Tartt

Part 11

SORRY IVE BEEN M.I.A
heres a little gift for you guys!
i hope i haven't lost my writing skills 😭

Thursday rolled around and Jamie was already stressed. Isabelle had been on edge since Monday. She had hardly said a word to anyone, only hugging him a little tighter now and again as if he was going to disappear. He knew it was hard for her, but he didn't think she understood how hard he was prepared to fight for her.
Jamie helped Isabelle pick out an outfit that made her feel happy and as comfortable as possible. She ended up picking some jeans and her Richmond t-shirt. Will had had it made with her name on the back, she loved it and wore it a lot. She wore a zip up Richmond hoodie and her parka coat over the top. Jamie could have made her dress smart, but he knew it would help her stay calm if she felt comfortable.

They got to the courthouse about 40 minutes early, Jamie filled out a ton of paperwork as Isabelle sat playing games on her phone, trying desperately to keep her mind off what could happen in the next hour. After a while, she lost interest in her game and resulted in playing with her shoelaces and picking at the hem on her jeans.
She checked the time. It was getting closer and closer and she was trying hard to keep it together.
She was sat in the lobby area on a chair, Jamie was up at the front desk, probably bombarding the desk lady with questions.
Isabelle heard voices and a bit of a commotion coming from outside. Then she heard a couple of gasps and whispers from other people waiting in the lobby. She looked up and for the first time in days she smiled.

AFC Richmond had pulled up to the courthouse in the team coach, along with Ted, Beard, Keeley and Roy. Roy had given strict instructions on how the team were to dress, act and behave in court. This included the rule of "no trainers", which caused much controversy among the team, but in the end they all agreed and complied- for Isabelle.
As they filtered off the coach, Roy did shoe-checks and made Isaac take his sunglasses off.
They entered the courthouse and Colin immediately spotted Isabelle, who looked up and smiled on noticing the whole team had shown up for her.
He walked over to her and sat down next to her, pilling her into a side-hug.
"Hey kiddo. How are you feeling?", Colin asked.
Isabelle shrugged, "I don't know."
"I think you do.", he paused, "But look. Everyone's here. For you, Iz."
She looked at the team stood awkwardly in the lobby. She chuckled at the look of them, they looked so out of place in such a formal setting.
A couple of them took notice of her and gave her a wave. She smiled and waved back.
"Thank you.", Isabelle whispered to Colin, hugging him tight.

After a brief catchup with Roy and Keeley and a pep talk with Jamie and Ted, they entered the courtroom. Jamie briefly introduced Isabelle to his lawyer, Daniel, who he had been working with constantly for the last few days. She greeted him and thanked him.
As they walked in, Isabelle immediately spotted her Dad. Sat on the front row on the left side of the court. He was sat with a man she didn't recognise, his lawyer. Her Dad looked back and looked at her, Isabelle quickly averted her gaze and kept her eyes on her seat as she walked up to the front with Jamie.
The Richmond gang had taken their seats on the right side of the court, and it began.
Jamie held Isabelle's hand tightly the whole time. The judge spoke for a while, Isabelle had zoned out and was yet again playing with her shoelaces as a number of people talked through the matter. She zoned back in when she heard her name mentioned. Jamie signalled for Isabelle to listen, so she listened closely.
"We are here today to discuss the matter on who, between James Tartt Sr, Isabelle's father, and Jamie Tartt, Isabelle's brother, will get custody over Isabelle Tartt.", the judge said.
Jamie's lawyer stood up and began to speak.
Isabelle couldn't help but zone out again, she couldn't listen, being so stressed about the possible outcome.
"I will now ask Jamie Tartt to make a statement on his own behalf."
Jamie nodded and squeezed Isabelle's hand before letting it go and standing up.
"Please state your name and relationship to the case to the court.", the judge said.
"Jamie Tartt, brother of Isabelle Tartt.", he said and the judge gestured for him to proceed.
"I was given temporary custody of Isabelle some time ago now.", he paused and looked back at Ted, who nodded encouragingly, "I hadn't seen her since she was four. I'd missed her very much and.. as soon as she came back into my life, I knew I wanted her to stay. She's an angel and she's changed my life. Made me a better man, y'know?"
Isabelle smiled up at Jamie.
Jamie continued, praising Isabelle and their relationship to his highest regards, detailing the progress she had made living with him.
Drifting back to the possibility that she would have to go back to her Dad, Isabelle's fear started to creep in yet again. She didn't want to leave. She was happy.
Once Jamie had come to the end of his words, the judge thanked him and gestured for him to take a seat.
"I will now ask Isabelle to exit the court. As a minor, she is no longer required to be present.", the judge said.
Isabelle knew this was coming, so she squeezed Jamie's hand one last time and shimmied out of the aisle.
Jamie had organised for Will to keep her company. The court had arranged a chaperone, but Jamie knew that Iz needed someone familiar.

Will and Isabelle had perched on a bench back in the lobby. They played multiplayer games on Will's phone and Will chatted away about random things in an attempt to distract her.
About an hour later, the doors of the courtroom opened and people began to slowly filter out.
A lady from the court came and gently asked Isabelle if she could follow her to a separate room, supposedly to fill in some information or something of the sorts.
Isabelle followed and the lady bought her to a little room in the courthouse. The lady stood and spoke very professionally, there was nothing warm or friendly about her.
Isabelle quickly began to feel uneasy. She had a sick feeling in her stomach. The lady tried to converse with Isabelle, but she wasn't having any of it.
Something was wrong.