Page 27 of Kairo

I climbed on the back of the bike and slid on my helmet. Kairo revved the engine and took off in an unknown direction. I didn’t care where we were headed, as long as I was with him.

Two hours later, we arrived back at Kairo’s house. A part of me was bummed that the ride had ended but I was glad we were back. My legs were sore. He parked the bike. I climbed off, adjusting my pants, then removed my helmet. I fixed my hair but glanced up to see Kairo staring at me.

“What?”

“Give me a kiss,” he said. My insides melted as I placed my lips on his. “Had fun?”

“I did. The back roads were my favorite.”

“Because daddy went fast?” he teased.

I playfully tapped his shoulder. “Chill out, but yes.”

“You sure you weren’t scared?”

I nodded. “For what? I know you won’t let anything happen to me,” I said, winking my eye.

He chuckled. “You’re a dangerous woman. Go inside and order us something to eat. Let me put the bike up.”

I turned on my heels and made my way into the house. I scrolled on my phone to find something to eat but nothing good stood out. That was when an idea came to mind. I was going to cook for him. It was the least I could do. I went toward the kitchen in search of something to cook. To my surprise, Kairo’s kitchen was stocked with everything. I was shocked to see all the seasonings and meats that he had. My gears turned as I thought of a meal for us.

“What you doing?” he asked, catching me by surprise.

I spun on my heels with a grin on my face, but it dropped at the expression on Kairo’s face. He looked irritated. His jaw was tight, and his body was tense.

“Everything okay?”

“What you looking for?”

“Um… Instead of ordering food, I was going to cook. Show you my skills. Show you how I burn in the kitchen,” I joked, hoping to relieve whatever bothered him. He stared at me for a few more seconds before he became less tense. My mind wondered what that was about. “That’s cool?”

“Yeah, do ya thing.”

I nodded and went back to the searching for something to cook. Kairo hung his things then went on the other end of the house. It didn’t bother me and the nice peace and quiet I experienced was healing.

After almost two hours of cooking, I had whipped up a few smash burgers with onions and mushrooms, topped with sauteed onions and French fries I found in the freezer. Kairo and I sat at the bar eating in silence. Since the awkward encounter, we stayed out of each other’s way. I kept my eyes trained on my plate, not bothering to look at Kairo. I didn’t understand why his mood flipped and flopped the way that it did.

“J—” he called.

I looked at him. “Yeah?”

He sighed. “My bad for my attitude from earlier. I shouldn’t have stayed apart from you that long. This is all new to me. I’m usually a loner. Didn’t need the company of others. I was an only child, so I’m used to being alone.”

“I could’ve left. It wouldn’t have bothered me if you would’ve asked me to leave. I like being alone too.”

“But that’s the thing, Junie, I don’t want you to leave. I just need to change the trait.”

I smiled at him. “All is forgiven, Kairo. It was a misunderstanding. I can be a bit much sometimes. I had no business going through your stuff.”

He reached for my hand and placed a kiss on it. “You good. I’m glad you did because this shit so fucking good,” he said, pointing at his plate that was almost cleaned.

“Really?” I beamed.

“Yeah, you did your thing, beautiful.”

“Thank you so much. Um, I guess we should try getting back to my house. I don’t want to invade your space too much longer,” I said.

“Nah, we can stay here. Your place in the city, and right now, I just want peace and quiet. Let’s just stay here.”

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