The warm smell of waffles and bacon wafted out of the glass door Bonnie had held open for you and the soft murmur of conversations filtered into your ears.  

Any previous worries you had about Damon invading yours and Bonnie’s free time dissipated the moment you felt a low rumble emanate from your stomach. A waitress, a teenage girl with a warm smile, promptly seated you both at a table just by the window and handed you menus with a smile before briskly walking off to serve another table.

“I’m starving” you breathed as you looked over the choices on the tattered menu, your eyes flicking over a few that you knew you would enjoy. “What are you getting?”

Bonnie seemed too preoccupied staring at the stools at the front of the diner to acknowledge you, repeating the question seemed to catch her attention but now you were far too interested to find out what she’d been looking at.

“I-, um,” she stumbled, fumbling with the menu as she tried to gain your attention back but it was long gone, too focused on the two men sitting on the stools in the direction Bonnie had been staring at a few moments before.  

Damon was expected, you’d seen his car parked out front so you weren’t surprised to see him occupying one of the worn stools. However, you hadn’t expected to see Kai sitting adjacent to him.

To say you and Kai had history would be an understatement, you were practically joined at the hip for a time. The warmth and endearment he expressed in your presence was enough for the rest of the group to finally accept him; not as a friend just yet, but not as an enemy.  

That was a while ago though since then he'd drifted from you to the point where any acknowledgement of your existence was unheard of from him. You wanted to be angry with him, you had every right to hate him for the way he made you feel when he brushed you off but it broke your heart far more than it infuriated you.  

The diner was busy enough that he hadn’t spotted you yet but you knew it was just a matter of time, a simple glance behind him or Bonnie speaking a decibel too high would alert him to your presence.  

“Can we go?” you whispered, feeling your heart sinking more than you could physically handle. Bonnie’s eyes met yours and you could practically feel the pity radiating from her stare.

“No,” she stated, holding her head high but the look of sympathy was still painted on her face. “You can’t run from him forever, he’s not worth the trouble.”

She was right, of course, she was right, but that didn’t mean you had to like it. So, with a deep sigh and a shaky breath you picked up your menu and decided what to eat. With a proud smile, Bonnie imitated your actions and started to list off what she wanted to eat.

After a while you almost forgot that Kai was in the same room as you, you'd been so engaged in conversation and your food. What you'd failed to notice as a result was that Kai and Damon had finally realised that you were there.  

A slightly louder than usual laugh from you alerted Kai of your whereabouts, your laugh was so familiar to him and yet he almost forgot what it sounded like. As if it was second nature, his heart yearned to go and talk to you, ask you how you'd been but a hand on his shoulder grounded him into his seat.  

For a moment he thought Damon had returned him to his senses until his eyes shifted to the dainty hand that had slinked down and taken a hold of his bicep before they finally moved to the face of the woman who was smiling at him. Damon moved to focus on the milkshake in front of him, a smirk growing on his face.

“Can I help you?” Kai questioned, taken aback by the proximity of the woman who he didn't recognise. She was pretty, no question about it, she had light eyes and short blonde hair but Kai couldn't care less, his hearing focused on you and the mindless conversation you were having.  

The conversation between you and Bonnie had slowed, words were just mumbled between the mouthfuls of food. Somehow, your gaze returned to Kai and Damon, the sight instantly put a damper on your mood.  

You hadn't expected to see someone brazenly flirting with Kai, her hand was wrapped around his upper bicep and she was ever so slightly leaning into him. It wasn't her actions that had tears brimming your eyes but rather his, the lack of effort to move away was what hurt most.

Bonnie’s gaze had moved to the direction that had caught your eye and almost immediately she was waving over a nearby waitress.  

“Hi, could we maybe get some takeaway boxes and the bill?” she asked a grateful smile on her face when the waitress nodded and headed behind the register. “Are you okay?”

Tearing your gaze from the scene took a moment, you simply nodded and took a deep breath.  

“He can do whatever he wants, I don't care,” you said in an attempt to not only convince Bonnie but also yourself. You were never even dating but the way your heartstrings snapped at the sight made you reconsider just how much the whole affair had affected you.

It took about 5 minutes for both of you to pay, box your food up, and leave. The drive home was significantly quieter than the drive there had been and you cursed both yourself, and Kai, for letting him ruin your time out with a friend.

Honestly, you wanted to curl up in bed and forget that he even existed, the idea of asking one of your friends to compel you to forget the memory crossing your mind at one point.  

You dropped Bonnie off with as much reassurance as you could that you would be fine, desperately convincing her that it was nothing and the whole ordeal just caught you off guard. After a while, she seemed convinced and with a warm hug and a promise that she was there if you needed her, she left you alone.  

The soft music that played on the radio meant that you almost missed the notification that appeared on your phone. You had just parked up when you checked your phone, your heart skipping a beat when you read over the short message.

kai: are you busy?

Almost every fibre of your being wanted to ignore the message, block his number and move on with your life. But despite any intelligent thought telling you it was a bad idea, you typed out a simple no and sent it before putting your phone down.

Barely a few seconds passed before your phone lit up with another notification, you took a deep breath before picking it up again and reading the message.

kai: can you come over?

Any sensical thought you had left evaporated when you read the message, your body buzzing with dread and excitement at him wanting to talk to you. As if you had no control over your body, you said yes and started the car up again to make the almost habitual drive to his apartment.  

The drive there was quicker than you remembered, it might have been due to your racing thoughts that meant you were barely paying attention to the drive, the action almost unconscious.  

It seemed as though you were dreaming the whole time until you stood in front of his door. The reality of what you were doing came crashing down onto you and you almost decided to just turn around and go home, the door swinging open in front of you stopped you from doing that.  

“Hi,” you breathed out, your heart about to spring from your chest at the speed it was beating.  

“Hey, come in,” he said as he moved out of the way of the door, the familiar apartment coming into view.

It was exactly as you remembered, his apartment was dark and moody just as Kai intended it to be and you couldn’t help but let your heart warm at the smell of old books that Kai’s apartment always seemed to smell like.  

You turned to face him awaiting whatever reason he has asked you to come over after months of radio silence. The stoic look you presented did not at all mirror the turmoil you felt inside, you'd missed him immensely but prayed he didn’t know it.

“I saw you today, at that diner. I heard you leave and I can guess why you left but uh-” he stumbled over his words; he was never nervous which is why this side of him was such a shock to you. “I’ve missed you.”

The words made your skin erupt in goosebumps and your stomach fill with every type of butterfly. Meeting his eyes made any semblance of the strong facade you had presented crumble and you couldn't help the ways your eyes softened.

“Why?” you asked, your hands curling and uncurling into fists at your side, a presentation of your nerves.

“Why did I miss you? Why wou-” he started before you cut him off.

“No, why did you start acting like I didn’t exist?” you asked, the tremble in your voice evident but you didn't let yourself slip up.  

“I was scared,” he stated, his eyes falling to the ground as your eyebrows scrunched and your head tilted ever so slightly. “I’ve never felt like that about anyone in my entire life. I got scared and so I decided it’d be best if I left you alone.”

To any sane person, his logic made no sense, if you felt like you were falling for someone or anything remotely close then you would do anything in your power to keep them around. To Kai, it made perfect sense. He was so scared of hurting you or inevitably not meeting your expectations that he failed to realise that leaving you with no explanation would only hurt you more.  

“I thought you hated me,” you mumbled, the words bringing some kind of relief to your mind. Almost instantly, Kai’s head shot up to look at you and began to rapidly shake his head, muttering ‘no’ under his breath whilst taking quick steps towards you.  

His warm hands came up to brush your hair from your face before coming to rest on your cheeks. The eyes that met yours were swimming with both hurt and sympathy, he couldn’t bring himself to feel bad for himself when you stood in front of him looking so broken.  

“I could never hate you,” he whispered, “I’m so sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you.”  

Sincerity seeped into his words, the small cracks in his voice as a result of his emotions overwhelming him made it evident he was being truthful. You knew emotions easily overwhelmed him since his merge with Luke, he struggled to deal with them and you had tried to help before he pushed you away.  

The genuine show of feelings that flowed between you made you want to pull him close, tell him it was okay and that you forgave him but fear took over. It was impossible to know whether he was prepared to deal with those emotions again or if he would decide to leave the second it got too much.  

His eyes scoured yours, searching for any reaction he could work off of, anything that would tell him that you forgave him but he came up empty. His hands were just about to move off you, he was so close to apologising for being a bother and letting you go for good. Until you spoke up.  

“I want to try this again, I do,” you started, taking a moment before continuing, “but please don’t leave me again.”

Kai’s heart sunk in a way he’d never felt before, he’d never felt guilt to that extent. He’d done some truly heinous things in his lifetime but nothing made his heart shatter like the despair in your voice.  

“I don’t think I could leave you alone again if I tried,” he uttered, a breathy laugh escaping him and both of you knew he was telling the total truth. A sudden warmth filled you, a feeling of solace taking over and you finally allowed yourself to sink into his hold.  

One hand slid around the back of your head as you rested against his chest, his other hand slinking to your back and pulling you as close to him as humanly possible. The arms that slinked around his waist brought him comfort that he’d never felt within his lifetime.  

Gently, he looked down at you causing you to bring your chin to rest on his chest so you could look up at him. With a soft smile, he leaned down ever so slightly to meet your lips, gracing you with a tender kiss that sent your heart into a frenzy and your mind blank.  

He pulled away for a moment, a small smile gracing his lips before he began to place small kisses on your lips again, pulling away for just a second to see the small pout on your face. After doing this for as long as he thought you could take he pulled apart completely.  

“Come on,” he mumbled, grabbing your hand and pulling you through his apartment until you reached his bedroom. Effortlessly, he pushed the door open and span you around to push you onto the plush mattress.  

Nerves washed over you, the reality that you were actually in Kai’s bedroom, on his bed with him hovering over you suddenly crashed onto you. His hands returned to your waist but he looked over your face for a moment, as if he was reading your thoughts.

“Are you okay?” he asked, concern washing over his face at your sudden stillness considering how eager you were to be close to him just moments before.

“Yeah,” you struggled to find the words to describe how you felt so you settled on saying, “it’s just new.”

Kai knew what you meant, sure you’d been close before but him having you in his bed was uncharted territory. He hadn't intended to make you uncomfortable at all, he wanted to show you how much he’d missed you, how sorry he was.  

He began to push off of you, suddenly feeling as though he’d pushed your boundaries far too much for one night. Emotions had gotten the better of him and he already felt guilty for dragging you into his bedroom, his mindset on his own desires.  

Before he could leave you, warm lips met his once again, dainty fingers pulling at the hairs on the nape of his neck as he settled on top of you once again. No words needed to be said, all of your feelings being expressed through the soft smile he could feel against his lips as you allowed yourself to indulge in him.  

Relief washed over him and he finally let the desires free again, any previous hesitations being wiped clean and replaced with the sensations that now overwhelmed him.  

One of his arms rested by your head, propping himself up above you whilst the other skimmed across your waist, the light movements pulling at your shirt and revealing your skin.  

“Can I?” he mumbled against your lips, his fingers gingerly tracing the bottom of your ridden up shirt. A soft nod from you was all he needed to push the shirt up slowly before eventually pulling it over your head and leaving it to the side.  

The eyes that explored the now exposed skin were filled with adoration and lust. “You’re beautiful.”

The words erupted your skin into goosebumps, the lower tone of his voice sent your mind into a haze and the only thoughts you could formulate related to how lucky you were.  

A heavy sigh from you pulled Kai from his less than pure thoughts and back to you. He sat up straight, resting on his knees between your thighs and despite being devoured by his eyes in your half-naked form for the last few minutes, you suddenly felt exposed.  

As if he could sense your unease he removed his shirt as well, tossing it to the side more haphazardly than he had treated yours. The sight of him hovering over you, the only clothing covering him being his sweatpants, was something you wish you could engrain into your memory and relive on any dark or lonely day.  

Your hands unconsciously reached out to grab him, the need to feel him against you taking over. Almost instantly he was hovering about you again, the skin to skin contact making the feeling of lust more intimate.  

Your legs hugged his hips in a plea to have him closer, the soft kisses he placed on your exposed neck adding the dreamy state you’d been pushed to. His hands traced the cup of your bra, his hands gliding to your back and unclasping it with no trouble.  

Every movement he performed was soft and gentle as if you were made of glass. The fingertips that traced your skin and pulled your bra off your arms were featherlike and left a warm trail across your cold skin.  

A light touch to your nipple elicited a sharp intake of breath from you, a sound that made Kai shiver. His hands massaged your breasts carefully, all of his attention on the soft whimpers you made whenever his fingers played or pinched at the sensitive skin around your nipple.  

“P-please, more,” you whimpered, pushing your hips into his. The soft graze of you against his crotch caused him to abandon his attack on your neck and his face dug into the crook of your neck, his breathing deep as he attempted to calm himself.  

He was back to sitting up straight, between you, his hands grasping at the waistband of your leggings and underwear and pulled them off, the position was awkward and had your legs in the air but Kai managed to do it seamlessly.  

With a second, his eyes returned to your face, not leaving even as he tugged his sweatpants down his thighs, leaving them hanging around halfway down as his length slapping up against his stomach before gravity brought it down.  

Once again, he returned to you, his cock resting against your exposed pussy and you couldn't stop the soft whimper that escaped you.  

Kai’s eyes looked down between the two of you, his heart jumping at the thought that you had allowed him to see you exposed. Almost painfully slowly, he grinned into you, not yet allowing himself to indulge completely but the sight alone had his stomach in knots.

Small mewls of his name returned him to reality and he was on your lips once more. Any soft moans were muffled by his lips, the kiss was soft yet sloppy and you could feel the desperation rolling off the both of you in waves.

The teasing was becoming insufferable and you needed him more than you needed oxygen. “I n-need you.”

The words were mumbled against his lips and he would’ve missed them if he wasn’t so enraptured by the noises you were making. Before you could utter another syllable he has slipped into you, stretching you out to where it was almost painful.  

He gave you a few moments to breathe and accommodate him, a consideration that was much appreciated. The air in the room was suffocating and you could only bring yourself to let out shallow breaths in an attempt to keep yourself calm.  

It took him a few more moments to move, only gently thrusting as your breathing slowed to the point that he deemed ‘safe’. His movements were cautious, afraid to break you despite you showing him time and time again that you wouldn't be broken so easily, but you enjoyed the loving pace regardless.

You pulled him down ever so slightly, attaching your lips to his neck as he began to build a rhythm to his movements. His cock stroking against your sweet spot with every single thrust, each time it elicited a soft whimper.  

The pace sped up as he began to let his desires overwhelm him, his hips slapping against yours in a chase to his end. The hand that rested on your waist slid down your stomach and landed on your clit, rubbing small, soft circles that had you writhing.  

He was desperate for you to reach your climax first, knowing that seeing the ecstasy he caused would send him into a high that he could only ever dream of recreating alone. Your face was completely dug into the crook of his neck but he wanted to see you, he had to see you.  

Carefully, he pulled away, your head rolling back onto the bed and gave him a full show of your face. The way your eyelids were hooded and your lips puffy, it almost threw him over, but he remained hellbent on you getting there first.  

The angle of his hips changed slightly, barely noticeable if it hadn't made the tip of his cock hit your sweet spot with accuracy. The feeling made you let out a small cry, and every thrust after that wound your stomach into a tight knot.  

“Kai, K-Kai,” you started before you could finish your sentence the knot unravelled. The feeling overwhelmed you in a way you’d never felt before and you could only feel the way your body buzzed and writhed and the warmth from the man hovering above you.  

Watching you quiver and shake beneath him was enough to send Kai over the edge, his body near collapsing on top of you as a guttural groan erupted from him. His hips stuttered inside of you, pleasure clouding his mind and he allowed himself to pump you full of him, feeling the way your walls clenched him and held him in made pulling out feel impossible.

A few moments passed before he slid out of you, his cum spilling out of you as your pussy couldn't hold everything that he had to give. The sight made his mind hazy and his cock twitched, desperate to feel the warmth of your tight pussy again.  

He switched his gaze to you, your eyes had fluttered shut and the way you were peacefully sprawled out on his bed made you look ethereal. He stood onto shaky legs, his orgasm knocking the energy out of him and seeing you like that was enough to make his body tremble.

Gently, he picked you up, his arms and carried you to the bathroom, the movement woke you from your daze and you giggled slightly at his affection.  

“C’mon, let’s clean you up,” he whispered, scared to break the warm atmosphere. The care he provided you with broke him from his usual character, careful hands traced over you as to not stimulate you any further and he guided you through every action that would require no thought from you anyway.  

Finally, he returned you to his bed, pulling the covers up for you and allowing you to settle before joining you. The moment he crawled into bed next to you, you wrapped around him, your head rested on his chest and you wrapped your leg around his waist.  

The action, despite being as simple as cuddling, made his heart jump in its cage and he found himself completely and utterly enamoured with you.