around the corner and your math teacher is three houses down. There won't be any slack given, they never gave it to your aunts and uncles so won't give any to you." Wyatt asked about the house in Endicott. Sheila explained to him, "It's staying ours. You two are going to be the primary residents, with Johnny being asked to move in since Deborah and he are already close to one another. You are fully prepared for what might happen, but respect your brother. We're going to ask Brady and Chance to move in as well, I think it's too early to ask Sylvia to join Chance but the two might stop dancing around one another and agree to take the next step as a couple." Deborah blushed deeply while Wyatt glared at their parents. Megan asked if it was some kind of joke, if it was all due to Ryan's being a jerk. Ian sensed her anger and warmly told her, "He was part of it. We were going to move him to a new class but I got an offer that I couldn't refuse and saw the real problem was that we are just too different. Your friends will understand and accept that you have to move, you'll be among girls who understand you much better and know the real you- not the school you." Sheila also added, "You can still visit them, but Brooklyn, Anne, Liv, and Elise are happy to take you in as one of their own. That's in addition to Joy being alongside you. Then there's your cousins, Alana and Lara never get to see you. They'd love helping you prepare for cheerleading, I know you were told that you weren't going to make the team in Endicott, you're guaranteed a spot if you work down here." Her face lit up hearing that, while Ryan's face went white as he realized that he was going to be among a lot of people that would be upset at him. Sheila shook her head at that reaction, telling him, "You have a chance to start over anew. Jace and the Ross twins are going to be in your class, Wendy and Gabriela will be there as well but you need friends who understand you. Henry is a good listener, Carl will be a big help if you let him. Trust them, let them show you how real friends act." The Baileys left, with Ryan remaining so he could acclimate to the neighborhood. Jace and he were left to themselves while the girls went out to visit their cousin Quinn. The two were quiet, with Ryan afraid to say anything and Jace not wanting to fight Ryan anymore. Jessie had to go to work while Reed spent much of the morning on the phone in his office talking to a man about Jace and Joy. Ryan recognized the voice and name, with Jace being told that it was about the duo so he shouldn't listen in on what Reed was saying. Jace understood but was afraid, barely hiding his fear of what was being talked about behind his back by adults yet again. Kennedy came by to seek Jace, with Ryan getting stuck going along with him. She had Ryan meet the rest of the adults on the block and ensured that he understood just where he stood among them. He had a look of guilt and was apologetic, even if he didn't need to be to them. Valerie Finn talked with Jace about what was going on while Ryan talked with John about Megan and a lot of other things that didn't seem to be connected. Jace asked Valerie why her husband had given him so many things to which she happily told him, "You are family. I do mean it: he values family and both you and your sister are family to him. Zeke is blood to John, the cousin that he was denied by all of his other cousins. He wants you to not think of yourself as less of a member of our family because you're new and didn't have the things that your cousins had. He wants you to make something of yourself, that starts with feeling like you are part of us and his only way to show it are those gifts to you. And he can afford them, they're next to nothing to him thanks to being one of the companies' biggest buyers." Ryan's talk with John had him puzzled. John seemed to be asking a lot of questions about the girls and why he was so against Jace doing what a lot of brothers did for their sisters. The more he asked, Ryan felt as if John was trying to get him to see something that he had missed before. John finally cut to the chase and told Ryan, "You upset just about everyone with how you acted the last few months. The incident with Jace wasn't the first time that you have said or done something that hurt your sister. She might not be in your class, but she heard everything that you were saying about the girls. It was intentional: the kids were trying to cause her to react so that she would do something that'd cause her to be expelled. You fell for their plot, you didn't see it but everyone else did. The only reason your parents didn't put a stop to it was that you weren't violent and Megan had support. When Jace and Joy were put into the mix, it changed. Jace is too much like his uncle and would have hurt you if you'd gone after him physically. I know from personal experience how nasty Williams family members can be if upset: I lived it. Multiple times over. He is stubborn, but eventually that stubbornness is no longer able to be contained. You would have been hurt by him. That is not a joke: he would have hurt you. All to protect his sister and your sister from someone trying to harm them." He had a look of sadness and added, "You are starting to see that things were dire and that you had none of the family there for you. That isn't actually true, you would have had all of us there for you. You are not the same boy that we took to Salem Lake Park two years ago, nor are you the same boy that helped renovate your great-grandfather's summer home. Something changed in you, and it wasn't something I think was your suddenly seeing your sister as less than human. People changed you, the real you is still under the bluster. I know you are still in there, you needed to get away from Endicott and be among the people that know the real you. The Ross twins, Eli, Mario, Lee, Jace, Ryder are all going to be around you. Even the Stoners will be around. You can't escape people who know you, you're among family. It will take time, but the real you is trying to come out but everything so-called 'friends' told you is hard to break. It's nothing that we haven't had to endure before, give us a chance to help you be you." John hugged him, causing him to wince. John happily told him, "Those idiots are likely being told all of that by men who have no concept of what a real man is. I'm betting they have wives who only want to look good and be around others like them and hand their kids off to nannies who do the raising for the family. Real men hug their kids, especially when they're dealing with a tough situation. You've met my son Miles, he's exactly like you right down to the fear of his own shadow. What he went through was a little different, but it's the same idea at heart: mental anguish caused by others forcing the real boy to be suppressed and needing people talking with him and friends who can understand him helping to bring the real boy out. He told you about Uncle Sean, he wasn't kidding about Sean's past. He was a real live Green Beret and the most sensitive man you will ever meet. He wasn't afraid to cry in front of others, it was his own words that Miles used to tell you about real men. You can cry, you can show emotion. It's a natural thing and real men have a right to cry at births and deaths, over grief, sadness, love, anguish." Ryan was still conflicted, but John knew that he was finally seeing the light. He needed Jace and all of the young teens, he needed their experience and friendship to pull through. He wanted to change, what it took then was the help of like-minded kids who wanted him to be around them. Sitting Ryan down, John told him affectionately, "You aren't what anyone thought that you would be. I know that you are curious person behind the false cacade, I've seen it whenever you've been with us. You hid your true self, it isn't in your nature not to look into things. You want to know more, you want the truth. You're the only one of your siblings who takes after your father. Wyatt is great at making deals and Deborah is fine as a housewife and mother- not that she'd ever admit to it. And Megan is Megan, the firecracker who loves to be the center of attention for you when you need support. But you? You want to know more. You're a smart boy, just like your father. He hid his intelligence but that same intelligence got him the top spot in all of the Boston region on his civil service test. Without that, he would never be a police officer. You are a lot like him, you've been punished enough times for taking things apart to show it. You want to be an engineer like your grandfather and uncle Patrick, you need to get your creativity out. So do it. Be the boy that we all know that you are. Don't let anyone hold you back. Draw. Write. Create. Be you. Be the real Ryan Bailey." John had Ryan enthralled, it was the first words of encouragement that he had received from an adult in years. John understood him, he loved doing things with his father and uncles like putting together any of the furniture and toys for the younger kids or fixing cars or painting bedrooms. He liked designing or drawing or building things- it was in his blood. Ryan asked if he could do that now that he was in trouble with everyone. John happily told him, "You're seeing the light and will fulfill your punishment, it's nonnegotiable. What won't be happening is you in a skirt or dress nor a bikini as your so-called 'friends' would have you believe. You're just going to do a weekend out in the woods with girls and boys like your sister so that you get used to other kids who're in a lot worse shape than you. They don't have the support that your sister has, they only have Jaimie or Fiona for help. They could use someone who understands them, especially as you're no different than them in more ways than you can believe. Be a friend, listen to them. Let them be themselves for you." John led him out and gave a hug to Jace, Ryan didn't react to it and caused Jace to feel better about him being around Ryan. The two didn't speak, but there was an opening forming between them that Valerie saw as the sign that Ryan was going to be alright now. She kept them occupied while John talked on the phone with someone about a movie deal that sounded like it was pretty important to him. Jace listened while Ryan seemed to know what was going on. Valerie saw Jace's reaction and explained to him, "Our family owns Inferno TV. He's talking with his network president about the shows and what he thinks should be produced next. John wants more educational shows, the network is pushing for the educational shows to be cutback and more animated reruns put on- ones that John doesn't like. We have an edge- the network will get a huge tax break for airing quality educational shows making whatever is lost due to the loss of viewers moot as it's essentially us being paid to air good shows." Ryan mumbled a terse, "Their shows suck. They don't run any of the puppet shows anymore. They have a lot of boring animated stuff that dad said is paid for by toy compaies." Valerie smirked and added, "You just read John's mind. Those puppet shows were actually cheap to do and had a huge following among kids, more so than the animated shows ever had. And your dad is right: those shows were really just a half-hour toy advertisement, the puppet and educational shows weren't built around anything except a lot of fun and learning. And I know you loved the shows- I had to babysit you too often to count when you were younger!" Ryan blushed while Jace simply let it go. Valerie did add, "Your father told us that you can go tonight to the baseball game. With the camp this weekend we're swamped so can't go, Reed is free so will take all of you to the game. Your father and uncles are also going to be there so you can enjoy time with all of your cousins before the big move. And yes, you're moving. The house was just sold." Jace asked if he was staying home with the girls, Valerie laughed and happily told him, "You're going to the game too. Reed wanted you to enjoy one of the perks while we still have it, we're selling a large share of the team to a group of local investors so are finally handing over control of the team. The Ross twins are going as well, you'll be among people who want to be around you- both of you. Their father wants to meet you, he should be ready to announce his retirement to stave off his inevitable trade to another team. You give him a solid reason to get away from the media especially now that he'd be 'fair game' for vultures over retiring vs. his being shipped to a last place team." Valerie happily added, "There will be a special guest there that I want both of you to meet. Her brother is one of the team's pitchers and is like Megan only she transitioned with some difficulty as she had to be castrated due to testicular issues a few months into her transition while Megan is 'intact'. She saved her semen so it wasn't a major problem, but it still caused a lot of grief for her. Please don't make it out to be a big deal, she's an amazingly talented artist and painted several of our niece and daughter's books." The two were together for several hours, playing in the entertainment room while Valerie puttered up in the living room as she kept her many nieces and nephews at bay. It was tough to not have them come to the house to meet Jace and talk with Ryan, but word spread to leave them alone for a while. Valerie had to exert rare pressure on them, but it was done for the duo's sake. Jace asked about Joy, Valerie explained to him, "She's going to spend the night with the Smiths. She has a lot more people around her than you do, it'll take longer to get used to their quirks. Brooklyn is trying to get to know her as a cousin, she needs Anne to keep her from going overboard being a friend to Joy." Jace understood: he wasn't being kept away, it was a girl thing that Joy needed to do. He asked if they felt that he might be Jaycee just to please them, Valerie happily shot back, "They don't want you to be a girl if you don't want to be. Joy isn't used to girls who aren't sniping at one another or trying hard to be the top girl among the girls. Megan did her a great service by keeping the peace and putting an end to a lot of that, but she still has to learn their intricacies as girls just aren't the same as guys. Trust me, as a mom of multiple kids close in age I know how different boys and girls can be!" Ryan felt like that was an insult against him, Valerie countered, "Your sister is different than many other girls in that she's a good friend to everyone. You rarely interacted with girls your age so didn't learn the different quirks. Some are sensitive, some are temperamental, some are bubbly, some are just nasty. She dealt with all of them and did so for her own safety more than anything. Anne is bubbly, Joy is the one who'll get you laughing, Brooklyn is the protector. Elise is the leader- no shock, she's her mother's daughter. Liv is the one who is most temperamental, she might seem normal but she internalizes it. We are trying to get her to open up more and vent in some way, but it's tough with transgender girls." Turning to Ryan and Jace, she happily told them, "Ryan is creative. Jace is protective. Carl is the most mature. Henry is the most goofy. Lee is the most athletic: athletes come in different forms and he's the most athletic among you boys. Sorry, but he can outrun everyone and has quick reaction timess." Smiling at the to being caught by surprise, Valerie added, "Genetics are a funny thing. Some people are big but they can also be uncoordinated and slow. Some are small, but they can be fast and quick. Lee is like his father who was the fastest and had the best reaction times among his generation. Ian is bigger, but he is also lumbering- like John is. My son JD is more like me while Cat is like John, even if neither would dare admit that she's her father's daughter in genetics. Jace, you're nothing like your father but are a lot like your uncle. Same with Jessie and Joy. Reed is happy to have Lee take after him, just as I am sure that Jessie is happy to have Joy take after her. Gabriela is a great girl, but she's too much like Gabby in body- similar to how Megan is her mother's daughter in genetics." The two were getting the gist of things more than ever, they were too young to fully understand things but it was enough to give them an idea of how children can be alike yet so different from parents. John drove them to Boston then endured having the Ross twins almost bowl him over when they ran to him for a hug. Seeing Ryan, the twins were ready to fight but John backed them off. He looked over to their mother and told her, "He's a new man now that he got the hard truth handed to him. You above all know that some people need a change of scenery and a chance to be their own person with support." Kelly Ross gave a subtle nod while Carl spat out, "That doesn't give him the right to rip into Megan and Heather like that. How come he gets to get off easy when we have to change diapers!" John smirked and shot back, "He has to go on the trip this weekend. It's why Heather won't be home so you get to have your long awaited all- nighter. He's being forced to learn firsthand from girls and boys what really happens to kids like your sister and his, and he doesn't like it. He knows that he's marked by what he did, he'll endure it for years to come just as your aunt Rachel did." The name drop stung them, to have Rachel's name mentioned in that context meant that things weren't as they seemed and were much worse than any of them realized. The twins loved their aunt Rachel, she was so different than anyone else in the family and made them see that beauty comes in different forms. She was smart and sexy, even in her late 30s, married, and a lesbian, she was, "Hot" to them. The twins took Jace inside to meet their sister Heather and the special guest, Ellie Joseph. Ellie caused Ryan to blush when he entered, while Heather's big hug caused him to flinch over her direct action to let him know that she knew who he was and why he was there. It was a targeted hug, but she wanted it known that she knew about him and wasn't going to hold it against him. Carl gave Ryan a look that told him not to dare saying anything, which Ellie caught and asked about. It led Henry to spit out, "He was saying nasty things about girls like you and Heather. He doesn't think you are real girls, he said you are a boy no matter what you did to yourself. He's a snob from Endicott, they don't have any brains up there and spout of crap left and right." Ryan went to leave but John stopped him. Kelly carefully led the boys out to go downstairs while Ryan stayed put with John. Ellie saw his remorse and realized that there was more to the story, John nodded at her realizing that it was complicated, the boy wasn't what the twins made him out to be. After a few minutes, John explained to the curious Ellie, "They're right about Endicott, but wrong about him. You know how peer pressure is on a kid, it makes you hide your true self to fit in among others. It was no different than Miles or Rachel or Scott. He, thankfully, hasn't had the horrible abuse that those three had- but the sentiment is the same. He's a good kid, he just needs real friends and a chance to be a smart, inquisitive, curious kid like his sister is whenever she isn't girl- crazy." Ellie sat Ryan down and asked what the real issue was with girls like them as he had a big sister who is exactly like them. Ryan looked down in shame and blurted out, "They were jealous! There, I said it! The boys were jealous that girls like that were able to be friends with girls. They hated that Megan had a lot of friends around her, girls who thought that if they dated her then they could get pregnant and get a lot of money from mom and dad. She doesn't like girls like that. They made me think that she would make me become a girl if I didn't push her away. I don't want to be a girl, I'm not like Jace: he can be a girl easily, I hate being a girl. I don't want to be a girl. I hate being like her." He was crying now, with Heather telling John, "He wasn't telling you everything. This sounds like they hit a nerve in him. He might be borderline feminine, girly but a boy. He might not know about Uncle Wayne. He needs to talk to someone who knows about his situation, one who isn't close too us." John nodded and made a discrete phone call on his behalf. A few minutes later he told her, "He can talk to Johnny tomorrow. Johnny is more than happy to talk to his future brother-in-law. Yes, he's going to ask her to marry him. They are waiting for the right time to tell Ian and Sheila about their engagement." Heather squealed in delight while Ellie shook her head and explained to Ryan, "Johnny dressed for his sisters whenever they needed someone to entertain them. He has taken part in every one of the family's dress-up day, winning six times thanks to actually putting in the effort. He has dressed as a girl for his school and is more than happy wear a dress to show his masculinity. He isn't transgender, and I dare any boy to claim that he's less of a man because he has the masculinity to be feminine." Heather realized something and asked him point blank, "Did you tell them about the tradition?" He nodded to which John opined, "They used that against you. They wanted you to admit that you liked it so you'd be tormented by them. You kept your true feelings to yourself, you didn't admit to it so they made you miss the events just to ensure that you were segregated from us. You never got the chance to be a girl the way that the other boys did, you were forced to believe that it was wrong." He cried hard, telling John, "I like being a girl! I wanted to do it but the girls told the boys and caused them to beat me up. The girls treated me like I was a freak! I hate feeling that way. I don't want to be a freak. I hate being a freak. Megan is a girl, I'm just a perverted freak." Ellie hugged him to calm him, then told John that he should go home as it's going to get worse when it got revealed to the boys. John shook his head no, Heather added, "I know my brothers. If they went at him then they'd be no different than the boy that they complained about for two days. He needs to them to be with him, especially Jace. Jace is fine being a girl with him, Ryan needs to meet Jaycee." The boys returned with Kelly noticing Ryan's tear-stained face. John gave her a sign to not ask about it, she understood and left it alone. Heather texted Kelly to tell her the truth, "Ryan is a crossdresser and is in need of a lot of talking with Jace and Johnny about it." Ryan spent much of the game next to Ellie, who hugged him at times to sooth him while giving Henry and Carl a look to tell them to leave Ryan alone. Jace was focused on the game and happy to see one in person, it was something that he always wanted to do but never had the chance. Seeing Heather cheer as her father came to bat and later throw out a runner trying to steal made him feel happy, it was one of the coolest things that he'd ever seen and meant more as the man was so nice to him. When the game was over Heather gave Ryan a deep hug and kissed his cheek. Ellie did the same, then told him, "I'll see you tomorrow. I'd like to see the other side of you." The boys went downstairs with John showing Ryan the stadium while Jace kept quiet. John led them to the clubhouse to meet the players and saw Nick Ross give John a hug then smirked at Ryan. He didn't have to say much, the look on his face showed that he knew just who Ryan was. Laughing, Nick told John, "He's his father's son. If half of the stories that I was told about that town are true, it's a miracle that he got out of there without getting his butt kicked by his brother. Hopefully the boys can show him what real boys are like." John nodded and added, "He's got a lot more going on than we knew of. It was definitely manipulation and trying to make him miserable to provoke him to do something against either them or his sister. It's lucky that he could endure it for as long as he did, he's tougher than we gave him credit for. I think it's his mother's stubbornness- the Peterson in him shining through." Nick happily hugged Ryan, then told him firmly, "I'll talk with the twins after whomever you meet with tomorrow. They are upset at you but can understand why you did what you did. Rachel is their favorite aunt and what she did in the past is no different than what you did." Looking over at Jace, he asked why Reed hadn't shown up. John cringed then told him, "Reed was out with Ricardo tonight. It's going to get ugly soon, a lot of dirty laundry is being dragged out and they're not going to let up. He made a lot of enemies this term, they're cashing in on his adopting the kids and are going all-in on attacking his credibility. They don't know the truth, they just want to get at him." Ryan asked what the big deal was. John shook his head in disappointment and explained, "Reed is more than your uncle: he's the Attorney General of Massachusetts. He is up for reelection this November so faces people trying to use Jace and Joy against him. Family is off limits, but that won't stop them from being used as a way of impacting his credibility- especially as their grandparents are related to him." After a quiet drive home, Reed sat the boys down and explained to Jace, "The Williams family went to a social worker and claimed abuse against you due to allowing you to dress as a girl. DCF investigated it and determined that it was abuse as your statements about dressing as a girl for the girls was used as the basis for the claims. They are seeking to remove you from our care. I'm not going to let that happen. I got Uncle Ricardo to force a hearing next week with DCF forced to explain how it was both abuse and how the statements were relevant as they were taken out of context. Miles and David are onto the case and believe that they are a backup plan to get at you to make you admit to raping the girl last summer. I know that Judge Parker won't let this go unanswered and will demand the truth, and won't let them get away with claiming abuse for what you do willingly and for the girls' benefit at their request." Jace ran off in tears, Ryan looked down in shame and told him, "I know who made the claims. His sister is one of the girls that got banned from Megan's sleepover. She was the one who got their friend to try to have sex with Jace's grandfather. She's the worst liar in Endicott, she knows that he didn't do any of it and is probably being told what to say by her father. Her father wants to get rid of Jace's family and is going to make their town take the land so he can buy it." Reed hugged him and kissed his forehead, causing Ryan to wince. Reed happily told him, "You need to talk to Miles and David. You filled in the missing pieces and made the case for them. They have a good reason to investigate the claims beyond just the rape, especially as you are an eyewitness that refutes all of them. You made up for what you did before, you made us all proud of you." Ryan shook his head and tearfully told him, "I'm why they went after Jace! They wanted to get me to go after him but when I stopped dressing they had to make up the lie. If I hadn't stopped none of it would have happened. She wouldn't have been raped! Joy and Jace would have been removed! They'd be your kids and away from their family!" Reed let him cry himself out then wisely explained to him, "You didn't cause any of it. You have a right to not humiliate yourself. You did what any reasonable kid would do: you stopped doing something that was hurting you. They would have found another way of getting after Jace and Joy, likely making up a new lie that you didn't know about and doing it away from you so you couldn't help them." Ryan went to his room to go to sleep, Jessie hugged Reed and let him vent his anger over breaking the cardinal rule in politics: leave family alone. Jace was being harmed to get at Reed, Joy would be next as someone would invariably go after her to get at Reed. He hoped that she was ready or had the other girls ready to help her out- especially if they used boys against Joy. The boys were up early the next morning and told by Jessie that Ellie was coming by followed by Carl and Henry. Ryan was scared of what would happen and needed Jessie's hug to stop him from fleeing to his room and likely running away. She didn't release the hug until he relaxed, with Jace not even trying to make mention of it or ask why Ryan was so upset over the twins coming by. Elllie arrived and asked Ryan to show her his female side. Ryan was handed a skirt, blouse, and some barrettes with Ryan not fighting it. He returned a few minutes later dressed in the outfit, with his hair in a feminine style that highlighted his eyes and made his ears stand out. Ellie asked if he had piercings done, getting him to nod then tell her, "I haven't worn them in two years." Jessie helped him reopen his piercings then put in studs that made him look as if he could be his own sister. He was missing a necklace and bracelet, both of which were borrowed from Gabriela giving the new girl a look of beauty that caused Jace to flinch. Jace liked what he saw, Ryan was a pretty girl. Jace went upstairs and got dressed as Jaycee, joining Ryan downstairs and hugging him. Ryan saw that he had pierced ears too and was glad to know that he wasn't alone, with Jessie snorting and telling him, "Carl and Henry have pierced ears, you just don't see them. They got them done last year to look cool but have had to endure Heather making them wear her earrings whenever they dressed as her sisters. It is actually common among boys to have pierced ears, especially in the city like this. Those idiots up in Endicott like to pretend that they are better than others, I can guarantee that there are boys who did get pierced ears but were beaten by their parents and hide the piercings. You don't normally look at a guy's ears, a girl's ears are meant to be seen as it draws attention to her face and neck rather than breasts." Ryan asked if his parents were going to be alright with him having his ears pierced again, Jessie again laughed and happily told him, "Wyatt has had his pierced for years- you haven't seen them because you were never around your brother. He doesn't have flashy studs, just gold ones. He'll wear diamond ones when he feels fancy, he wore nice ones for his prom and damn near made his date faint over them." Jace helped Ryan walk and act like a girl while Ellie observed and made notes. Jessie understood why she was letting them talk and strut, especially when Ellie had them back down from heels as Ryan was nowhere near ready for them. She was all smiles and told them that they were doing great and they may be able to take up drag performing if they wanted to do so. The two lost track of time and were still dressed when Carl and Henry stopped by. Ryan froze when he heard them, while Jace told them that they were busy doing something important. Ellie had them go to the dining room to wait, while Heather told them to not react to the new girl there. Carl asked who the girl was, Ellie softly told him, "That was Ryan. He's having trouble with being a boy and his feelings over dressing as a girl. He needs to talk to a professional, your aunt has them going to talk to someone named Wayne soon as he's similar to them in how he acts as a girl." Carl gasped while Henry blurted out, "He's a crossdresser? Are you sure he's not a girl like you? He's so pretty as one, even if he isn't acting like one." Ellie smiled at that, but added, "Crossdressers are fine dressing as women or men but aren't transgender. They don't get the sexual thrill that transvestites get, they enjoy feeling feminine and being their own people. This Wayne man is apparently a crossdresser too and has experience with kids dressing." Jessie entered and explained, "He lives down the street and knows the family through Liza Byrne-Toro and Reese Davis, Stormy Davis' husband and sister-in-law. He owned a club that he performed in drag at, one that Uncle John bought then sold to the city for a huge profit. Wayne is happy to talk with Ryan about all of this, he's very similar to Wayne but without the knack for performing in front of crowds." Jace was inundated with more names to which Jessie shook her head and explained, "Liza's sister-in-law is Rachel's wife, and you've heard about Stormy's family- the Millers. Wayne is pretty good at his act and has talked with the kids about performing as girls without being offensive or insulting. Ryan is a first for us as we have not had any family members who crossdressers outside of playdates." Ryan wanted to cry over all of what was happening, Henry wisely asked if Jace had more clothes so he could be Hilary alongside Jaycee and Ryan. Ryan felt like he was being made fun of but Jessie added a happy, "Callie might want to come out to, or are you not man enough to be a girl?" Carl glared at her to which she stated, "OK, I think I'll call your mother to take you home. Hilary, you can stay as I think you see just how serious this is. Carl, Gabriela will be disappointed in you for being a jerk when you should be supportive especially given you enjoyed this last month." Carl waited downstairs while Henry got dressed as Hilary and worked with Ryan on makeup and hair. Ryan listened and felt weird that he was seeing a boy dressed as a girl yet completely at ease with being a girl on the outside. Hilary was more than happy to be the next in the long line of helpers for boys who were dressing as girls to understand girls, especially as it meant more to Ryan than he was letting on. After they finished with their makeup, Henry leaned in and kissed Ryan on the lips. Ryan kissed back, it felt right and he didn't sense any hostility to the kiss. Henry happily told Ryan, "I'm bi. I like boys as much as girls. You could be too, I think I'm more into girls but like what I see in you." Ryan kissed him again, feeling like a weight had been lifted off of him. Jaycee silently let them kiss until Jessie started up the stairs causing them to try to get themselves straightened out. She saw the makeup out of place on both boys and shook her head, understanding why it happened more now. She sent Hilary downstairs with Jaycee and sat Ryan down on the bed. Ryan was in tears and tried hard to apologize only to have Jessie stop her. She sighed and explained to her, "This might be a lot of what is going on in your head. We don't have much experience with bisexual kids, Henry is the only one so far among your generation and Marcus Sylvester is the only one of my generation. You are still young, it's tough understanding sexuality but you might now understand that your feelings are changing and you see people differently now. Boys are more than just friends, they're sexual beings to enjoy. Girls aren't a mystery to you, they're now beauties with breasts on display and butts growing larger. You're young, you might be gay or you might be straight or you might truly be bi. No matter what, we support you." Ryan was still in tears and told her that he liked kissing Hilary. Jessie smiled and explained to him, "You might simply have reacted as you did because you saw a girl in front of you instead of a boy dressed as a girl. Hilary is very convincing, but she is also bi and happy to be so. She's not going to be offended if you only saw her as a girl and kissed a girl, it just means that you are hetero and like girls only." The two went downstairs and encountered and upset Kelly awaiting them and not looking like she'd accept an excuse. She asked what happened then told Carl he was grounded for acting like a child and breaking her direct order to not provoke Ryan. Seeing Ryan in the skirt and blouse caused her to squee, with her telling Jessie, "He looks better as a girl than Wyatt did. I think if he let his hair grow he might be fully passable as Megan's little sister. Hilary, you didn't have to kiss him to make him feel better but he understands why you did it. You also know the rules about being alone with someone-no kissing!" Carl gasped in shock, Jessie happily added, "Your temporary sister was man enough to kiss a boy who's dressed as a girl and helped Ryan see that he likes girls fully. You know that Henry and Hilary are bi, it was just Hilary being a good person at a time when Ryan needed assurance and figuring out what was going on inside his head. He's all boy, but enjoys being a girl- something you clearly aren't." Kelly added, "You two were due to find what makes you different. You don't like dressing, Hilary is out more often than he thinks we know about. Heather has been letting Hilary loose a lot and if not for the neighbors being family Hilary would have been found out long ago. Don't be upset at Hilary, be upset that you can't face that you aren't like your brother anymore. You are your own person, just as he is his own person. It's tough on twins to find out that they aren't exactly alike, you'll find out what you are in your own time, but your brother is happy to entertain the girls and Heather as Hilary any time" Carl grumbled, "I don't want to lose my brother to being my sister. I don't want to be like Chance and it being the start of Hilary being out all of the time until Henry doesn't exist. I don't want to lose him." Hilary hugged him and kissed him, then told him, "I'm a boy. I love being a girl but I'm all boy inside. I don't care what the hell anyone says, being a girl is fun and you'd have fun too if you didn't see it as us being girls. I don't want to be a girl all of the time, just sometimes when it's boring. It's different being a girl than a boy, you'd know that if you ever bothered to try it and leave the machoness to dad." Carl blushed while Hilary hauled him upstairs to become Callie for his mother. When they came back to the room Callie was decked out in a dress and her hair pinned back making her look like she was the prepubescent sister of Heather. Jessie squealed while Kelly groaned: Callie looked just like Kelly! Henry smiled and told Kelly, "We're twins but I know how to make me look like dad and Callie like you when you were our age. Grandma showed me pictures of dad, aunt Rachel showed pictures of you. We are identical twins but we are still your kids so don't take much to look like either of you. Plus dad had a lot of times dressed as a girl according to grandma, he did it to make her happy and have fun too." Jessie smiled and had Jaycee and Callie get together then sent off a picture to several people. Within a few minutes she got calls to ask who the girls were then had demands to print off the pictures for every person who called. Kelly shook her head and told the kids just what happened, with Ellie laughing over the friends getting a fun time out of the boys playing dress-up just to pass the time. Ellie left with hugs and kisses to the boys, and assurances to Callie that it was going to be alright now. Her departure marked the entrance of Miles and David, with David whining, "Why is that we only have to do it when we lose a bet but our kids do it freely and make better girls than any of us?" Jessie happily shot back, "They can't help but be better than you at everything. You always come in first: first to have sex, first to have a child, first to realize how dumb you are for the first leading the next." The boys giggled at that while Jaycee was left unsure what she meant. Kelly explained, "He didn't know it wasn't smart to use a nine-year-old condom while having sex with a girl. He ended up with a wife and daughter, but at least he got a beautiful summer home in England alongside one in Florida and California. He set a good example for the rest of us: think before you act." Jaycee was led to the dining room and sat at the table then saw Miles and David asking him a series of questions before being satisfied that he was clear of everything that he was accused of doing. They had Ryan sit and started his interview, with their questions being more in-depth and featuring a lot of facts being checked against claims then double- checked to ensure that they had everything right. Ryan was thorough, he told them everything that he knew and gave them names and dates that had the two furiously writing notes and texting others as they talked. Ryan didn't know the details, but what he did know was enough to give background and cause for why certain things were being done and why it was a targeted attack on the Williams family by, "Concerned parties". Ryan gave them more than they could have gotten in months of investigating, all because they made the mistake of going after him. The two were pleased with what they had learned and the new avenues to investigate. Looking over the boys, Miles wisely told them, "Go easy on the mascara. Too much and it'll run or you'll risk poking an eye. Trust me: it ain't fun, especially when you have to tell others how you got the red eye. And less of the lip gloss, your girls will be happier if you don't leave marks on their lips. Remember, gold studs in place of birthstones. It's a basic look and most don't take a second look at them." David added, "He had earrings for years but chose to remove them when he went to the academy. It's an easy thing to have used against you in a fight, so he never wears them except on dress-up day. None of us have them, but Johnny and Wyatt have gold studs but have been known to use spacers in place of the studs when they don't want the holes noticed. You'd benefit from them, nobody notices them." The two left quickly when they were alerted that Lee and the girls were coming home. Jessie had to be reined-in by Kelly as she wanted to laugh at the guys, but saw that the boys were concerned about how they'd be taken by the girls and Lee- especially Carl. The ladies led them downstairs to play out of the way so they could prepare the girls and Lee for the introduction to Ryan en-femme. Gabriela and Joy were talking about something that Liv had done causing Lee to complain that it was a boring night for him yet the girls had fun. Seeing Kelly there, Joy was unsure how to react. Kelly gave a big grin which only caused Joy concern while Jessie whined, "Come on! You act like Heather doesn't look just like you did when you met Nick!" Kelly happily introduced herself to Joy then told her how much she looked like Jessie causing another blush while Jessie shook her head at Kelly hamming it up. The two friends giggled back and forth as an impatient Lee paced the room hoping for permission to go downstairs. When he didn't get it he went to the entertainment room anyway, earning a gasp from him as he saw four girls down there. Lee went upstairs and asked who the girls were, causing Gabriela to grab Joy to go see them leading a blushing Lee to sit and ask what was going on and why Hilary was back for the day. Kelly looked over at Jessie then explained, "It was because of something Ryan said last night. Ryan has done this before, it was a big reason for the boys treating him bad making him act the way he did towards Jace and Megan. He's a crossdresser, he likes to be feminine form time to time. Hilary wanted him to show what he was as a girl while Jaycee joined Ryan in solidarity. Callie was dragged out too, it took a lot of convincing and a few harsh words about what he was doing to Ryan before he dressed. You don't have to do it, it's their choice. If you want to do it then you can, but you don't have to." Lee went upstairs, got dressed in his sister's dress and bra, then went downstairs to where the boys had been sitting as the girls inspected them closely and with big smiles. Lee asked them to back off from the four, they weren't toys even if they're playing around. Gabriela gave a look of being upset but seeing Callie upset too caused her to hug Callie then tell Callie that she was as cute as any guy and more man than any other boy in their school. Jaycee and Hilary didn't take offense, while Ryan was too scared to do anything. Lee giggled that she was into girls causing Gabriela to ask if he was jealous or if he was like the kids who made Ryan feel like garbage for liking being a girl sometimes. Lee took the blow to his ego and apologized, with Ryan trying hard not to look at Lee but feeling like Lee did it on purpose to get at him. The girls hugged the boys then saw Gabriela give Callie a deep kiss, causing both to blush as she showed him that she liked him despite his being dressed as a girl. They walked upstairs hand in hand and had to hide their blushes as Jessie and Kelly both spotted Gabriela's makeup askew with lip gloss on Carl. The two tried hard to not smile at their children taking a leap into a relationship, especially one in a way for the ages among their family- doing so while one was dressed as a girl. Finally pulling themselves together, Jessie sat all seven down and explained to them, "Since you have felt the need to act mature, there will be new rules for all of you. Stay downstairs. No closed doors if you do go upstairs. No making out even though you are downstairs. No being alone, one of us must be home at all times when someone is over. Any violation of these rules will result in there being no dates for three months. A second violation of the rules is diaper duty. A third violation and you are banned from dating until you are 18. This is non- negotiable, it's the same rules all of us had at your age. Sex is also not allowed, you are too young for it and even when you turn 16 we hope it doesn't happen. You are mature enough to date, you are mature enough to abide by our rules." Ryan gulped at hearing that, while Gabriela and Callie blushed. Jaycee and Joy understood why it was being implemented, their father had been the one to violated just about every one of those rules ending up being kicked out of his own home when he and his two brothers refused to abide by them. They had a look of understanding that Jessie nodded at seeing- it was directly linked to their father. Jaycee, Ryan, Lee, Callie, and Hilary changed back into Jace, Ryan, Lee, Carl, and Henry and saw the twins leaving with Kelly. Gabriela gave Carl a kiss to show that he was her boyfriend causing him to be walked off by Henry while Henry gave Ryan a kiss which caused Ryan to shake his head at and tell him that Hilary was right- he wasn't into guys. Henry just smiled and told him that Ryan was still a great kisser even if he didn't want to kiss Henry again. Gabby and Zeke arrived after the Rosses left, bringing two presents for the duo causing Gabriela and an unsure Lee to move away. Jace and Joy happily hugged their puppies, with the puppies licking them on the nose and then sniffing out Lee and Gabriela to get attention from them. The puppies put on an act to show their cuteness, giving the two attention to show that they shouldn't be afraid of them. Zeke complained that they whined all night over the kids not being there and tore apart the house when it was clear they weren't home. Gabby shook her head and added that they left an unwanted present in Zeke's shoe for forgetting to walk them then ignoring them. She happily told them that they had to take care of the puppies since they were their own- they lived with the duo now, they were Penas now too. The couple ensured that the duo were alright then left to allow the kids to get used to the puppies, they were more than happy to ensure that the kids had fun while Reed and Jessie let them burn off energy as only a young animal could. Seeing Lee smiling over getting attention from the puppies made their night as he rarely liked animals, especially ones that sought him out. Gabriela tried to act mature, but their little girl was shining through the teen in her making her behave like a kid again.