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Khalil 'Kai' Sharif was a Year 12 student at Waterloo Road High School. He is known for his flamboyant fashion, extroverted personality and is an old friend of Danny Lewis. He was also close friends with Samia Choudhry and the boyfriend of Preston Walters.

Personality[]

Kai is an outgoing, confident and iconic character. He is often the light of the scenes he is involved in in Series 11, however his character becomes more fleshed out and is given a much bigger role in Series 12. Where sometimes it seems he sticks his nose where it doesn't belong, he only does it because he cares. He's supportive of his friends and is always ready to help when he can.

Relationships[]

Danny Lewis[]

In Series 11 Episode 1, Kai reveals that he used to be best friends with Danny, and once invited him to his 12th birthday party of karaoke all day. They're quick to return to being friends again as Kai chooses to sit with Danny on his first day back instead of sitting with Kelly Jo. Kai feels offended that his parents don't accept his pride in his gay identity, mentioning that his dad can't even say the word gay, and pretends to Danny that they kicked him out so he can stay with him in Danny's hostel. When the truth comes out from Kai's sister Salma, Danny gets upset that Kai pretended their situations with their parents were somehow similar. They eventually make up and are shown to be friends again. During a party at Kai's house he discovers that Danny has a knife, and he takes it from him but later, upon request, returns it to him. This is the knife Danny uses to stab Vinny.

Kai is devastated after Danny's death at the end of Series 12, and in Series 13 he organises the retirement of Danny's basketball team shirt number as a tribute to him.

Preston Walters[]

Kai begins as good friends with Preston Walters and is often seen offering him words of advice even after Preston has snapped at him. They share a mutual friendship despite Kai having a crush on Preston. They eventually kiss at a party after Preston was dumped by Samia Choudhry, however it is implied through certain interactions with the two that Preston had previous feelings for Kai before, as he initiates the kiss and worries that Kai didn't like it when Kai pulls away. The episode after their kiss, Preston seeks out Kai to reassure him that it wasn't a mistake, and after thinking about it Kai agrees to meet Preston after school. Unfortunately however, Preston, overcome by stress, takes himself off to the bathroom to binge eat and purge, missing his meet up with Kai.

In Series 12, he and Preston become a couple after some miscommunication where Kai felt guilty for being the one to give Danny the knife that ended him up on house arrest. We learn Preston reached out to Kai several times but was ignored due to guilt. Kai writes Preston a letter explaining all of this and the two of them make up, but their kiss is interrupted by other students. Their relationship remains on the down-low until Donte figures it out when the two boys are painting a drama set together. After this interaction, Kai offers his hand to Preston and the two of them walk down the hall together hand-in-hand, earning support from the students around them, including Samia who says "Good for you".

After discovering a surplus of food in Preston's bag, Kai assumes he is struggling to find food, but later, after trying to help what he thought was a money problem, Preston confides in Kai about his bulimia. Upon finding this out, Kai tries his best to help Preston, but unfortunately is mostly unsuccessful in doing so. Preston's bulimia gets worse, and he snaps at Kai a couple of times, yet apologises or admits he's right, and Kai is seen visibly worried for Preston.

In Series 12 Episode 5, Kai helps Preston's mum sell some clothes to pay off her debt. She offers him a large fur coat as thanks, and he later playfully smothers Preston with it. In Series 12 Episode 6, Kai is on edge as he saw Vinny outside of Preston's house. Without saying it he tries to figure out if Preston is aware but he isn't. Before the race he sees Danny for the first time this series. Kai and Preston share their second on-screen kiss, first of the series, before a charity cross-country race, though Kai pulls away and comments on the warmth of Preston's breath alluding to a possible purge before the race.

Towards the end of the race, Preston suffers a cardiac arrest and Kai has to administer CPR in order to save him, which is successful. Following this, Kai emotionally tells Nicky about her son's bulimia but is met with harsh words due to hiding his boyfriend's secret. In Series 12 Episode 7, Kai visits Preston in the hospital where he is recovering, here he tells him that he loves him for the first time but is met with a cold shoulder as Preston is hurt that Kai told his mum his secret. After returning to school, Kai and Nicky make up and travel to the hospital together, where they bump into Preston who was allegedly leaving to find Nicky, and he reveals he is agreeing to treatment, before the three of them share a meaningful hug. When the three of them return to the school after the fire that killed Danny, Preston is seen holding Kai in an empty corridor as he cries.

Kai seems to be the only person Preston can truly open up to. Preston seems most at ease when they're together and, as said by Donte and Nicky, when he's with Kai, Preston is happy. Their relationship is one of the strongest in the show, they can have disagreements but always make it up in the end and they have a care for one another that the other couples don't have. They're happiest when around each other.

In Series 13, Kai reveals he has been looking at attending art college in Berlin, Germany, but hides this from Preston as he doesn't want to stress him out. Kai decides not to go as he wants to stay in the UK with Preston, but when Preston finds out, he tells Kai that he doesn't want him to resent him, and that he needs a boyfriend, not a counsellor, and they seemingly break up, and Kai accepts an offer of a place at the Berlin academy.

In Series 14 Episode 8, Kai returns from Berlin to surprise Preston for his 18th birthday, and the two get back together and move to London together to attend university.

Samia Choudhry[]

Samia and Kai share a mutual friendship. They're brought closer by the addition of Danny. Throughout Series 11 the two of them can be seen laughing together, Kai encourages her relationship with Danny, and in the final episode of the series Kai admits to Samia that Danny had a knife. In Series 12, the two of them are seen discussing Danny, as well as Kai's "failing love life". Here Sami encourages Kai to write the boy he likes a note, to which he does. After she discovers it is Preston, she is seen to be supportive of Kai and Preston's relationship, even offering advice when Kai is down about how closed off Preston is.

Nicky Walters[]

Kai and Nicky's friendship begins when he catches her sneaking food into her bag. Whilst Nicky is defensive at first she calms down when Kai reveals his and Preston's relationship. From that point the two are friendly until Preston's cardiac arrest. Though it isn't long until the two of them make up for Preston's sake.

Quotes[]

  • "Oh no!" (first line)

  • "Zip up, kids. You're busted."

  • Kai: "You got buff, bro."
  • Danny: "You've changed some yourself."
  • Kai: "Yeah. I've evolved."
  • Danny: "So what, are you like he, she or they now?"
  • Kai: "Baby, I'm all he. Just not your flavour."

  • "Introducing newly improved Waterloo Road!"

  • "I didn't say abusive. They don't get it. My dad doesn't even...my dad doesn't even say the word 'gay'. My mum keeps telling me to tone it down! I can't be my true self around them."

  • "Maybe because I don't want you to bite my head off again. Plus, you are clouding up my space with your really depressing aura."

  • "I don't wanna keep going on about it...but what you said in the group chat...you don't have to put up that front."

  • Kai: "Yeah, well, you get caught with that and you're looking at jail time. So give it to me. I'll get rid of it, give it to me!"
  • Danny: "But I-"
  • Kai: "No, I'm serious. I can't be worrying about you getting stabbed! D'you know what? If you won't give it to me, I'm done. We're over, mate."

  • "Is this you running back to me because Samia read you to filth in the corridor? I'm first team, babes. Not subs."

  • Samia: "Well, texts can be misunderstood, and who doesn't like getting a letter? They're so romantic! If someone wrote me one, I'd be like 'take me now'."
  • Kai: "Really? Bring me my quill!"

  • "It's not just what it's done to Danny. It's like, am I an accessory? The knife's not been found, and when it does, will it come back to me? I can't talk to anyone, I can't focus. I can't be bothered to look fabulous, so you know it's serious. I just stay wide awake all night thinking, 'why did I give it back to him?'."

  • "If you're happy and you know it, hold my hand...feels good, right?"

  • "Babe, you're too high maintenance for anyone else, standing there styling your hair for an hour before we go on a run."

  • Danny: "I actually almost forgot what you look like!"
  • Kai: "How could you forget these brows?"

  • Kai: "Look, therapy might not be such a bad idea. It obviously wasn't working doing it on your own. Have you thought about that? I wasn't just gonna sit and watch you get worse, OK? No."
  • Preston: "It wasn't anything to do wi' you."
  • Kai: "What? It was. I love you."

  • "Great, so we're a rescue home for dumb animals."

  • "Not even a royal visit from Kate and William would liven up my mum and dad."

  • "Oi! What's that bland, basic paint doing at my school?"

  • Kai: "It's pretty amazing."
  • Amy: "Yeah, I've gotta admit, I was pretty jealous when I read the criteria."
  • Kai: "It's just, it's far. Berlin."
  • Amy: "Oh, is that where you'd choose?"
  • Kai: "There's an art college there."

  • Kai: "It's not my kinda thing anyway! A bunch of pretentious, beautiful people, it's just too much."
  • Preston: "Kai, that is so you."

  • "Yeah, yeah. I'm a mystery wrapped in a surprise wrapped in the latest fashion!"

  • "Thanks, babe." (final line)
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