Shifting Tides

Unexpected changes split up the Toss Family.

 

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Chapter 7: Shifting Tides

 

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Dear Journal:

 

It had been three months since we destroyed the Human Ranches. Without Aeris C it would not have been possible. Fin, Gina, Hannah and her father Kevin left for Little Rock and Katrin returned to New York with Jenna, who was alive again. Celes accepted a job at a Hospital and left with her as well. Tom and his new wife Marina decided to stay in Boston until the birth of her baby and Zeke returned to Texas to protect the border. Midas also returned to Kyomora with the child Katrin bore him, though he has become preoccupied with the war.

 

I came back in time to find out several locals wanted to run for office. I knew that my random lifestyle wouldn’t allow for a proper re-election campaign so I resigned as mayor of the city. No one was surprised and thankfully, the press didn’t do a follow up. The Documentaries done before ensured that.

 

You’d think that after all that I’d have time for real life. Like that would ever happen...

 

--Ted

 

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“Oh, there you are.” I said after finding dad in his home office. “Mom wanted to talk to you about something.”

 

“Where is she now?” He asked.

 

“She…went to get Serenity from upstairs.” I said carefully. Dad regarded me a moment before shutting off the computer.

 

“Is Ann around?” He asked.

 

“She went out with the twins somewhere.” I replied.

 

“That makes this easier, then.” He said as we went to Mom’s office to wait.

 

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“Doctor Hart, this is Terra Ortiz.” I said into the phone. “I’m calling for the results of my pregnancy test.”

 

“Of course,” The doctor replied. “Is your husband present?”

 

When I heard her say that I knew what the result was. “No, but its ok,” I replied.

 

“Your suspicions were correct, Terra.” She said. “You’re pregnant.” That’s all I heard before killing the call. Pregnant again? I’m Pregnant again?! What the hell?! This is not going to go over well with what I have to talk with Ted about already…

 

--

 

“I have to admit I was getting a little worried.” I said as Terra came into the room with Serenity. Mark Anthony sat on the couch opposite the window. “I thought something really serious happened to you.”

 

“That’s…what just happened, Ted.” She replied. “Though not in the sense of something dangerous.”

 

“Well, whatever it is, you can tell me when you’re ready.” I said. “Mark Anthony said you wanted to talk about something.”

 

Yes,” She replied. “And here it is—we’re done. I’m getting us divorced.”

 

“Huh?!” Mark Anthony replied in shock.

 

“To be honest, I never expect you to be who wanted out.” I replied, not sure if I should cry or be mad. “After all the stuff Ann had to deal with over the last year and Celes having a baby, I was almost convinced she’d want to end the marriage.”

 

“You were married to both of them?” Mark Anthony gasped. I held up my hands. On each ring finger was a wedding band. Etched on the inside of one was “Terra”, the other “Ann”. “Whoa…my dad’s a bigamist…”

 

“Not anymore.” Terra replied. “And don’t you go telling anyone any of this. It’s not to be spread around.”

 

“Dad, are you in there?” I heard Celes say from the hallway.

 

“Me and Terra are in the middle of something.” I replied.

 

“Mom’s on the phone and wants you to take me to get some things for Aeris.” Celes replied. “She left money in an envelope in your office.”

 

“We’ll talk about it when I’m done.” I replied. When her footsteps faded the conversation continued.

 

“Ted, I’m not doing this over irresolvable differences.” Said Terra. “I love you and I know you love me and our kids. This marriage has just run its course is all. When we agreed to this we knew one day it would end.” I pressed my hands to my temples to stop tears I felt coming. Of course I knew it was inevitable but that wasn’t making things easier.

 

“Do you have a plan?” I asked. “On where you will go from here, I mean.”

 

--

 

“I accepted a job as principal of a high school in Seattle.” I replied. “They’re covering plane tickets for me, Mark Anthony and Serenity, too.”

 

“That’s…that’s…” Ted sputtered.

 

“Don’t worry, you’re their father.” I replied. “I’m leaving you to decide how you want to that.”

 

“They’ll be on the other side of the country.” Ted finally managed to say. “Unless Mark Anthony made a way for the distance to be short…”

 

“If there’s a way, I’ll find it.” He said. “I haven’t met a crossing I couldn’t cross.”

 

“Then we’ll leave it to you, then.” Ted replied with a grin. “Let’s go about making this official then, huh?”

 

--

 

“WHAT?!” I exclaimed when I heard the news. “And I thought mom was gonna be the one to call it quits.”

 

“I know, I know.” Katrin said over the phone. “It’s nothing personal, just time to call it quits.”

 

“Still, ending a marriage and moving all the way to Seattle...” I replied. “I wonder what’s going on with her.”

 

“You’ve got me.” said Katrin. “What I do know is it frees up space at Mom and Dad’s place.” After ending the call I went in the living room and picked up the family picture we took after Aeris and the twins were born. Next to it was a picture of Serenity after her birth and me and Katrin holding Ilana and Nick.

 

“Who was that?” asked Gina as she came into the room wearing her bathrobe.

 

“It was Katrin.” I said without looking up. “Terra and Dad are splitting up.”

 

“And I thought it would’ve been your mom to call it off.” Gina replied. “I hope everything will be ok.”

 

“I’m sure they’ll be fine.” I said after finally putting the pictures down. “It’s you that I’m really worried about.” I regarded her in her bathrobe. She’d recently gone on leave to prepare for the birth of our child and that was exactly what hadn’t been done yet. She didn’t want to induce labor since the baby wasn’t late and I didn’t push the issue—it was for her to decide, not me.

 

“I’m fine, and so is our baby.” She replied as she let her robe fall to the floor. I expected to see her naked but she wore the sea green maternity bikini she picked up at Wal-Mart a few weeks ago. “I know waiting is hard but we’ve been waiting almost 40 weeks already. I’m sure the baby wouldn’t mind, either.”

 

“Let’s just hope were not stuck on the highway somewhere when our kid decides to be born.” I said as I carried her into our bedroom. “People like to stare at parked cars so we’d have no privacy.”

 

“Then let’s hope that never happiness.” Gina replied as she took a stethoscope and warmed it with her hands. She put them on my ears and the other end on her bare belly. I was entranced by the sounds and movements of our unborn child. I looked Gina in the face and grinned.

 

“I hope you don’t mind but we’re going to have a lot of kids.” I said jokingly. “One is never enough and I know not even you can enjoy just one.”

 

“Well, you got me there.” She replied. “How does a dozen sound?”

 

“That’s perfect!” I said. “We’ll have to work out how close we want their birthdays to be with each other but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there!”

 

---

 

“Thanks for making arrangements on such short notice.” I said as I signed the check for the new house I was buying in Brooklyn, New York. “You have no idea how fast I had to do this.”

 

“Anything for celebrities, my lady!” The real estate agent. “I used to watch you on TV when you were on American Idol.”

 

“Please, don’t remind me.” I replied in disgust, clearly embarrassed. “I thought turning down the fame and fortune would help me regain some privacy but I see now that I have a ways to go.”

 

“Eh, don’t worry about it.” The man replied. “This may be a surprise but yours truly is the second-most powerful Real Estate Agent in New York City, second only to Donald Trump. I get my fair share of Paparazzi every week and I know how it feels.”

 

“I never would have guessed.” I said after the purchase was approved. “I guess what they say is true—people loose their right to privacy when they become well-known. OJ Simpson and Michael Jackson proved that even if you make an a*s of yourself, people want to know about it.”

 

“Here’s hoping your dad’s last wish as Mayor of Boston becomes law.” The agent replied. “Paying people to keep people out of your business ain’t exactly cheap.” Taking the keys to the new 2-story house, I went to the Home Depot to make copies and then to my old house to pack up. Having completed Grade School, Celes found a job in Brooklyn as an EMT. Since Terra was moving to Seattle and Celes was going to be living with me in New York, Mom and Dad decided to close up the house and move to the family home in Springfield, MA.

 

Alex was asked to lead the Faith Watchers of New York City and Aeris was coming as well. Add Jenna to that and my tiny home in Queens would never work for so many people. “We got the house.” I said as I threw Jenna the keys I just made. “Give Alex and Celes the new address so we can start moving things in.”

 

“Will do.” She replied as she went back into the house. “What have you got planned?”

 

“I need to see my better half.” I replied as I rose into the air and flew west. “With any luck I’ll be able to get Hannah’s dad to help, too.”

 

---

 

“I can’t believe everyone thought it would’ve been me!” I said with a laugh when I heard the news. “Sure, Terra’s younger and has four less children than me but I wouldn’t even think of divorcing him.”

 

“I’m afraid to ask why…” Angel replied. “It’s all so sudden…”

 

“I am sure we’ll be able to work things out.” I said. “With Celes and Aeris moving to New York we’ll be able to move to our house on the other side of the state. I’ve missed so much time that I have decided to resign from my job at City Year and get a new career in Springfield.”

 

“That means there’s nobody left who works in City Year.” Angel said. “And I thought it was going to be family tradition…”

 

“Doing City Year as a Corps Member is the tradition.” I replied. “Me, Ted, Terra, Fin, Gina and Katrin all did City Year at one point. Celes will be doing it in New York and chances are Mark Anthony will do it in Seattle.”

 

“Can I do City Year?” She asked.

 

“Sure,” I replied. “Where would you like to do it?”