Song: Man or a Monster by Sam Tinnesz ft. Zayde Wolf

1 week later

"Yes, I'll see you there." I sat my phone by my thigh and looked at my mom. "I'm so not ready for what's next." My hands touched my cheeks as my eyes watered.

"Honey, we are going to win this." She cuddles me up like she use to do when I was little and scared.

"I just-...why would he want to do such a thing?" I cried a little harder and I whimpered and shivered a bit.

"Some people don't feel anything for anyone but themselves." The thought of Ashton's father makes me sick and I just want to strangle his throat.

"We need to get going." I pushed aside those horrible thoughts and tried to replace them with good ones. "Aidan." My hand moved to his cheek. "Be good for grandpa, okay?"

"Yeah mommy!" He hugged me tight as I did the same. Giving him a kiss on the forehead, I looked straight into his eyes.

"I'll see you soon. And make sure you visit daddy before you go." A tear shot down my cheek but I quickly wiped it away.

"I will mommy. See you later." He hugged me one last time before he ran to grandpa and held his hand.

"Good luck Charlie." My dad waved goodbye and they were both gone in a matter of seconds.

I sat up from my hospital bed and hopped into my wheelchair.

"Charlotte!" My head twisted to see my mom staring at me.

"What? It's the easiest way." I smirked a little then moved towards the door. "Come on. We need to get going if we want to make it in time." I saw mom roll her eyes then grabbed my hospital bag and walked out the room.

"Is your lawyer going to meet you there?"

"Yes. He should already be there." I still can't believe we're doing this.

"Good. Then we're all set." Mom started the car then turned to me. "But the real question is...are you ready?" I fiddled my fingers together.

"No. But I'm willing to try to be." Mom gave me a half smile before she drove off to the courthouse.

"All rise."

I watched everyone rise as I of course couldn't. I looked at Ashton's father and disgust zoomed all over my body, what a fucking retard.

It was true. He was stupid to ever bring this to court as he knew that Ashton was getting better.

"Please be seated." Everyone sat back down and I moved my head towards the judge. "We are here today to discuss the life of Ashton Burns, son of Mr. Burns and father of Aidan Burns." I started to fiddle with my fingers again. "Mr. Burns. What is your case in argument?"

He stands up. "To take my son, Ashton Burns, off life support. He hasn't showed recovery and doesn't look like he will anytime soon." THAT'S NOT TRUE! I screamed in head as I really wanted to punch the guy.

"And you Charlie Grace." I could not stand up so I spoke louder.

"I'm here to have Ashton Burns, the father of my son, Aidan Burns, stay on life support as he IS recovering and I believe he will wake up soon." I stood my ground and was proud of myself.

"Very well." The judge looked over at Mr. Burns. "Please bring up Mr. Burns." As he walked up with an officer, he had to swear by an oath to tell the truth. After he was done, his lawyer walked up to him.

"Mr. Burns." The lawyer walked back and forth. "You wish to take your son off life support?"

"Yes."

"Why."

"Because I believe he will not wake up from his state. He's in pain and struggling. I can't take it to watch my son in such pain." What a fucking liar!

"HE'S LYING!" I shouted but regretted it after. My lawyer looked at me and so did the whole room. "My apologies." Embarrassed I was, I slouched in my wheelchair.

"I can't imagine what you must be going through." The lawyer spoke. "What was your son like?"

"Objection!" My lawyer stood up. "This is about whether or not the man should be off life support or not!"

"Overruled! Continue."

"He's good. A good father, son, really anybody wouldn't ask for a better one." I could see the lies all over his face. How could no one else see that?

I moved closer to my lawyer and whispered to his ear. "He's lying. You have to do something." My lawyer looked at me and nodded.

"Mr. Burns-"

"Objection! I believe that Mr. Burns is lying."

"How so?" The judge asked.

"But I'm not done-." The other lawyer interrupted.

"Sustained." Mr. Burns's lawyer sat back in his seat as my lawyer stood up.

"Mr. Burns. Did Ashton tell what Aidan's first word was?" Yes. Come on. We have him busted.

"Of course. My son told me everything."

"Okay. What was that word?" His eyes went white and you could tell he did not know.

"Well, I'm old. I do not remember the word."

"Fair enough." My lawyer thought for a second before he spoke again. "Where's Ashton's mother? Your wife." He does not know yet.

"She is at the hospital with Ashton. Watching over him and saying her last goodbyes." Ha! Caught in the lie!

"Your honor, I would like you to look at this file please." My lawyer gave the file to an officer, which he gave to the judge.

The judge opened it and read it. His face didn't have any type of emotion.

After he finished it, he closed it and looked at Mr. Burns, then nodded to my lawyer.

"The file says that Ashton's mother passed away a few weeks ago due to a car crash."

"Well, she-"

"I have no more questions your honor." Glad that's over.

"Charlie Grace, please come forward." I wheeled my way towards the podium. My lawyer followed soon after.

"Charlie. Why is it that you want to keep Ashton Burns on life support?"

I looked around the room, then spoke. "Because He is getting better. He is healing. He deserves the chance to fight. He doesn't show any sign of slowing down." Confident with my answer, I stopped talking.

"Then why hasn't he waken up?"

"Well, I'm no doctor, but the doctors said his brain has little activity. But that's still activity, enough to where he can still wake up."

"Okay. Thank you." My lawyer sat back down and then come the other lawyer.

"Charlie Grace. You said Ashton Burns has little brain activity. So would that make him brain dead, technically considering he hasn't woken up?

"I didn't say he was brain dead. His brain has little activity. Meaning there's enough activity in his brain to NOT make him brain dead." I'm so angry right now. Why do lawyers put words in your mouth?

"Alright, so you're saying there little activity?"

"Yes."

"And with little activity, meaning he could possibly not wake up?"

"Yes, there is a chance he cannot, but there's also a chance-"

"I have no further questions your honor!" He just cut me off! I wasn't finished!

"No! He can't do that! I wasn't finished!" I looked at my lawyer and his shook his head.

For the next few hours it was a madhouse. Going back and forth of reasons why Ashton should stay on life support and not to be on it.

My head started hurting from all the nonsense that Mr. Burns had going on. He's lying from left and right, but we proved most of it, but the judge seemed to just eat it right up like candy.

"When will we know who won?" I asked my lawyer while holding my mother's hand.

"Shortly. The judge needs to go through all the notes he took and make sure to notice every detail on each side so it's a fair win." My lawyer's face look a little scared. "I know we should win, because we proved many things wrong about them and showed a good side, but the judge seemed to like every detail they had to lie about. I cannot tell who won, but I'm afraid it wasn't us." My heart sank into my chest as I could not think of losing Ashton again, this time for good.

An officer came and got us to come back in for the final results.

"I've looked over each and every one of your explanations and details. But I had to come to a decision." The judge looked over at me. "I here by declare that Mr. Burns may have the right take his son off life support and-." My whole world got shot down. I silenced everyone. I could not understand anything anymore. Why must I have such bad luck. I looked down at my hands and saw tears dripping down on them.

"I need to go." I pushed my wheelchair as fast as I could outside and just bawled my eyes out.

"Oh honey." My mother wrapped her arms around me tightly and I just kept on crying.

"I want to go see him mom." The next thing happened was I could feel my wheelchair being pushed and me being helped in the car.

I squeezed Ashton's hand and kissed it. "Ashton. Please wake up. We need you to wake up." I started crying again. "Your father won the court order to take you off life support. The judge said that your piece of paper, that showed what you wanted to happen to all your things if something happened to you, does not qualify as a real will. Because it wasn't properly done." I wiped my eyes once more. "Me and Aidan need you. I love you so much. Aidan loves you so much. I can't bare the feeling without you again." I laid my head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat.

Suddenly I was interrupted. "Charlie honey." I looked up and there was my mother.

"When are they going to do it?"

"Right now." So soon? I thought it was gonna be in a few days? I can't even right now.

"Right now? So soon? Mom, Aidan doesn't even know what's happening." I then saw Aidan slip from behind my mom.

"Mommy!" My hand went over my mouth.

"Aidan listen." My head looked down, but I knew I had to be strong for him. "Aidan. Your daddy isn't doing so well." He looked at Ashton. "We are going to let him go."

"Let him go to a different doctor?" I sighed.

"No sweetie." I got frustrated with my words. "Daddy is in pain and we are going to release him of it."

"So daddy is gonna die?" The way he said it made me feel like the worst person on the whole planet.

"Yes. But he won't feel anything." I could see tears forming in his eyes.

"But daddy looks fine." I know.

"Well he-." A group of doctors and nurses cluttered through the room, interrupting what I was about to say. I then saw the monster who started all this walk into the room. He has no emotion, all he had was selfishness.

"Aidan, it's time." I lifted him up onto my lap and we held onto Ashton's hand.

"May we begin?" The nurse looked us but I moved my head to face Ashton.

"Yes." The monster spoke. I can't believe him right now.

I lowered my head in Ashton's hand, kissing it ever so gently. "Please wake up." I whispered.

I saw the nurse turn off machine by machine. Soon she took out his tube that helped him breathe and we saw his last breath before the monitor went flat.

More and more tears flooded my eyes. I held Ashton's and Aidan's hand tight as we listened to the sound of his non existing heart beat.

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