Becoming

The Fallen Angel

On the second to last night, Milla, Inga, Dylan Smith, Austin, and Sian offered to take charge of all of the younger kids and babies at the hotel, so that all the parents, plus Ewo and Tuomas, could have an adult-only night out. After the adults accepted their offer, Dave and Ade pulled Tasha, Dylan, Natasha, and Brittany into the room that the three girls shared with Sian, who headed next door to Milla's room where the kids were to gather for pizza and movies.

"Is something wrong, Dad?" Dylan asked. "Or are you just giving us the behave and help with the little kids lecture?"

"Neither one," Ade said. He shifted a little awkwardly and took a deep breath. "We originally intended this trip to be just us and you kids but we were stupid enough to talk about going to Disneyland in front of the blokes - and they all started inviting themselves along with their families, and Bruce talked about it to Emppu so then all of Nightwish got in on the act as well, and... it all kinda got away from us."

"Thing is," Dave said, "we intended bringing you here so we could talk to you about something serious."

"Serious?" Tasha echoed. "You're not sick, are you? Or Mom?"

"No, nothing like that," Dave said. "But your mum and I are getting divorced."

"As are your mum and I," Ade told his three.

Tasha looked stricken, but oddly, the Smith kids didn't seem entirely surprised. "Mum's okay with it?" Natasha asked.

"Yeah, she's fine," Ade said. "We've already discussed the details, so it'll go through with a minimum of fuss, we hope."

"I just... why, Dad?" Tasha asked. "I don't get it. Why now? I haven't noticed you and Mom fighting or anything."

Dave glanced at Ade, who gave a small nod. "Tasha... Princess," he said softly. "Your mother knows what I'm about to tell you and so does Nathalie... they've always known this... we married them because we wanted to be fathers. But we married them as friends, because we... Ade and I... have been together since the late 70s."

"Oh, wow, the two of you? That's so sweet, I'm happy for you, Dad and Dave," Brittany said, jumping up to hug both men, with her twin following.

"What Brittany said," Natasha told them.

"How could you do this?" Tasha burst out fuiously. "You lied! All these years, you've lied to me! This is going to ruin my life! I hate you!" She stormed out, thankfully going right next door.

"Bloody hell," Dave said. "D'you think I should try to talk to her again?"

"Tomorrow, maybe," Ade suggested. "Give her time to get used to the idea."

"Well, we're all happy for you both," Dylan said. "We'd best get going before they finish picking the pizza toppings, come on, you two. Dad and Dave are supposed to meet up with the rest of the adults anyway." He herded his sisters towards the door, followed by the two men.

The three teens joined the rest of the under-21 crowd in the room shared by Milla, Kia, and the Harris girls and Dave and Ade headed for the lift.

Looking worried, Dave looked at Ade as the lift door closed and their descent started. "I can't believe Tasha reacted like that," he said. "I'm so sorry, love."

"Baby, it's not your fault," Ade tried to reassure his partner. "Maybe call or text her after dinner, see if she's calmed down any?"

"Yeah... that's a good idea," Dave agreed. He managed a small smile for his partner. "You always have the best ideas."

They joined the rest of the adults and headed out to one of the resort's better restaurants, where Dave managed to put on a cheerful face and engage in conversation with the group. He and Ade stayed towards the back of the group as they walked from the restaurant to the beach-themed club they'd chosen, and he texted Tasha as they walked.