A Two-Seater Was Never Meant for Three Chapter 06

A Two-Seater Was Never Meant for Three Chapter 06

In front of other people, Gavin slipped effortlessly back into that composed, mature persona-a completely different man from the one I’d first met.

I kept waiting for him to say something.

But through dinner, through a walk downtown afterward, he never brought it up.

His restraint left me second-guessing myself all over again.

Had that whole scene at the door just been him being polite-trying not to embarrass me in front of

Julian?

But then he walked me home, and texted goodnight, and I found myself unsure all over again.

Lying in bed scrolling my phone, I saw the reunion photos a classmate had posted.

Julian and Chloe were still the center of every shot, though his gaze looked distracted, somewhere

else entirely.

I didn’t think much of it.

Chloe would only be staying with me for another three months at most; once she left I’d move out

anyway.

There were better rental options closer to school-I could even look into staff housing. No reason

to stay here any longer.

After a shower, I fell asleep the moment I hit the pillow. No dreams.

The next morning, toast between my teeth as I headed downstairs, I spotted two people standing

outside the building entrance.

Chloe’s makeup was streaked from crying, her eyes red as she stared at Julian.

“She already dumped you. Why can’t it be me?”

“That thing about studying abroad, years ago that was a joke. I felt guilty after that fight, that’s the only reason I put up with Wendy getting between us all this time.”

“Julian, we grew up together, we know each other inside and out, we like all the same things-and you’re telling me you fell for someone else? Why?”

I ducked behind a tree, the toast in my mouth suddenly tasteless.

So that was it. Chloe had feelings for Julian.

He’d told me not to upset her, and then went and did exactly that himself.

Not much of a man, honestly.

I didn’t stay to hear the rest.

I slipped out the back way to work, then swapped shifts to cover evening study hall so I wouldn’t have to go home right away.

Right around then, Gavin called. His voice was hoarse.

“Ms. Hale… you asleep?”

I couldn’t help a small laugh.

“Just finished evening study hall. Something wrong, Mr. Cole?”

“No. Just wanted to hear your voice.”

The sudden, bold sweetness of it caught me completely off guard.

I fumbled the key at my door twice before I got it in, laughing helplessly against the wall, not sure how to respond.

“Did that make you uncomfortable? Sorry-long day, I wasn’t thinking before I spoke.”

“It’s fine, really…”

I just hadn’t expected the gap between his public and private self to be this wide.

Suddenly, the door swung open from the inside.

Julian stood in the doorway, his expression dark enough to drip.

I jumped. “Julian? You’re still here?”

He snatched the phone out of my hand, glanced at the screen, and hung up with a cold laugh.

“Barely broke up with me and already lined up the next one?”

I frowned. “I don’t want to fight.”

“You’re the one who said Chloe’s under exam pressure and shouldn’t be bothered. I thought that was good advice.”

“Or did you want to take it back?”

His voice went flat. “She already flew home this afternoon.”

I froze, shoved past him, and ran to the room.

Chloe’s things were gone-every trace of her, wiped clean, like she’d never been there at all.

I’d always been quiet, and after starting college, my whole world had narrowed down to Julian, I barely had any friends of my own.

But I’d never forget high school freshman orientation-Chloe pretending to faint just to drag me, the one with low blood sugar, to get juice.

The other girls used to compare me to her, unkindly. But she’d throw an arm around me for photos anyway and say, we’re friends, aren’t we?

All those years I’d poured into her, willingly-none of it had ever had anything to do with Julian.

Was it because he’d turned her down? Why leave without a word? If things had blown up with her family, where would she even go?

My thoughts spiraled into knots.

Shaking, I dialed her number. Just a dead, endless busy signal.

She’d blocked me.

I hadn’t realized until now that I mattered less to her than Julian.

Even when Julian had hurt me, it had never cut this deep.

By the time I came back to myself, my face was already wet.