Courtroom Drama

Stanley is intrigued. 

He's recently been following closely a gay drama - not on Netflix, but on the news.

And even though we're miles apart, my sex bunny friend is determined to keep me in the loop.

"Read this!" he typed urgently in our WhatsApp group chat titled "Just the Boys" which Stanley, Carl our dense friend and I set up years ago.

Stanley went on to paste paragraphs of news reports of an ongoing trial that has no doubt been keeping the gay community talking in Singapore.

Given Stanley's extensive network and activities, Stanley is the gay community.

Long story short, a doctor is on trial for drug charges.

But right now, Stanley the size queen isn't allowing this story to be short.

Stanley pastes one lengthy paragraph after another in our group chat.

"Wow, imagine a doctor saying such things!" Stanley wrote, referring to a paragraph where the doctor defended himself, saying that straws and bottles found on him during a drug raid were for origami.

"I think he meant origasm," Stanley remarked as if he were a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race.

As expected, Carl our dense friend was totally lost.

He's confused - which, to be fair, we all were at some point of growing up but Stanley and I eventually moved on while poor Carl is still there marching on the spot.

Carl - who, up till last year thought Batam and Bintan were the same place - is perpetually clueless.

"Is this a Netflix drama?" he asks sincerely.

Expertly ignoring Carl, Stanley continued engaging me in the group.

Meanwhile, Stanley privately messages me saying even if he had taken two hours to explain the whole case to Carl, it would probably take four years before Carl could make sense of it so it's best to cut his losses.

If the three of us were in a fantasy movie, Carl would be the one Stanley convinces to willingly offer himself to the fire-breathing dragon while the rest of the village run for our lives.

Stanley vehemently disagrees with my analogy.

"I will never want to be in a fantasy movie with you or Carl. My fantasy movie will have only one co-star and that would be none other than my oppa Song Joong-ki", Stanley's current love interest from recently watching Descendants of the Sun on Netflix.

But let's get back from the war zone to the courtroom.

Or, to be specific, the expensive hotel rooms.

"Look at these gays and their high lives!" Stanley marvelled, italicising the word high.

Apparently, one of those on trial had revealed to the courtroom stories of gay men booking rooms for group sex at high-end hotels - and hiring that doctor to help one of them get high.

"Wow!" Carl said, deciding that he would join the conversation after all, never mind he couldn't keep up.

"Who are these people?" Stanley asks.

Later on, I thought about the trial.

(Stanley later reveals he too, had thought about the trial - but his thoughts were mainly focused on what went on behind those closed hotel room doors).

My thoughts, however, were on how it must feel for those on trial.

I'm very close to courtroom drama because J my partner is a lawyer and I hear all sorts of legal stories from him.

When J started out as a young DPP - a lawyer for the state - he would excitedly tell me about his work.

Once, on his day off, he brought me to tour the then-sub courts, showing me where people were charged, and where trials were heard, and teaching me all about the judiciary system.

We even sat in on a trial during that day out, and had very fortunately walked into the courtroom of a very high-profile judge who was known for being funny with her straight-face backhanded comments.

Eventually, the novelty of J's first job wore off.

When he was senior enough to handle big cases, J's job wore him off.

J was trained to see accused persons as murderers and rapists - given that his then-job was to prosecute those people.

Often, he would come back feeling drained and telling me how it's not easy to see people only at their worst.

The compassionate J eventually moved on to corporate law - choosing to work in the boardroom rather than the courtroom, and opting to wear office suits over legal robes (To this day, Stanley would still cheekily ask J if lawyers wore anything beneath those robes - just as he would sometimes ask the world at large if newscasters wore skimpy underwear below the studio table).

Because of my association to J and having seen courtroom drama first hand, I'm viewing this ongoing trial with different lenses.

It's only natural because, admit it, we do love to gossip.

I cannot imagine how it must be like to be so vulnerable and so talked about.

Here, I'm not debating about whether or not they are guilty. I'm not discussing the merits and demerits of their activities.

Like I said, I'm merely focusing on that one aspect... vulnerability for those on trial.

Casting aside culpability and retribution, I wonder how it must be like to walk to court and be swarmed by not just reporters but also curious passersby with their mobile phones.

And then, you have to swear to tell the truth in open court, for one and all to hear. 

Worse, whatever you say is linked to your photos which would surely surface online.

Your reputation is gone. Your dignity is gone. And most likely, your career will go too.

And what about your loved ones?

How would close friends, family members react?

And it surely doesn't help that people who follow juicy trials would no doubt cast judgement even before the verdict is out. 

J has very professionally told me he doesn't want to discuss this with me.

So I of course turn to Stanley.

How must it feel to be thrust into the limelight and for people to talk behind your back, I ask him.

Quite good, actually, Stanley replies using the WhatsApp voice recorder.

Some time back, I have had people literally talking behind my back, and I assure you, Adam, thrusting was involved. And I was basking in that limelight, he says.



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Adam's stories are based on real life events and inspired by real people