“I’m sorry to hear that, dad, but yeah, we will do what we have to do. We’re leaving in June, okay? You’re welcome to spend as much time as possible with David and Chloe until then, but we ARE going. These opportunities don’t come around too often, dad. We have to do this. All of us,” I said, emphatically.
Mom was stoic, looking at us, trying to figure out the words that would change our minds. Thank fuck we hadn’t told them of Emily’s part in our relationship! We’d be counting our inheritance sooner than imagined, two heart attacks looming!
Chrissie broke the tension, or hoped to by offering coffee and cake. They both thanked us curtly, and resolutely refused, mom standing up and announcing it was time to go. Poor fucking dad, I thought. I acted as nonchalantly as possible, helping mom with her coat, and calling the kids out to say goodbye. Chrissie proudly had her arm around my waist, as we said goodbye. I took it as little ‘fuck you’ to them both. As we said our last good byes, Emily had poured us all a drink. I swallowed the tumbler of whisky, and asked for another. Emily only smirked at me, but graciously refilled the glass.
“Well, that went better than I expected!” I laughed, sarcastically.
I had two sets of hands swatting me.
“Behave, Tom,” Emily said. “It’s not funny. Chrissie? You okay?” she asked.
“Surprisingly, yeah. If they cannot support us, and wish us good luck and all that, then…screw ’em. Sorry. That’s harsh, I know, but what are our options. Sit around and mope? Don’t go? Stay on the north side of Chicago for the rest of our lives? No thanks. The sooner we sell our homes, the better off we’ll all be,” she said, a bit too dramatically. She was visibly hurt, but couldn’t say so. It was too raw, too early.
“I’m…I’m so sorry. I didn’t see that coming at all! As they accepted you being together, I thought that this would be easy,” Emily murmured. “Give them a few days, okay? They may come around?”
“Well, it’s their loss. They’ll miss the kids growing up, and have no contact with
them. Chrissie, this would have happened anyway, you know. If you were to move away, they’d feel the same way. It’s up to them to come to terms with our decision,” I said, trying to bring a close to the talk. There was nothing to be gained, but Chrissie was still getting more upset.
“So, should we grab the kids, and head out for a while? It may help us clear our heads. Anywhere you want to head to?” I asked.
“David mentioned bowling the other day? How does that sound?” Emily asked.
We grabbed the kids, who were happy with ‘our’ idea. We spent a leisurely few hours trying to teach Chloe how to bowl a ball straight. David was a heck of a lot better, Chrissie, hmm, but Emily shone through! We stopped off for dinner, and got home around seven, in time to start our nightly routine. I met Chrissie and Emily in the front room after reading, and tucking the kids in. They had a whisky ready for me!
Chrissie sat between us on the sofa, as she still seemed a bit fragile after the afternoon’s debacle.
We all breathed deep, took stock of the day, and then delved into our regular meeting.
“Anyone need to bring anything up? This is our check-in time, so don’t hold back!” I smiled.
“Everything’s been good this week, Tom,” Chrissie started. “I’m glad you and Emily have sorted yourselves out!” she giggled.
“With your help, Chrissie. Thanks. Oh, and yours, Tom!” Emily smiled. “Ohh, can we do that again, Tom? I’m still taking it all in, but…I loved it. I propose that we have a session like that once a month?” she asked, coyly.
We all laughed, agreeing. No surprises there!
“Anything else?” I asked. “No? In that case, sourcing a removals company. Would you and Emily do this? You both have more experience than I do. Can I throw that in your lap? We’ll arrange to get Emily’s pieces over here, at some point. Perhaps have two sections, one for the house, and one for wherever the hell we’re going to rent. I’m sure that’ll be easier than transferring paintings!” I laughed.
“We can do that, Tom. I have a fairly comprehensive list of companies, so we can
handle that for us,” Chrissie said.
They were both pleased with the way everything was going, but I had one area that needed addressing.
“Okay. Money. I’d like to talk about how we deal with that in the future. I’m not quite sure how comfortable you both are talking about it. I’m not!” I chuckled, “but it needs a talk, okay? We have to decide how we will contribute to the running of the new home. We’re fine right now. I’m helping with food, and Chrissie’s property taxes and utility bills, but that’ll change soon. Emily, as far as I’m concerned, you should not be contributing anything whilst you are staying here. You have your own bills to pay, and we’re not helping with that, so… Yeah, I know, you do buy groceries and things, and I appreciate that but, going forward in London. I know you both want to contribute to the cost of the house, so thanks for that. When we finally buy the house, I propose that all our names on the title, no matter how much each contributes, okay? I want us all invested in the house,” I said.
“Hmm, Tom. That’s not really fair, though. Emily and I are putting in way less than you, right?” Chrissie started. “So, shouldn’t we all have a percentage share of what we put into the house? That seems a bit more equitable.”
“Fuck. See? I hate talking about money!” I sighed.
They both laughed. “Well, you picked the wrong career, Tom!” they cackled.
“So, is what you are saying if you both put in twenty-five per cent for the house, you would be responsible for twenty-five per cent each of the upkeep on the house, you know, utilities, taxes, stuff like that? This is going to be tougher than I thought. I want you both to be happy with what you can afford, and save. Are you suggesting something like that? You know, contribute what you can afford type of thing?” I suggested.
“Perhaps,” Chrissie said. “Emily, what do you see clearing from your house?” she asked.
“Well, we still have a mortgage, so maybe a bit over two hundred thousand after that’s paid off. It’s not much, but it’s for us, so…” Emily disclosed.
“Okay. This place is worth six, easily, and it’s paid for, so I’ll have that,” Chrissie said. “That’s around eight, give or take.”
“How much are we short, Tom?” Emily asked.
I hesitated, not sure if I’d scare them both. “Probably a million US,” I murmured.
“What!” Chrissie exploded. “A million dollars…short?” she said, incredulously. “Looks like our eyes are bigger than our bank balances,” she giggled.
After a few moments, I said, sheepishly, “I can handle the rest.” I could talk money, and figures all day, but it was never an easy thing when it came to me personally.
“Tom! How can you possibly come up with that sort of money? In the nicest possible way, Tom, how much do you make? We both know you’re rich already,” they both laughed.
“Fuck,” I accidentally said out loud. “In dollars or pounds,” I asked, trying to buy some time.
“Either, Tom. I can do the math,” Chrissie laughed.