Chapter 2: Always on the Other Side of the DoorNo Longer Welcome

The next morning, I turned my phone back on and found two missed calls from Haiden waiting on the screen. Underneath them were two messages from the night before.

'Why didn't you wait for me?'

His second message followed a few minutes later.

'Kendall is cooking, so I can't leave right now. Text me when you get home.'

I had barely finished reading them when his name appeared on my screen again.

Once I answered, Haiden got straight to the point. "What happened with the door was Kendall's doing. I already talked to her about it."

He moved on almost immediately, as though the matter had already been settled.

"Alex and the others are having dinner tonight. Come with me. We're all friends. You just need to spend more time with everyone. Once you do, you'll feel more comfortable around them."

I had no desire to spend another evening with his friends after what had happened the night before. Somehow, I still heard myself agree.

…

That evening, I arrived at the seafood-and-steak restaurant and entered the private dining room. Kendall was already seated in the most important spot at the table, looking completely at home.

The moment Haiden walked in, she tapped the empty chair beside her. "Haiden, sit here."

I headed toward the empty seat to his right, but one of his friends reached it first and dropped into it. "Sorry, I'm taking this spot tonight. Haiden and I are drinking together."

Kendall looked across the table at me with an easy smile. "Why don't you sit over there? You can see everyone better from that side."

By the time everyone settled in, I had somehow ended up farther away from Haiden than anyone else.

The low murmur of conversation filled the private dining room as servers moved quietly between the tables. Across from me, she kept leaning toward Haiden whenever she spoke. More than once, her hair nearly brushed his shoulder.

Not long afterward, a large seafood platter arrived, piled high with crab legs, oysters, and shrimp.

Kendall picked up one of the crab legs and turned it over in her hand before looking at Haiden. "Haiden, crack this for me. You know I'm terrible at it."

He took it from her without hesitation.

He grabbed the shell cracker and worked carefully through the hard shell, pulling out the crabmeat piece by piece. The sharp edges left his fingertips slightly red, but he barely seemed to notice.

Kendall speared a piece of crabmeat with her fork and took a bite. She left half of it on the fork, then held it toward Haiden. "Try this. It's really good."

Haiden leaned forward and ate the rest straight from her fork. His lips touched the same fork she had just used.

Someone at the table let out a teasing whistle. "You two have always been like this. Aren't you worried Haiden's actual girlfriend might get jealous?"

Kendall laughed as though the idea were ridiculous. "Haiden has been cracking crab for me since we were kids. His girlfriend isn't going to get upset over something this small."

Then, she turned her attention toward me. "Right?"

The conversation around the table stopped, and everyone looked in my direction.

I kept my expression calm and gave them a small smile. "It's fine."

That answer seemed to satisfy them, and the conversation quickly continued.

Later, Kendall nudged her plate toward Haiden. "Haiden, this steak is too tough. Cut it for me?"

He glanced down, took her knife and fork, and sliced the steak into bite-sized pieces before sliding the plate back to her, as if he had done it countless times before.

Everything between them happened with such practiced ease that it was impossible to mistake it for a one-time favor. Haiden understood what Kendall wanted before she ever needed to explain herself. He had clearly taken care of her this way countless times before.

One of their friends laughed when he noticed. "You two really have the whole childhood-friends thing down."

Kendall turned toward Haiden with a nostalgic smile. "Do you remember when you visited me in college? My roommate was convinced you were my boyfriend. She even took us out to dinner because she thought we were dating."

Haiden smiled at the memory. "Your roommate gets excited about everything."

"She really does. She kept asking us when we were getting married."

As Kendall spoke, her gaze briefly shifted toward me.

The look lasted only a moment, but the satisfaction behind it was difficult to miss.

She reached toward Haiden a few seconds later and adjusted the collar of his shirt. Her fingertips brushed lightly across the skin near his collarbone. "Your collar is crooked."

Nobody around the table seemed to find the gesture unusual.

Kendall left her hand there longer than necessary before finally pulling it away.

Haiden remained completely relaxed throughout the entire exchange. Her touch was clearly familiar enough that he barely noticed it anymore.

Dinner was halfway through when Kendall stood to get another drink.

As she rose from her chair, her hand knocked against a wineglass.

The glass tipped, and red wine poured down the front of my white dress.

For a moment, I could only stare at the spreading stain.

Haiden reacted immediately. But his attention never went to me.

He reached for Kendall's hand and carefully turned her palm upward. "Did you hurt yourself? Is the glass broken?"

Kendall examined her hand before shaking her head. "I'm okay."

Only then did she look in my direction.

Her expression quickly became apologetic. "I'm so sorry. Was your dress expensive? I can buy you a new one."

The wine had already soaked through the fabric and was dripping down onto my shoes.

Haiden still did not look at me.

His attention remained entirely on Kendall.

I pushed my chair back and stood. "I'm going to the restroom."

I left the private room before anyone could respond.

The door had barely closed behind me when Kendall's voice drifted through from inside.

"Haiden, is your girlfriend upset?" Her tone became quieter. "Did I make her angry?"

Haiden answered calmly, "She isn't like that. Don't think too much about it."

She gave a soft laugh. "Good. I was worried you might stop talking to me because of her."

A few quiet laughs followed from the others.

I remained in the hallway outside the closed door, and the familiarity of the situation suddenly struck me.

The night before, I had stood outside Haiden's apartment while Kendall stayed comfortably inside. Less than a day later, I had once again found myself separated from them by a closed door.

The circumstances were different, but the feeling had not changed.

Everyone in that room seemed to belong naturally in Haiden's life.

I was supposed to be his girlfriend. Yet somehow, I was always the excluded one.