Chapter 36
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Jacob told principal Flutie about the dirty word spray-painted on his locker. Some students were questioned, and the school janitor had to clean it off. Because noone admitted to doing the actual spray-painting, or admitted to seeing who did it, no detention was given. Jacob and Lily held hands, even kissed, at lunch. Kissing was against school policy, but they didn't get in trouble. If anyone informed on them Flutie didn't seem to care, at lest not today. Lily and Jacob wanted to show that if someone was trying to frighten them apart, it wouldn't work. They wouldn't back down to bigots and haters. However, they did wonder if they would always have to take a stand like this. Whether they would ever get to be just a normal couple. As Jacob walked home he wondered if he should tell his parents about the dirty word. When he arrived his mother warned him that his father was in a foul mood after watching the news. Jacob tried to avoid his father, but David began talking to him.
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David: I'm sorry Jacob, I'm not mad at you.
Jacob: Everything okay?
David: The Supreme Court just ruled that laws prohibiting consenual marriage between aduts is unconstitutional. That means incestous marriage is now legal in all 54 states. Perfectly legal for a woman to marry her own daughter.
Jacob: Gross.
David: Agreed. They say it can only happen between adults, as if just about everyone wasn't abuse of children. I had hoped Wilkins could stop it. I admit his attorney general did argue against this, but there are still too many justices appointed by president Nasheed. I'll admit our people bear some responsibility. Before the Great Revelation we wasted far too much time worrying about same-sex marriage, we should have spent our resources fighting against abortion, then we could have had more energy today to fight incest.
Jacob: I heard a rumor about a girl who graduated last year. She was being abused by her father. She waited until she was 18, took the mark of Christ on her birthday, then killed herself the next day.
David: That was a tragedy. I can't claim that chrismujews don't commit horrible sins, but at least our community arrests and shuns those abusers. The satanists mostly look the other way. A real tragedy would be the victims who rebel by taking the mark of the beast. Your friend, I would never condone her suicide, but at least she didn't damn herself. God forgave her.