Chapter 38 Tabitha #3
After a few blinks, I take the phone from Drew and cradle it in front of me. Kai hasn't texted me.
“What really happened?” Drew asks.
I shy away from him. “What do you mean?”
“What went down that made you so rattled about him hanging out with this girl? It needs to be more than them being at soccer practice together.”
My stomach sloshes with another wave of sickness. “I guess I got a little paranoid when I found out she’s moving into his house this weekend.”
Drew’s lip upturns. “She’s… what? Why?”
“She lives with her aunt, who’s leaving town for a week. But that’s not even the worst part.” I dump my face into my hands. “Oh, I can’t even say it.”
Drew tugs on my wrists, prying my hands from my face. “Yes, you can. Tell me.”
I gulp hard, and my vision blurs with wateriness. “He wanted Jamie to stay in his bedroom.”
Drew’s jaw drops. “That son-of-a… Why did you say there was nothing going on between them?”
“Drew, they’ve been friends since they were little kids.” I wipe away the silly tears. “I don’t think he meant it the way it sounded.”
“Did his brain get scrambled? Geez, I can’t be on the same side as Dad about something.”
“Would you stop?” I sniff, digging my tennis shoes against the shiny yet scuffed linoleum floor. “When I questioned him, he said it was nothing compared to asking if his girlfriend could stay over. He promised I was the only girl for him.”
“So, why is he playing mind games with you?”
“He doesn’t realize I have a problem with their friendship. I’m too scared to mention it. I don’t want him to be mad at me.”
“Sounds like another version of Camila.”
It hits me hard, and I sniff at the threat of tears. “He said he wouldn’t treat me like she does.”
Drew nudges me. “Then call him. Straighten this out. If he doesn’t tell you what you want to hear, then you end it. Got me?”
I nod, but I’m not fully committed. The thought of breaking up with Kai has my heart frazzled. He’s made me feel so safe, heard, and valued.
But I can’t hide the fact I don’t currently feel like that. And it’s only compounded by the fact not only my dad—but also my brother—are not currently on Team Kai.
I get up from my seat, cradling my phone, and move into a less crowded area of the bowling alley, finding a vacant corner.
“Hey, this is a surprise.” Kai answers after three rings.
I suck in an uneasy breath. “It is?”
“Well, yeah. You’ve never called me before.”
“Oh. Yeah, I guess that’s true.”
“What’s up, babe?”
Babe. He called me babe. That’s a good start. Would he call me that in front of Jamie? Is she with him right now?
“Tab? You there?”
I shake out of my thoughts. “Oh, yeah, umm, sorry.”
He chuckles into the phone. “Don’t be. Where are you, anyway? There’s a lot of noise in the background.”
“Would you believe Drew took us out for family night?”
“You’re kidding.”
“Nope. His call. We’re at the bowling alley.”
“Cool. Are you winning?”
“Only against Corbin, but just barely,” I joke.
“So, is this why you called?” Kai asks. “Do you need me to rescue you from family night or something?”
“No,” I rush. “I just mean, I’m having a nice time with my brothers. I just…”
The words freeze in my throat and I stare blankly at the wall in front of me.
“Tabby?”
I clear my throat and push through. “Umm, would you come here? If I asked you.”
“In a heartbeat. Do you want me to go there?”
“Aren’t you with Jamie?”
He blows out a tired breath. “Nope. That was a bust.”
My heart springs into my throat, pummeling the words that want to escape. “Wh-what happened?”
“Everything was fine. We were competing at soccer practice, as usual. You know, trying to break our juggling records, and stuff like that. But she promised her coach she’d lay off the soccer practice and spend her time studying, and he caught her out on the field.”
“Oof. Did she get in trouble?”
“Yeah. He made her leave practice.”
“She didn’t protest her way out of it?”
Kai sighs into the phone. “No. She wouldn’t let me defend her, either.”
“Wow. She must’ve felt bad.”
“It just sucks,” he says in a low tone. “Things were feeling normal with us again. It was fun. But then she turned docile and compliant. Not the Jamie I know.”
I press the phone harder against my ear and use my other arm to hug my middle. “So, you’re not hanging out with her?”
“No. I got the impression she didn’t want me to meet up with her.”
Tears sting my eyes, but I’m not sure what they mean. “Are you mad about that? Would you rather be hanging out with her?”
“To be honest, I’m just annoyed that my friendship with her has changed. If she’d only give you half a chance, there wouldn’t be all this distance between her and me.”
“It’s because of me that…”
“No, it’s not your fault,” he cuts me off. “Jamie has never even tried with you. You try to talk to her and she just gives you stony silence. How am I supposed to accept that?”
Unsure of what to say, I reply with, “I don’t know.”
“Tabby, you’re so important to me. I really thought Jamie would get that.”
“So, you don’t want to break up with me to make her happy?”
A flood of laughter vibrates through the phone. “What?” He gasps for air. “Good lord. No, never.”
I wipe the sweat from my hairline and release a coil of tension from my spine. “Oh, okay. Good.”
“Good?” he echoes. “Tabby, I never want to lose you. Is that really what you thought?”
“You and she are so close, and you don’t want me to say anything negative about her, so…”
“I’ve been so defensive about Jamie for so long. Now, I’m telling her not to be nasty about you. I freaking hate being the mediator.”
A nervous laugh spills out of me. “I think you’re too much of a hothead to be a good mediator.”
He snorts. “Thanks.”
“It’s okay. I still like you.”
“So, you want me to come down to the bowling alley?”
I relax my shoulders, smiling at the thought. “No, we’re all good here. I think we’re heading home soon. I just missed you.”
“I miss you too. Text me when you get home?”
“Yeah, so long as I don’t run into my dad again.”
“What’s going on with your dad?”
I sigh with queasiness. “He’s forbidding me from seeing you outside of school.”
“What?” he yells into the phone.
“He saw my hands before we left for the bowling alley. I knew he wasn’t your biggest fan, but…”
“We’re not over, are we?”
“No!” I blurt. “No way. I’m too into you to give you up.”
“Then I’ll prove to him I’m good enough.”
My heart pounds. “You will?”
“I was already planning on going to the football game, just to stick it to him. But now, I’ll have a new tactic.”
“Still sounds like sticking it to him. He doesn’t want to see us together.”
“It’s a free country, Tabby. I can go to the game.”
“He’ll go ballistic. Game days are sacred.”
“So he says,” Kai teases. “Okay, I won’t go if you don’t want me there.”
“Well, of course I want you there.”
“Then it’s settled. I’m going to the game.”
I laugh with a mixture of nervousness and giddiness. “Okay.”
This has disaster written all over it.