Previously…
– Christian confided in Sophie about how Robbie ended things with him and then implied he was also involved with Sabrina. Sophie wasted no time in revealing this to Jason, only to discover that her information was off the mark.
– Under threat of being grounded all summer, Jason forced Sophie to admit that she’d heard about Sabrina and Robbie from Christian.
– Trevor and Alex had a tense run-in with Finn at the Pride parade.

In the staging area for the floats that are about to participate in the annual King’s Bay Pride parade, Christian Taylor moves behind his mother when he sees his uncle approaching them, face red with fury. Sophie Fisher is right on her father’s tail, waving her arms.

“I didn’t want to tell him!” Sophie shouts.

“What’s going on?” Molly asks. “You’re making a scene, Jason.”

“I don’t care,” Jason says as he levels a glare upon Christian, who wants to sink into the pavement. “I want to know why your son is running around spreading rumors about my girlfriend.”

“Rumors? What does Christian even know about Sabrina?”

Jason folds his arms as he lands mere feet away from them. “That’s what I want to know.”

Molly looks back at her teenage son. “What is your Uncle Jason talking about?”

“I wasn’t spreading rumors,” Christian says, his heart thudding frantically inside his chest. “I only told Sophie–“

“You shouldn’t be telling Sophie anything about Sabrina,” Jason says. “Why would you think you know anything about her and that Robbie creep?”

Christian makes a split-second of eye contact with Sophie, enough to realize that she hasn’t told her dad everything.

“Who’s Robbie?” Molly asks, as Christian becomes aware of other people’s eyes turning toward the confrontation.

“I saw them talking on campus,” Christian says.

Jason lets out an annoyed huff through his nostrils. “And how does that make it appropriate for you to go to Sophie and imply that Sabrina is cheating on me?”

Molly gasps. “Sabrina? Cheating?”

“She’s not,” Jason says. “But Christian told Sophie that she is, and Sophie took it upon herself to expose Sabrina to me while she was at work, in front of customers, and–” He grits his teeth and shakes his head. “This is not okay, Christian.”

“Gossiping is not okay,” Molly says, turning back toward her son. “Especially when you don’t have the full story.”

“And you’re just making things up based on innocent things you’ve seen,” Jason adds. “Sabrina and Robbie have a class together–“

“He told me!” Christian blurts out.

That elicits a momentary pause from both adults. Sophie lingers behind Jason, her eyes wide at Christian’s outburst and what it implies.

“Why would some adult man be telling you about his imaginary affair with my girlfriend?” Jason asks.

Christian feels his blood begin to boil and his fists curling up in impossibly tight balls.

“Because he dumped me for her!” he blurts out.

“He what?!” Jason says, as Molly’s mouth flaps open without producing any sounds.

“He– he dumped me because he thought he had a– another chance with her,” Christian sputters, and then, feeling as if his entire body is going to overheat, he bolts away from them, rounding the end of the Objection Designs parade float and darting off into the crowd of people waiting for the Pride procession to begin.

“What? What is going on?” Molly asks no one in particular.

After a tense moment of silence, Sophie shrugs and looks up at her father. “I told you I couldn’t tell you why.”

—–

Down Main Street, spectators awaiting the parade line both sidewalks, with barricades separating them from the unusually still and empty street. The summer sun shines down as people in tank tops and festive gear wave small rainbow flags.

“Happy Pride, boys!” Helen Chase exclaims as she first gives Alex Marshall a hug and then stoops down to embrace Alex’s six-year-old son.

“I think you’ve gotten even bigger since the last time we saw you!” Don Chase says to the little boy.

“And I have a loose tooth!” Chase tells them excitedly. With his rapidly melting ice cream cone held in one hand, he opens his mouth wide and uses a finger to wiggle the small tooth on the top of his mouth.

“Look at that,” Helen says. “I suppose you’ll be getting a visit from the Tooth Fairy any day now! What is a tooth worth these days? Fifty–“

“Cents,” Alex cuts in. He raises his eyebrows for emphasis. “Same as it’s always been, right?”

“That’s right,” Don says as he takes his wife’s hand and squeezes it before she can inflate the amount any further. “Did your dads get you ice cream to celebrate?”

Chase shrugs and resumes licking the rocky road that has dipped just below the edges of the too-large-for-him cone.

“Ice cream can be a useful distraction when parents need one,” Alex says with a pointed look at Don and Helen.

“When are the cars coming?” Chase asks them.

“They’re called floats,” Alex explains. “But some of them will be real cars, yeah. They should be coming soon.”

Unprompted, Chase bolts right up to the barricade to get a better look. Alex thinks of shouting after him, then decides to pick his battles; as long as he has an eye on his son, it doesn’t matter.

“And what did we need a distraction from?” Helen inquires.

“The three of us ran into Finn a little while ago,” Alex says in a quiet voice. “You know, our incredible tenant.”

“What’s the matter with that?” Don asks, confused.

“It’s a long story,” Alex says, “but he’s working for the woman who’s filling Molly‘s seat at Objection temporarily, and I got the sense that they were up to something… well, nefarious, so I told Trevor, and he didn’t want to believe it, but he went and asked Finn, who denied it, and now it’s just, like…” He sighs. “Finn knows I’m on to him, but I have no proof, and Trevor’s weirdly still kind of defending him.”

“Why would Trevor defend someone like that?” Helen asks.

“That’s a very good question.” Alex rubs his suddenly tired eyes. “I guess it isn’t really my business, and Trevor’s the one who works there, but I get a strange feeling about the whole thing.”

Helen jabs her index finger toward him. “Then you listen to that feeling, Alex Marshall. You’re a smart boy– er, a smart man. And if you need any help at all stopping these people from whatever they’re up to–“

“Whoa there,” Don interjects. “Let’s not go cracking anyone else on the head with your chili pot just yet.”

“I won’t,” Helen says, her face settling into a steely expression. “But you just say the word, Alex, and I’ll be right there.”

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Alex finds himself letting out a small chuckle before replying, “Thanks, Helen.”

—–

After Jason issues a quick, stunned apology to Molly, who hurries off after Christian, he leads Sophie through the busy staging area until they locate Edge of Winter Arena’s float. Sabrina Gage is hanging some last-minute, icy blue tinsel along one side of the vehicle, and Jason steers Sophie right toward her.

“Dad,” Sophie grumbles, but she knows better than to stop walking.

“Sabrina. Hey,” Jason says.

Sabrina turns at the sound of his voice and then freezes when she sees that he has Sophie with him.

“We came to say that we’re sorry about what happened yesterday,” Jason says, tipping his head to indicate that Sophie is very much a part of that we, whether she wants to be or not.

Letting the tinsel fall from the last spot it was pinned, Sabrina squares her body toward them but struggles to find something to say.

“I just don’t understand what that was all about,” she finally manages. “I told you about what happened when I went to that exhibit with Robbie–“

“I know you did, and I want to be super-clear that I believe you,” Jason tells her. “And now that we’re cleared some things up, Sophie does, too.”

With both their gazes fixed upon her, Sophie taps the toe of her black Converse sneaker against the pavement several times. Jason gives her a squeeze on the arm to prompt her, and even still, it takes a few more seconds before she speaks.

“Sorry,” the raven-haired teen says.

“Yes?” Jason urges her.

“Sorry I didn’t have the full story and tried to make you look bad. I really didn’t know.”

“Well, thank you,” Sabrina says, still quite reserved. “But I don’t understand how this happened.”

“I’ll tell you all about it,” Jason says. “I don’t quite have the full, full story yet, but there are some twists you are not going to believe. For the time being, can the three of us just agree on something?”

“That this Robbie guy is a douche?” Sophie says.

“No,” Jason answers, before taking a beat and saying, “Well, yeah. From everything I’ve heard, he’s worse than that. But I was going to ask… can the three of us officially consider this a fresh start? Sophie, you’ve heard about how Sabrina was honest with me. And Sabrina, you’ve heard how Sophie understands that she can’t take off running with any crazy rumor she hears. I’d love nothing more than for us to put this behind us and start clean. How does that sound?”

“That sounds really nice to me,” Sabrina says, finally relaxing with a smile.

“Yeah, I can do that,” Sophie says, nodding. “I really hope Christian isn’t mad at me now…”

Sabrina’s face screws up in bewilderment. “Christian? Your nephew?”

“I told you I’d explain,” Jason says. “And it seems like it’s quite a story.”

—–

Elsewhere in the staging area, Finn Campbell takes a final slug of the increasingly watery frosé that he purchased earlier and tosses the cup into a trashcan. As he does so, he sees Trevor Brooks weaving his way through the bustling bodies and almost-ready floats.

“There you are,” Finn says. “I was about to text you.”

“I’m here,” Trevor says, everything about him a little tight and tense.

Finn narrows his eyes. “Is everything okay? That was a little awkward back there with Alex…”

“It was. Yeah.”

“I got the feeling that Alex wasn’t too thrilled to see me.”

Trevor sucks on his teeth for a moment, then says, “I think you might be right.”

“Why? What did I do to him?” Finn wags his head in annoyance, then lowers his voice. “Do you think it’s because we… you know… kissed?”

“No,” Trevor answers firmly. “He doesn’t know that you kissed me.”

“You did kind of kiss back,” Finn replies with a wicked grin.

Trevor lets that pass without a direct response. “He’s still upset that you might be helping Gia undercut Molly.”

“Trevor, I told you–“

“I know what you said. And I’m choosing to believe you, Finn. But Alex has known Molly’s family for a long, long time. He feels a sense of loyalty toward them. Honestly, so do I.”

“What are you saying?” Finn asks, reaching out to place a hand on Trevor’s chest.

The contact sends a jolt of something electric through Trevor, but a second later, he pulls back, ending it.

“I’m explaining why Alex might seem standoffish, that’s all,” Trevor says. “And I hope that you — as not only our tenant, but our friend — can understand that. Okay?”

“Okay,” Finn says with a nod, as he lets his hand fall back to his side.

—–

Molly dashes after Christian, keeping him within her view as he moves briskly through the crowd. He passes through a barricade at the back of the staging area and rounds the corner of a brick building, and once they are on that quieter side street with no one between them, Molly calls out to him.

“Christian! Honey! Wait.”

He stops and glances back at her warily, but he does not speak. She increases the pace of her footsteps in order to catch up to him.

“You don’t have to run off,” she says.

Christian squeezes his eyes closed, and she can see the emotion brimming in his face, leaving him on the verge of tears. “I’m sorry, Mom.”

“Sorry? Why?”

“For telling Sophie about Sabrina and Robbie. I didn’t mean to– I thought–“

“I know. I know.” She reaches for him and pulls him close, pressing him against her body. It still mystifies her that the twins are taller than her; when she pictures them, they are somehow still the size they were when they were eight or nine years old.

“You probably should have known what spilling that to Sophie was going to do,” Molly says as gently as she can, “even if you did believe it was true.”

“Yeah.” Christian exhales, and she can feel the discomfort rattling through his body. “I know.”

For several more seconds, Molly simply holds him. It occurs to her what a pivotal moment this is in Christian’s life, how he will hold onto whatever response she offers him for the remainder of his time on this earth.

“Who is this Robbie person?” she asks.

“Some… some guy I met on campus. We hung out a few times.”

“As in… dated.”

“I guess.” He takes a step back and tries to look her in the eyes, only to quickly avert his own gaze down toward the sidewalk. “Mom, I’m…”

“I know. Your dad and I love you no matter what. You know that, don’t you? This doesn’t have to be dramatic or traumatic.”

“But it feels like it. For me.”

“Oh, honey. I know it does. And I didn’t mean to minimize your feelings,” Molly tells him. “I’m glad this is out in the open, and I’m sure it’s a big relief for you, too. I just want to be clear that this changes nothing except that you can talk to us about your personal life without feeling like you’ll be judged or loved any less.”

“Thanks, Mom.” Christian folds his arms tightly against his body, despite the warmth of the sun and the air around them. In the distance, Cher’s classic dance single “Believe” plays over a speaker system.

“This Robbie… was it serious? You really cared about him?” Molly asks.

“No. I mean, I liked him, but it wasn’t serious. I just didn’t expect him to, you know…”

“I have to say, I still don’t understand where Sabrina fits into all this.”

“Me neither.”

“But Robbie has a thing for her? So he’s bisexual?”

“Yeah.” Christian cringes and then looks up at her, his dark bangs falling over his eyes. “Can we not…?”

“Of course. All I care about is that you know I love you.” She pulls him toward her again and wraps him in an embrace. “Do you understand that?”

“I love you, too,” Christian says softly, as the excitement of the Pride festivities sound all around them.

—–

Not long afterward, the parade begins its procession through downtown King’s Bay. Onlookers wave their colorful flags and pom-poms at the passing floats, as the Queens Remix of Beyoncé’s hit “Break My Soul” blasts through the streets.

Jason sits in the middle of his arena’s winter-themed float, between Sophie and Sabrina. Skaters from the rink, dressed in white and ice-blue, dance and cheer to applause from the crowd on the sidewalk.

“Look, there’s Alex and Chase,” Jason says, pointing so that Sophie and Sabrina can easily spot them, too.

“And Grandma Helen and Grandpa Don!” Sophie exclaims. She waves excitedly at her grandparents.

As the float continues, Sabrina reaches down and takes Jason’s hand, for just a moment.

“This is nice,” she whispers to him, and he smiles happily back at her.

On the sidewalk, Alex stands right behind Chase at the barricade as the little boy waves back to Sophie. Don and Helen flank them, with Helen improvising a dance of her own to the house-inspired music.

“It’s a shame you aren’t on one of those floats this year,” Helen comments to her husband.

Don guffaws. “I think my days of performing as ‘Dawn Chase’ are over.”

“Never say never!” Alex chimes in.

They continue to watch the floats go by.

“I think that’s the Objection one,” Helen says, and the four all turn their attention down Main Street to watch the approaching float, a flatbed outfitted to look like a high-fashion photoshoot.

“Where’s Daddy?” Chase asks as he watches the float approach.

Alex squints but doesn’t see Trevor up there; however, he does see Finn, who cuts a sharp look toward them as the float passes by.

“I don’t see your dad,” Alex says.

“That’s because he’s right here,” Trevor announces as he presses through the people clustered on the sidewalk to join his family.

“We thought you’d be up on the float!” Helen says.

Trevor slips an arm around Alex’s shoulders. “I decided that I’d rather spend Pride with my husband and son.”

Alex leans his head against his husband’s muscular shoulder.

Up on the Objection float, Molly and Christian stand side-by-side, waving at Trevor, Alex, their son, and the Chases.

“I haven’t seen Bree and Marcus yet,” Christian says while scanning the crowd.

“I’m sure they’re down there somewhere,” Molly replies. “Samantha and Tempest are out there, too.”

Christian continues waving to the crowd as the excitement of the day washes over him. He never expected that the first thing he would do after coming out to his mother would be riding on a float in the Pride parade, but the joyful energy and the love filling downtown today make him believe that everything really will be all right, even if he never sees or hears from Robbie again.

“Happy Pride, Christian,” Molly says as she plants a kiss on his forehead.

He cannot stop himself from beaming. “Happy Pride, Mom.”

END OF EPISODE 1189

Will Christian be able to put Robbie behind him now?
Is Sophie actually ready to accept Sabrina?
Will Finn and Alex’s animosity only get worse?
Talk about it all in the comments below!

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