[Early September]
"Well, love it is your first day at a new school and in a new country and… as the new you. I know that it will all be rather strange at first and very different from Park View High, but the new girl will be the centre of attention at first, so just be careful, eh?"
My daughter smiled.
"I know that it will be different, and… well, I'm a different person now as well."
"Just remember that you… well, I don't need to tell you to keep things tucked away when going to the Ba… Toilet, ok?"
Kym smiled back at me. There was very little of Benjamin left for which I was truly thankful. The pair of us had been through the wringer in the past year, and for me, moving back to the country of my birth would allow us to make a fresh start.
“Just remember, no social media, especially photos. We don't want your Mother finding us now that she's out of Rehab…"
"I know, and I will try to keep any exposure down to a minimum."
I gave Kym a hug, and let her go.
"It is my daughter's first day at an English School. They are very different to what she's used to…" I said, hoping to avoid having to give any more details.
"Don't worry, Dan, we've got your back if you want to slope off early?" said Kieran, my deputy team leader.
"Thanks, but no thanks. Kym is almost an adult now, so I should start to treat her like one. I'll leave at five along with everyone else."
I smiled and hoped once again that I’d been convincing, but somehow, I doubted it.
“Kym? Are you home?” I said when I went through the front door to our home.
"In the Kitchen, Dad," came her reply.
I breathed a sigh of relief as I kicked off my shoes and headed for the kitchen.
Kym was sitting at the small table doing her homework.
“Homework already?”
She nodded.
“Yeah. I’m so far behind the others. If I’m going to pass the exams at the end of the year, I have to get cracking. I got a full briefing on how important 'A-levels' are for my future. I knew that what was taught, here would be different, but some of what we did in Maths class today, would not be taught outside second year of college back home.”
That worried me, so I changed the subject.
“How was everyone? Did you make any friends?”
Kym smiled.
"I'm already marked down as a bit weirdo because I'm not on Facebook, WhatsApp or Snapchat, but there is one girl that is nice to me. Lydia was assigned to be my… mentor until I get used to everything. She’s not on Social Media like me, so we are well placed in the weirdo category.”
I chuckled.
I could see the glint in her eyes.
"Just be careful darling. I know that look. You take after your mother in that respect."
“She’s nice and lives just three blocks away.”
“Blocks?”
"Sorry, dad. Three streets away. At the house on the corner where you turn to go to the store."
“Shops?”
Kym sighed.
“As you are forever reminding me, ‘what did supposedly Churchill say?’”
We both laughed.
[10th December]
“Dad…?”
I looked up from the magazine that I’d been reading.
“Yes…?”
"Christmas is coming, and as we didn't celebrate Thanksgiving, I was wondering…?"
I laughed.
“You want to do something special for Christmas, perhaps?”
Kym smiled.
"I was sort of wondering if we could invite Lydia and her mother to come over for Christmas Lunch? They don’t have anyone or anywhere to go so... I thought that it might be kinda nice.”
I put down the magazine.
“Do we need to have a talk?”
“Dad!”
I smiled.
“Things are a lot different, now, aren't they?”
“I know they are but…”
"You like her, and perhaps you feel that she likes you more than as just a friend and neighbour?"
Kym went rather red in the face.
“But…?”
“I know, I know. If I date her I’ll need to tell her.”
“If she hasn’t guessed already that is?”
“What?”
“Could it be that she already knows?”
“How could she?”
I sighed.
“There are signs. You know that, and since you have been spending so much time together studying this term… Well, it would not surprise me if when you tell her, that she says something like 'So?'"
Kym thought for a bit.
"I don't know how I'm going to tell her about me and her. Firstly, that I'm interested in her and that I'm 100% a fake."
Her last words wiped the smile off my face.
“You are most certainly not a fake, my darling daughter. I knew from an early age that you were different. Your Mother did as well but would not accept it. That is all down to your Grandfather. He’s… well, you know how he is. Please remember that he was sued, for firing someone who came out as gay. He lost the case but never accepted the verdict. Even to this day, he won't employ anyone who is openly LGBT. He'll never change, just like your Mother, I'm afraid.”
Kym nodded her head.
"Just be careful, darling. Children can be so spiteful.”
Kym looked oddly at me.
"I was your age, once remember…"
Then I added,
“Just choose the moment and be prepared for it all to go pear-shaped. Good luck!”
Kym hugged me. That was something that my son would never have done.
Kym was late home from school because she was helping out with the School Play that was due to be performed in a week's time. She was assisting with the props and loving it. I thought that it was a good thing that she would be mixing with others outside of lessons.
I was home preparing something for us to eat, then she arrived home when the front doorbell rang.
I wasn't expecting a visitor, so I was surprised to see a woman standing there.
“Mr Robinson? I’m Sharon Dwyer, Lydia’s Mother.”
"Oh? Please come inside it must be freezing out there."
I stood aside and let her come into our home.
“Please go through to the kitchen and take a seat.”
I followed her into the kitchen.
“I’m preparing something for when rehearsals are over. I understand that Lydia has a leading role? Good for her.”
“Thanks”
“Can I get you anything?”
Sharon smiled.
"Not at the moment, thanks. Like you, we'll eat when Lydia gets home."
I sat down opposite her.
“What is it that you want to talk about?”
Sharon didn’t reply for a few seconds.
"Lydia mentioned that Kym had invited us for Christmas Lunch. Is this correct, or has my daughter got the wrong end of the stick as usual?"
Without thinking, I sighed.
“So she's got it all wrong then?" asked Sharon.
“No… No, she hasn’t. I wasn’t aware that Kym had said anything to your daughter. But… she has, so what is done is done, but the invite stands. Kym suggested it to me, but I hadn't finally made up my mind. Trust a teenager to jump the gun.”
“Oh!” exclaimed Sharon.
I sighed again.
"Kym and I would like it very much if you and Lydia were able to come here for Christmas Lunch.”
Sharon smiled.
“We’d love to accept but… I wonder about the relationship between our daughters.”
Her words filled me with dread.
“What… What do you mean?”
It was Sharon’s turn to sigh.
“I know that Lydia is a bit of a loner. I won’t let her use Social Media, so all the 'in' crowd think that she's really weird, so I wonder why your daughter and mine seem to have become close friends."
I managed a small smile.
"Kym is the same. We have our own very personal reasons why I won't let her use Social Media, but they are part of the reason we are living here rather than in Silicon Valley or some other high tech hub in the US.”
Sharon was about to say something but hesitated not once but twice. Eventually, she spoke.
"I can't help thinking that there might be something more than just friendship between them. I've seen how Lydia looks at Kym and… I'm worried."
I knew exactly what she was on about. Kym had the same one when she was with Lydia. It was just something that was part of being a parent.
“Sharon… I know what you mean but would it not be more appropriate to involve the girls? Then we won’t get things wrong or go up the wrong garden path or even worse, jump to totally the wrong conclusions?”
After a bit of thought, Sharon nodded.
“Good. Why don’t you phone Lydia and tell her to meet you here? They’ll have to come past here to get to your home when they leave rehearsals?”
“Eh?”
“Didn’t you know? Kym has been walking Lydia home after rehearsals this past week.”
Sharon’s shoulders dropped.
Then she nodded her head.
Half an hour later, the girls arrived. They had guessed that something was up.
"Come into the kitchen, and there is something to eat," I said.
Neither of them believed my smile. Kym could always see right through me.
There was silence as we all sat around the table. Then Kym said,
"Lydia knows about me, and she's cool.”
Sharon looked at the two girls.
“Knows what? That you are a Lesbian?”
Lydia smiled.
"No, Mam. I'm not a Lessie, and neither is Kym. Kym is Trans."
Sharon seemed shocked.
“What? You are a man?”
"Sharon, Kym is transgender and is transitioning to a woman," I said, hoping to get things straight.
“But…”
“Sharon, Kym has the body of a male but the mind of a woman. It is not that unusual for a Male to Female Transgender person to fancy women. That is the difference between sexuality and gender. Kym started hormone treatment last July, and before you ask, the school knows.”
Sharon could only look at her daughter.
"Mam, it is ok. I'm still a virgin but… we are in love. Something just clicked between us, and we just knew."
“But you can’t be! You are so young?”
"We are Mam, but we know that we want to be together for the rest of our lives."
Lydia held Kym's hand. I could tell that they were in love. I hoped that it would last, but that was in the future.
“Are you going to let this happen?” asked Sharon to me.
"I don't see any reason to stop it. Kym is a sensible girl. She always has been, and because Lydia has accepted that Kym will eventually become a woman at some time in the future. I don't think that we should intervene. They are almost adults. Nearly old enough to vote, to buy a drink and … well, I think that it is time to treat them as adults, don't you think?"
Sharon sat impassively while looking at her daughter.
Lydia used her free hand to hold her mothers.
“Mam, I’m not going to be silly. You are always saying that I’m the sensible one at home.”
"It is not just about us, you know…"
“Oh, you mean Dad?”
At the mention of Lydia’s father, Sharon’s face drained of what little colour it had. She didn’t say anything.
Lydia turned to me and said,
"My father used to work on the Oil and Gas rigs in the North Sea. That was three weeks away and two at home. Those three weeks away were booze-free. When he came home, he would get blind drunk and hit both Mam and me, so we left. That was four years ago. So far, he does not know where we are."
Mentally, I breathed a sigh of relief.
“That’s why we don’t use Facebook or WhatsApp and stuff,” added Lydia.
I managed a smile.
“Much like us in that we don’t want certain people in our family to find us. That is down to their very radical views on the subject of LGBT people. So why don't we let things carry on and see what happens, eh?"
“But what about school and… University?”
"I'm sure the girls will be sensible and keep their young love under wraps while at school. You will do that, won't you girls?"
They both grinned back at us.
“Don’t worry. We know the rules. Coming out as lovers would not be good especially, with the 'in-crowd' at school,” said Kym.
“We can keep things cool until after our exams,” added Lydia.
Sharon still appeared to be unconvinced so I decided to suggest something.
“Why don’t we review the situation before the girls go back to school in the new year? Perhaps seeing them together over Christmas will make you a little happier?”
"But what then? They are both so young?" said Sharon, obviously still not convinced.
“Being young is the right time to make mistakes. You have time to pick yourself and change direction with your life. I know that I made some stupid mistakes when I was their age. We make mistakes all the time in our lives. That is one thing that I have learned these past two years. We came here to start afresh and move on with our lives. I suspect that you and Lydia have done the same.”
I leaned over and gently put my hand on top of Sharon’s. I felt her recoil slightly but then relaxed.
"I'm sure that together we can keep a watching eye out for our daughters. Isn't it good that we know about them and we can be ready to support them in any way we can? I'd far rather be part of their lives than being excluded because, they might think that as 'oldies', we can't possibly understand what they are going through? Don't you agree, Sharon?"
Slowly Sharon nodded her head.
“Good!” I said with hopefully the right amount of confidence in my voice.
“Now about Christmas Day? Are you going to join us for Lunch?”
[Tuesday 3rd January]
"All ready for school tomorrow?" I asked Kym, who seemed a bit down in the dumps.
“I guess so.”
"She won't be far away, you know?"
"I know, but it will be hard."
“I know you can do it. You have your mock ‘A-Levels’ coming up. Won’t that take your mind off her for a bit?”
Kym sat silently for a while.
"Cheer up, darling. In six short months, it will all be over, and you can tell the world about you and Lydia."
“I know that, but it seems an age away.”
I smiled.
“Today is the first day that you have not seen her for two weeks. Perhaps you are suffering a little bit of withdrawal?”
“You mean like a ‘junkie’?”
“Yes, exactly like a ‘junkie’. You have not had your fix of Lydia today. And don’t even think of asking about social media. You know the risks.”
Kym nodded.
[Late morning, Saturday 7th January]
"We aren't feeding the five thousand, you know," I said to Kym as she filled our trolley at the Supermarket.
"Oh, sorry, Dad. I was miles away."
I smiled.
"We have lots to do and only a few hours to do it, and I can't do it all myself, you know?"
Kym just gave me one of those looks that teenagers around the world seem to be able to do at will.
I smiled.
"I was your age once upon a time, believe it or not, so don't go giving me that look, eh?"
Kym managed a smile as we carried on with our shopping.
[Early evening the same day]
"Why don't you go and let our guests in then?" I said as the doorbell rang.
I didn’t need to ask twice.
“Remember about kissing her with the door open!” I called as Kym disappeared.
I need not have worried. Sharon came into the room with a wry smile on her face.
“Young love eh?”
I felt so relieved inside. She seemed to have come around over the holiday. Our daughters had played their part although it was hard at times to stop them even holding hands when out in public.
“Indeed,” I replied.
“Drink?”
Sharon hesitated for a moment but shook her head.
“I’ll limit myself to a glass of wine over dinner if that’s all right with you? I think I got a little drunk on New Year’s eve.”
She had indeed gotten a little drunk, but we'd seen the new year in, at their home, so no one minded very much.
The girls appeared arm in arm. I could tell that we would have trouble prying them apart tonight. Mentally, I sighed. As every day went by, I could see them growing closer and closer. I just hoped for all our sakes, if they did break up then, it would be amicable.
Over dinner, the four of us discussed what was going to happen next. At one point, Sharon said,
“I’ve not seen Lydia so happy in years.”
No one could disagree with that. Then she said,
“But darling… please be careful.”
I prayed that those words would not come to haunt all of us.
[Continued in Part 2]
[Mid June]
“That’s it… I’m done with school,” announced Kym as she returned home after her last exam.
“How did it go?” I asked more out of need than anything else. Her body language told me that she thought that she’d done well.
"Good. No… very good. I did all the questions in less than two hours. That gave me plenty of time to read the question again and then my answer just like you told me to."
“And?”
"I'd wandered a bit off-topic with one but I soon corrected that. Had to write it all out again though."
“Good for you. How did Lydia do?”
“She’s happy. Physics was always her weakest subject. I think that she passed as well.”
“It is more than passing you know?”
“Yeah. The whole GPA thing.”
“GPA’s are worthless here. It is all down to your exam results.”
“All I know is that it is over and I can relax.”
“When is Lydia coming over?”
Kym smiled at me.
“You know me too well Dad.”
“Someone has to look out for my daughter you know.”
She stuck her tongue out at me and disappeared upstairs.
I called out to her.
“Don’t forget that we are seeing your consultant tomorrow.”
“I won’t forget,” came her reply just as she slammed her bedroom door.
Kym had blossomed since we’d escaped the horrors of the rural town in Alabama where we’d lived until a year before. I’d been working nearby aircraft factory when my marriage went to pot. My dear wife decided that she needed more from life and had started playing the field. Her world had come crashing down when she was arrested for solicitation.
Our divorce was messy especially as she'd turned to drink and drugs. The sex was just to pay for her habit. Finding out that her son was wanting to be her daughter was the last straw. It had pushed her over the edge and was rightly sent to jail for one year for a vicious drunken assault on a Police Officer. That was followed by nine months of mandatory rehab.
Our son was by now living as Kym full time. Small towns in the deep south are not the most tolerant of places so we got out as fast as we could. Getting out meant for us that I returned to the land of my birth, England with my daughter. I obtained a job at an engineering company that was located not far from the big BAE plant in Preston. I was an aerospace engineer so it made sense to stick to what I know until Kym… until she setup home on her own or as it seemed likely, with Lydia.
Now that Kym had finished school, she could get on with dealing with her gender issues. Since coming to the UK, she’d been even more determined to become a woman. Her girlfriend Lydia was right behind her. Lydia had only ever known Kym but they’d become inseparable.
We had a small ‘coming out’ party planned for the weekend. It was just going to be Kym, me, Lydia and her mother Sharon and her parents. Both of the girls were now legally adults. As such, Kym was legally beyond the clutches of her mother. Good riddance to bad rubbish.
Kym was due to take her UK Citizenship test in July. Then she could renounce her allegiance to Uncle Sam and be done with the country of her birth. I’d never taken US Citizenship thanks to my skills, getting a Green Card had been relatively easy. Being married for several years to a local before moving to the US also helped.
Now that the girls had time on their hands and were officially free from school, they didn’t hide their relationship from the world. We all knew the risks that it entailed but young love seems oblivious to them. Sharon and I were determined to be there for our children whatever nasties came their way.
It didn’t take long for their affair to be all over the local social media feeds. As long as it remained local, then we were pretty safe.
Sharon was a bit taken aback by my directness about us, but she soon understood that our children came first. When we reached the summit, she gave me a long kiss.
“What was that for?”
She grinned.
“A taste of things to come perhaps?”
When we returned home, we were confronted by our offspring.
“Well? Are you two going out together?” asked Kym.
I looked at Sharon who laughed.
“Not yet so don’t ask when. The two of you are our top priority. Got it?” said Sharon in a way that made it clear that there was no room for any discussion let alone argument.
There was an uneasy silence in the room.
“Look kids, our job is to look after you until you fly the nest. You are about to fledge so just let us be parents for the short time we have left. Yes, you are both adults but you are still living under our roofs so we call the shots, ok?” I said hoping that Sharon was on my side with my laying down of the law.
Grudgingly both Kym and Lydia agreed that we were the bosses.
“Good. Now, what are you two going to do next?” asked Sharon.
“What do you mean Mum?” asked Lydia.
“What I mean, marriage and university or university and marriage?”
“Oh!” remarked Kym.
“Yes, oh!” I said.
Kym looked at Lydia who nodded.
“We’d like to get married first if that is possible,” said Kym.
“Even if it means taking a gap year,” added Lydia.
I smiled at Sharon. She returned one to me.
“Good. Then we are all speaking from the same song sheet.”
Now that the air had been cleared, Sharon and I gave them some space to think about getting married. Both of them knew that we were there should they need help. They kept their distance for almost two weeks.
Sharon and I had regular phone calls just to discuss progress or from our point of view, the lack of it. Lydia and Kym were keeping things very close to their chests so to speak.
We didn’t press them too hard because they were in a form of limbo until their exam results were released. They went everywhere together as if they were glued together. I wasn’t surprised given how hard they had worked to keep their romance a secret while they were still at school.
The level of social media chatter about their relationship went down as the weeks went by. This pleased me no end.
The day of the release of their ‘A’ level results was very nervy in both households. The postman came to ours just before ten in the morning. Kym took the envelope and sat in the kitchen with her phone gripped tightly in her hand. She’d sent a text to Lydia stating that hers had arrived. Now she had to wait for Lydia to get hers delivered. They wanted to open them at the same time.
I’d taken the day off work just in case. Sharon was unable to get away but was ready to be on the end of the phone. Now we waited.
The silence was killing me. Back when I did my ‘A’ levels, the results were posted up on the door to the school and the postal notification would arrive a few days later. Once the initial scrum to see who had failed miserably had died down, a steady stream of former pupils would arrive once they’d got out of bed. Now, it was so competitive.
Kym had one eye on social media. The level of chatter steadily grew as the clock ticked around 11:00. 11:05. 11:10. Then at 11:12, Kym's phone rang.
“Yes. My envelope is here in front of me.”
“No, I have not opened it. Dad is here with me.”
“Ok… Go,” said Kym.
She rapidly tore the envelope open.
“A, A* and a B. you?”
“Dad, Lydia got an A*, B and an A.”
“Well done both of you,” I called out loudly.
“Lydia, be sure to call your mother.”
I left them to talk sweet nothings for a few minutes.
In many ways, I envied them. Then again, I didn’t. The phoney war was over. Now it was dog eat dog when fighting for university places.
Just before three that afternoon, the front doorbell rang. I wondered who it could be. Kym had disappeared to meet up with Lydia and a few of the not-in crowd from school at a local café, and I didn't think that we were expecting any deliveries.
I opened the door, and my jaw hit the floor.
"Where is my son! I want him now, and I'm taking him back to Alabama with me today."
She didn't even wait for an invitation to come in. Before I knew it, she was inside searching for her son. Her son did not exist any longer. Kym was her legal name, and that was that.
“Charlene… Not nice to see you. Please don’t come in.”
Useless words, but they had to be said.
"Well! Where is he? I have a court order signed by Judge Lambert that grants me sole custody of our son. If you don’t comply, I’ll have you arrested for kidnapping.”
She saw that I wasn’t listening.
“Are you listening to me? Listen to me when I’m talking!”
"No, Charlene, I'm not listening. Your court order is useless here. Oh, and our child is legally an adult. You get to be one when you turn eighteen, you know?"
"Rubbish. You always lied to me. That's what drove me to drink. I'm clean now, and I want our son back."
“He’s not here.”
“When will he be back? I have two tickets on the flight to JFK for tonight.”
"Charlene. Do you not get it? Our child is over eighteen. They don't have to go anywhere they don't want to, and that applies to you taking them back to the backwoods of Alabama."
"I want him to tell me that to my face, otherwise he's coming with me."
Charlene dashed past me and went upstairs. I knew that disaster was about to happen, so I ducked out of the front door and called Kym.
'Come on, answer' I said to myself as the phone started ringing.
Eventually, it was answered, by Kym.
“Kym, don’t come home. Your mother has turned up.”
“Yes, I’m serious. Stay with Lydia and stay the hell away from here!”
“Ok, I’ll speak soon.”
Charlene came bounding down the stairs. Her ample breasts, bouncing away like two systems in a state of chaos.
“Where is his bedroom? All I see is a young girls room?”
“Charlene, I’m going to have to ask you to leave right now.”
“I’m going nowhere until I get answers!”
"If that is the case, then go into the kitchen and sit down. There are some things that you need to understand."
"What is there to understand? Judge Lambert issued a court order granting me sole custody of my son."
I took a deep breath before saying,
“He does not exist anymore. I no … We no longer have a son.”
“What? Are you saying that he’s dead?”
"No, Charlene. I'm not saying that. Benji is now Kym, my daughter."
“You pervert! You paedo! What have you done to my baby?”
“I have done nothing to Kym. She’s a transexual.”
Charlene glared at me.
I knew that look. I'd seen it many times before. Mostly that look was followed by a tirade of abuse, both verbal and physical.
“Don’t give me that look of bewilderment, Charlene. I know that you know what the word ‘transexual’ means. You spent god only knows how many hours picketing the State House to stop them from using female bathrooms.”
I grabbed a photo of Kym and Lydia. It had been taken when we all went on a trip to Blackpool Pleasure Beach at Easter.
"This is what your daughter looks like," I said, handing it to her.
“Who is that?” asked Charlene pointing at Lydia.
“That is Lydia. They are going to get married.”
“No, they aren’t. I have to give my permission!”
“Sorry Charlene, Kym is now eighteen years old and is an adult under the laws of this country.”
Charlene glared at me.
“You have zero say in what Kym is going to do with her life.”
“Benjamin is my son, and I demand to see him!"
“Charlene… Please get it through your thick head that Kym is her name. She changed it legally just after we came here. Then it is up to Kym. If she wants to see you, then fine. If not, then you can go back to Hicksville on the next flight. She knows that you are here."
“Where is he? I demand to see him!”
"Stop right there, Charlene. Kym has chosen to be live as and be identified as a woman. She not he. I fully support her decision, by the way. She told me about her desires while you were in jail. I'm surprised that the court thought that you were suitable to be a parent again. Oh wait! If it was Judge Lambert, who signed the order, then it does not surprise me, after all, he is your cousin, isn't he?"
"That's not the point! I demand to see my son, and I'm going to take him with me back home."
I shook my head.
"I'm afraid not. You received some bad legal advice. Once you were sentenced to jail, I went to the federal court and obtained sole custody of our son. Federal court trumps a county or a district court does it not?”
I went into the front room and found a copy of the court order giving me custody of our son.
“Here you are. I’d advise you to get on your way before I call the Police.”
Charlene went even redder in the face.
Just then, the front door opened and in walked Kym, Lydia and her mother, Sharon.
“Who’s this then? Your bit on the side?”
“Charlene, please shut up. This is Lydia and her mother, Sharon. Sharon is not my bit on the side, as you so crudely put it. We are not married. I was not like you in that I didn't have affairs with married people. How many marriages did you destroy? Four, or was it five?"
"Do you know about my son?" asked Charlene, who was still glaring at Sharon.
"I do, and I have known for months. I want my daughter to be happy, and Kym does that."
“Benjamin is his name. Benjamin Dale Justin.”
"Sorry, Mom. I changed my name legally months ago," said Kym.
“I bet you had a fun time convincing a judge that you were a woman?”
"Charlene… Stop right there. If you are not going to be civil to us, then you are to leave this instant."
“I’m not going anywhere without my son!”
"I've had enough of this. Mom, you are worse than when you were drunk all the time," said Kym.
"Don't you talk to me like that? I'm still your mother!"
“No, you are not!" said Kym, almost shouting.
"You ceased to be that when you allowed your boyfriend Rudi Graham to try to rape me while you were passed out, downstairs!"
A silence fell over my kitchen.
“Lies, all lies.”
"Not lies. The truth. You were so drunk that he went and did the same to you after he failed with me."
“Where was I when all this was happening?” I asked Kym.
"You had come back here for your Mum's funeral."
Things started to fall into place. Charlene would only have had a man come to the house if I wasn’t around to mess things up for her.
That was it… She had to go.
“Charlene, I think you should leave right now. It is clear that Kym wants nothing whatsoever to do with you now and in the future.”
Charlene glared back at me.
“Sharon, can you find something for the girls to eat while I take this unwelcome visitor to the airport and make sure that she gets on the flight back home.”
"My pleasure, love," she replied smiling.
“Love! I knew it. You are having an affair!”
“Charlene, we aren’t married, and besides, the term 'Love' is a term of endearment in this part of the world. It does not mean that were are lovers or even in a relationship. Didn’t you learn anything when we lived here?”
Then I added,
"Don't answer that. Charlene, we are leaving right now."
I grabbed her arm with one hand, my wallet and car keys with the other. I literally frogmarched her out of the house and into my car. For once, she shut up.
“Where is your ticket?”
Charlene started to say something but stopped herself. Instead, she opened her handbag and pulled out a ticket.
One glance at it told me that she'd been lying. Her flight to Atlanta was not until the next day, and that it was from London.
"Put your seatbelt on. There is a long drive ahead of us."
“Where are you taking me?”
“To a hotel near Heathrow. Then I’m going to put you on that flight tomorrow. After that, I never want to see you again. Understand?”
She didn’t reply but nodded her head.
“Good.”
There was silence in the house. Kym must be at Lydia’s home.
I could have gone to her home but, to be honest, I was exhausted. I'd not slept much that night. I was making sure that Charlene didn't do a runner. I just didn't trust her even though I had her passport and ticket in my possession. To my eternal relief, once we'd gotten into our hotel room, she sat silently and drank most of a half-bottle of scotch. Then she passed out. I felt both ashamed and sad at what the person I had once loved had become. I'd put her under the shower for almost ten minutes that morning just to wake her up.
Charlene didn't say much but, she let me get her checked in for the flight and then into the queue for security. I stood back and watched her go through the scanner. That was it. I could do no more. Just to cap it all, my drive north had not been enjoyable. Heavy summer rains made the roads more like swimming pools than anything else.
“Kym? Is that you?”
“No, it is me.”
I relaxed. The voice belonged to Sharon.
“There you are,” she said quietly as she walked into the front room.
"Hello," I said, still half asleep.
“You look like shit.”
“I feel like it.”
“Has she gone?”
"I think so. I watched her go through airport security. That's all I could do."
Sharon came and sat beside me. She put her arm around me and gave me a big hug.
“Where’s Kym?” I said, suddenly aware that Sharon was alone.
"She's with Lydia. Lydia has not let her go since she told us about the attempted rape.”
“She’s in good hands.”
"Thanks, Sharon. To have her come visiting was the last thing that we needed."
“Shhhhh. Just relax.”
Then she kissed me gently. Gradually, I relaxed and fell asleep again.
"Morning, sleepy," came a voice from my side.
I opened my eyes and saw that I was in my bedroom. Sharon was lying beside me.
“How… How did I get here?”
Sharon laughed.
“The kids helped me carry you upstairs.”
"How is Kym?" I asked as I tried to sit up but, Sharon forced me back down onto my back.
"She is fine. Lydia has been caring for her. They are even closer than ever if you ask me."
Once again, I tried to get up. Sharon was most insistent that I didn’t move.
“I have to go to work!”
"No, you don't. I called in and told your boss that you have just had a surprise visit from your ex. He told me to tell you that you don't have to go to work until Monday."
I made a mental note to thank Jerry on Monday. He’d gone through what was compared to mine, the divorce from hell.
“Just relax and let me look after you. That is what Doctor Sharon is ordering.”
I looked at her and smiled.
“Thank you.”
Then she leaned over and kissed me.
“It is our time, isn’t it?” she whispered in my ear.
“Sharon… There is something that you need to know about me.”
“Shut up and relax. I know about how Kym found out about your secret. She told me last night. It all made sense.”
“What all made sense?”
“The close bond that you and Kym have.”
“But?”
“Close your eyes and relax. I want to get to know 'her', but in your own time."
“Are you sure?”
"I said so, didn't I? When they are off at university, it will be the perfect time for us to get to know each other a lot better."
I didn’t reply right away.
"I'm not like Charlene, you know. She is a right POS. You deserve someone far better than her in your life, and I'd like to volunteer."
Those were the last words I heard as I fell asleep again.
“Feeling better?”
“Yeah. Lots.”
"Good. Kym and Lydia are in the kitchen cooking up something great to eat. I don't know about you, but I'm famished."
I smiled back at her, thinking that Sharon was a good woman and one that I'd be proud of having in my bed on a nightly basis.
“You certainly know a way to someone’s heart.”
“You can blame our children for bringing us together.”
“That’s true, so very true.”
Sharon let me get up to take a shower but only for a minute. Then she joined me. That was something that Charlene would never have done.
It seemed that both of our lives had come together in a way that I’d never thought possible when we left the USA.
[the end]
[authors note]
All you need to legally change your name in the UK is to sign what is called a legal instrument called a ‘Deed Poll’. Much simpler, and cheaper than going before a court.