Tomorrow morning, we all gathered around the table to eat breakfast. I felt sick to my stomach, so I just swirled my cereal around with a spoon pretending to eat it. My dad wasn't eating anything, and my mom was slowly sipping at her coffee refusing to make eye contact with my dad. Brandy was the only one acting normal, shoveling down spoonful after spoonful of rainbow cornflakes with a big smile.

I felt my stomach twirling around inside itself while I waited for my parents to tell us about their divorce. Why wouldn't they just spit it out and get it over with? My dad started to say something, and my heart froze but it wasn't about the divorce he was just commenting on Brandy's hair.

"Did you cut it again, it looks a little shorter?"

"Yeah, do you like it?" She asked patting the bottom of her short brown hair which barley reached her chin.

"It's cute," my dad said clearing his throat he looked to my mom with a weird sideways glance then continued "me and your mother have some important business to take care of over the weekend, so we thought it would be best if the two of you spent the weekend with your grandfather?"

"Woohoo I love grandpa's house," Brandy cheered, a small dribble of blue milk pouring down her chin.

"What do you say sport, how do you feel about going to grandpa's house for the weekend?"

"Sure, sounds like fun," I lied holding back my tears.

. . .

After breakfast we packed our suitcases and put them in the minivan, "Bailey hurry up!" My dad shouted from the kitchen impatiently tapping his foot against the floor.

"I'm coming!" I shouted from under my bed.

I couldn't find my inhaler anywhere. I always kept it in my pocket but for some reason I couldn't find it. I looked under Brandy's bed, then under the dresser, I checked my drawers in case I put it in there, but it was nowhere to be seen.

"We're going to leave without you!" my dad threatened shaking his keys.

The stress really wasn't helping me look. I reached into the hamper and pulled out the jeans I was wearing yesterday. I searched the pockets and found my inhaler. I quickly shoved it in my pocket and went running from my room.

My dad locked the door to our apartment, and we all got in the elevator. Brandy pushed the buttons before I could, and we rode down to the first floor. Brandy was skipping around the elevator making jokes and laughing. But the rest of us just stood there trying not to look upset, my dad kept angrily glancing at my mom who would hide her face in shame. My mom looked like she was on the bridge of tears quietly wiping her cheeks over and over again bright red rashes staining them making her look sick.

I felt like I was falling apart if I looked down and both my arms were missing, I wouldn't have been surprised. Ever since I heard the news my stomach felt like I had eaten three thanksgiving dinners and went on the world's fastest roller coaster. The elevator finally made it to the lobby, and we all filed out. Like always Brandy waved at everyone we passed.

"Where are you off to dear?" one of the old ladies who lived in our apartment building asked, she was a sweet woman whom Brandy would always talk to.

"We're going on vacation to visit my grandpa!" She cheered.

I wanted to tell her that my parents were going to a divorce lawyer, and they were only dumping us off on our grandfather but of course I didn't. I just kept my mouth shut like I was supposed to. Me and Brandy climbed into the back of the minivan Brandy sat behind the driver seat in her bright pink booster seat (she was getting a little old for) and I sat behind the passenger. When we sat in the back together it looked like Brandy was taller than me.

My dad climbed in the driver seat and exhaled deeply out of his nose. My mom reluctantly sat next to him her head rested on the window staring off into space. My parents didn't say anything on the entire drive out of the city, they didn't even start arguing when my dad took the wrong exit and we had to turn around through a weird neighborhood.

Everyone in the car was quiet except for Brandy who took our silence as being a want to listen to her. She told story after story about her friends at school. My dad would nod every once and a while and my mom just wasn't listening. I couldn't stand the silence any longer it was killing me. Why wouldn't they just say they were getting a divorce, why were they lying to us didn't they know we were going to find out eventually.

"So, what is this urgent business you guys need to take care of?" I asked interrupting Brandy's story about her friend's new cat.

I prayed they would answer with the truth but of course they didn't.

"Nothing, just boring adult stuff like taxes and bills and stuff like that," My dad said scratching his chin while he talked.

"Do we really have to go to grandpa's house so you can do your taxes?"

"I thought you liked your grandpa."

"Of course, I like grandpa!"

My parents were always trying to twist everything I said, making me take it back and rephrase it.

"I'm just wondering why you guys can't visit grandpa with us."

"Margo said that her parents left her at her grandma's house for the weekend and came back with a new baby, are we getting a new baby?" Brandy asked excitedly bouncing up and down in her booster seat so fast she made the whole car shake.

I wasn't sure where babies came from exactly but from my life experience your parents either had to be pregnant or have lots of money. And my family did not have money enough money to adopt a kid.

"No Brandy," My dad said with a sigh.

"I bet he's lying," Brandy whispered in my ear with an excited smile.

She sat there crossing her fingers quietly muttering the word girl under her breathe a hundred times. Poor Brandy she was so clueless, she was going to be so upset when mom and dad finally told her. If they told her.

. . .

After four hours of driving, we finally made it up the mountain and arrived at the large old house my grandpa lived in. As soon as he saw us enter the driveway, he came rolling out to greet us. My grandfather was a war veteran and had gotten terribly injured. Both his legs hand been blown off and he lost his left hand, he rolled around in a wheelchair and kept a hook where his hand used to be. We always played Peter pan together and it doesn't take much imagination to guess which character my grandfather plays.

"Tinker bell!" my grandpa shouted when he saw Brandy running out of the car.

She ran up to him and hoped on his lap throwing her arms around his thick strong neck and kissing his scarred cheek. I knew Brandy was my grandpa's favorite. It wasn't like he went around saying 'oh Brandy you're my favorite' but I could tell she was. Brandy had never been afraid of my grandpa with his hook hand and scarred face, but I couldn't even be in the same room with him until I was six years old even then I would start to cry if he touched me.

"I missed you grandpa," Brandy said sadly.

"I missed you too," he said kissing her forehead.

"Bailey my boy, how's the soccer team going?" He asked patting my shoulder.

"He quit, his asthma kept acting up and we believed it was safer to just pull him off the team," my dad said pulling our suitcases out of the trunk and making me blush with embarrassment, my mom stayed in the car still staring off into space.

"What's wrong with Share?" My grandpa asked peering into the car window.

"Nothing she's just a little car sick," my dad was obviously trying not to sound angry.

"Maybe if she got out and walked around a bit she'd feel better, fresh air does wonders for the body."

"No really she's fine."

My grandpa's house was especially designed for someone in a wheelchair, there was a ramp on the front porch and back, stair lifts on all the staircases and I heard he's planning on adding an elevator soon. My grandpa's house had eight different bedrooms, but we were only allowed in seven, grandpa's room was strictly off limits.

"Take your suitcases to your rooms," my dad ordered handing us our suitcases.

Brandy quickly ran upstairs before me to pick out the best room, but I stayed back and hid on top of the staircase to listen in on their conversation.

"If the family is having money troubles, I would be more than happy to lend you some, I have some I can spare," my grandpa offered but my dad only shook his head.

"We're doing just fine I appreciate the offer though," my dad said with a forced smile then he spotted me on the stairs and frowned, "Bailey get upstairs and put your suitcase away now!" I ran without a second glance.

Of course, Brandy had already taken my favorite room, it was the biggest one with a very large window half the size of the wall, lots of toys and a bunkbed. I took the room that used to be my mom's even though the walls were pink, and the furniture was girly I liked it in here because it had a peaceful sort of feeling. I set my suitcase on the soft little bed and went downstairs. Me and Brandy walked back out to the car to say our goodbyes. When we got there our mom was standing outside.

"I miss you both so much already!" She said getting down on her knees to give me a hug.

She squeezed me much tighter than usual, and I could hear in her voice that she was about to start crying, this embrace lasted much longer than any normal hug, even if I hadn't overheard my parents talking in their bedroom, I would have been able to tell something was wrong. She hugged Brandy in the same way then got in the car and started crying.

"What's wrong with mommy?" Brandy asked sadly, was this really the first time she noticed something was off.

"Nothing she's just going to miss you guys that's all," our dad said but I don't think either of us believed him.

My dad got in the car and sped down grandpa's driveway as if he couldn't wait to get away. Brandy waved at them and even though they could see her in the window they didn't wave back. My grandpa cleared his throat to end the awkward silence.

"Who wants juice!" he shouted.

"Me!" Brandy squealed running back into the house.

I don't want to sound like a selfish person but one of my favorite things about my grandfather was how much juice he always had. Our parents didn't buy juice or soda, my mom claimed it was because of how unhealthy it was but I knew it was because we were too poor to afford it (like everything else).

My grandpa always had at least three kinds of juice in his fridge, orange, apple, and grape. And if you didn't feel like juice, you could have some lemonade or maybe some soda, he often kept root beer and ginger ale which were my favorites. Whenever we visited, he made sure we were filled up with whatever sugary drink we desired. So, we were bouncing off the walls by dinner.

"What will it be today ma'am?" My grandpa asked pretending to be a bartender.

"I'll take a base of orange juice, with a little bit of apple, and just a splash of grape juice, oh and some cookies on the side, thank you," Brandy said mimicking a British accent.

"And what about you gentle sir, what would you like to drink?"

"Just some water," I mumbled, I really didn't feel like drinking juice on such a sad occasion.

After we finished our 'drinks' we gathered in the living room to play a board game, Brandy got to choose and of course she picked her favorite a unicorn board game where we all walk around the game board trying to be the first to get to the glitter palace or something stupid. There were four unicorns to choose from a blue, pink, white, and purple. Brandy picked the blue one and my grandpa picked the white one which left purple and pink my two least favorite colors.

"You can have the blue one," Brandy said after she noticed how sad I was.

"Thanks," I said taking the tiny figurine in my hand, it was covered in little specks of glitter, and it was already getting everywhere.

Brandy chose the purple one and we started playing. Brandy was winning, and I was losing, my unicorn was barley three spaces from the starting position because I got sent back there twice.

"Have I ever told you I saw a real unicorn?" My grandpa said with a sly smile.

He loved telling stories about made up worlds and fantasy creatures, Brandy still believed in that kind of stuff because she was a kid, but I knew it was all pretend.

"What did she look like?" Brandy asked with a look of wonder in her eyes.

"She was light purple with super long purple hair. She had a tall horn and big wings."

"Where did you see her?" Brandy asked her eyes seeming to sparkle with excitment.

"Why in Luminari of course!" My grandpa said as if that were a fact.

"Is that the world in the wardrobe, or is it the one through the looking glass, maybe behind the second star on the right," I uttered.

I didn't mean to be rude, I was just really upset and didn't feel like listening to nonsense, while my parents were probably going through with their divorce as we spoke.

"No, Luminari is a spirit world full of lost souls, wishes of forgotten men, hopes of lonely women, and the dreams of dying children."

"Luminari sounds awful," Brandy mumbled wishing the unicorn lived somewhere better.

"Actually, it's the exact opposite it's where tormented spirits go to finally live the happy lives they've always wanted to."

"What happens if you go there and you're already really happy?"

"Then you get even happier!"

"What if you go there and you're not sad but really angry?"

"That's where the monsters come from!"

"Monsters?" Brandy said hiding her face behind her hands, I let out a really long sarcastic sigh loud enough for my grandpa to hear.

"Oh yes Luminari is full of monsters and bad spirits fueled with the greed, hate, and anger of people from our world. A long time ago Luminari was a great place to live but nowadays it's overrun with mean spirts and evil creatures, like killer wolves and dragons," my grandpa fibbed completely ignoring me.

Brandy was hanging onto my grandfather's every word, and I frankly couldn't care less about the illuminated unicorn world, so I excused myself from the game and watched some TV. Turning up the volume so I didn't have to hear his nonsense.