I go outside and sit on a bench. How could he have a girlfriend? How could he try and replace mom? I feel weight on the bench and look over to see Dad has sat down.

"Look I know your upset but once you meet her, I think you'll really like her." I let out a groan.

He sighs and moves closer.

"I couldn't love you anymore than I already do and I loved your mom unconditionally, but don't you think it's about time I have a little happiness?"

"Do I not make you happy?" I croak out as a tear runs down my cheek. Just what I need, someone else to disappoint.

"Just the opposite. But kiddo I need a companion and Elise is.. well you'll meet her tomorrow."

"I'm just scared I'm gonna loose you."

"You couldn't if you tried." He stands up and motions for me to as well. He gives me a hug. "Now let's head home."

□

We park in the driveway and I hop out of the car. Dad follows behind me as I open the front door but the girl, Elise, is not here.

"Elise!" Dad calls.

"In here!" A women's voice calls. I'm not in the mood to meet Elise today at all.

"Dad I have a ton of homework to get done today. I'll see you later." He nods and I run up the stairs as he goes to look for Elise.

In my room I pull my guitar from under my bed and balance it on my lap. I strum the strings and start to sing a song I've sang way too many times.

"Maybe in another life. I could find you there. Pulled away before your time. I can't deal it's so unfair. And it feels, and it feels like. Heaven's so far away. And it feels, yeah it feels like, the world has grown cold. Now that you've gone away."

I miss my mom so much. I wish she was here with me. Right now. And I try to understand that Dad just wants happiness but this Elise will never be the mom I lost. The one I miss. The one I love.

"And it feels, and it feels like. Heaven's so far away. And it feels, yeah it feels like, the world has grown cold. Now that you've gone away."

I throw my head into my pillow and sob.

□

I peel my eyes open and look over at the clock. 9:35. Holy crap, why didn't Nina wake me up! I'm so late now.

I whip off my sheets and run down the stairs. On the couch is some middle-aged lady with curly strawberry red hair. She has freckles on her nose and cheeks and large red glasses. Her blue eyes are able to see from my position from the step. She has on a large t-shirt and baggy capris.

"Hi! I was waiting for you to wake up but I didn't want to bother you." She says while standing up.

"Who are you and where's Nina." I ask skepticaly.

"Oh my bad, my name is Elise." She holds out her hand but I don't bother shaking it. "Nina was told by your father to take the day off so you and I could hang out." She says excitedly. "So we could get to know each other."

"Where is Dad?" I ask. Her perky smile smile dips slightly.

"He's busy all day. He said he'll hope to be back for supper." Great, I'm stuck with this nut all day. "So I made waffles and-"

"No thanks." I interrupt. "I'm gonna go change." I run up the stairs two at a time and grab my phone and dial in the number.

"Hello?"

"Yasmine! I just needed to talk to someone." Yasmine is always able to help me keep my cool.

"Talk away chica. But soon I'm gonna have to get back to class. Where are you by the way?"

"Dads making me stay home and spend time with his new girlfriend."

"Oh, well make the best out of the situation."

"How do I do that?" I groan.

"Mm get to know her. Your judging her for just being another girlfriend instead of for her." I nod in agreement even though I know she can't see me.

"Thanks Yasmine."

"No problem chica. GTG." I hang up and plug my phone in while heading to the shower.

□

"So what do you want to do?" Elise asks me. We're sitting on our couch. I just got out of the shower so my hair is still wet on my back. I had just slipped on sweatpants and a t-shirt.

"Whatever." I say while petting Sutton.

"How about we play a game." She suggests.

"How about not."

"No, it'll be fun. It's called I do You Do. So we'll do something I like to do and then something you like to do to get to know each other."

"This sounds like summer camp on the first day." She lets out a laugh.

"Come on. It'll be fun." She gets up from the couch and I reluctantly follow, trying to listen to Yasmine about giving her a chance.

In the kitchen Elise pulls out container after container of eggs from the fridge.

"I didn't know we had all these eggs." I say confused.

"Oh you don't. I bought them this morning." That explains it. She finally pulls out the last container. I count out twelve cartons of eggs.

"Oh one more thing." She runs out of the room and returns with large paint bottles. Red, pink, blue, green, orange, purple, white, and black.

"Are we painting these?" I ask.

"No no no. Follow my lead. First take an egg and crack open a little whole like this." I crack a little whole the size of a penny as I follow suit. "Ok now pour out the yoke inside." We pour out the gooey contents into a bowl. "Lastly pick a color paint and squirt it into the inside." I pick out blue and squeeze the bottle and let the paint go into the hole.

Let me be the first to say how weird this is.

"Why are we doing this?" I ask cracking another egg.

"You'll see. Let's finish and I'll show you."

□

An hour later we have cracked all the eggs and put them on a giant cardboard plate.

"Follow me." We take the cardboard outside carefully to our backyard. On the wall of our house is a giant canvas. When I say giant I mean giant.

"Wow." I say stunned.

"Surprise." I look over at Elise. She's so excited it's hard not to be as well.

"So we're throwing the eggs at the canvase?"

"Yeah! It'll turn out so cool at the end."

"So then this is what you like or do?" I ask. Maybe she really is a nut that likes to throw paint filled eggs.

"Well kinda. I like art and I just thought this would be a more fun thing than just painting a simple picture."

"Are you an artist than?" I ask.

"Um... I was you could say. But let's hold on the conversation. I'm ready to throw!" She grabs an egg and chucks it at the canvase. It makes a cracking noise as the egg hits the wall, paint splattering everywhere.

I grab an egg and chuck it as hard as I can. I laugh as it hits the canvase, even splattering paint onto me.

We continue to throw the eggs, laughing and actaully having a good time.

All of a sudden an egg hits my pants leg. I look over to Elise who is laughing so hard she has tears in her eyes.

"Opps." Elise laughs, not meaning it at all. I take an egg and throw it at her shirt. She looks at the purple now at her shirt stunned.

"Your on!" Pretty soon we're in a full blown egg paint fight. When all the rest are gone we fall onto the ground not able to contain my laughter. Elise sits next to me.

"You got a good arm." She says nudging me.

"Ha yeah. That was actually really fun."

"I knew it would be." We fall into silence.

"So um how did you and Dad meet?" I find myself asking.

"Um." She says pushing her glasses up her nose. Nico runs over and hops into my lap and I pet him as I wait for her response. "I was a stunt double for one of his co stars. And after we met I guess we just clicked."

"Wait, I thought you were an artist." I say skepticaly. Is she lying to me?

"I was."

"How many jobs have you had?"

"Oh so many. Let's see I've been a yoga instructor, zookeeper, journalist, art teacher, therapist, corpse don't ask, interior designer, hair stylist, nanny, dog walker, lipstick reader, and now a stunt women." I look at her stunned.

"How does one have this many jobs."

"I think it's more fun this way. I like to live against the status qou of having only one job. Or doing anything that's normal really. I'm also an author. I'm working on a book right now."

"Really? What is it called?"

"Can't say. Come on. Let's clean this up so we can do your you do."

We stand up and I go over and look at the canvas. It's defiantly a mess of different colors and splatters. But it looks kinda amazing with all the color blending together to make something extravagant.

"Cool uh?" Elise says from behind me.

"Yeah." I mange to get out. We continue to look at the canvas in awe.

"Okay let's clean up. Come on."

□

"I didn't know paint was so hard to get out of your hair." I groan as I continue to pick paint out even though I took a half hour shower.

"I know right." Elise mumbles also picking out paint. "So what do you want to do for your you do?"

I plop on the couch with Sutton and Nico and ponder the question. I honestly don't know what I want to do. I don't really have any hobbies beyond singing and no way am I doing that.

"I don't know." I reply.

"Well Matt said that you love to sing and play guitar." Thanks Dad. "I could hit you on drums and we could play together."

"Okay." I choke out. I go up to my room and grab my guitar from under my bed. "Follow me." I say once downstairs. Elise follows me down to our basement where Dads drum set is and a bunch of electric guitars.

"This is sick!" Elise exclaims running over to the drums set.

I grab an electric guitar and strum the strings. What if she hates my singing? What if she starts laughing at me? I can just see her thinking this was a bad idea once she hears how bad of a singer I am.

"Are you okay?" Elise asks from the drums.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine."

"Cool. What do you want to sing?" Defiantly not one of my sappy songs.

Than I got a better idea.

"Just follow my lead." I start strumming the first few notes and open my mouth to sing.

"I've seen you in my dreams." I start nervously. "You turn them to gold and shatter their bones. As broken as we seem, oh. We give up our heart, a shot in the dark."

"And I know that there's something about you." Elise starts to echo me and I start to loosen up. "And the way that I want to. There's something about you I'm drawn to. But there's nothing I can do." By now we're both rocking out and my nerves have settled.

"I know you got away, I know you got away!" We belt out. "All my time is consumed with your face. I tell myself that this feeling will fade. And I know, and I know, and I know that it won't." Elise is actaully really good at guitar and were both having a blast. I really had nothing to worry about.

"And the feeling of getting you closer
Is taking me under. And the closer I'm getting to closure is making me wonder.

"I know you got away, I know you got away! All my time is consumed with your face, I tell myself that this feeling will fade. And I know, and I know, and I know that it won't. No, ooh, you're pulling me down yeah!"

Just then another guitar starts really nailing it and I turn to see Dad standing there playing his guitar. I let out a laugh.

"Come on Dad! You can do better!" He bangs on the strings giving it all he has, Elise and I trying to keep up.

"Come na na na na na na na na
Na na na na na na na." I finish and run over to Dad.

"You were awesome kiddo." I give him a hug and bathe in this feeling of complete happiness.