Chapters: Stories on Sean & Kaycee

Deadline Part 1

"I'm sorry, I can't. I have a girlfriend."

I wasn't so sure I heard him right.

I turned around and spotted him at the front of the cafe, politely declining a pretty blonde girl with a nod of his head and aversion of his eyes. The girl fumbled with her words, clearly not prepared to be let down. They exchanged a few more words until Sean flashed her a charming smile - dimples and all. Geez, is he trying to make her fall harder for him? - before making his way back to us.

I looked to Serris, my girlfriend, to check if she knew what he meant, but her wide eyes told me she was just as confused as I was.

Sean took a seat across from me, too preoccupied with his hot drink to meet our gazes, as if nothing happened. I cleared my throat.

"A girlfriend, huh?" I said, flashing him a smirk. He still didn't look up at me. "Does this mean you and Kaycee finally-?"

"No, dude." He cut me off. Serris widened her eyes at him for his tone, but I shrugged it off. "It's just a simpler way out."

"Simpler than?" She asked as she fumbled with something on her phone. Then she threw it face down on the table and glared straight at her little brother. God knows how this kid didn't feel like running away from being on the receiving end of it.

Sean shrugged, blowing carefully over his beverage. "The truth, I guess."

"What's the truth?" Serris pressed.

The boy sighed and, finally, looked up. His eyes were too tired and sad to be those of an 18-year-old. He opened his mouth, releasing a long, exasperated ramble.

"The truth is - I'm sorry, I can't because there's this girl that I've been in love with since I was 9 years old, and sometimes I think she might feel the same way, but she's always denying it and telling people we're just friends. Then, she pulls me closer and tells me that she trusts me, and is inspired by me. And she likes to do things couples do, like joint vlogs and photo shoots and weekends away at her family's lake house, that it gives me whiplash. So I don't really know what the fuck is going on. But on the off-chance she might actually feel the same way, I'll have to say no."

By the end of it, I had unconsciously leaned back into my chair, lungs protesting against the breath I didn't know I was holding. Serris squeezed my hand, eyes wide with concern. Sean clamped his mouth shut, realizing what he just said, and averted his eyes back to his drink. Things were getting awkward fast, but I wasn't going to be the one to break the silence.

"Wow," Serris breathed out, pity tinging her voice.

"Yeah," Her brother nervously scratched at the back of his neck. "Sorry. I got a bit carried away there."

"So, after all these years, you guys are still a mess, huh?" She asked, patting his hand. He immediately pulled away, not wanting any of her pity.

"Yeah, a bit." He was trying so hard to sound casual about it, it physically hurt me to hear him.

"Why don't you guys just talk about it then?" I asked, not able to stomach this excruciating situation.

Being Serris' boyfriend, I'd been a bystander in their lives for a while. Sean and I weren't exactly close, because the kid works a lot and we live in different states, but we get along pretty well when we hang out. And I've been around him and Kaycee enough times to know what's up.

Thinking back to how Serris and I leveled up from being childhood friends to today, I can't really fathom why it's taking them so long.

" I mean, Serris and I-"