It wasn’t all over, of course.

Like many things, it got worse before it got better.

They realized that the reason the paparazzi targeted them that day was because one of Trick Daniels’ witnesses mentioned Raff by name on the stand.

While Chris was on the phone, calling the pediatrician to reschedule and then trying to reach a contact at the police station, Raff received three calls from the press, looking for a statement. His “no comment” grew increasingly irritated. When he answered the fourth call with a loud “What?!” he heard the timid voice of the woman from the Stellar security offices downstairs letting him know that journalists appeared to be setting up camp for the night across the street from the parking lot.

“Just thought you should know, Mr. Rivera.”

“Thank you, miss. And again, sorry.” He felt guilty for yelling.

He peered out the blinds and saw, way down below, that five trucks and counting were parked on the side of the road.

The phone rang a fifth time. Raff debated letting it go to voicemail, but there was too much going on right now. It was Holly.

“Y’all know the press is downstairs again, right? Come on up to the café for dinner. I’m usually closed tonight but me and Gladys are making a big meal. Denise and Aaron and the boys are coming too. And I will not take no for an answer.” She hung right up before Raff could respond.

There were few people that Raff couldn’t say no to, and that petite Southern woman was one of them.

The corridor outside the restaurant was filled with delicious smells and, when they tapped on the door, Aaron let them in.

“You guys okay?” he asked, concern in his voice. “I can’t believe they chased you with a baby in the car.”

“Unfortunately, I do believe it,” Chris said. “These people have no conscience.”

Raff felt stiff and uncomfortable around Aaron, knowing that he had expressed discomfort about Raff’s past. He was polite to him, of course, shaking his hand and thanking him for helping out with the human fence, but he didn’t try to make small talk.

“Smells wonderful, Holly,” he said to their host instead. “What is in store for us tonight?”

“Y’all haven’t been around long enough to know that, once a month or so, I clear out the freezer and cook up everything that’s approaching the expiration date.”

“And it is going to be delicious,” Denise called out, stirring a pot that was simmering on the stove. “Everyone in the building wants to be invited but, this month, you and Chris and Bizzy are the lucky ones. Cabbage rolls, egg rolls, pork chops, fried oysters, spaghetti and spaghetti squash, among other things.”

The families quickly settled down to dig into the feast, with everything spread out on a floral tablecloth, and pitchers of true Southern sweet tea at hand. Elizabeth sat at the end of the table next to Denise and Aaron’s boys, and she was delighted to be with her friends. She kept trying to feed them her own food from her hand. It was nice to see her so happy and calm despite the scary afternoon that she slept through.

“Gladys,” Raff said, “I’m dying to know how you knew how to put together a human fence like that. It was seriously impressive.”

Gladys beamed, and told the group about her work as an activist. For several years, she’d traveled around, helping protect veterans’ funerals from misguided protesters who might otherwise disrupt the peace.

“It’s been about nine months since I’ve done it, so it was good practice. I just used the emergency phone tree to rally the troops and everyone was down there, ready to go, within ten minutes. They did great!”

“Aren’t you ever scared when you do that?” Denise asked her.

Gladys pooh-poohed the very idea. “No way. None of those people want to engage. They see people who care enough to block their way, and they take off. It’s actually a very powerful feeling, knowing that, just by caring enough to stand there, you can make a change. I think if more people did it, the world would be a safer place.”

“Well, thank you for that, again,” Chris said. “We haven’t, uh, felt as welcome recently, as we did before. And we understand why. But it felt really good to see everyone out there for us this afternoon.”

“They did know it was for us, right?” Raff joked, lightening the mood. Everyone laughed. Raff noticed that Aaron shifted uncomfortably, despite the smile on his face.

Denise spoke up. “I just feel so horrible that Bizzy was in the car while all this happened. And I want to offer my babysitting services again. I insist. Just until all of this blows over, let’s keep the little one safe. And we all certainly love having her around. Don’t we, Aaron?” She turned to face her husband, and her chin was ever so subtly raised, as if almost daring her husband to disagree.

He cleared his throat and smiled, meeting Chris’s and then Raff’s eyes. “We sure do. Little ray of sunshine. But just so we know, when do you think this will blow over?”

“Aaron!” Denise said, aghast. “That’s rude.”

“No, no, I don’t mind,” Raff said. “Have you guys been following the news?”

Aaron nodded first, and then the others admitted they had as well, almost sheepishly.

“Good. Well, then you know there’s a trial going on. I’m going to be a State’s witness against the man who’s charged with stealing a very expensive work of art. And the defense is trying to discredit me. We hope that once the trial is over, one way or another, everyone will forget about me. And . . . that’s just about it.”

“You poor thing,” Holly said. “What a mess that y’all do not deserve.”

It was hard to tell if Aaron was satisfied with the answer or not. He nodded his head and then took a swig of his beer. Denise reiterated that she was happy to watch Elizabeth as long as they needed, and then Gladys interrupted with one of her famous pies. The conversation appeared to be over for the time being.

After dessert, the friends and neighbors helped clean up the restaurant and then sat around in front of the picture window, watching the sunset over the harbor. The four children crawled around under the tables, pretending to be cars, and no one seemed like they were in a hurry to head home.

“Hey, Raff. You want one?” Aaron called from the kitchen. He’d brought a six-pack and was helping himself to another one.

Raff moved over to him. “Thanks, man, but I don’t drink. I’ve been sober for a while.”

“Ah, gotcha. I hope you’re not offended?”

“Not at all. Enjoy.”

“So when did the, uh, sobriety happen?”

Raff took a deep breath and looked at Aaron for a second. He was a very big man, bigger than Raff, and obviously strong and well-fed. He was probably a body builder at some point, but perhaps years of being a husband and father had softened him somewhat. He looked like a happy bear. His face was open and honest. Raff remembered that, before all the shit hit the fan, he actually liked Aaron.

Despite sixteen years of hiding the truth from even those closest to him, Raff told Aaron the story. He told him about foster care, never staying in one place, and never giving up hope. He told him about the group home, and finally having “brothers”. Then he told him about the loneliness of being an “adult”, and the comfort of booze.

Aaron let out a low whistle. “I know that, man. I mean, I only have a few beers once in a while, but my old man could hit the whiskey really hard. He was a good guy, never hit me or anything, but he was hooked.”

Raff simply nodded. He was used to hearing about how alcohol affected families. Then he told Aaron about the horror of waking up and realizing that his night of “comfort” had resulted in the paralysis of another young man.

“Damn.”

“Yep.”

“Did you go to prison?”

“Well, that’s kind of why I’m in this mess now. I did not go to prison. The judge sentenced me to spend time with the man that I hurt, and sealed the record. And, at the time, I wished I’d gotten prison instead.”

“Wow. How did that go?”

“His name was Sam. And he hated me.”

“I can only imagine.”

“He made me buy him dirty magazines and sneak him in cigarettes. Once he started screaming that his legs hurt, unbearable pain, and I started sobbing. It was all my fault, I wanted to help him, but I didn’t know how. I ran into the hallway and got his nurse, and she came into the room and started yelling at him. Sam stopped screaming and burst into laughter. And the nurse put her arms around me, patted me on the back, and said ‘Honey, he’s not in pain. He can’t feel anything in his legs.’”

Aaron sputtered in laughter. “That’s evil. And hilarious.”

Raff nodded. “We’re best friends now.”

“No shit.”

“No shit. And I haven’t had a drop to drink since then.”

Aaron’s eyebrows went up in surprise.

“Look, Aaron, I know you’re concerned about me. And I don’t blame you. But I’ve spent the second half of my life making up for the first half. Those two over there,” Raff said, nodding at Chris who was talking to Elizabeth, “they mean everything to me. I will do nothing to endanger that. Sobriety saved my life, and not just because it improved my physical health. If I hadn’t been sober, Chris wouldn’t have married me, and we wouldn’t have our daughter, and we wouldn’t be having another baby. I’m committed to being the best man I can be. For them.”

Aaron nodded. “I think I get that now.”

Raff grinned. “Good. Cheers, man.” He tapped his glass of iced tea against Aaron’s beer.

Denise came up and put her arm around her husband. “What are you two talking about?”

Aaron cleared his throat. “The kids.”

“Aww. Well, we are all certainly blessed, aren’t we? And I’ve been meaning to tell you, Raff, that Elizabeth is invited to go trick or treating with us on Halloween. We start on the ground floor and make our way to the top. The kids really clean up. I’m talking full-size candy bars, bags of M&Ms, little toys.”

Until that moment, Raff had still been figuring it out in his mind, but he knew that his little girl would be safe with these friends by her side. “Yeah, sure. She’ll love that.”

It was time for the party to disband. Holly handed a carton of eggs to Chris as they headed out, “Just in case you fellas don’t have anything for breakfast tomorrow. But use them this week. They’re about to expire.”

Once inside their own home, the alpha and the omega worked together to get their daughter put to bed, and then they lay down together on the couch, spooning, too tired to get undressed themselves.

“What are you thinking, handsome?” Chris asked finally. His eyes were closed.

Raff’s lips brushed against Chris’s ear as he spoke. “I’m thinking that things will get better soon.”