The sharp scent of alcohol consumes my scent. “Have you been drinking?”
He runs his hand through his hair. “Only a few.”
“You look and smell like you’ve had more than a few.”
He walks back over to the front door and kicks his steel-toe boots off. He takes a seat on the floor and leans against the wall.
It’s eight o’clock at night. The days and hours all blur together now, and it makes me lose track of time. Kai is usually home around six, and I didn’t realize it was eight until just now.
“Why are you drinking on a weekday?”
“It’s not a big deal.”
It may not be a big deal for some, but given his family history, itshouldbe a big deal for him; especially since his dad passed away from alcoholism. “I don’t think you should drink during the week.”
“It’s one time, B. I don’t need a lecture from you.”
“I’m not trying to lecture you. But don’t you think you shouldn’t be drinking at all anymore?”
His jaw clenches. “What are you trying to say?”
“We just had a baby and your dadpassed?—”
“Don’t bring my dad into this.” He cuts me off. His eyes are blazing, and his brows furrow.
I swallow the lump in my throat. I’ve never seen him so mad. It was clearly too soon to bring his dad up.
He storms out of the living room and into the bathroom, making me jump as he shuts the door a little too hard. I look down at Amari, who is now sleeping peacefully in her pink onesie. Thankfully, it didn’t wake her up.
A couple hours later, after Amari has woken up, eaten, and is now sleeping again, I glance over at Kai. He’s lying on his back and staring at the ceiling. I scoot myself onto the bed, inhaling his Axe shower gel.
“I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to bring your dad up like that.” No response comes from him. “I wish you would talk to me. I feel so distant from you now.”
“A lot has happened in such a short period. I’ve been stressed, so I drank a few beers after work. Why does this need to turn into an argument?” he says, avoiding eye contact with me.
“I’m not trying to start an argument about it. There are better ways to handle stress than drinking.” I get up from the bed and change out of my clothes into my pajamas. I used to love doing this in front of Kai. He would always whistle or grab my butt. Lately, I feel like I have to rush so he doesn’t see me. I know it’s partly because I have new insecurities about what my body went through. With him being so distant lately, for some reason, it makes me want to cover up.
“Then why bring it up?”
I look over my shoulder to see if he’s looking at me as I slide my pajama pants on. His gaze is still focused on the ceiling. I slide back onto the bed and lie down, letting out a long yawn. I’m at a loss for words with him right now, and all I can think ofis sleep because Amari will be up in a couple of hours. I let the conversation go, turning my back on Kai.
After another yawn, sleep takes over.
“Where are you going?” I ask. Kai’s been in the bathroom longer than usual when he comes home after work and showers.
“To Kevin’s,” he says as he sprays his Chrome cologne all around his body.
“On a Friday?”
“Yeah,” he says, walking past me into our room.
“So, you’re going out to a party?” I whisper, so I don’t wake Amari up.
He slips on his white Vans before looking up at me. “It’s not a party. Only a few friends are coming over.”
I cross my arms over each other. “Kevin doesn’t ever have just a few friends coming over.”
“Then what does he have?”
