He read it twice. Then yeah, probably is. Friday dinner was chicken, rice, and the specific beautiful chaos of a meal that involved Ava announcing approximately six minutes in that she had decided she wanted to be a marine biologist and rattling off 17 facts about octopuses that she had apparently accumulated over the previous 48 hours with the intensity of a researcher preparing a dissertation. Malcolm managed the stove. Clare sat at the kitchen counter and asked Ava questions about the facts with the genuine interest of someone who found the information actually compelling, which Ava picked up on immediately and used as fuel to produce 11 more facts.
By the time they sat down to eat, Malcolm had relaxed in a way he had not managed in several weeks. The custody situation was still real. The preliminary hearing was still coming. The 6 weeks were entering their final stretch. All of that was still true, but around the table for a few hours on a Friday night, none of it was the loudest thing in the room.
After dinner, after Ava was in bed, Malcolm and Clare sat at the kitchen table with tea going cold in front of them, and he told her about Ava and Morgan, the whole story, including Ava's line about it, making the house feel less different. Clare was quiet when he finished. "She's been watching you very carefully," she said. "I know. "Not watching for problems.
Watching for what's possible." She turned the mug in her hands. She's not worried about whether your house is normal, Malcolm. She's interested in what it can become. He looked at the table.
"She's eight," he said. "She shouldn't have to be thinking about that." "She's not carrying it," Clare said. She's just observing it. There's a difference.
Kids that age are very good at knowing the difference between something that is a problem and something that is just a thing to pay attention to. He thought about the wall in his chest. The crack that had been getting wider slowly but consistently for the past 4 weeks. The hearing is in 2 and 1/2 weeks. He said, "I know Renee is confident, but confident doesn't mean certain."
"No." Clare looked at him steadily. But it means you're not going into this alone. You have a good lawyer, strong documentation, and a record as Ava's primary parent that speaks for itself. She paused.
And you have people in your corner. He met her eyes. The corner of her mouth moved. "People," she confirmed. Understood the choice of word.
He understood exactly what it meant and what it was carefully not yet saying. He let it stand. Clare, he said, ""Four weeks ago, when you told me you wanted six weeks, what did you actually think was going to happen?"" She looked at him for a moment without answering. When she did, her voice was honest and a little rofal. "I thought we would figure it out," she said.