Often she just wrote about stuff where she thought she had an interesting story to write about. “I need a good darker themed plot to work with. I’m not the best at just coming up with something,” she told him. “Yeah. It’ll take some getting used to. Hopefully, it will work out, if i do convince my parents. They’ll just have to get along. I don’t know what I would do if they didn’t.” It was a relief to be walking along a road, that she was familiar with. It felt odd being totally lost. She turned to watch him, and she chuckled as his eyes lit up.

He was even more happy to see one of her cats than she had been to see his dog. She observed him interacting with her cat, and was slightly amused. Altogether it appeared a little odd and awkward. After a moment she felt the need to move on and finish their mission. She started off toward her house again and looked behind her to see if he was coming. It was okay if he decided to stay around her cat a while longer or even decided to bring him with them. She wanted her mother to know that she was fine, but she was glad to see that Eric was follwing.

His gaze flicked about, and she wondered if it was a sign of nerves. After she entered and heard her mother’s voice, she beckoned with her hand for Eric to enter the house. She hoped her dad wasn’t home. While she understood that her father would want to give her boyfriend or any potential boyfriends “the speech,” she didn’t want him to do that to every guy friend that she had. She believed she should be able to have normal friends without all of the formalities that a boyfriend would elicit.

She wanted her friends to feel at home, and to not be weirded out and chased away. It was always awkward, when she wasn't comfortable at someone else's house, so she wanted her friends to feel at home here. Her parents weren't overly protective, and they normally said yes to her suggestions when it came to her social life. This place wasn't over the top fancy, but it was in a nicer neighborhood, so she hoped that her friends felt safe. She had only become friends with Eric this day, and she didn’t want her dad making things awkward, when she wouldn’t be considering that possibility for quite a while.

Because she knew he had a crush on her, she would keep alert, and think about that possibility for the future. He hadn't ever brought it up with her, so she didn't say anything to him. She was glad when her mother meeting Eric went smoothly.

"Hello Eric," Lisa smiled and greeted him. She got up and headed toward him accepting his handshake, "My name is Lisa Adair. Welcome to our home. Make yourself comfortable. Would you like something to drink? Eat?" she asked.

From her first glance at him, he appeared to be nice and polite enough. He wasn’t giving her bad vibes, so she was wiling to give him a chance. She was a little surprised to see scabs on his hands, but she trusted her daughter. Kai wouldn’t bring a ruffian home even if she did decide to befriend one. Lisa wasn't too surprised, when Kai managed to pull her mother to the side. They often had to work together to keep Kai's father from being over the top.

“Please keep dad from acting weird around Eric. He’s a new friend, and I want him to get to know us before he decides to be scared away,” she told her mother without letting Eric hear.

Her mother gave a nod. Both mother and daughter were smiling trying to put him at ease. Gradually, their smiles lessened, because it was hard to hold up that facial expression.

“What do you plan on doing?” her mother asked.

“I’m not sure. We might eat something, go check out the cats, or do something else,” she shrugged.

She hadn’t really made plans, and she wasn’t sure how long Eric could stay.

“How long can you stay? Would you like something to eat or drink?” she asked Eric. “I’d at least like to give you some refreshments and show off my babies,” she grinned. “I want you to meet all of my fluffy kitties,” she continued to smile.

She was surprised to hear a thank you from him in her head. She dipped her head acknowledging it, but not sure whether he would notice it. Her mother seemed surprised to hear that all Kai had planned to do was show off her cats. She doubted that would take too long.

It amused her what her daughter suggested next.

"Ready to take up that Just Dance challenge," she snuck a side ways look. "We can do it in the game room," she told him.

Nobody went in there unless they were checking on Kai.

"We can bring some food and drinks in there. You'll get hot from doing it. Besides, you'll want some practice, if you hope to beat me," she teased him. Her eyes brightened, "Ms. Regina!"

She scrambled after a black cat that was prancing through the kitchen. She grabbed her and picked her up.

"This is Ms. Regina. She is the overlord of the other cats," she informed him.

She pet her a few times, and let Eric pet her too. She began walking toward the game room, because her mother didn't like keeping the cats in the kitchen for too long.

"I wonder where Polly the gray tabby is," she murmured to herself looking around.

Polly was a fat gray tabby, and she liked to take over Kai's bed. One of her parent's rules were no taking boys up to her room, so she would have to leave Eric alone, if she wanted to go check.

"The only one you haven't met is Polly," she told him. "She's the fattest, and the fluffiest of them. She just likes to laze around."

Eric nodded as she explained the fanfiction. He hadn't realized she wrote her own. "That makes sense." he said. She said she would need to come up with something for the darker theme. "Write about your wreck." he suggested. "How difficult it is to do certain things, amplify your feelings about it. Write out all your emotions. That's what I do." He couldn't help thinking about his father. Whenever he got a beating, or whenever he and his father had a yelling match, he'd go to his room and write about his emotions.

Eric gave Lisa a nervous smile as she introduced herself to him. "Thank you. No thanks, I don't need anything." He swallowed, still gripping his hoodie tightly. He watched as Kai pulled her mother aside, and the two women exchanged words in hushed voices. He wasn't sure what they were talking about, but he didn't much mind. He stood still but looked calmly around him. Their house was nice and modest, and it gave him a nice welcoming feeling. He turned his attention back to Kailey as she spoke again, asking him how long he could stay and if she could get him anything to eat or drink.

"I have a couple hours to spare." he said. "I don't have to be home until three. I don't need anything, but if you want to get me something I won't argue." He grinned, glancing at Lisa again. Kai said she wanted him to meet all of the cats, and he got excited. He missed her acknowledging nod, but it wasn't a big deal. Kailey suggested Just Dance again, and he couldn't keep himself from smiling.

"Sure." he said, ducking his head just slightly. He felt a bit like a small child, but he knew it was just because he was shy. He grinned at her remark, still a little too nervous to find a comeback. He never thought he'd be so glad to see a cat. Kai's eyes lit up and she exclaimed the black cat's name, scrambling after her and scooping her up off the kitchen floor. She brought her over to Eric, and he pet her gently, his eyes taking in her delicate features. It was so strange to him for some reason. He was so used to dogs and being able to rough and tumble with Gunner, so he felt as if he had to be overly gentle with a cat.

"Ms. Regina," he cooed quietly, giggling as he glanced up at Kailey. "That's cute." He took one last look at Lisa before following Kai towards the game room, nodding a thank you to her for allowing him to stay. "Polly?" he asked as Kai mentioned another cat. "Polly sounds like my spirit animal." He chuckled softly, his nerves dying a bit down now that he was away from her mother's gaze. Not that he was planning on doing anything wrong, just because he had already established a comfort around Kailey, and he hadn't had the time to get to that place with Lisa yet.

He ran his fingers through his hair again, messing it up slightly. It was a habit that he'd picked up on doing a few years ago when he was nervous at all. He had a few things that he did when he was nervous that were tell tale signs, and if Kai and himself became good friends she would learn to pick up on them easily. Some of them included running his fingers through his hair, glancing at the ground repeatedly, stuttering, biting his lip, and scratching at his arm just to name a few. He didn't consider himself to be jumpy exactly, but he had to admit that he was a nervous person, especially when it came to public speaking or meeting new people.

He did have anxiety and often delt with their attacks, but now was not going to be one of those times. He was happy to be here, and he was happy to spend time with Kailey. Even if she wanted him to do something that he wasn't fully comfortable with doing. But he figured Just Dance may give him a chance to be himself, and show a side to her that he often didn't get to show to others. She was a person who he felt like he could talk to pretty easily, and doing this kind of thing will put him to the test. Was she someone who he would feel comfortable goofing off in front of? Someone he could laugh with? Joke with?

This would be a true test of his confidence in himself and in her, and he was slightly afraid of doing something wrong and making her think he was too weird or strange to be one of her friends. He didn't think that could happen, but his anxiety sometimes wouldn't let up. He rolled his shoulders a couple times, releasing some built up tension, and the small silver chain necklace around his neck shifted, allowing it to be seen.

The entire morning it had been hidden underneath his hoodie and shirt, but a movement like the one he just did caused it to shift and be visible. The necklace was a gift from his mother, and he wore it almost all the time in her rememberance. He also had another hidden gem that only the guys on the basketball team and the guys in his weight lifting class had seen.

Over the years of high school, he'd done jobs for people and chores, and saved up money. On his seventeenth birthday he'd gone and spent that money on a tattoo, his entire back covered in the artistry. It was a scene of a mother wolf's head touching noses with her pup in front of a full moon, black and red roses bordering it in a heart shape. His father had given written permission for him to get it, and had to be present at the parlor in order for him to legally get it done, but David had surprisingly agreed and done both.

Sometimes he could be a good father, and there were times where Eric could appreciate what he'd done for him, and he did have certain fun memories with his father.

He was glad that she was willing to try his idea, and that maybe she would get to explore a different kind of writing than her usual.

She asked him if he would be walking home or if he needed a ride, and he thought for a minute. "I could probably walk." he said. "Dad won't get off work until three, and it takes about half an hour to an hour for him to get home because of traffic. As long as I leave by three or a little after I should be fine." he said.

He waited patiently while she looked for Polly, and eventually she said that he may not get to see her. He felt a strange feeling of happiness spread through his chest as she subtly invited him over again, saying that he could come back to see the cat. She said she was going to the kitchen to get some water, and she asked if he wanted ice or not. "With ice, please." he said.

She pointed out that she didn't think he was as lazy as Polly, and he grinned. "I was kidding," he said. "I know I'm not lazy, but sometimes I feel like I am. Sometimes I wish I could just sit around and sleep all day." he chuckled. "But my brain would never allow that." Kailey noticed the necklace around his neck, and he was confused for a moment before realizing that it had shifted and was now visible to her.

He glanced down at his chest and reached up, adjusting it gingerly so the delicate chain wouldn't snap. "It's a gift from my mother." he said. "She gave it to me when she was in the hospital, so I wear it all the time in her memory." he said quietly. "Keeps her close to me." She showed him the game room and claimed she was going to go get the drinks and snacks. He nodded and walked in, setting his hoodie gently down over the arm of the sofa and sat down, not wanting to mess with anything without her in the room.

He stood up as she came into the room, walking over and ready to help her as it looked like her armful of stuff was about to fall out. He briefly wondered if he should have just gone with her to help carry instead of coming in here. But he brushed it aside, she didn't seem offended or hurt that he hadn't. In fact, she made a goofy remark and he chuckled, grabbing the glass of water and taking a sip.

"Thank you." he said in response, still chuckling softly. "This is all I need. She asked if he'd seen the remote and he quietly shook his head. "No, sorry." he said. She looked around, and he helped, looking under the couch and behind the cushions. Finally, she found it, and put in the game. She gave him one of the wii remotes, and he gave her a shy smile as she said that he wouldn't be able to make himself comfortable anymore.

"Oh I know," he said, smiling slightly, taking the remote gently from her hand. He wasn't prepared for this, and he wasn't prepared to embarass himself. But if she wanted him to do it he would. She asked him if he knew how to play, and if he cared what song they danced to. "I've never actually done this before," he admitted. "But I know how it's played, I've watched enough people at parties and stuff. And no, I don't care what song. As long as it's nothing too crazy hard right off the bat." he laughed. "Or if you want me to make a fool out of myself like I'm going to anyway, pick the craziest one. Either way I'll fail." He was teasing, he knew Just Dance wasn't that hard of a game and it was purely for fun. But part of him was being serious. He was nervous for no apparant reason. He'd never put himself out there and done anything like this in front of anyone or with anyone before. He'd always been the one in the corner silently watching sipping punch with no one else to talk to. The one who always left the party early, the one who never had anybody over for sleepovers, the one who never made an effort to talk to anybody.

He was momentarily distracted as Kailey spotted Polly laying on the couch, and Eric had to do a double take. He hadn't even noticed the cat when he'd been sitting there just moments ago. Had she been there the entire time? Or had she come in just recently when he wasn't looking? He followed her over to the tabby, and pet the cat smoothly.

"That's so cute." he said in response to Kai's nickname for her cat. She asked him if he'd seen all the different methods for winning the game, and he laughed. "Oh yeah," he said. "I've been to enough basketball team parties to have seen it all." He smiled, remembering watching some of the seniors and juniors from last year breaking into a ridiculous argument over who won fairly, that ended up resulting in a pile of guys on the floor in a huge heap of sweat, body odor, legs and arms, and laughter.

There were only a few guys who hadn't joined in on the scuffle and play, and one of those guys had been Eric, who had been a sophomore at the time. "There were a lot of debates as to whether it was fair or not to win by just shaking the remote, and it usually ended in a good natured fight with a bunch of guys on top of each other rolling around on the floor." He continued to giggle, remembering the events. He'd never joined in, and as a freshman and sophomore, it had been quite terrifying. But this year's basketball season had been a good one, and while he still hadn't joined in on the stupid and childish games and arguments, it had been very entertaining and fun to watch unfold.

He was social enough with some of the guys to be involved in arm wrestles and card games, bets, dares, and he even managed to get a few noogies from the seniors, but he still wasn't too socially adapt to concern himself with the absolute craziness, nor was he comfortable being body to body with another male.

Eric smiled at her hospitality, ducking his head slightly at her as she offered again to give him a ride home if he stayed a little too late. "Thank you." he said. Although he didn't want to trouble her or her family with it, he still couldn't help but admire her for offering again instead of just dropping the matter. It showed him that she at least cared a little for him and his well being. She spoke how she felt the need to stay in bed, but always felt the need to do something.

"Yeah that's what I mean," he agreed. "My brain just doesn't let me stay in bed, it always tells me to get up and run or do something productive." He shrugged in agreement to her animal statement. Whether it was true or not, it made sense and he agreed.

He smiled shyly at her as she mentioned his necklace, saying that it was sweet and she was glad he had it. "Yeah, I wear it all the time. I keep it in a safe spot at night or when I shower so I don't lose it or misplace it. It's too important." He remembered the moment when she gave it to him, how he felt in that moment at the hospital as she said her goodbyes. Besides the necklace, he didn't wear jewelry often, but it was something that he didn't mind. He had a few rings at home that he would wear, but only sometimes, and very few and far between.

He smiled at her as she said she forgot that she had a broken arm, and that next time she would ask for help. It was such a strange feeling. She continued mentioning for him to come back, and that was something he wasn't used to at all. Had he really found a friend in her so quickly? Did she actually want him back? "Please do." he said in response. "I would be glad to help instead of sitting here and watching you struggle." he chuckled.

He had a unique way of speaking compared to a lot of the other guys in school. Not that he had an accent or anything, but he always spoke gently, as if he was constantly afraid of his voice rising to a too loud of volume, or that he would sound too mean or something. He spoke carefully, each word leaving his lips with a softness that was unusual but oddly comforting.

He made a face of uncertainty and amusement as she said the song would be Walk like an Egyptian. He knew the song, and he knew the dance. It was one that did look quite goofy. He chuckled as she made the chicken comment. "Yeah I can see that." He wasn't too sure about this, and was regretting his decision to do it. But he wasn't going to back out on her. He shrugged as she wondered aloud how long Polly had been laying there.

"I mean I was sitting on the couch waiting for you and I didn't see her." he said. "So either I'm blind or she's just really good at blending in." He nodded as she said only a certain few people had the knack for the wrist method, and that the people who did have it usually always won. "Well I've never physically done this, so I'm prepared to fail but..." he trailed off, shrugging and giggling shyly.

The music started and for a second he just stood there grinning as he watched her. He did dance though, doing better than he had expected, but he did have to stop a couple times inbetween and just laugh at himself, picturing how dumb he must look. It was fun, more fun than he had in a long time, but he still wasn't extremely comfortable.

By the time it was done, he was laughing more than he probably should have been, but it felt good. He'd had so much tension built up inside of him that he hadn't even been aware of, and hanging out with Kai and doing this was very relieving. When the dance was done, he flopped down on the floor, he was nowhere near wore out, but he was still laughing and his knees just felt the need to give out.

"It was fun," he answered inbetween giggles. "But it's definitely not my thing." He fell back flat on his back onto the floor, letting out laughs. He didn't really know why he was laughing so much, but he was, and it felt good. He had no reason to be laughing so much, but he was. He knew Kailey was probably thinking him insane, but he didn't care. If she took the time to see into his mind, maybe she would be able to feel the elation he was feeling. There was no reason for it other than the simple fact that he'd never really had a true friend before, and doing this had opened up and unlocked a side to him that he didn't know he had.

His laughter slowly died down, and he reached up to his face, pressing his hands there for a moment and wiping away the tears. He always cried when he laughed, it just happened. He had no control over it whatsoever. "Ahhh," he let out, purposefully raspy. He pushed himself up and giggled again, looking up at her. "I'm so sorry," he apologized, a wide grin still on his face. A few strands of his dark wavy hair had fallen in front of his eyes, but he didn't care.

"I honestly don't know what happened to me." he started giggling again, and really had to try hard to not turn it into another uncontrollable laughing fit. He figured if Just Dance wasn't enough of a distraction from her arm pain, he definitely was. She probably thought he was insane, but at this point he didn't care. He felt too giddy and happy to care at all.

He looked up at her, his giggles finally dying down, and the light from the tv glinted off of his icy blue eyes. In that brief moment, he was so grateful to have discovered her secret. If he hadn't had done that, he would have never even spoken to her, she probably never would have spoken to him at all, they wouldn't know each other, and they certainly wouldn't be here now.

His feelings for her were still the same. He still had a crush on her, just like he always had, but now he had so many reasons. Valid reasons. He knew she would probably see it in his mind, but at this point he didn't even care. He wasn't sure if he wanted her to know or not, but in this moment he was too happy to even care, and even if he never got the courage to tell her, even if she didn't like him like that back, even if nothing like that ever happened between them, he was still happy to have her as a friend. To have her in his life at all.

And if she did see it in his mind, and if he never told her, at least she would know because of that. At least he wasn't totally hiding that from her. He still knew he wanted to tell her, but he wanted to wait. Getting to know her better was more important right now.

"I suppose it being special is one reason that you are so careful with it, but I probably would have lost or broken it by now. I have a terrible track record with jewlery. I either wear them out, or I never wear them," she shrugged. She hoped she wasn't putting too much pressure on him, but she wanted him to know that she planned on him coming back. This wasn’t a one time thing. She knew it would take them a while to become real friends that actually knew each other, but she had found someone who appeared interested in investing into the friendship, and she was willing to invest time into him.

“If I struggle too much, it might become refreshments and a show,” she pointed out. “Why would you want to miss that? The best seat to watch would be to not help me. Well….I suppose I could always help you clean up “the show” later. You might not want to clean up that mess,” she looked up thoughtfully. His voice was unique, and it would take some getting used to. He spoke softly, and it wasn’t something she was used to. Most people talked loudly all trying to be heard at once.

No one ever tried to listen to each other, and they all struggled so that their voice would be heard. He spoke in a soothing peaceful manner. It was like he was trying to calm down the whole world. She was curious if he had developed that tone for his father. Did it work on him? Had he managed to calm his father before? It certainly didn't sound like he was challenging anyone. She hoped she wasn't pushing him too hard. If he didn't do this kind of thing, this was a big step for a first hang out.

“You sure you want to do this? I wouldn’t want to scare you away the first time you came over,” she inquired a little anxiously. She felt that it might be weird or rude to ask that question, but he appeared nervous. She was a little relieved to talk about her cat instead of whether he actually wanted to dance. “I haven't noticed you being blind. She’s one of the stealthier ones. She keeps a low profile. She isn't an attention seeker, and she prefers to relax in peace. I often don’t know where she is,” she told him.

“It doesn’t matter if you fail the game. At the risk of sounding cliche just have fun,” she tried to encourage him with words and a smile. “I would be disappointed if you didn’t look silly, if it’s your first time." She had to stop and think about that statement. "Ohhh. Sorry," a little blush tinged her cheeks, "That isn’t encouraging is it? Sorry. You'll do great. You are atheltic and graceful. You can totally do this” she made a breakneck one eighty. Did friends lie to each other like this to encourage each other?

She had probably messed up right there. She danced with much fervor. This was going to be her work out for the day, and she wanted it to really work it. They both looked pretty silly, but neither were trained dancers. She turned in surprise because he was laughing. He flopped on the floor. Kai hadn’t expected him to be that tired. After all he was an athlete. Perhaps he was just laughing that hard. “Are you okay? Did you not like it?” she asked worried that he was laying on the ground.

Her face was crinkled with concern, when he said it wasn’t his type of thing. She had an awkward tentative smile on her face. She hadn’t seen anything that funny unless their dancing had been that silly. “I don’t know either. I was hoping you would know,” she gave him a more full grin, “Nonono. Don’t apologize. I am glad that you appeared to have fun. You did have fun right? Do you want help up? It’ll only be one hand though.” She was about to say that he looked crazier on the ground laughing than he had dancing, but she didn’t want to make him self-conscious.

She reached over one hand. He would have to help himself up, because she was dubious that she would actually be of any real help. She was suprised to hear him considering his feelings about her. It made her happy that he was glad they were friends or were going to be friends. He wasn't trying to hide his thoughts at all right now, and what eh was thinking about came through. The main thing she got from him was the contentment and happiness. She had had crushes before, but she had never had a serious relationship.

She wasn't sure if she would be ready to cross that bridge, but she was glad that he would be fine with being friends. It gave her more confidence for their relationship that he seemed to have his priorities in the right order. Her head cocked studying him. Why had he been laughing so much? She was a little confused how happy he was to be here. She hadn't ever encountered anything like this before. It was nice to get an overwhelming of emotion that was actually happy.

Eric found it interesting that Kai lost jewelry so often. He wasn't sure why he did, but he did. "Yeah that's the reason." he said. "I bet if someone you loved gave you something like this you wouldn't lose it." he offered. "You may break it, but it's fixable. It's just a chain." He fiddled with it a little more. "I've nearly broken it before, but surprisingly never have."

He giggled at her show comment. "I'd want to miss it because I wouldn't want the show to involve you getting hurt." he said with a grin. She asked him once more if he really wanted to go through with this dancing thing, and he nodded. He wasn't totally confident, but he wanted to please her. It wouldn't be the end of the world. She talked about Polly for a bit, and he nodded, listening quietly.

She gave him some encouraging words...or...tried to, and he simply chuckled. "Don't worry about it." he said, giving her an amused glance as she quickly turned around. She was odd, but in a good way. He liked her a lot.

She asked him if he was okay, and she sounded genuinely worried. However, he was laughing too hard to really answer her other than a quick nod before busting up again. She responded wittily to him, giving him a more full grin, then offered to help him up. She seemed concerned, and she wanted to know if he had fun or not. "Yes I had fun." he said, still giggling. She offered out her hand, and without really thinking he reached up to grab it. It was a natural reaction and a polite one to accept help from someone who offered it, and he hadn't really thought about her broken arm even though she'd just mentioned it.

He was partially off in another world, and he was still overly giddy from laughing so much. He took her hand in his and started to stand, using his weight to push himself up, but he leaned too far to the right, and with her only able to use one arm her balance was tipped as well. There was a horrifying moment as he knew what was going to happen before it happened, and he knew that she was going to fall. In that moment he didn't care about any awkwardness that may follow, all he cared about was keeping her safe and not letting her hit the floor and injure herself further.

She fell forward, and he instinctively reached out with his other arm to brace her and catch her to prevent her from hitting the floor. Her weight, although not much, still was enough to knock him backwards a little. Once he knew she wasn't going to be hurt, one of his arms flew out beside him to stable his weight so he wouldn't hit his head on the ground.

That instant reaction, and that brief moment of absolute fear and adrenaline had been strong, and the only thing that had shot through his mind had been,

I have to break her fall.

But now that thought was gone, and he seemed almost frozen in place, his mind completely blank. He was sitting halfway up, one arm propping him up off the floor, and the other wrapped tightly around her back in a move of safety and protection. But what made him freeze was the fact that she was now practically laying on top of him, and he didn't know what to do or say.

"Sorry," he muttered after a second, looking into her face. Another brief moment passed, and his mind finally started to register again. He cleared his throat and loosened his grip on her so she could get up. He scooted back a bit and then sat upright, pushing himself to his feet and grasping her good arm, pulling her gently to her feet. "I'm so sorry," he apologized again. "I didn't mean for that happen, really, I didn't. I just didn't want you getting hurt again."

Eric simply smiled at her. He figured that she may lose track of jewelry pretty often, and he knew she was telling the truth, but he wanted to test her theory. If they did end up becoming close friends, maybe he would give her some sort of jewelry and see how long she was able to keep it. It would be a fun little test for him, and maybe a learning experience for her.

He shrugged at her comment of saying that she was already injured. "Well I know," he said, grinning. "But that's no reason for you to get even more injured." A pause. "I wouldn't want that."

After their awkward little tumble, he was looking into her face as she apologized and asked if she'd hurt him. "No." he said quietly. "No, you didn't hurt me, it's okay." He swallowed, nervously glancing down. One of her knees was mere centimeters away from a certain place on his body that would have caused him a lot of pain. But thankfully, the scuffle of landing and catching hadn't placed her there. It came close, but it hadn't. And boy howdy was he thankful for that.

After he helped her back to her feet, she thanked him and made a few remarks that she seemed to pass off as a joke by laughing, but he could tell she was nervous and it was a bit awkward for them both.

"It's no problem." he said, running his hands down the front of his legs. "I guess that proves what I said earlier," he chuckled, half kidding and half serious. "About not wanting you to get even more hurt." He let out a nervous laugh. After a short moment of pause, she asked him what he wanted to do now, and if he was being completely honest...he didn't know. He checked his watch, and it wasn't even close to three yet. It had barely been half an hour.

"Um...I don't know." he said, biting his lower lip and shifting on his feet. He could think of several things to do, but he figured a lot of them would be harder for her since she could only use one arm and hand. Then an idea struck him. He wasn't sure if she would want to do this now, but it was the only thing he could think of. If she ended up having other ideas, he would be fine with doing whatever she wanted to do. But as of now, this was the only thing he could think of.

"I could maybe show you some of the art techniques and stuff that we were talking about earlier?" he offered, tilting his head. He reached up, running his fingers through his hair. This time not out of nervousness, but simply just to get it out of his face. He knew things were a bit awkward now, but he wasn't sure why it should be. It had been an accident. Sure, they had been in a pretty unfortunate position, and sure, he had a crush on her. But as far as he knew she didn't like him that way, and it had been a complete accident. In all honesty he would have felt significantly more awkward if it had been a guy, or even another girl.

He was glad it had been Kai, because at least he knew her better by now, and it hadn't been a forced thing. "Do you have any ideas?" he asked. He didn't want to leave so early, and he hoped that they could find something to do. He wouldn't mind just sitting and talking some more, either. She was a good person to talk to, and it was more of his style anyway. Quietly sitting, listening, drawing, reading, writing. He wasn't normally active unless it involved basketball practice or lifting. Which gave him another idea.

"Or we could go shoot around for awhile." He shrugged, just a suggesstion. It would be a bit hard for her using only one hand, but her dominant arm she was still able to use, and that was the main thing you needed for shooting. The other hand just gave support for the ball. They didn't have to do any sort of one on one, or any playing at all. Maybe they could do a simple shooting game like Around the World or Horse or something.

He wasn't sure how she felt about basketball though, and he didn't know if she had a hoop here at her house or if they would have to walk back to the park.