Your POV

It had been a week—maybe more—since I met the ninjas, and I found myself hanging out at their place pretty often.

I had helped Jay out once when he took Nya on a date. I pulled pranks with Lloyd—mostly at Kai's expense. Zane taught me how to bake a cake, and afterward, I helped Cole eat it.

And Kai? Well, Kai kept trying to flirt with me, and every time, I shot him down. It was clearly starting to get on his nerves.

Well, you know what, Hot Head? You're getting on my nerves, too.

Anyway, today was no different. I arrived at the familiar place, knocked once, then let myself in.

"Hey, it's me!" I called out as I stepped inside.

"Not you again! Please leave our lives and never come back!" complained a porcupine-haired guy from the couch.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. Where's Nya?"

"In her room," he muttered, waving me off.

Shaking my head, I made my way down the hall and pushed open her door.

And instantly regretted it.

Nya, in just her bra, was beneath Jay, who was shirtless, as they made out. And judging by the way things were escalating, they were about to go way further—until I interrupted.

"Sorry!" I blurted out as they jumped apart, scrambling to cover up. I slammed the door shut and spun around, hurrying back down the hall—only to crash into something hard.

I stumbled slightly, looking up—only to realize I had run straight into a very solid chest.

Damn. Since when was his chest that hard?

Kai crossed his arms, looking down at me with suspicion. "What were you doing?"

I hesitated. Should I tell him?

"Nothing," I said quickly.

His eyes narrowed. "Then why didn't you stay in the room?"

"Because—"

"Because what?" he pressed, smirking slightly.

I huffed. "Wow, since when are you so interested in my life?"

His smirk widened. "I'll always be interested in you."

And of course, he had to wink.

I rolled my eyes again just as Nya's door creaked open behind us. She and Jay stepped out, looking guilty as hell. Kai's gaze flicked between them, his expression quickly shifting to suspicion.

"Uh... hey, (Y/N)!" Nya greeted awkwardly, avoiding my eyes.

"Hey," I replied, watching as Jay looked away, rubbing the back of his neck.

Kai raised an eyebrow. "What were you two doing?"

"He was helping me clean my room a bit," Nya said way too quickly.

Kai stared for a moment but seemed to let it go. "Okay... well, Zane sent me to tell you that dinner's ready."

With that, he turned around and started walking toward the kitchen. Nya let out a breath of relief before grabbing my arm.

"You won't tell him, right? Because if he knew, he'd probably kill us and—"

I cut her off with a small smirk. "No, I won't."

Her shoulders relaxed. "Thanks! And... sorry you had to see that."

We exchanged a laugh before heading to the table.

As usual, Nya sat beside Jay, and I took my usual seat—right next to Kai.

The last available spot.

I sighed but didn't complain. Kai, on the other hand, glanced at me and—surprisingly—smiled.

But this time, it wasn't his usual cocky grin.

It was a real smile. A happy one.

And for some reason... it made me feel comfortable.

I wasn't sure what was going on, but before I knew it, I was smiling back.