The morning light streamed in as Maddie Evans turned to look at the clock. It was only seven, and she had been awake past midnight celebrating the New Year. It was another year, and Maddie needed to make some changes. Last year, truthfully the last few years, she had been in a rut. Snoring interrupted the quiet of the morning. Steve was still sound asleep beside her. She slid out of bed, careful not to disturb him as she needed some peace to start her day.

When she walked into the bathroom, her sorry reflection greeted her. How had she gained so much weight? She knew she had been packing on the pounds for a few years. Recently she'd been buying new clothes intending to mask her enlarged belly. Oversized shirts had become her norm with pants that became tighter every day. She decided the first change for the New Year would be to lose weight.

She had this resolution before, but this year she had to succeed. At only five-three, her current weight put her just below the obese range. How had that happened? She knew the responsibility was hers, but the lump in her bed hadn't helped. Even the night before, she had overeaten at dinner. She was so full she didn't want to celebrate the New Year properly. Truthfully she had grown to hate sex. She was too fat and preferred to keep her shirt on. Her boyfriend, Steve - at thirty-seven was boyfriend the right word? Steve had his share of excess weight, and each time sex ended up the same. Maddie had to climb on and climb off while he just laid there and grunted. Maddie's sex life comprised of her giving more than she ever received. That was it, she thought, a second resolution, no more unfulfilling sex, which probably meant no sex at all, ever.

That left her with one big, by big she meant a six-foot and over two hundred pound problem, named Steve. They had been dating for three years, but she had no intention of marrying him. If she had ever considered it, the looks of pity from his ex-wife were enough to confirm she'd be making a big mistake. Steve liked to complain about his ex a lot, but truthfully Maddie secretly thought he was overreacting. To achieve her two resolutions, she needed to dump Steve. She instantly had some concern about being alone at thirty-seven, but the more she considered it, she realized that alone was just what she needed.

When Steve came into the kitchen, Maddie was starting her year with a healthy cup of green tea. "Ah my back's killing me, but hey you were awesome last night."

Maddie cringed and thought, no I wasn't and neither were you.

"Where's the coffee?" He loudly passed gas and seemed unfazed by it.

"I didn't make any and listen, Steve, we need to talk..."

Rory Harris woke on New Year's Day to the smell of bacon cooking. She looked around the room she was sleeping in. Technically, it was hers, but it was at her grandparents, Mimi and Pop's house. She had lived there with her mother until she was six when her mother married Jack, her step-father. He was technically her father, because he adopted her after the wedding. Her mother was eighteen when Rory was born, and her real father was gone. Mimi had told her, he took off the minute the little strip turned positive. Now her mother was gone too. She hadn't wanted to leave her, but the accident took her. Mimi always said Mom was in heaven watching over them. Rory really wanted to believe that, but it was hard.

She had been staying at Mimi, and Pop's since Christmas and had to go home. She hated home. She hated it before Mom died, but even more after. She hated her school where all the kids were snobs. They were perfect and smart, while she wasn't either of those. She didn't really hate Jack, but she needed to hate someone and she couldn't hate her mother. Mom was her best friend. She had named her Rory after the character from Gilmore Girls, not Lorelei, just Rory and they were supposed to be just like them - well except they had Jack and her baby sister, Emma too. Now her dreams of being best friends with Mom were over, and Mimi said she had to love and protect Emma because that was what big sisters did.

Jack and Emma came and stayed for lunch. Mimi had wanted to take Emma for the week, but Jack had said Rory should have a special visit. That was why she couldn't hate him. When they arrived, Mimi fussed over both of them.

"Jack dear, you need to be taking care of yourself. Look, your sleeve is frayed."

Rory knew that he wore that shirt because Mom had bought it for him. It was her last gift to him - except for Emma.

Mimi visited with Emma while Pop talked about football with Jack. Rory just sat and watched. Jack turned to her. "Hey kiddo, did you have fun this week? I missed you a bunch."

Did he not know that she was fourteen? She wondered sometimes.

"It was good. Mimi had fun."

Driving home later, Emma was asleep in her car seat in the back. Jack interrupted the silence. "Listen, Rory, we need to talk..."

Jack Harris saw in the new year alone. Rory was at her grandparents' and had been since Christmas. Man, he missed that kid - even the sad and miserable kid she had become. Despite her being gone all week, he still worried about her, because that was what he did. Emma, his nineteen-month-old, was tucked in bed. Ironically, she was the happiest of the three. She didn't miss what she never knew. He could have sent her with Rory and gone out with his best friend. He could have gotten drunk, but that would only lead to regret and more sorrow. Besides, going out would require a decision and Jack had spent the last year and a half avoiding decisions. Too many decisions led to his miserable fate.

Oddly enough, his therapist pointed out, the lack of decision making was technically a decision. Every day as he claimed not to be making decisions, he made them by choosing what to make for dinner - chicken nuggets or mac and cheese or pasta. The list was longer than that, but not more enticing.

Looking around, he saw a house that had stopped being a home. It needed a good cleaning, but he never got around to it. He had stopped the house cleaner after Nicole - after she died because he couldn't stand the sympathy and pity. The house was too big and full of memories and dreams that were not to be. They had only lived in this enormous house for six months before the accident, but Nicole had loved every inch. Rory hated living here, and she hated her school and the town. She made sure Jack knew it almost every day. When Rory had complained to Nicole, she had told her to give it time. Jack thought somehow time hadn't helped.

Perhaps his first decision should be that his New Year's resolution was to make decisions again. When he woke on New Year's Day, early, to the sound of Emma babbling through the monitor, he took a moment to be thankful for her. She was his sunshine in the darkness, Rory too. Taking his first sip of coffee, he looked around the custom kitchen Nicole had loved. He would never use two ovens or the grill top. It hit him suddenly what they really needed, at least he and Rory needed was to get rid of this house. The next decision was, where would they go?

When he went to pick up Rory, he was so glad to see her but tried to be chill. Was that a word kids still used? Although she meant well, he always felt smothered by his mother-in-law. In the car, he took a deep breath.

"Listen, Rory, we need to talk..."