Seeds of Jealousy

Justin



It’s been a month since I accepted Brian’s proposal. I am living back at the loft once more with Brian, Brianna and the twins.



I sit here looking at the ring on my finger, smiling. I look up to see Brianna singing to the twins. She asked to stay with us because she didn’t want to live with her mom who is once again living in the loft below us.



Dee is still refusing to get help, claiming that she’ll just stop all the shit, but no one trusts her.



Especially me.



I smile as I watch Brianna playing with the twins, well, as close to playing as you can get with infants. She’s singing and playing with their toes.



After a few minutes, she comes to sit next to me. “They are so cute.”



“They’re lucky to have such a great big sister,” I say, patting her on the shoulder.



“They’re lucky to have a great family,” she corrects me with a smile.



“So are we,” I tell her.



She hugs me. “I love you, Justin.”



“Love you, too, sweetheart.”



We both look up from the hug to see Brian standing there.



“I love this picture,” he says, coming to sit between us and pulling us into his arms.



“Brian,” I say with a laugh.



“What, Sunshine? I’m happy to see you two so close. I love you all so much,” he says, smiling and placing a kiss on each of our foreheads.



At that moment, the twins make it known that they want some attention and Brian and I each pick up one of them.



“So, have you seen your mother today?” Brian asks Brianna.



“No. I don’t want to see her.”



“Brianna, she loves you,” I try to tell her.



“No, she doesn’t, or she wouldn’t have hurt the people I love the most.” She hands us both bottles and walks into her room.



“She’s still convinced that the court is going to make her live with her mom,” I tell him.



“Well, Mel said there shouldn’t be a problem with us winning.” Brian looks down at Adian.



“I hope so.”



“Justin, I know how you feel about her, and trust me I feel the same way. We won’t let her get them. Mel is the best. She will do everything she can to make sure we get them.” He puts the baby back down and pulls me close. “I love our family, Justin, and I will fight tooth and nail for it.”



“I know, me too,” I whisper.



“Me too.”



We look to see Brianna standing by the kitchen.



The Court Room



Brian



We all stand as the judge comes into the court room, taking her seat and announcing we can sit down as well.



“I understand this is a hearing for custody of three children. One Brianna Kinney who is the biological daughter of Brian Kinney. Then we have twins, Justine and Aidan, who are the biological children of Justin Taylor. Is this correct?” She looks to the lawyers.



“Yes ma’am,” they both say in unison.



“Okay, let’s start with opening statements.” She looks at Mel who stands up.



“Thank you, your honor. I am here today to prove that my clients, Mr. Kinney and Mr. Taylor should be given full custody of their children they share with Denise Jones. She has proven time and time again that she is unstable. She showed up with Mr. Kinney’s daughter ten years after her birth. From there, she proceeded in an attempt to blackmail Mr. Taylor so that he’d leave his partner. When that plan failed, she resorted to stealing Mr. Taylor’s sperm, claiming she thought it belonged to Mr. Kinney. She forged documents in Mr. Kinney’s name and had the sperm injected. When she found out the twins were, in actuality, Mr. Taylor’s, she took off with all three kids in the middle of the night. There was an accident in which her car was hit by a bus and she was unconscious for a short time. When she woke up, she claimed to believe herself to be married to Mr. Kinney and went out of her way to perpetuate the deceit until it was discovered that she’d been lying about her memory loss. Now, Your Honor, I don’t think she is capable of looking after these children until she seeks the help she so obviously needs. My clients have agreed to let her see her kids, as long as she gets professional help for her obsession so that the kids can be safe with her. We are hereby seeking custody of the three minor children so they can thrive in a stable loving home. Thank you.” She sits back down, smiling at us.



“Thank you Ms. Marcus,” the judge says before turning to look at Dee’s lawyer. “Mr. Samuels.”



“Thank you, Your Honor. I am here today to defend a loving mother. She admits to what she has done and admits it was wrong. She is not denying it. What she is denying is that she doesn’t love her kids. Her kids are the most important people in her life. She lives for them. She wants to be their mother and she is a great, loving mother and would do anything for her kids. Even go as far as trying to get her father to be in her life. Your Honor, there are things in Mr. Kinney and Mr. Taylor’s past that concern my client. They have been known to frequent gay clubs, have sex in public places and do drugs. Mr. Kinney has also been diagnosed with cancer in the past, a disease which could come back at any time and leave these children without a primary caregiver. We ask, your Honor, to please grant Ms. Jones custody of her kids.” He sits down as the judge looks back to Mel.



“I have read the documents and I wish to hear from the parents. I have also spoken to Brianna in my chambers. Mr. Kinney, is there anything you’d like to add to what’s been said here?” she asks.



I stand up. “Just that I love my kids and I love my partner.” I turn to smile at Justin. “We’re getting married.” Justin smiles back and I return my attention to the judge. “There is nothing more important to me than the safety of my partner and our children. We want Dee to get the help she needs so we can all start to heal from this. Right now, I don’t feel like I can trust her with the kids. Your Honor, she kidnapped our kids, lied and blackmailed us. She is unstable and I don’t want the kids around that.” I sit down as she nods her head at Justin, who stands.



“I agree with everything my partner said. We’re not trying to keep the children away from their mother. As angry as Brianna is right now, she will eventually forgive her mom and I want them to have a chance to rebuild their relationship. However, I don’t believe Dee to be stable enough right now to handle herself let alone three children. Please your honor, I beg you, don’t put them through that.” He sits down as I touch his arm, smiling at him.



“Ms. Jones. What do you have to say?”



Dee stands up, looking at us for a moment before facing the judge. “Your Honor. I know what I did was uncalled for and there is no excuse for my behavior. I did it out of impulse and love for Brian. I know it was wrong and I am very sorry for it. My reason for living is my kids. If you take them from me, I have nothing. Please your honor, as a mother, I beg you, don’t take my kids away.” She sits down wiping a tear.



“We will break for fifteen minutes so that I may look over these documents once more and take into consideration everything I’ve heard from the parties in this case. This court is in recess.” She stands up as we do, walking through the doors to her chambers.



“Well, what do you think?” I ask Mel.



“It can go either way.”



I feel Justin lean against me.



“It’ll be alright, Sunshine. If we lose, we will appeal.”



He nods and looks over at Dee who is sitting with a smug smile on her face. She looks so sure she has this won.



“Dad.”



I look up to see Brianna walking over. “Well how did it go?” she asks.



“We have to wait until the judge calls us back in,” Justin tells her.



“I want to be in there.” She looks at Mel who smiles.



“I’ll ask once we get back in.”



Brianna just nods her head.



About fifteen minutes later the bailiff announces that the judge has reached a decision.



We enter the room and stand until the judge is seated before taking out own seats.



“Your Honor, Brianna Kinney was hoping to sit in on the decision since it has to deal with her future,” Mel tells her.



“That’s fine; Bailiff please bring Miss Kinney in.”



Brianna is ushered into the court room and takes a seat directly behind us, reaching out to take each of our hands.



“I have reached a decision. After reading the documents and hearing the pleas of all those involved, I have come to understand the concern for these three children. I understand that you all love these kids.”



She looks at Brianna and then at us.



“In the case of Brianna Kinney, after speaking with her, I am convinced she loves her mother, but doesn’t trust nor want to be with her. She has admitted she would run away if I placed her with her mother. I normally like kids to be with their mother, but in this case there is more to it.”



She looks pointedly at Dee.



“Ms. Jones. You have admitted your mistakes, which is a great start. However, now you have to do something about them. You haven’t sought out professional treatment because you don’t believe you need it, but trust me when I say I have seen some who haven’t gotten it and are now in prison for not letting things go. I am ordering you to get help if you want to have anything to do with your children. These beautiful children need stable homes and I don’t feel you can provide that at the present time. They are what is important here, not your love, nor their father’s love, but what is best for their safety and that is why I am granting custody of Brianna, Justine and Aidan to their fathers, Mr. Kinney and Mr. Taylor. Ms. Jones, if you want to have any future with your children, you will immediately check yourself into a clinic where you can receive the treatment you so obviously need.” She looks down at her notes, and then back up to Dee. “I’m going to schedule a review of this case in six months and then again six months after that. At the end of that time, if things are better, we will look into the possibility of joint custody, but as of right now, full custody of these children hereby goes to their fathers. Ms. Jones, do you understand what I am saying?”



Dee nods her head. “Yes, your honor,” she quietly whispers.



“Good, then this court is dismissed.” We all stand and Brianna runs across the room to hug the judge before she can make it into her chambers. She’s smiling and thanking her for her decision.



I hold my breath, thinking she might hold us all in contempt or something for that one, but the judge just smiles and walks into her chambers.



We turn to see a smiling Mel and I pull her into a hug. “Thanks, Mel. I owe you.”



“No you don’t; just be good to them,” she says. Her smile softens slightly. “I know you will.”



“Thanks, Mel,” Justin adds as he and Brianna hug her as well.



Dee is standing off to the side, just looking at us wistfully. We all turn to face her and she drops her gaze to the floor briefly. “Um, I will get the help, I promise.” She looks at Brianna with tears in her eyes before turning and walking away. She knows she has no choice now if she ever wants to be a real mother to her kids.



We head out to celebrate. Ok, it’s pizza and a movie at home, but at least we are all together.



Sitting on the couch I look at my family and can’t help but smile. Knowing that the peaceful moment will be shattered once the gang gets here, I pull Justin into my arms. “This is all I ever truly wanted. Thank you for showing me. I love you.” I kiss his neck.



“You’re welcome,” he says with one of his trademark smiles. “I love you, too.” He turns and kisses me, knowing there are a lot more where this one came from.



“Our family,” we whisper together, knowing our wedding is right around the corner.