Not That Bad

THIRTY

Welcome to the last chapter! It was hard to find a way to end things, so I felt it best to leave it here. Thank you all for reading and growing with Kaya.

When Kaya, Santiago, and Julian arrived back in Layton, Ty and Augusta had prepared a large dinner for the three of them. It was Augusta's last day visiting Kaya, and she and Santiago were leaving early the next morning. Kaya wanted to be awake when her mother left, but she knew that she'd already be gone to a shoot that was in Lake Haven, which was in the opposite direction of Atlanta.

Julian immediately made his way to the kitchen, where the food was waiting. She heard he and Ty greet each other and then the clinking sound of plates and utensils as Julian started plating his food.

"Are you packed?" Kaya asked Santiago. The teen, quiet the entire ride home, nodded. He didn't want to leave Ximena, and though she knew that he'd enjoyed helping her move in and settle into a new environment, he'd wanted to stay. He glanced over at Kaya. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it. Kaya rubbed the shoulder closest to her and he gave a dull smile and walked off.

Augusta watched, a pitying look on her face.

"He'll be fine," she said, her voice quiet. "He just needs a change of pace."

"I know," Kaya said. "I'm just worried about him."

Augusta gave her daughter a sad smile and walked into the kitchen. As she did, it struck Kaya that she had a mostly full house, full of people that loved and accepted her—though two of her friends weren't there physically. 

Kaya picked up her bags and took them to her bedroom, where she immediately set them down and sat on her bed. She sat in silence for a few moments, taking deep breaths and calming her nerves. The whole situation was surreal. For a long time, it was just Kaya and Augusta against the world, and then Kaya just trying to survive being in an old, toxic environment without her mother. 

But now, she was friends with Julian—whom she'd had the biggest crush on in high school—friends with Olivia, a former "popular" girl; Lauren, whose enthusiasm about life kept Kaya going; Ximena and Santiago, two kids that she'd help teach in the couple of years that she'd known them; and finally, she was dating Ty, the one person who'd always been there for her, even if she didn't know it herself.

A knock startled her out of her reverie and she looked up to see Ty standing in the doorway, a smile on his face. He came to sit beside her on her bed, grabbing one of her hands without a thought.

"You're in your head again," he said. "You okay?"

Kaya gave a small, happy smile. "I'm okay. Just thinking."

"About?" he asked, pulling Kaya close so that she leaned on him.

Kaya was quiet for a moment, trying to find the words that were describing what she was feeling.

"How much everything has changed in the last two years," Kaya said. "From moving back here, to now."

Ty laid his head onto Kaya's. His thumb rubbed circles into the top of Kaya's hand, an absentminded gesture. "A lot has changed," he said. "I mean, when you moved back I didn't think that we'd be here, like this. Or that Alison and Julian would be broken up."

"Same here," Kaya said. "But it's a good change. And even through my hardships, I've come out of it better."

"You did," Ty acknowledged. "Now, instead of you getting stuck in your head, you should eat something. Julian said that you had nothing during the entire drive."

"That's only because he force-fed me fast food before we left," Kaya said, laughing. She sat up and stood, stretching. Ty watched her for a bit, seemingly taking her in. Kaya smiled at him as he did so, and he returned the smile.

"I love you, Kaya," he said, his voice quiet. 

"I love you too," she said. She grabbed at his hand, having dropped it when she stood up. "Now let's go eat, now that you mentioned it." She pulled him to his feet and they walked out of the room together, her leading him, him following behind.

It made Kaya think of when she and Ty would sneak out at night, when their mothers were sleeping and the world was quiet. Her window would always be unlocked and Ty would always open it with a small creaking noise that they would always wince at. Kaya would be ready to go, her camera on a strap around her neck. She would grab his hand and he would pull her out of the first story window, his hands settling around her waist so she wouldn't fall. Then he would once again grab her hand and lead her away.

Kaya couldn't help but think of the parallel as they walked into the kitchen. He was always there, ready for her, his hand in hers. Always steady, always there for her, even in her absence. Something that she'd never noticed. Not until she returned.

The two of them filled their plates with food and Kaya leaned against the counter to eat, watching the people around her while Ty went to join Julian, who was telling Augusta and Santiago an animated story about the time Ty had engineered the Senior Prank, which had consisted of twenty cans of paint, countless balloons, and the broken windshield of the school's most hated teacher. Santiago was laughing as Julian acted out his best friend's antics and Augusta was sitting there, a serene smile on her face.

Seeing Kaya from the corner of her eye, she stood up and went to her daughter.

"You did good," Augusta said. "I was really worried when you came back here. You had no friends, you kept to yourself, and you were letting the past drag you down." Augusta sighed. "Sometimes, to move on, you have to accept your past and move forward, and that's exactly what you did. And look what's come out of it."

Kaya smiled, her eyes tearing up. It meant so much to her that her mother had acknowledged her growth, even as she had done it before. Though Kaya heard it from Ty all of the time, it was nice to know that her mother was proud of her despite her struggles and validated that the pain she went through paved the way for something better.

"Thank you," she said, taking a breath.

"Of course," Augusta said. "You're my baby. Now. Let's join the boys and see what they're talking about now."

Soon, the excitement started to wind down and everyone in the house pitched in to clean up the remainder of the mess that was left after cooking. Julian left after, and Santiago and Augusta went to their respective rooms after Kaya gave them both hugs and bid them a safe trip. Ty made Kaya go to her bedroom after they put up some of the things, and then joined her when he finished.

As soon as Ty got into the bed he pulled Kaya close. She turned into him and sighed, knowing that she had to wake up soon and leave both him and the bed.

"You know," Ty said, his voice already heavy with sleep, "this is what I dreamed about. Me and you. I've dreamed about it for years."

Kaya opened his mouth to say something, but Ty had already fallen asleep. So she just smiled, kissed his forehead, turned off the lamp beside her, and went to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a new day, and she was ready to wake up to it.