It looked like she had no issue in the perfectly made up and accessories department.
“How long are you here, Kai?” Jackson asked as the rest of us got our drinks. “I’m performing some new material in a small club on Sunday. I can get you and your aunts tickets if you’d like.”
“Oh, they’d love that. But we’re leaving very early Sunday. I have to get back to class.” Kai grimaced. “I’m not looking forward to returning to campus.”
“Do you and your ex share a lot of classes?” Claire asked.
Kai shook her head. “Thankfully, we share none. We’re not even in the same parts of campus much, but I will see some of my ex friends, not to mention, I’m sure campus gossip is going crazy.”
I gave Kai a squeeze. She sat between me and Ashton.
“Your post is going crazy. The story of him running out on you and taking your vacation has interested a lot of people, especially since you’ve been posting about your best life. Did you see that the purse company even commented on your handbag post and people have been using #bagsbeforealphas. You could probably leverage some sponsorships if that’s your thing. I’m happy to help you.” Claire took a sip of her drink.
A worried look spread across Kai’s face. “I don’t know how I feel about that. Mostly because they’re going to blame me for making them look like villains.”
“They are villains,” I assured her, “and they deserve it.”
“Oh, they are. The internet said so. Your ex bestie posted on #amithevillain, someone made the connection to your post, and they deleted it,” Claire said.
Kai put a hand over her face. “I didn’t know that. I just don’t want them to make any trouble for me. I don’t need any petty bitches trying to keep me from graduating or anything like that. I should’ve never let Auntie make that post.”
“Don’t.” Ashton shook his head.
“You're innocent and if they cause trouble, you have receipts. Honestly, they should all get in trouble. Is anyone in a sorority or frat? Mine wouldn’t have put up with bullshit like that. They’d totally get thrown out,” Claire said.
Kai got out her phone and texted someone. “No, there might be some sort of academic integrity policies, but I don’t know if this violates them. I don’t want people to think I was being vindictive and ruined their vacation out of spite. I was simply canceling something I paid for, that I was no longer a part of.”
“That's fair,” Jackson said. “It’s very shitty of them, but you’re not obligated to pay for something you’re excluded from.”
“Thank you, because I’m still questioning myself.” Kai leaned into me and I pulled her closer.
The five of us talked more about Jackson and Claire’s music, and hockey finals. Kai told us a little bit about her projects and excitement for graduation.
“Should we order another?” Jackson held up his beer.
“This is an amazing place. But we’ve got other places to be. Thank you so much for getting us in.” Kai looked at Claire. “Maybe some other time we’ll be here together and we could go here with all your friends. They’re probably amazing for a night out at the club.”
Claire beamed. “Oh, they are. You have my real socials, so you can message me, and we should absolutely keep in touch. I’m not sure I’ll be in Hawai’i anytime soon. But now I feel like that might make for a fun girls trip. You probably know all the best places.” She finished off her drink.
“I know good places to surf and the best place to get cheap noodles and great sushi. My auntie would probably know the fancy stuff,” Kai said.
Ashton scooted out of the booth and held out a hand for Kai.
“Thanks again, Jackson, this was really fun.” Kai offered me a hand.
I took it and stood. “Thanks for the invite.”
“Yes, thank you,” Ashton said.
The three of us went outside and had the valet bring our car.
“Well, that was fun,” Kai said as I helped her into the backseat.
“Where to now? Do you still want to go to a dive bar, or do you want to go back to our place? I have a bottle of champagne. We can open it if you want. It’s someexpensive bottle that my agent sent. I also have some good scotch too if you want to play a drinking game,” Ashton offered as we got in.
Ashton just offered to play a drinking game? What the fuck?
“Well, I’d love to play whiskey pong with you, but you have practice tomorrow, so we probably shouldn’t get wasted,” Kai admitted as we drove off.
