After being reborn, take my mother to the peak of life
When my ex–husband, John, and I decided to
split, he wanted to fight me for custody of our son, David.
“Why don’t we just ask him?” John said, all
smug.
David, eyes glued to his phone, glanced at me calmly. “You serious about this divorce thing?”
“Yeah,” I nodded.
“Okay.” He went back to his game. “I’ll stay with
Mom. Make sure she gets a good chunk of the
money, though. I don’t want her struggling.”
1
John dragged David into his study. I tried to
follow, worried, but the door slammed in my
face. John’s raised voice echoed from inside.
“David, I’m asking you again, you really want to
stay with your mother? Don’t forget, she’s just a
housewife. You think she can really take care of
you?”
David’s nonchalant voice replied, “Dad, it
doesn’t really matter to me. The thing is,
Melissa is pregnant with my little brother now. If
I stay with you, I’m worried it’ll stress her out.”
Even John, with his thick skin, had to be
embarrassed having his affair brought up by his
own son. The voices inside quieted down. I
couldn’t hear what they were saying, but I felt a
damp itch crawling across my face. I reached
up to touch it, and the tears started flowing.
I sat numbly on the living room sofa, finally
burying my face in my hands.
After a while, the study door opened. John
<
walked over to me, and seeing me sobbing, he
actually looked a little uncomfortable. He
handed me a tissue.
“David will stay with you,” he said slowly. “You
can keep the car, the house, and I’ll give you
fifty thousand. If you agree, we can finalize
everything tomorrow.”
I looked at him blankly. Honestly, I was the one
who wanted the divorce, but I hadn’t really
thought about the specifics.
“Don’t give her the car,” David suddenly piped
- up.
I snapped back to reality, a bitter smile
touching my lips. Like father, like son. He was
on his dad’s side after all.
“Mom’s driving is…let’s just say it’s safer if she
doesn’t have a car. It’d be a waste if she didn’t
drive it, and a crime if she did. Just give her the
<
cash equivalent. That car’s gotta be worth at
least seventy, eighty thousand. A hundred
thousand plus the house seems fair.”
John stared at David, who just shrugged
nonchalantly. John looked away.
“Fine. We’ll do it that way. Tomorrow, 9 a.m., at
the courthouse.”
2
The front door closed. My heart clenched. With
John gone, he might never come back. We had
been together since college. Young love,
sincere and pure. I thought we’d grow old
together. I didn’t know how we ended up here.
“Mom,” David’s voice pulled me out of my
sadness. “I’m hungry. Have you cooked dinner
yet?”
I quickly got up, wiping away my tears. “I’ll go
<
grocery shopping.”
His voice held a hint of pleading. “Mom, you’re
about to have a hundred grand. Can’t we go out
to eat?”
I took David to the Korean BBQ place down the
street. He wrapped a piece of bulgogi in lettuce
and handed it to me.
“Mom, it’s all–you–can–eat. Gotta get our
money’s worth.”
“Right,” I mumbled, chewing without tasting. I’d
been reading all those articles about the
psychological damage divorce does to kids.
“David,” I began carefully, “your dad and I are
getting divorced, but he’s still your father. I can
hate him, but you shouldn’t.”
“I don’t hate him.” He flipped a chicken wing.
“And you shouldn’t either. Hating someone is
<
exhausting.”
He sat across from me, and in the rising steam
from the grill, I could barely see his face.
3
The next morning, I was sitting on the edge of
my bed, lost in thought, when David knocked on
my door.
“Mom, it’s time. Let’s go.”
I jolted awake. Why did I feel like he was more
eager for this divorce than his father?
I opened the door, looking at him suspiciously.
“Why aren’t you at school?”
He gave me a complicated look. “Mom, it’s July
first. Summer vacation started.”
This past month, I’d been so out of it that I’d
forgotten his summer break. Guilt washed over
me as I straightened his collar. “I’m so sorry, honey.”
He grinned. “If you really feel bad, how about
taking me on a trip? We could go to the beach,
scuba dive, eat seafood.” He made a peace
sign with his fingers.
“Sure,” I smiled back. The dark clouds in my
heart seemed to dissipate a little.
Melissa came with John. We weren’t even
divorced yet, and she was already acting like
the lady of the house. David actually greeted
her first.
“Hey, Melissa. It’s so hot out, you should be
careful. Don’t want my little brother melting, you
know?”
“You” Melissa glared at him and turned to
John, expecting him to defend her.
