Page 29 of Kai

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Immediately.

“You okay?”

The concern catches me off guard.

Real concern.

Not flirting.

Not joking.

Sincere concern.

And somehow that makes it worse.

Because now I want to tell him everything.

The permits.

The donors.

The panic.

The fear of failure.

Of letting down all those kids.

Instead, I gesture helplessly.

“The school's losing momentum,” I admit quietly. “Most Catholic schools are, and for reasons, I know. But this place is special. To me. To the community. To the kids. And I just...” My voice catches. “I feel like I blew it.”

His expression immediately hardens.

Not at me.

For me.

And the difference matters.

It shouldn’t, but it does.

“You're talking about the gym.”

I nod.

“The permits still aren't moving.”

“That's not your fault.”

I laugh.

A little bitterly.

“Tell that to the parents who keep asking when construction starts. Tell that to the city. Tell that to the kids who have gym class in a room that's barely bigger than a classroom.”

Kai's jaw flexes.

I notice things like that around him.

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