Page 94 of Fragile

I notice his jaw flex once. “You’re in love with Quinn?” he asks, confusion marring his words.

Without backing down. “Down bad, man.”

His mouth presses into a thin line. “How long?”

“Since that night she went on a date with Alex.”

“Months?” His face twists with disbelief. “You’ve been fucking around with her formonths,and I didn’t know?”

“I know,” I groan, dragging a hand through my hair in frustration. “I should’ve told you.”

“Damn right, you should’ve,” Seb snaps, eyes blazing. “Why didn’t you? I’m your best friend, Miles.”

I shake my head as I feel the weight of his words. “Exactly that. I crossed a line we agreed I wouldn’t. Because…you’ve always said no one’s good enough for her and that included me. So, we decided not to say anything for a while, figure things out until we were ready to tell you.”

Seb’s glare doesn’t waver. “And you thought screwing around, taking drugs, and going behind my back somehow makes you good enough?”

I flinch, the accusation hitting hard. “I deserved that,” I admit, my voice low. “I messed up. I know I did.”

For a moment, Seb’s anger is unrelenting, his eyes like steel. “Fuck!” he shouts, spinning around and pacing the room aimlessly.

“You probably want to punch me right now, and normally, I’d let you, but”—I point to my head—“concussion and all, I’ll have to write you an IOU.” I’m hoping I can ease some of the tension between us.

Seb huffs a laugh, crossing his arms over his chest, giving me a stare that I’ve seen from his dad plenty of times. It makes my skin itch. He still doesn’t say anything, and I feel as though I’m being suffocated more and more by the second. His eyes bore holes into me, and I think I might explode.

“Or maybe you want me to leave and that’s the end of our friendship because I fucked everything. But I need you to know, I can’t lose her too. Ideally, neither of you.”

Seb’s scowl deepens, and I definitely think he could give his dad a run for his money. I’m downright shuddering.

But then something shifts, softening the hard lines of his face. He exhales deeply and shakes his head. “I’m pissed,” he mutters, voice quieter but still tense. “But this is a clusterfuck. Quinn, your dad...it’s messed you up, and I should’ve...” he trails off, looking away.

I swallow hard as guilt swirls in my gut. “No, don’t do that. I made those choices, and I messed up. I can own that. Yeah, it was rough, but I’m here now, and I’m going to be better.”

Seb pauses, finally meeting my eyes again. “I get it. But Miles, with Quinn. You don’t get to screw up when it comes to her.”

“I’m not going to,” I say, conviction filling every word. “I’m done screwing up. She means everything to me.” Emotion prickles my throat.

Seb looks at me for a long moment, and the fight in him seems to fade just a little more. “If you really mean that, you better show her. Don’t mess this up, or I swear...” He lets the threathang, but it’s less harsh this time, almost like he’s hoping I won’t.

I swallow hard, trying to keep my voice steady, but the lump in my throat makes it almost impossible.

“Listen,” he says, widening his stance slightly. “Did you fuck up? Yeah, you did. Do I wish you’d told me about things? Yeah, I do. But if you think for one second that I’m going to leave you, let you deal with all this alone? You’ve got it all wrong.” He sighs loudly. “I’m pissed, sure, but you don’t get to decide when this friendship ends—because it doesn’t end. Not now, not ever. Captain or not, teammate or not, dating my sister”—he shudders—“which, by the way, I do not want details of. We’re in this together, and that’s how it’s always going to be. You hear me? It doesn’t end.”

“Yeah, man,” I manage to say, the words barely escaping through the tightness in my chest. “I hear you.”

But even as I say it, a part of me resists, doubts creeping in like they always do. How the hell do I deserve this? His loyalty, his forgiveness, his faith in me… I can’t shake the feeling that, sooner or later, he’ll get tired of my bullshit.

“Especially not because now you know you’re going to marry Quinn, right? Like, that’s the only option here,” he says with a pointed look, and I can’t decide if he’s serious or joking. “Then we’ll be family for real and forever.”

Seb’s words hit me like a punch, but not in the way he probably expects. Marry his sister? The old me would’ve freaked out at the idea—too much commitment, too much pressure. But now? I feel a weird calm settle over me, like it’s the most natural thing in the world. The thought of spending forever with Quinn doesn’t scare me. It actually feels…right.

I let out a breath, a small smile tugging at the corner of my mouth as I meet Seb’s pointed look. “Yeah,” I say, voice steady. “I’d do it. I’m all in.”

Seb’s expression cracks—just slightly. He raises an eyebrow like he’s trying to gauge how serious I am, but he doesn’t say anything. I think he expected me to stutter, panic, backtrack. But I don’t.

Because deep down, I know, if anyone’s my forever, it’s her.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been a part of their family my whole life and they’re always there for me. Or maybe it’s because I’ve got the girl I never knew I wanted. The girl that has always been mine, without me even knowing.

---