Page 31 of Forgotten Prejudice

“Surfing accident.” I flashed her a big, fake smile that she seemed to buy.

“That sucks.”

“Yeah.”

An awkward silence fell between us until she nudged my shoulder with hers. “I’m sorry things between you two aren’t the best. But I’m sure you’ll work it out eventually.”

If only she knew…

“You know how much he cares for you, Chief.”

Apparently, not as much as you’d think.

Zoe had no clue what she was talking about. I never liked her too much, simply because I always saw her as competition. And despite my dislike for her, she wasn’t some evil bitch, just a girl who loved the same guy I did. Now, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her because she was absolutely clueless. Kai didn’t suddenly change his mind about her or that baby she was carrying inside of her. He was simply a coward. A coward who couldn’t accept his true feelings and instead chose to get shit-faced and beat me up. He was nothing like Soren, who was confident with himself and, above all, honest.

The pettiness I felt thus far was suddenly replaced with a sense of pride because why should I stay hung up on a guy who clearly wasn’t worth it? It was also the first time I was able to admit that to myself.

“I’m seeing someone,” I said, then turned to look at Zoe. “And I like him very much.”

Since Zoe already knew I held feelings for Kai, it wasn’t as if I just came out to her, but it was still not easy to say it out loud. But once Soren’s face crossed my mind, all shame that my sexuality might be wrong washed away.

“That’s amazing, Chief.” She pressed her palms together. “Who is he? Does he go to school with us?”

I shook my head. “No, he’s… he’s a bit older.”

Zoe narrowed her eyes at me while nudging my side with her elbow. “Aren’t you naughty?”

I chuckled, rubbing the back of my neck. “Yeah, sure.” My cheeks heated up, and she quickly caught up on it.

“Look at you blushing!” She giggled. “Our sweet little Chief is fucking a hot older guy?” She leaned closer, and I pushed her away.

“No one’s fucking anyone.”

“What do you mean?”

Zoe wasn’t my first pick to have this conversation with, but currently, she was my only option. Since I had no plans to ever share my sex life with Mom or Aiden, and Kai was out of the picture, talking to her wouldn’t be that bad.

“We haven’t had sex yet.”

“Because you don’t want to?” she asked, one brow raised.

“Don’t want to?” I snorted. “I’m about to explode with how much I want to, but Soren’s taking his time. He says we better wait.”

She huffed. “Well, is waiting so bad? Look at me, seventeen and preggo.”

I had no idea if Zoe was actually okay with the whole thing or if she was just faking it, but she sure knew how to make fun of herself.

“Zoe.”

“Nah, don’t give me that look.” She pointed her finger at the pity on my face. “I know it’s crazy, but I’m not seeing this as the end of the world. Sure, this isn’t an ideal situation, but I’m sure Kai and I could make it work.”

Not knowing how to respond, because I highly doubted Kai shared her positivity, I smiled. But then again, perhaps after telling me how I’d managed to ruin his life, Kai had come around and realized Zoe was the one. At this point, Kai was acting so out of character that who knew? I certainly didn’t.

Pulling out my phone, I noticed the time. “I need to go, Zo. I’ve got work.”

“Cool, let me walk with you back to your car.”

On our way to the parking lot, I told her a bit more about Soren. What he studied and where he lived; I even mentioned his photo wall and felt bad right after because maybe it was a secret?