Page 7 of Exile
I lean against him and rest my head on his shoulder. “Thanks for lunch. You want to come over for dinner tonight? I’m making tikka masala.” Kai wraps his arm around my shoulders and gives me a squeeze.
“Can’t tonight. There’s a protest happening in the square over a police shooting that happened a few towns over. I’m going to document it for the school paper.”
“A protest? What happened?” I sit up, shooting him a concerned look. A protest sounds scary, and I’m worried about him going to one.
“Some kid got pulled over on his way home from work. When he was reaching into his glove compartment to get his papers, the cop freaked out and shot him through the door thinking he was grabbing a gun. He was only sixteen. It’s fucked up. The cop hasn’t even been put on suspension for the investigation.” Kai’s lips press into a thin line while he shakes his head. “You know, that’s the third shooting this year of an unarmed teenager by the police? Shit is fucked. So now all the demonstrations are popping up across the country, trying to bring some change.”
“Is it safe for you to go?” I bite my lower lip, looking up at my best friend, fear niggling at me after the stories he told me about his own encounters. He’s been my rock and my biggest source of support since my dad died. The thought of anything happening to him causes a painful clenching in my stomach.
“Yeah, it’s fine. It’s just some local activists giving speeches. But I think we are on the cusp of something big happening, and I want to be there to document history.”
I nod and return to my work, not really sure what to say, but unable to let go of the uneasy feeling sitting in my gut now. Kai is always on the lookout for history in the making, so I know there will be no talking him out of going to this demonstration.
After our break, we go our separate ways. I make Kai promise to call me when he gets home tonight just so I know he makes it back safe. The uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach over this demonstration won’t go away.
In stats class, I get a text from Dominick that I check, unable to resist knowing what he has to say.
Tall, Dark and Pumpkin Spiced: Hey, I won’t be able to talk tonight. I have to pull a double to work crowd control for a protest happening. I’ll be seeing you in the morning though. Can’t wait for my pumpkin fix. ;)
I smile at his winky face, and the worry about the demonstration eases a bit in my gut. If Dominick is there then things shouldn’t get out of control. He’s a good cop and will keep things calm.
Me: Be safe tonight. I’ll miss talking to you. See you in the morning.
Tall, Dark and Pumpkin Spiced: Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Seeing you first thing in the morning is the best part of my day.
With hearts in my eyes, I tuck my phone away and spend the rest of stats class daydreaming about my upcoming date with Dominick. I’m pretty sure the professor announces a test for the next class, and I don’t even care if I fail it—I’m on such a high from Dominick’s attention.
It’s 11:30 p.m. and I haven’t heard from Kai yet. I decide to send him a quick text checking in, just to see if he made it home ok.
Me: Hey, how was the demonstration? You home?
I wait around for twenty minutes for his response, but none comes, and my message never shows as read. I crawl into bed, knowing I need to get some rest if I want to stay awake long enough to go on my date with Dominick tomorrow, but sleep doesn’t come easy with the worry about Kai creeping back into my head.
When I wake up the next morning, I check my phone right away to see if Kai ever responded. My heart sinks when I see my message to him is still unread. It’s ass-early in the morning so I don’t dare call him in case he just got home late, but the anxious feeling crawling through my brain will not let up as I get ready for work. I send him one more text, just to let him know I’m worried.
Me: Hey, how’d it go last night? Call me when you get a chance.
With that, I shove my phone into my purse and head into work, hoping that maybe seeing Dominick and hearing from him that everything was fine last night will alleviate my worries.
A few hours later, the bell jingles above the entrance of Brewed Awakening and I see Dominick and crew walk in. They all look tired and a little worse for wear. I can only assume they all three pulled doubles last night to help cover the demonstration.
“Good morning, boys. What will it be?” Dominick stands back and lets Eric do the ordering today. I can see the dark circles under his eyes and wonder if he might be planning on rescheduling our date tonight, based on how quiet he’s being.
“Back to the usual for me and Dane, sweetheart. Your boy here is still on the pumpkin spice.” Eric shoots me a flirtatious grin as I key in their order.
“You boys look tired—need any extra shots of espresso?” I ask, trying to get an idea of how last night went and how worried I should be about Kai this morning.
“Nah, we’ll be alright once we get going.” Eric brushes me off without offering up any additional information. I nod and turn to give the ticket to André to make the drinks. He finally decided to show up for work this morning, which is a good thing since Marie had a checkup with her OB. Working the morning shift alone is miserable and hectic. I’ll take André’s slow-as-molasses ass over working alone.
I look past Eric and meet Dominick’s silver eyes. I bite my lower lip, debating how to break the ice with him. It feels awkward this morning. I can’t tell if it really is, or if I’m making up shit in my head, spiraling because of my anxiety over Kai. I settle on a barely audible, “Hey.”
“Hey, Kitten.” His voice is gravelly, like maybe he spent the night yelling or barking out orders. I can’t help but take a moment to imagine what it would sound to hear him call me Kitten in bed.
Dane and Eric busy themselves with talk of an upcoming football game tonight, so I take the opportunity to ask Dominick how last night was. “Everything go okay last night? You seem…quiet.”
“Yeah, mostly. Had a few rowdy shit disturbers in the crowd we had to throw into lock up for the night, but all in all it was a peaceful protest.” I can feel the tension leave my shoulders when he confirms it was a peaceful night. I just have to assume Kai got home late and crashed before texting me. I make a mental note to give him shit about that later.
“Do you still want to go out tonight? If you’re tired I—” Dominick raises his hand and puts a finger to my lips to hush me.