Page 52 of Waves
“Why?”
“Because people suck, and the only thing we’re killing faster than each other is the planet.”
“I think I’d rather watch something else now.”
“I think so, too.” I plucked the remote from his hands and switched to a streaming channel then handed it back over so he could pick a movie from the menu. Kai stayed quiet during our movie marathon, and I peeled him off the couch earlier than usual, so we could go to bed.
I slept awful that night, and Kai slept even worse—meaning he hardly did at all. He got out of bed every hour or so, possibly to go outside and soak. Ishmael hopped off the bed and followed Kai each time, then preceded him when they came back to lie down.
By sunrise, Kai began gagging in the bathroom. My heart hurt for him, but there wasn’t much I could do. I didn’t exactly have a simple solution anymore. More than likely Kai had zero immunity to human illness, so he either got sick (in which case all I could do was what I’d already been doing), or he needed to go back. As much as I didn’t want him to be ill, I still thought he had better odds of surviving the common cold than the ocean right now. I rolled out of bed and let myself in the bathroom, squatting beside him so I could rub his back.
“I can’t... I can’t do this anymore.” His voice echoed in the toilet before he lurched forward again to heave.
“I think you just caught a bug, Kai.”
“No, I checked for a temperature like we did last time. I feel burning hot, but I don’t have a fever. I’m not sick.”
“Have you been in the pool?”
“What do you think?” His growl echoed, making him actually sound menacing.
“Okay, well, maybe we can drive down to the beach for a dip and...”
“Ezra, it’s not the same,” he interrupted with a long groan.
“I know, but maybe if you just try...”
“Ezra!”
I recoiled from him snapping. It wasn’t like him to lose his patience, especially with me.
Kai let out a long sigh, wiping a hand down his face while he sat back onto the bathroom floor. “This is not easy for me, love. I don’t like the feeling of failure nor do I like upsetting you, but I cannot do this for another day. You need to take me back.”
I didn’t know what kind of sass demon spoke for me, but instead of reacting reasonably, I set my jaw and said, “No.”
Kai looked even more shocked by my answer than I was. “Pardon?”
“You can’t go back without your coat, which is still on my boat at the marina. I say we try the beach before skipping straight to a death sentence.”
“If I had a broken leg, you wouldn’t beg me to try an ice pack before a cast.”
“You wouldn’t die from a broken leg and I doubt you’ll die from this,” I muttered while I crossed my arms. I tried to stuff the words back down my gullet, but it was too late. My nerves got the better of me.
“And I don’t think I’ll die in the water. That’s your fear, not mine.”
Kai didn’t mean afraid for him, either. With a gulp I lowered my eyes, unable to meet his gaze right now. His icy voice made me shiver, and I got up to leave the bathroom.
I wanted to ask how he knew, but Kai always understood everything said without words. After that first time, he never tried pulling me into the pool again (since he surely noticed the panic that he induced the one time he did). As much as he loved water, I was equally terrified of it.
Kai followed me into the kitchen, refusing to let the subject rest. “You’re afraid to even get in, aren’t you?”
“That has nothing to do with this,” I said, letting my voice rise to match his.
“Then what are we yelling about right now?”
“I love you, and I don’t want you to die!”
“I haven’t died yet, Ezra! You just need to let me go.”