Adrian Gonzalez knows the painful truth about liking someone you have no chance with-they never like you back and you're left heartbroken. Ever wonder why it's called a 'crush?'
But when the hopeless crush he has is on Parker Thompson-nonbinary scho...
“Micky called you that, so I thought that’s a thing everyone calls you,” I said, turning so he couldn’t see what I was writing anymore.
“No, Bunny is a name only he calls me to annoy me. It’s why I call him Michael. Drives him nuts.”
“Ah, you have a whole rivals-to-lovers dynamic going on,” I commented.
Kai seemed to ponder over it, head tilted and lips in a pout. “Nope. Not at all.”
“You have, like, a ton of things that suggest it. Both captains of competing teams. Both charismatic... mostly. Even the dyed hair you’ll insist is your natural colour.”
“Ah ha! Gotcha there. Black is my natural colour. It’s not this dark, but it’s not a different colour.”
“Why dye it then?”
“Patches of white in it. It makes people stare,” he said, legs swinging lazily.
“I thought you like the attention?”
“Love it. Just not when people give it to me because they think I’m strange or something.”
“Okay. Do you have anything to say regarding this competition, or any future ones, Kai Hale?”
“Lemme think about it.” He bent forward and held his chin up with both hands. A few beauty marks dotted his knuckles. “I’m ready to take on every challenge that comes my way—not that Northwood’s swim team is one. Oh, and at that West Dale is taking the championship Cup and bringing it here, where it belongs.”
“Oh, you and Micky would definitely pair off well.”
He laughed. “Nah, I don’t swing that way. What about you, little man?”
“I’m not a man, Bunny.” He visibly flinched at the sound of the word, but then he looked up at me with wide doe eyes, confusion on his face. I shrugged. “I’m outside the gender binary. But yeah, I do. Got the boyfriend and all to seal the deal.”
His mouth formed a small ‘o.’ “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I didn’t know.”
Again, I let my shoulders rise and fall as I turned to my notebook. The only sound in the room now was the dragging of my pen against the paper.
“E hoomau maua kealoha.”
“Sounds smart. Another quotable saying, I guess,” I said, poising my pen against the paper once more. “Can you spell it out and tell me what it means?”
“It’s just something my folks say, so I don’t think you should write that in your paper, but it means ‘may your love last forever.’ You know, with your boyfriend and all.” Kai smiled at me, wide enough to reveal the gap between his two front teeth.
“Wow, thanks.” I smiled back. “I’d wish you luck in your next competition, but it’s against Northwood, and I can’t betray my school that way. Especially after what you said about our team.”
He laughed, shaking his head. “I don’t need luck to beat, y’all.”
“We’ll see.” I closed the notebook and stood up, grabbing my crutches.
“Oh, you’re leaving?”
“Yes. I have no more questions, and I need to find Micky. He’s my ride.”
“All right. I’ll see you at the next competition!”
“And I’ll see you lose at it!”
Kai shook his head, bellowing with laughter. “What’s your name, though? So I know who to ask for when I do my next winner’s interview.”
“I’m Parker.”
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We've finally met Kai and I want to know what you all think of him :D
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