Chapter 27: The Diner

Twenty-four hours later, Jalen was with Sydney at her condo. They were sitting on her couch, half-watching TV while Sydney leaned into him, absently running her fingers along his forearm.

She’d been doing this a lot ever since she told him about the pregnancy. Seeking comfort in the small things, and truth be told, Jalen didn’t mind at all.

“You know,” Sydney murmured, shifting slightly against his chest, “I think my body is already hijacking my brain.”

Jalen chuckled, his deep voice vibrating against her cheek. “Yeah? How so?”

“Well, for starters, I’ve had to pee four times since this movie started,” she said with an exasperated sigh. “I cried at a commercial for paper towels this morning because the puppy looked ‘too lonely.’ And right now, if I don’t get a jar of pickles and some spicy nacho cheese in the next hour, I might actually lose my mind.”

Jalen laughed out loud, wrapping his arm tighter around her shoulders. “I’ll make a grocery run, don’t worry. Whatever you and the baby need.”

The word ‘baby’ still hung in the air, a heavy, permanent reality that had shifted their entire dynamic.

A couple of months ago, Sydney had explicitly told him she just wanted to enjoy being single and didn’t want anything serious. Now, they had agreed they were going to raise a child together.

“It’s still crazy to think about,” Sydney admitted softly, her fingers tracing the veins on the back of his hand. “We went from just hooking up to ... this.”

Jalen nodded, his gaze softening. “Yeah. And it happened the very first time we did it. Life comes at you fast.”

“You know,” Sydney tilted her head up to look at him, a playful, nostalgic glint in her blue eyes. “At Lonnie’s party ... when you first walked up to the bar to get your drink ... I couldn’t stop looking at you.”

“I know,” Jalen smirked. “I saw you checking me out.”

“Shut up,” she laughed, lightly slapping his chest. “But seriously. I was standing there with Greg, completely bored out of my mind, and the second we made eye contact, I felt this ... pull. I didn’t want to admit it to myself then, but when we were dancing in the basement to that Pretty Ricky song ... I knew right then I wasn’t leaving that house with Greg.”

Jalen let out a low breath, his fingers gently brushing a stray blonde wave behind her ear. He knew exactly what she meant by the “pull”.

“I knew it the second I saw you standing there in that red dress,” he said. “Greg was right next to you, rambling about his golf swing, and I remember thinking ... what kind of idiot brings a woman looking like that to a party and completely ignores her?”

He paused, his voice dropping to a husky murmur. “When you reached behind you and grabbed me on the dance floor ... I was holding back so hard. I wanted to turn you around and take you right there against the wall.”

Sydney smiled, a slight flush rising to her cheeks as she remembered the blistering heat of that night.

Just as Jalen was about to lean in and kiss her, his phone started buzzing repeatedly on the coffee table.

He glanced down. It was Megan.

His stomach tensed. She hadn’t called him directly since the night she called to tell him she was safe after escaping Chris. Something about this call felt different.

Sydney noticed the immediate shift in his expression. “You gonna answer that?” she asked.

Jalen hesitated for half a second, then nodded, swiping to accept. “Megan?”

There was silence on the other end for a moment. Then, finally, her voice came through sounding soft and hesitant.

“Hey, Jalen.”

Jalen immediately sat up straighter, his protective instincts flaring. “Hey. What’s going on? Are you okay?”

Sydney watched him, her eyes sharp with curiosity. Jalen felt her shift slightly, giving him a bit of space, but he kept his attention on the call.

Megan took a shaky breath. “I need to see you.”

Jalen frowned. “Are you safe?”

“Yes,” Megan assured him quickly. “It’s not about Chris. It’s ... something else. Can you come?”

Jalen could hear the heavy emotional weight in her tone. He glanced at Sydney, who was clearly listening but not interrupting or demanding answers.

“Yeah,” Jalen finally said. “Tell me where.”

Megan gave him the details for a local diner, and they hung up. Jalen exhaled a long breath, running a hand down his face.

Sydney raised an eyebrow. “That sounded intense.”

Jalen nodded, his jaw tight. “Yeah. I think it is.”

Sydney studied him for a moment. Then, instead of questioning him further or getting possessive, she just sighed, gave a small, understanding nod, and leaned back against the couch.

“Go. Just keep me posted.”

Jalen looked at her, deeply struck by how easily she was handling this. He turned his body toward her, reaching out to take both of her hands in his.

“Sydney, wait,” he said softly. “I just ... I want to thank you.”

She blinked, confused. “For what?”

“For being so accommodating,” he explained, his dark eyes locking onto her blue ones. “With everything going on ... supporting me with Kristen and everything going on with Megan, you’ve been incredibly patient and understanding. You haven’t made me feel guilty for it, and I appreciate that more than you know.”

Sydney gave a soft, self-deprecating smile, looking down at their joined hands. “I just ... I don’t want to be a burden on you, Jalen. You already have so much on your plate, and I don’t want to add to it.”