Consumed » Kai Parker

Twenty Nine

After telling Liv I'll meet her at her dorm in thirty minutes, I hang up and plant my head in my palms, sighing heavily. The peace I'd felt from being alone with Kai fades considerably, due to my worrisome thoughts.

"You look stressed."

I lift my head to look over at Kai, who's watching me with bleary eyes and a half-smile.

"Sorry I fell asleep on you," I tell him and he shrugs.

"Both of us were in serious need of a nap," he says and leans closer, eyes searching my face, "but, judging by that frown on your face, it didn't do much for you."

I look away from his narrowed eyes, curling my legs up to my chest and lean back into the cushions. Kai doesn't cease his examining stare, the gesture alone enough to compel me to voice my concerns.

"Kai," I scoot closer to him, meeting his curious blue eyes, "you need to get out of Mystic Falls."

His eyebrows shoot up, the statement clearly being the last thing he expected me to say. "You want me to–"

A loud round of knocking at the front door cuts off his words and both of our heads snap towards the sound. I glance at Kai, my heart thudding in my chest.

"Does anyone else even know where you live?" I ask in a whisper and he shakes his head, an irritated expression on his face.

I grab his arm, standing up from the couch and attempt to tug him up to his feet with me. He arches an eyebrow at me, allowing me to pull him into a standing position but resists my efforts to tug him out of the room.

"What are you doing?" he questions, refusing to budge despite my relentless attempts to drag him into the bedroom.

"Trying to hide," I reply in exasperation, "you don't know who's at the door. It could be Joshua, or someone from your coven–"

There's another urgent knock and I look at Kai with pleading eyes. He merely shakes his head, slightly amused and gently frees his arm from my grasp.

"Charlie, I'm not just going to hide under my bed like a five year old," he chortles, "even if it is my father, which is highly unlikely, by the way. Probably some pizza delivery guy that got the wrong apartment."

"Kai!" A familiar male voice shouts from outside the door, "don't make me vatos this damn door!"

I give him a stricken look and his lips flatten into a thin line, blue eyes darkening.

"Okay, so maybe not a delivery guy," Kai says in a casual tone that doesn't match the tension in his stance.

The quickening beat of my heart echoes in my ears and I wonder for a moment if Kai can hear it too. It's like my negative thoughts of what could happen within a month were immediately responded to, solidifying my concern that Kai isn't safe in Mystic Falls, without the title of Gemini coven leader as leverage.

"Kai!" The voice yells again and this time, I'm able to pinpoint the familiarity behind the sound.

"I think that's Luke," I whisper to Kai and he rolls his eyes.

"I was wondering when my dear brother was gonna pay me a visit," he says and starts to walk toward the door.

"Hey, wait," I reach out to grip his elbow, "he can't see me here!"

Kai tilts his head. "Why not?"

"You know why not," I sigh, "he'll just assume the worst and report back to Liv and then everyone's gonna find out and..."