Page 5 of Ethan

Me: Beautiful June day.

Derek: It'll be good. I gotta go and help pack all the beach stuff.

Me: Enjoy!

Sarah: What are you up to today?

Me: Not sure yet.

Sarah: Well, have fun whatever you decide to do.

Me: Try my best. Talk soon.

I set my phone on the bed beside me, invigorated by the brief interactions. I tried to check in with my kids every couple of days. We liked to stay in contact. Often, they would phone me to talk or share if something exciting was happening in their lives or the lives of their children.

Sarah, my youngest, a single mom, had a son, Damian, who had recently turned eight. My son, Derek, was a more recent parent. At the age of thirty, he and his husband had brought two girls aged nine and eleven into their family. They'd adopted the sisters three years after getting married. A perfect match. His husband, Michael, was the love of Derek's life.

My wife and I hadn't been shocked when Derek came out as gay. He'd always shown an affinity beyond friendship for the boys in his life, often talking about the way they looked and how much they had in common in a dreamy sort of way. He brought his first boyfriend home to meet us when he was fourteen. Didn't even give us a heads-up that he was queer.

Just … Mom. Dad. This is Justin. My boyfriend.

It still made me laugh. And feel proud. We had provided a home for our children where they felt comfortable being themselves. I counted it among the things my ex-wife and I had done right during our twenty-two years of marriage. We were nearly at seven years since our divorce.

My phone rang beside me. She must have heard me thinking about her.

"What's up, Delores?"

I could almost see her smile through the phone. "I have news."

"You won the lottery?"

"Nope."

"You've been chosen as this year's Ms. Universe."

"Gawd, I wish." She chuckled. "No. Mark and I have decided to get married."

"Gah."

"What's the gah about?"

"Couldn't you have picked someone who made me look good?"

Delores snickered. "He's definitely an upgrade."

"Ha. Ha. Any dates in the works?"

"We're thinking next spring. Cherry blossom season."

"That'll make for some nice photos."

"You'll come, right?"

I shifted the phone to my other ear. "Of course. Wouldn't miss it." And I wouldn't. Delores and I held no animosity toward one another. Our marriage had suffered a slow death. It had begun its demise while the kids were growing up and we were distracted. When they moved out and we became empty nesters, it struck us both that we weren't in love anymore.

We'd stayed together for a while after that, becoming little more than roommates. When Delores suggested we go our separate ways, I wasn't upset. I had been simply existing in what felt comfortable to me. But Delores wanted to move on. Start dating.

Having her buddy of a had-been husband around wasn't conducive to that. We'd remained friends. We had a long history between us. We'd been high school sweethearts.

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