I CAN'T SAVE US ↠ KAI PARKER

12. it feels right

"... you know I wouldn't risk her life like that" I hear Kai's voice slowly becoming less muffled and more clear as I regained consciousness "Sage, I know I'm desperate but I wouldn't put her through that" I was about to move once I was fully awake but I decided against it, becoming intrigued by what I was hearing "Call you later, just text me when it's done" he added quickly like if he knew I was awake and I opened my eyes slowly a little embarrassed that I had been caught eavesdropping but I was immediately surprised to see I was sitting in the passenger seat of a car but it wasn't the RangeRover, it was a slightly different one.

"How'd you know I was awake?" I asked, feeling my body ache as I moved in the seat.

"Your breathing... it's always very calm when you're sleeping, peaceful... and when you wake up, your heartbeat picks up a little bit and you sigh unconsciously, it's a soft and unnoticeably beautiful sound" he answered and I looked back at him just in time to see the playful but warm smile forming on his lips, fascinated by what he was describing and I felt my cheeks blush. He was still wearing the same clothes as when I last saw him, only he had his jacket on but he was looking rather exhausted, even for a vampire "How do you feel?" he asked concerned, looking back at me for a few seconds.

"My body hurts a little but other than that, I'm feeling pretty good" I answered and he passed me a bottle of water.

"You've been sitting in that same position for almost 20 hours, you also need to hydrate and there's food in the backseat" he said with his eyes now fixed on the road.

"20 hours?!" I asked shocked and he nodded "What happened? Where's Sage? We gotta stop doing this waking up in the car after being knocked out thing"

Kai chuckled lightly and I opened the bottle to take a sip "Bonnie happened and to be fair I didn't knock you out this time, you passed out" he explained and I frowned.

"Bonnie? She called right?" I asked and he hummed.

"Bonnie's a psychic now, as if she wasn't already annoying enough, she's been trying to find us from the moment you left London" he began, tightening his grip on the steering wheel "she can't do it using a locator spell because I made sure to block it, so that only leaves her with her psychic powers which I'm working my way around"

"You said 'she felt it'?" I asked and he nodded in response.

"Here's the thing, her psychic thing doesn't work if you're way out her reach but you and her have a connection because of her spell. If I push too hard, she'll feel it, it's like it lets her know i'm trying to undo it" he explained and I nodded "she might feel your pain or get a few flashes of whatever it's slipping out of the compulsion and I don't really know if she can find us using that but–"

"But you don't want to risk it, that's why we gotta keep moving" I finished and he hummed "what if I tell her to stop? I mean it's my choice"

"They'll think I'm compelling you to say that or forcing you" he said and I sighed a little disappointed "but we don't have to keep moving, we just have to make it to my safe place and we'll be fine"

"I just think it's unfair" I admitted and he frowned confused "I don't know what went down between you and them but you're my friend, I wish they'd understand that, we wouldn't have to go through all of this if they did"

"You know... I thought they did, we gave them a chance and most of them realized they had to understand..." he begins, trailing off a little, like if he was remembering something "but then Bonnie and Damon ruined everything... you trusted them and they couldn't respect your decision for at least a week..."

"Bonnie? I would expect something like that from Damon but Bonnie wouldn't–"

"It was Bonnie's fault more than anyone else's, Madison" he cut me off and he tensed up in his seat "... I even begged her not to do it... she's the real monster here... she screwed me over twice... and right before she left me to rot in that place, she said 'She's alive, happy, and moving on without you'..."