50. Kai
Kai
Kendall is wearing an aqua dress that barely covers her ass and high heels.
She has her hair pinned up out of her face in a high ponytail.
She looks like a model. She also looks like we are getting in trouble tonight, sending me a mischievous grin as soon as she hops in the car.
Kendall reaches from the passenger side and cranks the volume all the way up.
“Are you kidding me, Ken? Let’s at least try not to get caught,” I snap and turn the volume down to a whisper.
“Can you lighten up? It’s the last two weeks of summer break. We just want to have some fun.”
“I know I know, I’m just not pumped to be hanging out with the whole football team again,” I reply.
Jenna raises her eyebrows “Why? You’re on the team. Don’t you hang out with them like all the time?”
Kendall thankfully changes the subject by announcing she has alcohol to pregame with.
Ten minutes and four nips later, I pull my dad’s old Toyota highlander into what is arguably one of the biggest driveways I’ve ever seen.
By the time we walk up to the huge oak front door, both Ken and Jenna are a little tipsy.
Great. Now I have to worry about getting caught drinking, sneaking out, and being responsible for not one but two drunk girls.
I extend my arm to knock on the front door, but Kendall quickly grabs my hand and pulls it down.
“What are you doing? This is a party. Just walk in,” she scoffs.
Shortly after we arrive, I find Kendall in the den playing a drinking game with Jenna and a few other people.
She stumbles a little after she takes her beer pong shot.
I’m still nursing my first drink, mostly for appearances.
I walk over to her and whisper, “Maybe you wanna take it easy there, Ken.”
“Maybe you want to try and have some fun, Kai. I’m fine, besides, I’m perfecting my aim.” I ignore the fact that she’s slurring and the fact that she smells amazing. Sin, salvation, and something undeniably sweet.
“Fine, let me help you then.” I position myself behind her, put her arm under mine, pull back her hand, and let the ball go with the flick of our wrists. My face is so close to hers I can smell her shampoo. Coconut and vanilla.
“Yes!” she yells as we sink it. “Careful Kai, you might make me wonder if you’re flirting with me,” she muses.
“Your aim is terrible. I’m helping you if anything. Unless you intend to lose this beer pong game, big mouth?” I challenge. Kendall has been known to be a sour loser, but right now, she’s probably too drunk to care.
“Uh hello!?” Jenna shouts, annoyed as she steps in between us. “She has a perfectly good beer pong partner right here. If you want to play so bad Kai, get next.” I back away from the table with my hands up.
“Just trying to help you guys win,” I mumble.
I decide to hide out in the kitchen, hoping the only people who talk to me are drunk and in search of food rather than a conversation. Unfortunately, the kitchen is massive and can accommodate just as many people as the den. Logan seemingly appears out of nowhere and claps me on the back.
“Hey man, I thought you weren’t coming?”
“I wasn’t. Somehow Ken talked me into it,” I respond and take a sip of my beer.
“She talked you into it or she asked and you couldn’t say no to her? What’s the deal with you guys anyways?” he interrogates.
“There is no deal. We’re friends.”
“Uh huh,” he grins. “Friends don’t look at each other the way you look at her, man.”
“What do you mean? How do I look at her?” I ask.
“Like she’s the fucking sun and we’re all just in her orbit,” he replies. Logan doesn’t seem that drunk yet so I know he’s serious. He’s also pretty observant.
“Fuck off, Loge, you’re just mad I don’t look at you like that,” I reply jokingly.
“Whatever, it ain’t rocket science, my guy. Just ask her out. Or don’t. I don’t really care. But if you don’t ask her out, someone else will,” he shrugs, takes a swig of his red solo cup, and meanders into the living room.
It doesn’t take long before I see Kendall stumbling on the stairs behind Jenna. I push past drunk people and manage to make it to the landing just as she slurs, “I feel like I’m going to be sick.”
“Come on, Ken, this is a huge house. There has to be at least four more bathrooms in it.” I tug her away from Jenna and lead her down the long hallway.
By the time we find a bathroom that isn’t occupied by people vomiting or hooking up, Kendall looks sleepy. As soon as I close the bathroom door, she collapses on the cool white tiles in a drunken heap. She attempts to take off her shoes but can't adjust the clasp.
“I got it, Ken, just lay down.” I gently take her heels off and place them neatly at her feet. I take the towel that’s hanging on the rack and put it under her head.
“Thanks, Kai,” she whispers.
“For what?”
“For always looking out for me.”
“It’s no big deal, I don’t mind.”
She murmurs something I can’t make out. I lie down next to her, close enough to hear her breathing but not close enough that we’re touching. She snuggles in next to me and puts her hand on my chest.
“You wanna know a secret?” she mumbles, sleep distorting her voice. If possible, it’s even sexier.
“I thought we didn’t keep any secrets from each other,” I reply.
“You know earlier when we made our little pact?”
“Uh huh,” I say, wondering where this is going.
“I was secretly hoping you’d still be a virgin by the end of senior year. I guess that’s kind of selfish though.”
What. The. Fuck?
“Night, Kai, sweet dreams,” she whispers.
She falls asleep before I can tell her I was hoping the same thing.
I wake up surprised to find my arm looped around Ken’s waist. I’m even more surprised when I realize she’s not wearing anything except a thong and a bra.
I know Ken likes to sleep naked, but I’m mentally unprepared for this scenario.
I’ve had dreams in which the thing that is currently happening happens, but right now, this feels like a cruel nightmare.
If someone walks in this bathroom, they are definitely going to think we slept together.
“I can feel you overthinking, Kai. Just go back to sleep for a little.” She leans over to look at her phone. “It’s only 6 am.”
I rub my hands over my eyes and down my face, exasperated. “It’s kind of hard when you aren’t wearing any clothes.”
“I don’t think that’s the only thing that’s hard. Is your phone in your pants or are you just happy to see me?” she quirks. Of course she knows. Her back and her ass are pressed up right against my crotch.
“Give me a break, Kendall. You’re wearing dental floss for underwear. A guy can only summon so much willpower,” I reply as I tear my hand away from her waist.
“You can leave your hand, Kai. I like it there and you’re keeping me warm,” she says and moves in closer to me. I reluctantly settle my left hand underneath her rib cage and the sound of her breathing lulls me back to sleep.
Two hours later, I’m woken up by her snoring like a chainsaw. How can someone who is so pretty make such terrible noises?
“Wake up, Ken,” I say and nudge her. She scares herself awake and wipes a bit of drool from her lip. She looks beautiful even hungover.
“What time is it?” She asks.
“8:15. We should probably find Jenna and get out of here.” I look down at my feet, trying to avoid looking at her chest.
“Okay, let me put the rest of my clothes on first.”
I sit up and put my hands on my knees, trying hard to distract myself while she gets dressed.
“You know, if someone came in here, they’d probably think we slept together.”
“We did sleep together, Kai,” she replies.
“You know what I mean,” I say, annoyed.
“So what? Let them think we had sex. We know we didn’t. And if we did, what would be so bad about that?”
“Other than ruining twelve years of friendship?”
“Kai, we’re never going to stop being friends. Stop being ridiculous and stop overthinking. We went to a party and we had fun, okay?”
“Okay, but I’m not admitting I had any fun.”
“Got it, Kai. There was no fun had by you,” she smirks. “Why do you care so much about what people think anyways?” she questions as she slides her heels back on.
“I don’t know. Thinking about what people think of me makes me really nervous. I feel like everyone is always judging me,” I explain.
“Isn’t that exhausting?”
“What?”
“Trying to be perfect for everyone else.”
“Yeah, but I’m not brave like you, Ken. I can’t just do and say whatever I want, consequences be damned.”
“Kai, I have two moms and I don’t look like either of them. And I’m the only Black girl on the gymnastics team. If I started to care too much about what people think, I’d drive myself crazy. It’s not a luxury I can afford. And you are brave,” she clarifies.
“No. I’m not.”
“Yes, you are. Remember when your sister lost her kitten and you spent the whole day searching the neighborhood for it? You climbed a tree to get it out, even though you are deathly afraid of heights. You were her hero—that’s brave.
And when you had to give your presentation in Mrs. Palmer’s class about the forgotten cities.
You were so nervous you were vomiting like the whole week before it was due.
You made me listen to it a million times and I did because I knew you hated public speaking.
Then you gave your presentation, and you crushed it.
And you came to this party with me because I asked you to, and you didn’t have the heart to say no.
Even though all the dickheads on the team made you sleep outside naked at camp. That’s sweet and brave.”
“I don’t know if any of those things are brave.”
“Yes, they are, Kai. Your brave just isn’t as loud as mine and that’s okay. It doesn’t have to be. Come on,” she says and extends her hand to help me up off the floor. “Let’s get Jenna and then get something to eat. I’m starving.”