Jay grinned. "Such a Texas thing to do."

"Hey, you said you wanted to go to Texas. I'm giving you the full experience."

"Good. Glad I have you as my guide." He said.

I smiled. "Well I can't wait."

"Will I die today?" He said with a laugh. "Getting on one of those horses seems like a whole lot of trouble."

"I'm an expert," I said jokingly. "And it's not that bad. Ever since I moved to Fort Worth, I've spent almost every weekend at this one ranch. My dad and I, we'd spend entire afternoons riding the horses there. I miss it- I haven't gone in a while. School had taken up a lot of my time, and most of my friends wouldn't be up for horseback riding. So eventually this "tradition" faltered."

"Did your dad teach you?" Jay said.

I nodded. "It was scary at first-" I noticed his expression and laughed. "Only because I was so small- trying to get atop these gigantic animals. But I grew used to it. I looked forward to weekends. I loved horseback riding. I still do, even though I haven't done it in ages."

"You and your dad, are you close?"

"Yeah." I said. "We are. Same with my mom."

"Must be nice." Jay said, sighing. He ran a hand through his hair.

I raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

"It's nothing." Jay said.

"You can tell me."

Jay took a feel breath. "My dad can't stand me. He never wants to do anything." He sighed. "I'm more of a burden then his son, especially after my mom-" He cut himself off.

I decided not to push it. "I'm sure he loves you."

Jay shrugged. "Maybe he does. But there's a difference between loving someone because you have to and because you want to."

"Some people just don't show love in a way that others need to see it."

"Well what's the point of that then?"

"I-." I didn't know how to respond right away. "He loves you. And maybe he doesn't know how to show it."

"We don't have a relationship at all."

"Then make one."

"I've tried." Jay said. I noticed that tears had sprung to his eyes. "He doesn't want me, or want to have anything to do with me."

I lay down on the bed next to him, and grabbed his hand before sitting up.

"Your dad is missing out then." I said. "You're a great kid. But sometimes, some things don't work out. But some do."

He nodded and pulled me into his arms.

"So how's for some horseback riding?" He changed the subject. I could tell he didn't usually open up.

"Let's go." I smiled. By now my hair had fully dried.

We decided to uber to the ranch. The car came quickly. I had only taken an uber once before, as I had heard plenty of stories about the sketchiness of some drivers.

The car was a decent looking Corolla. It was red, meaning every scratch was visible. And when I came closer, I noticed that there were quite a few of them. Some on the rim, a few on the sides. A particularly prominent one was on the back door on the left. I looked at Jay, and I was sure that the nervousness was evident.

"We'll be fine." He laughed.

I bit my lip and got into the car. I was immediately hit with the smell of cigarettes. I hated the smell of smoke.

The driver was a small bald man in a fedora. He was wearing a bright purple shirt with faded writing on it. In his hand was a huge cigar, and there were cigarettes in an ashtray in the front.

"Hey!" He greeted us, turning around.

I yelped, as he had ended up quite close to me.

He turned back around and let out a throaty laugh. "So where you goin'?" He said. "I'm Ralph, by the way."

I gave him the address and leaned back against the seat.

Jay gave me a look, one that said -I'm actually really scared now, but in the playful way.

I laughed, hoping that we'd make it alive.

The ranch was a full hour away. I eventually realized that we can take the train, which would also be significantly cheaper.

"We should just take the train." I said to Jay.

"Are you really that scared?" He teased, looking up from his phone. I noticed a really long text message out of the corner of my eye, and secretly wondered what it was about.

The truth is, I was slightly afraid of the driver's ability to drive. It'd be an hour long car ride, and I'd have to keep breathing in the smell of the smoke and deal with Ralph's strange small talk. There was also traffic. But I was also concerned with the price of the uber. It was Friday, and the roads were full, and the ranch was far away enough on its own.

"Kind of." I mouthed. I'd only brought $100 in my purse, not initially considering the price, and I wouldn't want Jay to pay for yet another expense.

"Stop being a fucking pussy Alina."

"Shut up." I said.

"Weak..." Jay whispered in my ear.

I rolled my eyes. "Can we please take the train."

Jay sighed. "Alright. If it makes you feel better." He laughed, and told the driver to take us to the nearest train station.

"Thank you." I said with a huff.

He stuck his tongue out at me before returning to his phone. I had previously noticed that he was never on his phone: Most guys I know always had their eyes glued to their screens, but not Jay. I had almost forgotten he even owned one. But now, he was intently gazing at the screen, chewing his lip and furiously typing.

I finally spoke up. "Are you okay?"

He looked up suddenly. "Uh, no." He then tucked his phone into his pack pocket. "Sorry."

He now grinned and put his arm around me. "So, when am I meeting your friends?"

I immediately tensed. He was now so close to me, and his fingers were slightly running up and down my arm. I didn't even think he realized that he was doing it.

"Um," I found myself unable to speak. "Whenever you want."

"Do you want me to?" His arm now drooped.

"Of course!" I said and meant it. "I'll just have to make plans with them." I looked up. Jay was smiling.

"Sounds good." Jay replied. His arm was still around me and I was hoping he wouldn't let it drop.

We soon arrived at the train station. I was scared for no reason, as Ralph was a good driver. I felt bad about judging him.

"That'll be twenty three dollars." Ralph said, smiling at us.

I opened my wallet to get the money, but Jay was quicker. He gave Ralph a twenty and a ten before ushering me out of the car.

"Jay-" I began.

"I know what you're gonna say." He said.

"Yeah... You need to stop paying. I'll cover the rest of the trip. I feel bad enough already."

"I hate to say it, but I have money to throw away. I don't mind paying."

"Still." I protested. "I'm the one who wanted to go to the ranch, and it's only fair if I pay."

"I wanted to go to the ranch. Don't worry about it, Alina. Would you rather me spend the money on drugs then? I'll certainly find-"

"Stoppp." I said, dragging it out. "That's not fair. Just save your money for something else."

"Like our train tickets." Jay said, a mischievous glint in his grey eyes.

"Not if I beat you to it." I said, and began sprinting up the stairs and towards the ticket booth. I heard Jay's footsteps behind me, but I was still ahead.

I ran up to the ticket booth, and practically threw my money onto the counter. I frantically asked for the tickets, when I heard Jay behind me, breathing heavily.

"Fuck." He panted, "you're fast."

I grinned. My breathing was still slightly heavy, but I spoke up when the lady handed me my ticket and change.

"Maybe you're just slow." I teased.

"Nah." He shook his head. "But I'm still mad that you payed."

"Shut up." I said, tucking my change into my purse. "You're in my hometown, so I pay."

"Can't let you do that."

"Too bad." I piped up. "But let's stop talking about this. No arguing."

"Fine. But know that-"

"Jay, shut up." I laughed. "We're about to miss the train." I said, looking down at my watch.

We, in fact, almost did miss the train. By the time we finally made it onto the platform the train was pulling in. We were a few seconds behind the last person who got on the train. We managed to find seats near each other. I was seated next to a short woman with brick red hair and bangs, and a man with his hood up leaning against the window. He was fumbling with something in his pocket. I have Jay a nervous look.

"You're so fucking paranoid." Jay groaned before laughing at my expense.

The train stopped a bit later and the woman with the bangs got off, as well as the couple next to Jay.

I moved next to Jay, who was looking out the window. We were now going through empty fields, the only visible occupants being cows grazing on the grass.

"It's nice here."

I raised a brow. "What?" It was strange hearing this from Jay.

"It's so peaceful- being away from all the people, houses, cars. It's nice to look at, it's relaxing. My parents have always traveled to cities- the aspect of rural living just doesn't appeal to them." He said, now looking at me. "I guess I also had the same mindset- but this is actually really pleasant."

I nodded in agreement. "It's nice to be away from everything, even if it's just for a little while. The ranch is nice too. Just a small barn and little cozy house in the middle of a field. And the horses are beautiful- black stallions and chestnut mares. And every summer there's foals." I began rambling. It had been a while since I'd been, and it was exciting to be back and show it to Jay.

"You like horseback riding, don't you?" Jay said.

"I guess." I admitted.

"I can tell. The way you talk about it." He looked at me. "The way those blue eyes of yours light up."

I could feel my face flushing. Hopefully I wasn't being too awkward or flustered.

He shook his head, clearly noticing my expression.

I sank back into my seat, and looked out the window. In around fifteen minutes we'd make it to the station here. A few hours earlier I'd called the owners of the ranch, Mr. and Mrs. Frederick. They were close family friends and were ecstatic when I called. They were both very homely, and invited Jay and I over, saying we could even spend the night if we wanted to. I thanked them but declined the offer.

By now everybody was off the train. We were left alone in the cart with two other people, including the man in the sweatshirt. The train came to an abrupt halt, and we exited through the doors. A small old lady smiled at us as she got off. Behind her was the man, his hood still up, covering half his face.

"So, how are we getting there?" Jay asked me. He was squinting, as the sun was right in our face. I had worn leggings, as we were going to be riding horses, but at the moment I regretted my choice of attire.

"I'll call them to tell them we're here. Maybe they'll drive us." I pulled my phone out from my bag. I then realized I had no service. We were, for the most part, in the middle of nowhere, but I was still hoping I'd be able to make a phone call.

Jay probably noticed my expression, as he spoke up. "What's wrong?"

"There's no service." I bit my lip. "We're going to have to walk." I looked around us. The man in the hood was sitting on a bench on the platform, gazing up. The heat was beyond sweltering, as we were exposed fully to the sun, without even an inch of shade for momentary relief. The walk was around half an hour, and that included plenty of hills. But I internally thanked my dad for engraving the route into my head.

"Nevermind, I take it back. I don't want the full Texas experience." Jay joked.

I laughed at his poke at Texans. "If we get lucky we can hitchhike on the back of a hay cart."

Jay looked at me with alarm.

"I'm just kidding. That's too much of a hick thing to do, even for me."

Jay laughed before gazing down at his feet as he walked. The dirt-covered road was no doubt scorching, and I could feel the humidity rising and hitting my face like a torrent of heat. We would arrive there all sweaty and too tired to ride the horses.

I looked behind me. My heart nearly leaped out of my chest when I saw the man in the hoodie. What was even more alarming was the fact that his jacket was still zipped up and the hood covered his face, despite the heat.

I turned back around and took a deep breath.