A Love You Could Wish For

Chapter 1

A woman came home to her hungry children, whom were thin and wide-eyed, expecting her to come in with a food of some kind.
She placed food she had bought on the table, and her children began to ate, ravishing the bags like barbarians. Screaming, yelling, pushing one another away from the bags until the right food was in the right hands, making them settle down.
It was about 5pm, and the woman was tired. She knew her husband would be home in 2 hours, and would demand a homecooked meal in which the children wouldnt eat - as it was always some odd sort of meat like liver paired with some sort of liquor - and then sit on the couch until he has had enough to drink.
She decided that, until then, she would try to get the children to play some sort of game.
With her arms weighing heavy, she sat down with her children. Bags under her eyes, she watched them as they ate, waiting to tell them they were going to play a game of cards.
Once she did, they exploded in excitement! One, the oldest, suggested a game of Rummy. Another, the middle child, suggested Uno. The youngest asked for Go Fish. The trio fought for a few moments, and the mother, obviously used to these antics, only sat there and waited for the three to decide among themselves who's game they'd play first.
Go Fish was the winner. After that, they bickered once more, and decided upon Rummy, and then Uno.

They played until their father came through the door, and he loudly set his bag on the floor, letting everyone in the apartment know he was home.
"Hey, it's Daddy!" The three yelled, putting their cards down and, almost comically, ran towards their father.
He laughed and hugged each one of them, and the mother went into the kitchen without a word.
The two had been fighting for some years now, maybe since the youngest of the boys had been born, and the love simply wasn't there. They tried to avoid each other and simply stay together to avoid custody battles and monetary issues that come with divorce. They would have lived in separate houses, but didn't want their children to worry.
So instead, they tolerated one another.
They were both aware of the other cheating, as they've heard "I'm going out with a friend" so many times that they've almost grown tired of the informal phrasing.
But still, they know they'd stay with each other to avoid the issues of divorce. Perhaps, eventually, they'll love one another again.
"I just started your dinner!" The mother exclaimed from the kitchen as he was dragged to the table and given a set of 7 Uno cards.
"Are you going to come back and play Uno, Mommy?" asked the smallest one, while the father yelled back his glib gratitude.
"I have to cook dinner, sweetheart," she said, and crotched down in front of him. "maybe once I finish."
"Promise?" He pouted.
"Maybe," she said, kissing his forehead. "Now, go to your father and play."
"Okay!!" he exclaimed, awkwardly running back to the kitchen table, filled to the brim with excitement.

Eventually, she finished their dinner and served it to her husband, who was sitting on the couch at this point, with some ice cold scotch.
She sat at the table with her meal, and smiled at her children as they dealt her into their game of Go Fish.
The 4 played, as the father drank and watched TV. It was another reality tv show, called 'Love You Could Wish For'. It was boring, the couples simply wished for their ideal partner and described how they met. They wished for romance, and they received it.
The mother found it odd they never showed how they were doing after they were on the show, though. She would've assumed they would, but, perhaps it was just boring to watch happy couples do happy couple things just because they love each other, not because they're looking for it.
"Genevieve," the father called "can you get me another glass of scotch?"
The mother got up, without thought, and grabbed his drink and refilled it. It was a sort of routine for her, really. Once he started drinking, he never got up.
Once again, he gave her a hollow thank you.

About 5 or 6 glasses later, he had been yelling at the couples on TV. Something about how it's all "smoke and mirrors" and "doesn't last forever".
The children were upset, and Genevieve put them to bed, explaining why their father had suddenly started yelling.
"See, it just makes him say what's on his mind." "He's upset." "He wasn't yelling at you."
Eventually, they became content and fell asleep as their mother told them a story, accompanied by their fathers angry commentary that could still be heard from their room, despite the door being closed.

Genevieve came outside of the room, and immediately marched over to her drunken husband.
"We've discussed this," she began, gesturing at his entire body and regarding his drunken state "you cannot get drunk around the children, Micheal. You start yelling and it makes them upset."
"Oh," Micheal began, his tone already sarcastic. "well excuse me, Gene, for being UPSET."
"And drunk," she added for him, her arms now crossed over her chest.
"Annnnddd drunk," he slurred. "it's not my fault that this is the only way I get through this fucking marriage!!" he exclaimed, progressively getting louder as the statement went.
"It's also not theirs, and it's obviously affecting them. If you need to get drunk, go to a bar."
"A bar?" he scoffed. "and how will I... how will I get home?"
"An Uber, I'll come get you, there are tons of ways." She replied in a matter-of-fact tone.
"You get me," he laughed. "I can't stand being in the same room as you, let alone the same small, compact metal bod!"
"Box, and, I'm sure you could if it kept you safe."
"I'd rather... I'd rather death than be with you for... for a moment longer!" He prodded her shoulder with force, pushing it back a bit.
"If that was true, you'd wish for it." She spat at him.
"No... cause all those damn wishes do is give you some... backwards way of what you want."
"How's that?" She asked, completely ignoring the fact she asked her drunken husband a serious question.
"I wished... I wanted my true love and she LEFT," he said loudly. "Then i asked for a girl who wouldnt leave and you got..." he stopped.
"You got?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You!!!" He said, pushing her back with enough force to knock her to the ground.
"What?!" She exclaimed, pushing herself up.
"I got you! I asked for a woman who wouldn't leave and I got..." he sighed, and plopped back on the couch. "exactly what I wished for."

But in the worst way possible.