Rival Siblings Find Out Parents Are Getting Divorced, Team Up to Save Their Marriage – Story of the Day

After asking their parents to stay in the bedroom, the teenage siblings walked outside and locked the door. "Why did you lock the door?" their mother screamed. She had no idea about the strange plan her children had devised.

"Hey, Mom! Look at this," David slid his school project across the kitchen island. "I spent five hours just to make this work. I'm sure this will be the best one in my class!"

"Now that's what we call overconfidence!" his younger sister, Emma, said. The teenage siblings never got along and always found something to argue over. This time, they were contesting for their parents' attention before going to school.

"Stop it, you two!" their mother, Carol, yelled. "Can you two sit quietly for once?" Emma rolled her eyes and looked away from David's face while he picked up his fork to finish his remaining breakfast.

"Your father and I need to talk to you guys before you leave for school," Carol said as she sat on one of the stools and gestured for her husband to take the other one.

Putting her hands on the cold surface of the kitchen island, Carol told her children about the problems she and their father had faced during the past couple of years.

If there were an award for the best parents in town, David and Emma would give it to their parents. But as partners, Carol and her husband were not the perfect pair. They felt there was nothing common between them except their children.

"What? Are you crazy? This won't work!" Emma responded after hearing David's plan.

"We will soon file for divorce, and your father will leave this house," Carol said. "But don't worry! You guys can always spend time with him. This is our mutual decision."

Emma looked at her parents in disbelief while David's forehead creased as he frowned. "That's not fair!" Emma cried. "You can't do this to us! We don't want you guys to part ways!"

"Emma's right," David blurted. "I think you guys should stay together."

Carol shook her head. "Look, our decision is final. We will file for divorce next month."

"Now come on. It's time for you guys to go to school," Carol's husband said.

After returning from school, David called his sister into his room. He had been thinking about the conversation they had in the morning and had devised a plan to stop their parents from parting ways.

"What is it?" Emma asked as she closed the door behind her.

"Look, Emma. Only we can stop Mom and Dad from doing this. Are you going to support me in this?"

"What can we do? I'm sure they won't listen to us."

"I've got a great plan in my mind," David said before narrating his plan to his sister.

"What? Are you crazy? This won't work!" Emma responded after hearing David's plan.

"Trust me, Emma. For once. Please!" David cried. "I am sure this will work."

"Jeez, David! Alright. Let's give this a try. When will we execute your master plan?" Emma asked.

"We will begin tomorrow evening," David replied sternly.

According to David's plan, the teenagers sent flowers every evening to their mother for the next few days, pretending they were from their dad. They even wrote personalized notes for her with his name.

Meanwhile, they washed the dishes when Carol wasn't around and texted their father from their mother's phone, telling him she took care of the house chores so he could rest after returning from work.

A week later, David and Emma overheard their parents talking. "I talked to the lawyer, and he said the divorce papers would be ready by next week," Carol said to her husband.

"Oh, that's great news," her husband replied. "I just received a call from my estate agent. He said I can come to see my new apartment tomorrow."

"See, I told you this won't work!" Emma whispered to David. "What are we going to do now?"

"I have another plan," David said.

The next evening, David and Emma invited their parents to watch a movie together in David's bedroom. Their parents agreed, thinking it was a good idea to spend time as a family.

After Carol and her husband sat on the couch, David turned on the TV and pretended to leave to get some snacks. "I'll help him out," Emma said before the teenagers left the bedroom and locked the door behind them.

"Hey, why did you lock the door?" Carol asked while banging on the bedroom door.

"We won't open it until you both sort out your differences," David responded. "We don't want Dad to leave!"

"What? That's ridiculous," Carol yelled. "Open the door right now, David! This is not how things work!"

"We won't, Mom. Sorry." David replied before he and his sister walked away.

"What's with these kids?" Carol asked her husband as she sat beside him on the couch, pointed the remote to the TV, and turned the volume up. "Which movie are we watching, then?"

Instead of watching a movie, Carol and her husband recalled their past. They talked about their pre-wedding days and the time they spent together before having children.

"Oh my God! We had a crazy time together!" Carol chuckled.

"Yeah, we did!" her husband replied.

The following day, Carol called her children into her room and told them that she and her husband had changed their decision and wanted to give their marriage another chance.

"Thank God!" Emma exclaimed.

"I'm so happy for you guys!" David said and hugged his mother. Little did he know that his parents would soon change their plans.

A few weeks later, David and Emma were having breakfast when they overheard their parents arguing. The siblings looked at each other and shook their heads in disapproval.

"I think we shouldn't have asked them to stay together," David confessed. "They have been fighting for the last few days."

"You're right, David," Emma said. "I think our decision was selfish."

Later that day, the teenagers confessed their feelings to their parents and allowed them to part ways if they wished. The siblings promised they would respect their parents' decision.

Eventually, Carol and her husband divorced and began living separately. A year later, David and Emma were in the park with their parents. Six months earlier, Carol married another man, while the children's father began dating a woman.

With their partners, Carol and her ex-husband sat with David and Emma and discussed what was happening in the children's lives. The family finally realized they could stay close while living apart.

What can we learn from this story?

• Family can exist in any form. After Carol and her husband parted ways and found other partners, they realized they could still keep in touch with their children and spend time together as a family. They didn't need to be married.
• Our decisions are not always right. While David and Emma thought saving their parents' marriage was necessary, they didn't realize their decision to unite them was wrong. Sometimes, we must keep our feelings aside to make the right decision.

Share this story with your friends and family. It might brighten their day and inspire them.

Click here to read another story about siblings who learned at their mother's funeral that her inheritance was given to an elderly couple they never knew.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone's life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.