Oh, and apparently I’m fucking broken.
“Fine,” I mumble.
Kai falls into step beside me, and we head for the stairs. “Did he speak to you?”
Yes. He called me a desperate whore. And I liked it.
“He was…” I struggle to find the right word. “Being an asshole again.”
Kai’s jaw tightens. “What did he say?”
I stay silent.
We push through the doors into the afternoon sun. There’s a haze over the sky, and the crisp air is a welcome shock to my system when it hits my still-warm cheeks.
“Tell me what happened.”
When I still say nothing, he grabs my wrist. “Haven!”
“Nothing, okay? He just—” I rip my hand free, and use it to smooth down my oversized knit sweater. “He called me…trash.”
Kai glares. “What?” He steps forward, snatching up my hand and leading me away from campus at a fast walk. “Fucking asshole.”
“Right?” I scoff. “I mean, he has no right to treat us this way.”
We’ve barely make it a yard before Kai shakes his head and stops in his tracks. “Did he talk shit about me too?”
I crush my lips together.
Fuck. I don’t want to repeat Bastian’s awful words.
Kai glances around, then drags me around the corner of the building into the shadowed alcove where the emergency exit meets the wall. It’s slightly overgrown here and there’s a massive shrub blocking our view of the footpath.
“What did he say?” Kai growls.
“He’s obviously pissed about something.” I shake my head, letting out an uneasy laugh. “Just let it go.”
“What. Did. He. Say?” Kai grabs the back of my neck. “Tell me!”
“God, okay!” I knock his hand away, shaking my head. “He called you a closeted simp.”
Kai’s eyes darken. I think it’s anger, or some kind of righteous fury. But then I notice the way his breath has changed.
Faster. Shallower.
The way his pupils have dilated.
“He’s a fucking psychopath, Kai,” I murmur, an incredulous smile twitching my lips.
“I know.” He pats my cheek, huffing through his nose. “I fuckingknow.”
“He’ll say anything to get us worked up.”
“Yeah, I know that too.” His hand cups my face, slides down to my neck. “Did it work?”
“What?” I whisper.
Kai’s thumb strokes my lips. “Did he get you all worked up?”
