I was woken up によって knocking on the front door of my house. I rolled over in the ベッド and noticed a police officer standing outside. I got out of ベッド and quickly made my way downstairs. I opened up the door and 発言しました "hello officer." He passed me an envelope and 発言しました "I was asked to hand deliver this to あなた sir." I thanked him as I shut the door and walked into the kitchen. I sat at the キッチン 表, テーブル and opened the オレンジ envelope. I slowly pulled out a piece of paper that read "custody trial; location ロンドン England" across the top. I read the fine print and basically what this piece of paper says is that Christian's mother Melissa is challenging me for custody of Christian. I'm not really worried about it though because I know she's just trying to get media attention.

I went back upstairs and got ready for the 日 before deciding to call my lawyer John Branca. I invited him over for an early breakfast and I think he knew something was up. Once he arrived, I let him inside and my personal chef made the two of us Belgian waffles. John asked "who is suing あなた now Michael?" I chuckled and 発言しました "no one John!" He seemed surprised as he asked "well; then why did あなた want me to come over so early in the morning Michael?" I 発言しました "I don't know if Frank told you; but I was a foster parent to a child named Christian and I recently had to give him back to his mother. Christian told me some unsettling things about his mother and her boyfriend. Long story short, I want to get Christian out of there."

John looked at me with a confused expression on his face and asked "why are あなた telling me this?" I 発言しました "because I want custody of Christian and I need your help. I filed a レポート with the child protective services in ロンドン and now Christian's mother Melissa has decided that she wants to bring everything in front of a judge." John responded "I'll do my best to help あなた Michael; but あなた have to remember that I'm an entertainment lawyer. I deal with things like recording contracts and copyright infringement; not custody battles!" I begged "please; give it everything あなた have! Christian is meant to be with me; not with his mother!" John could tell that I was getting a little bit emotional and 発言しました "wow; あなた must really want him back! Are あなた sure you're ready to be a dad Michael? I mean あなた just turned 29 years old." I 発言しました "trust me; I'm ready and if I'm not then I'll do anything I have to make sure that I'm ready!"

John asked "where is that paperwork that あなた were served with Michael?" I passed it to him and he put on his 読書 glasses to give it a closer look. He 発言しました "oh my God Michael!" I started to worry as I asked "what's wrong?" He 発言しました "the court 日付 is in two weeks from today! We have a lot of work to do so we can make sure あなた have もっと見る to offer Christian then his mother can." I asked "isn't it a trial? That's what it says at the 上, ページのトップへ of the paper!" He 発言しました "custody trials are a little bit different from the typical trial. There isn't a jury; it'll just be you, me, Melissa, and Melissa's lawyer." I asked "will Christian be there? How long is the trial going to be?" John 発言しました "Christian will probably be there; but あなた won't be able to see him unless あなた win custody または temporary foster care back. I 発言しました "I don't just want to be his foster parent again! I want to be his legal guardian!" John 発言しました "I know あなた do Michael; but it's not going to be that easy! I don't really know how these types of things work; but I think legally adopting him is going to take あなた a while. In the meantime, I can try to get Melissa's parental rights terminated and then あなた can return to being his foster parent; until あなた can get all the paperwork filled out." I 発言しました "I will prove to that judge that I can handle Christian. I want あなた to get that paperwork to adopt Christian for me and I can start filling it out. That way when we arrive at the courthouse in ロンドン I have all the paperwork I need to adopt Christian!" He 発言しました "okay; I'll go to the courthouse here in LA and see if I can get it for あなた ahead of time. I'll come によって tomorrow morning once I figure out what the 次 step あなた need to take is." I 発言しました "thank あなた so much John!" He responded "no problem Michael!"

***

I got up really early at around 5 AM because I didn't know what time my lawyer John would get here. He knocked on the door and I let him inside as he passed me a gigantic packet of paperwork. I was about to look at it when John 発言しました "come on Michael; あなた can look at that later! We're going to be late!" I put my black fedora hat on my head and shut the door behind me as I asked "where are we going exactly?" He 発言しました "a child CPR course; so あなた can get your certification because it'll look good when you're in front of the judge." I climbed into the car and 発言しました "okay; whatever あなた think is going to get Christian back in my custody is fine with me! I'll do whatever あなた say John!"

We pulled up in front of a local fitness gym where the course was being held and the two of us got out of the car. I asked "there aren't other people here; are there?" John 発言しました "don't worry about it Michael; I had the instructor come in to the gym today because it's normally closed." I breathed a sigh of relief and we walked into a small room with plastic dummies of children that are used to demonstrate CPR techniques.

A few 分 later, a woman walked into the room and shook my hand as she 発言しました "nice to meet you; I'm Caitlin." I 発言しました "I would introduce myself but I think it's pretty obvious who I am!" She chuckled and 発言しました "yeah; I think pretty much everyone in the world knows who あなた are によって now! Alright; let's get started!" She demonstrated how to perform CPR on a child of Christian's age and then she wanted me to try.

After I did, Caitlin 発言しました "wow Michael; I've never had someone catch on to the techniques as fast as あなた have!" I 発言しました "I take these kinds of things very seriously and I just want to be prepared; just in case I would ever need to save a child in this sort of way!" Caitlin 発言しました "that's great Michael! Here's your CPR certification card." She passed me the card and I 発言しました "thank あなた for coming in to work on your 日 off!" She 発言しました "I'm glad that I got to meet あなた today Michael! It didn't even feel like I was working because I was excited to meet you."

John and I walked back out to his car and got back inside. Once he started driving, I asked "what's 次 John?" He 発言しました "I still have to figure out what the 次 step is; but I'm going to take あなた back to Neverland so あなた can start filling out that paperwork." I 発言しました "oh yeah; I forgot all about that!" John asked "by the way Michael, did あなた tell your parents または siblings that あなた decided to pursue adopting this child?" I put my hand over my face and 発言しました "I'm not excited to hear what they have to say about me choosing to become a father at 29 years old. My mother already doesn't like the idea of me not having a girlfriend. I don't think she's going to like the idea of me being a single father either. John responded "please tell them before I come to meet up with あなた again in a couple days!" I 発言しました "okay; I will."

***

I was sitting on the ソファー, ソファ and just beginning to fill out the first page of the paperwork to adopt Christian, when there was a knock on the door. I answered it and it was my mother. She followed me into the living room and I sat back down on the ソファー, ソファ 次 to her as I grabbed the packet of paperwork again. She looked over my shoulder and asked "application for adoption? What kind of animal are あなた adopting now Michael? Not another snake I hope! My gosh; the one あなた have now creeps me out enough as it is!!!" I chuckled as I 発言しました "Muscles; he's harmless mother!" Mother asked again "what animal are あなた adopting?" I looked up from the paperwork and smiled as I 発言しました "well; he's not exactly an animal." She asked "what are あなた trying to say Michael?" I 発言しました "I've decided to adopt Christian!"

She stood up and asked "that little boy あなた were fostering a few weeks ago?" I 発言しました "yes mother" and tried to avoid the conversation によって continuing to fill out the various 質問 on the application. She grabbed the pen out of my hand and 発言しました "Michael; I don't like the idea of this at all!" I asked "what don't あなた like mother?" She responded "you're a 29-year-old, single young man who is the biggest superstar on the planet! Fostering a child is one thing; but permanently adopting him is totally different Michael! Once Christian is yours, you'll have to change your entire life to make time for him! You'll be completely responsible for him Michael; 24 hours a 日 and seven days a week! You're going to have to make 音楽 a secondary priority to Christian and his needs!"

I hugged my mother as I got off of the couch. As I pulled away from the hug, I looked her straight in the eyes and 発言しました "mother; I can make this work! Christian was meant to be with me and I'm doing everything I possibly can to make sure that that can happen. I can handle this!" She smiled and 発言しました "I believe あなた can handle it Michael; I'm just worried for you! From here on out, I'm going to be as supportive as possible! I'll be sure to tell your brothers and sisters about Christian; but あなた know how some of them can be! When is the 日 of the custody trial?" I 発言しました "next Sunday" and she 発言しました "well; make sure あなた call me from ロンドン as soon as あなた find out the verdict!" I smiled and 発言しました "of course I will mother!" She kissed my forehead before walking out the door and saying "good luck on Sunday Michael!!!"

***

I let John inside and asked "what is there left to do?" He 発言しました "I think it would be a good idea if あなた and I went shopping today; so we can decorate one of the bedrooms here. Christian needs his own room and it would be awesome if あなた had pictures to 表示する the judge of what Christian's environment will look like!" I smiled and 発言しました "great; let's go!"

We went to a children's furniture and room decoration store. We got out of the car and walked inside. The first thing we saw when we entered the store was different color ウォール paint. I grabbed at least three cans of each color and John rolled his eyes as he asked "what do we need all that for?" I responded "I'll decide what color I want his room to be when we get back to Neverland!" I walked over to the corner of the store that was dedicated to various Walt ディズニー カートゥーン and started to grab anything to do with Mickey Mouse. I put everything in the カート and John asked "let me guess; Christian likes Mickey Mouse?" I chuckled and 発言しました "that's an understatement!"

We went over to where the twin sized beds were and immediately saw one that I thought was perfect for Christian. One of the store employees walked up to us and asked "is there anything I can help あなた with today?" I 発言しました "yes please; I'd actually like to order this furniture set. I need it before this Sunday." The employee responded "I'm sorry sir; we're currently all sold out of this specific version and we don't get another shipment for three もっと見る weeks!" I took out my wallet and asked "what about the display model? Can I buy this one?" The employee seemed surprised and the manager 発言しました "of course あなた can Mr. Jackson!" I 発言しました "thank you; I'll have my bodyguards come pick it up in a few hours with a moving truck."

After paying for the things that I had bought, John and I went back to Neverland to start setting things up. We went upstairs and I picked the room directly to the left of my bedroom to be Christian's because I know how terrified he is of almost everything. I want to be where I can check on him and he can come get me if he needs me in the middle of the night. John I walked inside and we had come to the mutual agreement that painting his bedroom red was the way to go.

Once we had painted three of the four bedroom walls, I 発言しました "okay; あなた guys can bring the ベッド in!" My bodyguards James and Tim brought the ベッド into the room. I helped John put the mattress in and I 発言しました "I think I can do pretty much everything else myself John; if you'd like to go あなた can." He 発言しました "thanks Michael; I'll meet あなた at your hotel room in ロンドン on Sunday morning!" I 発言しました "okay; see あなた then."

***

I woke up on this beautiful Sunday morning in my hotel room and got ready for the day. I got dressed in my best business suit and tie. As I reached into my suitcase to grab a pair of socks, I accidentally picked up one of the pajama tops that I had bought for Christian two months 前 when I was still fostering him. I looked down at it and smiled as I whispered to myself "please God; let me win this trial!"

There was a knock on my hotel room door and when I opened it my lawyer John was standing there with his ブリーフケース in his hand. I walked out of the room and shut the door behind me as John asked "are あなた ready for this Michael?" I took a deep sigh and 発言しました "I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be!" John 発言しました "just let me do the talking and there shouldn't be any problems; at least I hope not!"

We walked inside the courthouse and waited for the doors to the small conference room to open. While we were waiting, Christian's mother Melissa and who I'm assuming is her boyfriend Adam came out of a nearby room. The two of them came over just in time for the judge to arrive and open the doors for us to begin. I'm just glad that this isn't going to be in a real courtroom because I always feel uncomfortable in those places.

The judge greeted each of us and went through all of the legal stipulations before saying he was ready to hear our cases. He 発言しました "okay; I like to start によって letting Mrs. Carthage plead her case and say anything that she would like to say." Melissa's attorney 発言しました "I believe that Melissa has been wrongfully accused of physically harming her son Christian. I think she is a wonderful mother and I have a feeling that Mr. Jackson is overreacting because he wanted to have the option to adopt Christian from the very beginning!"

I shook my head in disbelief as I halfheartedly smiled at Melissa. John responded "I couldn't disagree with あなた もっと見る if I tried! Michael has 発言しました to me that the only thing that matters to him is that Christian is in a ホーム where he is loved and cared for. He loves Christian and only wants what's best for him. That's why he filed the レポート against Melissa! It has nothing to do with jealousy at all; it never has!"

The judge 発言しました "okay; I'm going to ask both Melissa and Michael a series of questions. After I've asked each of them the questions, I will allow each of them to make a closing statement. Then I will dismiss あなた for at least an 時 while I come to my decision about who should have custody of the child; let's begin. Melissa, who lives in your ホーム with you?" She 発言しました "just me, Christian, and my boyfriend Adam." The judge opened up a folder and looked at a piece of paper before asking her "Adam has been arrested on 56 separate occasions due to domestic violence; is this correct?" Melissa rolled her eyes and sighed as she 発言しました "yes." The judge asked "do あなた know how to prepare balanced meals for Christian to eat?" Melissa chuckled as she 発言しました "frozen chicken fingers and french fries." The judge asked "do あなた make sure that Christian is well taken care of and reminded that he is loved throughout the day?" She 発言しました "I'm usually gone during the 日 working and Adam watches him for me. I don't know what Adam does all day!"

The judge looked at me and asked "Michael, who lives in your ホーム with you?" I 発言しました "just me and my animals." He asked "do あなた know how to make a balanced meal for Christian?" I responded "yes; I'm a pretty good cook." He asked "would あなた make sure that Christian is well taken care of and reminded that he is loved throughout the day?" I 発言しました "of course I will; every single day!!!!!" He 発言しました "okay; I think I have all the information I need to come to a decision. あなた may be dismissed and I will call あなた back in here in about an hour."

All of us sat outside the conference room on two separate benches. John could tell that I was nervous as he put his hand on my shoulder and I tapped my foot on the ground hundreds of times. I would look up every so often from staring at the floor and see that Melissa was giving me dirty looks. I wasn't about to bring myself down to her level; so I just looked in the other direction. Adam didn't have much to say to me and I was glad about that because any guy that hits a woman is not a man in my eyes!

Finally, the judge came out of the conference room and all of us stood up to hear his decision. He 発言しました "I've come to the conclusion that Mr. Jackson is the もっと見る suitable parent; 与えられた the circumstances." I almost wanted to scream with excitement; but I stopped myself because I remembered that we were in a courthouse and I had to act professional. Melissa's boyfriend had to hold her back and drag her out of the courtroom because she started 芝居 crazy!!! The judge 発言しました the words I have been waiting weeks to hear "Michael; Christian is down in that room at the end of the hall if あなた would like to go get your son!!! He doesn't know you're here and he doesn't know that you're going to take him ホーム to stay with あなた forever; so it'll be a surprise!"

I walked down the hall with John behind me and all I could hear were my footsteps. I walked up to the door and slowly turned the doorknob… To be continued :-)