Chapter 8

Justin was awakened by his wife’s terrified screams. She was thrashing on the bed, wrapped in the covers.

“JUNG! JUNG! Wake up! Wake up!” Justin pulled the covers away from her face. Her eyes were wide with terror.

“Hyun! She’s dead! She’s dead! It’s my fault!”

Justin shook her. She was soaked with sweat, her nightgown was soaked through. “Honey, wake up! It was a dream!”

She looked around with panic written on her face. Slowly, she realized where she was. She looked at her husband and burst into tears. “Justin! It was so real! Your father killed our little girl!”

Jung’s parents burst into the room. “What happened?” asked Jung’s mother.

Justin was holding his sobbing wife. “She had a nightmare, that’s all. I’ll handle it. Go back to bed”

“It was a-awful. My little girl was hit by a car. Your dad was driving it. He said ‘if he couldn’t have him, then no one would’” Jung was shivering uncontrollably. Justin had never seen his wife in such a state. Her long hair was soaked.

“Take it easy, Hon. I’m right here, and Hyun is in the next room”

Jung looked into her husband’s eyes. “Your father wants to kill my baby. I know it. I’ve only had a dream like this once before, and it came true. My grandmother was killed in a plane crash”

She threw the covers down and started crying all over again. “Shit! I wet the bed! Justin, I’ll never let him take my baby. I swear, I’ll go back to Korea”

“Come on honey. Let’s not worry about that now. It’s five am. Run a bath and I’ll get the bed cleaned up. Okay?”

“Okay. I guess. Don’t go too far, please?”

“I’ll be right here”

Jung drew a hot bath, and took a shower before she got in. the bath wasn’t for getting clean. It was to relax. She pulled off her wet nightgown and panties and stepped in to the shower. After a quick shower, she stepped in to the hot bath. It was as hot as she could stand, and she could feel the tension easing as she slipped in.

After a few minutes, Justin entered the bathroom. The air was foggy from the hot bath.

“Feeling better, honey?”

Her eyes were closed as she smiled contentedly. “Mmmmmmm, yes. Good suggestion”

Justin chuckled. “Well, you did look a little stressed!”

“It was so real, Justin. I was working in the flower bed, and Hyun was in the sprinkler playing. Her ball went into the street…”

“And it was a dream. You were wrapped up in the covers so tight it’s a wonder you could breathe”

“It was so hot in the dream”

“No wonder! I know you can be a little cold blooded, but you weren’t sweating that much giving birth!”

“I know your father has evil intentions, Justin”

“I know that too, Honey. However, you need to remember that I know his little tricks, and we’ve got a top lawyer on our side, so we’ve got it covered”

“Are you sure? Your father is such a powerful man”

Justin knelt at the tub. “Do you love me?”

“Yes”

“Do you trust me?”

Jung nodded.

“Then hear me. I will not let anything happen to our little girl. Ever. My father will get Hyun over my dead body”

Jung rolled up on to her knees, smiling seductively. Her breasts were above the water. She leaned forward, kissed him deeply and said “I love you, Justin Brooks. And I need you to help me keep this water warm” She didn’t have to ask twice.

The hearing regarding the child abuse charge was held on December 30th. All of the parties were present.

Jung saw Lorraine enter the courtroom and noticed the little wink she got. It made her feel warm inside.

Kate looked angry. “We’ve pulled a competent judge. John Kimball is as old as dirt, but very fair. But he won’t put up with any nonsense in the courtroom. We’ve got our work cut out for us”
Justin was troubled by that. “We could lose?”

“Sure we could lose. But we won’t” she smiled confidently. She knelt down to Hyun. “Are you ready to be brave, my little lawyer?”

“Uh huh”

“Okay, folks, let’s put this Mr. Brooks in his place”

“All rise” commanded the bailiff. “This court is in session, the Honorable John Kimball presiding”

“Be seated”

The judge was a lean, hawkish figure of a man, easily in his late seventies. “I’ve read the complaint, and I have the documents forwarded to me by both sides. Counsel for the elder Brooks family, are you ready to make your case?”

Harry Dumas stood. “We are, Your Honor”

“Ms. Allegri?”

Kate stood. “We are, Your Honor”

“Very well. Before we begin, I have to say that this is a truly unusual case. California law makes it very difficult for grandparents to take a child away from their parents unless there is gross neglect”

Dumas stood. “Your honor, we intend to prove that Kwan Bae Brooks is being subjected to a cruel punishment, known in some circles as ‘petticoat punishment’. He is a boy being forced to wear garments of the opposite sex. We also intend to prove that the boy is being starved emotionally by a distant father and a cold mother”

Justin looked at his father with pure hatred. Jung was weeping. Kate, however was smiling.

“What in the hell are you smiling about, Kate?” asked Justin. “This guy is lying his ass off”

Kate leaned over to Justin and whispered quietly. “Justin, your dad is about to get a lesson in why the family lawyer isn’t always the best choice in every case”

“Ms. Allegri? Do you have something to say” asked the Judge in a somewhat condescending tone.

“As a matter of fact, your honor, I do. Not only are the charges being leveled against my clients patently false and malicious, but I will show that the plaintiff in this case, Mr. James Brooks, has no claim on the child whatsoever, and is to be considered an uninterested third party”

Mr. Brooks looked at his lawyer who shrugged his shoulders.

“Mr. Dumas, I’ll hear your arguments”

“Your Honor, I’d like to have the child examined by a psychologist of our choosing”

Judge Kimball rubbed his temples. “That should have been done by now, Mr. Dumas. Just finishing law school are we?”

Kate stood. “Your honor, if it pleases the court, we are prepared to enter into evidence complete psychological evaluations by Dr. Stacee Abney and a second opinion by Dr. Horatio Fulton, both world renowned experts in the field of gender studies. The child, Hyun Ae Brooks, formerly known as Kwan Bae Brooks is currently under the continued care of Dr. Abney. I have full files documenting the diagnosis of Gender Identity Disorder with the treatments prescribed by Dr. Abney. Hers and Dr. Fulton’s credentials are listed, as are case histories of untreated cases. Hyun Ae is being treated according to recognized protocols”

“Furthermore, we have documents from the representative of the State who investigated the initial accident causing Kwan to be admitted to the hospital and the secondary complaint. This investigator found *no* evidence of abuse, and quite to the contrary, found Mr. and Mrs. Brooks to be exemplary parents who, at the risk of public ridicule, put the health and welfare of their daughter above all else to go with this course of treatment, controversial only in that the age of the patient is five years old”

“Also, your honor, we have learned that Mr. Brooks has disinherited his son, and as he has taken this action, his standing as a grandparent has been nullified”

Brooks looked at his attorney, furious. “How did they get that information?” He whispered.

“Finally, your honor, we are prepared to have the child in question, Hyun Ae Brooks, give testimony before your honor as to her mental status. She is most willing to give this testimony, and has been thoroughly counseled about the risks of such testimony”

Judge Kimball was taking notes as Kate was talking. “Very good, Ms. Allegri. At least one of you came prepared”

Mr. Dumas stood. “Your honor…”

“Sit down, Mr. Dumas” Kate thought it sounded a lot like “dumbass”

“Ms. Allegri, is the young lady ready to testify?”

“Yes, your Honor, she is”

He noticed Hyun sitting next to her mother. “Young lady, would you like to come forward?”

She looked at her mother, who nodded. “Yes sir” she got up and walked to the witness stand. She was wearing a light lavender sleeveless crew neck dress that hit just below the knee with white tights. She was carrying a sheet of her drawing paper. She had been drawing while the proceedings were going on.

The judge smiled. “Have a seat, Miss Brooks”

“Yes sir” she sat in the large chair, which made her look even smaller than she was.

“You know you’re supposed to tell the truth here, right?” The judge was surprisingly gentle.

“Yes sir, Mommy said I was supposed to tell you everything you wanted to know”

“That’s good. Your mommy is right. Now I’m going to ask you a few questions, okay?”

“Okay” she paused, looking at him askance. Then she smiled. “You have happy eyes. I like you”

Judge Kimball smiled. “I like you too, Miss Brooks. Do you like to be called Miss?”

“Yes sir. I am a girl, after all” she giggled. “You’re silly!”

The judge laughed. “That’s what my grandkids say. Is anybody making you do this against your will?”

“I don’t know what that means?”

“Do you want to be a girl?”

“I am a girl. I don’t like being a boy. Boys are yucky!” She wrinkled her nose as she said it.

“But weren’t you born a boy?”

“I guess, but I never felt like one. I never liked playing with them. They’re mean and gross. I like my Barbies! Hannah and I play all the time! Do you like dollies, sir?”

The judge laughed again. The bailiff bowed his head so no one could see him smile.

“I’m a little old for dollies, Miss Brooks, but I see why you like them”

“I drawed you a picture, sir. You can have it if you want” She handed it up to him.

It was a picture of the courtroom with him sitting at the bench. She drew flowers on his bench where there were none.

“Why thank you, Miss Brooks! Why did you put flowers on my bench?”

“Because they’re pretty! You really should have flowers there. They smell good and my Mommy grows them”

“Well young lady, the Court will certainly take that under advisement, and I thank you for your courtroom drawing. You may step down.”

“Okay!” she ran over to her mother and sat down again.

Judge Kimball paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. “Do you have anything further to present, Mr. Dumas?”

“No your Honor”

“Good move”

“Mr. Dumas” the judge intoned. “In the interest of fairness, I’ll allow you to have a psychologist of your choice interview this child, for whatever good it will do. I for one wish my own granddaughters were as feminine as this child”

“The issue of gender identity is, in the opinion of this court an issue not easily defined. Experts all over the globe have debated it for years, and it won’t be decided today. The age of the patient in question is the only issue. Whether or not a child as young as Miss Brooks can truly determine her gender identity is not a question that will be answered in this court today”

“Furthermore, I see no evidence of emotional maladjustment on the part of Miss Brooks. The opinion of many in my profession is that the testimony of a child is unreliable. I, on the other hand, find it refreshing. There is no guile, no intent to mislead here, just pure unadulterated honesty. It is the opinion of this court that for now, it sees no evidence of neglect or abuse, either physical or mental. This child believes she is a girl, and that is good enough for me. I will of course review all documentation provided the court by the defendants. But it is the summary judgment of this court that Hyun Ae Brooks be left in the care of her parents, as there is no evidence of any abuse on their part. Further, it is the opinion of this court that Hyun Ae Brooks be allowed to continue living as a girl, as this appears to be in her best interest”

“This court is adjourned” He slammed the gavel down.

Justin pumped his fist and hugged his wife. They both hugged their daughter and then hugged Kate. “Thank you, Kate for all you’ve done” Jung nodded as well.
“You’re welcome, guys. I’ll be here whenever you need me”

Justin looked over at his father and mother. His father was glaring at him; his mother was looking at him apologetically. Justin decided to try something.

He walked over to his father and offered his hand. “No hard feelings, dad?”

“You think you’ve won, don’t you? This isn’t over. I just fired Dumas, and I’ll be back” his father sneered.

“No, dad, actually I don’t. I said a lot of things in anger that I shouldn’t have. I was wrong about that, and I’d like to apologize”

“You just want back in, don’t you?”

Justin shook his head. “You don’t get it, do you dad? I don’t want your money. I never did. Your problem is that it’s all about the money and the power and getting your way. Well, that doesn’t work with me. My family is my responsibility. Mine alone. You wouldn’t want me nosing in your affairs. I just ask that you don’t mess in mine. Is that so hard?”

Hi father’s look never softened “I know what’s best for you. I always will”

Justin shook his head. He was no longer angry with his father. “Sorry dad, but that responsibility isn’t yours any more. You know, I feel sorry for you. Hyun has done nothing to you, yet you hate her because she doesn’t fit your mold. You aren’t God, dad. You have to deal with people as they are”

He noticed his mother was crying. “Don’t you see what you’re doing to your family? We’re all miserable”

Mr. Brooks felt a tug on his jacket. “Grampa? Are you mad at me?”

He couldn’t look at his granddaughter. “No” was all he said.

“Don’t you love me? I love you”

“No” He turned and walked away.

Hyun looked up at her father. “Why, Daddy? I drawed him a picture”

All Justin could do was shake his head as tears flowed down his cheeks. “I don’t know honey”

Mrs. Brooks bent down and hugged Hyun. “We love you Hyun. I love you. You’re beautiful, and I love your drawing”

“Thank you Grammie. Tell Grampa I’m sorry”

“No sweetie, he’s sorry. I’ll be over to see you this week”

Patricia turned to Justin. “I sorry, Justin. I was wrong. I’m leaving your father. I found out he has been seeing someone behind my back for three years. He betrayed me, He betrayed us all”

“I’m sorry to hear that, Mom. Your welcome at our home anytime, and I’m sorry for the hateful things I said”

“You were right, Justin. She’s a beautiful little girl. How could we have thought otherwise” she smiled slightly. “Besides, I’m not moving anywhere. Jim’s the one moving out, not me. Half of his empire is mine, remember?”

Justin had to smile. His mom would be formidable in court. Jim Brooks would be worth a whole lot less when his mother was done with him.

“Come on, Justin, we need to go. Mom and Dad are buying lunch. Your mother is welcome to come”

Justin looked at his mother, who declined. “You go, son. I’ve got some work to do”

She waved as her son’s family left the courtroom, then at the drawing Hyun had given her. It was flowers in a field, with the word “hope” written in her childish scrawl.

The End