Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea Chap 18/18
A/N: Hello peeps, just giving a shout out to everyone who loved this fic, from Captanonymus and myself. Thank you for reading what had been started as a 'Let see what happens' fic that grew like mold made of tasty man-smut. Ah, the imagery.
It's kind of anticlimactic, especially after such awesome awards! But it must be done, so here's the end. We hope you like it :)
-All of Us
Chapter 18
Eight months later, they had moved to San Francisco and into their new home. The court case had been a test of endurance for them both and they were eager to put the past behind them.
Colin had met with his lawyers and had explained the situation. He instructed them to keep everything hush-hush and to try and work out an agreeable settlement so they could move on with their lives. However, as soon as the case was presented to the judge, he declared it a matter of public interest and opened the hearings to the public.
Somehow the student union got wind of what had happened behind the closed doors of Mr. Cumbers office and months of protests rallies and meetings followed. It nearly paralyzed the university, as lecturers walked out in solidarity and students refused to pay their fees, citing that they did not want to support an oppressive regime.
Greg swore he didn’t have anything to do with it but Colin had his doubts. Mainly because he had seen Greg and Eleanor, the president of the student union and a very intelligent girl, playing tonsil hockey behind the dumpsters of the courthouse on the last day of the hearings.
Colin was amazed at the level of support, especially from people he didn’t know. Like one of the admin assistants, a sweet natured girl called May. She had gone straight to the board of directors when she had heard the commotion in the office and had complained about the situation. They tried to brush her off as a hysterical lefty with a penchant for drama but when it came to the hearings, she refused to bow under the pressure that was no doubt heaped upon her from the powers that be and made a very convincing case about Mr. Cumber’s megalomaniacal tendencies, his roving hands and not to mention his preference for young interns…
The judge was appalled and condemned the management of Uck, saying he had rarely seen an institution which was supposedly dedicated to learning and education behave in such a despicable and backward way. He instantly doubled the settlement figure Colin’s lawyers had put forward, demanded that Mr. Cumber was dismissed from his position and ordered all of Uck’s employees to attend a series of seminars on diversity in the workplace and respect for one’s colleagues.
It even made the national news and Mr. Cumber was, for a good number of weeks, the firm focus of several high profile comedians and talk show hosts who ridiculed him mercilessly evening after evening.
It all seemed a lifetime away, Colin thought, as he stood on the balcony of their new home. It was stunning; courtesy of the obscene amount of money the judge had awarded them. Greg had come through on his promise of starting up his new company and the people at Discovery Channel had fallen over themselves to get in on the action.
He was now doing a job he enjoyed even more than his previous one, as there were lots of research trips involved and San Francisco was a breath of fresh air.
Ryan had found his niche too. He helped out with the paperwork when he could and he never missed an opportunity for a research trip but thanks to the settlement, he’d been able to start his own business restoring classic cars. It was only a small venture but he had already started to build up a loyal customer base. And then there was the added bonus of overalls and axel grease Colin thought, as he eyed his partner lounging in a chair, trying to catch the last rays of sun.
“What you smiling at?” Ryan said, as he caught Colin looking at him.
“Perfection…”
Fin.