Brayden had a childhood friend named Adalynn, someone who grew up alongside him. Her father used to work as Brayden's father's chauffeur. During a tragic sea accident, he sacrificed himself to save Brayden’s father, but unfortunately, he didn’t return alive.

Brayden's father, Arturo, was a man with strong principles. Without hesitation, he took in Adalynn and her mother, vowing to treat Adalynn as his own daughter and to care for them both indefinitely.

Adalynn was constantly by Brayden's side, even after we started dating, tagging along on our walks to and from school. This led to countless arguments between Brayden and me. When Adalynn finally stopped joining us, I felt a wave of relief. But then, just a few days later, she was back, leaning on Brayden for support.

"I'm sorry, Evelyn," she said with a sweet, apologetic smile. "I know you'd prefer I didn’t join you, but I twisted my ankle, and Brayden insisted on walking me home."

Brayden's attention was completely on her, his brow furrowed as he gently scolded her. "You twisted your ankle and didn’t tell me? Were you planning to hop home if I hadn’t come to get you? Hop on."

I still remember that day vividly. Brayden carried Adalynn on his back, walking ahead of me. She lay against him, sharing stories from their childhood, leaving no room for me in their conversation.

She whimpered teasingly, "Brayden, my foot hurts so much!"

I had never heard Brayden speak so softly, "Does it really hurt that much? What should we do?"

"I want a spiced honey cake from that bakery on the corner, the priciest one!"

"Alright, I’ll take you home first, then go get it for you."

"Brayden, can I walk with you again in the future? When I walk alone, those guys outside the school stare at me, and it freaks me out."

Brayden's brow furrowed more deeply, "Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning, and from now on, you’re not walking alone."

Adalynn smiled and glanced back at me. "Okay."

…

As the sun set, their shadows stretched long and intertwined, inseparable. I was drifting further and further behind, yet Brayden never looked back to check on me.

Only after he had safely delivered Adalynn home did he finally turn to me and say, "I need to get that cake for Adalynn. I won’t be walking you home today."

"Evelyn, you should head back on your own."

I watched him for a long moment before turning away and walking home.

After the incident, Brayden and I barely spoke for a whole week. Initially, he didn't think he'd done anything wrong.

"I've always thought of Adalynn as a sister," he insisted. "She hurt her leg; I couldn't just leave her there."

I kept my face neutral. "If her leg was injured, she could have called her mom, or your family's driver could have picked her up. Why did she need to wait specifically for you?"

"You think of her as a sister, but does she think of you as a brother? Are you really saying you don't know she has feelings for you?"

Brayden's eyes shifted, and then he let out a sigh, pulling me into an embrace. "Evelyn, you're the only one I care about. I'll speak to her and make some distance, alright?"

I closed my eyes for a moment. "Alright."

After that, Brayden did have a conversation with Adalynn. I don’t know what he said, but I know she left the classroom in tears and stopped seeking him out. I thought that would resolve everything.

But then, Brayden approached me, looking uneasy. "Adalynn says there’s this guy from another school who’s been bothering her. She’s told him no several times, but he won’t leave her alone. Today, he invited her and some friends to hang out, and she wants me to pretend to be her boyfriend to scare him off."

Watching for my reaction, he added, "Just for one night, to make him back off."

"We've been through this before, haven't we? Today she twists her ankle and needs you to carry her home, tomorrow someone bothers her and you pretend to be her boyfriend—what’s next?"

Brayden, who’s always been patient and kind with me, said, "If it weren't for my dad's accident, Adalynn's father wouldn't have died saving him. She'd have her father to look out for her now. I can't just abandon her. Just this once, if it makes things easier, how about you come along too?"

I realized arguing further was pointless and reluctantly agreed.

"Just for one day. I’ll go with you."

Brayden's face lit up with a smile, and he gently cupped my face to give me a quick kiss. "You're really understanding, and I love you more than anything!"