Chapter 9 #2
We decide to try the boulders, since the walls are lower and don’t require harnesses. We can only use one color of boulders for each section, depending on how difficult it is—V1 being the easiest and V8 being the hardest. I’m still struggling with a V2 by the time Kai has mastered a V3-V4.
“What demon did you make a deal with?” I grunt, trying to get my feet up on the third boulder. He leaps to the mat from the top of the wall. “No, seriously. How are you so good at this?”
“Yeah, convincing people you tripped won’t be a tough sell.” Kai smirks, and I flip him off. “You gotta watch where you step. Here, I’ll guide you.”
And guide me he tries.
“Put your right foot on the boulder.” He sighs from the mat while I navigate a path of purple boulders. I do as he says but end up looking like a hieroglyphic moving across the wall. “Your other right foot. Now grab the green one with your hand.” My hands start to slip. “Just jump, churri.”
Huh?
My grip falters, and I tumble backward onto the mat with a thud. I guess this would have been the perfect opportunity to put Marissa’s plan into practice, to pretend I’m injured and have Kai rush over, but we both freeze, locking eyes for a moment.
My heart seizes. He used to call me churri when we were dating. It’s a really cheesy couple nickname in Spanish. I always thought it was cringe, but he thought it was sweet, and he had fun rolling his r’s.
“Sorry, force of habit, I guess.” Kai scratches his head and gives me his hand. “Did I make things weird?”
“Why, whatever do you mean? Everything about our current situation is perfectly normal and not at all awkward.” I flash him a smile, hoping the veil of discomfort between us doesn’t crystallize.
A snort escapes him before he pulls me to my feet.
“Want to try the auto-belay area next?” Kai cranes his neck at the higher walls.
“I can’t move my legs,” I say. My forearms are killing me, and my legs are shaking. Kai tries to pull at my foot, forgetting that he’s supposed to act like a gentle first love, and drags me off the mat.
“You wouldn’t survive in a zombie apocalypse.”
“Yes, I would. I’m the personality hire,” I say. “Plus, you’d make sure I survive.”
“I’d sacrifice you to the zombies for a single loaf of bread.” He hurls a water bottle for me to catch before abandoning me. “Wait here. I’ll get us harnesses.”
I chug my water in a way I hope the paparazzi don’t capture, steeling myself to climb the V2 wall while he’s gone. It’s a matter of pride at this point, but I keep tumbling to the mat.
Sweat drips down my face, and I pull Kai’s hoodie over my eyes with a grunt. He’s right. I wouldn’t survive the zombie apocalypse. Fuck. Will I be this out of breath when I tour?
“You should try using some chalk. It helps with your grip,” a familiar voice says.
Blinking against the glare of the overhead lights, I look up to see a shadowy figure. Then Asher Grish materializes before me.
“Asher…” I scramble to my feet like a startled rabbit. “What are you doing here?”
I give him a quick once-over. He looks like he’s been plucked right out of the glossy pages of a climbing magazine. His blue T-shirt and climbing pants fit him just right, tailor-made, a chalk bag snug around his waist, resting under his harness.
“Just fancied a change of scenery.” He claps his hands, a puff of white dust billowing around him.
Some of his fingers are wrapped in black tape, probably for a better grip, or to avoid calluses.
A quick burst of light followed by the click of a camera shutter startles me.
I move back, scanning the space. Asher glances to the side, running his hand through his hair with practiced nonchalance.
“Sorry, those are my guys. I told them to be more subtle.”
“Do you always call the press when you want to work out?” I throw him an unimpressed look. Not that I can say much. Kai and I are here for the same reason.
“Not always.” Asher winces slightly. “But I’m auditioning for the lead in this superhero movie, so I’m putting in the legwork.
Producers and studios tend to notice these things.
If they’re positively received on social media, they might consider me more strongly.
Plus, it’s a bit of a treat for my fans. ”
“I just threw up in my mouth,” I deadpan. Better yet, I might throw up on his shoes.
“I’m joking. I know it’s ridiculous, but it comes with the job, you know?
Talent means nothing without the right exposure.
” Despite the confident air about him, there are purple circles under his eyes, a restless energy in the way he folds his arms across his chest, like he’s hugging himself.
“I mean, I’m sure you know.” He tilts his head, studying me.
“So, have you thought about my proposal—?”
“You okay there, babe?” A hand comes to rest on my shoulder as Kai appears behind me. He pulls me closer to his side. “We should get going.”
“I’m fine … babe.” I reach for his hand. “Let’s go.”
I give him a look. Get me out of here.
“Ah, you must be the mysterious boyfriend,” Asher says, looking him up and down.
They’re at eye level, but neither one seems willing to drop his gaze.
Asher reaches out a hand. “Nice to meet you, I’m Asher Grish.
” Kai shakes his hand, and it comes back covered in chalk. “Sorry, mate, I forgot about that.”
“No worries, dude.” Kai pastes a fake smile on his face. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him pretend to smile this hard. “I love your mom’s movies. You must be proud of her. Are you going to try to follow in her footsteps?”
I kick the back of his shoe. Maybe it looks like a compliment to the untrained eye, but knowing Kai, it’s backhanded. I told him most nepo babies hate being compared to their parents.
From the way Asher’s eye twitches, he does, too. “Thank you. It’s always so wholesome when common folk appreciate my mother’s filmography.” He spies the harnesses in Kai’s hands. “You were getting ready to try the auto-belay area, I see. You were doing V4s, no? So, like, 6As? That’s cute.”
“You were watching us climb? Isn’t that cheating?” Kai cranes his neck, unfazed.
“I don’t need to cheat.” Asher waves a hand. Specks of chalk dust land on Kai’s nose. “I learn fast.”
“Are you sure?” Kai says. “You look like you’ve barely broken a sweat. Are you just here to take pictures?”
“Fancy a race up that wall?” Asher narrows his eyes at Kai, then at me, as if he’s suddenly remembered my existence. “The three of us?”
“Bro. Why? Is this a dick-measuring contest?” I blurt out.
“No need to waste your time. Mine’s bigger.
” I let out an exhale. I’m a sloth. There’s no way I’ll win, but a fiery glint has sparked in Kai’s eyes.
There’s no talking him out of this. Asher has this magnetic pull about him, like a black hole that sucks you into his orbit the moment he sets eyes on you.
“Sure, let’s race,” I say. “What’s in it for us? ”
“Loser has to do whatever the winner wants?” Kai says, sweeping his gaze between us and squeezing my shoulder. I guess it’s a given that Kai and I are a team, and Asher is on his own.
“Deal.” Asher shakes my hand, then Kai’s. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
“Kai.”
“Kai.” Asher tries on the name like he’s trying lines for a script. The prolonged eye contact from a celebrity would be enough to get most people to shrink, but Kai refuses to drop his gaze. I swear I’ve never seen two people stare at each other so intensely. “You’re on.”
The three of us strap our harnesses to different carabiners and pick a similar route, all marked 6A.
Mine has a green shell at the top, Kai’s is blue, and Asher’s red.
Unfortunately for me, a group of people have spotted Asher and gathered around, aiming their phones at us.
So not only am I going to lose miserably, but it’s going to get posted all over social media.
I adjust my harness and resign myself to my fate. Maybe if my butt looks good enough, I can distract people from the fact that I have no athletic ability whatsoever.
“Give him hell,” I say to Kai when he comes to check my harness in the gentle first love way Marissa would like. He spares me a soft look, as if saying Sorry I got sucked into this.
I wave a hand at him. It’s nothing new. I’m aware of his competitive spirit. Mia used to take advantage of this to get him to learn K-pop choreographies with us when we needed a third member using a “bet you can’t do it” or a “she is obviously a much better dancer than you.”
He always took the bait.
“Okay, ready?” says a guy Asher has finessed into timing us. “Go.”
Pitbull’s “Fireball” starts blaring from someone’s speakers. At the first firebaaall, Asher and Kai are off, leaping from hold to hold.
I take my time with the climb, straining against the harsh feel of the holds under my hands. My chest expands with shallow breaths, but I push forward, wiping sweat from my brow.
The crowd cheers as Kai and Asher tackle the final stretch.
Kai’s got a bit of an edge as he latches on to a section where the wall shifts to a steep overhang, shuffling his leg sideways for a better hold.
Asher grunts when he realizes he’s fallen behind.
His movements are getting sloppy, his chest rising and falling like he’s having trouble breathing.
People cheer louder from below us as Kai tackles the last three holds. My heart races as he ascends. I know he’s on the safety line, but—
“Argh.” Asher grunts when he goes for a bold leap, but his hand slips, and he drops. The lifeline catches him, but the swinging tosses him around without direction. “Kai, look out!”
Kai barely has time to move before he and Asher collide midair, the violent motion slamming his leg against the wall. Kai’s ankle hits a large hold, twisting with a sickening crunch that sends shivers up my arms.
“Kai!” I scream, scrambling for him, but the lifeline carries him and Asher back to the mat before I can reach them.
I undo my harness as Kai doubles over on the mat, his forehead pressed to his knee. He’s bleeding, just a scratch, but he clutches his ankle as if trying to contain the pain.
“I’m okay,” he gasps. He squeezes his shin, then my hand, as if trying to reassure me. His eyes scan the room, his lips pressing into a hard line, like he doesn’t want to look pained in front of strangers.
Asher sprints toward us. Sweaty strands of hair fall over his forehead, and even though people are still recording, he doesn’t seem to care.
“Shit, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to—” His breaths come in short spurts. He kneels in front of Kai, helping him take off his shoe. “Are you all right?” Kai’s ankle is swelling fast. When Asher presses his fingers against it, Kai flinches. “You may have twisted it.”
“Can you walk?” I ask.
Kai pushes himself to his feet but stumbles. “Give me a minute.”
The click of a camera echoes through the air, followed by the sound of laughter nearby. This time I spot him, a paparazzo hiding in the bathrooms, snapping shots through the half-opened door. When he notices me staring, he angles the camera at my face and sneers. “Smile, love! You’ll look cuter.”
I paid for this. The thought fills me with anger. I’m no better than any of them.
I don’t know what possesses me to stick up my middle finger and flip him off.