Chapter 1-Saturday mornings

"Cali come on, we are going to be late"

"coming mom"

"what are you doing up there? We have to go, we need to meet your dad."

Cali finally makes an appearance at the top of the stairs in no particular rush to go. "what's the rush mom"

"sweetie you know how your father gets when we are late for drop off, now lets go" Olivia reminds her 7yr old going on 30 from the bottom of the stair. Cali begrudgingly descends the stair, with a temperament that remind her of her ex husband.

"well if he doesn't want us late for drop off maybe he shouldn't have moved out" Cali grumbles under her breath.

"What did you say?", Olivia asks.

"nothing"

"Do you have all your soccer gear?"Cali nods.

"Are you sure? Cause that was you said last week and yet some how I had to make the trip to Brooklyn to drop them of." Olivia reminds her daughter as she hands her her book bag and overnight bag.

Cali reaches for the book bag while mumbling under her breath, "that must have been miserable for you." She turns and open the front door behind her and starts to head outside to the car.

"Cali!", Olivia shouts.

Cali stops her exit and turns to her mother, "what? I thought we were runny late? Or do I need to hear a lecture on the importance of a good attitude now?" she doesn't wait for an answer, instead she turns and exits the house, slamming the door in the process.

Olivia shakes her head and wonder when it was her baby became a monster. She starts to walk to the door and nearly trips over something her path. She looks down and see Cali's overnight bag lying on the floor. Shaking her head again she reaches for the bag ,throws it over her shoulder and heads to the car. As she heads to the trunk of the SUV, she is greeted with sound of her son, Noah yelling for Cali to stop whatever brand of torment she has found necessary this morning. Cali has always been stubborn beyond belief, even giving that her parents are probably the two most stubborn people in the world but lately she has been unbearable. Lately being the last 6 months since the separation. She has gone from stubborn but loving and sweet to as her brother states- an ogre.

"Mom! Callie hit me again!" Noah screams as Oliva climbs into her seat.

"Nobody likes a tattletale Noah." Callie sings from the third row of the car and smacks Noah on the back of the head again.

"Oww...Mom she-" Noah starts but is cut off by Olivia.

"Both of you stop! Callie no more hitting your brother and Noah what did I tell you about whining? " Olivia yells. She takes a deep breath and sighs while turning to look at her kids in the rear of the vehicle, "guys why do we have to have this fight every Saturday, huh?"

"Cause Saturdays suck." Cali grumbs. Olivia smiles as she turn around and starts the car, she can't argue with that- Saturdays do suck.

The ride despite its awful start is most quiet with the kid looking out the window. Olivia is on autopilot and almost forgot what day it was and where she was heading until Emma yells from her car seat. "you are passing old Mcdonalds."

Olivia quickly swerves the car into the McDonald's, that has been their drop of point every Saturday for the last 6 months. Originally the plan was to meet at a pharmacy half way between both houses but Emma would always insist that Olivia stop at 'old mcdonalds' as the three year old called it everytime they passed it and after several weeks of being late due to the unplanned stop, the location was changed.

"Wow even with all the chaos this morning, we are still a little early" olivia exclaimed as she pulled into a parking spot and parked the car.

"Daddy come soon?" Emma asked. Emma was probably the one who looked forward to Saturday. She was always daddy's girl or maybe it was the McDonald's.

"yes Ems he will be here soon" olivia reassured the toddler.

"Mom why do we have to this every Saturday?" Noah ask, while he stares out the window. Olivia sighs, she has had this conversation multiple times with the five year old but she understands that this must be hard for him to understand. Hell, it is hard for her to understand and she is grown.

"Noah, we do this so daddy can spend some time with you three like mom does"

"But why can't he spend time with us at our house like he use to?" Noah turns from the window to face his mother with his pearsing blue eyes, the ones he inherited from his father.

"Cause he can't dummy, they hate each other. That's why" Cali chimes in from the last row.

"Cali! Noah we don't hate each other but daddy and I are separated- which means we live in different houses. But remember what I told you guys that doesn't change?"

All three kids say in unison- "that you guys love us the same"

"Well it still sucks" Noah states as he watch the familiar black SUV pull up to the left side of their car. The SUV parks and the two older kids unbuckle their belts and start to gather their belongings to exit the car. Olivia reach to the middle seat and unbuckled Emma from her car seat. She takes the toddler in her arms and gets out of the car. Cali and Noah meet her at her door and mumble I love yous and give her kisses goodbye. She watches them climb in the other vehicle and immediately begin fighting. She shakes her head and only then does she come to face to face with her soon to be ex husband, the man that use to take her breath away and if she was being totally honest still does.

"Hi", he says with a tentative smile on his face.

"hey" she responds. "oh, here you go" she hands him Emma and blushes slight when their arms touch as he reaches for her.

"thanks" he responds and immediately turns to the toddler with blonde ringlets and huge brown eyes of her mother "how you doing princess?" he touches his nose to Emma's and gives her 'exkimo' kisses as Emma calls them.

He turns towards his vehicle and places Emma in her seat, asks Cali to buckle her belt and turns back to Olivia.

"You want to help me with their stuff?" Olivia asks as she heads to her trunk. She opens the trunk and hands him three overnight bags.

"Thanks", he states as he throws their stuff in his own trunk. The two adults stare at each other in silence for a few both start-

"El-" "Liv-" Both smile and are reassured that at least they still think alike.

"Liv" Elliot starts again, "how are you?"

"FIne but like our daughter reminds me- Saturday suck" Olivia tries to light the mood. "You?"

"Could be better if we- "

Olivia interrupts, "El don't start-"

" You asked me how I was doing and I am trying to-"

" I am not going to fight with you today El" Olivia turns back to her car and reaches for the her door. She is suddenly grabbed by the elbow and turned around. She is about to laying into her soon to be ex when she see three pairs of eyes look at the them from the car.

"Elliot we has company" Elliot turns his head and comes face to face with his kid playing spectators to another fight between him and his wife. He immediately drops her arm and steps away from her.

"sorry" he apologizes while finding the ground more fascinating.

"it's ok" Olivia signs and turn to her car. She throws out over her shoulder "see you Sunday"

Elliot watches as she get in the car and drives out of the parking lot. He turns to his car, gets in and starts his own journey only this time he has three of the four loves of his life with him but all he can think of is how badly Sundays suck.