"Thank you so much for all of your help, Dr. Mitchell. Really, I appreciate everything that you've done for me and helped me with." Harper says as she stands in front of the woman.
"It's nothing, seriously. You're a wonderful person, Harper. You and Yoongi deserve the life that you're trying to have. You're fighting for that and any way that I can help you, then I will. I'm sure that Hyde feels the same."
"I'm actually going to talk to him right after this. I just want everybody to be on the same page about everything so that nothing comes as a surprise. I'm really trying to keep my head cool about everything. I want to flip but now I know that I got stuff to handle."
"I understand that." Dr. Mitchell nods. "You're very a strong woman. You express it in many different ways and I really like that about you."
"Being strong can come in various forms." Harper tells her. "And a person isn't subjected to just one way of showing it. Whatever feels right, whatever is valid for them, they're allowed to feel that and express it how they want. Anybody can be strong in their own right."
Dr. Mitchell smiles at Harper. "That they can. You're absolutely right."
"Alright, I'm not going to hold you up any longer. I know that this was kind of impromptu and I've gotta get to Hyde before he runs off back to the emergency department."
"Okay. I'll see you soon."
"See you soon." Harper replies as she opens the office door.
With a folder in her hand, she exits the room and closes the door behind her. She walks down the hall, trying her best to make the frustration on her face. It's difficult given the situation but she's working with what she can.
"Hey, Miss Taylor. Good to see you."
"Dr. Han." Harper says, stopping in her tracks. "Good to see you too, actually. Can I speak with you for a moment?"
"Uh.." He looks taken aback by the sudden suggestion.
He and Harper have never had a conversation with one another before. In fact, he's only ever seen her in passing or at the receptionist's desk. Even then, they've never really spoken. She's barely glanced at him.
The fact that she suddenly needs to have a conversation with him is kind of random. And random for Han is unsettling. Especially as intimidating as she currently looks and the way he's spoken to her significant other.
"Sure." He agrees.
"In private, if you don't mind." Harper gestures to an empty conference room.
"Oh-."
Harper walks past him and opens the door. He steps into the room and she steps in after him, closing it promptly.
"I'm gonna make this quick because I have another meeting to get to and a conversation to have with a much more important person."
Ouch. Hyde thinks to himself.
"Jahlil Collins. Name sound familiar?" Harper asks.
"Yeah.. He's the guy Dr. Min did surgery on a few weeks back. Last month. Gunshot wounds."
"Yeah, the guy he asked you to do the surgery on and you refused? Figured you'd remember. We haven't officially met. I'm Harper Taylor. Director Min's girlfriend. Jahlil's healthcare proxy."
Dr. Han's mouth falls open at the sudden revelation. He's stunned by the drop of news.
It explains why Yoongi didn't want to do the surgery. It explains why he asked him to do it. It explains why he was so worked up about the specifics of everything involving it.
"Wait-. So you're-?"
"His baby's mother. Yes. That's not what's important. What is important is that I'm still his legal healthcare proxy because he has yet to get me taken off despite the circumstances. As such, I was able to get a record of the surgeries that he's had here before since this wasn't his first emergency encounter."
"I-. Okay."
"July 10, 2021." Harper reads from a paper in the folder that she has. "Jahlil was admitted into the emergency department for multiple stab wounds which yourself and a Dr. Fratel facilitated the procedure to fix."
Dr. Han nods slowly as he looks at her. His eyebrows are slightly pinched together.
"Correct. But Dr. Fratel doesn't work here anymore. He resigned in October."
"September 16th, 2021." Harper continues. "Jahlil was rushed in and needed an emergency surgery for gunshot wounds to his chest and back. A surgery for which you had to escalate to the Director's board to get done because his healthcare proxy was unavailable for contact but it was life or death for him."
She looks up from the paperwork and Dr. Han who's nodding again. He looks moderately confused as to why he's being read information on himself.. or about himself. He's really confused as to why any of this is going on or where this conversation is supposed to lead.
"Yoongi asked you to take the surgery for him and you told him no. Why?" Harper asks.
Dr. Han blinks at her, frozen by her question.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean exactly what I just asked you. Yoongi called you to take the surgery for him and you refused. I want to know why. Is it because you didn't feel like escalating things to the Director again? Was it because you felt like you couldn't do it? That you weren't capable?"
"No." Dr. Han says in a clipped tone. "It wasn't because of the escalation process. It wasn't because I didn't think the at I could do it. It was because Mr. Collins is a repeat patient. As many procedures that he's had done, the one that Yoongi did should have killed him. He should not have survived. And I cannot, I couldn't-."
"You know, instead of taking notes from you and judging books by their covers, I'm going to judge you by your actions. You are a coward, Dr. Han." Harper stares at him.
"First and foremost, before anything, you are a coward. You knew that there was a great possibility Jahlil wouldn't make it so you refused to take his case even though Yoongi all but begged you to. This was a conflict of interest for him. If anything happens to Jahlil during the recovery, he could lose his job. He could lose his credibility because of his relationship with me. But you didn't know any of that." Harper shakes her head as she looks at him.
"All you knew was that Jahlil's chances of walking again were slim. And that his chances of surviving were even slimmer. You didn't take his case because you were hoping he didn't make it. You were hoping to knock Yoongi down a peg and for what? By what?"
Harper's eyes are set in hard gaze as she glares at him.
"Trauma? Would that have boosted your ego? Would seeing him affected by something like that give you enough of a fucking thrill to back off of him?!"
Han's eyes begin to gloss as he swallows thickly.
"Here's what you're going to do." Harper says, taking a deep breath to calm herself. "If you have any morally conscious bone in your body, any good neurons left still firing in that narcissistic brain of yours..."
She takes out the papers from Jahlil's last two emergency visits.
"You're going to read over these hospital documents that you signed off on, do your very best to jog your memory. And then you're going to come to a consensus about whether or not you think this man talked about in these papers is a safe enough human being to be around a seven month old, very likely neurodivergent infant."
The concern on Dr. Han's face slowly grows as he picks up the papers.
"A seven month old?" He looks from the papers to her. "He can't even keep himself safe. Why would he be around a seven month old?"
"Exactly." Harper says as she reaches for the door handle. "Glad that we're on the same page."
She swings the door open and steps out, leaving Han alone with his thoughts.
He stares down at the papers in his hands as he recalls certain moments in time.
"My son's in the emergency room. Here's the schedule for your surgeries next week."
The schedule was shoved into his hands before he even had time to really grab them. The words that were spoken to him processed much faster as he whipped his head in the direction of a bustling Director Min.
"So-." Han looks at the folder then to Yoongi's back. "You have a kid?"
He remembers being so confused and thrown off by the revelation. It had him confused for the entire rest of his shift. It leaked into the next day as he wondered just how much he didn't know about the man.
He's very private, Dr. Han knows that much. But him having a son was like a bingo card he never expected to get. He has a family.
Dr. Han sighs and rubs his forehead.
"What's wrong with me?" He rubs his eyes, pulling himself together.
So many new things have just been out into perspective for him. One being the way that Harper just demanded his attention and for him to listen to her. The way that she called him out and scolded him about Yoongi. The way that she defended him with no second thought.
There was determination in her eyes. Ferocity there. He has a feeling that she could have said a lot more. She probably wanted to yet she didn't.
Harper said just enough to get his attention, to get him thinking... pondering... questioning himself.
The way that Harper came in for one thing but didn't think twice to take the opportunity to let him have it about her man was bold of her.
To both ask for his help and kind of demand it with a sense of pure authority... he's never seen anything like it.
He knows little to nothing about this woman and yet, he respects her.
He also may be a little intimidated by her now as well.
######
The court house bustles early Wednesday morning with chatter between defendants and lawyers, parents and children, clerks and clients.
Everyone is having small conversations of their own when Yoongi and Harper walk into the courthouse.
As requested by the judge and not entirely by Yeonjun, they've brought their son with them to court.
The judge requested that Onyx be present so that his well-being can be physically seen. Also so that the relationship between Onyx and the parents he lives with can be gauged.
Yoongi and Harper weren't fond of the idea at all when Yeonjun told them. They didn't like the idea of bringing their infant son to a court room for something like this. It feels unnecessary.
But Yeonjun explained that it can be played in their favor. Onyx is most comfortable with his parents. He can find comfort in his grandparents, Taehyung and Hailey, Luca and Delilah. But nobody tops his parents for him.
"I'm going to go check in." Harper says as they scan the waiting area.
They both have the same goal in mind as they do it; looking for Jahlil and Miss Sullivan to keep Onyx away from them.
"Okay. I'll go find the meeting room that Yeonjun's in." Yoongi holds Onyx in his arms as the baby looks around with a frown on his face.
He puts his head against his father's shoulder. Well, at best he can, anyway.
They took the advice of Dr. Parker and got noise cancelling headphones for him. They drown out most loud noises or dampen sounds that would potentially bother Onyx in public spaces.
They're trying them out for the first time today and Onyx seems to be doing fine with them. Sometimes he shakes his head, like he forgets that they're there. But for the most part, he's alright with them.
Yoongi walks down the hall and looks for the numbered room that their lawyer texted to them. As he scans the signs above the doors, he hears Jahlil's voice.
His head drops and down the hall, he sees the man along with lawyer talking quietly at the end.
Jahlil sees Yoongi and double takes when he sees the baby in his arms. Onyx's small hand is holding Yoongi's cheek, squeezing it every now and then.
Something that his parents have learned is a comfort thing for him. Dr. Parker explained to them that he probably likes the skin contact and the feel of squeezing it. It's soothing for him, essentially.
Jahlil's eyebrows twitch seeing Onyx and the headphones that he has on. He's curious about a lot in regards to the infant. He knows almost nothing about him except his name and birthday.
And the only reason that he knows that is because of the papers that Kyra had given to him from the emergency visit that night.
"Yoongi." Yeonjun speaks his name as he opens the door to his left.
"Oh. I was looking for the room. They've got the numbers up so high."
"Yeah, it's annoying. Where's Harper?"
"Checking in. She should be back soon."
"We should wait where she can see us so she's not confused. I'll wait by the door. You get inside with him."
Yoongi steps into the room and out of view of Jahlil. He sets Onyx's diaper bag on the table and sits down with him.
He sits him on the table for just a second while he fixes his shirt and the buttons on his sleeve.
"Dadaa." Onyx reaches for him.
"I know, Bear. I know. You don't like this place. Let me fix my clothes really quick and I'll pick you right back up."
"He's cute." Yeonjun comments. "His pacifier is adorable."
"Thank you. A good friend of ours gifted it for him. Him and his wife also got him a ton of other things since last week. After our appointment with the specialist, we told our family and them. None of the information felt new because I think we all sort of... just knew. But everyone's going to do what's necessary to be mindful about it now."
"That's good." Yeonjun nods, leaning against the doorway. "I'm glad that you guys went and got everything checked out for him. I was going to ask how it went."
"Does that have to be brought up in court?"
"I don't think that it does, no. ASD isn't something that can be caused by anything, per se. There are things that can 'increase the risk', I think. But nothing that either parent could have done to cause it."
"Right." Yoongi nods. "It's not developed. Either you're born with it or you're not."
Neither of them want to bring up or use Onyx's autism as something that could 'work in their favor'. That's feels wrong, slimy. Neither of them like the idea of that.
Harper comes walking down the hall with a phone, folder and keys in hand. Her heels click against the floor and she tucks the loose strand of her stretched hair behind her ear.
Yesterday was wash day for her and though she was tired and incredibly annoyed by it, she managed to get through it.
She had no choice, really. Once the routine is started, it's not like she can just stop halfway. It'd be so pointless and the progress would be wasted come the next day.
Jahlil looks her up and down as she comes down the hall. She stares him in the face with a noticeable scowl before looking to Yeonjun.
"Good morning, Miss Taylor."
"Good morning, Mr. Choi." She says as she enters the room. "What are we talking about so far?"
"Discussing Onyx's diagnosis." Yeonjun informs as he closes the door.
"Oh. Are we talking about that in court today? I wasn't sure if we were going to. I thought today was just character testimonies."
"It is." Yeonjun says. "There's going to be a couple different things going on today. But his diagnosis wasn't something that I was sure you wanted to talk about. I didn't want to play on anything you weren't comfortable with."
"I understand what you mean." Harper replies with a nod. "However, in regard to that, there would be an outstanding concern of whether or not Jahlil and his mother would be able and willing to make the proper arrangements and accommodations for Onyx."
Yoongi hadn't thought of it that way. He knows that Jahlil and his mother aren't very good people. His first thought was to protect Onyx from anything they could do or say. He has a strong feeling that they wouldn't react positively.
And though that in itself would make a huge point, he doesn't like that.
"Okay." Yeonjun sits down. "How were you thinking about going about im this?"
He gives Harper the floor, wanting to hear the thoughts and further points that she wants to make.
"I emailed Dr. Parker yesterday afternoon and she called me at around 6:30 last night. She's seen Onyx twice; once for his initial diagnostic appointment and the other for a follow-up two days ago. She's willing to make the statement on Onyx's diagnosis and proper accommodations and things that he needs now for his age."
"Dada."
Onyx reaches for Yoongi again and he's picked up from the table. He leans all his weight on his father while he looks at his mom.
"Oh! That's great then. So I'll make the point and then you and Dr. Parker can basically tell what accommodations best suit Onyx and what you currently do." Yeonjun says.
"And there's no way they can argue against any of that because it's in the best interest of the child." Yoongi adds.
"Exactly. Also, on top of that." Harper says, opening the folder in front of her. "I called Dr. Hyde this morning at around five and he phoned in Dr. Mitchell."
"Oh?" Yoongi raises an eyebrow.
He hadn't known that she did any of this. They've been so busy the last couple of weeks that everything feels like a whirlwind.
"Yep. Yesterday was Kyra's hearing with the state. Our statements were read there and guess who else testified against her?"
Yoongi and Yeonjun's eyebrows furrow as she pulls out a packet of paper.
"Jahlil Collins." She sets the copies of the manuscript down in front of them and they each grab one.
"She illegally gave him copies of our son's emergency after care visit, violating HIPAA laws."
"Oh, she's done." Yoongi says as he looks through the papers.
"How did you get these?" Yeonjun asks. "If you weren't an active member in the case-."
"I'm suing." Harper says, sitting back and crossing her arms.
Yoongi and Yeonjun's mouths both fall open as they look at her. How she managed to get so much done in 36 hours is astounding and without either of them knowing is astounding.
Astounding and slightly terrifying... She looks pissed. Pissed yet very determined.
"I don't know if you can do that, though." Yoongi says. "There's no private right of action for HIPAA so you can't sue for damages. Not for the breach of the HIPAA rules, at least."
"No, but I can if there's a violation of the state's consumer or privacy laws." Harper says.
"Not only that, with the information that she gave Jahlil, he and his lawyer tried to use it against her. She gave him two pieces of information that he shouldn't have gotten." Yeonjun says as he looks through his papers.
"What?" Harper says as she turns at him.
"Yeah. She gave him the dog bite thing and-. Here it is. She also gave him a copy of the emergency visit before that. I wrote it down. He had a fever. 103 or 104?" Yeonjun says as he looks at Harper for confirmation.
"And he told the judge that?" Yoongi asks. "Is he dumb?"
"I don't think that he can get in trouble for that. He didn't explicitly ask for it and he could always argue that he didn't realize what it was until after he read it." Yeonjun says.
"Okay, but either way, this is illegal." Yoongi states.
"Which is why Harper could possibly sue for violation of consumer's rights on behalf of Onyx. The hospital is a provider, a business. Harper and Onyx are consumers of the services that they provide. They're patients there, they're in their office group. They're in their system and web of medical professionals." Yeonjun explains.
"One of the major four rights that consumers have is the right to safety. Kyra, being an employee, is an extension of that business and is covered by that umbrella to carry out the consumer policy. She didn't. Harper could sue for the violation of her and her child's safety."
"But she'd be suing the hospital, not Kyra directly. Juniper's would have to take responsibility for their employee." Yoongi replies as he rubs Onyx's back.
The room is tense with all of the frustration in it and he doesn't want him to feel any of that.
"According to this manuscript, she was already under investigation." Harper says. "Hyde and Mitchell just couldn't tell us that. Even if I can't sue for the consumer's violation, I can still sue her for invasion of privacy which I have more than enough evidence for. She's a healthcare worker, that case is going to be public information."
A small smile stretches across Yoongi's face as he looks at his girlfriend.
Under the current circumstances, he isn't very happy. He's upset by all of it. But he is so proud of the way that Harper is handling all of this.
The way that she's taking the reins of everything going on in their lives and pushing through it. The way that she's feeling things as they come but still handling them with fervor. She's not allowing the weight of this to pull her down.
Like a sudden switch has been flipped, Harper means business about the things going on in their lives.
Yoongi finds it sexy, if he's being blunt.
"All of that is a topic for another day, though." Harper says. "Today is the day for the statements about character. Yoongi can speak on my behalf, if allowed. Dr. Parker is here. And I have a written statement by Dr. Eric Han."
Yoongi isn't surprised by the names. He's a little surprised that Dr. Han agreed to make a statement. But he's grateful so he's trying not to dwell on it too much.
Several minutes of discussion pass before the three adults and singular child leave the private meeting room. They're called to a court room shortly after and Yoongi holds Onyx in his arms.
The baby looks around the room with a frown on his face as he holds onto his father's shirt.
Yoongi waits until after the judge bangs the gavel to take Onyx's headphones off. The baby quickly becomes distracted by the man's watch again, wanting to put it in his mouth as the judge starts speaking.
Yoongi talks quietly to him.
"Onyyxx. What did we talk about?" He says, pulling the watch from him.
Onyx reaches for the man's wrist again, pulling it back to him. He holds it in his hands and Yoongi chuckles at him.
"As long as you don't try to eat my watch, I'm fine with this." He whispers.
Onyx giggles furiously, finding whispering to be funny. His laughs catch the attention of the judge and she smiles at him.
"Oh, he is just too cute. And he's how old now?"
"Seven months." Yoongi replies.
Jahlil and Miss Sullivan both look at Yoongi and the baby in his arms. Onyx sees that he's being stared and leans back against his father.
"Dada." He pulls on his clothes and Yoongi turns him around.
Onyx lays his head on his father's shoulder and puts his fingers into his mouth. He hums to himself as he looks at the people staring at him.
Miss Sullivan sees the features that Onyx shares with her son. But mostly, the baby looks like Harper. The older woman doesn't know if she should be annoyed or relieved by that observation.
"Dadaaaa!" Onyx yells suddenly.
"Yes? I'm right here, Bear. I'm not going anywhere."
Onyx sighs as he sits up and looks at him. There's a blank look on his face and Yoongi smiles at him.
"But we gotta be quiet. We can't be loud in here."
Onyx starts scrunching his face up and whining. Harper turns back to them as the judge talks, giving the synopsis of what's going to happen in court today.
"Is he okay?" She whispers.
"I think he's sleepy. It's almost noon. Either that or the lights are bothering him."
"I didn't bring the sunglasses. I forgot them at the house." Harper says, suddenly realizing.
"It's fine. I'll figure it out." Yoongi assures.
The first person to be called to the stand is Harper herself. Yeonjun asks her questions about how she cares for her son and what she does for him day to day.
Harper gives a summary of their day to day routine with Onyx. She talks about the things that both she and Yoongi have had to do in order to make Onyx comfortable in their home.
After she speaks, Dr. Parker comes to the stand and explains Onyx's diagnosis and what accommodations should be being made specifically for him in order for him to thrive.
She explains that the actions that Harper and Yoongi have taken are exactly what should be being done in Onyx's particular case. She explains that since he is so young, a lot of things may be hit or miss with him because of how limited his communication is.
In the end, she sums up that she hadn't given too much advice to the couple that they hadn't already known or done their own research to come up with.
During Dr. Parker's statement, Jahlil and his mother speak to one another quietly, as well as their lawyer.
Yoongi notices that the whispers seem aggressive but Miss Sullivan seems to look confused. Jahlil is looking back and forth between both of them. He doesn't say a whole of anything, only listens for the most part.
It reminds Yoongi of the meeting that he had with them after Jahlil's surgery. How his mother did most of the talking and Jahlil only butt in only to ask redundant questions.
It's increasingly clear that his mother seems to be the driver behind a lot of the things that Jahlil does. He more or less follows her lead and if he doesn't, she can pretty much sway him into it.
It almost makes him wonder just how much of this custody case he actually has the brains behind. His disinterest in the entirety of it is obvious.
Just the way he zones out and doesn't really pay attention to anything doesn't give off the vibe that he's here because he genuinely wants to take care of his child.
When it comes time for Miss Sullivan's time on the stand, she speaks on behalf of both herself and her son. Though most things spoken about are 'we', rather than simply speaking about Jahlil alone.
Jahlil's time on the stand comes quickly and Yeonjun is eager to cross examine him. He has to physically stop himself from fidgeting with excitement.
At this point in the court room, Onyx is fussy and not able to be calmed down with his pacifier alone.
Yoongi stands up at the same time that Yeonjun does. He apologizes to the judge before walking to the back of the court room. He cradles Onyx in his arms and sways side to side as he paces the floor.
Harper smiles softly at her boyfriend and their son as he coos quietly to him. Onyx's cries begin to quiet down until he's humming softly. Yoongi smiles as he puts the pacifier into Onyx's mouth.
Yeonjun steps in front of the stand where Jahlil sits, ready for his questioning.
"How are you this afternoon, Mr. Collins?"
Jahlil shrugs as he looks at him. "Alright, I guess. I just saw my son for the first time before we got in here so... y'know."
"Ready to get out of here, huh?" Yeonjun asks.
Jahlil glances at his lawyer who gives him a stoic look.
"I just want safe custody of my son and that's it." He responds.
"Mm. Right. And with that, I'm sure you've been paying enough attention today to understand all of the things that come with the full custody of Onyx that you're requesting, correct?"
"What do you mean? He's a baby. Of course I know what that comes with."
"Including the needs that come with his autism diagnosis? Because if you are to obtain full custody, you will need to understand and educate yourself about the disorder."
"What?" Jahlil is taken aback by the possible accusation. "Is it bad? You're saying that like he's gonna be any different than a normal baby. How does he even get that? Is it something she did?"
Harper inhales and sighs quietly. She shakes her head subtly.
God, he's such a fucking idiot. She rolls her eyes at herself. She's so embarrassed that this is the man her child shares DNA with.
"No, Mr. Collins. Autism can affect anybody." Yeonjun explains. "It's nobody's fault. There's nothing that anybody can do to prevent or to cause autism. However, risk factors that increase the chance do exist."
"Having manic episodes gotta be one of them."
"No, actually. But do you know what is?" Yeonjun says as he looks at him.
Jahlil says nothing, just raising his eyebrows sarcastically waiting for him to finish.
"Preterm birth."
"...okay..?"
"Do you know many weeks early that Onyx was born?"
"No, I don't know anything about his birth. I've said this. She left before I got to meet him."
"Two." Yeonjun holds up his fingers. "Two weeks early. It is stated in Harper's medical records, that I've provided to the judge, Onyx's early birth was medically necessary yet triggered due to the 'extreme stress and injury to the mother's uterus'."
Yeonjun quotes the exact words from the medical document. He's got them memorized... engraved into his head. He can never forget them. He will never forget them.
The way that he had to read and reread them, over and over again because he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He couldn't understand the words that were very clearly printed on the papers before him.
He couldn't process the turmoil written in such plain text on paper. He simply couldn't do it.
Harper stares at the table in front of her as Yeonjun lets the words simmer for the court room.
There are chunks of her pregnancy that she doesn't remember. Big chunks of things that she can't think of. Her memory is splotchy, coming through with holes or gaps in them.
Her birthing experience is one of them.
She doesn't remember much at all. All that she knows is she was scheduled to be induced. But she didn't make it that far. Her water broke before her induction day.
She was rushed to the hospital and everything from there feels like a blur.
She cried, she screamed, she barely slept.
All that she remembers is the fear. She was scared that if she closed her eyes for longer than a second, he'd be gone.
That's all that she remembers.
Behind her, Yoongi holds Onyx close to his chest as he starts to become drowsy. The infant stares at his father's watch, smacking it as he lays on his arm. The way that Yoongi is holding him allows him lay with his head on the man's wrist.
He continues to suck on his pacifier as Yoongi paces.
He looks down at him, wondering what he's trying to do. Onyx just lays on his wrist, in his own little world as he holds onto his dad.
Yoongi listens to the words of Yeonjun, trying to keep his temper at bay. His heart is beating a little faster in his chest and he's withholding the glare that he wants to give.
Jahlil deserves nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Jahlil swallows thickly as Yeonjun stares at him. His eyes are shifty, wanting to look away from him.
And he does. He looks away and to the floor as everyone looks at him.
"I don't know what you want me to say. You're bringing up stuff that doesn't matter. I just want to see my son."
"The pre-term birth of your son doesn't matter? His fight for his life doesn't matter? If you're going to see and be with your son, then you should know everything about him, right?"
"What does this change in the matter of custody? That's what we're here for, right? You tryna tell me how to take care of my kid? You think I'm gonna take the advice of the woman that clearly put my son in danger while she was pregnant? I don't need her, of all people, to tell me how to raise my kid."
"All she did on the stand today, was state her concern about how you would handle Onyx's autism. Are you testifying that you are unwilling to provide the set of conditions and accommodations that Onyx needs for his every day quality of life?"
"Objection." Jahlil's lawyer calls. "Calls for speculation."
"Sustained. Mr. Choi, please keep it direct."
"How do you expect to be an adequate coparent if you don't plan to effectively communicate with Miss Taylor?"
"I can learn on my own the way that she did."
"Onyx is seven months old with a developmental disorder." Yeonjun states. "Do you really think providing your son with proper accommodations for that is a situation to go tit for tat in?"
Jahlil opens his mouth but has nothing to say.
"Objection." His lawyer calls.
"Don't worry about it." Yeonjun says as he stares Jahlil in the eyes. "I'm done."
The man on the stand stares back at him, unable to find anything to say. He's thrown off by the way that Yeonjun just came at him. It was from an angle that he didn't think would be taken.
His lawyer told him that it was mentioned in their meeting with the judge but he didn't know how Yeonjun and Harper would play that. His lawyer told him that it was a dead end, it couldn't be used for anything.
Turns out that he was wrong.
Yeonjun Choi can be an on-the-spot thinker. Adapting to change, even within the court room is something that he's never failed at.
The judge looks at the paperwork in the folder, looking over the medical record and the notes made by the doctor.
It's printed clearly that the doctor 'suspects possible abuse due to the placement of placental and uterine damage'.
With that new piece of evidence being openly submitted, Jahlil's lawyer gets a little shifty in his seat. He speaks with Jahlil quietly and his mother whispers back in place of him.
She looks upset as she glances at Harper sitting at the table. Yeonjun sits next to her and she smiles softly at him.
"Nice slide in." She commends.
"Thank you. Just wanted to get everything out on the table."
"Did you tell them about the domestic abuse last week?"
"I did. But I hadn't brought it up in great detail. Just kinda skimmed over it. And you know you can't submit evidence without proof and at the time, I didn't have it. So I just let them think that he was in the clear with that."
"Until today." Harper says.
Yeonjun nods. "Until today."
This with Han's statement should be enough to prove that Jahlil is unfit to take custody of anybody.
And definitely not a neurodivergent infant.
######
When the judge bangs the gavel to signify the end of their session, Yoongi is quick to remove himself and Onyx from the room.
He waits for Harper and Yeonjun in the waiting area while kissing Onyx's head.
"So what happens next week? They just make their decision and it's over with?"
"Essentially, yes. The custody thing will be. But after that, depending on the ruling, you guys could possibly have to come back to court every now and then." Yeonjun explains. "How's the adoption process going?"
"Uh..." Harper sighs as they walk over to Yoongi. "It's going. It's a matter of waiting now. Jahlil hasn't petitioned to be put on the birth certificate so nothing is stopping us as of right now. But I don't know what's going on in his head."
"The way that he was looking at me when Onyx called me 'dada', I don't think he liked that very much. But his mother looked more upset than he did."
"I wouldn't put it past him to petition the courts to be put on. Just because." Harper says. "Just out of spite, it's something that he'd do. And if he does, and it catches up, that could halt your petition."
Yoongi stares at the door, watching as Miss Sullivan wheels her son out.
"Onyx Taylor." Jahlil says. "July 22nd, right?" He narrows his eyes in feigned curiosity. "Seven months old. Just trying to make sure I get all my facts together for when I take him to go meet the family."
"You're not getting my son." Harper sneers at him.
"Our son." Jahlil corrects. "Don't tell me you forgot how he got here, Harper. Though maybe I wouldn't be surprised as fast as you found somebody else to play house with."
He looks Yoongi up and down.
"He doesn't even know who you are."
Jahlil's jaw clenches as he glares at her.
"We should get him home so he can sleep in peace. He'll be hungry when he wakes up." Yoongi says.
"Okay." Harper looks at him with a small smile. "I saw Han walk out a second ago if you want to catch him before he leaves."
"Yeah, actually. I do."
Harper holds Yoongi's hand as they walk away from Jahlil and his mother.
"I told you she isn't any good, Jahlil. Just using that man to rub in your face. This is spiteful. It's petty."
"I don't even care about him. I'm not worried about none of that. They got this perfect lil set up with him. And then they had that man come and say that I'm a danger to myself. 'In his medical opinion'. Ma, they not gonna give me that baby."
"No." Miss Sullivan states. "They might not. But the state always tries to keep both parents in the child's life."
Jahlil watches as Harper and Yoongi wait for the elevator. He watches as Yoongi holds his son. The way he smiles at the infant. The way that Onyx looks so comfortable and content in his arms.
He recalls the way that Onyx called him 'dada'. He remembers the way that Onyx seemed to cry for Yoongi to soothe him.
He was so comfortable and familiar with the man. It made Jahlil feel some type of way to witness. It pissed him off the way Harper thinks that she can do whatever she wants with his son.
"They're going to give you something, sweetheart." Miss Sullivan says.
"Trust me on that."
######
11:53 P.M.
Yoongi lies wide awake, staring at the ceiling as his thoughts wander.
They plague him, keeping him awake, not allowing him to get the rest that he so desperately needs.
He's always been a pretty square guy. Always on the straight and narrow. Never once has he ever intentionally done anything that'd put him on the books. Never once has he ever even accidentally done it.
Yoongi has always been so mindful of it, so fearful that that he always made to think twice and research everything. He never wants to be blindsided by anything.
Especially things as serious as the law or government itself.
But this...
This is something that he's willing to take the risk for.
Yoongi looks over to his sleeping girlfriend and son as they lie in the bed next to him. Today was a long day for all of them but the seven month old was having an exceptionally clingy day.
So much so, that he's refused to sleep in his crib. Instead, he clung to his mother's chest and dozed off in between his parents. Harper followed him shortly after and Yoongi hasn't been sleep since.
He leans over and kisses Onyx's head and Harper's shoulder before getting out of bed. He grabs his phone from the charger and walks into the hallway.
Scrolling through his contacts, he taps Luca's name and steps into the kitchen. He gets a cup from the cupboard as the phone rings.
As he gets water from the fridge dispenser, Luca picks up sounding a little groggy.
"Hello?"
"Hey. I'm sorry for the late call."
"No, no, it's okay. What's going on? Is everything alright?"
"Uh.. kind of. I, uh... kinda think that I need a favor." Yoongi says as stares into the cup of water.
Luca looks at his wife as he sits up in bed. He slips from the bed and creeps into the hallway, closing the door behind him.
"What happened?"
"I don't know. I could just be getting myself worked up with everything that's going on. I'm just-." Yoongi sighs and pushes his hair from his forehead.
The second that he realizes what he's doing, he starts to second guess himself.
"Talk to me, Yoongi. What's going on?"
"I put in the paperwork for Onyx's adoption a few days ago. Like two. This could take months to process, though. And with everything going on with Jahlil, I'm just worried about the timeline of everything. If he submits anything-."
"It could throw all of it off." Luca finishes.
Yoongi grips at the roots of his hair. "I don't know what to do. I don't know if anything can be done. I'm just-. I'm scared, Luca. It's a safety concern that he does not get any custody of Onyx whatsoever. And I don't want Harper to have to worry about him or any of this. I promised her that everything would be fine and I can't break my promise."
"And you won't." Luca says. "Let me handle it."
######
6:13 A.M.
Harper is the first person in the home to wake up the following morning. She slides out of bed to take a shower before she does anything else.
While she's in there, she shaves her legs and uses the sugar scrub on her body before getting out of the tub. She brushes her teeth and washes her face after, completing her morning hygiene routine.
Harper takes her antibiotic, grimaces at the taste and starts making breakfast.
She pops waffles into the toaster for herself, wanting something sweet. She douses them in syrup and eats as she makes Yoongi's breakfast bowl.
For him, she puts cut up sausage, scrambled eggs, bacon pieces and hash browns in a pan to mix the cooked ingredients together. She mixes it all up and finishes cooking just in time.
As he's walking out of the bathroom from doing his own morning routine, he smells the food. The scent fills his nose and he inhales deeply.
"Good morning, baby." Harper greets him with a smile.
"Good morning." He wraps his arms around her waist, back hugging her.
Yoongi kisses her shoulder, then her neck then her jaw. Harper giggles as she tilts her head.
"Happy Birthday."
"Thank you. I almost forgot."
"Oh, don't say that. We've got such a good day planned ahead for us."
Yoongi groans as he tilts his head back. "I don't want to go to work."
"I know." Harper says as she grabs a bowl from the cupboard. She transfers the food from the pan to the bowl.
"But just think of it like this. The faster you get work over with, the quicker that we can come home and celebrate."
"I just want to sleep."
"You can sleep all you want when you come home later. Today, you've got meetings to run."
Harper turns around with his food in her hand. He looks down at it and grins.
"Go sit down so you can eat. Where's Onyx?"
"In the bed sleeping. I made it so none of the blankets are loose. He's on his back and Jewel's with him." Yoongi takes a seat and Harper puts his food in front of him.
His mouth waters at the sight until he realizes Harper isn't eating the same thing.
"What are eating?"
"Waffles. I just want some syrup, honestly, but I couldn't just eat that so. And we don't have anything sweet but apple juice so I'm really trying to cope here."
Yoongi looks at her as she drags a waffle piece across her plate. She gathers as much syrup on it as possible before putting it in her mouth.
One thing that he's noticed about Harper is that she isn't too big on sugar, if at all. She doesn't have a sweet tooth at all. She smacks on Ritz crackers, graham crackers and things like that. Kind of plain foods.
Also... she hasn't got her period since he's been in her apartment. Not that he knows of anyway. It's been about...
"When's the last time you got your period?"
"Uuhm..." Harper puts a waffle into her mouth and chews as she stares at him. Her eyebrows furrow and she tilts her head.
"Oh..." she says quietly. She looks down into the bowl and licks her lips. She sets it onto the counter and looks up at him.
"It's late?" Yoongi asks.
That much is obvious but he doesn't know her cycle. Maybe this is her normal.
"Yeah." Harper replies. "But it's just the stress, I swear." She says quickly.
Yoongi blinks at her as his mouth opens. She sees the look on his face and looks away from him.
"I'm not... worried about anything like that." He says. "We use protection."
"No, I know. I just didn't want you to think I was... you know."
There's a pause of silence as Yoongi stares into his bowl of food. Harper suddenly no longer has an appetite. She clears her plate into the trash and clears her throat.
"I'm gonna go get Onyx ready for the day." She quickly retreats down the hall.
Yoongi knows that she's deflecting. She's avoiding the conversation and the unfortunate elephant in the room.
"Harper." He calls her name and she stops walking. She stares ahead at the wall, not wanting to turn around.
"Yes?"
Yoongi's mind wanders and drifts, taking back alleys and side roads. It knots itself up in such a confusing way that he fears he might get a migraine from it all.
It makes him think deep, it makes him overthink.
Pregnancy has never been a conversation between the two of them, except when discussing her first and only with Onyx. But that's past tense.
Yoongi feels as if it's a conversation that they should have, speaking in future tense. He just doesn't know how to bring it up. He doesn't know when is too soon, what might be triggering. He doesn't know how to handle the conversation himself, let alone bring it up to someone who would be sensitive to it.
Because what were to happen if pregnancy was a possibility for them?
"If you were.... would you tell me?" He asks, cautiously.
His heart beats erratically in his chest and his ears feel like they're about to start ringing.
The pause in between the end of his question and the beginning of her response is far too long. The tension in the room is far too thick for them to breathe freely in.
It's suffocating.
"We'd have options, Harper."
Harper swallows thickly as she thinks about his question.
"I don't know." She replies honestly.
At this very moment in time, it would complicate things for them. Unbelievably so. They've got enough going on, there's enough life transitions happening that an unplanned pregnancy would simply be too much.
She continues to walk to the bedroom and Yoongi's eyebrows twitch. There's a sinking feeling in his stomach. A creeping, crawling sensation of uncertainty fills him.
He knows that Harper isn't pregnant. But the way that she responded is giving him anxiety. He doesn't know what to say to her. He doesn't know how to undo whatever he just did by asking such a question.
In the bedroom, Harper zones out as she picks Onyx up. She coaxes him awake and he smiles as he opens his eyes. He curls himself into her the way that he did when he was born.
He was so small, so precious. Untouched by toxic hands, unseen by judging eyes. He clung to her so much, even more than he does now. She can't believe that this is the same baby. She can't believe that it's the same one from just three months ago.
Time really does fly. Whether you're expecting it to or not. Whether you're looking forward to it or not.
Harper's days are long but the months are flying by. The years are flying by. Such an odd concept. How is that even possible?
As Harper looks her son in the eyes, warmth blooms in her chest. She can't imagine a life without him. She can't think of what life would be like if he wasn't here.
She could have never gone through with any 'other options'. The way that she felt seeing his tiny body on the ultrasound for the first time. The way her heart sped from hearing his beat so strongly.
Harper could have never given him up. She could never go through with it at any point in time. You couldn't have paid her to do such a thing. It just isn't in her.
So how could Yoongi so easily let the words fall from his mouth about having 'options'?
Now definitely wouldn't be a good time for her to be pregnant. Harper doesn't know what she would do. She can't even fathom the idea of herself being pregnant right now. She can't be. She doesn't want to be.
And yet, it still affected her to hear Yoongi speak about this phantom baby like that.
With a heavy sigh, Harper quietly takes Onyx to the nursery. She changes his diaper and gets him dressed before walking back to the kitchen.
Yoongi has finished his food and is putting the dishes into the dishwasher. He hears Harper's footsteps and steps out of the way for her to make Onyx's bottle. He glances at her as he turns the sink off.
"I have to leave soon for my doctor's appointment. So we can't ride together to work today."
"I know. It's okay." Harper pours the filtered water into Onyx's bottle as he scrambled to sit up in her arms. He pulls on her shirt as he does so, trying to look around.
"Onyx, be careful. I don't want you to fall." Harper says as she looks down at him.
"Mamaaa."
"Yeah, I'm here. You wanna sit up? Are you okay?" She sets the bottle and formula spoon on the counter.
"Here, I'll hold him while you make him a bottle." Yoongi holds his arms out for him.
Onyx lunges for his father and stares him in the face when he finally gets into his arms.
"Good morning, Bear. How you feeling today?"
Onyx starts with a hum before he starts babbling off to him. Yoongi nods and hums in response as he listens.
"Sounds like you're having a great morning then, aren't you?"
Harper finishes making Onyx's bottle before holding her arms out for him.
"I can feed him." Yoongi says.
"I don't want you to be late for your appointment. It's already almost eight."
"It's just an annual physical. It's not a big deal."
"Okay." Harper hands him the bottle and walks down the hall.
She grabs her hair products and starts getting hair together before she has to leave for work. As she stares at herself in the mirror, she zones out again.
Her mind feels like it's in an entirely different place as she starts to disassociate. Everything feels different, it's sound muffled. Truly, this feels out of body.
And she's becoming too far gone to stop it.
Fifteen minutes later, Harper is finished with her hair and Yoongi is coming in give a freshly fed Onyx to her.
"Should I take him over to my parents right now before I go?" He asks.
"No, I got him." She replies softly.
"Okay... You're coming up to my office for lunch, right? I'm going to schedule a delivery."
"Yeah."
Yoongi sits Onyx on the floor and he starts crawling around the room. He's always exploring different place in the apartment as if he's never seen them before.
"Well, I gotta go or I'm gonna be late." He puts his arm around her waist and she looks up at him.
"I love you." Harper says as she puts her palms flat on his back.
"I love you, too." He kisses her lips tenderly and she closes her eyes at the gentleness.
Yoongi pulls her closer and holds onto her waist as he kisses her. Harper's chest fills with warmth and his blooms dramatically.
They pull away reluctantly and Yoongi grabs his phone and keys from the nightstand. Wordlessly, he walks from the bedroom.
Harper stands there as she listens to the sound of his retreating footsteps. She hears him put on his coat, slip his shoes on and exit out of the door.
When it clicks closed, her chest begins to feel heavy.
"Okay, Onyx. Let's... let's get you over to Grandma and Grandpa's. Mommy's gotta get to work."
She picks her son up and kisses his cheeks several times. He giggles as she does so with a wide grin on his face.
"Oh, I love you so much, sweet boy."
She gathers what he'll need and puts her stuff on before heading out the door. She drops Onyx off to his grandparents and hastily makes her way to work.
She'll be clocking in early but that's okay.
Anything to distract her from her current thoughts. Anything to keep her grounded enough to focus.
It's hard, though, to maintain that sense of grounding as she's disassociating throughout the day.
It's hard to stay grounded when you suddenly feel so uprooted.
A|N
#If you've read enough to learn my writing style, then you know what time it is :)