Who does she ta- ... you clearly don't get how these trips are supposed to go, do you?

This is [i]her mother's[/i] trip, not Isabelle's. Her job is not to figure out the itinerary, accommodation or who will accompany them. Her job is to arrive at the shuttle at the appointed time (actually, 30 minutes early), sit down in her seat, stare out the window at the stars and respond only if spoken to. These trips are not intended to be fun or to include "family bonding time" or whatever normal people do. They have a [i]purpose [/i]and they [i]will[/i] be executed efficiently.

Besides, she already asked if Cam and Tad could come but the twins have some kind of social media engagement coming up that is consuming their attention and Luca is in business meetings for the next fortnight too. What's more, it's not like she could sneak Asil into the entourage without her mother noticing - as much as she really [i]really [/i]wishes she could.

No, she's not likely to have any friends on this trip. It's far more likely that they will run into one of the Lozano family rivals. Maybe Alita Perez, of Perez Pharmaceuticals, and her daughter Elena. Or one of Elena's posse - Diego with his nose in the air or Rosalinda with her pink hair and nasal voice.

If she's lucky, it'll be a quiet trip where she'll just be asked to stand still and try on clothes until her mother decides what she'll wear. Maybe she'll be able to sneak away for a moment, pick out something nice for herself or to even give to Asil. Yes. Images of herself in one of the Kikuji line enter her head: maybe a kimono, or something just inspired by one - she needs to be able to dance. Long sleeves, hair up. Ceremonial sword by her side. Being held by a handsome young drone engineer in her burgundy suit, styled short brown hair and tanned skin. She'd see her across the dance floor. She'd smile. An invitation. They'd walk towards one another, raise hands and slot themselves together like pieces of a puzzle. 

She takes a deep breath, cheeks warming, bringing thoughts back under control before they can dash too far down that road.

It [i]would [/i]be nice to take Asil to the gala. Officially inviting her would be too obvious though. Maybe an anonymous ticket, tucked into the clothing she'll buy.

Yes. It could work. Maybe there was something to look forward to on this trip after all.