K.

Chapter 37- Table For Three

Typical Saturday night. I was free with nothing to do and so was Alex. We'd not hooked up after his accidental "I love you" to me but we were continuing to spend time together, keeping our agreement of never bringing it up again. We thought of going to the bar we usually went to. That was the plan, just the two of us getting some drinks. Until, Alex got a text from Miles who wanted to join us as he happened to be in town.

With Miles' arrival, our plans changed. Under Miles' suggestion, instead of going to the bar, we decided to go to the new restaurant that had just opened down town. It was a slightly fancy choice for a casual Saturday night out but a dinner felt right considering how rarely we got to spend time together with him. Alex was practically an LA resident, Matt lived between LA and Sheffield and Jamie and Nick always had a reason to visit their friends or come to town for work purposes. Miles on the other hand, had no reason to come to LA so he was never present for our usual weekend nights or meet ups.

I hadn't seen Miles since the wedding which'd been a month ago. As expected, he was acting a bit, differently around me. It was subtle but given the context of the texts, I could tell. He talked to me like usual but his body language was very intimate. He sat closer to me, paid more attention to me than he did to Alex (which was probably the strangest part of all). He also seemed a little restless all night, like he had something he wanted to say and kept trying to get me alone with him. I had an idea about what it could be and if my assumptions were right, I knew I had to avoid it at all costs, for his own good.

There were a few times where Miles almost succeeded. The first time was when Alex tried to get up and leave to go to the bathroom, which I didn't let him. I felt bad about doing that but I had no other option. A few minutes later he wanted to go out to have a smoke since the restaurant had a strick no smoking policy. But I stopped him again and kept him beside me so I wouldn't be alone in the company of Miles. Because if I'd allowed for it, I knew what would've happened.

Alex was cooperative mostly cooperative but when Miles lost his patience and politely asked him to give us some privacy, he got up and left. No questions asked, he didn't even look at me once or acknowledge me. He just walked off as if he had no idea of how much I wanted to avoid the exact situation he was creating for me to be in. I felt really let down and even offended by his lack of care and usual jealousy.

"What is this all about?" I asked Miles, looking behind me as Alex walked out of the door and into the reception area.

"Listen, I didn't want to do this tonight. But I may not get a chance to see you face to face again, so I'm taking the risk."

"Why? Are you dying?" I joked.

"First off, I don't like how casual you're being about me dying and second, no I'm not." He played along the joke but did not seem like he was in the mood for it. He looked quite serious.

"Alright, look... I'm a simple guy. I don't hide how I feel, just doesn't work for me. So, this may seem sudden but I just wanted to say that I kind of like you and I'd love to go out with you sometime." He said, nervous but confident.

I knew it. I saw it coming. Yet, I was so speechless.

"Miles, I don't know what to tell you."

"I know, I should've waited on it but I just couldn't."

"Look, you're great... I love spending time with you and how much you make me laugh. But I'm so sorry, I just can't do this." I admitted right away. I didn't want to keep it going for any longer than necessary.

The regret of rejecting him so quick hit me a few seconds later, as I watched his expression change. I realised I could've let him down more easy, in a less harsh manner. But what was done, was done.