Then my eyes zero in on the bullet would on his stomach that he showed me the first day. My fingers trace it next. “Did Chad give you this?” I ask.
A knock on the door interrupts him from replying.
“Not now,” Kai bellows as his intense eyes are trained on mine.
“I’m coming in so you better get dressed if you’re naked,” Killian says.
Kai grabs a fancy towel hanging on a silver rod in the bathroom and wraps it around me as his bedroom door opens.
Killian smirks at me when he sees me, but Kai steps in front of me. I roll my eyes.
“Wow, I feel so safe,” I mumble.
They ignore me. “The world better be fucking burning, Killian,” says Kai.
“We gotta go to school, bro,” Killian says, shaking his head at Kai as if he’s an idiot.
“Fuck,” Kai curses, swiping a hand down his face.
“We’re already late,” I say.
“Doesn’t matter,” Kai says absently. “They won’t care if we’re late. We have business to conduct and a basketball game tonight.”
I can’t help but let out a little laugh.
Kai looks at me over his shoulder. “Find something funny?”
“I just can’t help but laugh at two seniors in high school saying they’ve gotta go to school because they have ‘business to conduct.’”
“You need to show some respect,” Killian says.
Kai’s fist clenches. “Whatever the fuck is going on between you and Ava has you fucking wound up, bro. You need to take care of that and I’ll handle what’s mine.”
Killian rolls his eyes. “Whatever. See you at school.”
The crowd roars as Kai shoots another three-pointer. His body looks powerful. All sharp angles and muscle, his tattoos peeking out of his basketball jersey. With his ruffled blonde hair and glistening tan skin, he looks like an adonis.
The day at school was hard. People kept staring at me once again, but this time the whispers were about my mom. I’m still processing the fact that she’s gone. My top emotion is anger right now. Anger, then numbness, then anger again. It’s a vicious cycle and I wish I could push all feelings away. Would I be peaceful then? Every night in my dreams, my mom's face appears bright and beautiful without the stress lines and sadness. She’s like a literal angel. I’m not sure if I’m to be comforted by this or not.
My stomach growls as the smell of fried food wafts into my nostrils. God, what I’d give to be able to get some fucking nachos at the concession stand.
Kai had been glued to my hip once again, and there was almost something comfortable about it.
River and Damon are sitting with Ava and me in the front row so that everyone can still keep an eye on us.
“How are you holding up?” Ava asks, leaning forward to talk closer to my ear so she can be heard over the loud crowd.
“Shitty,” I say. “Everything sucks. I wanna scream and pull my hair out.”
She nods understandingly. “That must be so hard. I’ve never met my real mother. I can’t imagine if I had one having her ripped away so suddenly. God, I’m so sorry,” she says.
I blink rapidly before changing the subject. I can’t talk about this here. “Were you in foster care?” I ask. “Sorry if that's too personal of a question.”
Pain flashes in her eyes for a brief moment. “No, it’s okay.” She starts fidgeting with her hands. “I used to live with Killian and Kai and their grandmother. She took me in at a really young age. I don’t have many memories before living with her. She was an awful woman.”
“Was?”
“She died,” she says, shrugging. “The world is a better place because of it, too. She used to beat all three of us. Eventually, I ran away because she tried selling me to an old man who was in the market for underage virgins.”
“Oh my God!”
“Yeah.” Ava tucks a piece of her blonde hair behind her ear. “After that, Killian was sent away, but no one knows the real reason. When he came back, he turned on me. Kai and him have treated me like a cockroach ever since.”
“Fucking bastards,” I say, fuming. “We could try and plan to get away from them together, you think?”
She sighs, smiling. “Maybe? It’d have to be a foolproof plan.”
We stay quiet for a moment after that, both lost in our thoughts.
“So what’s up with you and Kai?” River asks, bringing me out of my reverie.
“Nothing. He just likes to torment me, I guess.”
She laughs. “Seems like much more than that to me,” she says. “I’ve never seen him so obsessed with a girl. He’s usually one to hit it and quit it. He’s not one to bring a girl home and let her sleep in his bed.”
“Wow, lucky me,” I say sarcastically.
She laughs. “He’s definitely jaded and rough around the edges, but he has his reasons. Me and the rest of the gang trust him with our lives.”
“Tell me more about the gang. Everyone keeps talking about it, but I have no idea what that actually entails.”
She purses her lips. “Sorry. I’m afraid if Kai hasn’t told you yet, then none of us can.”
I roll my eyes.
She pats me on the back. “I know it sounds cliché, but things will get better. I promise.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” I say.
My eyes fall back to the court, and Kai stares at me before dribbling down the center and shooting another basket. God, why couldn’t he have been bad at sports, huh? He just has to be one of those good looking guys who are good at everything.
“I need to use the bathroom,” I say.
“No,” Damon and River both say in unison.
“Do you guys want me to piss my pants right here in the stands?” I ask. I stare into River’s eyes. “Please. You can come with me.”
We have a stare down for a moment before she sighs. “I’ll go with
