Chapter 18
On Wednesday afternoon, Kai and I are back at Village Coffee.
Kai texted me he’d find his own way here, and he didn’t need my brothers manhandling him into the car.
I’m still kinda surprised Kai went along with it that day.
But, I guess, when Drew and Freddy are together, they can appear intimidating.
Kai joins my table, wearing his Ashworth Academy Hawks hoodie, athletic shorts, and sneakers.
“You changed?” I ask, stating the obvious.
“I can’t stand the uniform,” he says bluntly. “I like to change before leaving school, if I’m not going straight home.”
“I would, but I don’t carry a sports uniform around with me.”
Kai pulls at the front of his hoodie. “I’m not wearing a soccer uniform under this. I just keep this stuff in my locker. And it’s comfy.”
“If you say so. By the way, I’m kinda surprised you agreed to come here. It’s almost like returning to a scene of a crime,” I quip. “Like, this is where we created a big scene before storming off on each other.”
“Not exactly a crime. Social faux pas maybe.”
“Could’ve been the start of something.” My mind fixates on a true crime podcast. “There was an episode of Crime Spree’d about a couple, who always fought in their local coffee shop. No one ever questioned it. Turns out their arguing was the tip of the iceberg. The abuse at home was way worse.”
Kai’s eyes widen and he slowly blinks.
I swallow roughly and feel a blush come on. “What, too morbid?”
His gaze softens as he blinks normally. “Umm, you listen to that podcast?”
“Yeah. Do you?” Please do. I’m slightly embarrassed I let that all tumble out of my mouth.
“It’s on my rotation.”
“How many podcasts do you listen to?”
He shrugs. “A lot. Depends if there’s something particular I want to find out more about.”
“And what kind of stuff do you find out about?”
“Recently I was deep-diving into the vault behind Mount Rushmore.”
I sit back in my seat with a nervous laugh. “Oh, that’s right. You’re a conspiracy theory guy.”
“I’m a truth seeker.”
I sink into my laughter. “Kai, that makes it sound worse.”
“Sorry, I won’t accept what the government mandates I learn. I need all the facts.”
“Okay.” I pat my chemistry textbook. “Is that why you avoid our assignment?”
“Huh?”
“You hassle me for not working, but with your last partner, you weren’t doing the work either.”
“Excuse me for standing up to the man.”
I snigger. “And is Mrs. Field the man?”
“For this one particular thing, yes.”
It’s hard to stifle the laugh and I ask, “So, there’s a lot of men you stand up to?”
“I wouldn’t phrase it like that, but, yeah. Dude, I don’t know how my brother turned out the way he did.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s committed to the man,“ Kai overemphasized the word. “He’s such a goody-goody. You know, following rules and being a stickler for homework. It’s enough to make me see him as the enemy.”
“He probably looks at you and questions how you turned out the way you did.”’
There’s a cockiness to his crooked grin. “You mean, awesome?”
“Whatever.”
“Don’t get me wrong, I have massive loyalty to him. We just don’t see eye to eye on most things.”
“That would be really hard. Friends are one thing, but brothers cut so deep. Not to mention you’re twins, so that’s another level deeper.”
“Do you think badly of me because I’m not friends with my brother?”
“Of course not,” she murmurs. “We can’t pick our family. Heck, I love my brothers, but sometimes I wish I could trade them in.”
“They seem pretty protective of you. They were ready to hurl me into the trunk of Freddy’s car.”
I swat a hand and my charm bracelet jingles. “They were just being macho.”
“I dunno. They seem to really care about you. It’s nice.”
“Thanks. And for the record, you and your brother seem nice too. I really appreciate the fact you don’t use Milo’s intelligence to your advantage.”
“Does my intellect not impress you?”
A server comes to our table to take our orders. Just like last time, I order a peppermint mocha and Kai orders a coke.
“Well, for someone who wants to stick it to the man, I’m not so impressed with your protesting skills,” I tease when the server leaves. “I mean, you couldn’t even get out of being stuck with me.”
“It wasn’t for lack of trying.”
“For being so non-conformist, you sure seem adamant we study together.”
“I’m not falling behind, doing catch-up classes, or repeating a grade. I’m getting out of this jail as soon as possible.”
“Oh, right, your prison theory. You know, Ashworth Academy seems like a darn nice place to be locked up, if you ask me.”
His shoulders slump with another shrug. “Yeah, but I’ve got better things to do.”
“Like what?”
“Training to be in the World Cup.”
There’s a flutter inside me. “Wow. That’s a lofty goal.”
“Don’t you have something you’re working towards?”
Just dodging Camila’s attacks and doing a bad job at it.
When I don’t have a good answer, I busy myself with finding the right page in my chemistry book. “Shall we get started?”
“Sure. Then it’ll be over sooner.” Kai flips through the pages and then mumbles a laugh. “I can’t believe you listen to Crime Spree’d.”
Offense writhes within me. “How come?”
“I dunno, you look so squeaky clean. I wouldn’t have taken you for someone who listens to something that goes into such graphic detail of crime scenes.”
I smile at him. “It takes my focus off of other things.”
He nods. “I get that.”
“It’s kinda the only one I listen to. Now and then I’ll listen to It Must Be Murder or Shock and Awe. But whenever a new episode of Crime Spree’d comes out, it always wins my attention.”
“They have some cheesy humor in-between talking about blood splatters and human remains.”
“Yeah, it’s weird and satisfying all in one show.”
Kai sits taller in his seat, leaning closer to the table. “I never would’ve picked it.”
The blush intensifies across my cheeks. “Glad I could surprise you.”
“You also surprised me in chem today. I’ve never seen you work so hard.”
“Well, we promised to get this assignment done. And it’s not exactly easy to talk in that class.”
“You mean when we’re not arguing?”
“Exactly. Why the heck is it so awkward?”
“Because we’re supposed to hate each other.”
I suck in a breath and shift in my seat. The server chooses this exact awkward moment to set our drinks down on the table.
Kai thanks him, and when the server leaves, he leans in and lowers his voice. “I didn’t say that I do hate you. It’s awkward because not too long ago we were at each other’s throats.”
“Agreed.” I sigh. “And I’m kinda freaked at the idea of Cammy seeing us being nice to each other.”
Kai groans, sitting back in his seat. “Screw Cammy.”
I giggle nervously. “What?”
“Why do you put so much stock in what she thinks? She treats you so badly.”
“She is my friend. And she’s not terrible twenty-four-seven. Sometimes she’s really sweet.”
He deadpans me. “Like when?”
“Like, when she brings me hot chocolate before driving me to dance class. Or she’ll buy me earrings to go with a dress I just bought. It’s mostly random, but it counts.”
Kai’s brow lifts. “You’re a dancer?”
There’s that blush again. “Not anymore. Her new step-sister joined the class, and now Cammy has us boycotting the dance studio.”
“You’re not dancing because of Cammy? Why am I not surprised?”
“It was a silly little hobby to fill in Tuesday nights. No biggy. I wasn’t even very good.”
“You don’t need to justify her actions.”
“I’m not. Seriously, I have two left feet, and I’m not very fit.”
Kai taps the side of his glass. “But with practice, you would’ve gotten better.”
“Listen, Mr. Everybody-should-play-a-team-sport.” I huff a breath after that mouthful. “I’m cool with giving it up. I’m sorry I even brought it up.”
He tilts his head, taking me in. “Are you?”
No, not really. I take a sip of chocolaty-peppermint goodness to lift my spirits.
“So, this step-sister,” Kai continues, “does she go to our school?”
I shake my head, setting my mug down. “She’s transferring next year. She wants to end the year with the same teachers. I think she’s into school.”
“How about that? Is she from out of town?”
“Logan’s Point.”
Kai spit-takes, slamming his glass down. “What? After all the grief Camila has given Jamie about being a scholarship kid from Logan’s Point, her own sister is from there?”
“Step-sister,“ I insist. “And she won’t be a scholarship kid. Cammy’s dad will pay the tuition.”
He double-takes at me. “Don't you see the hypocrisy?”
“It’s not that simple. It’s not like Cammy even likes her step-mom or step-sister.”
“No, why would she? Does she like anyone in her life?”
“She was really tight with her dad.” I swallow hard. I shouldn’t be divulging her family’s secrets. I’m stabbing Cammy in the back. “But since he abandoned them, Cammy’s been siding with her mom. I can see how painful it is for her, being away from her dad.”
Kai relaxes in his seat. “I can see why Jamie’s presence pushes her buttons then. She’s like a mirror image of her problems.”
I snap my fingers as something hits my memory. “Yeah, Jamie’s dad is out of the picture too, isn’t he?”
“Mm-hmm.” He nods, tapping the side of his glass again. “But, unlike Camila, Jamie doesn’t know who her dad is. She can’t call him up and guilt-trip him into buying her stuff to make her feel better.”
“We don’t have to talk about this,” I rush. “We can focus on the assignment instead.”
“Sorry, I just get defensive about Jamie.”
“Don’t be sorry. She’s your friend. Makes me wish I had a friend as great as you.”
His gaze lifts, locking with mine. “I can protect you too, if you want.”
My throat dries, and I tap my chest to get the air flowing again. “Huh?”
“If you want to ditch Camila and avoid her attacks, I’ll protect you.”
“How… How…” The words tremble out of me. “How would you do that?”
A small smile tugs at the corners of his mouth upward. “By being your friend.”
With a mighty thump, my heart balloons against my ribs. There’s a clamminess across the back of my neck, and a shiver glides down my spine.
His head tilts it that handsome way. “Are you okay, Tabby?”
“Tabby?” it breathes out of me. Not witch. Not she-devil. He called me Tabby.
Like a friend would.
A laugh mumbles out of him. “That’s your name, isn’t it?”
I giggle and watch the sparkle light up the green in his eyes. “Yes. Umm, that’s really sweet, Kai, but I don’t need rescuing.”
“Are you forgetting I saw you on Friday night?” He pauses, sighing. “You looked so sad just talking about her.”
“But she’s hurting too.”
“And she shouldn’t take it out on you. Friends don’t do that.”
I silently nod at him, wrapping my hands around my warm mug for comfort.
“Well, the offer is there.” He taps on his book. “If you want a distraction, we can get to work on this instead.”
I swallow hard and nod. “Okay. Where do we begin? Do you even know?”
“I’ll let you in on a little secret. I don’t need Milo’s help with schoolwork.
I get this stuff on my own,” Kai admits.
“I don’t know. It’s like I read something and my brain sucks it up like a sponge.
Milo’s the same, but he actually enjoys going deeper into these so-called ‘facts.’ I prefer not being one of the mindless sheep, gobbling up the slop the teachers force on us. ”
“Do you want me to ask the wait staff to fashion you a tinfoil hat?” I joke.
He grins. “Ha, ha.”
“In all seriousness, that’s really cool. I’m glad to know you can captain this ship. With schoolwork, I get lost in all the names, dates, numbers, symbols, blah, and blah.”
“Maybe you haven’t found your subject yet?”
“Right now, I’m ready to give chemistry a shot.” He grins at me, and I add, “It was easy enough when we studied the other night via text.”
He winks. “Maybe it’ll be easier in person?”
My smile is effortless. “I’m game.”
Surprisingly, it’s a breeze getting through our work. We even order another round of drinks as we finalize our plan for our experiment in tomorrow’s lesson.
“I got it,” Kai says, pulling out his bank card once we’ve packed up our gear.
“No, we’ll go halves,” I counter.
Kai steps away from the table. “Already leaving to pay.”
I blush. “Okay, thanks.”
I might not have had a date before, but a guy is paying the bill, and that’s pretty close.
When Kai gets back to the table and picks up his backpack, he asks, “So, is someone picking you up?”
“Freddy has football practice, and Drew is still off car privileges. And I’m definitely not calling my mother.” I fix the straps of my bag over my shoulders. “Guess I’m walking.”
“I can call someone to give us a lift.”
“No, it’s cool. It’s actually not too far, despite the hills. Besides, I’m not excited about getting home too quickly.”
“Because of your mom?”
“Nailed it.”
Kai opens the door for me, and I internally squeal as I walk through the doorway.
“I can walk with you, if you like.”
“No, it’s okay. What if it’s out of the way?”
“Where do you live?”
“Bellview Crescent.”
“That’s only a few blocks from me.” He gestures to his outfit. “Besides, I’m dressed to work out. The jog home, wearing this backpack, will do me good.”
We move down the sidewalk, and I ask, “Do you always look for an excuse to exercise?”
“Not always, but running does help clear my head.”
“I wouldn’t know anything about that. I get winded in phys-ed from running three laps of the court.”
He nudges me. “You need to work out.”
“I’ve actually thought about it.”
“Do you need a running buddy?”
“Only if you don't mind how many times you'll lap me.”
He smirks. “I’d take it easy on you.”
I nod. “I’ll think about it.”
“So, do you want me to walk you home?”
I bite my lip and relax into a smile. “Sure. Let’s call it a rehearsal of you not ditching me.”
“Why would I ditch you when I’m volunteering to walk the long way home?”
“I dunno, Kai. Why would you?”
He fidgets with the straps of his backpack. “I’m not planning on ditching you.”
“Okay,” I say, nodding as my face heats up. “Cool.”