Under the Same Sky [BOYXBOY]

CHAPTER 55

A/N: Here's a picrew of Samuel's mother that a lovely reader was so kind to make. I swear one day I will actually post all the fanarts  but for now enjoy the story.... ;) P.S: Please read author's note at the bottom for important updates!!!

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The students of Lumière were surprised when in the middle of the following day, reporters swarmed the campus in hives as swathes of both plain-clothes and uniformed police officers descended on the school.

Professor Vogt looked up in surprise as men barged into his half-asleep classroom and dragged Charles from his desk without any explanation. A wave of shock and unrepressed excitement rippled through the school as detectives took statements from both staff and students alike in the background of flashing lights and wailing sirens.

Whispers blazed through the campus as no one, not even the most restrained teacher could hold themselves back from joining the theories and rumours that swirled around. There was a brief hush as Charles was cuffed and shoved into a police van and as the flashing lights faded into the distance, the silence was broken and the whispers returned in greater force.

Jayden watched the entire scene play out below him with an unreadable expression on his face as Samuel fidgeted nervously by his side. As the sirens wailed away, no one paid any mind to Noel as he quietly slipped away.

It didn't take long however, for the full story of what happened to leak to the press and as soon as it did, it was plastered on the front page of every major newspaper in the country. Such a scandal involving a major family of the Noble 52 hadn't been seen in years and the gossip mongers lapped it up with gleeful pleasure.

The rumour mills went into overdrive, churning several versions of the story and the papers milked it for every drop they could get. As the days progressed, it became common to see reporters at every corner of the school, trying to snare any student they could for an interview.

Of course, the one they wanted to interview the most was Noel but as Jayden was virtually always by his side with an air of barely restrained malevolence, none of them dared. They contented themselves with drawing out opinions from students who were more than happy to see themselves on the news.

Jayden, however, got sick of this too and at his insistence, the headmistress had every reporter thrown out of school grounds.

The situation got much worse when the case was first brought into court. As expected, Charles's family brought all their power and resources to bear in order to get the case thrown out of court but Jayden prevailed on his mother and in turn, the Mills brought their more significant power and resources to act as a counterweight and the case went to trial.

After weeks of torturous court battles, motions, and countermotions, the case came to a head when Noel finally mounted the witness stand and as he testified, there wasn't a single dry eye in the courtroom.

The climax came when the jury, due to the overwhelming evidence against him, found Charles guilty of aggravated sexual assault. Charlesetta broke down when the sentence was read out by the judge and her son was led out of the courtroom in chains. Charles father remained stoic-faced throughout the entire proceedings and after hearing his son's sentence, simply stood and walked out of the courtroom.

It was a heart-breaking experience for many and everyone was grateful when the entire sordid affair was brought to a close. The students in particular were more grateful when the summer vacation rolled around soon after. For some, it provided a moment to sit back and reassess, and for others, it was a chance to simply breathe.