Page 93 of Follow My Voice
“Erick, leave her alone. I don’t even know if I’m actually going,” Kang explains, shaking his head.
“Come on, man!” Erick whines, but I’m suddenly distracted by Kang as he motions for me to give him the phone. I hand it to him.
“Bye, Erick.”
“Wait—”
And Kang hangs up. “Sorry, Erick can be a pain in the ass.”
I lick my lips. “So… are you… going to the talent show?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“You should go,” I say with a reassuring smile.
“Would you go with me?”
My smile fades.
Charlotte is three hours away by car and one hour by plane. Neither option sounds like something I’m capable of handling at the moment, especially after my panic attack tonight. I’ve grown comfortable around campus, but a road trip so far away is another level. It’s in this moment that I realize I still have more work to do.
Kang glances at me. “Is that a no?”
“I don’t think I’m ready yet.”
“That’s okay. Like I said, I don’t think I’m going.”
“Is it because of what you said earlier?”
Kang runs a hand over his face while keeping his other hand on the steering wheel. “Yes… No… I… I don’t know. I may not be ready for it.”
“I get it.” I nod.
We ride in silence the rest of the way, both of us deep in personal thoughts, until Kang pulls up outside my house. He rests his forearm on the steering wheel and turns to me.
“I had a great time,” I say. “Tonight was… very special to me.”
“I’m so glad. That means… second date?”
“Of course,” I say, too quickly, and then grimace with embarrassment.
Kang smiles and his adorable dimples appear. He takes off his seatbelt and leans toward me. His face isn’t even close and I’ve already closed my eyes, squeezing them tightly shut. His lips brush mine and I can feel my heart beating in my throat. Kang kisses me softly, giving me time to catch up with him. I put a hand on one of his shoulders and kiss him slowly. After a few seconds, he speeds up the movement of his lips against mine, tilting his head to deepen the kiss as he puts a hand on my waist and pulls me closer to him.
I squeeze his shoulders and feel the kiss growing in intensity. Kang’s breathing becomes heavy and so does mine, whetherbecause of nerves or the sensations this kiss awakens. His hands around my waist grip me longingly and it’s as if the heat from that contact penetrates my clothes and makes my skin tingle. Kang’s kisses become more passionate, and when I feel his tongue, I lose all sense of where we are. I want… I need to feel more of him,all of him.
A moan escapes my lips and becomes trapped in his mouth. I can’t stop, even though I know I have to; this is addictive. I pull away to pant. Kang rests his head against mine and kisses my nose before straightening up in his seat. We’re both out of breath, flushed, with swollen lips. He bites his lower lip and gives me a crooked smile.
“Good night, Klara,” he whispers, and I can’t help but smile, too.
“Good night, Kang.”
I go inside, walking on air.
I’ve spent the entire weekend buried in textbooks, my hand cramping from nonstop note-taking, until I finally force myself to take a break. With a sigh of relief, I grab my popcorn and Coke, settling in just as Kang’s special Sunday broadcast begins, something he gives his listeners to make up for shows he misses due to holidays. It’s a completely different experience now that I know him and we’ve shared so much; now, my interest in him has become tangible, real. I replay our last kiss over and over in my mind, my cheeks instantly flushing.
As soon as he finishes his show, Kang calls me.
“We have to go see them play live one day,” says Kang, talking about one of the local bands he promotes onFollow My Voice.
