New to the story? Start at the beginning.
ETHAN
Sienna doesn't say much after my admission. She doesn't even really look at me. Emilia is true to her word and won't let us play another round of Truth or Dare, despite Gia's protests. It doesn't take long for Sienna to hop up from where she's been sitting on the floor and announce she has an early morning tomorrow. Which isn't just an excuse at least, since her early morning involves our 8AM run together. I offer to drive her home myself instead of Gia, but she refuses before I can even finish my sentence and practically pulls Gia to the door.
As soon as Sienna arrives at training the next morning, I have to force myself not to stare at her. She's wearing a pair of running pants and a tank top, and she looks fucking amazing. Her toned legs and arms are on display, and I can't help but admire her curves. I'm glad I wore my sports sunglasses today. No one in my group can see where my eyes are straying.
"Hey, Sienna," Rose says, giving her a friendly hug.
"Hey," Sienna replies.
I feel a stab of jealousy at the sight of them embracing, which is ridiculous. I watch as they head a little further away before everyone gets here. My gaze lingers on her ass. It's nice. Perfect, really.
Shit. I look away quickly before someone notices where I’m looking. Even behind my shades, that would probably be obvious.
After everyone's arrived, we get started with a warmup and then jump right into our run/walk routine. It's an extra mile than we did last week, so right at the hour mark if we keep the pace we're aiming for. I keep my eye on the group, watching as they make their way around the route Russ chose today. A few times, I notice Sienna looking over at me. She gives me a smile and a nod, which I return. I want to say something to her, but I can't think of anything. So instead, I keep my mouth shut.
When the five miles are complete, I'm impressed to see everyone in good spirits. I was expecting at least a few people to complain, but everyone seems pretty happy with themselves.
"Great job, guys," Russ says. "You all did awesome." Every week, he waits at the finishing spot for every group to finish so he can cheer them on. There are still a few groups after us, so my group goes over to the hydration station for water and snacks.
"I have to admit, this wasn't as bad as I thought it would be," Mary says as she takes a large gulp of water. Her friend Leo nods his head in agreement.
"You all did great," I agree. "Keep up the good work."
I look around, checking to see if Sienna needs anything. She's talking to Rose, so I decide to just leave her be. Instead, I talk to some of the others, praising them and encouraging them. I've found that most people appreciate hearing that their efforts are noticed and appreciated. I don't want any of the participants to feel like I'm not paying attention to them.
When everyone's finished with the run and hydrated, we gather around for a quick group stretch.
"I'll probably be sore for the next six months," Sienna jokes. Almost everyone laughs. She's so fucking cute, it's hard not to laugh along with her.
"Well, that's what the stretching is for," Russ reminds her.
During the stretches, I can't stop my eyes from wandering over to her. The way she's standing, her ass is sticking out, and it's impossible not to notice. I notice Rose smirking at me, and I quickly look away. I also try a little harder to keep my eyes off Sienna for the rest of the stretches.
"Thanks for leading us through this, Ethan," Rose says. "You're a good leader."
"Oh, thanks," I reply, feeling my face flush. I'm not used to compliments like that. Being the second youngest of five means that most of the time, I get overlooked or compared to my siblings. Even in high school, I felt like no one really noticed me next to David or Emilia. David was the star quarterback, and Emilia was head of the class academically. Me, not so much. I played football, but I was nothing special.
"She's right," Sienna chimes in. "You're very motivating. I don't think I could be doing this without you. Thanks."
She smiles shyly at me. I feel my heart beat faster, and I look away.
"You're welcome," I mutter.
When the stretches are over, the group disperses. Everyone goes their separate ways, except for Rose and Sienna. They both stand around, chatting. I'm tempted to join in, but I'm not sure if that's a good idea. Sienna still hasn't let me know if she's thought about the whole friendship thing, so I'm not sure how far I should push it.
I walk around, helping Russ and a few of the other coaches pack everything up. I glance over at the girls and see that they're both watching me. Rose is smiling at me, but Sienna has a strange expression on her face. She looks nervous.
"Hey," I say, deciding to just go for it. I approach the two of them, hoping they don't think it's weird that I'm coming over. "So, uh, what's up?"
Rose looks amused. Sienna looks uncomfortable.
"Not much," Rose replies. She looks at Sienna, who just stares back at her, and then says, "Sienna was just saying how lucky she is to have a friend like you." I don’t miss the emphasis that she places on one critical word.
My heart skips a beat. Friend. Is that what Sienna wants? There's an awkward silence, and I don't know what to do. Should I hug her? Offer my hand for a high five?
"Thanks," I finally say.
"You're welcome," Sienna smiles.
"Well, I guess we better get going," Rose says, nudging Sienna with her elbow.
"Right." Sienna nods. "See you later, Ethan."
"Bye," I say, watching as the two of them head off.
My mind is racing. I'm so fucking relieved that she decided we could be friends. But now I'm wondering how we're going to move forward from here.
SIENNA
"You're such a meddler," I hiss at Rose as we walk to the parking lot.
"I know." She grins. "Isn't it great?"
I can't help but laugh. Rose is so confident, despite what she's going through in her personal life. I love that about her. She never lets anything bother her.
"Well, thank you," I tell her. "I appreciate it."
"You're welcome." She squeezes my arm affectionately.
When we reach the parking lot, we part ways. Rose heads home, and I head towards the gym to get a smoothie. It's part of my post-run routine now, and I find that I enjoy it. When I arrive, there's a new girl working the front counter. She's petite, with shoulder-length blonde hair and a bright smile. She greets me enthusiastically, and I return the favor before I order my usual: strawberry banana. Yes, it's a little girly, but it's delicious.
As I wait for my smoothie, I check my phone. I have a text from Jaya, asking if I want to grab dinner tonight. I respond yes. While I'm typing out my response, the front door opens and a familiar voice greets the new girl. I turn and see Ethan. He's still wearing the blue t-shirt and shorts he had on during today's training. His hair is damp, and he has a gym bag slung over his shoulder. I quickly avert my gaze. I'm not sure why seeing him at the gym makes me so nervous. I literally just saw him.
He sees me as soon as he's put in his order and walks over without hesitation. "Hey," he says, sitting down next to me.
"Hi." I put my phone away and glance at him. "What are you doing here?"
"Getting a smoothie," he replies, like it's the most obvious thing in the world.
Which I guess it is. I laugh, and he follows suit. It feels a bit awkward, but not in a bad way. Just in a new way. Like, we're testing the waters. Seeing how comfortable we are around each other.
"So," he says after a minute. "I'm glad you changed your mind. About the whole friendship thing. I mean, I know it's probably weird, and it'll take some getting used to, but I'm glad you gave it a chance."
I nod. "Yeah, me too." And I am. Rose did what she did because I told her I needed to let go of the past, and she was helping me do that. Even if her methods were a bit annoying.
My smoothie order comes up, and I stand up to get it. Before I leave the table, Ethan asks, "So, I'll see you at the next training?"
"Definitely," I say.
There's another awkward silence, so I nod my head in farewell and walk to the pickup counter. I pick up my drink and head towards the door. Before I can think it through, I pause and turn back to Ethan and say, "You know, we could hang out. Before the next training, I mean. We don't have to just hang out when it's mandatory."
Ethan grins. "That would be cool."
"Cool." I smile. "Jaya and I are having dinner tonight. Do you want to join us?"
"Dinner would be great." He sounds genuinely excited.
I tell him that I'll let him know as soon as Jaya and I have picked a time and place for dinner. He promises that he'll be there whenever and wherever. I leave and when I get outside, I take a deep breath. That went better than I expected. Now, I just have to break the news to Jaya.
***
"Wait, what?" Jaya is staring at me in disbelief.
"We're having dinner," I say slowly.
"As in, you and Ethan? And me?"
I had some time on the way over to think about the best way to inform Jaya about this situation. I decided to avoid the conversation until it was time to pick her up from her dorm room, and then rip the metaphorical band-aid off as soon as I got there. In hindsight, this might have been a poor decision because now Jaya is giving me her patented you're a dumbass look.
"Yes," I nod. The key here is to act as if this is a normal, everyday thing that absolutely makes sense. No need to worry, we're just three friends getting together to enjoy a nice meal.
"Since when do you hang out with your exes?" Jaya asks. She narrows her eyes at me. "And why are you springing this on me?"
"I figured you'd have plenty of time to come to terms with the idea once you were in the car," I reply.
Jaya's still frowning. We stand there for a few more moments, both of us silently staring at each other. I'm determined to hold out until she cracks. Unfortunately for me, I'm the weaker link. When no response is forthcoming from my best friend, I sigh. "Look, I know it's weird. But I told him we were friends. Friends can have dinner together."
Jaya looks unconvinced. "Friends, huh?"
"Yes," I repeat.
"And you're not secretly sleeping with him behind my back?"
My face grows hot, but I keep my composure. "No!"
Jaya raises her eyebrows. "Really?"
"I'm not lying!"
"I'm just checking. I mean, you were pretty damn adamant about hating him at the end of last semester."
"I wasn't—" I start, then realize she's right. "Okay, fine. Maybe I was a little...angry. But now I'm not. We broke up a long time ago. I decided it was time to let it go. So, can we just have dinner and not make it a big deal?"
That's too much to ask. In fact, Jaya is determined to make an even bigger deal out of it than she already has. She asks, "Do you want to sleep with him?"
I didn't think it was possible to turn any redder, but apparently I was wrong. "God, Jaya! No!" But I'm not a hundred percent sure about that. Not that I'm going to admit that.
She must sense my hesitation because she claps her hands in delight and says, "Oh my god, you totally want to sleep with him!"
"Stop," I hiss, thankful Jaya's roommate isn't at home to hear us.
"Have you thought about it?" Jaya asks, her voice lowering.
The truth is that I have thought about it. I fantasized about it in high school, and the regular interactions we’ve had together recently have made those thoughts rise right back to the surface of my mind. But I can't just jump into bed with Ethan. We just got to the point where we could even be friends. If I sleep with him, it might mess things up. I don't want to go down that path.
Jaya is still waiting for me to respond. I stare at her, trying to think of a good answer. "I just...I don't want things to get messy," I admit. "I've finally moved on, and I'm happy with my life. If we sleep together and then things don't work out, it could ruin everything. I'd rather have him as a friend than nothing."
Jaya nods, and for a second, I think she understands. Then she smirks. "Okay, fine. Let's go to dinner."
There's a gleam in her eye that I can't quite read. I frown. "What are you plotting?"
"Nothing," Jaya says, grabbing her coat and putting it on. "Let's go."
The restaurant we decided on is a Thai place about fifteen minutes from campus. When we get there, Ethan is already standing near the entrance. He gives us a little wave when he sees us. As we walk up to him, Jaya elbows me. "He cleans up nice," she murmurs.
It's true. He does. He's wearing a black button-down shirt and dark jeans. His hair is combed neatly, and he's even shaved. The stubble that usually graces his jawline is gone, and I'm a little sad to see it.
I, of course, spent longer than I care to admit deciding on my own outfit. I'd wanted something that said casual, but also sexy. But not too sexy, because that would send the wrong message. So, after trying on and rejecting about five different outfits, I'd finally settled on a simple blue dress and a pair of black boots. I'd even applied some light makeup.
As we walk into the restaurant, I'm painfully aware of how close Ethan is. There's this awkward moment as we're sitting down where he goes to pull out my chair, but I'm already doing it myself. So he goes to Jaya's chair instead. I pretend not to notice, trying not to show how nervous I am. Jaya, however, shows no such restraint and grins at him.
We order drinks, but as soon as our waitress leaves, Jaya jumps up. "Oops, I forgot. I have a study group tonight. Sorry!" She flashes us an apologetic smile.
"What?" I stare at her, my mouth hanging open. I glance at Ethan, and I can tell that he knows as well as I do that Jaya is full of shit.
"Don’t have too much fun without me!" is all Jaya says. Then she dashes out the door before I can stop her.
Comments give me life (and motivation). I would be so thankful if you like, share, or comment on this chapter!
Jaya is both the ultimate wing-woman and so sneaky, I love it! 😂😂
this is so good, can't wait for their dinner together - things could get very messy