It's All Relative(10)
Lying back on his messy sheets, Kai wished he could fast forward this conversation and his headache; both were paining him at the moment. “Monday, Mom.”
“Right…of course.” She paused for a long time, and Kai thought to sneak in a, “Talk to you tomorrow,” so he could attempt to get back to sleep, but she beat him to it with, “Have you met your boss yet?” Her voice came out tentative, like she was unsure if she wanted to ask him that.
Kai frowned at hearing the odd tone. His new boss was his parents’ friend—or maybe just an acquaintance. Kai wasn’t entirely sure what their relationship was with the man, other than they’d all worked together once, back in Hawaii. It was how Kai had gotten a job here, all the way in snowy Colorado. “No…I’ve only talked to him on the phone. I guess I’ll meet him Monday too.”
Another long pause from his mom. “Oh, right. Well, I suppose I should let you get back to sleep. I love you, Kai. I’ll try not to call so early next time.”
He grinned into the phone. “I love you too, Mom. And thank you.” Kai ended the call and tossed his phone to the floor. Still praying for his head to stop throbbing, he shut his eyes and let exhaustion pull him back into his dreams about the beautiful, sensual girl he’d probably never see again.
He was awoken several hours later by a bright shaft of sunlight striking him in the eyes. Although it had to be close to noon now, Kai’s body was sluggish as he sat up and ran a hand through his dark hair. He couldn’t entirely blame the lethargy on his overindulgence last night. While recovering from the alcohol was definitely making him feel like he was moving in slow motion, it was more adjusting to the different time zone that was throwing him off. His body still wasn’t used to it, and while the clock on the microwave confirmed that it was nearly twelve-thirty, his body was trying to tell him that no, it was only eight-thirty. He hoped that he could finally convince his body to play along with Mountain Time by Monday morning.
Standing, he shuffled to the bathroom and stuck his head under the faucet to relieve his thirst; his throat felt like it had been scoured with a Brillo pad. Rifling through a box on the counter, he found a bottle of aspirin on the very bottom and took four of them. His head was still throbbing, and although the room had thankfully stopped spinning and his stomach had settled, he needed a little extra help to get through this hangover.
Kai decided to take a quick shower. As the warm water cascaded down his back, he again experienced a painful surge of homesickness. In the past, whenever he had overdone it at some party on the beach with his friends, he would just dive into the ocean to perk up his spirits. There was nothing quite like the mix of muggy air, warm water, and pounding waves to make you forget the throbbing, thirst-inducing torture of waking up from a drunken night of debauchery.
Wrapped in a towel after his shower, Kai’s thoughts again shifted to the mysterious woman he’d slept with last night. Thinking about his evening with her was almost like watching a movie about someone else—it just wasn’t like Kai at all to bring a strange woman home, toss her onto his bed, and drive into her like both of their lives had depended on it. But while it hadn’t been a typical night, he had to smile as he rummaged for some clothes in a box beside his bed. Whatever it had been…had been amazing.
Shivering a bit in the coolness of his apartment, Kai threw on some jeans and a couple of long-sleeved shirts. Then he shuffled the three steps it took to get to his kitchen. Since he hadn’t gone shopping yet, and didn’t have a whole lot of food in his cupboards, he made his standard meal: a bowl of cereal. He had every intention of getting the stuff he needed today and putting his place together…once his body stopped kicking him in the ass.
Leaning against the counter, eating his breakfast, Kai looked around at all of the numerous opened and unopened boxes. Most of his things didn’t have anywhere else to go besides the box they were in, since he didn’t have much in the way of furniture, not even a bed frame for his mattress. Thinking of everything he still needed to get was a little overwhelming. Shaking his head as he finished his meal, he decided that he would deal with the apartment later. First, he needed to visit the only person he knew in this city, his grandmother.
Feeling that he should probably call her before he just showed up at her door, Kai trudged through his mess to once again find his cell phone. As he retrieved it, he couldn’t help but stare at the television screen. He could see his bed reflected back to him, and the memory of Jessie watching them have sex flooded through him. Her face as she’d stared at their bodies moving so intimately had been one of the hottest things he’d ever seen. And her smile when he’d started getting close… Goddamn. Kai was sure that the mental snapshot of that moment was going to stay with him for a long time, and he again kicked himself for not getting her number. He definitely wouldn’t mind seeing her again.
Kai sat on his mattress again and rubbed his temple while he searched for his grandmother’s number. His head was feeling better, thanks to the miracle of modern medicine, but he still felt rundown. The phone rang forever, and on the sixth or seventh ring, Kai started to get worried. He’d called his grandmother often when he’d started making plans to come out here, and she never let it go past three rings.
His grandmother was a pretty tough woman. She’d had nine kids in half as many years. She’d home schooled them all and sent all of them off to really good colleges. She was big on family bonds and managed to stay in touch with every member of her dispersed, expanded family. She’d even visited Kai in Hawaii every year, right up until the time his parents had gotten divorced. After that, she’d stopped coming around, but she’d never stopped being a part of Kai’s life. She called him throughout the year, sent him cards and handmade gifts on holidays and his birthday, and even baked him cookies. While it had been years since he’d actually seen the woman, Kai had never stopped feeling that special bond with her.