She laughed again... sharper. “This is about her, isn’t it? Hadley. Little Miss Perfect. She waltzes in, gets pregnant, and suddenly I’m the villain. She ruined everything.”
“She didn’t ruin anything,” I said. “We did. We let you weaponize Mexico for years. We let guilt keep us tied to you. We let it excuse behavior that hurt people. Including you.”
Sydney stared at me. Tears welled. “I loved him. I still do.”
“I know.”
“And she gets to keep him. Keep the baby. Keep the life.”
“She’s not keeping him,” I said quietly. “They’re divorcing. But she’s keeping her dignity. And she should.”
Sydney wiped her face. “You’re in love with her.”
I didn’t deny it. “I was. I told her. She turned me down. Politely. Told me we’re all toxic. That we need to fix ourselves before we fix anything else.”
Sydney snorted. “She’s not wrong.”
“No,” I said. “She’s not.”
Silence settled between us, heavy, familiar.
“I miss you guys,” she whispered. “I miss us.”
“I miss us too,” I admitted. “But the version of us that existed before we started hurting each other isn’t coming back. We have to build something new. Or let it go.”
She looked at me, really looked. “You’re leaving too, aren’t you?”
“I need space. From all of it. From you. From them. From her.”
She nodded slowly. “Okay.”
I stood. “Get help, Syd. Please. Not for us. For you.”
She didn’t answer. Just stared at the floor.
I left.
....
Cal’s new place was a penthouse in West Hollywood, nothing flashy, just six bedrooms with good light and a view of the hills. He opened the door in a T-shirt and sweats, hair messy, eyes clearer than I’d seen in years.
“Hey,” he said, surprised. “Come in.”
I stepped inside. The place smelled like coffee and fresh laundry. A framed photo of Asher sat on the counter, taken last week, the baby smiling gummy at the camera.
“Nice,” I said, nodding at it.
Cal smiled, small, real. “Yeah. Hadley sent it.”
We sat on the couch. He handed me a water.
“What’s up?” he asked.
I took a breath. “I told Hadley how I feel.”
He froze. “When?”
“Today. After you left the apartment.”
