Page 50 of Composed at Randy's
“You wouldn’t!” I hiss. Then I remember Kai is standing right there, and I backpedal like my life depends on it. “Not that Iwould eat it without you knowing about it, Kai, because you’re wonderful and always make sure I get plenty of candy during every holiday.” I do the uwu girl hand motion where you tap your index fingers together and try to look cute and innocent.
Kai gives us both a serial killer stare but doesn't say anything.
I laugh nervously and change the subject. “So what should I do now? Should I call him? Or do you think I should wait for him to call me?” I've never done the relationship thing, so I'm definitely going to need someone to shepherd me through this.
“If I were you, I would call him,” Marty says. “You're the one who left, so it's your job to make contact.”
Kai nodded. “I agree, but don't do it right now. We need to be at the gallery soon, and no matter which way this conversation goes, I don't think you'll be in any shape to attend the opening if you talk to Bael beforehand.”
Part of me is relieved that I'll have more time to plan what I should say, but a larger part of me wants to be with Bael immediately because I know I hurt his feelings and I want to make it better as soon as possible.
Those kind puppy eyes... He’s such a soft man and doesn't deserve anything bad to happen to him ever. Only good things. I'll make it up to him somehow. I don’t know how, but I’ll do it.
“Buddy, slow down the thought train you jumped on,” Marty says, slinging an arm around my shoulders. “I can see by your face that your brain gremlins are taking over and making you feel bad. Don't forget that you're not the only one who fucked up here. Bael and his friends should have listened to you more, otherwise you wouldn't have felt the need to sneak out in the first place. I know you. You wouldn't hurt a fly unless you believed you didn't have any other options, so don't beat yourself up.”
I nod even though I don't believe him. But if Marty says it's the brain gremlins being mean to me, he's probably right. Even ifI don't believe him, I believeinhim, and it's enough to tell those gremlins to shut the hell up, or at least get in the back seat of my brain where they won't get in the way so much.
“Good,” Marty says. “Now that we have that settled, let's go find something for you to wear. You're the star of the show tonight, and right now I look ten times better than you do, and we can't have that. Right, Kai?” Kai gives Marty a serious nod and Marty stands up and gives a little spin.
As he spins, the tie on his kimono flies free, and I see a skin-tight crop top with a familiar name emblazoned across the front. I grab Marty’s arm, and instead of arresting his movement, he drags me along for the ride. He stops as soon as he realizes what happened and catches me by the shoulders before I get flung across the room.
“You’re wearing a Baelfire T-shirt,” I say accusingly.
“Duh, they’re my favorite band. You'd better hook me up with Mel by the way. You owe me for that time when you—oof!”
I tackle Marty and bounce right off of him. “Grab him, Kai!” I shout, and Kai dutifully holds Marty down for me as I strip his kimono and crop top off him.
“Mine!” I wave the crop top in the air triumphantly and race into my bedroom. I trust Kai to keep Marty from following me long enough to hide the shirt so Marty won't find it and steal it back while I'm taking a shower.
If Kai doesn’t want someone to go somewhere, they don’t go.
I spend my shower wildly vacillating between excitement and fear.
I try to hold on to the excitement as much as possible, but it's hard not to worry. Being with Bael felt so right, and I can't imagine how horrible it would feel if he never wanted to speak to me again.
I can’t let that happen. I just can’t.
I’m pretty sure I love him. Somehow, I went and fell in love with someone I’ve only known for a handful of days.
And then I ditched him!
Oh, god. What do I do?
Hopefully, Kai and Marty can help me not fuck it up the next time I see Bael.
IfI ever get to see him again…
Goddammit.
Tonight's going to be a long night.
Chapter 16
Bael
So I guess Wren really is who he said he was, and I was very, very wrong. All of my mad got washed away after a five-minute conversation with Harvey.
He made me wait three hours for that conversation, by the way, and I'm still kind of salty about it. Harvey claimed he needed the time to get in contact with Kai and straighten everything out, but I think it was revenge for the bomb I dropped at the concert. Even if I made us a lot of money and it worked out okay in the end, Harvey still hates surprises.
