Page 32 of Only When It Breaks

He hesitates, rubbing the back of his neck. “You just seemoff. And going to this party in this mood-”

“Oh, please,” I cut in, stepping past him toward the street. “I’m not in amood. I’m just done pretending everything’s fine. And if I wanna get drunk and stupid tonight, that’smychoice.”

I can already feel the storm brewing inside me.

And tonight, I’m not stopping it.

Kai

I get us a lift, texting Austin even though I know it’s a gamble; he’s not exactly Emmie’s biggest fan. When his beat-up car pulls up beside the curb, I half expect her to roll her eyes or start muttering under her breath. But she doesn’t. She just gets in without a word, clips her seatbelt with a snap, and turns her head to glare out the window like she’s on a mission. She’s like a human pressure cooker, and one wrong word, and she’ll blow.

I climb into the front passenger seat, and Austin grins, fist-bumping me. “Thought you bailed on us.”

“Changed my mind,” I mutter, settling into the seat.

He glances in the rearview, smirking. “And you’re babysitting too?”

“Don’t you ever just stop?” Emmie snaps before I can even think of a response. Her voice is sharp,brittle.“Grow the fuck up, Austin, or one day you’ll find yourself alone and depressed with only a cat for company.”

Austin chokes on a laugh. “Jesus.”

“I’m serious,” she continues, tone flat. “You think everything’s a joke. One day you’ll wake up and realise you wasted your whole life being an idiot no one actually liked.”

Austin lifts a hand in mock surrender. “Alright. Message received.”

The silence after that is loud, and he doesn’t say another word for the next five minutes.

I glance back at her. She’s hunched slightly, arms crossed tight, eyes locked on the glass like if she stares hard enough, she’ll disappear into it. I get it. I do. I wouldn’t want my mum with a guy like my dad either, not like this. Not this broken, regretful version of him. But since Mum, he’s forgotten how to smile. Part of me was hoping Maxine would be the reason for him to change.

We arrive at Luna’s minutes later. The music hits like a slap to the face the second we walk through the door, with the bass vibrating through the floor and the loud conversations of drunk teenagers ringing out.

Emmie doesn’t hesitate.

She shrugs off her coat, tosses it somewhere random, and heads straight for the drinks table like a missile locked on target. I try to keep pace, but she’s already downing something out of a plastic cup by the time I catch up.

“Slow down,” I say, reaching for the cup she’s refilling. “At least figure out what’s in it first.”

She yanks it back. “Why do you care?”

“I just-”

“No, seriously,” she cuts in, glaring at me over the rim. “Back the hell off.”

I open my mouth to answer, but someone bumps into me, and by the time I recover, she’s gone, disappearing into the crowd like a ghost.

I spot her again twenty minutes later in the living room. She’s on someone’s shoulders, laughing too loud, drink sloshing out of her cup as she yells along to a song she probably doesn’t even know. Someone hands her another shot. She takes it without hesitation.

“Jesus,” I mutter, pushing through the crowd.

By the time I reach her, she’s back on the ground, staggering a little, breathless with laughter. Her eyes are glassy, her cheeks flushed, but there’s no real joy in her face. Just recklessness.

“You need water,” I say.

She gives me a mock pout. “Aww, is little Kai worried about me now?”

“I’m serious.”

“So am I,” she says, stepping closer. “You don’t get to vanish and then show up acting like you care. Go back to your friends, or Bella, or whoever you’re pretending to like this week.”

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