My Ex-Bestfriend

Fall

Time is moving twice as fast since Michael has folded himself into our lives that I am shocked it is already fall, my secret favorite time of year. I would never publicly admit it to anyone how much I love the leaves changing, sweater weather, and yes everything pumpkin flavored because as much as I like to think I am not like every other basic girl....when it comes to fall I am.

I truly never thought this time of year could get any better until now Michael gets to be a part of the festivities and for some reason it feels right. We get to, for the first time ever, do matching family Halloween costumes. Yes, it's unbelievably cheesy but I have to admit that I have always been jealous of the matching family costume posts on social media. This year I am Princess Peach, Michael is Mario and of course Walt wanted to be Luigi. We attend all the overpriced ridiculous fall festivals, pumpkin patches etc and take a million "family photos" to make up for lost time.

I can tell that Walt is opening up more and more to his dad as they grow more comfortable around one another. I don't know why seeing Michael be a phenomenal dad to Walt melts the ice around my heart towards him. It reaffirms that Michael is a good person and good people can make mistakes too.

Michael still helps with school drop off but his nights have been busy with training for tryouts. However, even with his schedule he still keeps Walt a priority. Tyler  has been flying in when he can to help but if he can't then I step in to assist with the training schedule. It feels like the old days when I use to help coach Michael to make varsity. We would do drills and play one on one for hours. It's a different element now with Walt who stares in awe from the sidelines. Michael always saves time at the end of each session to coach Walt too. It is in those moments that I feel lucky to have Michael in our lives.

With his new training regiment Michael's muscles have become even more defined and chiseled like a beautiful work of art that begs to be touched or admired however, I have refrained. That locker room kiss has been our only romantic contact since and it needs to be kept that way because there is way too much up in the air, for both of us. We are not in highschool anymore. Another relationship failure can cause backlash for Walt and I love him too much to cause him any more pain.

Due to all of Michael's help with Walt I have been knocking out some major news pieces that caught the attention of the New York Times. I still can picture exactly what I was doing when I got a call from a recruiter to do an interview for them. I am not sure yet if the job will allow me to work remote but I can't pass up the opportunity to interview. It's the stuff of my dreams. I haven't mentioned it to Michael yet because unlike his tryouts, my situation is not a sure thing.

I am certain  Michael will land a contract from at least one of the NBA teams. Tyler has assured me that the scouts were in a frenzy when they found out he was cleared to play and training harder than ever. Unfortunately though with the NBA there is no telling which team he will end up on.

I am thrilled for him and this opportunity however the closest training center for the team he wants is 6 hours away. Not ideal for our current co parenting situation. There is no way I am pulling Walt from yet another school to start over again. He is thriving at All Saints. Not to mention his best friend Martin and his basketball team are all here. Starting over for Michael means things here would have to end and I can't sacrifice Walt's happiness. I WON'T sacrifice his happiness no matter how lucrative the deal is.

Even such I can't stomp on Michael's dream right now either. It feels like the same inner turmoil I struggled with when I was in college debating to tell Michael about Walt.  Regardless this time I need to get all my ducks in a row which is why I contacted the lawyer Rodrigo gave me. I want to know how it could look to have full custody, how likely it is if there is push back, and how to go about it. I haven't committed to anything yet but I don't want to be caught off guard if Michael expects me to up root our lives for his career. The lawyer gave me a stack of paperwork and it has since remained in the bottom of my bag as I am too anxious to even pull them out to review. I'll get more serious about it when there is an official ruling on what team Michael will end up on.