Cheers (Zach and Kai)

[Vanessa Rodriguez]

Vanessa tiredly rubbed her face, staring at the hands on the clock, waiting for her shift to go by. She didn't know why, but the usual hustle and bustle at the Rochester Inn wasn't there. Then again, it was a Wednesday night. Who even went out drinking on a weekday? She leaned against the bar, carefully placing her hand as to not smudge her makeup for the shift. She still had... four hours to go. Four. Hours.

The Hispanic girl waited. And waited. Finally, a customer arrived and put her out of her misery. She poured him one of the tap bears, humming to herself absentmindedly. Slinging the mug, Vanessa ensured that when she bent down to grab the bar rag, the customer was given a nice view of her cleavage. Wait for it... sure enough, the patron smirked and slipped a few bills into her tip jar. Her boss thought that in the week she had worked at the Inn, she was fast with her service and friendly with the customers. Not really the case...

Whenever she started to pity or feel bad for herself and her tactics, Vanessa would just think about who this was for. Her son. The miniskirts, hollering drunk men and low-cut white blouses. All protocol for the job, unfortunately. Maybe she would luck out sometime soon and track down Kai. She didn't even know what he looked like anymore... a lot could happen in a little under two years.

She went back to staring at the clock, refilling drinks when necessary for the three customers. Vanessa turned her head towards the door as the tiny bell rang, two younger men walking in and flashed a smile towards their direction.

[Deleted]

Zach couldn't believe himself. Well, he couldn't believe a lot of things about himself lately, but this one really took the cake. This time…it was Zach who asked Kai out for a drink.

Okay, granted Zach had asked Kai out to lunch/breakfast/dinner back during those couple of weeks surrounding exams, but Kai had turned him down for those. Which led to Kai feeling guilty and inviting Zach to stay over for the spring break. Which had led to some(maybe?) talk about moving in together but…whether or not that was going to happen was still up in the air. Zach wanted to, but there were just so many other things to consider. Like his old apartment's lease agreement that didn't end for another couple of months. And the fact that he hadn't discussed it with his roommate. For all intents and purposes, though, Zach was currently living with Kai. On and off. Mostly on. Top of….

Let's not go there….

So middle of the week and classes weren't intense enough that they couldn't go out(either that or Zach bugged Kai until he finally broke away from his work), and the two men were out to a new bar that Zach had only just heard about. It was a hotel bar, which meant it was classier than his regular spots, but he wondered if Kai would like the atmosphere better, him being the rich, hoity-toity jerk he was. "So….this is it," Zach said once they cane in the doors. "What do you think…?" Zach looked up at the ridiculously tall asian, hoping for some sign of approval from him.

He noticed the bar-tendress smiling at them and he offered an awkwardly flat smile back at her. "Hi…."

[Malachai Roen]

Considering it was Kai's last term as an undergraduate, he was determined to finish his time at U of V with the best grades he could manage, which, usually, was very high. Due to his unhealthy work ethic and ability to block out distractions (usually), he managed to balance work and school and still look good while doing both. However... After what had happened between him and Zach, he was also determined not to let himself slip back into ignoring the older man for the sake of his grades. And so, since he'd finished his homework early and didn't have any midterms coming up, he'd finally agreed to come out with Zach tonight.

He'd insisted that he would only have one or two drinks, but... Well, when Kai went out, he usually went hard. At least he didn't have any early classes tomorrow. The rich man glanced around as they entered the joint, giving a few small nods of approval as Zach spoke. "Not bad," he determined. At least it didn't smell of smoke or sweat. It felt... Clean. "Thanks, Zach." He shot a smile at his shorter companion, leaning in to give him a quick peck on the cheek before the woman at the counter caught his attention.

First of all, she was gorgeous. And sporting some killer cleavage. Secondly... Wow, she looked familiar. Kai couldn't quite place his finger on it, but he had a bad feeling that he'd met her while drunk sometime before. No wonder - she was totally his type, he could tell from here. "Let's go say hello to that bombshell," he murmured to Zach, gripping his wrist and tugging the writer along with him to the bar. "Hey there," he greeted, flashing a pearly white smile. "We've never been here before, which is a shame, because I definitely would have remembered seeing you." Maybe this would be an opportunity for her to say something if they had met... Somewhere.

[Vanessa Rodriguez]

It was true, the Rochester Inn was a clean, well kept bar, considering the state some of the others were in. The owners wanted an immaculate, classy place for wealthier patrons to visit. Then again, alcohol affected everyone the same and Vanessa would have to deal with drunkards, rich or poor. She did receive fair pay for the job, and in return, treated the customers well until they wronged her. Then, security was always around as well to help keep everyone in line.

Vanessa's eyes zeroed in on the two, analysing their posture. The one man seemed... awkward, almost uncomfortable in the setting. Maybe he didn't go out much? She chuckled at the thought, before her jaw dropped at seeing the other man. He beamed confidence, almost like the entire room shifted and focused on him. Like he was surrounded by a spotlight. Like a certain...

Oh, shit.

She hadn't even registered that they were approaching the bar. Blinking, Vanessa forced her usual sultry smile, her heart rate quickening. What was the luck of this happening? She laughed, nervously running a hand through her waves. Yeah, there was only one man like this guy. And his name was Malachai Roen. The name caught in her throat. He sure still looked the same, if not more charming. "Hey there, what can I start up for you guys this evening?" She asked with a sweet smile. Act professional, act professional, Vanessa had to tell herself.

Not like her baby's daddy was across from her with another man or anything.

She smirked, grabbing two glasses from behind the bar. "Well, I haven't been here long myself. Got the job about... a week ago." She answered, laughing. Oh, if only he knew. "I feel like we've met before... did you go to the U of V?" There. Small conversation. Perfect.

[Deleted]

The fact that Kai agreed to come out with Zach tonight….that he'd acquiesced to Zach's selfish little request…it made Zach feel something, something…like a tickle? He was happy, so say the least. That Kai had bothered to set the time aside to spend it specifically with the writer. And after the night was over, they would surely be going back to Kai's apartment, something that Zach would be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to it. But he felt good. Really good. Zach was going to have to initiate these outings a lot more often. After all, if he didn't keep reminding Kai that the writer was a person who existed in his life, then the younger man was bound to get caught up in his work and forget about him all over again.

The kiss on the cheek was taken with an innocently, smug little grin.

Which he strained to keep on his face as Kai literally just pointed out how attractive the bartendress was and his desire to go flirt with her. Which didn't irritate him at all, nope. Why should it? Kai was (technically) a single man. Zach was too, as a matter of fact. And the woman was attractive, even the sexually retarded idiot known as Zach could see that she was exceptional. He felt little desire to hit on her so blatantly like Kai had…or at all, for that matter.

And of course she was flirting back. Strange that if she'd been acting the same way towards Zach himself, the writer wouldn't have noticed, but he definitely saw how she smiled and flipped her hair as she addressed Kai. And only Kai, it seemed, since she seemed to be focussing all her attentions on the tall dark and asian man beside him.

Was Zach even here?

The writer tried to hide his scowl and appear normal and undisturbed. "Can I get an IPA?" he asked, neglecting to even say please. Yeah, I go to the university too, but haven't seen you around. What's your major? he thought of saying, but he felt awkward trying to interject in a conversation that he clearly hadn't been invited to.

[Malachai Roen]

If Kai was anything, he was oblivious. Oblivious to how he was probably making Zach feel, oblivious to the shitstorm he had probably just gotten himself into, and definitely oblivious of any potential consequences that might come of this. All he knew was there was a pretty thing that he wanted to talk to and get to know (and maybe figure out why she looked so damn familiar).

He glanced over as Zach ordered, jolted into remembering that, oh yeah, he was here too. Kai snagged his finger into the older man's back pocket with a catlike smirk. "Oh, just give me the most expensive thing you've got.... And give me the bottle," he replied, turning to look back at the bartendress. That, he knew at least, was definitely something Zach would hate.... Kai had finally picked up that his obvious use of his wealth in public made the writer scowl, but hey, he wanted to impress someone, so he wasn't going to let that hold him back.

"Only a week, really?" he replied with curiosity. "Well, looks like we'll have to come in here on a regular basis, this place is... Really nice." Kai nodded at the surroundings. At the question, he nodded again, this time at the gorgeous woman, and smiled. "Yeah, I'm just starting my last term there," he replied. Feeling an actual pang of guilt, he looked at Zach. "Zach here graduated already."

Back to the woman. "What about you? I might have seen you around campus or something, you look.... Really familiar." Belatedly, he offered a coy smile and a hand and added,"I'm Kai, by the way. Maybe your name will ring a bell?"

[Vanessa Rodriguez]

Vanessa hadn't intended to completely ignore Zach. Really, the bartender was normally better than that. She welcomed everyone equally, since you could never know who would be reviewing the place or who was the nicest patron. It was just... him. Here. At work. Seeing Kai after the one night stand. She hadn't had time to plan out what to say... was she really going to tell him here at a bar?

Momentarily dazed, Vanessa blinked as she heard the other man order, smiling and nodding in his direction. She noticed the bitter undertone in his voice, choosing to ignore it for now. "Sure thing." Vanessa grabbed a glass and began filling it up with the ale, stuck in her thoughts. Who was the other guy that he was with? A friend? The way they were acting together suggested something more to Vanessa. And if they were together, how could she bring up Christian? Her haze continued, until the ale was pouring over the side of the glass, all over her hand.

"Fuck me." Vanessa mumbled, wanting to throw the glass. A rookie mistake. She felt her cheeks go extremely red, putting the glass aside for now. Wiping her hand on the towel, Vanessa paid attention to the tap and served it, still feeling embarrassed. "Sorry about that." What Kai ordered finally registered after the incident, and she raised an eyebrow. `"You... you sure?" She asked. Regardless, she ducked behind the counter and pulled out an ancient looking bottle. "There you go." Vanessa said with a smirk, hoping to redeem herself.

Was Kai wealthy? Would Vanessa feel bad asking him for help now? She didn't want him just for the money. If he was rich or poor, she needed help raising Christian. After a hard year, the stubborn girl had finally swallowed her pride and admitted defeat.

"A week, rather, little bit over." Vanessa corrected with a smile. "I'd love that. It really is a nice place. I hope you guys enjoy." As Kai explained his schooling, Vanessa nodded to herself. It had to be him. "Last term? Impressive." She turned to look at the other man, named Zach, and smiled, with a twinge of jealousy. "Lucky. What did you study?" She asked, wiping the counter.

Nervously, Vanessa directed her sultry smile back at Kai. "Uhm.. yeah, I went there for a bit. Had... personal dilemmas going on though, so I dropped out after first semester of my junior year." She closed her mouth, realizing that the men probably didn't care about her sob story. Except, Kai needed to know. At his next sentence, Vanessa couldn't help but to laugh. Oh, if only he remembered that night... "I'm Vanessa." Maybe the name would jolt something? She hoped so. "I think we've met before..." How else could she put that? We fucked and I ended up pregnant?

God, Vanessa needed a drink.

[Deleted]

How many times was this going to happen? With Zach and Kai going out and then Zach getting all bent out of shape because he talks to someone else. Strange how Zach was only just now realizing it, as he thought more and more…..Zach just didn't want Kai to talk to anyone. Nobody else. Especially when they were out together like this. After all…..Zach was the one who asked Kai out, not the girl behind the bar. That meant that this was his time.

Sigh……Zach really needed to just accept it and stop caring. It's not like Kai ever noticed anyway…and even if he did, he wasn't going to change.

Stupid Kai…

Zach nodded to the bar-tendress when Kai introduced him….sorta. What kind of introduction was that supposed to be anyway? Probably thought he was being generous too.

And of course, this girl was so infatuated with the good-looking Kai that she couldn't even pour a drink straight. "It's fine," he lied, a hint of irritation in his voice. Normally Zach wasn't so prickly, but….but nothing, it was an accident and Zach should just chill out already. He offered her a flat smile.

He didn't even care that Kai was so obviously playing showoff with his money.

"Creative writing," he said as he brought the glass of beer to his lips. Mmm…dark and bitter…like his soul. Zach decided that he just wasn't going to be a part of this conversation. When Kai finally remembered that Zach was there and decided to include him, Zach would join. Until then, he'd just tune them out. If it went on for too long, though, Zach would probably just get up and leave….

[Malachai Roen]

Kai held back a laugh, seeing the girl overflow the drink like she was. Maybe he was being totally cocky (what else was new?), but he had a fairly good idea that he was the cause of it. Ah, if only he knew... He just offered a smile when she apologized, knowing it was directed at Zach... Who was seeming very disgruntled at this interaction. Ah shit. .... Oh well, Kai could do what he wanted! He nodded in confirmation at the question, sucking in a breath and letting out a whistle at the bottle that was presented. "Wonderful, thank you." He gave a pause, wondering if he should ask for a glass or if the bartendress would be on it. After her little slip up (even if it was adorable), he didn't know - but she was new, after all. And she was friendly, and gorgeous. Mmmm...

And... Well, she seemed to be flirting, even if it was part of her job, but Kai would take it. "Thank you," he smiled. "I'm sure we will." He glanced at Zach again, the hand in his pocket slipping slightly around his waist... Just so Zach knew that Kai knew he was there. He could chat up the two of them, right?

.... This was Zach he was thinking about, though. Sigh.

"Yeah, I'll be glad to be done," he replied with a nod and a smile. "Of course, grad school will come after, but I'm trying not to think about that yet." He was at least going to take off the summer to muck around and do... Whatever. Probably have a lot of sex with Zach. Yeah.

If Kai could stop being such a cocky asshole, that was.

His attention was drawn back to Vanessa as she spoke again, and he nodded, all too interested to learn about her. "I'm sorry to hear that," he said sympathetically. "That sounds rough." Once again, he glanced at Zach, but a moment later, when she said her name, something clicked for Kai. He looked back at Vanessa and studied her a bit longer, before suddenly gaping as it hit him.

"Oh... Oh God!" he exclaimed, feeling absolutely awful. "Vanessa! You and me, we..." He trailed off, guilt welling up. "Damn, I'm sorry, I was so drunk that night, and..." And I hardly remember what happened? Yeah, accurate. Shit, he felt like such a dick. "I... Fuck, I'm such an idiot," he sighed. "H... How are you, then? I, uh... Wow, it's so weird to run into you again..." So smooth, Kai.

[Vanessa Rodriguez]

Her cheeks still burned in the aftermath of spilling Zach's drink all over the side of her hand. How embarrassing! Vanessa wanted to take off her half apron and storm out of the bar, even if it meant never seeing Kai and never letting him know about Christian. Looking up, she sheepishly smiled at Zach. Maybe playing up the part of a ditz would help? No, he already seemed plenty irritated at her and Kai's interactions. Although, Vanessa only furthered the ditz image when she forgot to give him a glass for his expensive alcohol. "Oh, right." She said, shaking her head. Bending down behind the bar, Vanessa took a moment to breathe in and breathe out. She needed to calm down and compose herself. After a long moment, she emerged with a glass. "There you go!"

"Creative writing? Nice, nice." Vanessa said, nodding twice. She didn't have the patience to write creatively. "I always found writing hard, so props to you." She said with a laugh, nervously toying with a shot glass. Sighing, Vanessa gave a small smile to Kai. "How about you? What's your major?"

And then the focus was back on her. "It's okay, shit happens right?" Vanessa said with a snort, finally deciding to say fuck it. She glanced around before pouring herself a shot of vodka, tilting the liquid back quickly with a wince. "Don't tell." She added with a half-hearted smirk.

Vanessa's smirk faded into a smile. "Oh, it's okay... don't worry about it. I... I wasn't in a better state of mind either." She only vaguely remembered the night. Mostly his charm that had easily bedded the Hispanic girl. Vanessa twirled with her curls, swallowing hard. Awkward much? "But yeah, uh, we did." The only reason she remembered as much as she did was probably due to the result of that night. Interlocking her fingers together, Vanessa leaned on the counter, clearly distracted by her thoughts.

"Yeah.. I.. I didn't expect to ever see you again." She awkwardly chuckled. Collecting herself had clearly not worked. "Uhmm, well, I've been better, I mean, not that life is bad. But... uhm, yeah. Dropped out, had... something unexpected happen." Without thinking twice, Vanessa pulled out her phone with a bittersweet smile. She opened up the photos, choosing the most recent photo of Christian. Sliding it onto the bar, she didn't say a word, letting the image speak for itself. A baby, with distinctly almond eyes and messy black hair. If Kai didn't get the hint, then she would have to be even more direct. Vanessa had completely forgotten about his companion, only wanting to rid the burden on her shoulders. At this point, she didn't care if Zach saw.

Her heart hammered, waiting for a response. Anything.

[Deleted]

By this point, Zach had given up on being included as anything more than just a useless decorative piece to hang off of Kai's arm tonight. Hell, even if that's all he was, then that was still more consideration than he was getting right now. Even Kai's efforts to include the writer in the conversation seemed only half-assed, Kai was clearly more interested in chatting up this bombshell of a bartendress. She wasn't even all that good looking! Noa was better, in his opinion. And no, he was not just being biased!

Zach took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, while he also drank in another long mouthful of his IPA.

He did express a look of sympathy, however, in hearing that she had dropped out, to accompany Kai's obvious interest. Unfortunately, the next topic has his stomach literally twisting in knots.

These two knew each other? Well whoop-dee-doo for them!! Now they could spend the rest of the night catching up on old times while Zach just sat in a corner and got drunk!!

Zach was just about ready to get up and go when the bomb dropped. He slid off his bar-stool and peered over to get a better look at what she was trying to show Kai….Only an idiot wouldn't have been able to figure out what she was saying. Zach could feel something inside of him snap as he looked at the picture of that child who bore a striking resemblance to an incorrigible prick Zach happened to know.

He took another breath and looked up to Vanessa. "Congratulations, he's beautiful," Zach said with the most generous smile he could muster.

Then Zach stepped back, grabbed his glass of beer…..and splashed what was left in it all over Kai's front. He set the glass back on the bar counter with a loud klunk. "Thank you, it was nice to meet you," he said as politely as he could, that ice cold smile not once leaving his face. "Also, he's buying." Zach pointed at the beer-drenched idiot before turning and storming off.

As he left the two of them at the bar with a double-time pace, Zach pulled his cell phone and started dialing. "Hello?" he greeted, putting the phone to his ear. "Hi, I need a cab….." he stared as he stepped out the double doors to the hotel.

[Malachai Roen]

Kai smiled kindly as Vanessa handed him a glass, and poured himself a drink from his very expensive-looking bottle, wondering how much he had really just spent on the stuff. He took a sip, and gave a pleased hum; he wasn't disappointed, even though his purpose for buying the bottle had little to do with enjoying the drink itself.

He tossed another look Zach's way. Was it just him, or was he older man acting... Weird? "He's a really hard worker, this one," he smiled, giving Zach an affectionate pat on the side. "Oh, me?" he asked, attention drawn back to the bartendress. "Chemistry. Both the literal and the... Interpersonal." Kai smirked lightly and took another sip of his drink. He could practically feel Zach rolling his eyes beside him. He laughed a little as Vanessa took a shot, giving her a sly wink. "Won't say a word," he promised.

His flirting came to a definite halt as his memory returned to him, though. Kai even felt a little sick to his stomach; he usually tried to at least connect in some way to the people he hooked up with. Vanessa had been... A very short, one-time fling. Had he run into her again after that night, he would have tried to be pleasant. But he hadn't, so... "I should have tried harder to contact you, or... Or something," he mumbled dumbly. Yeah, sure, but how would he have expected to do that when he hadn't even asked for her phone number or anything? Idiot...

Kai frowned as she started speaking again, sensing a sort of... Uncertainty in her tone, like she was nervous. Well, he supposed he was a little nervous too now, but... "Oh, what...?" Before he could probe further, he watched as she pulled up a picture and put it before him. Unlike Zach, it took longer for the reality to click with Kai. When it did, it hit him like a freight train, and he literally stumbled back a little from the bar, eyes wide and mouth agape. No, no, that wasn't possible, he didn't... He always used protection, was always careful, because he knew he was in no shape to be a dad...!

"I-I," he croaked, unable to tear his eyes away from that little bundle of life that he'd helped create. "I... Don't know what... To say..." He was completely lost for words. What should he do, apologize? Congratulate her, like Zach was now? Tell her he'd do all he had to to support her? The latter seemed the best, and he was about to go with it until the man he'd come here with doused him with the cold drink, and he yelped, sending Zach a desperate, hurt look. "Zach, please, no, I didn't know, I didn't...!" But the writer was storming off, and Kai was torn between chasing him down and staying here and working this out with Vanessa. His attention darted back and forth between them, until Zach was outside and the door shut behind him.

"I... God, Vanessa, I... I promise I'll help out with anything you need, I swear, I just... Zach..." He pulled out his wallet and shoved it in Vanessa's direction as a promise he wasn't leaving, that he'd come back after he... Talked... With the older man. He stumbled outside after Zach, grabbing onto him and spinning him around to face him. "Zach, please, don't do this," he begged. "I h-had no way of knowing, I... I thought I was always careful...!" Empty excuses now. But they were all he had.

[Vanessa Rodriguez]

Vanessa smiled between the two men, as her inner conscience debated on revealing her secret right now. She could see that there was... something between the two. She couldn't quite put her finger on it... fuck buddies? Close friends with unrequited feelings? Emotions and feelings weren't her forte. When Kai mentioned chemistry, she mirrored his smirk. "Nice. I was studying biological sciences." It was nice to find someone else who was into the sciences. She set aside the used shot glass for cleaning, not wanting to deal with the potential consequences of drinking on the job. She kind of, desperately needed a source of income.

"It's okay." Vanessa assured Kai. Initially, when Vanessa had first found out about her pregnancy, she had went through a stage of denial. After that passed, she was going to come clean to Kai (after finding him, of course), but didn't want to deal with all of the chaos and messiness at the time. Vanessa truly believed and thought that she could raise a child by herself. Boy, had she been naive. Now, she had no choice but to deal with whatever would come up as a result of their one night stand. No matter what consequences were in store. Was it selfish to do it in front of his fling/partner? Vanessa hadn't thought about that.

But, it was too late for second thoughts as she slid her phone across the bar, smiling absent-mindedly at the picture of Christian. He definitely looked more like Kai. Zach was the first to notice, which Vanessa figured would be the case. She fidgeted, waiting for an answer. For any indication. She looked up from her fingers just as Zach did, a small smile on her face. Well, that had been a surprising response! Due to her emotional ineptness, Vanessa had assumed it was an all around positive (well, as positive as a surprise pregnancy could be) response. "Thanks." She said, beaming back at the other man.

And then came Kai's response. Vanessa's eyes widened as he stumbled back in shock, leaning forward. "Kai...?" She trailed off, gnawing on her bottom lip. "I.. I know it's a lot to take in.. and... I'm sorry..." She didn't get to complete the thought as his companion doused Kai with his ale. Vanessa winced to herself, knowing that this was sure to cause a scene and she would have to fabricate a lie to her manager. She nervously eyed the two men, tears pricking at her eyes. Clearly, revealing her secret here hadn't been the best idea... "I... God, fuck Kai... I'm really sorry, I bet there's a change of clothes back here or something." She rambled, reaching out to try and dab at the mess with a cloth. Before she could do anything, Kai was pulling out his wallet and practically throwing it at the girl. Vanessa opened her mouth to response, to apologize again, but before she could, he was racing after Zach.

Vanessa gave a defeated sigh, the other customers giving her a curious look. She reached out, grabbing her phone with a shaky hand and tucking it away. She grabbed a mop, staring at the floor as the tears finally broke and fell from her face. Fuck, she was an idiot. A stupid, careless idiot. Vanessa mopped the surrounding area, shaking slightly with repressed sobs.

[Deleted]

It would take the cab driver about 10-20 minutes to get there at best. Being a small town, Pilot Ridge didn't have a cab company of it's own, so Burlington would have to find one in the general area to lend, which was still a ways away. Which was fine, Zach could wait, though now he thought about it, it probably would've been faster to just call Dev or Aura or even Claudia(though that would've been dangerous for Kai) and ask one of them to pick him up. Then he'd just stay the night at home. Maybe skip classes tomorrow if he couldn't get a ride back to campus. And if all else failed, it wasn't too far to walk. That'd at least give Zach a spell or two to think things over.

This night wasn't supposed to turn out like this. Zach wanted to blame Kai but it wasn't like he planned any of this to happen. Zach just couldn't……damn.

Zach was sitting on the low wall of the garden in front of the hotel when Kai came rushing out to find the quiet writer. The excuses Kai was stammering out all sounded familiar, like something Zach could've written himself for one of his novels. Word for word Zach probably could've predicted them. It was….almost funny. If his heart wasn't already on the verge of shattering. "Kai, stop," he said calmly, his eyes focused on the ground. "You don't have to explain. I know, you didn't do this on purpose." It was just another instance where Kai's ignorance came back to bite him in the ass.

It was a bomb, that's for sure. And a complete shock. Zach didn't know how else to respond to it. He was sure Kai knew even less. It did help clear things up for Zach, though. The writer took a slow breath and rose his gaze to meet their eyes before he dropped another bomb.

"….I'm in love with you, Kai," he said concisely. Zach didn't give Kai a chance to respond. "We need to end this."

[Malachai Roen]

Had Kai been in a better state of mind, he would have told Vanessa not to apologize, that it wasn't her fault, none of this was, it was all just a one night thing that they had both agreed to that had led to this. Sure, maybe she could have told him a different time, but he would have had to tell Zach anyway. Because he and Zach... They...

He appreciated her attempt to help too. Kai even thought he saw the hint of tears in her eyes, but he forced himself to pretend he hadn't seen for now. He had to... He couldn't just let Zach go. And he would be back, he promised he would, no matter what happened...

Kai, stop. The Asian man swallowed and fell silent, staring at Zach, who wasn't looking at him. The cool air hit his drenched shirt and he instantly began to feel cold, but he ignored it. His body was stiff, uncertain; he didn't know what he should do, what the writer was going to say, how to fix this... He couldn't fix this. This was already done. He had to face the consequences. "I-I didn't..." he agreed in a stammer, but he wasn't sure saying anything was helping at all.

When Zach's eyes met his, Kai fought the urge to do what he normally did - shut the guy up by pulling him into a kiss. It always seemed to turn out okay when he did that. But something told him he shouldn't.

So he felt another jolt run through him as Zach spoke. At first his brain didn't register the words. When they finally did, all of them, his heart raised for a split second before plummeting completely.

"N-no..." he whispered, features slack with shock. "No, we can't... No!" Kai dropped down to his knees, grasping for Zach's hand, his other fumbling up to catch Zach's cheek, hoping there was something, anything he could say to change Zach's mind. "Y-you can't just say something like that and then say we can't... We can't work it out...!" Kai swallowed hard, the lump in his throat seeming to cause tears to prick at the corners of his eyes. "I-I... I've never felt... Like this with anyone before..." he whispered. "I know I'm... I'm an idiot, and I do dumb things, and... And try to show off, and flirt with other people, but..." But.... "But I don't love anyone else," he barely managed to get out. "Please, Zach..."