Page 20 of Forgotten Prejudice

“So, where are we going to eat tonight?” Mom asked after she joined us in the living room.

“How about fish tacos?” I suggested, my stomach already making sounds of agreement.

“Whatever you want, birthday boy.” She winked, then picked up her wallet. “Is it going to be just the three of us?”

Just the three of us. Way to rub salt into the wound, Mom. I was about to tell her yes, that Kai wouldn’t be joining us, when my phone rang, and I saw it was Rob. Since I’d taken the day off, it was weird for him to be calling.

“I’ll be right back,” I announced to the room before stepping out of the living room to take the call.

“I’ve got something that belongs to you,” Rob grunted the second I picked up, sounding pissed off. “Come and pick him up right now!” With that, he ended the call.

“Who was that?” Mom asked after I grabbed the keys to my truck off the table.

“It’s Rob, something about work. I need to go there quickly, so we’ll go once I’m back. Alright?”

Mom and Aiden exchanged odd looks. “Is everything cool?” she asked.

“Yeah.” I have no idea. “I’ll be back soon.”

Stepping into the packed restaurant, I tracked Rob in his usual spot behind the counter.

“In the back,” he grunted, pointing his thumb over his shoulder before I could even say hello.

Taking a deep breath, I rubbed my palms together and began walking toward the kitchen, hoping my suspicion would be wrong. Only that it wasn’t, and just like I feared, I found Kai half sprawled on the kitchen floor, either drunk or high.

“We had to pour some water on top of his head to wake him up,” said the cook with his Russian accent and an amused smile.

So that explains the wet clothes. At least it isn’t piss.

While seeing Kai this way broke my fucking heart, it also infuriated me. Why the hell was he drunk so early in the evening? The last time Kai and I had talked, combined with what Zoe had told me and his absence from school, turned on all the red lights in my head. And if before I had suspicions something was wrong, tonight confirmed them all.

With a deep sigh, I crouched beside him. “Hey,” I whispered, putting my hand on his cheek. “Kai.”

He grimaced and then squeezed his eyes before blinking them open. His pupils were blown to the size of a coin, and he was clearly out of it.

“Ashy?” He grinned, his voice wavy. “Happy birthday, Ashy.” His smile spread wider, and he placed his hand on top of mine while his blue eyes looked at me as if everything was normal. But then, his face paled, and he shifted his head aside to hurl into the pot that was already full of his vomit.

Rubbing his back, I looked aside while trying not to gag myself. The sound and smell always made me feel sick.

“Yeah, buddy, let it all out,” I sighed, patting his back.

“Ha!” the cook laughed with his rolling accent. “Good thing we put pot there, yes?”

Ten minutes later, I managed to drag Kai’s heavy ass into my truck, and after a thirty-minute drive, I pulled the car into our favorite shore parking lot. It stood empty, as it was already too late to surf, but the ocean breeze would help sober him up.

Kai had fallen asleep the minute his ass hit the car’s seat and slept through the whole ride. Since he was still dozing off, I grabbed my hoodie from the back seat and got out of the car. Putting it on, I leaned back against the hood with my hands shoved in the front pockets and watched the horizon. There was something so threatening about the spreading ocean that, funnily enough, made it look peaceful.

A couple of minutes later, I pulled out my phone and texted Mom, letting her know we’d have to rain check tonight’s dinner while also promising her she had no reason to worry. I pocketed my phone when the truck’s door opened, and Kai got out.

“What are we doing here?” he asked, voice heavy with sleep, while rubbing his eyes.

From his annoyed tone and deep grimace, I could already tell he’d sobered up a bit.

“I took us for a drive so you’d sober up.”

“Why would you do that?” he hissed.

“Maybe because you showed up at Rob’s dead-ass drunk,” I pointed out, my brows pinched close as I gave him an annoyed look. “What’s going on with you?”