Page 44 of The Wrong Side of Kai
“Actually,youtook my bike,” Kai points out, his grin more of a painful grimace. “Those assholes took my dad’s.”
“I’ll look for it,” Chyna offers. “I’m late for class anyway.” She heads off to search the surrounding area, doing her best to make herself useful right now.
Maddie sticks a band-aid to a cut just below Kai’s eye while I sit and watch. I’m the only one doing nothing to help, because I don’t know how to. It’s my fault Kai is in this situation. I should never have come up with the idea of getting even with Harrison. Revenge seemed so fun at first, but now we’re in too deep.
“What can I do, Kai?”
“Kiss me better?” he suggests.
“Stop moving!” Maddie scolds him. She reaches for his chin and holds him steady while she sticks another band-aid to his cheek. He’ll be covered in them soon. She also hands him a cloth for his nose. “You should probably still go to the hospital. You could be concussed or something.”
“And build up a hefty medical bill that my parents can’t afford to pay?” Kai shoots back in disagreement. “No thanks. I’ll just let you nurse me back to health then I’ll go drink some coffee.” Maddie sticks one final band-aid to his face and then he pushes himself up from the grass, his balance slightly off as he stumbles on his feet. “Thanks, Maddie.” He straightens up, steadies himself. “I think I’m gonna head home, though.”
I nod and stand up too, looking him over. It’s probably best that he doesn’t go to school today – this is all such a mess. This fight will be the gossip of the day, and if it were anyone else, I’d be thrilled that attention had finally shifted away from me. But this is all at Kai’s expense.
Chyna comes rushing back over, shaking her head. “No bike around here. Sorry.”
“That’s alright. Thanks,” Kai says, then looks down at Maddie who’s still on the grass, packing up her stuff. “And thanks again, Madison.”
She humbly waves away his gratitude. “It’s nothing, but keep those cuts clean – yeah?”
I step toward Kai and put my arms around him, laying my head against his chest. My guilt feels like a ton of bricks pressing down on me.
“Ouch,” he says, flinching.
I let go and jump back. “Sorry!”
Kai rolls his eye – perhaps I’ll get him a pirate eye-patch – and then leans in to me, briefly pressing his lips to my temple. He turns around and walks off, his steps slow and pained, until he becomes nothing more than a distant figure. I know I should really skip class again and go with him, but when I look back at the school building, a new anger flares up within me.
How dare Harrison hurt Kai.
I walk with Chyna and Maddie back to the school. We have to stop by the office first to let them know we’re late, and I get even more hours of detention piled on me. Miss Hillman from reception seems genuinely stunned to be handing out detention to Madison Romy, but Maddie takes it like a champ. She doesn’t whine about it once, or even mention how much of a saint she is for sacrificing her attendance to help Kai. She just tucks the slip into her bag and heads off to class without another word.
“Sonowdo you realize that perhaps this whole plan for revenge was a bad idea?” Chyna asks when we’re alone in the hallway. Everyone is in class but us, and she gives me a condescending raise of her eyebrow, as though to sayI toldyou so.And she did. She warned me that this whole thing was a stupid idea, that we could get ourselves into trouble.
But Harrison screwed around with me first. Harrison instigated all of this, and of course Kai and I retaliated. It’s become an endless circle. But I can’t let Harrison make the final move. I can’t let himwin. I just can’t, not after he’s hurt Kai like that. I need to end this myself. Onmyterms.
“Yeah, this was a bad idea,” I agree with a sheepish smile, but I’m not done yet. The gloves are off now, and I don’t need anyone’s help anymore. This is between Harrison and me.
Chyna groans, reminds me that it’s Taco Friday at the Tate house for dinner later, and then blows me a kiss as she heads off to her class. I catch it and safely tuck it away in the pocket of my coat, watching her as she disappears down the hallway. And then I spring into action.
I don’t head for my History class. Instead, I take off down the hall toward the library, my steps quick. I didn’t want to have to do this, but Harrison has pushed me to my limit. I laughed when I found these pictures on Harrison’s phone the other morning, but then quickly realized I didn’t want to take thingsthatfar. That’s why I never told Kai about them. I’ve been secretly holding onto them, but not for much longer.
I burst into the library and totally blank the librarian when she asks me to sign in. I tell her I’m running late for class and I need to quickly print my overdue homework, and she tuts and shakes her head at me as I dive for the computers. The library is empty, thank God, but I still angle the desktop screen away for maximum privacy. My heart rockets around in my chest as I plug my phone into the computer and load up my files, some of which are also Harrison’s that I transferred over to my own phone for safekeeping.
I find the photo I’m looking for.
I print it, then shut down the computer as fast as I can and race over to the printers in the back corner before the librarian can see what I’m doing. This definitely isn’t homework I’m printing off, and I would most likely be expelled if caught using school property in connection with such a photograph.
“Thanks!” I say cheerily on my way out of the library, but the librarian’s skeptical frown doesn’t falter. As soon as I’m through the doors, I remember something else I need. I head back inside and stop at the desk. “Sorry. Can I borrow a marker? Oh, and a drawing pin.”
The librarian looks fed up with me now. She mumbles some disgruntled words under her breath – she’s probably sick to death of dealing with teenagers – and reluctantly fetches me a black permanent marker and a pin. I thank her again and, much to her delight, leave for good this time. It’s about the first and last time she’ll ever see me.
Armed with my photograph and marker, I make my way back to the locker hallway. First period ends in just under ten minutes, which means that soon these hallways will be packed again while everyone moves on to their next classes and stops by their lockers. And I want everyone’s attention to be on Harrison’s.
“Vanessa,” a voice says, and I stop dead in my tracks and look behind me to find Anthony slowly approaching. I shove my printout and marker into my coat pocket and fold my arms across my chest, my stance hostile.
“What?” I snap. I don’t even bother to ask why he isn’t in class. I have better things to do right now than talk to Anthony.
