Devil on the Rooftop [Book 1]

Chapter 104 - Khaleel

I was not about to spend the night in the same place as my father. I was too angry with him, too riled up to lock myself in my bedroom and pass out there. I made sure everyone was asleep before sneaking out to Hino's place. His family was always kind to me, especially his older brother, Kohaku. The Matsunaga brothers didn't ask me why I was at their doorstep at one o'clock in the morning, instead, they welcomed me with open arms. I was able to sleep comfortably for the first time that week, even though it was on a floor mattress in the basement, next to Hino and his annoying arm sling.

I felt so refreshed when I opened my eyes. I laid there for a couple of minutes before forcing myself to get up and check the time. It was a little after seven-thirty. I got dressed and headed to the dinning room, where Kohaku was enjoying a bowl of cereal. He told me his brother already left for the academy.

"He said you should meet him at the hospital," Kohaku added.

"Oh yeah—fuck!"

I completely forgot to ask Kumar's associates about Dobberman and Nook. Last I heard, they were at the civic hospital across town. I knew Dobberman would be bedridden for a while, which was fine by me, as long as he never messed with my friends again. Nook, on the other hand, was a different matter entirely. I roughed him up pretty badly and I wasn't sure if he was the type to plot revenge. I made a note to advise Kumar's associates' to follow-up on him.

Half an hour later, a cab dropped me off at the general hospital. I made my way to Zander's private room and found Tomasia speaking to his family about the length of his recovery. A broken jaw was serious. Nook's idiots must have carried some weight behind their punches—I was mad at myself for letting Zander run around in that house without protection. I thought he would be able to handle himself but I underestimated Nook's underlings. By the time Hino and Loyal showed up, I was frantic about the whole situation. Zander was going to need surgery and I couldn't help feeling like it was my fault. I should have moved faster, I should have gone after that dickhead myself—

"Hey," Hino's voice snapped me out of it. My eyes locked with Loyal instead. It was actually a big relief to see him. I was grateful that unlike Hino and Zander, Loyal wasn't sporting an arm sling or lying in a hospital bed. It made me realize how important my friends were to me, and how stupid I had been for challenging one of them over Arisa Hoffman. I knew my feelings for her weren't going anywhere anytime soon but I couldn't control who she fell for, similar to how I couldn't control who my father fell for. The only thing I could manage was my relationship with Loyal, and making sure Zander pulled through.

Before I knew it, my friends were cracking jokes at my expense. I gave them a hard time for it but I was genuinely happy to have them by my side. Tomasia was strict with her rules. Zander's parents finished speaking with the doctors and said he was allowed have visitors before the surgery, but she wouldn't let us near him. Hino got up to talk sense into her and left me alone with Loyal.

"Are we cool?" I asked, keeping my eyes on the floor. "About today and the other stuff?"

"No," Loyal's reply was low. I turned to give him my full attention. "I don't think we will be cool until I apologize for being a shitty friend," he said.

There was a short pause.

"Sorry."

"Sorry for trying to steal your girl."

"She wasn't really mine to begin with," Loyal said. "And after today, she might decide to be nothing more than an acquaintance."

"Why?"

"I told her everything," Loyal sighed. "About Wade Cainan, about our business, and who I use to get the questions to the tests and exams."

I couldn't believe it. "What if she reports you?"

"She won't," Loyal seemed confident. "Arisa is a lot of things but a rat isn't one of them."