Page 11 of Can We Just Be Happy Now?

“Thank you, sweetie,” Melissa says, reaching past me to turn off the water.

“You’re welcome.” I put on my best smile for Cooper’s mom.

“Do you think your mom will trade you for one of the boys? They never do my dishes.”

“Boys are useless.” I laugh.

“But we love them anyway, don’t we?”

“Yeah, we do.” Tears float on my eyes, betraying my attempt to hide my chaos of emotions out of nowhere. I don’t know how much she knows about Cooper and me, and I’m not sure what this conversation is actually about, but I don’t think we are talking about dishes.

She runs her thumb across my cheek. “You know I love you like a daughter, right, Sophie?”

I nod, afraid if I speak, I’ll cry.

“I hate seeing you two this way.”

“Me too,” I admit. Part of me feels like I am partially responsible for how things are right now, but I don’t want him to think he can get off that easily when he messes up. Still, “It sucks,” I add in a whisper, the tears finally draining from my eyes.

Leaning her hip against the gray slate counter, she reaches to tuck a curl behind my ear. “Did your mom ever tell you about the time we almost stopped being friends?”

My eyes widen as I swipe away the emotion from under them. “What? No. I don’t remember that.”

“I think you were five or six. Cooper was in third grade. Mike and I almost got divorced.”

“You did? But you two are perfect together.”

“Nothing is perfect, Sophie.”

“Well, you make relationships look easier than everyone else–like you’re the exception.”

She gives me a soft smile then confides, “When Mike lost his job, he struggled a lot–to the point where it negatively affected me and the boys. He was depressed and didn’t look for a job. He stopped taking care of himself. He felt so much pressure to take care of us that he was crippled by the anxiety of it.”

I can’t picture Mike that way. He’s owned a successful business for as long as I can remember. He works harder than anyone I know. “What happened?”

“I was going to take the kids and leave him.” My stomach knots just at the thought of what life would have been like if Cooper and I hadn’t been neighbors our whole lives.

“But you didn’t.”

“No, I didn’t. I decided to choose us over choosing me. I recommitted to what I knew in my heart–that Mike was the person I wanted to love for the rest of my life, no matter what. Best decision I ever made next to marrying him in the first place.”

“How did you know he was the one?”

“Besides my uncontrollable urge to stalk him at college?” She laughs. “Sophie, the one doesn’t just magically exist. Yes, there’s chemistry and commonality and all that. But you choose who the one is. Once you choose them, you have to continue to choose them every day, every season–no matter how hard it is. It’s not just a one-time thing where you decide then hope things stay easy and hold a grudge when it’s not–not only with whoever you date, but friends too.

“The true test of any relationship isn’t an outside situation putting strain on you. The true test is your ability to decide that when things inevitably happen ‘to your relationship’ it’s not a sign you aren’t meant to be together. It’s to show you how strong you can be together.”

Am I being too petty and turning my breakup with Cooper into a way bigger deal than it should be? Should I have at least tried to work through things with him instead of apart? Denial pushes the thought aside. “Wait, what does this have to do with my mom?”

“She’s the one who talked me out of leaving.”

“And you were mad at her for that?”

“Pride is a funny thing, sweetie. I thought I knew what was best for me. I thought my way was the only right way, and I was mad at Diane for telling me otherwise.”

I can’t imagine my mom and Melissa not being friends. They’ve been as close as sisters since they ended up neighbors the month before Dean was born.

“But all your mom wanted was the best for me. After everything she's been through, she knew that what Mike and I were going through was there to remind us how meant to be we are–that this wasn’t something critical enough to break us. It wasn’t like both of your parents’ first marriages. It also made me realize I felt the same about your mom. We’re stronger together because we have each other’s back even when the other person can’t see clearly. The intention was for her to help me through this, but in turn, it was a test of our friendship. It showed me that we can disagree on things and still be friends. Sometimes I’m right and sometimes she’s right, but it doesn’t matter who’s right. It matters if you have someone who loves you enough they are willing to stand up to you when it’s in your best interest.”

---