Hey guys! I know it's been like a week since I updated, but it feels like it's been longer…and sorry I didn't update sooner, it's been a weird week for me. But everything is good now and I hope you enjoy this next chapter :)

Tori's POV

What felt like seconds later, I opened my eyes. I looked to my sides, but didn't recognize where I was. Then I looked up and saw my parents there. "Mom?" I mumbled. "Dad?"

My mom took something off my forehead and laid it aside. Looking closer, I realized it was a wet rag. I slowly rose up, but my dad got closer to me and helped me stay up. "Are you feeling better?" asked my mom.

"Uh…I think so." I looked around. "Where am I?"

"They took you in a private room to recover."

I was about to ask why, but then it occurred to me that I'd passed out. I jumped up and ran to the door and swung it open. We were in a courthouse. I slowly closed the door and backed up. I slid down a wall and sat down. "No…I can't do it."

"Do what?" asked my dad.

"Get asked questions about…" I didn't have to finish my sentence for them to know what I was talking about. "He had to have been asking me questions for hours."

My parents slowly smiled. "Tori…that only took about fifteen minutes." said my mom.

"Fifteen minutes?" I exclaimed. "You mean…that only took fifteen minutes?"

"Yeah," she said. She tucked hair behind my ear. "They're having a thirty minute recess and then we'll go back."

My heart started pounding hard. "So I'll have to get asked more questions?" I asked shakily.

"Yeah," said my dad. "It's procedure; it'll help that man get put in prison for life."

I looked off into space for a moment. I set there just thinking and came to a conclusion. I shook my head. "No,"

My parents looked at each other confused. "No what?" asked my dad.

"No, I'm not gonna answer anymore questions. I don't care that that was only fifteen minutes." I stood up. "That was the most awful fifteen minutes of my life, next to being with that man for six months. I'm not gonna do it."

"But Tori…they still have a whole lot of questions to ask you." said my mom gently. "They aren't even a third of the way done."

"I don't care," I said shakily. "They can ask someone else the questions." I really don't know why I said that last comment. They couldn't ask someone else those types of questions. No one else would know how that man actually is.

"Tori…you're the main person to testify." said my dad gently. "They need your evidence to know everything that that man did to you."

"Isn't it obvious what he did?" I screamed. "Okay, you know what? Just go out to the courtroom and tell them that he beat me, raped me, and treated me like crap for six months! That sums up everything!" I turned and ran out of the room.

I ran through the courthouse and people looked at me like I was crazy, but I didn't care. I ran all the way outside and to my dad's car. I tried to pull the backseat door open, but of course, it was locked. I struggled for another moment before falling to the ground crying.

A moment later, I felt someone rubbing my back. I wiped my eyes and looked up at the person. It was Trina. "Are you okay?" she asked gently.

"Do I look okay to you?" I snapped. "I'm sitting here crying my eyes out and you ask if I'm okay? What do you think?"

"Uh…I'm sorry," she said slowly. "I didn't know what else to say."

I sighed heavily and gave her a hug. I held onto her tightly and said, "I'm so sorry, Trina. I didn't mean to yell at you."

"It's okay," she said when we pulled apart.

I smiled softly and we stood up. "So…can we leave now?"

"Well…I think you're supposed to testify some more." she told me gently. "I don't think they have enough information for what to charge the man with."

I gulped. "Well…I can't answer anymore questions, at least…not right now."

"But…won't you forget some of the stuff he did to you if you wait longer?"

I eyed her. "Trina…I'll never forget what he did. It feels like just yesterday I was with him." I crossed my arms. "Can we please just leave now? I wanna go home."

She sighed. "Yeah, I'll go get Mom and Dad." She turned around and headed back in the courthouse.

I leaned against the car and pulled my phone out of my back pocket. It was off since all cell phones were required to be turned off while being in court, not put on silent or vibrate, but off. They were very clear about that.

I turned my phone on and immediately called Andre. It took him a moment to answer, but he finally did. "Hey Tori," I could tell he'd been smiling.

"Hey Andre," I said shakily.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I wish people would quit asking me that." I grumbled. "And…I don't know."

"Well…are you taking a break from court?"

"No, I'm done." I said. "I'm not answering anymore questions from them. I can't take it anymore." I sighed. "What's Jadelynne doing?" Andre, being the best boyfriend in the world, said that he'd watch Jadelynne during the trial. Jadelynne knew Andre well enough so that she wouldn't be uncomfortable around him. In fact, she adored him and he adored her. It was so cute to watch them play together.

"Nothing, just chilling," he said. "I've been holding onto her hands for the past twenty minutes while she attempts to walk around. She wants to stand up on her own, but her little feet just can't quite hold up yet."

"Aww," I said with a smile. "Has she been good?"

"She was a little fussy when she woke up, but once I gave her a bottle, she was good." he said. "We've been playing around ever since." I quickly pulled the phone away from my ear to check the time and saw that it was twelve o'clock. They asked us to be at the courthouse at eight o'clock and we were there right on time. There were just a lot of other things the people in the courtroom had to do before I took the stand. It actually got really boring just sitting there and listening to everyone talk. I'd had countless meetings with my lawyer where she prepared me for what would go on in court and what kind of questions they would ask me, but it was still boring. The court was using terms I'd never heard of before.

"Thank you so much, Andre," I said. "I really appreciate you watching her."

"It's my pleasure," he told me. "I love your daughter. She's so precious."

I giggled. "You're only saying that because she looks like me." Ever since Jadelynne was born, people have told me that she and I look exactly alike and I really think we do. If you look at a picture of me as a baby and compare it to a picture of Jadelynne, it's almost identical.

"No way," he said. "I'd be saying she's precious no matter what she looks like. She's your daughter, so I love her."

I sighed. "Andre, I wish you were her dad."

I heard him chuckle. "Well, if she really was my daughter, she wouldn't look like she does now."

"I know, but still," I said. "You treat her as if she really is your daughter."

"Well, I couldn't love her anymore if she really was my child."

Just then, my parents and Trina walked out of the courtroom and started to head towards me. "Hey, I gotta go." I said quickly. "I'll be home in a little bit, okay?"

"Alright, we'll be here," he said. "I love you, babe."

I smiled. "I love you, too. Bye,"

"Bye,"

I hung up and looked up at my family. "Are we leaving now?"

"Yeah, let's go," said my dad. I could tell by his voice that he was disappointed in me. He probably didn't understand why I didn't wanna continue with the trial.

On our way home, my mom turned in her seat and said, "Tori, can I ask you a question?"

I shrugged. "Sure," It's not like I wasn't already asked question after question that day.

"The questions Richard asked you…didn't Kaitlyn tell you that he would be asking you questions like that?"

I looked at her confused. "Yeah, so?"

"So…if you were prepared, why couldn't you continue with the trial?"

"Because I didn't realize that one of the questions would cause a flashback." I said sharply. "Did you guys think I was daydreaming right before I passed out?"

"Tori, please do not talk to us like that," said my mom sternly. "We know that that was hard, but there's no other way to get that man put in prison for life. It's up to you to testify against him."

"Whose side are you on?" I screamed. "No one understands that when you have to talk about a bad time in your life, it brings back the awful memories! I should have known that this would have happened!"

"Tori, you better believe that I am on your side." she said. "Otherwise, I wouldn't want you to testify against him. If you testify against him, he will go to prison for life. Don't you want that?"

"Yes, but not if it requires me to relive the horrible memories!" I screamed. "That's what a flashback is. It's when a bad moment from your past is replayed in your brain! It's just as bad as the actual experience!"

"Please stop screaming, Tori," said my mom. "We can hear you perfectly clear."

I sighed and set back against my seat. I crossed my arms and looked out the window. "No one understands," I mumbled.

By now, we were home and all of us were sitting in the car, but no one was moving. Finally my dad sighed and said, "Tori, we love you and we just want what's best for you. All you have to do is answer a few questions and that man will–"

"Will be put in prison for the rest of his life," I said quickly. "Yeah, I know, you don't have to remind me." I opened the car door and jumped out of the car. I ran to the front door and pushed it open.

Andre was sitting on the couch while holding Jadelynne in the air, but he put her back in his lap when I walked in. "Tori, hey. You startled me,"

"Let's go to my room." He nodded, held Jadelynne securely in his arms, and we headed up to the stairs. I let him walk into my room first and then I walked in and closed the door behind me. I leaned against the door and screamed in my hands. "Gahh, I hate my life!"

"Aww, you don't hate this part of it, do you?" he asked.

I looked up and saw that he was holding Jadelynne right in front of me. She had a big smile across her face. Her big brown eyes melted my heart. My eyes filled up with tears as I shook my head. I grabbed her and hugged her close to me. I kissed the top of her head. "I could never hate my little girl." I held Jadelynne close to me and started crying. While sobbing, I said, "I hate everything and everyone else right now! I just wish people would understand that flashbacks hurt just as bad as actually going through it. Why can't they understand that?"

"Tori, you need to calm down, okay?" said Andre gently.

"Why should I calm down?" I screamed. "You see? No one understands me, not even my boyfriend and even if my daughter was old enough to understand, she still wouldn't!"

Andre looked at Jadelynne with a worried expression, but then he grabbed her. "Tori, of course I understand, but before you hurt Jadelynne, you need to calm down."

I was livid with anger at this point. "Do not take my baby out of my arms!" I screamed.

Ignoring me, Andre opened the door and Trina happened to be walking down the hall. "Trina, will you take Jadelynne?"

"No, Trina!" I screamed. "Andre, you better hand me my daughter right now!"

Trina looked nervously between Andre and I. "Uh…Andre, I would hand Jadelynne to Tori right now if I were you."

"Trina," he said firmly. "Just take her," He handed Jadelynne to her.

"Andre!" I screamed. "That's my daughter!"

Andre sighed and looked at Trina. "Just take her to your room or downstairs or anywhere, okay?"

"Okay," said Trina nervously.

"Thanks," he said and closed the door. He turned to me. "Tori, just hear me out, I had to–"

"How could you do this to me?" I screamed at him. "I was already mad enough, but then you had Trina take away my daughter! That's the worst thing anyone could have done, Andre!"

"You obviously weren't looking at Jadelynne while you were screaming." he told me. "Your screaming was hurting her ears; she was covering her ears with her hands. I had to get her out of here before you hurt her."

I was about to yell at Andre, but it then occurred to me what he said. I was so mad that I didn't even think to look at Jadelynne. "I…I was hurting her?" I asked shakily.

"She just didn't like the screaming." he said gently. "But she's okay. Trina's got her."

I breathed unsteadily for a moment and then turned around and laid on my bed. I looked up at Andre and shook my head. "My life is a complete mess, isn't it?"

"No, of course not," he said and laid next to me. He pulled me to him and I laid my head on his chest; he wrapped his arms around me. "You're doing so well for yourself. You got your high school diploma back in May, which is awesome, but you know what's even more awesome?"

"What?" I asked shakily.

He brushed his fingers through my hair. "You're providing for your daughter and giving her the best life you can." he whispered.

I let out a sob. "Andre…remember when I didn't want her?"

"Yeah," he said after a sigh. "Why do you ask?"

"And…you were always saying to me that…that she could be the best thing that's ever happened to me, but…I never thought of it like that." I hesitated. "You were right. She is the best thing about me and always will be. I can't even imagine life without her."

"I don't blame you for not wanting her when you were pregnant with her." he whispered. "It's understandable."

"But still," I said. "I should have loved her from the moment I found out I was pregnant with her. I can't believe I had to see her face to know that; I should have just known it."

"It's behind you now." he told me.

My eyes widened and I rose up to look at Andre. "Oh, my God, Andre…what if she finds out that I didn't want her when she gets older? Oh, man, she'll hate me! My own daughter will hate me! What am I supposed to do about that?"

"Tori, just relax, okay?" he said and pushed my hair behind my ear. "She doesn't have to find out, but if you do feel compelled to tell her, you could sit her down and explain it to her. Just make sure she knows that you love her now. I mean, you didn't even technically know her when you were pregnant with her, so it's okay. I doubt she'll be too mad."

I giggled. "I wonder if she'll ever ask where her name came from."

He laughed. "Well, if she doesn't, at least her friends will ask. You'll have to tell her the complete story."

"And her friends better call her Jadelynne, not Jade." I said. "We're not calling her Jade for a reason. It's confusing enough with just Jadelynne."

"Yeah," he said.

We laid in silence for a good while. Just when I thought I was gonna fall asleep, Andre said, "Tori…if I ask you a question, will you promise not to get mad?"

I hated questions like that, but I still said, "I promise I won't get mad."

"Um…" He cleared his throat. "Do you think that Jadelynne looks like…him?"

I stiffened in Andre's arms. I think Andre could tell, because he quickly said, "I'm sorry, forget I asked."

"No, it's fine," I said and sighed. "And…the answer to your question…no, not really," I paused. "But that man does have a dimple on his left cheek and Jadelynne has a dimple on her left cheek. That's the only thing she got from him."

"That's good," he said. "At least she doesn't look exactly like him."

"Yeah, no kidding," I told him.

Andre didn't leave for another fifteen minutes. For those fifteen minutes, Andre and I stayed in my room and Trina didn't bring Jadelynne back in the room. I was a little glad that she didn't because Andre and I were a little busy making out on my bed.

At one point when we were pulled apart, he whispered, "Don't you think you should go talk to your parents?"

"Mm," I said. "I probably should, but this is more fun." I kissed him again and our make out session continued. All I could think while making out was, "Gosh, I love this man so much!"

After our fifteen minute make out session, I walked Andre downstairs and he left. I turned and walked in the kitchen where my parents and Trina were; Trina was holding Jadelynne, whom was feeding herself a bottle. I looked at Trina. "Can I take her now?"

She smiled and nodded and handed her to me. I cradled her in my arms and smiled down at her. She looked up at me with her big brown eyes. I stared at her for another moment before looking up at my parents. They were staring at me with sympathetic expressions. "I'm sorry I yelled." I said softly.

"Honey, it's okay," said my mom. "It's just that we love you so much and only want what's best for you."

"I know," I said. "Believe me, I want that man to rot and die in prison, but…talking about what he did is just so hard. I really wanted to continue talking today and answering questions, but after that flashback, I couldn't do it anymore."

They both nodded. "It's alright," said my dad. "Don't worry about it. He'll stay in jail for now and when the time comes that you feel like you can fully testify, we'll go back to court and make it happen. But we're sorry we pushed it on you today. We just hate that man so much and, like you said, we want him to rot and die in prison."

I giggled. "I'm convinced he will someday."