"Engaged" – part 10
Summary and additional notes in part 1.
Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews! Okay, definite angst alert for this chapter. It mentions some heavy topics. References are made to the timeline fic "How To Save A Life". Italics are used for extended on-screen dialogue!
To the folks I cannot directly PM:
Anonymous - Thank you! For me it'll always be Fadam for the win too ;-) I appreciate the review!
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Degrassi!
-oOo-
Adam didn't watch Points Of View. He vaguely knew it was a talk show taped in New York where four women of various ages and backgrounds discussed popular topics of interest and did celebrity interviews. He had just come out of the shower and was heading back to his room when Chris called him over.
"Give me a few minutes," Adam responded disinterested. He didn't care for talk shows.
"You're gonna want to see this," Chris insisted.
Adam furrowed his brows. He picked up on the urgency in his roommate's tone. "Why?"
"They're talking about you," Zach told him.
Adam blinked. He hadn't that noticed he was also in the room. Zach didn't watch much TV. His roommate usually hogged it to play video games. He walked over to the couch and sat down.
"So she's marrying a girl?" an older woman with red hair asked on screen.
A woman with medium length dreadlocks shook her head. "No, her fiancé was born a girl," she explained.
"Isn't that the same thing?" a third woman asked. She was younger than the other two.
A fourth woman looked at the camera with an expression that conveyed 'Oh dear, we're going to get into trouble for that one.'
"There's a whole lot of people who would beg to differ," the second woman responded diplomatically. "There have been plenty of socialites who are gay or live alternative lifestyles, but what I find interesting about this story is the issues it brings up. Apparently, this 'guy' was really young when he when decided he was a boy and his parents supported him."
The young woman snorted. "I can't imagine that. If that was my kid I would stress therapy or something! It's a big deal, I think! Parents really need to parent and set rules."
Many in the audience clapped.
"Clearly this is a complicated situation," the red haired lady noted. She had a Jersey accent. "I don't think it's as simple as setting rules."
The woman with locks nodded. "From what I've heard, transgender people do have to be in therapy and take certain steps before they can change genders."
The fourth woman nodded. She was much older than the others and had white hair. "I've known a number of transgender people over my lifetime and that's true. They aren't allowed to do it on a whim."
Adam snorted. "No shit Sherlock!" he talked back to the screen. Chris and Zach laughed.
"Jeffrey, can you show the picture of them again?" the woman with locks asked someone off-screen.
The camera switched to the USA Weekly photo of Adam and Fiona jogging in the park. Some in the audience made sounds of disbelief.
"You would never know by looking at him," the red-haired lady remarked.
"But we do know," the young woman pointed out.
"Well, obviously since we're talking about it," the woman with locks quipped. "Now, what's also interesting is this guy has a colorful past. Apparently he was a victim of a brutal hate crime back in Canada when he was in his teens."
"That's terrible," the oldest lady stated.
"What happened?" the young woman asked.
"Have you ever seen the movie 'Boys Don't Cry'?" the second woman responded.
Many in the audience sighed in sympathy.
Chris looked at Adam concerned. "We can turn this off if you want," he said quickly and picked up the remote.
Adam shook his head. "No. Everybody knows anyway…" he trailed off. He didn't like to think about it, but over the years he had developed a thick skin whenever the attack was brought up.
"Are you sure?" Chris pressed.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Adam asserted.
"Apparently this young lady was dating him at the time. They began dating before and stayed together after. She stood by him throughout it all," the woman continued.
The audience clapped.
"What happened to the rapists?" the younger woman asked.
Adam flinched at that word, while noting that the plural usage was factually incorrect.
"Canada doesn't play. His attackers received double digit sentences," the other woman said.
Again, the audience clapped.
"Serves them right!" the red-haired lady commented.
The audience continued to clap.
"Another reason why this story caught my eye, the Coynes are a wealthy New York family worth millions," the woman with locks stated. "This guy grew up in a regular middle class family in Canada. However, his birth name is Grace Anna Marconi de Colón. In Spain the de Colón family is a wealthy aristocratic family. His father is Ernesto Marconi de Colón, who is a mayor in Spain."
The audience made sounds of bewilderment.
"Well, I guess we all stand corrected. They seem to make sense after all!" the redhead joked.
All four women laughed.
"Alright, we'll be back after the break with three meals you can make for dinner in just fifteen minutes!" the woman with dreds stated.
Chris turned off the TV. He glanced at Zach before turning to Adam. "Where's your head at, man?" he asked cautiously.
Adam sighed heavily and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He shrugged. "What can you say after that?" he questioned.
His whole life had been dissected on a national daytime talk show. He had no words for how he felt.
.
tbc
A/N: Oy... That was rough :( This chapter was on the short side but it worked best as a standalone scene (especially given where the next one starts). The next update will be on Tuesday.