Consumed » Kai Parker

Forty Five

"Charlotte!"

My brain is still muddled from sleep and a frown etches into my brow at the distant shout of my name. Mumbling unintelligibly, I raise my head an inch, arms still locked around Kai, and listen carefully for the source of the voice that unpleasantly cut my sleep short.

"Char! We'll break down this door if we have to!"

Frown deepening, I recognize that particularly feminine voice. Liv. And she's not alone.

Panic shoots through my body, energizing my half-disoriented state and I struggle to untangle myself from the stirring witch beside me. A groan of protest rumbles deep in his chest and he tightens his grip on me, pulling me closer and nuzzling his face into my neck.

"Off, get off," I whisper desperately, only resulting in further resistance from Kai. He squeezes his eyes shut tighter, muttering irritably, then abruptly rolls over with me still in his grasp. I let out a low "oof" at the sudden shift in position, Kai's large body now splayed out on top of mine and his cheek rests on my shoulder, soft breaths hitting the crook of my neck.

"How are you not awake yet, I know you hear us." Elena, this time, sounding pissed.

I try to flail my legs but they're trapped by Kai's and he has no intent of moving them. Huffing in frustration, I make use of my arms, attempting to push him back to his side of the bed. This only irritates him more and he grunts, shifting his arms from underneath me so they can pin my hands down.

"Noooo," Kai rasps out and I sigh, resisting the urge to kick him in the ribs. "Tell them to fuck off."

"Shhh," I hush him, heartbeat rising as I hope that my sister isn't actively using her supersonic hearing right now. "Go, get up."

He growls into my neck, sending goosebumps across my skin, and lifts his head up to glare at me. I give him a pleading look as Liv calls my name again.

Rolling his eyes in obvious annoyance, he murmurs "Invisique" and I jump in slight shock as he disappears right before my eyes, the pressure of his body and restrain on my hands following suit. Blinking rapidly, I sit up reluctantly, staring at the door of my dorm with resentment.

"Char-lotte!"

"Alright!" I snap irritably, hopping off the bed and hurriedly pulling a pair of black sweatpants on. "Give me a second!"

"It's about time," I hear Liv mutter and there's two other hums of agreement.

Sighing loudly, I stalk toward the door and pull it open to reveal three stony glares. Glancing back toward the digital clock next to my bed, the red numbers tell me that it's only seven in the morning. Perfect. If being woken up this early by my sister and two furious best friends is any indication, it's going to be a long, exhausting day. A pattern as of late.

"Oh, hey, thanks for finally opening the door. And, you know, letting us know you're alive. You're lucky we didn't break this door down last night," Liv says sharply, arms folding over her black top.

I bristle at my friend's harsh tone, narrowing my eyes. "What are you talking about? I texted you guys."

A combination of scoffs and snorts follow this comment, before my sister speaks next. "Are you serious? You think it was appropriate to lay all of that onto us in a mass text?"

Chewing on my lip, I look down guiltily. Maybe it was a critical slip in judgment to inform my friends in a short text that I was fine and Stefan turned his humanity off, but in my defense, it had been a really long night. At that point, all I wanted was to sleep, to cuddle into Kai's comforting warmth and just catch a break from the growing mess that was our lives.