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“It was a weird situation. You probably don’t remember my friend Ryan from when you were little, do you?” he asked. “This was after your mother and I...”

Got divorced.He could never say the words. He looked away, but I didn’t have to see his eyes to know there was still pain there.

I thought for a while, trying to remember any of my father’s friends, but no one came to mind. My memories were a crapshoot. Some things were as clear as if they happened yesterday while other memories just weren’t there.

“No, I don’t remember him,” I said.

“Ryan and I taught at the middle school together. We were really good friends, but then something happened to him. He would vanish for days and his girlfriend, Joanna, would call me crying on the phone asking if I had heard from him. Ends up he was doing drugs, and had some other women on the side. Eventually he chose his addiction over her, his job, and everything. They had been together for years. They never got married, but they lived together, and did everything as if they were married. As you can imagine, she was really upset about it. So I guess that gave Joanna and I something else in common.”

“But how did Ryan get custody if he was an addict?”

“The kid isn’t her son.” He shrugged. “I think he was around two when Ryan and Joanna got together. If I remember right, Ryan sent him away to some school when they were together so Joanna never got really close to him, but she tries to do what she can for him. She feels bad for him.”

I felt bad for him too, and I didn’t even know him.

“Where’s his mother?” I asked.

“I have no idea. Ryan never talked about her and you know I never ask about that kind of stuff, it’s none of my business.”

When we got to the restaurant, they seated us right away. I sat across from my dad, assuming Joanna would want to sit next to him. My father kept checking his watch, and after fifteen minutes, he started to look worried. As he stretched his neck to look towards the hostess stand, a smile spread across his face, and he stood up and waved to Joanna.

I carefully folded my napkin and looked towards the doorway. Shane entered the room and slowly walked in our direction followed by Joanna. My heart leapt in my chest like a cartoon character's.

Shane??

“I’m so sorry we’re late, Dennis,” Joanna said to my dad as her hand lingered on his hand.

Joanna kissed my father’s cheek and smiled sweetly at me. She looked perfect, like she always did. Her thick dark hair was pinned into an updo, bringing more attention to her high cheekbones and tanned skin. As she sat down, her perfectly manicured hands hung her expensive bag on the back of her seat.

Shane yanked the chair next to me out from the table and angrily sat down. He didn’t say anything. He didn’t even look at the table. Other than his chair being near, he might as well have been somewhere else.

“I’m glad you could join us, Rosalie. It’s always nice to see you,” Joanna said.

“It’s good seeing you too,” I said.

I meant that. I liked Joanna. She never had a bad thing to say, and she seemed to make my father happy.

“Rosalie, I’d like to introduce you to Shane,” she said, then paused as she waited for him to reply. A brief look of embarrassment crossed her features. “Shane! Don’t do this to me,” she snapped.

I jumped at Joanna’s tone, but it seemed I was the only one at the table not used to hearing it. Despite knowing Joanna for years, I suddenly felt like I didn’t know anything about her at all.

Shane stretched his legs out and leaned back. He rubbed his scruffy cheek as he scanned the restaurant. I had been waiting for him to turn towards me so that I could say hi, but it was clear he couldn’t care less about being friendly.

Joanna closed her eyes for a second and let out a long breath. When she opened them, a calm smile appeared on her face.

“Rosalie, I hope your father didn’t spoil the surprise. The reason we asked for you both to be here is because we wanted you to be the first to know we got married.”

“We had been talking about it for a while, but didn’t want to make a big deal out of it since we’ve both been in serious relationships before,” Dad said as he squeezed Joanna’s hand. “You know how I feel about weddings, and Joanna thinks the same way. So we just went down to City Hall and made it official.”

I had been taking a sip of water as they spoke, and I choked. As I coughed uncontrollably, Shane whacked me on the back, and I spit water from my mouth. This was not the kind of attention I wanted from him. Not at all. I must have done something really bad in another life to deserve this kind of embarrassment.

“You couldn’t tell me that over the phone?” Shane sneered at Joanna. “You made me miss the game tonight.” He pulled out his cell phone and looked at the time with a sneer. “I’ve got better places to be.”

As he stood, he tapped his phone and held it up to his ear. Joanna’s hand reached out and grabbed his arm, but he yanked it away and started walking towards the door. With a look of sadness in her eyes, she got up and ran after him.

“Congratulations, Dad,” I said, trying to act like nothing weird had happened.

“I’m sure you’re surprised. You know Joanna and I have been together for years now. I thought it would be nice if you and Shane were our witnesses, but Joanna didn't want to wait.” He looked towards the entrance and frowned. “Between you and me, I think she knew he’d get upset about it.” His eyes settled back on me, and he smiled. “I’m sorry about how Shane acted. I’ve only met him a few times, and Joanna says he’s a good kid deep down, but he gets into a lot of trouble.”

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