Your parents were in the middle of a divorce

Your mom looked at you with a sad look, a bit reserved, and her answer was both shocking and not surprising all at once: your parents were in the midst of a divorce when the accident occurred. Dad's frequent long nights at work had been code for him staying at the apartment he had rented and moved into. Over the next hour, as she sat next to you, she explained the strain on their marriage and the fact that they had simply grown apart over the years.

Your ****, as it was made up, was the perfect cover and time to announce the divorce. Both sides could use the traumatic loss of the eldest son to excuse the split in the marriage and both sides were amicable in the sense that it would be uncontested.

"You sure about this?" you whispered and your mom took your hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. She had a good understanding of the emotional state you were in, always could figure you out, and gave you a weak smile. "What happens now?"

****

The divorce, as she stated, went incredibly smoothly. Your parents had already taken care of the financials with your mom agreeing to sell the house and split the proceeds down the middle after the costs and fees were taken out. No child support or alimony was awarded, which surprised your aunt/sister Teresa (your dad's younger sister and your favorite aunt growing up), and the children would stay with your mom. It only took about two months to get through and the judge's signature was a mere formality as far as the two of you were concerned.

Outside the courthouse, after the two of you had separated from the group of people who came with you to the final proceedings, your mom smiled and handed you the envelope.

"What's this?"

She waited until you opened it and you slowly pulled out a small sheet of paper, a bank statement that contained just shy of a half million with her signature on the co-endorsee line. "This is the balance of your 529 that your father and I had set aside for you. Since it's technically yours, I kept it out of the proceedings and wanted to give it to you."

You tucked it back into your jacket pocket and after giving your mom one last hug, you watched as she turned and walked down the steps and drove off. It was a few moments before you turned and headed to your car and hopped in. Teresa was sitting there, waiting for you, and she looked at you for a moment. "You okay, Don?"

"Yeah, I think so...never been divorced before..."