Rainbow's Pov

As I pulled into the driveway, something felt off about the house. It was a one story ranch style, nothing like home. Yet some part of it felt strangely nostalgic, like I was going somewhere I'd been once as a child. Shaking out of it, I got out of the car and knocked ithe front door.

"Hello?" The door opened to reveal Natalia, looking just how I remembered her. Thin, almost too thin, with long dark hair and big brown eyes. The sad thing is it almost felt like we'd be friends in another life.

"Uh, hi?" I said awkwardly, not knowing how to respond. She smiled and pulled me into a hug.

"Rainbow! It's good to see you! Do you need help with your bags?" I pulled away and shook my head.

"No, I think I'll be okay with my bag. Is..." I fumbled for words. "Is my dad here?"

"Yup! He's in the garage right now, I think he's having a cigar. God knows I'm not the biggest fan of the hobby but as long as he's not smoking in the house I think I can live with it." I nodded, it really listening.

"Oh, excuse me." I went back to my car and got my bag out of the trunk. Natalia watched from the steps as I returned. "Where do you want me to..?"

"Oh, yes! Come in, come in, right this way!" She waved me in and led me down the hall to a mostly empty guest room.

"Its nice. It's... cozy." I offered, looking around the small room.

"Really? Oh, thanks. It's my first time owning a house so I've never gotten the chance to decorate a guest room before. That's my old bed there, that's why it's so small." She paced around the room as she talked, gesturing wildly. "There's nothing in the dresser, so you can use the if you want. There's the closet too, but that has some boxes of stuff in it. Oh and the tv's not hooked up to cable but there's a DVD player if you're interested." I smiled politely.

"It's great, thank you." Heavy footsteps in the hall grabbed both of our attention and we stepped out of the room. My dad came up and hugged Natalia, and something about her smile made me feel... jealous? He must have noticed it on my facial expression, because he cleared his throat a few times before he said anything.

"Hey." I wanted to laugh.

"Hi." Either Natalia didn't notice the tension or she was an expert in avoiding it, because she stayed cheerful for the entire encounter.

"Well, I should get started on dinner. I'll leave you to it!" She hummed to herself as she practically bounced down the hall. My dad watched her leave then turned back to me.

"How are things?"

"They're fine," I said, crossing my arms and leaning against the wall. "My first year of college went well." He nodded.

"Good. Glad to hear it. What are you majoring in again?"

"Women's and gender studies." He nodded again, obviously unsure of what to say.

"How's the house?"

"Empty."

"And your mother?"

"Alone." He rubbed the back of his neck, then adjusted his glasses.

"I'm sorry for not telling you sooner."

"About the wedding? It's fine."

"About a lot of things." We stood in silence for a minute. "We should go see if Natalia needs help with dinner."

"Yeah."

Natalia did most of the talking at dinner, with the two of us mostly just responding to her. Yes I was enjoying college. No I had never been to California. I also liked purple for the bridesmaid dresses. The last question came with some hesitations from the three of us. It was obvious that they had at least considered asking me to be a bridesmaid, but the idea had been shot down. I wasn't sure by who, though.

"I'm very excited for you to be spending some extra time with us, Rainbow! It'll be so nice to get to know each other!" I hummed in agreement around my pasta. "I'm just sorry it was so short notice! A lot of people can't even make it to the wedding because of how quickly we announced it, but you know your dad, he just likes to get things done and over with!" That statement held something with me, and I thought about for awhile afterwards. Maybe it was because if felt strange to be told something like that about my dad from someone who had only known him for a short time. Or maybe it was because for the past nineteen years I had never seen any proof to make that true.

"I understand," I said, trying to keep my focus on the conversation. My dad, it seemed, had completely checked out of the conversation at this point, staring down at his plate. It appeared that I had too, because I didn't even notice Natalia had asked him a question until she asked a second time.

"Lionel?" She said, shaking his arm lightly. He and I both snapped out of it and looked to her.

"Yes dear?" I flinched.

"I was asking if you wanted to take Rainbow to the frozen yogurt place we like?" He shook his head.

"Can't. She's gluten free or something."

"Vegan." I corrected, then turned to Natalia. "It's alright if you want to go, though. I'm fine with not getting anything." My dad shrugged and stood up, taking his plate into the kitchen.

"Guess we're not going then. I'll be in the garage."

That night, as I texted Opal about our various adventures that evening, I could hear the two of them arguing. Natalia sounded upset that he hadn't told her about my diet, and he was trying to get her to calm down and told her it was fine. The argument didn't sound too heated, and it sounded like she was more embarrassed than angry, but the way she was talking sounded more like someone my age than someone his age. I shook my head and rolled over, trying to ignore them. I just had to do my best to get through the week, then I could wish them a happy marriage and never see them again.