I’ve dressed in a tight, grey knee-length pencil skirt that I paired with a light pink silk shirt with a ruffled collar and cap sleeves. I’ve added my very favorite Manolo Blahnik black Mary Janes, a Mother’s Day present from three years ago. If nothing else, he left me with two beautiful children and a closet full of designer heels.
I take a deep breath. This is it.
My phone beeps again. “Ten minutes, guys, let’s go.” I walk out of my room, heading down the stairs while watching my ten-year-old put his cereal bowl in the sink and grab all his papers from the table, shoving them in his backpack. “Rachel, don’t forget to pack your reading log that’s on the couch.”
I look over at my sister, who is nursing her second cup of coffee. She sits with her legs crossed, watching it all. Dressed in her yoga pants that mold perfectly to her thin, five-foot-seven-inch body and a loose sweater that falls off one shoulder. “How do you remember this stuff?” she asks.
“It’s magic. Once you become a parent, you’ll get a brain,” I tell her with a smirk.
“Then what happened to Jake?” She smiles back while taking a sip.
“Okay, I take that back. Once you become a mother, you get a brain. I mean, I don’t think all men are dicks. Look at Dad,” I tell her while I put the milk back in the fridge and pick up the cereal box, putting it back into the cupboard. My phone alarm sounds again. “Two minutes, guys!” I have my phone set to different times so I never run late. It’s another thing I got when I became a mom.
I look over at Kaleigh, who is now reading the newspaper. “Aren’t you going to be late?” I ask her while I grab the lunch boxes and walk to the door with the kids.
She folds the paper in half. “Nope, I have a client at ten thirty. We are doing yoga in the park today. Become one with the earth and all that.” She does the Namaste hands, while I walk out with the kids to go to the bus stop.
I hold Rachel’s hand while we walk to the bus stop, her brown hair done in a side ponytail with a huge flower headband. “Don’t forget, Auntie Kay will be there when you get off the bus this afternoon, because Mommy has the new job.” She looks up and smiles at me, one tooth missing. “I know, Momma, you said it. Twice.” I look in front and see that Gabe is talking to another kid who is waiting at the bus stop. Once the kids get on the bus, I wave to them and turn to go home.
Mrs. Flounder, who is my next-door neighbor, comes out with curlers in her hair and a cigarette hanging from her lips. “Hey, there, Lauren, you look fantastic. Is today the day you finally become free of that scum bucket?” she asks while picking up her paper.
The news that Jake cheated on me spread faster than the flames did over the pile of his gasoline-soaked clothes. Of course, once it was confirmed that Camilla slept with a father of one of her students, she was quietly transferred to another school. She is now teaching at another school a town over.
Telling the kids that we were getting a divorce was hard, but they didn’t seem surprised by it. I guess half of their friends’ parents were divorced, so it wasn’t unusual to them. I, on the other hand, didn’t have such an easy time with the idea. I honestly thought forever meant forever, not till someone sexier waves their ass in my face and shows me attention. Maybe if he’d come home and done the vacuuming once in a while, I would have showed him some attention. Fuck, maybe if he’d picked up his sweaty socks, I might have felt inclined to do even more for him.
Shaking my head no at Mrs. Flounder, I look at her. “I start my new temp position today.”
“Oh, that’s nice, dear. Time to earn the bacon.” She shakes her hand and goes inside. Once I get back inside, I grab my lunch and my purse. I look at Kaleigh, who is now in the middle of my living room doing some crazy yoga pose. “I’m so fucking nervous. What if I fuck up or cry or, or, or… fuck up?” I look at her while she moves back to standing instead of balancing on her head.
“You are going to go in there and kill it. And if you don’t”—she shrugs her shoulders—“then you don’t. What’s the worst that can happen? You fall face first in your boss’ crotch?” I glare at her, throwing my hands in the air.
“Don’t forget, the kids are off the bus at two forty-five. Did you set an alarm?” I ask her.
“Yup, on my internal clock.” She rolls her eyes at me. “Stop stressing. It’s going to be fine. You are going to be late if you don’t leave now.” She ushers me out the door. “Don’t forget to play nice and make friends. Friends who are nice and hot and have big dicks!” She screams after me as I get into my car and close the door. Mrs. Flounder gives me the thumbs up, clearly in agreement with my sister. “Dear God,” I mumble to myself as I start the car.
I shouldn’t use the word ‘car’, because this isn’t a car, it’s a minivan. A big, safe, screams-it’s-for-a-family vehicle. I obviously got this in the divorce settlement, while he drives around in his new Mercedes,
