This is continuation of my Damien X MC pre-book series, now caught up to present time and mainly following the canon story line. Some events and dialogue come directly from the book, and some are my own vision to fit the story I wanted to tell. Perfect Match Book Timeline – Chapters 7-8
Kai stepped into the cold night air. She couldn’t hail a cab fast enough. Just when she thought she and Damien were getting somewhere, fate interrupted in the form of Amber. Sure Kai told Damien to stay, but she was hoping he wouldn’t listen. This was kind of petty and immature she knew, but she wanted to push him to fight for her and he didn’t. He never did. He just kept letting her get away.
The cab dropped Kai off, and she ran up the stairs to her apartment as fast as possible. She threw on some pajamas and collapsed into bed, trying and failing not to think about Damien. She should have done things differently. She should have stayed instead of trying to test him. Instead she left him with Amber. Was he going home with her again? Or worse, was she going home with him? Kai begged for sleep to come fast, so she didn’t have to think anymore.
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Damien stood frozen for a moment, unsure of what to do. “Amber, I should really go. Kai and I came together.”
Damien made a motion to leave, but Amber grabbed his arm and pointed to the window. “She’s already getting in a cab. What’s the harm in staying for one drink with me?”
“Look Amber…that night was a one time thing. Like I told you then, I’m not looking for a relationship.”
“And like I told you then, I’m not looking for anything either. What’s the harm in having no strings attached fun?”
“Thanks for the offer, but I’m just not up for it right now.”
“Wow, you are really still hung up on Kai. I’m not exactly sure why, but I won’t push you any more..at least for now. But my offer stands, anytime.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. It’s been a long day, so I really should go. See you around.”
Damien texted Kai on the way out:
Let me know when you get home, so I know you’re safe
He still hadn’t received a reply by the time he got home, but he was so exhausted he fell asleep almost the instant his head hit the pillow.
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Kai had just woken up the next morning when Hayden showed up unannounced. He was honestly a welcome distraction so she didn’t have to think about last night. Hayden was a little out of sorts, forgetting that he had just just handed Kai a cup of coffee and trying to bring her another, but he brushed this off as being stressed about the Steve situation. He asked Kai if she wanted to come over that evening at Sloane’s request to all hang out together. Damien made his choice last night, maybe it was time for Kai to make hers and fully commit to Hayden.
But things had gone very wrong at Hayden’s place. Soon after Kai arrived, Hayden collapsed and was in and out of consciousness. Kai tried to see him in the hospital that night but was denied because she wasn’t family, so she went back home to bed. Sloane tried to take Kai to the planetarium but Kai wasn’t up for it. It was kind of weird that Sloane was, when Kai really thought about it, but maybe that was just part of her social and emotional awkwardness.
The next morning, Kai brought Nadia with her to the hospital. She saw someone unexpected at the receptionist desk: Damien. ‘Ugh, what is he doing here?“ Kai thought. She hadn’t spoken with him since the night at the bar. Nadia must have filled him in.
“That bracelet is great, where’d you get it?” What was he doing? Was he flirting with the receptionist?
She was clearly into him, smiling bashfully and batting her eyelashes. “Oh, on vacation in San Juan.”
“No kidding! The sea glass design is impeccable. My aunt actually owns a jewelry store there. I can refer you to her. I’m sure she’d find something special for you…”
Not wanting to see any more of this display, Kai interrupted by catching Damien’s attention and signaling him over.
“Perfect Timing! I’m trying to see Hayden but this receptionist is a tough one to crack. She’s not letting anyone through…For now,” Damien said with a sly smile.
It finally dawned on Kai what Damien was doing. He was trying to charm his way into seeing Hayden. Kai’s jealousy was getting a little out of hand, and something had to give.
“All this for me? I didn’t know you cared so much.” Kai was using his sarcasm against him. She had such mixed feelings. It felt good that he was there for her, but she was still upset about the other night.
“Yeah, yeah…your best interests happen to align with mine, so consider this your lucky day,” Damien countered. He hid behind his defenses like usual, but Kai knew that he cared, and she desperately wanted him to admit it. But for now that would have to wait because they really needed to focus on finding Hayden.
They came up with a plan for Kai to distract the receptionist with flattery while Damien stole her access badge, and somehow it worked. But when they got to Hayden’s room he was gone. They were met by the receptionist and security who told them Hayden had been moved to another unit. First Steve disappearing and coming back with a new identity and now Hayden being kept out of sight had Kai, Nadia, and Damien all agreeing that something was very wrong and Eros was to blame.
“I’m going to go home and work on my evidence board,” Nadia said, and she descended down the subway stairs, leaving Kai and Damien on the street.
“What do you think we should do?” Kai was at a loss.
“Well, I’ll look into what leads we have, and we can meet up tomorrow. There are a lot of loose ends to tie up. In the meantime though, there’s no use worrying yourself sick. We’ll figure it out.” Damien paused, seeming to notice the dejected look on Kai’s face. “Hey, I’ve got an idea to take your mind off things. How about I take you to my classic stakeout spot. I can give you some tried and true detective tips. Might come in handy…Unless you are still mad at me.”
“I’m not mad at you. What or whom you do is none of my business.”
“Come on Kai, you hadn’t talked to me since you left the bar the other night. Plus, the way you just said that proves that it bothered you.”
“I’m sorry, I overreacted. I’m with Hayden and I really shouldn’t be trying to dictate your love life. I would love to go with you.”
“Great. And for the record, I left about 2 minutes after you…Alone. Now let’s go.”
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Damien brought brought Kai up to his favortie rooftop spot in the center of the city. Kai seemed genuinely interested in his stories, and it looked like the weight of the last couple days events had lifted, if only temporarily.
“Sometimes I get unexpected clients. You see that building over there?” Damien pointed. “An engaged foreign royal stayed in that hotel over there. He was sneaking out on dates with a ‘commoner’ and someone he knew suspected it. I was asked to keep an eye on him. The case ended up taken an unexpected turn.”
“Ooh this sounds exciting! Go on,” Kai urged.
“While I did see the commoner sneak out with him a couple times. It seemed mostly platonic, at least on her end. You could tell she cared about him, but he was crazy about her. I started keeping tabs on her as well and figured out why she was keeping him at bay. She was sneaking around with another man, who upon further research, turned out to be the royal man’s best friend. He was also a commoner. I spotted them making out along the boardwalk, and even on top of a ferris wheel at Coney Island that the royal man was also riding. Poor guy had no clue this was all going on under his nose.”
“This keeps getting better! So what happened?”
“The royal man proposed to her and she turned him down. I heard the two commoners are now getting married, but that she is no longer a commoner. Even after she stabbed him in the back, the royal made her a duchess and she moved to his country permanently. It makes no sense to me why she would turn down a King, who was a great guy and could give her everything, just to be with his average best friend.”
“I totally get it. You meet this amazing guy. He’s a perfect match for you on paper and can give everything you ever wanted and more. There is no reason not to fall madly in love with him. But your heart doesn’t care what your head says. Your heart craves someone who challenges you…someone whose personality differences ground you, give you balance, and make you feel complete. And when you meet that person, none of that other stuff matters…” A longing look crossed Kai’s face.
It suddenly hit Damien that Kai was no longer talking about the royal couple, and he was still not ready for this conversation. “Yeah…uh….C’mon, I want to show you something.”
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Damien took Kai down to the street to test her profiling skills. She was nowhere near as good at it as Damien was, but it was fun nonetheless. However, she wasn’t going to let Damien off the hook so easy. There was still a conversation to be had.
They arrived back on the rooftop and Damien’s demeanor shifted. “All this reminds me of a client I once had. He thought his wife was cheating. He did something rash, blew my cover, and messed up the investigation. Things would’ve turned out okay of he hadn’t let his emotions get the better of him.”
“So…what are you trying to tell me?” Kai wasn’t sure if this had something to do with Hayden, Damien, or both.
“I guess…I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’ve seen love at every stage. In all of its…ugly glory, and it’s hopeful wide-eyed naivete…We’ll figure out what’s going on with Hayden Kai, I promise. But though all of the ups and downs, there has to be one constant. We can’t let emotions get the better of us. We have to play it smart.”
“Damien, emotions can be a good thing. Being worried and scared comes with the territory. It means you care about someone.” Kai still wasnt sure if Damien was talking about her feelings for Hayden, or Kai and Damien’s feelings for eachother, but Kai was defintely trying to send a message to Damien.
“Anyway, we won’t give up our investigation, but there is no use in despairing either. I got your back, Kai.”
Kai stepped forward to hug Damien. “Thanks for taking me up here Damien.”
Damien held Kai close for a moment longer. A moment longer than a hug between “just friends” should last. He pulled away with a bashful grin on his face. Now was Kai’s chance.
“Damien…I need to know-”
“Kai…,” Damien cut her off. “I think I know where this is going, and we just can’t right now. These past couple days have been hard, and your emotions have got to be all over the place. Once we put it all out there, we can’t take it back. We need to figure out what is going on with Hayden first. I don’t want to hear what you have to say until your head is clear, and I’m sure that nothing will change your mind. Just know that that no matter what, I’ll be here for you.”
“Thank you, Damien” was all Kai could think to say. As much as it pained her, Damien was probably right. It wasn’t really fair to Damien or Hayden to do this while Hayden’s status was unknown. Kai would just have to take satisfaction in knowing that Damien would be willing to talk when the time was right.
“Let me take you home. I want to make sure you get there safe.”
Kai smiled. “I’d like that.”
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Damien walked Kai up to her door. “Goodnight, Kai. It was nice spending time with you.”
“I don’t really feel like being alone tonight. Would you stay here with me?”
Kai looked so sad and vulnerable. It would be cruel to say no. “I guess I can sleep on your couch. It’s pretty comfortable.”
“No, I mean in my bed, with me.”
“Kai, I don’t think that’s the best idea…”
“Don’t worry Damien. I won’t throw myself at you this time. And I’ll even wear pajamas.”
Damien felt his cheeks grow hot and redden. They had never brought that night up again, and Kai hadn’t admitted at the time that she remembered that part of it.
“Come on Damien. Let’s get some sleep.”
They got ready and climbed into Kai’s bed together. Kai snuggled up to Damien, placed her head on his chest, and was out within minutes. There was no better feeling for Damien than falling asleep with Kai in his arms.