Here's a new chapter. This will focus on Ash's beginning for this story.
A sigh came from a young man who sat at the marble countertop bar in the kitchen. He ran his hand through his black hair and looked down at his watch. It was almost midnight and his wife wasn't home.
He got up, pushing the stool under the bar and made his way down the hallway to check on his little girl. He pushed the door opened slightly and looked at the child asleep under the pink, fluffy blanket. Her honey colored hair was a mess and clinging to her face most likely from some drool as she slept. Her name was Summer and she was the exact replica of her mother, except for her eye color. He closed the door back and heard noise from the front door.
As he rounded the corner of the foyer, he saw his wife taking off her shoes. She stumbled and caught herself on the wall.
"Summer's asleep, let's try not to wake her." he said.
His wife's blue eyes looked up at him.
"Don't ruin my fun, Ash."
"Serena..."
She huffed and walked passed him. Sighing, he followed after her once he straightened her shoes.
Where had the woman he married gone? They had been struggling for quite a while now, probably going on two years. He had convinced her to go to marriage counseling which had helped up until she just stopped showing up to the meetings. He had tried to get her to talk to him, but she just shut him out. Now she spent her nights out drinking with friends or just staying out late, leaving him to get Summer fed, bathed, and put to bed. She wasn't even working anymore because she had ended up being late too many times and had been let go.
"Serena, this has to stop." Ash said as he closed their bedroom door.
She spun around and faced him.
"What does?" she asked.
"This. All of this. The drinking and staying out late. You not having a job and blowing our money on drinking and everything else. Summer hardly sees you anymore!"
"I never wanted to be a mom yet!"
Silence hung in the air. He stared at her in shock. Sure they had ended up pregnant earlier than planned because of a night out drinking, but they had agreed to make it work. It would all be okay. He had been over the moon. She had too or so he thought once her fear had subsided.
"What?"
She sighed. "I never wanted to be a mom. Not right now...if ever. I tried, but it's hard. I'm still young and I wanna enjoy it! It's hard when there's a kid."
"Serena-"
"And it's hard when married too."
Now it just felt like he had been slapped in the face. She was making it all seem like a huge mistake and a regret.
"What are you saying?" he asked.
She opened up her bag and dug around for a minute.
"I want out, Ash. I thought I wanted this, but I don't." she said and held out an envelope.
He stared at the envelope. He knew what it held within it. She was asking for a divorce. She wanted out of this.
"What about Summer?"
"You take her. I won't fight you for her."
She was very quick in that decision and didn't even seem phased at not being with their daughter.
"Serena..."
She shook the envelope at him.
"I don't want this. I don't. I thought I did, but no. The spark isn't there anymore."
He stared at her more. Not only was she asking for a divorce and asking him to take their daughter. She was also now saying she no longer loved him. She was completely withdrawn from the relationship. She was withdrawn from everything...from their family.
"Did you cheat on me?" he asked.
He stared at her, watching for any of her tells for if she wasn't being truthful. He needed to know.
"I did."
She said it so easily and didn't even look affected by it.
"When did it all go wrong? I thought you..." he trailed off.
She sighed and tossed the envelope on the bed.
"I tried for a little bit. But it was too much. This isn't what I want. And one night I ended up having a little too much and danced with a stranger and well yeah." she said and shrugged.
She wordlessly walked to the mirror and started brushing her hair.
She just didn't seem bothered by this at all. She didn't seem to care that she had just stomped on Ash's heart. There was nothing...no reaction at all to the fact that she wanted to leave this life behind like it never existed.
"You couldn't tell me this sober?"
"I never see you much in the daytime." she said as she looked at him through the mirror.
Nothing. There was nothing in her eyes.
He grabbed the envelope and walked out of their bedroom. He wasn't sleeping there tonight, if ever again. He opened the door to the guest bedroom and sat down on the edge of the bed.
How was she not bothered at all by her actions? The fact that she just broke his heart and would break Summer's when she found out. She was only four.
He opened the envelope and pulled the papers out and his eyes instantly saw her signature already on the papers. It wasn't even up for debate. She was fully committed to this and ending it all.
... ... ...
The next morning as his alarm blared in his ears, he groaned and silenced it. He was disoriented for a moment as to why he was in the guest bedroom, but then it all came back to him. He looked at his phone and saw that it read six in the morning. He needed to get Summer up and ready for daycare and then get to work.
He stretched before he pushed himself up and off the bed. He hadn't even gotten under the covers last night. Nor did he even remember falling asleep because of everything that had happened. He must have just passed out from exhaustion.
He made his way into the kitchen first to start on brewing some coffee before he went to Summer's room.
"Summer, sweetie come on. It's time to wake up." he said as he shook her gently.
A small whine escaped her and she opened her chocolate colored eyes sleepily.
"Good morning, Daddy."
"Good morning, baby."
She gave him a toothy smile and sat up, swinging her arms across his neck.
"I love you!"
He hugged her to him. "I love you." he said and kissed her head.
"Let's get you ready, yeah?"
She nodded her head and hopped down from her bed.
"Can I wear a dress?" she asked.
"Of course you can."
He opened the closet and looked at her dresses.
"What color today?" he asked.
"Pink!"
"Pink it shall be!"
He pulled out a spaghetti strapped pink dress with white stripes.
"This okay?"
"Yep!"
He helped her get into it.
"Want pigtails!" she said.
"Okay, we'll do some pigtails."
He helped her with brushing her teeth and then he fixed her hair into two pigtails.
"Ready for breakfast?" he asked as he helped her off the bathroom counter.
She nodded her head and followed after him.
"Where's Mommy?" she asked as she climbed into one of the kitchen chairs.
"Sleeping still."
"I'm gonna draw Mommy a picture today. Will I see her?"
"I hope so, baby."
He fixed her a bowl of her favorite cereal and poured his coffee into a travel mug.
... ... ...
That night...
Ash pushed open the front door and Summer skipped inside with the picture she drew Serena in her hand.
"Mommy!"
Ash closed the door and set his keys on the entry coffee table. He slid his shoes off and noticed that Serena's were gone from the hall.
"Oh no..." he muttered.
"Is Mommy out again?" Summer asked.
"She might be. Let me go see, okay?"
He hurried upstairs to their bedroom. He stopped in his tracks when he saw the closet doors opened and half of it empty, the dresser drawers opened and empty. Her nightstand was cleared of her clutter. He walked to the bathroom and the counter was cleared of her makeup and hair things. The drawers empty of her belongings. The shower was missing her apple smelling body wash and her curly hair specific shampoo and conditioner.
She had left while he was gone to work. She had left without telling Summer goodbye. How was he suppose to explain this to her? This was going to break her heart. She had been wanting to see her mom for the last few days. Hell she had even drawn a picture to give to her today and she was so excited about it.
He sat on the edge of the bed and put his head in his hands. His eyes burned from tears that threatened to fall. His heart was breaking at having to tell Summer that Mommy had left and at the fact that she had been so excited to give the picture to her. This wasn't fair to Summer.
"Daddy?"
He looked up and saw Summer in the doorway.
"Why you crying?" she asked as she walked over to him.
He wiped at his eyes.
"Where's Mommy? She out again?"
He picked her up and set her on his lap.
"She is, baby."
"Will she be home soon?"
He smiled at her sadly and wrapped his arms around her. He kissed her head.
"Summer...Mommy won't be back."
"Why?"
"Mommy left us."
"Why?"
He sighed. "She wasn't happy."
Summer's bottom lip poked out. "She doesn't love us?"
She was too smart for her own good.
"She wasn't happy, baby. I think she does just not enough love to stay."
Summer looked at the picture that was clutched in her hand still.
"I made this for Mommy."
He looked at the picture of the two stick figured both colored with pink on the bodies and yellow on their heads. Smiles on the faces. A sun and grass. Some flowers.
"I know, baby."
"She didn't say bye."
"I know."
Her lip quivered. "That's a mean thing to do, Daddy."
He held her against him and rocked her. He kissed her head as he felt her body tremble and heard the few sobs that escaped.
"I know it was. I know it was a very mean thing to do, Summer."
He held her tightly and rocked her. He couldn't believe that Serena had left without even telling Summer goodbye. He would sign the papers and mail them off as soon as he knew Summer was settled. He would work on getting this house on the market too and would move them both somewhere else because he didn't want Summer to be in a home where she knew her Mommy was never coming back to.
Serena, I hope you're happy. You just broke your daughter's heart. I'll make sure she gets all the love that you lacked giving to her. You could've at least said goodbye to her. That's just cruel. Ash thought to himself, but also made a vow to make sure that Summer would grow up knowing love and would hopefully never experience this hurt again.
Please R&R