“You’re lucky,” he continues, shifting the trophy into his lap, “that one of the judges has a soft spot for me. Otherwise we’d be having a very different ride home right now.”
I straighten slightly, my gaze still holding his. “Did you get Kairi’s shit score adjusted while you were there, too?”
The car instantly goes quiet and Gabriel’s expression hardens. “Colton?—”
“Did you fight for her score the same way you fought for the medal?” I cut in, my voice low.
Kairi shifts beside me. “It doesn’t matter?—”
“It does to me,” I snap, more aggressively than I mean to, and her mouth closes.
Gabriel studies me for a moment longer, then exhales through his nose, leaning back in his seat.
“He’s a sanctioned judge,” He finally says, voice tight. “Which means we need to handle this carefully. Not by throwing punches and making a scene when we disagree with something like a child throwing a tantrum.”
My fingers curl into fists against my thighs. “Yeah,” I mutter. “God forbid someone calls out the blatant favoritism going on.”
Someone gasps in the back row.
“That’s not what I said, and you know it.” There’s a warning in his tone now. “We’ll talk about it when we get back to the house. Everybody buckle up.”
A chorus of seatbelts clicking into place fill the space and no one else says a word after that. The rest of the three hour drive back to Saltwater Springs is dead quiet, aside from Gabriel’s radio blasting mainstream music.
Kairi doesn’t look at me once so I just stare out the window, replaying everything over and over again until it makes my head pound. By the time we pull into the driveway, my injured eye is swollen shut. I reach for the door handle, and swing it open, unbuckling my seat belt at the same time.
“Colton—” Gabriel starts, but I’m out of the car before he can finish.
I head straight for the house, not slowing down or stopping, and certainly not looking back.
“Hey!” He calls after me, but I ignore it.
Inside, I take the steps two at a time until I reach the top, and I shoulder the door of my room open, stepping inside and slamming it behind me hard enough to rattle the frame.
I drag a hand down my face and pace the length of the room, the pressure in my chest refusing to ease. If I open my mouth right now, I know I’m going to say something I’ll regret. Staying in my room until I can get my head straight and my temper under control is the smartest thing I can do for myself, and for everyone else.
SEVENTEEN
KAIRI
I stareafter Colton as he storms into the house without a second glance, ignoring Gabriel calling his name. The door slams hard enough to rattle the frame, and guilt twists low in my stomach. He’s upset because of things that were done and said to me.
If I’d just kept my mouth shut, today would’ve gone smoother. Maybe he’d still be smiling about his perfect score, completely oblivious to what I experienced, instead of walking around with a swollen eye in my honour.
“Here’s your board, Kai.”
I snap out of my thoughts and turn to find Zale lowering my surfboard from the roof rack.
“Thanks,” I say, taking it from him. “You did great today, by the way.”
His mouth lifts into a tired smile. “Thanks.” He shrugs one shoulder. “Wasn’t my best heat, especially with everything going on with Alessia and me, but I tried.”
I pause halfway through adjusting the board under my arm. “What do you mean? What’s going on with you and Alessia?”
Zale’s brows lift. “Oh, I thought you knew.”
“Knew what?”
“She flew home last night.”
