My name is Jenna. I'm a 38 yr old single parent of a beautiful 20 year old daughter and a handsome 18 year old son. I married my High School sweetheart straight out of High School pregnant with my daughter. Our marriage, like any forced marriage had its share of ups and downs. We lived with my parents until my husband, Jim, was able to get his startup business on solid ground. Needless to say living with my parents for nearly two years while raising an infant daughter as your husband was trying to establish a new business was not the thing you conjure up when thinking about fairy book marriages.
In spite of all the obstacles we faced, I was proud that our marriage was able to survive for ten years. My husband's business took off and before long we had moved into nice home in a very exclusive neighborhood. We didn't have too much family time due to the time constraints the new startup required from my husband but I was at least able to foster a warm and loving environment for our two children, Cate and Jake.
We took family vacations to Disney World, Hawaii, the Caribbean; just the three of us as Jim was too consumed with work to get away for any significant period of time. At the time it didn't matter to me as I was more concerned with nurturing our children as they grew older. In hindsight I should have heard the warning bells going off in my head but I was happy and naive in my own little safe area, that is until Jim came to me one weekend evening after the kids were asleep.
He started, "Jen I need you to know that our marriage is not working. We were married too young and we have grown apart."
My mouth dropped and my mind froze. So many thoughts were racing through my mind and I could only stare at him in disbelief, hoping that this was just a bad dream.
He continued, "I've already had my attorney draw up divorce papers for you to review." Divorce attorney? He already has a divorce attorney I thought. "You will find that I have been more than reasonable with the settlement. I know that you and our kids will be set for life. Please have your attorney contact mine so we can finalize this divorce as soon as possible."
Wait a minute I thought, still unable to speak, my attorney? I don't have a fucking attorney! How long have you been planning this? What about counseling? What do you mean we've grown apart? So many questions and I couldn't speak, my body began to convulse with anger, fear, and hurt. I looked and saw him start to walk out.
Finally I shouted, "Where the fuck are you going Jim? We need to talk."
He stopped and said, "There is nothing to talk about. It's over. I am leaving. Please contact my attorney." He turned and walked out as if the last ten years meant nothing to him. I sat down on the couch and started to weep uncontrollably. I was gasping for air as the magnitude of this entire moment overwhelmed all my senses. I cried and cried not knowing what to do, or who to talk to. I must have fallen asleep as I was awaken next morning by a Cate and Jake wanting breakfast.
That was ten years ago. True to his word, Jim left us with enough money so that I would not have to work and just concentrate on raising the kids. We kept the house which helped with the kids and their friends. What I found out was that the reason we grew apart was that my asshole ex hooked up with his 24 year old secretary. I guess at 28 years old I didn't fit his image anymore.
I vowed to myself then and there to always keep myself looking and feeling young. It's not like I had let myself go but I did have two children to keep after so my looks and well being weren't necessarily priority number one. Now looking back on this I find myself at peace. I love my children to death and they feel the same about me. I work at a local real estate firm selling homes, not because I need to but because I enjoy it. I still consider myself fairly attractive. I'm 5'4" weighing around 115lbs. I measure at 34c-26-36. My boobs actually look larger than they are due to my small frame. I see very little sag in my breasts and butt. My legs are well toned from years of aerobics and strength training. Dirty blonde hair with blue eyes rounds out the rest of my look.
Yet as much at peace as I am with myself there is no denying that I feel lonely without a male companion. It's not like I haven't dated. Well actually I only started dating the last couple of years and even then it wasn't that often. I felt my time being directed towards Cate and Jake. Only until recently when the thought of both leaving me to go to college did the loneliness start to fester within me. It was like getting my face slapped with cold water for me to finally realize the inevitability of living by myself in our big home.
I tried to start developing closer friendships with some of the ladies in the neighborhood and at work. I started going out to happy hour with the girls, not so much for anything but the hopes of alleviating my loneliness. Throw in a couple of dates here and there and I would be fine. Correct? Nope the more I went out the more I realized how difficult it was to find true companionship.
That leads me to today. Jake just graduated from High School, yesterday and today would be his first day of his last summer at home. Cate just returned from college two days ago and had spent them at her girlfriends house catching up.
JAKE
My name is Jake. I'm 18 years old and just graduated yesterday from High School. I will be attending school at an out of state college beginning the 3rd week in August. Today being Friday June 3rd left me 11 weeks to play and relax before college began. I didn't have a summer job so I was going to hang out with my buds before moving away to go to college.
My sister, Cate, is two years older and a sophomore at the state college. She had just returned two days ago but the only time I saw her was for a brief moment at the graduation ceremony last night. It was surprising, as Cate and I have always been very close. Even though I was her "little" brother I was very protective of her. We had been raised all our lives by our mother, Jenna, which helped us bond closer than most families. Our dad was very successful early on in his career. However he felt the need to sow his oats so he left us nearly ten years ago for his young secretary but at least he made sure to take care of his wife and children.
My mom negotiated a very handsome divorce settlement that left us financially secure. While it was difficult, both physically and emotionally, it brought the three of us incredibly close. We had a great house, no debts, and were able to stay in our existing neighborhood with all our friends. While I'm sure my mom would have preferred to not have gone through the emotional trauma of a divorce, she persevered and made the best of the situation.
I was lying in bed stroking my morning wood in no rush to get out of bed since today was the first day of my last summer at home. I heard my mom call, "Jake, breakfast is ready. Hurry up and come down I'm running late for work. It's already 9:30." I stopped stroking my morning wood thinking this will have to wait until after breakfast. I got out of bed put on a tee and shorts and headed downstairs.
I snuck into the kitchen as quietly as I could. I sat at the table hoping my mom hadn't noticed my morning wood. "Morning mom. Thanks for making breakfast but you know you don't have to do this anymore. I can do it myself."