AUTHOR'S NOTE ::: This is the love story of Marty and Todd starting from the very beginning when they first met in college. It also includes several other characters as well as their storylines. This story is based off the hit soap One Life to Live, yet the "history" has been changed somewhat to suit the purposes of this story. Not all the parts of this story will contain erotic sex scenes as there is a plot. First and foremost, this story is a romance/drama, not a sex story. This story also deals with the topic of nonconsensual sex as well as other disturbing material, so if you are bothered by that please do not read any further.
Also, I'd like to note that I do not own ABC's One Life to Live or the characters and I will NOT be receiving any payment whatsoever for writing this story. It is intended for entertainment purposes only.
*~The Trial~*
Days passed and it was the day of Todd, Powell, and Zach's trial. Todd was feeling uneasy. His father was going to be there, and he really wasn't sure if he could face him. But Sam had promised to help him through it all.
When he walked into the courtroom wearing his jail garb, he saw that Marty was already there. She looked so beautiful, and he wondered how both she and their baby were doing. He walked passed her, longing to stop and say something as the guard escorted him to his chair up front. "Marty," he said softly as he was taken to be seated.
Marty hadn't wanted to come to the trial, but she knew that she had to be here. She looked up when Todd was passing by. He deserved to be put behind bars, and she hoped that the judge would be able to see that despite the many excuses Todd was likely to use in his defense.
The trial got underway, and Todd didn't turn to look when his father entered the courtroom. Hank Gannon was the prosecuting attorney. "I call Marty Saybrooke to the stand," Hank called out.
Hank waited and everyone in the courtroom held their breath when Marty came to the stand. "Marty, will you please tell the court in your own words, what happened on the night of The Spring Fling..." Hank encouraged.
Marty hated reliving the memories as she started to speak. "I arrived at the Spring Fling with my date," she said. "From the second I walked into the room, Todd was bothering me." She then went on to tell what happened that night including the details of the events which lead up to the rape.
"I was laying down upstairs in a room to sleep off the alcohol that was in my system when Todd came in with Zach and Powell," she went on to say. In a choking voice, she began to describe the horrid events that occured in Kevin Buchanan's room that fateful night.
Todd couldn't look at Marty when she spoke, recounting the details of the rape. He felt physically ill as she told the entire courtroom how he had raped her then allowed two of his buddies to do the same.
"Thank you, Miss Saybrooke," said Hank.
Then it was Sam's turn to cross-examine her. "Marty, is it true that you drink heavily and like to party?" asked Sam. "Before the Spring Fling, did you have sex with Todd Manning?"
Marty knew she had to answer Sam's questions honestly but lawyers always seemed to bother her. They always twisted the truth, making the testimony go in their own client's favor. "Yes, before Spring Fling I used to drink and party. And yes, I had sex with Todd," she replied.
"And was it consensual sex? Did you enjoy having sex with Todd?" questioned Sam. "Tell me, Miss Saybrooke, how many orgasms did you have?"
Todd listened, wondering what Marty was going to say.
"Look," Marty said in a growl. "It was consensual before the Spring Fling. The rest of it, however, is NONE of your business!" This line of questioning was utterly sick. She wished he would just finish with his stupid cross-examination already.
Todd sat there silently, wanting the cross-examination to be over as well. *Just take me back to my cell already* he thought. He'd rather be locked up forever then have to relive all of this.
"Please answer the question, Miss Saybrooke," insisted the judge. "Did you... or did you not, have an orgasm?"
"What does that have to do with anything!" Marty cried out as her eyes flashed with anger. "Do you ask all witnesses about their sexual encounters; their fetishes and the personal, kinky details of their sex life? That's NONE of your business!"
Sam turned to look at the judge. "Do I have your permission to treat this witness as hostile?" he asked.
"Yes, you do... but please remember the delicate nature of this trial," the judge responded.
"Okay, moving on to the next question. Marty Saybrooke, are you carrying Todd Manning's child?" Sam asked. As he said the words, a loud gasp came from the crowd.
As each moment passed, Marty found herself despising this lawyer even more. "Yes, I am," she said. "Again, what does this have to do with anything? This trial is supposed to be about the night of the Spring Fling."
"No more further questions," said Sam with a heavy sigh.
"Miss Saybrooke, you may step down," spoke the judge.
Hank called out, "I'd like to call Todd Manning to the stand."
Todd slowly stood, nearly colliding with Marty as she made her way back to her seat. As he got to the front of the courtroom, he swore on The Bible he would tell the entire truth.
Under oath, Hank began the questioning. "Mr. Manning, did you and your frat buddies rape Marty Saybrooke the night of the Spring Fling? Can you tell us in your own words exactly what happened?"
Glancing over at Marty, Todd began to speak. "I did a lot of drugs that night, and Marty and I argued. I discovered she was upstairs, sleeping off the alcohol she had consumed, so Zach, Powell and I went up to the room where she was lying on the bed. I proceeded to tie her to the bed. While she lay there helplessly, I raped her," spoke Todd as everyone in the courtroom gasped once again. "Then I sat there and did absolutely nothing, while Zach and Powell did the same." Suddenly there was chaos in the courtroom after Todd's testimony.
"Order in the court!" yelled the judge, slamming his gavel onto his bench.
Marty sat uncomfortably in her seat. She was glad that at least Todd was telling the truth, though it looked like most of the courtroom was in shock. She wanted to believe that this was a step in the right direction for him, but she couldn't be sure. For all she knew, he had something up his sleeve. She waited and listened.
Finally the judge managed to get the crowd quieted and calmed down again by threatening to clear the courtroom. After Hank had finished questioning Todd, it was now Sam's turn to do the same. "Mr. Manning, are you in love with Marty Saybrooke?" was Sam's first question.
"Yes, I do love her," said Todd. "I think I've loved her almost from the beginning, but I was afraid to show her my love. I was afraid of losing her."
"Did you attend the Spring Fling with the intention of committing rape?" asked Sam.
"No, I never intended anything like that to happen. I had taken too many drugs... and it just sort of ..."
"...happened," replied Todd, as he looked down at his hands, studying them. "I regret it, but I can't take it back now."
"Todd, can you tell the court about your childhood? Do you have a history of being abused?"
"Yes..." Todd said as he happened to look up and glance at his father. Peter Manning's face turned bright red and he gave Todd a warning look that could have killed.
"Please tell the court about the abuse you endured since your childhood," prompted Sam.
"This is hard for me..." spoke Todd as his voice faltered. He looked like he was close to crying. "I used to watch my father beating my mother. One day I looked around... and she was just gone. I was eight then... and she didn't come back. She left us."
"After she left, my life was awful. My father called me names ::: stupid, worthless, monster, things a kid should never have to hear. And he would beat me. Repeatedly. With his belt or whatever he could get his hands on. Sometimes he would hurt me with the belt buckle, smacking it against my back... and sometimes, he'd pick up his lighter, his most-prized possession; and burn my hand with the flame until I'd beg him to stop," Todd spoke, as his blue eyes filled with unshed tears. "I never cried. I hadn't shed a single tear since the day my mother had left. I thought if I cried, I'd have to care... and I didn't want to care about anyone."
"I endured it all... never fighting back. Not until my fourteenth birthday," Todd explained.
"What happened on your fourteenth birthday?" Sam questioned.
"I tried to kill my father," said Todd softly.
"Heavens!" Vicki gasped as she sat in her seat right beside Marty. She had come to support Marty through the trial. The whole courtroom was gasping and making comments and once again the judge had to slap his gavel down onto the bench.
"Order in the court!" he yelled.
Once it was quiet again, Sam returned to the questioning. "I know this is difficult, Todd... but please tell the court why you wanted to kill your father," urged Sam.
"It was my birthday. My friend Michelle had came over to see me. She had baked me a chocolate cake with chocolate icing... and candles. I hadn't had candles or anything special since my mother had gone. She was the only person in school who was nice to me, since I was an outcast. I was good at football, but that's the only thing I had going for me. I didn't study, just passed so I could stay on the team," Todd spoke. "When Michelle came with the cake, I couldn't have been happier. But then... my father came home."
"I knew my father would be angry cause I had a friend over, so I told Michelle to hide in the closet. She did, but when my father came in, he saw the cake... and he knew. He took my birthday cake and he smashed it against the wall. He hit me so hard I fell to the floor and then in a rage, he went looking for Michelle."
