Kaiden rolled his eyes but smiled anyway, climbing into the passenger seat of my car and buckling his seatbelt. "Fine, but next time it's my turn to pay. I mean it, Jaden. I've got a part-time job now too, remember? I can afford to treat my best friend every once in a while."
I started the car and pulled out of the parking lot, glancing over at him as I merged onto the main road. The setting sun painted the sky in shades of orange and pink, casting a warm glow over his face and making his dark hair look almost golden. "I know you can," I said softly. "I just like taking care of you, that's all."
He leaned his head against the window, looking out at the passing buildings. "You always take care of me, Jay. Sometimes I wonder what I'd do without you."
My chest tightened at the words, and I reached over to rest my hand on his shoulder for a moment. "You'll never have to find out. I'm not going anywhere."
We drove in comfortable silence for a few minutes, the only sound being the hum of the engine and the soft music playing from the radio. Kaiden had always been able to sit quietly with me—we didn't need to fill every moment with conversation, which was one of the things that made our friendship so easy. But today, I could tell something was weighing on him even before he spoke up again.
"Bhria texted me earlier," he said, his voice quiet. "She wanted me to meet her at the mall after she got off work. I told her I was hanging out with you, and she… well, she didn't seem too happy about it."
I gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. Bhria Scott had been Kaiden's girlfriend for almost four months now, and while I'd tried to be happy for him, I'd never really liked her all that much. She was pretty enough—long blonde hair, bright green eyes, popular with almost everyone at school—but she'd never seemed to really see Kaiden. She'd talk over him when he was telling stories, make jokes at his expense in front of other people, and she'd always seemed annoyed whenever he wanted to spend time with me instead of her.
"What did she say?" I asked, trying to keep my voice neutral.
"Nothing mean, exactly," he said, picking at a loose thread on his jeans. "She just said she feels like we don't spend enough time together anymore. That I'm always with you."
I felt a flash of anger, but pushed it down quickly. It wasn't Kaiden's fault that Bhria couldn't understand how important our friendship was. "You know you don't have to choose between us, right? We could all hang out together sometime if that would make her happier."
Kaiden shook his head, a small smile touching his lips. "I don't want to do that. Hanging out with you is different—it's easy. When I'm with Bhria, sometimes I feel like I have to be someone I'm not. Like I have to pretend to be more… I don't know. Cool? Or something."
I glanced over at him, my heart aching for him. "You don't have to pretend to be anything with me," I said firmly. "You're perfect just the way you are, Kaiden. Anyone who doesn't see that isn't worth your time."
He looked at me then, his brown eyes soft and grateful. "Thanks, Jay. That means a lot."
We were almost at the burger place when Kaiden suddenly sat up straight, pointing out the window. "Wait—pull over. Please."
I followed his gaze and saw that we were passing the mall—exactly where Bhria had said she'd be working. I pulled into the nearest parking spot, my stomach already twisting with a bad feeling. "Kaiden, what is it?"
"Look," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.
I followed his line of sight to the entrance of a coffee shop that was attached to the mall. Through the large glass windows, I could see Bhria standing with her back to us, talking to a guy I recognized from the basketball team—Miles Carter. They were standing close together, too close for just friends, and then suddenly he reached up and cupped her face in his hands, and she leaned in and kissed him. A long, deep kiss that left no room for doubt about what was happening between them.
Kaiden let out a small sound that was somewhere between a gasp and a sob, and I immediately reached over and pulled him close, wrapping my arm around his shoulders. "Kaiden, I'm so sorry—"
"I need to go talk to her," he said, pulling away from me and reaching for the door handle. His hands were shaking, and his face was pale as paper.
"Kaiden, wait—" I started, but he was already out of the car and walking quickly toward the coffee shop. I grabbed my keys and followed him, my mind racing. I didn't want him to have to do this alone, but I also didn't want to make things worse by being there.
He pushed open the door and walked straight over to where Bhria and Miles were standing, still close together and talking quietly. They both looked up when he reached them, and Bhria's face went white when she saw who it was.
"Kaiden—what are you doing here?" she stammered, taking a step away from Miles.
"I could ask you the same thing," Kaiden said, his voice surprisingly steady despite the way his hands were trembling at his sides. "Who is he, Bhria?"
Miles stepped forward, his jaw set. "Look, man—we were just talking. It's not what you think."
"Don't lie to me," Kaiden said, his voice cracking slightly. "I saw you kiss her. I saw everything."
Bhria reached out as if to touch him, but he stepped back quickly, like her touch would burn him. "Kaiden, please—let me explain. It didn't mean anything. I was just confused, and—"
"Confused?" Kaiden repeated, his eyes filling with tears he was clearly trying to hold back. "For how long? How long have you been 'confused' with him while you were dating me?"
"I'm sorry," she said, her voice barely audible. "I never meant to hurt you."
"But you did," Kaiden said, and the pain in his voice made my chest ache. "You hurt me more than you know. I thought… I thought we meant something to each other. I thought you cared about me."
"I do care about you," she said, but her eyes kept drifting to Miles, and I could tell she didn't mean it—not really.
"No," Kaiden said quietly, shaking his head. "You care about having someone. Anyone. You never really saw me, did you? You just saw someone who would treat you well, who would do anything for you."
"That's not true—"
"It is true," he said, cutting her off. "And I'm done. We're done, Bhria. I can't be with someone who doesn't even have the decency to be honest with me."
She opened her mouth to say something else, but Kaiden just turned and walked away, pushing past me and heading back toward the car. I shot one last look at Bhria and Miles—she looked guilty, Miles looked annoyed—and then followed Kaiden out.
He was leaning against the side of my car when I reached him, his head bowed and his shoulders shaking with quiet sobs. I didn't say anything—just pulled him into my arms and held him tight, letting him bury his face in my chest and cry. His body was small and warm against mine, and I could feel every tremor that ran through him. I wanted to find the words to make it better, but I knew there were no words that could take away this kind of pain.
"I just don't understand," he whispered after a while, his voice muffled against my hoodie. "I thought she loved me. I thought I was enough."
"You are enough," I said firmly, running my hand through his hair gently. "You're more than enough, Kaiden. She was the one who wasn't good enough for you."
He pulled back slightly, looking up at me with tear-streaked cheeks and red-rimmed eyes. "Why didn't she want me, Jay? What's wrong with me?"
"Nothing is wrong with you," I said, cupping his face in my hands and making him look at me. "Nothing at all. She was too stupid to see how amazing you are, that's all. And one day she's going to realize that and regret what she did."
He leaned into my touch, closing his eyes for a moment. "You always say nice things to me. Even when I don't deserve it."
"Of course you deserve it," I said, brushing a tear from his cheek with my thumb. "You deserve to be with someone who will treat you like the incredible person you are. Someone who will love you the way you should be loved."
He didn't say anything to that—just leaned his head against my shoulder and sighed heavily. After a few minutes, I pulled away slightly and looked at him. "Do you still want to get dinner? Or would you rather go somewhere else? We could go back to my place and order takeout, or we could just drive around for a while—whatever you want."
He shook his head slowly. "I don't want to eat. I don't want to go anywhere. I just… I need to be alone for a while. I need space to think."
My heart sank at his words, but I knew he was right. Sometimes when you're hurting, the only thing you can do is be by yourself and let yourself feel it. "Okay," I said softly. "I'll take you home."
We drove back to his house in complete silence. Kaiden stared out the window the whole time, his face blank and unreadable. I wanted to reach out and hold his hand, to tell him that everything would be okay, but I knew he needed to be left alone right now. So I just focused on driving, making sure to take the smoothest roads possible so I wouldn't jostle him too much.
When we pulled into his driveway, I turned off the engine and looked over at him. "Kaiden… do you want me to stay? I can sit with you, or I can just be in the other room if you don't want to talk. I don't want you to be alone right now."
He shook his head, opening the car door and stepping out. "No, Jay. I need to do this by myself. I'm sorry."
"You don't have to be sorry," I said quickly, getting out of the car and walking around to where he was standing. "I understand. Just… if you need anything—anything at all—you call me, okay? Day or night, I'll be here."
He looked at me then, and I could see the gratitude in his eyes even through the pain. "Thanks, Jay. You're the best friend anyone could ask for."
Before I could say anything else, he turned and walked up to his front door, unlocking it and disappearing inside without looking back. I stood there for a few minutes, watching the door, wishing there was something more I could do. But I knew he needed his space, so I finally got back in my car and drove home.
The drive back felt longer than usual, and when I walked into my house, the silence was deafening. My mom was in the living room reading a book, and she looked up when I came in, her eyes immediately narrowing with concern.
"Jaden? What happened? You look like someone just died."
I sank down onto the couch next to her, resting my head in my hands. "Kaiden saw Bhria kissing another guy. He broke up with her."
"Oh, honey," she said, putting her book down and wrapping her arm around my shoulders. "I'm so sorry. How is he?"
"He's hurting," I said, my voice thick with emotion. "He's acting like it's his fault, like there's something wrong with him. And he doesn't want to talk to anyone—he just wants to be alone."
"I know it's hard to see him like this," she said softly. "But sometimes people need time to process things on their own. The best thing you can do is be there for him when he's ready to talk."
"I just wish I could take his pain away," I said, looking up at her with tears in my own eyes. "I'd do anything to make him feel better."
She looked at me for a long moment, her expression gentle but sad. "I know you would, Jaden. And that's what makes you such a good friend to him. But you can't fix everything for him—he has to go through this to heal."
I nodded, even though I didn't want to hear it. She was right, of course, but that didn't make it any easier to accept. I sat there with her for a while longer, talking about everything that had happened, and then I went up to my room and lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling.
I thought about Kaiden—about how much he'd been looking forward to his date with Bhria this weekend, about how he'd spent hours picking out the perfect shirt to wear, about how he'd told me just last week that he thought he might be in love with her. My chest ached with the weight of it all. He deserved so much better than what she'd given him. He deserved someone who would cherish him, who would hold him close and never let him go. Someone who would love him the way I did.
I pulled out my phone and typed out a text message to him, then deleted it. I typed another one, then deleted that too. I didn't want to push him, didn't want to make him feel like he had to respond when he wasn't ready. So instead, I just sent him a simple message: I'm here for you. Whenever you're ready.
I didn't expect a response, and I didn't get one. I spent the rest of the night staring at my phone, hoping he'd text me back, hoping he was okay. I thought about going over to his house, about knocking on his door and telling him that I loved him—that I'd always loved him, and that he didn't have to be with someone who didn't appreciate him. But I knew I couldn't do that. Not now, when he was hurting so much. Not when he needed his friend more than anything else.
The next morning, I woke up early and made Kaiden's favorite breakfast—pancakes with chocolate chips and whipped cream, just the way he liked them. I packed them up in a container and drove over to his house, hoping he'd be willing to see me. When I got there, his car was still in the driveway, and all the curtains were drawn. I walked up to the door and knocked three times—our secret knock—but there was no answer. I knocked again, a little louder this time, but still nothing.
I set the container of pancakes down by the door and pulled out my phone, typing out another message: I left breakfast by your door. It's your favorite. Please eat something. I'm thinking about you.
I stood there for a few minutes, hoping he'd come to the door, but when he didn't, I finally turned and walked back to my car. The drive home felt even heavier than the night before, and I spent the rest of the day going through the motions—studying, helping my mom with chores, watching TV—but my mind was always on Kaiden. I checked my phone every few minutes, hoping to see a message from him, but the screen stayed blank.
That afternoon, I decided to go to the store and pick up some other things he might need—his favorite soda, chips, candy, and a few of the movies he liked to watch when he was feeling down. I knew he probably wouldn't want to see me, but I thought maybe leaving some things for him would let him know that I was thinking about him, that I cared.
When I got to his house, the container of pancakes was still sitting by the door, untouched. My heart sank at the sight of it. I set the new things down next to it and knocked again, just in case he was awake and feeling better. Still no answer.
"I know you don't want to talk right now," I said, my voice loud enough for him to hear through the door. "And that's okay. I just want you to know that I'm not going anywhere. I'll be here whenever you're ready. You mean more to me than anything, Kaiden. More than you'll ever know."
I stood there for a few more minutes, hoping he could hear me, hoping my words would somehow make their way through the door and reach him. Then I turned and walked away, my chest heavy with worry and love and a pain I couldn't quite name.
Over the next few days, I checked on him every day—leaving food by his door, sending him messages letting him know I was thinking about him, just sitting in my car outside his house for a few minutes to make sure his lights were on and he was okay. He never responded to my messages, and he never came to the door, but I could see that he was taking the things I left—sometimes the container would be gone when I came back the next day, or the soda cans would be inside by the door. It was small, but it was something. It meant he was still there, still fighting.
On Thursday afternoon, four days after he'd seen Bhria with Miles, I was sitting in my car outside his house, just watching the door, when I saw it open. Kaiden stepped out onto the porch, looking pale and tired but like he'd finally gotten some sleep. He looked around for a moment, and then his eyes landed on my car. He stood there for a few seconds, just looking at me, and then he started walking toward me.
I immediately got out of the car and met him halfway, my heart racing. "Kaiden… are you okay?"
He shook his head slowly, but there was a glimmer of something in his eyes that hadn't been there before—something that looked almost like relief. "No," he said quietly. "But I will be. Eventually."
I reached out and put my hand on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "That's all any of us can ask for, right?"
He nodded, then looked down at his feet for a moment before meeting my eyes again. "I'm sorry I've been pushing you away. I just… I needed time to figure things out. To let myself feel everything."
"You don't have to be sorry," I said firmly. "I told