My mom, when she was a teenager, I'm not sure how old, probably like fifteen, sixteen, maybe seventeen, had this boyfriend that loved this singer. I don't remember who it was, but it was mom's boyfriends birthday coming up, and so she bought two tickets to go to the singer's concert.

And then he broke up with her.

Emotional damage.

But, anyway, that isn't really important. Just where it all began, because then, Mom's friends, her friends of friends, and her friends of friends friends, all went to the concert with her. And one of the friends of her friend's friend, ended up ruining her life in more ways than one. And kept ruining lives, keeps on doing so, even at the point where I'm writing this all.

They started dating pretty quickly after meeting, just hitting it off right away. For a little while, things were great.

Until they weren't.

As soon as they'd been dating for long enough, the drama begins. Mom's new boyfriend begins to cheat on her, get aggressive, and start talking down to her. She didn't like it, and they kept breaking up, but every time, they just got together again. And again.

And again.

Until they were in college together. Still fighting. Still cheating. Still breaking up and getting together. I feel bad for those around them.

But then, they broke up again. Seemingly for good this time.

Maybe they wouldn't have gotten back together if it wasn't for this. I don't know.

But Mom discovered she was pregnant.

Her parents wanted her to get rid of it, but she didn't want to. She wanted to keep the baby, and she had to let her now ex, soon to be baby dad know.

He was pretty much forced to get back together with her when they heard the news. Fast forward time, and my brother was born. Oh, and by the way, he wasn't there when my brother was born. He couldn't, or wouldn't, make it, and so on my brother's birth certificate, he apparently has no father.

Lucky.

And then, my Mom wanted to marry the jerk. But the worst part, is that she wanted to marry him because she was scared that he'd leave her if she didn't.

She told him this. She wanted him to get a ring.

On Christmas, he proposed. She said yes.

She got pregnant with me on their honeymoon. I was going to be born on her birthday, but instead I was born exactly a month earlier. Guess little me wanted a birthday to herself.

I was born with asthma, which put a lot of stress on my parents, I'm sure.

Well, mainly my Mom. My lovely father smoked in front of me all the time, he didn't give a crap.

A while ago, like, a few years before I was born, Mom met someone online.

And about the time I turned two, she met up with this guy.

Mom and the asshole I have to call my father kept 'breaking up' in a sense, except they weren't really getting divorced, just splitting up a lot because . . .

Shit hit the fan a long time ago.

To put it nicely.

And so, at the time when I was three and my brother six . . .

Mom started dating this new guy.

I wonder how much better life would be now if she didn't make that choice.