"Only you would think covering for Lux when she's ditched school and lied is anything remotely close to parenting," Cate fumed.
"She's not speaking to me! She won't forgive me! I didn't know what else to do. I thought if I helped her out, she might give me a second chance," Baze explained.
"By helping her out you're telling her that ditching school and lying are acceptable behaviors," Cate said. "What am I saying? You probably do think they're acceptable behaviors."
"And you don't think you're overreacting a little bit? It's just junior high. It's not going to matter if she misses a few days," Baze argued.
"Don't you get it? Missing school will affect her grades. It will affect whether she gets into a good college or not," Cate pointed out.
Baze made a face. "She'll be fine."
"I don't think you understand how serious this is! I only have temporary custody. If Lux keeps getting into trouble, they won't let me keep her," Cate said angrily.
"What? We're her parents," Baze replied.
"We don't have parental rights. Her social worker, she made it clear that this is temporary," Cate explained.
"What can we do?" Baze asked.
"Make sure Lux stays out of trouble," Cate said firmly.
Baze drove to his parents' house on autopilot. He swallowed as he pulled up. This was definitely not his favorite place.
He might be an adult, but his dad always managed to make him feel like a little kid who'd done something wrong.
He knew going to his dad for help was a long shot. His dad would probably just use Lux as more ammo against Baze.
But, he had to do something. He hadn't realized Cate only had temporary custody of Lux. He didn't really know anything about the legalities of adoption. But, there was no way they could lose Lux.
Baze knocked. Even though it was his childhood home, it didn't feel like home to him and he did not feel comfortable just walking in without knocking.
His dad, John, opened the door, a condescending smile on his face. "A visit from my only son. That can only mean one thing."
Baze waited for the punch line.
"You need something," John said knowingly. "My guess is money."
"No, I don't need money," Baze muttered.
"Really?" John smirked. "Does that mean you're going to pay the rent for the bar this month?"
Baze looked down, embarrassed. "About the rent, I'm going to get it to you. I just need a little more time."
"I don't know what I expected, when you turned the building I gave you into a bar," John said, disappointment evident in his voice.
"You told me to do what I loved," Baze protested.
"And that's the best you can come up with?" John shot back.
"This was a mistake," Baze mumbled, turning for the door.
"No, wait," John stopped his son from leaving. "You can't leave without telling me what you wanted in the first place."
Baze shook his head. "I don't want anything from you."
Cate found Lux in the attic. She sat down facing Lux on Lux's bed. "What happened to not ditching anymore?"
"I didn't know that was the only way I would get to see my friends," Lux said truthfully.
"Bug came over for dinner last night," Cate pointed out.
"Yeah, and you didn't give us any time alone." Lux rolled her eyes.
"You're fourteen. You don't need time alone with your boyfriend," Cate said firmly.
"And what about Tasha? I never get to see her! You wanted me to invite people from school to spend the night, but you wouldn't let Tasha come over," Lux pointed out.
"Can you blame me? The last time you hung out with Tasha you almost got arrested for stealing," Cate retorted.
"Maybe I should go back to Sunnyvale," Lux mumbled, looking down.
Cate sighed. She grabbed Lux's shoulders and looked at her. "Lux, you should know by now that I want you here."
Lux swallowed. She didn't know what to do. She didn't want to hurt Cate. And, she really wanted to be with Cate. But, she also wanted to be with Bug and Tasha.
"I don't want to stay here," she said quietly after a moment. She looked away, not wanting to see the hurt on Cate's face.
Tears stung Cate's eyes. "I don't understand, Lux. Is this because of Tasha?"
Even without looking at Cate, Lux knew she was crying. Cate's voice was thick with tears. Lux steeled herself against emotion and continued, "I miss my friends. I don't want to be across town from them. I don't want to be at a different school."
Cate nodded, tears streaming down her face.
Cate left Lux. Without thinking, she headed for Open Bar. Even though they'd argued earlier, Cate subconsciously knew that Baze was the only one who could possibly understand how she was feeling.
Baze looked up from the bar when Cate entered. "If you came by to tell me how horrible I am, get in line. My dad-"
Baze stopped when he saw that Cate's eyes were red and swollen. She looked awful. "You look like you could use a drink." He grabbed a bottle and handed it to her.
"Zima?" Cate cracked a smile. "I haven't had this since…"
"Lux was conceived?" Baze finished the sentence.
At the mention of Lux's name, fresh tears began to fall down Cate's face.
"I'm sorry," Baze said, shocked. "I didn't mean to bring back bad memories."
"No, it's not that," Cate replied, wiping tears from her eyes. "It's Lux. She wants to go back to Sunnyvale."
"Sunnyvale?" Baze asked.
"Yeah, the group home she was in before," Cate muttered. "Being with me must be really bad if she wants to go back."
Baze buried his face in his hands. "It's not all your fault. I haven't exactly been in the running for father of the year."
"What should we do?" Cate asked.