As Jackson stood in the stand he realized the amount of pressure that Aaron and Paddy had been under when they stood for questioning. Darrel's lawyer hadn't even started asking questions yet and he already understood just hot Paddy managed to stumble over his words more than he usually did. All eyes were on him. He sneaked a look towards Aaron who was sat to the right of him. The teen was nervously nibbling on his thumb as his eyes gazed around the court room. Whenever Aaron's eyes wondered close to where Darrel stood, he would quickly look else where. Unlike his boyfriend, Kacson made sure to get a good look at the monster who had forced himself upon Aaron. All he could feel was raging anger towards Darrel as he saw him in court, looking comfortable without a care in the world. Could he show one ounce of sorrow towards what he had done, what he had put Aaron through? Jackson couldn't wait until Darrel was put to questioning by Harrison, watch him struggle and admit to what he had done.

"Mr. Jackson Walsh?" Miss Xander's called out.

"Yes." Jackson answered politely, clearing his throat.

"You are Mr. Livesy's boyfriend?" Miss Xanders asked for clarification.

"Yes."

"How long have you been seeing each other?" She continued.

Jackson had to think. There had been so much drama at the start before they finally became an item. "Since the beginning of June. . . so that's five months."

"Five months. Would you say you trust each other?" Miss Xanders' questioned. "After all you have only been together for a mere five months, not even half a year."

"Of course I trust him. We trust each other." Jackson answered her calmly.

"When the supposed attack's happened, in August, you'd only been together a couple of months?" Miss Xanders' said. "So you were both still finding your feet in the relationship you two share."

Jackson nodded his head. There was no doubt about it, they had only been together a couple of months when Darrel flipped their world upside down.

"Could you confirm that in April this year, Mr. Livesy attacked you?" Miss Xanders asked.

"He didn't attack me." Jackson quickly corrected shaking his head.

"But you pressed charges against him for 'attacking' you." Miss Xanders questioned pulling a dramatic puzzled face.

"I was angry with him. It was all blown out of proportion." Jackson announced to the court.

"But Mr. Livesy still attacked, you in a pub, an unprovoked attack." Miss Xanders commented smugly.

"It wasn't like that at all." Jackson tried to protest.

"Moving on." Darrel's lawyer continued. "Did you ever suspect that Aaron was interested in my client?"

"What?" Jackson exclaimed. Aaron had never been interested in Darrel. "No, never."

"So you were unaware of the attraction that your younger boyfriend had towards Darrel Kendall?" She rounded on him.

"Aaron had no attraction towards Darrel at all!" Jackson quickly protested. She was twisting the truth. "It was Darrel who was interested in him!"

"You aware of this but yet, you were completely okay to let them talk throughout the evening at your friend's birthday night out." Miss Xanders commented. "Were you are that they had been sharing text's since that night?"

What? No he wasn't.

"I'll take your silence as a no." Miss Xanders said. "I thought the both you trusted one and other."

"We do!" Jackson shot at her.

"I'm not convinced and I dare say the jury is either." She said smugly.

Throughout the questioning thrown his way, Miss Xanders would manage to twist the truth and send him stumbling over his own words. He was finding it ever so difficult to keep calm whilst in the stand. He didn't want to ruin the chance that Aaron had. Paddy had already unintentionally hashed up his time in court to fight Aaron's corner. They couldn't afford himself to trip up otherwise Darrel would be walking free. But he couldn't help it. The more time he spent in the stand the quicker things seemed to go downhill for them. When he arrived in court that morning he had every intention of doing right by Aaron, making him proud. But once Miss Xanders had finished running rings round him he only feared that he'd made matter's worse and all he had wanted was to put his effort towards sending the monster down.

"Whatever spin you chose to put on it Mr. Walsh, your boyfriend has unpredictable violent tendencies." Miss Xanders conclude. "If nothing seems to be going his way, he throws a tantrum and so help anyone that it standing in the way, may it be his father figure, his boyfriend, his mother's boyfriend or anybody else for that matter who has done something wrong in his eyes."

"You've got that wrong." Jackson said.

"I don't believe I have." Miss Xanders said smugly. "Thank you, that is all."

"You're unbelievable." Jackson muttered before he was unable to keep quiet any longer. "That monster over there attacked my boyfriend!" Jackson announced angrily to the whole court. "No matter how you try to look at it, how you dress it up or coat it in sugar. Darrel attacked an eighteen year old boy three times!" He told them all before continuing. "But yet, here he stands, with no ounce of regret to what he put that kid through!"

"Thank you, Mr. Walsh." The judge interrupted before Jackson could even begin to reveal what hell that Aaron was living.

Jackson was shown back to the public gallery before the rest of the court proceedings for that day could continue. He wished he could be sitting with Aaron for the next part. But the court wouldn't allow it, Aaron had to remain on his own. He tried to catch Aaron's gaze but he wouldn't look up from the floor. He knew the next part was the part that Aaron had been dreading the most. He knew the teen didn't want to be remembered of the marks, the harsh bruising and cuts left by Darrel's attacks again. But it had to be done, the jury needed to see the pictures, the evidence, of what Darrel Kendall was capable of. He also knew that Aaron didn't want his mum to see. No matter how much he pretended that he didn't get on well with his mother, deep down Aaron cared an awful amount for her and if he could he would protect her from everything.

The bruises had long since faded from the attacks, the cuts had faded too, if not completely then to barely noticeable scars. The only more noticeable scar that Aaron had was from the tumble down the stairs. Even that was barely noticeable, Aaron was completely unaware of it and he wanted him to remain that way. He didn't want him to look upon it as a reminder. Jackson looked at it as a mark of how strong the teen had been and was. The small thin scar was at the base of his skull, hidden beneath his closely cropped hair. He cold only see it however when Aaron was fresh from a hair cut. But now they were all going to be reminded of the trauma Aaron's body had been through as Harrison displayed the pictures on a slideshow for the whole of the court to see as he talked through them.

Looking towards Aaron again, he could see the teen was still focusing his eyes towards the floor. He had yet to look up. He didn't blame him for not wanting to see them again. Who would want to be reminded of it all? Jackson looked towards Chas, Paddy and Hazel's reaction to the evidence, even Cain's. All of them look disgusted, shocked. Chas looked close to tears as she gripped Cain's hand in a vice like grip, an anchor to keep her grounded. Paddy who had seen some of Aaron's horrific injuries but not all, looked horrified barely able to look at the whole slideshow. Even Cain looked affected by it all, who wouldn't. It seemed to only fuel the anger towards Darrel.

"As you can see Darrel left Aaron Livesy close to death, for a few days he was left fighting for his life." Harrison announced to the court as the slideshow clicked on to a picture of Aaron lying in hospital with monitors hooked up to him.

Jackson was surprised to see that picture shown as evidence. He couldn't remember it being taken at all, yet he was in the picture as well. Holding on to Aaron's hand as he pleaded for him to open his eyes, those few days had been one of the worst of his life. Aaron looked so pale and sick, tubes weaved in and out of each other, hooked into his hands, arms and mouth. The picture sent shivers down his spine. He had been so close to losing him, again.

A/N – Thank you so much for the reviews and great feedback!