Before The Sun Sets (ManxMan)

◼ Twelve

12. Jensen

"Your dad and I are getting a divorce."

Adam nervously bit his lip as he stared at his children. They were all seated on his bed in their pajamas. Jhoni doesn't say a word and neither does George. Bella and Ian on the other hand had confused looks on their faces.

"What does that mean?"

"It means," Adam kneels down in front of his baby girl. "that your dad and I are going out different ways. We are not going to be married anymore."

"He doesn't love you anymore?" Bella asked, her eyes wide and shiny with what Adam thinks is tears.

"He likes me, Bella and he loves all of you so much."

"Are we going to see him then? What kind of arrangement is it?" Jhoni asked.

"We agreed on every last weekend of the month. Fridays to Mondays, he'll drop you off at school."

It had taken Jensen and Adam a week to decide. Frank Geller has just stared at both of them with an unreadable expression on his face. He had brought up the option of couples therapy again by Adam was quick to shut it down. Jensen hasn't told him why he had cheated and it was never okay to cheat on someone you claim you love.

Jensen hasn't been home since the day George ran away from school. And Adam, for the life of him, doesn't know how he really feels. It feels like everything was moving and he was just standing still.

"Poppy..." George called out, dragging Adam out of his head.

"Yes, baby?"

"Are we going to be okay?" George asked, fiddling with his pajamas. Adam opens his arms wide and the kids crawl into them, pushing Adam backwards until he was lying on the ground with his children around him.

"We are going to be fine. I've got a job and we'll go house searching tomorrow and you'll see your dad every month."

"Are you okie, Poppy?" Bella asked. Adam could feel her sigh against his body.

"As long as I have all of you, I'm happy as a clam."

-

Adam and Sara agree not to change Bella, George and Jhoni's school. But Ian would move to whatever school is close to RedStripes Publishing.

They're all piled up in Adam's Escalade, the radio was on but its volume was turned low. Bella and George's chatter loud enough to entertain Adam and Jhoni who for the fourth time that week had a blue tongue.

It's Saturday. The roads were a bit free and so were the streets. The first house they were going to see was actually near Sara's neighborhood. It was a three bedroom apartment with two bathrooms. And it was affordable.

Adam needed a house within his budget and the real estate agent had a long list of houses for him and the kids to look through.

Once they got to the apartment, Bella looked around with one sleek eyebrow raised before she shook her head.

"Too small, Poppy. Where are you going to work?"

The next house, they go to is on the 8th floor of an apartment building. It was a four bedroom flat, windows everywhere and three bathrooms.

"Ian could get injured here and George doesn't feel comfortable coming this high." Jhoni said, gesturing at George who was standing far away from the glass windows and pointedly looking at the white walls.

Not it either.

They look through four more houses before Adam pulls to the side of the road and asked.