Hey all, sorry this post is so late in the day. I've been super busy. Hope you like the treat at the end!

Chapter 5: Happy Birthday

"Are we safe here?" Chloe asked, remembering to pull the cap over her hair.

She and Kai had been traveling for a week, staying in each town never longer than one night, and sometimes doubling back in case they were followed. There had been no more encounters with Jackals and luckily none with Mai either. Chloe was certain they would think she had been kidnapped and kill Kai. She had grown accustomed to her companion over the week and was beginning to feel like they belonged together, but she knew there would never be a world where a Jackal and a Mai could live together in peace.

"Not yet," Kai answered turning his head in either direction to see if the coast was clear. "We have to get into Oregon. There is an Amber Alert out for you. Once we get across state lines, there won't be so many people looking for you. The best thing would be to get to Idaho."

Chloe thought about her mom. She had once asked Meredith what she would do if Chloe just didn't come home one day, and she had seen how much pain Frank was in when his daughter, Vanessa, ran away. Meredith must have been terrified. The only reason Chloe wasn't terrified was because Kai had a firm grip on her hand. That was the only way the traveled now.

"Kai," she started, "I'm so sorry I got you into this mess."

He stopped what he was doing and turned to look at her.

With his arms around her torso, he said, "You have got to stop apologizing. I want to be here Chloe. I want to be with you."

"I just wish I could be with you without having to be on the run all the time."

"I wish you would let me kiss you," he told her. She could see his heart breaking.

Chloe looked down at her shoes and kept walking. They found themselves at another Greyhound station; Chloe's face was taped up next to the ticket agent. Kai didn't want to let her go, but he knew she couldn't stand there with him. He watched her as she stood off in the distance with her head down, so no one could recognize her.

"How much to Boise?" Kai asked the agent.

"Two hundred."

Kai rolled his eyes and pulled out his wallet. He had run out of money days ago, but had been picking pockets since they left Sacramento. He didn't want to hand over four hundred dollars, but he didn't have a choice.

"I'll take two."

Apparently the agent didn't care why a teenager was carrying around four hundred dollars in cash. He gave Kai the tickets.

"Who's that girl you're with?" the agent asked.

"Oh her?" Kai looked over at Chloe, still staring at her feet. "That's my cousin Martha. She's got a red birthmark over her eye, and she doesn't like meeting strangers. She was in town for our second cousin's wedding, but…"

The agent shut him up and asked him to move along.

Ever since Kai and Chloe first realized the entire state of California was looking for her, Kai had started coming up with lies about who he was traveling with. She had become his sick sister, his shy cousin, or his annoying little brother when she was in baggy enough clothes.

The bus didn't leave until the next morning, so Kai sought out a cheap hotel. Chloe had gotten used to the style of living. They slept on busses most of the time, so a dirty hotel room became a real treat. She would have given up and gone home, but she enjoyed every minute she spent with Kai.

"I need a shower," she said as she pulled her hair out of the cap.

"I don't suppose you need company?" he suggested with a mischievous grin.

She threw the cap in his face, and left a pile of dirty clothes outside the bathroom.

Kai had volunteered to take their clothes to a Laundromat down the street. When he returned, Chloe was sitting in bed, wrapped in a towel, and watching TV.

"Bad news," he told her with a bag full of clean laundry in hand, "the dryer actually caught on fire, so you don't have any clothes."

She glared at him until he tossed a pair of panties at her. He didn't exactly mind doing her laundry. As always, she made him face the other direction when she changed; as always, he peaked.

Before she turned back around, he was behind her with his arms around her waist. He kissed her neck.

"Kai," she whined. "Kai, we can't."

He turned her around to face him and bent his head down, so his lips were almost touching hers.

"No, Chloe," he stated. "We can. You won't."

They stood there for a few minutes just staring at each other. Finally Kai broke away in defeat and sat on the bed.

"I saw the date at the Laundromat," he told her. "Do you know what yesterday was?"

She shook her head.

"Yesterday was my birthday. I'm eighteen now."

Chloe's face lit up.

"Happy birthday," she cheered. "Why don't we order Thai food? Do you think they have Thai food in this town?"

"I don't want Thai food Chloe. You know what I want."

He pulled her onto the bed with him and pressed his lips against hers. It was ten seconds of absolute bliss. Chloe pushed him away.

"It's too late now," he smiled. "You might as well kiss me again."

So she did. She leaned into him and kissed him like she had wanted to do ever since they were in Oakland. It wasn't like when she had kissed Alek, or that poor boy Xavier from the club. It wasn't even like kissing Brian. Her heart pounded in her ears. Everything she had ever wanted was happening in that kiss.

Will Kai survive the Chloe kiss of death? Or will he be just another boy that fell victim to her Mai charm? New chapter next week!