Even though it was stupid to feel hurt over Cayden taking the phone call—she could've just taken the call to another room so she wouldn't disturb me further, for all I knew—I had a weird feeling in my stomach. I couldn't tell if it was a response to how Sebastian secretly cheated on me and me already expecting the worst or if it was genuine concern that something was off.

I laid in bed, trying to get back to sleep, but I could feel the anxious spiral coming on already. Once it started, it'd be hard to stop, and then the chances that I'd fall asleep again were pretty slim. The pillowy soft large bed suddenly felt uncomfortable, the constant need to change my laying position many times kept nagging me.

I readjusted in bed, trying to get comfortable to tempt myself to sleep, but all I could think about was the possibility of who Cayden was talking to. I didn't want to consider Zera as an option, but she was still in the back of my mind. It felt insane to keep going over the same possibility over and over again and assuming the worst of Cayden, but me and Sebastian's weird relationship—even if my feelings weren't fully invested, it was all still real for me—had done a phenomenal job of shattering my trust. I mean it was so obvious, girls coming up to him during dinner as if they'd talked before, lightly touching his shoulder or sending him playful looks. Still, there was no proof in his phone or laptop and it all somehow left an impression on me regardless of the situation. I felt guilty for feeling that way and thinking so negatively of Cayden, but I also didn't really know her—if we ever were to date, she could be just as capable of cheating on me as he was.

Against my better judgement, I checked the clock to see how long Cayden had been gone. Ten minutes. What was she talking about for ten minutes? Who would call her so early in the morning? Probably work right? It had to be work... but then again she left the room, which felt oddly secretive. No, no, she was being considerate. She assumed I was sleeping so she left to not disturb me, that's the only reasonable answer. Yet, I still felt unsettled and nervous. Like I was itching to just rise from the bed and go join her, but I know that'd be too much or I'd come off obsessive or clingy.

I tried to ease my mind a little bit, thinking about how it couldn't be a booty call since it was too odd of an hour—and then I realized how absurd that was to think. Cayden and I had just confirmed that we were into each other, and it seemed like it was going pretty well. If she really did like me, she probably would've been honest about if she was seeing someone else. Or at least, I wanted to convince myself of that really badly.

I mean I'm sure she's talking to a colleague or something. With her being only a year older than me, I keep forgetting that she runs an entire business and that she's not a college student like me. I'm sure that's why the phone call has lasted this long, her colleagues or employees probably have an early morning crisis going on... then again why couldn't that wait until she got into the office? She goes in around ten which was only a couple of hours from now—maybe it's time sensitive and serious. I don't know, most of the time her employees or colleagues don't bother her outside of the office—unless we're counting Zera who might potentially be one of those, for my sake at least.

Eventually, the door opened. I kept my eyes closed as Cayden closed the door again and got back into bed. I waited for the warmth of her touch but got nothing. After keeping my eyes closed for a while, I opened them and saw that Cayden was on the other side of the bed, her back to me. My stomach dropped, immediately knowing something was wrong.

I considered moving to her side of the bed, but it was clear she intentionally moving away from me. The bed was big, but Cayden seemed to always make an intentional effort to keep close. We hadn't known each other that long, but I was starting to see some patterns with her to the point that it hurt that she was suddenly changing them.

Who was on that call with her? I thought.

Eventually, Cayden's alarm went off and I pretended to wake up, opening my eyes to look at her. She was still on the other side of the bed, completely closed off from me. It was hard not to take her actions the wrong way and feel a little bit hurt. My anxiety swept over me, making my stomach hurt and my mouth dry. I didn't want to prepare for the worst, but I felt it coming.

I took a deep breath, trying to remind myself to chill out and not make assumptions. Cayden would talk when she was ready—which I hoped was sooner rather than later. Once she explained herself, decisions could be made on how to react. But wasting my energy being anxious before Cayden even said anything was pointless. All it would do was drive a wedge between us and I hated the thought of that.

Cayden got up and I looked at her, watching as she changed out of her shirt and drank from her glass of water. I waited for her to look at me or say something, but she didn't. It was like I could feel the warmth had been zapped from her body.

"Hey," I said, knowing my voice was edging on childish and desperate. I tried to keep my tone level, but it was hard.

Cayden didn't look at me. "Hey," she said. "I'm getting in the shower."

"Okay," I said, waiting for her to say anything else at all but not getting anything. She was impossible to actually read—I had no idea if I'd done something or if the phone call had upset her or if she just wanted me to go home—but I knew it wasn't good. Whatever was going on, whether related to me directly or not, affected me and I wanted to go home. "I'll head out."

"Okay," Cayden said, not bothering to tell me to stay. That stung more than anything else, especially because I felt like I hadn't done anything wrong. It was clearly connected to the call, but what could she have been told that would be making her distance herself like that? Why was she putting it out on me?

Cayden walked off to the bathroom to shower and, once I heard the water was going, I got up and changed as quickly as I could. I considered waiting around and seeing if she'd change her mind, or maybe even trying to join her in the shower, but the risk of rejection was too much. I was already stinging from the way she was suddenly treating me—made all the worse by how kind she'd been last night—and I didn't need to go back for seconds.

I gathered all of my stuff and rushed out, not bothering with leaving a note or texting. If Cayden wanted to act like that, fine, but she couldn't expect me to wait around for her to suddenly get better or be kinder.

Or at least, that was what I told myself. Her icing me out felt awful in every way and I didn't know what to do. The only thing I really could do was wait her out and see what happened.

I just wished I had answers of any kind.