"Oh. I always take the bus. I'll leave Friday after my last class, and I'll get home Sunday night."
Dad's frown matches mine. A bus? A fucking bus? I'm not letting her take a bus all the way to Utah. Has she lost her mind?
"Take one of my cars. There's no sense in you riding the bus," Dad says, beating me to what I want to say.
"Thank you, that's sweet, but I can't. I'll be fine on the bus."
She's crazy if she thinks I'll let her take a bus.
"Don't be ridiculous, Raya," I say, finally growing irritated. "I'll drive you. I don't have anything going on next weekend."
A weekend away from Sterling Shore sounds good on its own. A weekend in Raya's world sounds perfect. I'd love some insight.
"Kade, I'm fine going on the bus. Shift the subject, please," she pleads softly.
Everyone laughs, but I find no humor in this. I stare down at her, and I can’t help but feel a little pissed. We're supposed to have already crossed this hurdle. After the damn tuna thing, I thought she knew how much I wanted her to have the same comforts I do. Not to mention, it really pisses me off that I'm essentially having to beg her to let me go.
A weekend stuck at home without Raya doesn't sound fun at all.
"I've got somewhere to be," Tag says as he stands up, but I barely acknowledge him as I think of how to handle this thing with Raya. He glances over to Billy, who is still typing fervently on his phone. "Forget it, Bity. Rene isn't going to Aspen with you."
"Bity?" Raya asks, but that's not what I want to talk about. I want to climb inside her head and find out what just happened.
"Don't get him started," Wren says. I hear him stand, but I'm still not in the mood to pay attention to anything else. "I need to get back to Erica. See you guys later."
I assume they walk out, but I don't offer farewells.
"For the record, I was texting my friend Ash. Not Rene. Some guy is giving her problems," Billy says to Kade, prompting a small snicker from me.
That distracts me just enough. Texting who? All I know is he said it wasn't Rene. He's so full of shit.
"Sure you were," I say sardonically.
Bity rolls his eyes as he storms out, acting like a drama queen. When you ruin your brother's wedding, people tend to dislike you and distrust you. No way in hell would I let Bity around Raya without me being firmly placed at her side.
"You guys always so nice to him?" she asks, seeming confused.
She doesn't know what a prick he is, so she assumes we're all being jerks. That's not my story to explain, and quite frankly, I'd rather know why she doesn't want me to go with her. She hasn't even mentioned it to me before tonight.
"Long story," I say flatly, motioning for her to come with me when I stand. "We've been drinking for most of the night, so I can get us a driver or we can crash here."
I suddenly wish this house was a fraction of the size so I could tell her there was only one room and we'd have to share.
"Stay, stay," Mom cheers, sounding too damn drunk. At least she's in her happy drunk mood.
Dad kisses the side of her neck, pulling her tighter to him, and I fight a gag reflex. Seriously?
"Gross," I groan, dragging Raya out of the room with me as I escape the disgusting exhibition.
"I think it's sweet," she giggles, but now I have her alone, and my mind is wrapped around one thing.
"Why do you insist on taking a bus all the way to Utah? If it's because you don't want me to go, that's cool. I was just going to keep you from making that trip alone. But you can drive one of my cars. Don't take the bus."
I'm doing my best not to sound offended that she doesn't want me there. I may not like it, but I can accept it. But I refuse to let her ride a bus when I have four vehicles.
Her whole stance changes as she lets out what seems to be a painful breath. Hesitance weights her eyes, but she finally speaks.
"Kade, it doesn't have anything to do with that. My house..." Her voice trails off as she looks around, seeming to examine the house for some reason. "It's not like this. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure that den was bigger than my mother's trailer. Right. Trailer. It's... It's not something I want to drag you out to see."