Die In California

47

Rook's POV:

"We're movin' to LA." Kells announced with a proud smile as he looked at Devyn from his place on the couch opposite us. I could feel the vibes drop as soon as he said those four simple words, and I felt Devyn tense up beside me. Four simple words that could hold so much meaning.

"What d'you mean?" She asked. I could hear that she was trying to keep her voice as even as possible. This wasn't going to go down well with her at all, and I instantly knew that we'd fucked up. Royally.

"We're movin' to LA. Sherman Oaks." Kells announced once again, looking over at her with a hesitant smile. He wanted to be happy for himself, and to share it with her; he'd made it so far in his life, to the point where he was buying his own house in LA and moving up in the world. But he also knew that he'd messed up, and that Devyn wasn't going to be happy. Things were going to get awkward, if they hadn't already.

"Uh, we put the offer in around Christmas, an' it took so long to go through we thought we didn' have it. 'M not makin' excuses or shit, but when it finally went through, you had your openin' an' your tattoo studio goin' an' shit, an' I jus' didn' wanna take that from you. But we're a week from movin' now... so, yeah..." He trailed off, scratching the back of his neck.

Devyn just simply nodded. She'd leaned forward with her elbows on her thighs, looking down at her hands as she fiddled with her rings, and nodded. Shit. "So, uhm, did you all know 'bout this? Or was it jus' you, Kells, that decided to move?" She asked, and I could tell that her anger was beginning to bubble. 

Kells just looked up at me with helpless blue eyes, silently asking me what he should say. I knew Devyn more than anyone else, so I should know how she would react, and what to say to keep her calm. But that gesture was enough of an answer in itself. She knew that we all knew about it. Everyone knew but her. Hell, even Pops and mom knew!

"When were you gonna tell me then?" She asked after clearing her throat and rubbing her hands over her thighs in an expression of stress, her composure slowly slipping. 
"We- we were gonna tell ya when the offer went through, an' when we knew we were definitely movin', cause of everything' that happened with movin' from Toledo to Cleveland.

"But then you surprised us with your tattoo studio, an' you opened it. Things have been goin' pretty fuckin' good for you, Dev, an' I don' wanna take that away from you. Then... well, things jus' got carried away." He awkwardly explained, trying his hardest to seem as sincere as he felt. Anyone could see that he meant well, it just came back to bite him in the ass.

We all know Kells, and we all know how easy going, how crazy, how don't-give-a-shit he is. But when it came to this, it seemed like a completely new side of him. He gave a shit, and he felt bad. Guilty, even - something he rarely ever feels. Devyn was intimidating him, I just knew it, and he didn't know what to do. He didn't want to fuel the fire further, but there was nothing else that he could do.

"Bullshit." Devyn dryly laughed with a shake of her head, before standing up defensively as she ran a hand through her already tangled hair, gaining the high ground of height for once. "You weren't gonna tell me, were you? Or were you gonna tell me on fuckin' movin' day? Or was it gonna be like fuckin' 'Home Alone', I wake up an' everyone's gone?" Her eyebrows were knitted together in a confused manner, yet I saw the accusation in her eyes.

"We should've involved you in every step." I nodded in defeat, finally speaking up to take some of the weight off Kells' shoulders. It wasn't all him, after all. 
"And you knew!" She laughed incredulously as she aggressively pointed at me. Maybe I shouldn't have drawn the attention to myself if I wanted to stay out of the dog house.