Eve sat in the kitchen, pushing her spoon from one end to the other of her coffee cup. She hadn’t gotten much sleep. She spent most of the night, staring out the window, wondering how and if her family was going to survive.

She didn’t even hear Simone come into the kitchen.

“ Mom? Mom?” Eve looked up at her youngest daughter.

” Yes, Baby?”

” I was wondering if you wanted me to fix some oatmeal.”

” That would be nice.”

” Do you think Daddy and Chad want some?”

” I don’t know, Simone. Just fix enough for all of us.”

“ Ok.”

Simone went about fixing breakfast, and she set the table for three. Pouring juice and making toast for all of them. By the time she was finished, Chad entered the kitchen.

” Morning, everyone.”

” Hi Chad.”, Simone said. When Eve didn’t say anything, Chad looked to Simone, who shrugged her shoulders.

Simone gave everyone their oatmeal, and they ate their breakfast. Simone and Chad split the newspaper and read their sections. Eve was silent, and barely ate anything.

” Mom, is something wrong? Something wrong with Whitney that you’re not telling us? Is…is she..”, Simone asked, tears in her eyes.

Eve took Simone’s hand. “ Honey, as far as I know, Whitney’s condition hasn’t changed. But, you’re right. Something is very wrong. Something that you ought to know.”

” But, now is not the time.”, TC said, as he entered the kitchen. Eve looked at TC.

“ Daddy?”

” Simone, you and Chad should eat your breakfast, and then go to the hospital. You have the morning free, right Chad?”

” Yeah, Coach.”

” You and Simone go over to the Hospital. Dr. Russell and I need to talk to the three of you about some things.”

” What things?”, Simone asked.

” You’ll find out later, Sugarbear. Now, eat up and get dressed.” TC looked at Chad. REALLY looked at him for the first time. He could see it – Chad had Julian’s eyes. He wondered how he missed it. Then, he looked at the rest of him. He watched Eve and Chad eat, and it spooked him to see the similarities in their mannerisms. Then he saw her smile. Of course this was Eve’s son. He was almost embarrassed not to notice it before now.

Everyone ate their breakfast in silence. Chad and Simone left to get dressed. Eve called out to Chad, and he waited for her.

” I told TC about you last night.”

Chad stared at his mother. “ You did?”

” Yes.”

” How did he take it?”

” Honestly? I don’t know. “

” Should I be moving?”

” No, Chad. You’ll be living with me. That won’t change.”

” Is this what he wants to tell Whitney and Simone?”

” Among other things. I just wanted to warn you. It’s going to get a bit crazy today.”

” Ok. I better get dressed.” Chad kissed his mother, and then she went back into the kitchen.

 TC was loading the dishwasher.

” So, do you want to tell me what you decided?”, Eve asked.

” Eve, I don’t know.”

” TC, that’s not good enough. Since you’ve decided that this is the day to tell them, they are going to have questions, and top of that list will be if we’re going to stay together.”

” Dammit woman, don’t you know I’m angry!”

” Not anymore than I am, TC! I found out that you betrayed our marriage vows. Chad and his father were before I remotely met you.”

” You still lied to me.”

” Yeah, well, whatever.”

“ Are you mocking me?”

” No, I’m not. I’m disgusted. Betrayed. Hurt. Angry. Pissed off. I….I’m so livid, I don’t know what to do. I feel you betrayed everything in our marriage vows, and then, I step to the other side, and I think about you, the situation, and what you must have gone through. I don’t know, TC. I was honest when I said I didn’t want our marriage to end. I love you. And, I feel offended, at the thought that twenty years of work could be erased in one night. Something seems off about that. I asked myself if I still loved you.”

” What was the answer?”

” Yes. I do still love you. What kept me up last night was wondering about your answer to the same question.”

” Eve….I can’t make any promises. I’m just trying to work this through. My family means everything to me, Eve. Always has. Always will. I’m going to finish getting dressed.”

” I can drive myself to the Hospital. I’m going to leave now.”, Eve said, before exiting the kitchen.

TC knocked on the door to Eve’s office.

” Come in.”

TC walked in to see Eve at her computer.

” Chad and Simone are with Whitney.”

” Good. I just got an email from another specialist. I was printing out the download of his treatment recommendations.”

” Sounds good. Are you ready to do this?”

” Honestly? No. But, it has to be done. They’ve lived in the dark enough.”

TC and Eve left her office and went into Whitney’s room.

” Well, we’re all here, Daddy. Just like you commanded.”, Simone commented.

” Daddy, what is it that you want to tell us?”, Whitney asked.

TC and Eve looked to one another for reassurance, and Eve motioned that she wanted to speak.

“ Whitney, you know how much your father and I love you.”

” Yes, Mom, I know.”

“ Your getting sick has pushed your father and I into a position. One we never thought we’d be in, but here we are.

We have to work with your doctors to help you have the best possible chance for recovery.”

” Mom, I know that you and Daddy are doing everything possible to help me get well.”

” Well, you know that your best hope right now is a bone-marrow transplant. To find a donor that’s compatible.”

” Of course. That’s why everyone’s been tested.”

” Not everyone, Whitney. There are some possible donors that haven’t been tested. But, hopefully, by the end of today or tomorrow, they will be tested.”

” I’m confused.”

“ Whitney, there’s no easy way to say this, so I will be honest. You were adopted.”

Whitney shook her head. “ A…adopted?”

” Yes. Your father brought you home one day, and put you in my arms, and I loved you immediately.”

” ADOPTED? How can that be? I’ve seen pictures of you pregnant with me? Adopted?”

” Honey, I was pregnant before Simone. But, that baby died – hours after birth. And, I was so despondent and depressed. I was in bad shape. Nothing mattered to me. I wanted to be dead. And, then, your father came home one day with this beautiful baby girl and put her in my arms, and I came alive, once again. Your father made the argument to me that it would be best if you never knew you were adopted, and I agreed with him.”

” Adopted?” Whitney turned to TC. “ Why did you never want me to know? Is it because it was illegal? Was I some sort of black market baby?”

” No, Whitney. It was nothing like that.”, TC replied. “Your mother and I….we had some trouble early on in our marriage. It got to the point where we separated. And…during that time, I….I….I had a relationship with another woman.”

” YOU had an affair, Daddy?”, a shocked Simone asked.

“ Yes, I did. But, then, you mother found out she was pregnant, and we went into counseling, and got back together. Awhile later, I found out that the woman I’d had the affair with was also pregnant. And, it was my baby.”

” Your baby?…Daddy, are you saying that ‘I’ am THAT baby?”, Whitney asked.

TC looked into his daughter’s confused eyes. “ Yes, Whitney. You are that baby.”

Whitney shook her head. “ You had an affair. I was the baby. You brought that baby to Mom, and didn’t tell her any of this?”

” Not until last night.”, Eve offered.

” The woman….she died? That’s why I came to live with you?”

” No, Whitney. She didn’t die. She had a marriage and children of her own. She had to give you up.”

” HAD to give me up? What the hell does that mean?”

” It means your biological mother is White, Whitney.”, Eve replied.

” White?”

” Yes, your biological mother is White.”

” And, because I was BLACK, she wanted nothing to do with me? Do you know how offensive that is?”, Whitney yelled.

“ Whitney, she was married. She had a family.”

” And, of course, the Black kid got shown the door. What the fuck was she going to do if you had NOT wanted me? Throw me in a garbage can somewhere?” Whitney’s face was streaked with tears.

” It was a difficult decision for everyone, Whitney.”

” Well, not for her, Daddy. She couldn’t wait to get rid of me. After all, can’t have her White friends seeing that she has this BLACK child! Is this bitch going to help me, or not?”

” Whitney..”, Eve pleaded.

” Mom, NO! You drop this bomb on me, and I’m supposed to be sweet and understanding. I’m not going to understand. I just want to know if the bitch is going to help me with other donors.”

” Yes, she is. She’s going to ask her children to be tested.”

” How is she going to do that? You know, I don’t want to know. I don’t care what lie she tells. All I care is about the donor.”

” She’s going to tell them the truth, Whitney. She’s going to tell them this morning.”

” Might I say that it’s twenty years too late!”

Whitney cried as Simone held her. TC and Eve looked at one another, and Simone noticed the look.

” Ok, what else is there?”, Simone demanded.

” Simone?”, Eve asked.

” I saw the look, Mom. Something else is going on. You might as well tell the truth. “

” I…I don’t know if this is the right time.”

Whitney stopped crying. “ Look. I’m not going to take anymore of this. Simone is right. Anymore bombshells that need to be dropped, drop them NOW!”

Eve looked at TC and shrugged her shoulders. “ Ok. Here it goes. I had a baby when I was a teenager. We were separate for years, and now we’ve been reunited. Chad is my son.”

The entire room turned to look at Chad.