Lets Add Three

"Yes Your Honour"

A/N: I had to make up for not updating all week so far, here's 1879 of this one which has been too long since I last worked on it right? XD

Found the set when Polyvore gave me the opportunity to download all my sets, published and drafts :D

Throughout writing this chapter I kept picturing the bigger lawyer guy from Suits (I don't watch it, my dad does) as Jeremy's lawyer, my sister calls him rat-face so that could be why but yeah, hope you like the chapter.

Chapter 17:

Despite being told what time to show up, and being punctual, Kirstie and Avi still have to wait. Marcia is content playing with the toys in the middle of the room with the other little girl there. Kirstie didn't want to take his eyes off of her oldest daughter, and Avi doesn't want to take his eyes off his wife. At this point, Avi is actually more worried about Kirstie than Marcia. As Kirstie has said over and over again, no judge in their right mind would take her away from a happy family. But as for Kirstie, she wasn't eating properly, or sleeping well, she's been throwing up, she must think Avi hasn't noticed, but he's more observant than she gives him credit for. And because of all this, he hasn't been sleeping well either, partly because of her tossing and turning and partly worry about her, about Marcia, but still mostly Kirstie. As well as physically this is taking its toll on her mentally, and she refuses to talk about it, she avoids it unless she has to, and that's only when Rosalie's there. What happens when there's no more court case, or god-forbid they lose Marcia.
     It takes a while but they eventually get into the courtroom and Marcia is taken right through to a room out the back. Kirstie and Avi are sitting behind a bench with Rosalie when Jeremy walks in, talking up position behind his own bench with his own lawyer. He doesn't look over in their direction, is he starting to feel guilty.
     They all have to stand as the judge walks in, and then she lets them sit, and the hearing begins. Both parties have to answer a set of questions that the judge has for them, its protocol.
     Kirstie can almost feel her coffee bubbling up her throat, her stomach aching with nerves, but what does she have to be nervous about? She's not guilty of anything and she hasn't done any wrong, yet she stills feels that way.
     "Today both parties will be asked a series of questions that will help me in my decision of where Marcia Alice Kaplan will be placed for the foreseeable future. Is Mr Jeremy Michael Lewis present?"
     "Yes your Honour."
     The female judge casts a quick eye on him then turns back to her papers, "Are Mrs Kirstin Taylor Kaplan and Mr Avriel Benjamin Kaplan present?"
     "Yes Your Honour," they reply in unison.
     "With everyone present court is in session," she bangs her gavel. "First order in today's proceedings is Financial Status. The party with current custody may start."
     Rosalie stands up with a small file full of the Kaplan's financial bits and pieces. She hands it to the person that hands things to the judge. "Mr and Mrs Kaplan are very financially well off, they still have royalties from their music coming in from the stint of 2011 to 2015 and the second notable stint of 2018 to 2021. The two of them both work part time at this point-"
     "Part time? Why not full time?" Jeremy's fat lawyer interjects.
     "If you'd let me continue I'd get to that," the blonde quips. "Mrs Kaplan works during the day until three when Marcia needs to be collected from school. Mr Kaplan is home in the mornings to look after their other three children who have not yet reached school age-"
     "So it would be fair to say that their attention lays elsewhere, three biological children between them," the fat lawyer pipes up.
     "That wouldn't be fair to say at all, Mr and Mrs Kaplan have structured every day so that all children get all the love and attention that each of them wants and desires," Rosalie counters smugly. "The other three children aren't the point of this question though I'll point out. It is helpful for you to know that Mr and Mrs Kaplan's finances are more than subsequent to take care of four children, a dog and themselves." Rosalie sits back down, resting her side of the argument. She has many more things she could have said to bad mouth Jeremy, but she's choosing to take the fat lawyer's path and interrupt on his turn.
     The judge gives her attention back to Jeremy, "Now if the party seeking custody would present." And the fat lawyer stands with his own folder and does the same as Rosalie did.
     "Mr Lewis' income is substantial enough to raise a child. He gets a reasonable teacher's salary that would easily cover his needs and a child's, we rest on the matter," he sits.
     Rosalie is a little taken aback, she didn't have the opportunity to interject that she would have liked.
     Avi leans across Kirstie to whisper to Rosalie, "The judge looks confused, did that guy not give enough info or something,"
     The blonde shakes her head, "He gave the bare minimum, it must be his ploy since he's not actually a child lawyer, he's a financial one with scraping knowledge of child law," she scoffs.
     Avi leans back with a nod and a little more information than he'd bargained for.
     Kirstie reaches out for Avi's hand, holding it tightly when she finds it, he gently squeezes back.
     "The next order of business this court will address is what kind of custody arrangement is each of the two parties hoping to acquire or sustain?" The judge turns to Kirstie and Avi's bench.
     "Mr and Mrs Kaplan are wishing to sustain full custody of the child," Rosalie starts. "They are seeking full custody because they have always had full custody. Mrs Kaplan was in fact prepared to raise the child on her own when at eight months pregnant, Mr Lewis over there," she motions towards him, "Decided he didn't want to be a father and walked out on Kirstin and the unborn child."
     "Mr Lewis never said he didn't want to be a father, he said he wasn't ready to be a father," Jeremy's lawyer speaks out of turn.
     Jeremy nods along.
     "Then can you please explain why you never tried to contact Mrs Kaplan to find out how the child, your child was doing. You only chose to take action when you found out who the man raising her was, a man you've been jealous of in the past."
     "How is Mr Lewis supposed to react when he found out that some other man is raising his child as their own?"
     "That's the thing though, it's not just 'some other man,' it is Avi Kaplan, Kirstin's bandmate that Mr Lewis has never gotten along with. This custody battle is nothing but vindictive from Mr Lewis' side, born from pure jealousy and spite. Mr Lewis wants to raise this child only so that Mr Kaplan can't."
     Avi and Kirstie are in awe, they'd given her the facts and she had gone to town, putting pieces together that make so much sense that there's no way it can't be true. Kirstie is trying to hide her coy little smile because Rosalie is a god-damn genius.
     "We rest," Rosalie sits down.
     "Mr Lewis' party please present," the Judge nods.
     The fat lawyer stands up, "Mr Lewis is aiming to acquire full custody today."
     Despite her composure a mere minute ago, Kirstie's breath hitches in the back of her throat with those words, she's not going to let herself cry though, she grips Avi's hand just a little bit tighter.
     "He wishes to do so because he believes the mother of child's priorities lay elsewhere. It is practically apparent that due to her having three other children and a new partner-"
     "Your honour Mr Kaplan and Mrs Kaplan have been married for two years and together just over five, the child knows Mr Kaplan far better than Mr Lewis over there, so I'd hardly call him a new partner or a new priority," Rosalie retorts.
     "Agreed," the Judge nods, "Continue," she looks back at the other bench.
     "Mrs Kaplan's attention is stretched, you cannot be sure that this child is getting all the attention she needs-"
     "It's lucky she has two parents then to give her attention, remembering Mrs Kaplan is not doing this alone," Rosalie interjects, "She has a loyal husband at her side."
     "So loyal that she prioritises her sex life," the fat lawyer sneers.
     Kirstie's face heats up; she shrinks a little in her seat, beside her: Avi's entire body goes rigid.
     "Don't shrink," Rosalie whispers out of the side of her mouth. "I'd love to see you prove that one," the tall blonde directs at the fat man.
     "Mrs Kaplan said so herself, to Mr Lewis."
     "Your Honour that is not viable, Mr Lewis is very likely bluffing, unless he is talking about the statement I have here in which I believe Mr Lewis has taken out of context," Rosalie picks up a piece of paper, knowing she'll be asked to read the statement.
     "Opinions differ from person to person, what Mrs Kaplan said she may have thought was in jest but my client did not see it that way."
     "Then he did in fact take it out of context then didn't he, you just admitted it yourself, she said it in jest. Your Honour, I'm not even sure this needs to be read," she holds up the paper. "It is clearly a matter of opinion. I will read it though if you like?"
     The Judge nods "Go on."
     Kirstie takes a deep breath; she hopes the Judge sees it from her perspective.
     Rosalie starts, "And I quote; 'Why would I lie about my drop-dead-gorgeous husband? Why would I lie to you about the man who is better than you in every way, and when I say every way: I mean every way-"
     "She's talking about sex there," the fat lawyer interjects.
     "Now she may be but she goes on to say, and I quote: 'And why would I lie about the man who is a far better father than you could ever dream of being," Rosalie stops for a moment letting those words sink in. "It seems to me that her child is a very high priority, so much so that she has married a man that she knows to be good with children, that would take care of her daughter as well as she does, that does take care of her well."
     "She's boasting," the fat lawyer snipes.
     Rosalie laughs, putting her paper down, "And since when has boasting been a crime?"
     Jeremy's lawyer is quiet.
     "Yes Mrs Kaplan may have been boasting, but who wouldn't if they were in her position with four happy, healthy children and a doting husband? You try arguing that Smith."

A/N: Big question here, who do you think will win?

Hannah