Reunion with Ex - Boyfriend Trouble

After the incident, Brayden and I barely spoke for a whole week. Initially, he didn't think he'd done anything wrong.

"I've always thought of Adalynn as a sister," he insisted. "She hurt her leg; I couldn't just leave her there."

I kept my face neutral. "If her leg was injured, she could have called her mom, or your family's driver could have picked her up. Why did she need to wait specifically for you?"

"You think of her as a sister, but does she think of you as a brother? Are you really saying you don't know she has feelings for you?"

Brayden's eyes shifted, and then he let out a sigh, pulling me into an embrace. "Evelyn, you're the only one I care about. I'll speak to her and make some distance, alright?"

I closed my eyes for a moment. "Alright."

After that, Brayden did have a conversation with Adalynn. I don’t know what he said, but I know she left the classroom in tears and stopped seeking him out. I thought that would resolve everything.

But then, Brayden approached me, looking uneasy. "Adalynn says there’s this guy from another school who’s been bothering her. She’s told him no several times, but he won’t leave her alone. Today, he invited her and some friends to hang out, and she wants me to pretend to be her boyfriend to scare him off."

Watching for my reaction, he added, "Just for one night, to make him back off."

"We've been through this before, haven't we? Today she twists her ankle and needs you to carry her home, tomorrow someone bothers her and you pretend to be her boyfriend—what’s next?"

Brayden, who’s always been patient and kind with me, said, "If it weren't for my dad's accident, Adalynn's father wouldn't have died saving him. She'd have her father to look out for her now. I can't just abandon her. Just this once, if it makes things easier, how about you come along too?"

I realized arguing further was pointless and reluctantly agreed.

"Just for one day. I’ll go with you."

Brayden's face lit up with a smile, and he gently cupped my face to give me a quick kiss. "You're really understanding, and I love you more than anything!"