Summer Rain

[30] Try

Dedicated to _SecondJaineration_. ily<3 :)

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(Unedited)

Where there is desire,

There is gonna be a flame.

Where there is a flame,

Someone's bound to get burned.

But just because it burns,

Doesn't mean you're gonna die.

~Try- P!nk

      "You know you don't have to... See this," I told Kaden as we walked up the steps to my house.

      I had wanted to come back here as soon as Mom had called but couldn't for two reasons.  The first was the Call Me Cupid premiere. I don't think Hollywood approves of you completely missing your first premiere. The second reason was that there weren't any flights back that weren't already full.  It had mostly been the second that had been the problem.

      That was where Kaden came in. He said the private jet his family owned was free. But that he would only let me use it if he could come with. Looking back at it now, I had a strong feeling he had been bluffing, that if I had really protested a lot against him going, he would've let me use it. However, I had been kinda desperate then, so I had given in.

      It wasn't that I wanted to get away from Kaden or something. It was just that if he came, he would probably end up seeing how bad it sometimes got between Mom and Dad. He had met them before, and he knew about their fighting, but he had never seen it. Yeah, I was a little ashamed about how much my parents fought and how severe the fights could get. Just a little.

      He shook his head. "It's okay," he said. I sighed, knowing he wouldn't change his mind, and pulled the key from my pocket. It was eerily silent as we walked in. I found Mom at the kitchen table, a pile of papers in front of her.

      She looked up as we walked in. "Raine, Kaden." She sounded surprised, though I wasn't really sure why, because by now she should know that I at least try to come back every time they have a serious fight. Maybe it was Kaden's presence that shocked her.

      I gave her a quick hug then pulled back and looked around the room. "Where's Dad?"

      "I don't know," she replied, trying to keep a casual tone. It didn't work, though. Maybe it was because I knew her well, I mean she was my mom, but I think Kaden could also tell. There was a bit of hurt and anger in her voice.

      I doubted that she didn't know where he was. "Mom."

      "He's upstairs," she said. Then immediately turned to hug Kaden and change the subject. "How are things with you two? Are you guys done filming yet?" That was how I knew exactly how upset she was. I had told her, several times in the past week that filming was done. Mom wasn't the kind of person to forget something. Unless she was in a fight with Dad.

      "Mom," I repeated, not really in the mood for small talk.

      She sighed. "You shouldn't have come back, Raine."

      "I'm not going to let you and Dad sign some divorce paper that your regret a week later!" I exclaimed. Mom and Dad were pretty good at making rash decisions.

      "It wouldn't have came to that," Mom protested.

      I walked over to the table and picked up one of the papers she had been looking at. Like I expected, it was an information page about divorce. Beneath it looked like a contract. I didn't touch that page. I held it up. "Yeah, it wouldn't have came to it, right?" Looking closer at the paper, I noticed it wasn't from our normal lawyer, the Flemings, of course. It was from someone I didn't recognize. Someone who wouldn't ask questions and attempt to make her see how big and impulsive this was.

      "You don't have to worry about us, Raine," Mom insisted, snatching the paper back.

      "Yes, I do, I care about this!"

      "Divorce is pretty final, Mrs. Evans," Kaden said quietly, speaking for the first time since we walked in.

      "What is going on?" Dad asked, walking down the stairs. Oh god, he looked hungover. "Raine?" His eyes turned to Mom. "You didn't have to call her. Raine, you don't have to worry about us," he told me, echoing Mom's earlier words.

      "Yes, I do! Just because I don't live with you guys anymore, it doesn't mean it doesn't matter to me!" I exclaimed, almost close to yelling and crying now. We had the same argument every time. They didn't get that I cared about their fights and the impulsive decisions that followed them.

      Dad's eyes snapped to Kaden. "Kaden, can you give us a moment with Raine?" he asked.

      "I'm sorry, but I can't Mr. Evans," he said quietly.

      Oh god, not now. "Kade-"

      He shook his head, cutting me off. "You can't get mad at her for caring about her parent's happiness." A part of me was a little annoyed that he was witnessing of this. The other part, the slightly bigger, and slightly stupider part was glad he hadn't left me alone to find a way to fix this.

      "We know what will make us happy," Mom said. The slight quiver in her voice contrasted with her words, betraying her uncertainty.

      "No, you don't. You think you do, but you don't. I've seen you guys happy. Really, really happy. And it's when you're not fighting." It was so tiring, making them see why they couldn't just end their marriage. It wasn't the first time they had thought about it, but Mom had never actually approached a lawyer for a contract.

      I guess you could say, if they fought so often, that I should let them. Except, after a week, and some time and thought, they felt horrible about everything they had said to each other. Of course, that washed away when the next problem came up, but the regret for the rash, cruel words was still there. It was a cycle, over and over again. It wasn't really even the little mistakes every now and then that was the subject of their fights. It was all the bigger, past mistakes.

      "Divorce drives a gaping hole through a relationship. It's always there, even if you try again. And it doesn't just affect you, it affects a lot of people around you," Kaden explained. His voice was steady, almost a monotone too. His parents had never considered divorce or anything, but they, and their firm, had handled enough cases on it. He had probably seen some, and maybe even read about it in his Law textbooks.

      "You guys always fight about the same things. The two times Dad came home drunk. And the two times Mom forgot to check the labels for peanut oil." Well, three times now, I mentally corrected, since this time they were fighting because Dad came home drunk.

      "He came home smelling like perfume!" Mom exclaimed, glaring accusingly at Dad.

      "A woman came on me. I said no. M-" Dad replied, in an equally harsh tone.

      I cut him off before he could say something he would regret. "Because you love Mom." An idea came to me then. Mom and Dad fought about the same things, but still loved each other. I had always had the same reasons as to why Kaden and I shouldn't try again. "You guys should try to forget." It had worked with us. Maybe we weren't the same, but it would be worth a shot.

      "That's not going to happen, Raine," Dad said, looking doubtful.

      "Just try. Dad's never gotten drunk. Mom's always checked the labels. What do you guys have left to fight about now?" I asked.

      Mom was the first one to reluctantly admit defeat. "Nothing, really."

      "Exactly." Then I remembered how they sometimes got mad at each other when one of them admitted something in a fight that they should've admitted a long time. Like, when Mom had put a weird vinaigrette in almost everything she made. Dad had hated it, but not mentioned that little fact until almost a month later, when they had been in a fight. "One more thing, be honest with each other." I received part doubtful, part confused looks from both of them. "Just do it, please. Just try."

      Mom sighed and gave me a weak smile. "Fine. We'll try." She turned to Dad. "Everything forgotten?"

      He nodded, looking apologetic. "I'm sorry."

      "Me too." She reached over and grabbed the divorce contract. She then proceeded to rip it up, causing me to let out a quiet breath of relief that I hadn't realized I had been holding in. Kaden squeezed my hand lightly, and I saw him smile out of the corner of my eye.

      Dad kissed her lightly, then pulled her down the hall, into his study. It seemed like they had forgotten we were in the room. I winced. Yeah, that had also been a somewhat scarring aspect of my childhood. They're making up times.

      Kaden glanced up at the closed door, then laughed at my disgusted expression. "You okay?" he asked.

      I glared at him half-heartedly. "Fine," I muttered, following his gaze to the room my parents had disappeared into. Maybe it wouldn't work out perfectly, but they were trying. And I had feeling it would work, because what I had said was true, it was mostly the drinking and checking labels thing that caused the biggest fights. I had a feeling they would still have little fights here and there, and they would probably have to talk about it eventually, but it was better now.

      I grabbed all the papers about divorce from the kitchen table and shoved them into the trashcan under the sink, feeling relieved. "I'm glad they're okay." I glanced at Kaden. 'Thanks, by the way."

      He shot me a confused look. "For what?"