“Honesty,” she said first. “If you struggle, you tell me. I won’t fix it for you. But I won’t be blindsided either.”
I nodded. “Done.”
“Consistency. If you say you’ll be somewhere for Asher… you’re there. No broken promises. No last-minute disappearing.”
“I swear.”
“Respect,” she continued. “If either of us moves on romantically someday… we handle it like adults. No jealousy explosions. No emotional warfare around the kids.”
That one hit like a blade, but I forced myself to nod. “Okay.”
She watched me carefully, making sure I meant it.
“And communication,” she added. “We talk about parenting decisions together. School. Health. Everything. He deserves two present parents even if we’re not together.”
“I want that,” I said softly. “More than anything.”
Her eyes softened.
“Then there’s one more thing,” she said.
“Anything.”
“You don’t try to win me back with grand gestures. No guilt gifts. No pressure. If… something ever happens between us again… it happens slowly. Naturally. Because it’s healthy. Not because we’re scared of losing each other.”
I nodded immediately. “That’s fair. That’s… probably the only way it would ever work anyway.”
She let out a breath she looked like she’d been holding for months.
“Friends. Co-parents. Stability. That’s the foundation,” she said.
“I’ll build on that,” I whispered. “Brick by brick. However long it takes.”
She hesitated, then reached over and took my hand.
Not romantic.
Not desperate.
Steady.
“Okay,” she said quietly.
We sat there in silence, hands loosely linked, watching Asher sleep between us like the fragile miracle tying us together.
And for the first time, it didn’t feel like losing her.
It felt like learning how to love her the right way… even if it meant letting her stand on her own.
She drove us to my house in Beverly hills room, dim lights, long table set with non-alcoholic drinks and appetizers.
Everyone was there.
Kei. Holland. Jake. Zariah. Eli. Even Mom, back from New York, smiling wide, her eyes misty as she saw me.
Even my father was there. He gave me a tight nod I returned it back.
We may not see eye to eye but at least he showed up that he still cares about his son.
