Learning To Live

Chapter 10: Fun

The next day, I woke up at 6am.  I took a quick shower, then went to pick out my clothes.  I settled on a light pink tank top and white shorts, topping it all off with a flower in my hair.  I was determined to embrace the Hawaiian style if I was going to be forced to live here.  Things had improved significantly since the previous day, and I was actually starting to consider going swimming.  I was just putting my earrings in, when a knock sounded at the door.  I went over to the door, and opened it to see Keiran standing there.

"My mom told me to come get you."  He greeted me with a smile.  I nodded and followed him downstairs.

As we sat there, all together, I started feeling as though I actually had a family.  A very large family, but definitely a good one.  We ate loco moco (rice, beef, eggs, and gravy all piled together) for breakfast, and it was amazing.  They kept telling me it was the ultimate comfort food, but I never understood until I tried it.

After breakfast, most of the boys went to change into swim trunks and ran outside.  Leilani took Ori to a dentist appointment, and Jim was working. 

"You gonna come swimming with us?"  Kai asked, mostly out of routine.

"Yeah."  I said, nonchalantly.  He nodded and started to walk away, but he stopped in his tracks abruptly.

"Wait.  Did you say yes?"  Kai looked at me, confused.  I nodded, chuckling lightly.  He rewarded me with his adorable lopsided grin.

"Can I give you a hug?"  Kai asked, barely able to contain his excitement.

"Sure."  I laughed.  He wrapped his arms around me and squeezed.  My head pressed up against his chest, feeling the slight thumping of his heart; I liked the feeling.  He pulled away, and we both went to go get changed.

* * *

I decided on wearing the bright blue tankini with black polka dots, because it covered the most; even more than the one piece, actually.  I didn't actually look terrible, and it still hid some of the worse scars.  It showed off a few scars on my thighs, but they were lighter and hopefully not noticeable.

I threw my hair up in a ponytail and headed downstairs.  Kai was waiting for me in the kitchen.

"Aw, well look at you."  He teased.  I could feel my face turning red as I tried to avoid eye contact.  He just chuckled a little, and told me to come on.

We headed down the stairs of the deck and to the beach.  The boys tried not to stare, but it was obvious they were.  I tried to ignore them as I followed Kai into the water.  Keoki came over with his surf board, and smiled widely.

"Hey Lia, wanna try to surf?"  He asked hopefully.  I bit my lip, entertaining the thought.

"Why not?"  I giggled.  The boys smiled, and Keoki and Kai proceeded to teach me how to surf.  After many failed attempts, I finally stuck on wave only to wipe out halfway.  It was all so much fun, and I was able to forget about my insecurities and frustrations.  I could see why the boys spent every second they could out here.

* * *

By the time the sun started to set, I was more than ready to go inside and sleep; I was so exhausted!  But it was so worth it to have that much fun, not to mention with people I might call my friends.  We had only had a quick break for lunch, but hadn't gone inside otherwise.

As we all headed inside to change and eat dinner, I heard Kai let out a contented sigh.  I glanced at him, and noticed he had been looking at me.  I blushed a little, turning away.  I followed all the boys upstairs, and went to take a shower.  I got into basketball shorts and a t-shirt before heading down for dinner.  About half the boys were already seated and eating, but the younger ones were taking longer.

I grabbed my food and took a seat in between Keoki and Keon, with Kai right across from me.  I started eating, stealing glances at Kai when he wasn't looking.  He was actually more attractive than I realized, and I found it hard to look away a couple times.  I entertained the thought of having a crush on him, but decided against it.  Even if he was a nice friend, I didn't think I could ever be in a romantic relationship with a man.  I would live in constant fear of being hurt, and it just wouldn't be enjoyable in the least.  So that thought was definitely ruled out.

"You like him, huh?"  Keoki whispered, winking dramatically.  I inhaled sharply at his words, and shook my head rather hard.

"He's a good guy.  Good for you, I think."  He teased.  I blushed profusely, trying to hide the smile that was rapidly spreading across my face.  He winked again, laughing a little, then went back to eating.

As I worked on finishing my meal, all I could think about was what Keoki had said.  I hoped none of the other boys had heard it, especially Kai.  And what if Keoki wasn't the only one who noticed me staring at Kai?  What if Kai had noticed I was staring at him?!  I mentally slapped myself; I overthought everything.

I headed upstairs to go to bed, and tried to forget about dinner.  I was sure Keoki was the only one who noticed, because none of the other boys had really paid attention to either of us.

I laid in bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking about what it would be like to date Kai.  It didn't seem like a terrible situation, but he would never like me; not after how rude I was for the first couple weeks.

Ugh.  I needed to stop being so pessimistic.  I just needed to let time tell.