The Middle Child: Next Level

6: Julia

The move back was hard for everyone; it was hard for Dwayne because it wasn't as easy as he thought it would be getting another job in the states like the one he had in Japan. It was so hard actually, that he eventually ended up going back to being a professor here at the college. That was especially hard for my mother, because she was back living a lifestyle she once loved, yet loathed, because they were really struggling financially. They weren't poor by any means like they were the first time, but they also weren't well off like they once were either. They had gone from upper class, to middle to lower class, and that had took a toll on their relationship. I know people say money can't buy love or happiness, but clearly they haven't met Whitley Gilbert-Wayne. She was born into money, then the rug was pulled out from under her for a while, making her have to become a working girl, but then she was able to go back to the luxury lifestyle she once lived, only for the rug to be snatched again. Dwayne came from humble beginnings so while it affected him, it didn't affect him as much as it affected my mom. If you ask me, the rug being snatched the second time is really what made my mom the way she is today. Needless to say, their marriage took a huge hit, so huge my mom filed for a divorce.

The divorce is what made the transition hard for Kayla. She was ten years old, in a completely new environment that was the biggest culture shock for her, and to make matters worse, her parents were on the verge of a divorce. So, she did what any other kid her age would have done in her situation- she acted out. Her grades suffered, her attitude had gotten worse, she didn't have any respect for her elders. In mom's words she was as bad as the students she taught her first year as a teacher. It was so bad it was pushing them further apart. They were considering shipping her off to stay with our Grandma Marion, but the very thought scared her into being a good girl. I don't blame her; I love Grandma Marion but she's like a mom 3.0, there's only so much you can take before feeling like you're about to lose it. And it's only that bad because we took on the personalities of our fathers and not Mom or Grandma.

Thank goodness for that.

You're probably wondering, how do you know all of this, you weren't even born yet!

I watched it all go down from my mom's Fallopian tubes, of course.

Just kidding.

The way my mom and Dwayne's lives are, you'd think it was a plot for a tv show or something, more dramatic and entertaining than the average human life. Not only that, it seems like everyone knew exactly what happened so it was like hearing the same story, but from five different voices. At this point I knew the story so well that on the nights I couldn't sleep, I'd just retell it to myself, and before I know it I'd be out like a light. Works like a charm every time.

You're probably also wondering, when and how did I get in the picture?

I'm glad you asked. To make a long story short, my dad was one of my mother's old boyfriends, who could always supply her with the lifestyle she's always been accustomed to. They were together for a while, and Mom was even ready to take it to the next step with him. She thought for sure they were going to be married, but they broke up during a fancy dinner. Mom thought he was going to pop the question and she was more than ready to say yes, but instead of a proposal to be wed, my dad instead proposed they share a bed, by moving in with him. So they ended things after that, and that's when she fell in love with Dwayne. My dad even made a reappearance while they were together, and my mom always felt drawn to him, I'm not sure if it was because she wondered if he was the one who got away or always wondered what could have been, but she went on with her life with Dwayne until the divorce, that's when my dad made another reappearance when he came to town on business. Let's just say that thought must have always stayed in her mind, and seeing him again made her want to test it out, because a harmless dinner as old friends turned into a short fling, that later led to me.