Fateful Encounter

The strong smell of smoke invades my nose, and I cough. Inside, more than 30 pairs of eyes turn to stare at us.
“THE POLICE WILL BE HERE IN LESS THAN 5 MINUTES.” D.O yells, but it’s like he’s yelling into a black hole. No one reacts, and they all turn back around to watch the fight. My eyes scan the room while I try not to breathe in the smoke. Suddenly, a figure is coming at us. It’s Kai, and he’s holding a cigarette in his hand. My heart sinks, and what D.O said really is true.
“D.O! What the f***, man? What are you doing?”
“I could say the same to you! Are you an idiot? You almost got caught last time, but you’re back here again!” Kai doesn’t even blink.
“Leave me alo-“ Kai looks at me, and his eyes widen in recognition. He drops his cigarette, and his jaw drops. “T-TJ..?” He looks accusingly at D.O. “You’ve lost it. Why did you bring her here?!”
D.O looks livid, like he is about to knock out someone. “Tell him why you’re here, TJ.” He says quietly.
“Kai, you and I have a lot of talking to do. Can you please leave this place?” He looks at me, but then turns back to D.O.
“You’re crazy. I can’t believe you called the police AND brought my girlfriend here. Are you trying to ruin my life?”
“I’m trying to make you see sense! What happened to trying to be good enough for TJ? But now it doesn’t matter?”
“She said she loves me. She’ll accept me if she does. Drugs and all!” I’m about to interrupt, when we hear rustling and yelling from the direction of the woods. Cursing, D.O grabs Kai and drags him out of The Warehouse.
“Let me go, D.O. You can’t tell me what to do!”
“Come on, move it! Or you’re going to have a record.” They struggle with each other, but when Kai sees the policemen approaching, he takes the lead and sprints for the trees. We both follow, and continue to run. The branches are slapping into my face and the roots seem even more aggressive than before. I remember that I have a tonne of homework to do, and my hear breaks. There goes my study time. I didn’t even tell my parents I would be going out. What if they find me gone? Oh man I am so screwed.

We break clear of the woods, and I double up trying to catch my breath while D.O and Kai glare at each other. As my breathing goes back to normal, my head is clear enough to think. So is this why Kai always seems to smell different to how he used to? What drugs is he taking? I’m scared to ask. D.O starts walking, and I quickly follow him. As I pass Kai, he reaches out to grab my arm. On reflex, I jerk it away. My eyes widen when I realize what I did, and I turn to look at him. He looks confused, and frowns.
“Sorry. Reflex.” He looks at me, but the frown remains.
“Do you see me differently?” His voice is quiet. I guess it’s not only me being affected by this. I almost forgot that he never planned to tell me about his habit and now everything’s been spilled.
“Who wouldn’t?” He flinches at the cold tone I use, and I’m surprised with myself. I didn’t mean for it to come out like that, but I don’t know how to feel about all this.

A taxi finally arrives, and we pile in. I have to sit in between D.O and Kai because neither of them wants to talk to the other. I don’t understand why I don’t particularly want to sit next to Kai. I told him I loved him, and I really do, but his connection to drugs makes it hard for me. Am I being selfish? He’s not making me take them, and it is his own body. I should leave him to trash it, but I can’t let someone I love destroy himself. I mull things over in the taxi ride, and when we get off at the park, I feel even more confused. D.O wants me to make him stop and I want him to stop as well, but I don’t have the right to tell him what to do with himself. I start walking home, and I hear Kai yelling my name. His footsteps follow me, but I don’t think I can talk to him yet.
“TJ! Stop, please. Let’s talk.”
“Can you give me some time to let this sink in? I’ll talk to you on Saturday, ok?” I don’t turn around to look at him, and walk away quickly. I have 3 days to think this over. My parents are leaving again on Friday, which gives me the perfect opportunity to talk to Kai in peace. I open the door of the house, and try to creep quietly into my room.

“AND WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!” A scream tears through the house.
“Uhh…” I walk into the kitchen, and my mum stands in the middle with her hands on her hips. My dad gets up from the table and edges past me.
“Good luck.” He whispers, and then escapes. Lucky him.
“TJ, when I went up to your room at 3, you weren’t there. Fine, I thought to myself. She probably went out for a walk. But then the clock ticked to 4 and then to 5. Young woman do you understand how worried I was?! I couldn’t contact you! A walk does not last 2 hours! We both know you aren’t that fit! So where were you, hmmm?”
“Mum, I’m sorry. I really was out on a walk, but a friend had an emergency and saw me and I got caught up in it. I didn’t bring my phone because I thought I would be home after like 10 minutes. I’m really sorry.” I apologise sincerely, and hope that she doesn’t ask for details. I really feel uncomfortable disclosing delicate information about Kai, especially since my parents would completely spaz if they found out. A lot of our relatives have had drug related deaths, and they don’t particularly want to add mine to the list. Mum sighs, and runs her fingers through her hair.
“That’s fine. It’s crazy of me to think that I can control everything you do, anyway. You’re 18 and I know I definitely was not as well behaved as you. Just make sure I can contact you if something like that happens again.”
“Thanks, mum.”
“Dinner will be ready soon.”
“Oh, no thanks. I think I’ll eat later. I don’t really feel like it.” Mum gives me a strange look but doesn’t push it.

I go to my room and get my books out. I can finally study, but I don’t think I can concentrate. My mind is too preoccupied with all these thoughts and I’m trying to adjust to Kai’s drug issue. I love him, but why does this make me so uncomfortable? Doesn’t unconditional love overlook such minor flaws? Kai himself hasn’t changed at all. He’s still the same guy, but now that I know about this, why do I feel so weird about it? I want him to stop it, but what if he won’t? The possibility of him refusing to stop hits me like a truck, and I am left absolutely clueless. What will I do? This is truly the deal breaker of the relationship, isn’t it?

Notes