The first morning in our new place, things were a bit awkward.  Lin and I both had our own rooms, as well as Elliott and Joey.  The little kids shared a room.  None of us were really sure how to act around one another.  We weren't exactly a family.  Lin and I certainly weren't together, but we were in charge of everyone.  We were basically three families mashed into one.

We'd done some basic grocery shopping the day before, so we had cereal and toast for breakfast.  The little kids were up early as usual.  It would be a lazy day, including some unpacking of boxes.  It was most important to get the kids settled first, then we'd deal with our own rooms.

Elliott and Joey still had daggers for each other.  Hopefully after a few days they'd start to relax a little and realize they could exist in the same space and not fight.  Later that morning Lin and I realized we were off to a rough start.

"You're hogging the Wifi!" Elliott accused Joey, standing at her bedroom door.

"Not my fault if I got on first," she told him.  She had her laptop open, along with an iPad and her phone.  Why on earth would she need all three at the same time?

Lin stopped in the hallway.  "Joey?  Do you really need your iPad and your laptop at the same time?"

"Yes!" she told him.  "It's a project for school.  It's not my fault he's too dumb to understand that."

"Josephine, you need to be civil," Lin told his daughter.  "Pick one or the other, or go to the library to work."

She grumbled and switched off her iPad reluctantly.  Elliott stormed back to his room and slammed it shut.  We might have to get a better wireless plan.  We'd underestimated the amount of WiFi teenagers used.

With the teenagers holed up in their rooms, Lin and I busied ourselves with unpacking and watching the kids.  Jack was beginning to crawl, so he had to be watched more closely.  Alex didn't really understand the concept that her little brother could swallow some of her toys, so we had to be vigilant about picking up little parts from the floor.

As the week began, I felt a lot less stress now that we didn't have to worry about trading the kids off.  In reality, there were four people who could keep an eye on Alex and Jack, though we wanted to use the teenagers sparingly.

If we were hoping the transition would go smoothly for Joey and Elliott, we were sorely mistaken.  They were constantly arguing.  On Thursday, Joey informed me that Elliott had thrown some of her clothes out because she'd left them on the floor of the bathroom.  After almost a week of similar incidents, I'd had it with Elliott.  I stormed to his room.

"Give me your phone and your laptop," I told him, holding out my hand.

"Why?" he asked, glaring at me.

"You've been nothing but mean and petty to Joey since we moved in here," I said.  "It's childish and I'm tired of it."

"I told you I didn't want to live with her, and you didn't listen to me."

"That doesn't mean you get to make her life miserable with your little tantrums," I said tersely.  "Phone.  Now."

He stood up and fished for his phone in his pocket.  He slapped it into my palm, then gave me his laptop, then glared at me.  He'd never looked at me like that before.

"I hate you," he told me.  "I'm going to Dad's."

I chuckled humorlessly as he found his jacket in a pile on the floor.  "Is that going to be your answer to everything?  Every time you don't like something, you're gonna run?"

"At least Dad listens to me," he spat.

"Your dad lets you do whatever you want," I countered, following him out of the room.  He stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door loudly.  Jack started screaming in his crib.  Tears welled up in my eyes as I went to the kids' room and picked the crying baby up.  Just like me, he was shaken by the slamming door and the manner in which Elliott left.  I gently shooshed Jack as I swayed him back and forth, crying my own tears.

I didn't hear Lin come in, but suddenly he was beside me, his hand squeezing my shoulder.

"Let me take him," he said softly.  "Go calm down."

I didn't look at him; just handed him the baby and rushed off to my room.  I laid on my bed and cried.  I cried about Elliott; I cried about my failed marriage and my inability to find love; I cried about my friends who had died.

Jack's crying died down and I heard my door quietly open a few minutes later.  I sensed Lin sit on the edge of my bed and put a hand tentatively on my shoulder.

"You okay?" he asked softly.

"It's just everything," I told him.  "Elliott just told me he hated me.  No one loves me and I haven't even had time to mourn my friends who just died.  I'm exhausted and I don't see an end in sight."

He gently rubbed at my upper back, just listening.

"You're doing your best," he told me.  But my best wasn't good enough.  "This is all going to take some adjustment for everyone."

"Has Joey ever told you she hated you?" I asked, looking at him.  He shook his head.  "I never thought I'd hear that come from my own child's mouth.  Maybe we've made a mistake, Lin.  Maybe we should just go back to living apart."

"It's been five days," he reminded me as I sat up.  "The kids are gonna take a while to get used to this.  Give it some time."

"Well, now he's at his dad's.  That's what he does when I tell him something he doesn't like.  Runs to his dad, where he gets whatever he wants."

"We all know you want what's best for Elliott," he tried to reassure me.

"But is this really what's best for him?  Forcing him into a new living arrangement at age sixteen?"

I know he'd been having the same thoughts about Joey.  Both Elliott and Joey were in the same situation.  They were only children of divorced parents.  In both households, they'd been the center of attention.  Now they were having to share it for the first time.

"I worry about that with Joey too," he admitted.  "But I really think it'll be fine if we give it time.  We've had some setbacks, but that's to be expected."

I sighed and tried to cut myself a little slack.  This was difficult for everyone.

"Why don't you go take a walk?  Go hang out at a coffee shop for a while?  I can watch the kids."

He was being so sweet to me.  I'd been nothing but hard-nosed and abrasive, but he was always patient.  In that moment, I was so grateful for Lin.  I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around him.  He let out a little chuckle and hugged me back warmly.  Lin really was a good friend and he was being amazing with the kids.  Maybe I was starting to forgive him a little.

Lin gave me a quick kiss on the cheek before he pulled back.  He was an affectionate guy with everyone, but it threw me off a little still.  I wasn't used to getting kisses on my cheek from guys.

We heard Alex running down the hall, so Lin found her and scooped her up, flying her over his head.  I grinned and found my shoes, then escaped to the coffee shop down the street.  It had such a great vibe.  I ordered a french vanilla latte and a scone, then found a corner to read my book.

I lost track of time, getting engrossed in my book.  Lin texted me later in the afternoon to ask if I could pick up some more milk on the way back.  I shot back that I would and remembered we were low on bread already as well.  I marked my page and stopped at the grocery on the way home.

Lin was getting dinner started so I took the lead keeping the kids entertained.  Jack was in a giggly mood, and Alex was on the floor with him trying to make him laugh.  His little cackle instantly made me feel better.  I grinned as I listened to them play.

As Lin and I both moved around the kitchen when dinner was almost ready, I felt his hand gently touch my hip as he tried to move around me.  I guess we were getting comfortable with each other now.  He'd always touched easily, but for some reason now I was taking notice.

Joey was out for the night, so once the kids were down Lin and I poured some wine and collapsed on the couch, exhausted.  Even with two of us, they ran us ragged.  Lin scrolled through his phone as he sighed.

"Joey has a debate meet tomorrow," he told me.  "We'll both head out around ten."

I nodded, thinking about what I needed to get done tomorrow.  I'm sure Elliott would be at his father's all weekend even though he was supposed to be with me.  If he was going to be nasty and hateful, it was better for him to be away.  I wanted my sweet, thoughtful son back.

"I wish Elliott was more into academics," I mused, sipping my wine.  "I don't know if he'll even get into college."

"What does he want to do?" he asked.

"Professional football," I replied.  "He's good, but I doubt he'll get into the NFL.  Plus, that'll only last a decade or so, then he'll need to have an actual career."

"Sometimes Joey gets a little too intense," Lin told me.   "She about had a nervous breakdown last semester when she got a B+ on her report card."

"Wow," I said.  "If only they could balance each other out."

"Think they'll stop hating each other soon?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"I wouldn't hold my breath," I said.  The drama certainly wasn't dying down.

Just then, the front door opened and Joey walked in, crying.  Lin instantly put his wine glass down and crossed the room.  Joey let him pull her into a hug as she sobbed.  He shooshed her gently as he just let her cry.

"What happened?" he asked after she'd calmed down a bit.

"Elliott and his friends," she reported, glancing over at me.  "They freaking spray painted our soccer field with all sorts of shitty names."

"You're kidding," I said, standing up with my wine glass.  "I'll kill him."

"Are you sure it was them?" Lin asked.

She nodded.  "The posted pictures on Twitter.  They're all proud of it."

"Well then they defaced school property," I told her, crossing my arms.  "The school will be all over it.  And so will I.  Joey, I'm sorry."

She just nodded, then leaned into Lin again for another hug.  He wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on top of her head.  I pulled out my phone and sighed.

"I will call him right now," I told her, finding his name.  Predictably, he didn't answer so I left a strongly worded voicemail.  I immediately called Steven and he of course had no idea what his son had been up to.

"Put him on the phone," I requested.  I walked back to my bedroom and proceeded to tear into my son.  Had he lost his mind?  He could be criminally charged for defacing property.  I couldn't believe he would do such a thing.

"This shows a real lack of maturity on your part, Elliott," I scolded him.

"It was just a joke," he tried to dismiss it, which pissed me off further.

"I've seen the pictures, Elliott," I informed him.  Joey had since pulled them up on her phone.  "None of those words are funny in any shape or form.  Those words are disgusting."

He continued to be dismissive.  I asked him to put his father back on the phone.  I had a brief conversation with him that Elliott needed his phone taken and needed to be grounded for a long time, and that he needed to enforce it.  Steven agreed, but I wasn't sure I believed he'd actually follow through.  I was so angry and frustrated that I went straight to bed.

A while later, I heard a gentle knock at the door.  Lin came in and sat on the end of the bed, sighing.

"How's Joey?" I asked him.

"She'll be fine," he said.  "The school will be on it Monday."

"I'm so sorry Elliott and his friends keep giving them problems," I said, rubbing my temple.  "I don't know why he's still holding a grudge."

"Teenage boys," he grumbled and gave a little chuckle.

"Still," I insisted.  I was honestly embarrassed by how Elliott was acting, and now there wasn't much of an escape.  Our kids lived together.

"Alex and Jack's grandparents just called," he went on.  "They'd like to see the kids next weekend.  Just wanted to make sure that was fine."

"Of course," I said.  A break would be nice.

"Great," he said, patting my leg over the covers.  "I'll let them know.  Have a good night."

I watched Lin leave, pulling the door behind him.  The kids had seen their grandparents twice since the funeral and it had gone well.  They hadn't brought up custody again, so we were hoping they'd officially dropped it.  We of course wanted their grandparents to be involved in their lives but we also knew that Anna and Frank weren't their biggest fans.  They'd chosen us to raise them for a reason.

"Lin?" I called out.  The door pushed open and he poked his head in.  "Thanks for being so awesome about everything."

He gave me a smile.  "Of course.  Night."

I sighed as he closed the door all the way, staring up at the ceiling.  Lin and I would be linked for at least 18 years as co-parents of these two children.  I'd been defensive and bitter at first, but I was starting to open up to the idea that having a little family with Lin wouldn't be the worst thing.