“What the hell did you do to the guy?” He demands.
“Nothing.” I knit my brows in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
Julian sighs, rubbing a hand over his mouth. I have a feeling I’m not going to like what he has to say. And sure enough . . .
“I need you to leave.”
“You’re kicking me out?” I say, baffled. “Why?”
“You motivate him.” He nods in Kayden’s direction. “I know you do. Hell, if you weren’t here, he’d probably do a lot worse. That boy has a heart of a lion and you live in his heart. So I need to see him spar when you’re not around.” He notices my fallen expression and adds, “It’s not permanent, Sienna.”
As much as I want to stand here and argue with him, deep down I know Julian’s right about this.
“Fine. I get it,” I say. “I’ll go.”
I feel both Julian’s and Kayden’s gazes searing my back as I head to the benches to grab my things. Kayden climbs out of the cage and jogs over to me. He presses a hand on my shoulder to still me, shaking his head.
“I don’t like this,” he says. “Don’t go.”
“It’ll only be for a while,” I assure him, looping my bag over my body. I pat his arm reassuringly. “You got this.”
“Come on, kid,” Julian calls, waving him over. “Let’s go again.”
Kayden looks torn, his gaze flickering back and forth between me and Julian. Eventually, he relents, walking back over to the cage as he lets me go.
***
I have to admit, it feels weird not having anything to do while Kayden trains with his new trainer. I feel replaced, and I know I don’t have any right to feel that given that I was the one who recommended him to Julian in the first place, but it’s unsettling no longer having this purpose that’s been keeping me going for the past few weeks. So it’s hard to focus on anything else while I try to imagine how Kayden is doing without me. No doubt he’s in far better hands with Julian taking over, but I wish I was still there with him, offering some of my input alongside Julian’s.
And to be honest, I just want to see Kayden. I hate that I already miss him. It’s an odd feeling to have for someone I’ve adamantly decided to chuck in the friend zone.
Needing a break from boring solitary midterm prep in the library for an upcoming paper later today, I pop over to Brent’s dorm room before lunch. Evans is already there, having slept over after pulling an all-nighter in the library.
Brent looks tired too, if the stacks of revision papers and notes cluttering his desk is any indication. They had been relieved to hear I was stopping by so they could catch a break along with me. I let both of them talk about their spring break plans, which consist of a luxurious staycation at a suite at the Ritz-Carlton with a reservation to a French fine-dining restaurant.
“How do you have the funds for this?” I ask them, tossing one of Brent’s throw pillows in Evans’s direction.
Brent and I are both sitting cross-legged on his bed while Evans takes his place on the desk chair, reclining it back and resting his head on it. He catches the pillow midair and chucks it straight at me, landing it in my lap. I plant my elbows firmly on it, hands cupping my chin, leaning forward.
“He’s a trust fund baby.” Brent answers the question for his boyfriend, propping his arms behind him.
“Well, not anymore.” Evans corrects his boyfriend, misery coating his face. “Remember that day when my parents came to visit and I told them I was seeing Brent?” I nod in remembrance. “As I expected, they threatened to cut me off if I don’t break up with him.”
“Shit. What are you gonna do?” I ask.
“Well. . .” Evans starts, wriggling his eyebrows in a scheming way. I already know this is gonna be good. “They gave me about two weeks to do it before all my cards stop working. So I just transferred most of the money over to an independent savings account and I’m planning to blow a good chunk of it to get back at them. Hence, staycation.
Among other things.”
“Oooh. Sounds like fun,” I say with an easy grin. “You should make a bucket list of things to do and cross off every one of them before you hit the end of the two weeks.”
“See, this is exactly why we claimed you to be one of the gang,” Evans says, already tearing a piece of paper from Brent’s notebook and picking up a pen. “Should we do an out-of-town vacation next? Oooh, how about Paris? I’ve always wanted to see the Eiffel Tower and eat baguettes.”
“Come on.” Brent groans, pushing himself off the bed and snatching the paper from Evans’s grasp. “That was part of my physics notebook! And I hand numbered each page with ink too!”
“B, you’re being ridiculous. It’s just a page.” Evans snatches the page right back. “I’ll buy you ten more notebooks later, how about that? I’ll even buy you one from Paris as a souvenir. Although you might want to get better souvenirs in Paris. You know what? I’ll just buy you a whole bookstore in Paris just because I can.”
My phone alarm buzzes in my pocket, and I slide it out to check the time. “While I’d love to stay for this riveting conversation, I’ve got a seminar in ten minutes,” I say, shooting off the bed and pressing a light kiss on Brent’s cheek. “I’ll see you around. Have fun on the staycation.”