All three of us snapped our heads in my dad’s direction.

“We’re not?” my mom asked at the same time I asked, “Are you trying to make this more confusing for me?”

My dad shook his head. “I said we were heading toward a split. But after talking through some things today, that’s not the direction I want us to go.” He looked at my mom. “I don’t know if we’ll make it, but I don’t want to give up without at least trying.

“I've known you were unhappy for a long time, Jane. I was just afraid to ask why… because I didn’t want to hear it was my fault. Carson helped me figure out that as afraid as I was to hear your answer, it didn’t even compare to how afraid I am to lose you.”

“I helped you figure all that out?” When everyone looked at him, Carson smirked and added, “Yeah, of course, I did. I do stuff like that all the time.”

I sat there on mute while my dad spoke. I’m not sure I’d ever heard him talk this much before, certainly not about his feelings. My mom listened with tears in her eyes and, as much as I wanted to hug her, to make her stop feeling, I didn’t. Because she needed this. Maybe even more than my dad did.

She needed to hear what was in his heart, all the things he regretted not saying, all the times he’d been so afraid of losing her that he’d shut himself off and pretended everything was fine.

My mom reached over and took his hand in hers without saying a word.

My tears started falling soon after that. To know what I’d always thought was an ideal relationship had actually been broken.

“Um…” Carson said quietly. “Lane, could I see you in the kitchen?”

I knew I should’ve gotten up, left my parents to sort things out on their own, but what if something went wrong? Although it wasn’t as if I could keep them together just by sitting there staring at them.

But Carson was insistent, and I got the message.

“We’re going to leave you two to talk privately.”

They didn’t even look up as I stood and let him lead me into the kitchen. As soon as we turned the corner, I smelled it.

“Oh, crap! The fish.” I ran to the stove to turn the fan on high then went to open the window. Carson pulled the fire alarm off the ceiling before it started screaming.

“I didn’t want to alarm anyone while you were all emoting.” Smoke billowed out of the oven when Carson opened it. He waved his hand in front of his face, grabbed a pot holder. “But I’m fairly sure blackened fish isn’t supposed to taste like charcoal.”

“I can’t believe my mom forgot. She never forgets stuff like that.”

“She has more important things to focus on right now.” Carson used a fork to lift the fish out of the pan and put them on a cutting board, then started scraping the charred skin away. “You okay?”

I leaned back on the counter, only vaguely realizing the jellyfish sting didn’t hurt anymore. “Guess so. Might depend on what they decide, though.”

“They love each other, Lane. That’s obvious. But they stopped talking. People change. What we want changes. If we stop sharing who we are along the way, how’s the other person supposed to know?”

“They can’t?”

“Bingo.” He tipped the lid of the rice to the side and peered inside before turning off the heat underneath it. “Honestly, I don’t know if they’ll be fine. I hope so, and I think they’re both willing to try, so I have a good feeling about it. But the only thing you can do now is tell them you love them, and then let them do what they need to do.”

“When did you get to be so knowledgeable about relationships?”

“This afternoon. When I thought your dad was going to murder me, I had a second to think about stuff.” He chuckled and faced me. “You really want to know?” He waited for me to nod. “Because, for the last year, I’ve spent every waking moment thanking the universe for the one I have.”

We kissed. Two lips meeting two lips. Something simple that meant so much.

We separated when we heard someone clear their throat.

“You kids mind if we skip dinner?” my dad asked. “I’d like to take your mother somewhere.”

“Where?” I asked.

I regretted the question as soon as I saw the blush on my mom’s cheeks. Oh God, what if he was taking her to a sex shop or something? Please don’t answer. Please don’t answer. Please don’t answer.

“You want to tell them or should I?” My dad nudged her.

“We’re going to the art store.”

If art store had another meaning, I didn’t want to know.

Thankfully, my mom clarified, and not in the way I dreaded.

“I’m going to start painting again.”

“You’ve inspired your mother, Laney. She wants to be an artist again.”

I squealed and ran to her for a hug. “That’s awesome, Mom!”

She spoke into my ear. “You were right. I forgot how much I needed it. I’ll never be me without it.”

“I’m so proud of you,” I whispered. When we pulled apart, I saw my dad shaking Carson’s hand.

“You might want to grab something to eat while you’re out,” Carson was saying. “I don’t think I can scrape enough charcoal off these for four of us.”

“Next time you come to visit, let’s plan on actually making it to the boat.”

“As long as you promise to bring me back alive, you’re on.”

We followed them into the living room where they gathered their stuff.

“Bill?” Carson asked. “Does this mean you think I’m good enough for your daughter?”

My dad took a deep breath, pondering his answer. Just that much of a delay set us all on edge.

“Does it really matter what I think?” he asked eventually. “Okay, if you really want to know what I think, here it is…” He cleared his throat. “I never thought it was possible for anyone to want our daughter to be as happy as we do and love her as much as we do. You proved me wrong, son. You proved me wrong.”