My Father Mocked Me for Coming to Court Without a Lawyer, But the Judge Opened My File and the Whole Room Went Silent

Still, focused, no performance in it.

“And you liked that?” he asked finally.

“Yes.”

“Even the chaos?”

“Especially the chaos sometimes,” I said. “Because chaos is honest. It tells you immediately what matters and what doesn’t.”

He looked out over the field.

“I always thought you enlisted because you wanted to prove something.”

I considered that.

“Maybe I continue reading …