Kai had no intention of going to that bonfire. The mere thought of attending a party ever again made his stomach churn. Drunk teenagers did stupid shit… Like colliding with his sister’s car on a dark backroad. It had only been a few months since the crash and Kai still had the broken ribs and the arm cast to prove it. Janine had convinced him to come under the condition that he wasn’t allowed to stay home by himself (their mother’s rule). It was easier to let her drag him to that party then to argue. So, while his sister talked Regina Mills’ ear off, Kai sat on a stump several feet away from the actual party. Carter was apparently grounded- another reason Janine had forced Kai to come. He was content to drink a lukewarm, flat Dr. Pepper while staring into the yawning mouth of the bonfire.

An old speaker crackled as some 2000’s rap song boasted about being rich and dancing with beautiful women in a club. Kai fiddled with the tab on the can, attempting to twist it off. His gaze had lost focus as he zoned out on the orange flames licking at logs and cardboard beer cases. Destroying the evidence. The thought made him huff softly to himself. He probably looked a little pathetic slouching on a stump in the middle of the field.

There were clusters of people, some he knew and some he didn’t, surrounding him but no one showed him any interest. Kai had felt particularly sorry for himself that day. It’d been a rough day; bad dreams that kept him from sleeping much the previous night and a throbbing migraine. Even after taking a few pain killers and chugging water, the traces of the headache thumped in his temples. Maybe he would be concussed forever. His brain stuck in the motion of slamming into his skull as his body was violently jerked against the dashboard. He could still hear the quiet ticking of a turn signal.

His neck prickled with the sensation of someone watching him, breaking him from his memories. He blinked, eyes refocusing as he scanned the field. No one stood out. He nearly brushed the odd feeling off until he locked eyes with a tall, dark haired teen only a few feet away from him. He recognized him pretty quickly; Zachary Webb. They had English together Kai’s freshman year and Social Studies this year. He’d asked to sign Kai’s cast.

Kai instinctively looked at said signature. Big, loopy letters spelled out Zachary’s full name. He’d drawn a small smiley face at the end of his name. He also stopped into the bakery Kai worked at every Monday and Friday. His orders were always the same; Monday, Zachary got an iced London Fog with an everything bagel and Friday he would get mint tea and a chocolate chip muffin.

Zach was huddled in a small group of his soccer friends and their girlfriends. He spoke animatedly, eyes wide and glinting with excitement. Kai caught the frequent looks that the soccer player threw at him though. His friends didn’t seem to notice but Kai certainly did. He picked at the soda can’s tab again, eyes focusing on his lap. Why the fuck was Zachary Webb staring him down? Kai had started to debate if he should sneak away from the jock, convinced he was about to get his ass kicked for no reason, when a figure blocked the glow of the fire.

“Hiya.” Zachary hummed, hands in the pockets of his jeans.

Kai stared up at him with a confused tilt of his head. “Hey?”

Zachary tossed a subtle look over his shoulder before gesturing to Kai’s cast. “How’s the arm?”

Kai gave a small shrug. “Better… Dr. Webb said I can probably get the cast off next week.”

Zachary looked a little sheepish at the mention of his mother’s name. She was one of the few doctors in Ivy Hills.. He chuckled softly.

“She kinda told me already.”

“I think there’s a law against that.”

“Hippo law, right?” Zachary grinned wickedly, eyes shining in amusement at his own joke. Then he did something else surprising; he sat on the ground next to Kai’s tree stump.

Kai pursed his lips to keep his laughter in. Such a stupid joke. “That’s if you’re a veterinarian.” He mumbled, nose scrunching at how ridiculous that sounded. Zachary giggled in delight.

“I knew you were capable of bad jokes.” Zachary teased, long legs pulling to his chest.

It was the first time Kai got the chance to look down at Zachary. The teen was all legs and torso- he towered over pretty much the entire student body. Zachary looked around once again. Kai was bitterly reminded of his new reputation. Rumors that were apparently contagious and made even his most kind classmates wary of him. His smile faded and a muscle in his jaw twitched. He was preparing himself to stand up and disappear into the woods to be alone once again. Zachary turned back to him and cleared his throat.

“You like movies, yeah?”

Kai huffed at the question. “Sure.”

Zachary echoed his soft laugh. He fiddled with the shoelaces on his converse and Kai realized that Zachary Webb was nervous. Nervous about talking to Kai?

“Like, horror movies? You wear that Evil Dead shirt a lot. It’s a cool shirt.”

Kai crossed his arms over his chest. Not impatiently; he was curious to see where Zachary was going with this. When Kai watched him expectantly, Zachary ran a hand through his carefully styled hair.

“There’s a drive-in outside of town, uh, near Dubois? It- it’s a little far but my family has a cabin there so I go up there a lot and… And they’re playing an old movie and then a new movie. A double feature if you will.”

“I’ve been there before.” Kai offered, a bright grin fighting to take over his face. “It’s nice.”

“It is. Well, they’re playing I Know What Did You Last Summer and this ghost movie. The Conjuring or something. I have…”

Zachary sucked in a deep breath and finally looked up at Kai. He must have seen Kai failing his battle at keeping his face neutral because his shoulders sagged with a touch of relief. He had a surge of confidence.

“I have an extra ticket.”

Next Chapter: July, 2015