Her folks had been separated for well over a year.
If nothing else, it was amicable. She would go between the two of them. Two weeks with mum at their original house; two weeks with dad in his flat. It had all been arranged that way at the time of the divorce. Her school sat somewhere between the two homes. The short walk to school was much the same from either home. She had her own bedroom in each. Being in her early teens meant that she understood what was going on. Seeing that her parents were perfectly happy with the way things turned out made it easy for her to settle into a new routine. Within no time she found that being shared came naturally.
It was one of those times when they all got together for an evening. She looked forward to those occasions because for that short time they were a family again. She loved them both and she found these simple outings reassuring. This time they all met up at the local pizza place. They sat with their drinks for a while before ordering. It was then that her father brought the subject up, and she could see by her mother’s smile and occasional nods that they’d already talked about their proposal. He said that although they were happy with the current arrangement they felt that they should at least offer her the idea that she now just live with one of them. This, they both made clear, would be entirely dependent on her choice.
A little surprised at the idea, she being level-headed beyond her years, suggested she think about it for a few minutes. They both agreed that she could take weeks or months even, to think it over, there was no hurry. They only wanted what was best for her. She pointed out that a few minutes was all she needed. That being settled, they picked up the menus and began discussing options.
Her father always went for the spicy stuff with pepperoni his favourite. Her mother didn’t like the hot topping and regularly chose pineapple.
Having chosen their pizzas, they asked what she would like.
“I’ve thought about it very carefully,” she said with a smile, “I’m going for a pepperoni and pineapple topping.”