-Eden
"I don't really care where you put the boxes," Kai said to Jo as he shoved the door to his new apartment open with his shoulder, hefting a brown box into a more comfortable position in his arms. He pressed his back against the door to keep it open for her to come in with the parcels in her own arms, letting the door draw close as he moved to the living room. Dropping the two boxes down gently by the couch, he grinned while looking up at her.
Jo puffed out one of her cheeks as she surveyed the open space, folding her arms across her chest. "We can sort it all out later I guess."
Shrugging, he looked around at all the various boxes and bags scattered across the apartment. There wasn't much left to be moved into the place. All the heavier things like his new mattress and bed frames for the master and guest bedrooms were already taken care of last week. The apartment came pre-furnished with the main common area and kitchen furnishings. It was at least a weight off Kai's mind. He was planning on having those replaced once he was fully settled anyway.
Call it a quirk, but he hated the idea of not having a hundred percent control over his living space.
All the stuff his twin, Josette, was helping to bring in were just small things - suitcases of clothes, some linens, dishes, and a variety of other knick-knacks. Kai's stereo equipment was getting delivered later, as well as the desk that would be placed in the guest bedroom - serving as his "office space."
After finally getting a sizable amount of savings put away, Kai moved out of Portland to help his father with the restaurant expansion in Mystic Falls. Portland was bigger and, in a sense, their "main headquarters". But he'd had the long talk with his old man and knew where he was getting at. Plus, he figured that it was time to be around the rest of his family.
His dad offered to let Kai stay at the "family home" they had in Mystic Falls. He knew his dad didn't mind him staying there, but living the life of a bachelor was difficult when still under the roof of family. Any family.
Besides, he knew it was time for him to get out on his own and to do his own thing and live his life like how he needed. Kai hadn't felt like his home in Portland was really home anymore now that the majority of his family was living all the way out on the East Coast now. His siblings had bugged him continuously that he didn't need to stay there in Portland - that he could just "start over" in Mystic Falls.
After much nagging, Kai finally relented. There was just no sense in mucking around at home.
"I'll start with these, then," Jo announced, to which Kai nodded, pulling out his phone.
"Cool. Well, I'm gonna order some pizzas then. Anything in particular you want on it?"
"Meat." She gave him a pointed look. "For every vegetable, fruit, and anchovy, I will kill you. I'll rub the grease on you and set you on fire."
After getting her answer with a roll of his eyes, he dialed the local pizza place and placed the order. As he hung up, Kai poked his head in the kitchen from the living room. "There's a couple of boxes outside I'm gonna get and then I'm returning the truck. I'll be back."
The last few boxes were some records and other little bits that he would fit into a memoir story someday.
"Better be quick. You leave me here to unpack your entire place and I'll make sure every woman you try to sleep with knows that you are a sexist pig."
Kai laughed as the door shut before her warning finished leaving her lips. It had long been discovered that Jo's bark was worse than her bite. Unlike him.
The trip to the local rental place wasn't long at all. It would only take him ten minutes to drive to the place. After the clerk and he exchanged pleasantries and said (jokingly) that he'd invite him over for a real house warming party later, Kai took a cab back to his neighborhood - making sure to appear near the rear section of the complex.
Pausing just outside the entrance, he pulled out a pack of smokes and popped one into his mouth. Just as he was about to light it, he stopped himself. Hell no, he thought, shaking his head as he pushed the front gate to the building open and made his way to his place. I'm not gonna have her chew my head off for not sharing.
Unlocking the door, Kai made his way inside and headed back into the kitchen where Jo had already gotten a good portion of the dishware put away. Immediately, she started on the importance of good dishware, pausing when he held up his pack of smokes, grinning. "Smoke break?"
He knew he didn't have to ask twice. They both hurried out the apartment, locking it quickly behind them. It took them no time at all to find a good place to sit and after handing her the pack and lighter, he lit his and savored a well-deserved drag. God, he needed to quit smoking.
"Even though you didn't have to, thanks again for helping me out with this, Sissy" Kai said, looking at her with a grin as a soft Spring breeze brushed against them. The air was so much different there than back in Portland. "It would've taken me all day to do this by myself."
It was amazing how the two of them could just let things go between them. Despite the circumstances they'd grown up in, Jo was always up for helping when she could - even with her crazy schedule. Her nights off on the weekends were few and far between and when she wasn't working, she was doing the whole "catching up on lost sleep" thing.
Sleep was precious. He didn't want to disturb her if he could help it - she was frightening in the mornings. Or, rather, her hair was pretty terrifying. Like a lion who'd gotten its claw stuck in an electrical outlet.
It had been a while since the two of them could enjoy a companionable silent moment together. Life had been so busy for the both of them after graduation and they were settling into their new careers. Every now and again when she was working, Kai would make a point to tease and fuss over her while at work - much to her annoyance, but she let him get away with it because they were siblings. Twins forever. Nothing would change that.
While it felt like they were estranged after he'd first started attending therapy and getting medicated, Kai knew his sister would never show how much she missed him on the outside. Not readily anyway. Especially not in the presence of their father. Both readily agreed that while they were easy to live with together, being away from home and then worrying their old man even more was the furthest thing from either of their agendas.
Had so much time really passed between them? Had things really gotten so distant so quickly? Even amidst all this comforting peace and tranquility, it could be shaken at any given moment. Snuffed out like nothing. Like their mother. Like their other sibling - ripped away from the world before they even had a chance to experience anything.
"Don't mention it, I know you need me." Kai snorted as he watched her put the cigarette to her lips, shaking his head as the moan of sweet pleasure laced with her trademark "Fuck" left her mouth. Lazily, she let her head rest on his knee. He let her fall easily against it, leaning back against the step as he pressed his elbows along the rough surface.
So many words passed between them. It was amazing. An eavesdropper would swear that the two of them hadn't taken any moments to breathe, puffing away on the cancer sticks like it was routine. But he knew that it was because his sister needed to get it all out - everything that she buried inside of her and Kai only listened because she was his twin. Some people needed to vent - to unload. Kai didn't quite understand these needs on a more than basic level, but he patiently processed her woes.
But in all senses, it really was routine for Jo. He knew this because she had said as much, that this reminded her of when they were still living back in Portland. When their mother was still alive. When their father wasn't working himself into an early grave. The two of them could simply just...be - hanging out and being themselves. The best times when they weren't wrestling each other to the ground were when they could share a casual smoke.
They both really needed to quit. Soon. Jo reminded him that they were killing their lungs and Kai just laughed.
If there wasn't so much shit to unpack, Kai knew that Jo would've immediately told him to get into position, lower his body low enough so she could hop onto his back, piggy backing her all the way down the street as they talked and smoked without a care in the world. It didn't matter where they were, who they were with - this time was their time and she'd sorely missed it. Somewhere he knew he probably had as well.
Jo had done a good job of evading his questions when he fired all of hers back at her. It was okay. She didn't feel like kissing and telling. Her standards were weird. But that was okay because, again, it was Jo. He could really forgive her anything. Well, except smashing his dishes or burning his underwear - the former he could count on not happening. The latter? Well... he'd save that discussion for a rainy day, which were frequent in Virginia over the spring and summer months.
That and, well, betrayal. He would never forgive her for something like that. Jo knew this too. It would be suicide on her part.
Before they'd even realized it, the pizza man had arrived and questioning if they had been the ones to order. Kai almost said something snarky but Jo beat him. "Pay the man, Kai."
Shaking his head as she patted it like he were a "good dog," he stood up and paid the man his money, giving him a tip for being so quick. As she started going back to the door, Kai jangled his keys at her. "Door's locked, genius," he said, to which she snatched the keys from him in that Josette-fashion of hers, making her way inside. He spoke to his new neighbors as they greeted him, asking if he needed any help. "Nah, got plenty of help on the inside. Thanks anyway."
Entering the apartment, Kai sighed when he realized he still had so much stuff to do. Why did unpacking feel like it was a never ending thing? Thankfully, Jo had agreed to take the whole week off to help him with whatever he needed. While he really could have done this all by himself if necessary, Kai liked these moments with her.
Jo kept him grounded in a weird sort of way. That way that could only be attributed to "that twin thing" that people often liked to chalk it up to.
Watching her re-enter the living room with two bottles of beer, he caught the one she tossed at him and popped the cap off easily. "You know, I think the pizza man was digging you." Kai snorted, covering his mouth to stop the beer from spilling out - blue eyes wide and practically smiling all on their own. "Probably could have gotten it for free if you gave it to him for free."
Kai gently smacked her thigh as they both fell onto the couch, shaking his head as he sipped more on his beer and laughed. "Yeah? I think he fancied that ass of yours as you hopped up the steps." He shrugged, leaning back as she opened up the box of pizza. "I paid for the thing, the least you could do was take care of the tip." Waggling his brows, he dodged an oncoming strike - laughing loudly as he tried to bat her away. When had she gotten her hands on the throw pillow?
Jo turned to him, giving Kai an annoyed expression. As if he'd forgotten something important. But that was impossible, he knew that. He could sense an oncoming tantrum brewing from her. "So when are we gonna take that road trip, Kai? We've been talking about it for years and have done dick about it. I'll even drive."
At her expression, he laughed, shaking his head as he held his hand up with the beer, three of his fingers spreading for her to hold on. "Just let me write my will first." He paused, mirth shining in his eyes. "Though if you're driving, you may wanna write yours out too. Your driving fucking sucks ass. We'll die together. Like Thelma and Louise."
They both laughed, sharing in the dark humor that was their lives. They may have been well off. Their family may have been a reputable lot back in Oregon. But it didn't change the fact that their life had sucked donkey dick and was just now getting back on track after being off the rails.
But hey, what can you do?
A/N: This is a joint project that I worked on with the amazing StudioEden (if you haven't read 'The Reset' or 'The Gamble' do yourself a favor, go read it. I'll wait while you do!) I had mentioned that I was interested in doing a few drabbles of OG Bonnie's life prior to her death, and she offered to help with the Kai parts. This is the result of that collaboration. It won't be as long as MFR but it will hit on a few key moments.
All the parts that were written by Eden will be marked at the beginning of the segment. Please, please if you like it enough to leave a review, make sure to let her know how much you love her writing (I cannot gush enough about it).
And go read The Reset and The Gamble!