Never Judge

When the president's office announced that his daughter, ace lawyer Katerina Sebastian, was going to issue a statement on her latest social media post in an hour at Nationalia the members of the media who were not yet at the country club quickly rushed over.

They were not only eager to hear from Katerina Sebatian, but also they wanted to catch a glimpse of the ultra exclusive golf and country club. According to rumor Nationalia only allowed one hundred members at a time, and these one hundred members were thoroughly screened. Being rich was not enough to own a share at Nationalia, you had to be the right kind of rich. Many new rich families tried their best to be invited in, but the management of Nationalia was adamant about keeping it's centuries old rules and traditions.

By the time Cedric drove up to the gates of Nationalia the members of the media were already waiting to be let in. Emilio Reyes had given strict instructions not to let anyone in until Cedric and Adrianna arrived. In order to keep up his ordinary facade Cedric switched cars from his favorite Rolls Royce Ghost to the ordinary looking white sedan he used when they went out as a family. Close by Leon and his men secured the area to ensure their employer's safety.

"Mommy!" Little Emilio called out as he saw his mother alight from the familiar car. 

Cedric got out from the driver's side and handed the keys of his car to his father's driver who parked it for him.

"Daddy!" Little Emilio said when he realized his dad was there too.

"Emilio, baby, did you have fun today?" Adrianna asked as she sat to look her son in the eyes.

"Yes. Grandpa let me play putt putt." Emilio said in an extremely excited tone.

"I let him play on the putting green. It seems like I'll have a golfing buddy when he grows older." Emilio Reyes III said with a laugh. "My son does not enjoy the sport as much as I do."

"I would accompany you if you asked dad." Cedric said with a smile. His dad was right, he liked golf but he didn't enjoy it as much.

"Let's head in. The press will be allowed to enter soon." Katerina said as she led the group to a private room that had been reserved for them.

Inside, Cedric was not surprised to see Eric comfortably seated.

"Took you long enough." Eric teased. "Ram updated me that he settled things on his end."

"Good, thanks." Cedric said with a smile.

Cedric and Katerina quickly went over what she was going to say at the press conference. He wanted to make sure that they would not be caught off guard by any of the questions.

"Nicole, do you mind if Tristan and Emilio made an appearance?" Cedric asked.

"Of course not." Nicole said with a gentle smile. "Tristan will be exposed to the public sooner or later, so I don't mind.

"Thank you." Cedric said with a nod.

"I think we will need a distraction after this." James Abad said as he considered the situation.

"Ram mentioned that too, but what could be big enough to make people drop this?" Cedric asked.

"Ayanna and Ray." Priscila Reyes suddenly said. "Ayanna and Ray will have their official ceremony soon. I'm sure Ram could find a way to hype things up." Priscilla suggested.

"Yes!" Eric said as he nodded in agreement. "If you start talking about how lavish it's going to be people will quickly turn their attention to that."

"Our only problem is that we don't know if Ayanna will agree. I know she wanted to make the announcement as close to the wedding date as possible." Priscilla Reyes said as she thought about her daughter. "I'll talk to her later, but for now that's a good plan."

"It's time." Katerina's assistant said as he entered the private room.

"Thanks, we'll be out in a bit." Katerina said as she did some last minute checks on herself.

When Katerina walked out to meet the members of the press, she was surprised at the number of people that had shown up. It seemed like she had underestimated the reach of her post on her social media account. 

The press and paparazzis quickly became silent when they noticed an extremely elegant Katerina approach the podium. Katerina was no stranger to making statements like these, she often handled many high profile cases and exuded confidence, but this time she had to seem humble and apologetic, something that was against her nature. She was a fighter, an alpha female, she usually needed to show the world that she could do things they expected her to fail at.

Katerina looked at the members of the press with a soft expression, the photographers quickly snapped photos of the usual strong and stern woman. 

"Thank you all for coming." Katerina said. "I understand that everyone is curious about a photo I posted earlier today."

Katerina paused to hear the clicking of cameras. 

"Before anything I would like to clarify some rumors, first the child is not mine, he is not my brother's either. As of the moment my father, the president, does not have any grandchildren. Secondly, the child in the photo is not an illegitimate child, he is the son of two people that love each other." Katerina said, quickly dispelling the rumors. "Now on the child's identity, I would like to introduce the two of them to you." Katerina said with an excited smile as she waved at Emilio and Nicole who was carrying Tristan.

Nicole walked forward while holding Emilio's hand. When they got to the side of the podium she let Tristan stand on his own while being supported by Emilio.

"These are Tristan Lim and Emilio Reyes, they are the children of my friends." Katerina announced. "Emilio, can you call over you parents?" Katerina asked the little boy.

"Sure auntie Katerina!" Emilio excitedly said as he waved at the couple obscured by a plant. "Mommy, daddy! Join me and Tristan!"

At their son's urging Cedric and Adrianna came out surprising the members of the media.

"You see, Emilio is Adrianna and Cedric's son. He came over with me for a play date with Tristan, I'm sure you all understand that physical interaction is important for a child. It would be quite sad if little Tristan over here had no friends growing up." Katerina said as she flashed a knowing grin at the press.

The two boys were so adorable that no one had it in their hearts to question what Katerina had just said.