Colours of the Rainbow

Chapter One

Friday night dinners were of utmost importance to the Young family. So important that Alyssa’s older sister would come home with her husband and toddler. It was at these dinner’s that the family discussed the week they had had, planned for future events and of course over drinks in the sitting room they would try to one-up each other with good news.

Alyssa never really had much good news and always came last in the silly little game using the same piece of reassuring information each week (‘Well my sight hasn’t gotten any worse’). Her father, George, was the one to usually win as he was a doctor and he often could say that he saved someone’s life. But on the first Friday of November she finally had some information that could get her to the top.

“I am going to be the Maid of Honour at Jackie’s wedding!” Alyssa’s mother, Paula, smiled from the brim of her wine glass. She seemed confident that she would finally beat her husband that had been off work all week.

“I finally finished polishing the deck by the pool.” George laughed half-heartedly. He was frustrated that he wouldn’t win this week – he had won ever since his own daughter announced her pregnancy! “What about you Alyssa?”

“Well you know how I auditioned for that new Senior Academy of Ballet back in June?” The question was meant to be rhetorical, but her sister took the break as a time to interject.

“Oh the one that’s half an hour away, in the middle of nowhere?” Her sister, Jane, asked.

“Yeah that one. Anyway I got a phone call today to say that I would be able to start in February.” Alyssa couldn’t see her family’s reaction because of the dark sunglasses she wore, but she hoped that their silence was because they were too excited to speak. She hoped that they wore proud grins on their faces as she did her own.

“That’s so good honey!” Her father exclaimed finally. She heard the floorboards creak beneath his feet as he drew nearer to give her a hug. “All your hard work paid off!”

There was a confused cry of exclamation from her family as they all spoke in unison, but it was the first time they had all been truly happy for her, so she didn’t really mind.

“Well, John and Jane had better have some pretty damn good news to beat you!” Paula laughed nervously. Paula had never really liked the game because Alyssa had never won before, and so part of her wanted to stop the game early in hopes that her other daughter wouldn’t actually have better news. It was too good of a feeling having her daughter happy, that she didn’t want her to be one-upped.

“John, should we wait a week?” Jane asked her husband in a hushed whisper. “It’s the first time Alyssa has been happy, the first time that she might win the game! Can we really take that away from her?”

“Jane you’ve wanted to tell your family this for ages but I am the one who has been making you wait. If you don’t want to hurt your sister’s feelings than tell them the news but say it’s not part of the game. I dunno…look I think what we have to say is important and if you hold it off any longer you won’t be able to forgive yourself. I reckon your sister will be happy for you. She’s not the one to care about some silly little game.” John stroked Jane’s blonde hair lovingly, stared into her blue eyes trying to give her confidence. In truth, John had no idea what he was talking about, he didn’t understand Jane’s family, didn’t understand the importance of Friday nights. He put this down to being a child who was thrown through the foster system, from parent to parent who didn’t care about him.

“Ok, well we have some exciting news as well, but we don’t really want to tell you guys as part of the game. Alyssa you win, we withdraw.” Jane looked over at her sister wishing that she could see the expression underneath the thick-rimmed sunglasses. Her sister was good at disguising the way she truly felt, she knew that hiding her eyes did work to her advantage. Jane looked for other tell-tale emotional signs. If Alyssa was irritated, upset or angry she would play with her hands, but if she was happy she would either flick her black hair behind her small ears or she would run her hands up and down her legs. But Alyssa was sitting stock still, her legs twisted underneath her body, her hands clasped firmly on her feet.

“Go on then!” George exclaimed. Jane hadn’t realised that she had taken such a long pause. She looked over at her two-year old son, Mitchell, asleep on his father’s lap. His blonde curls were tucked behind his ears and he had a pleasant smile upon his rosy lips. He was having a nice dream.

“Well, John and I, we’re pregnant again!” Jane smiled broadly as her mother let out a shriek, jumping up to give her eldest daughter a bear hug. She was bombarded with questions; when was she due? Was she far enough along to find out the sex? Would she find out the sex?

Jane was so distracted by her mother’s questions that she didn’t notice Alyssa get up and remove herself from the room.