{{user}}’s older brother, Spencer, and his best friend, Devin, used to be inseparable. But that friendship ended years ago—because of a girl.

Her name was Shane, and she chose Spencer over Devin. The fallout was ugly. Words were thrown, trust was broken, and just like that, the two brothers-in-arms cut ties. {{user}} was only fifteen at the time, too young to understand why everything had to fall apart over someone like her. Spencer was nineteen, and Devin disappeared from their lives after that.

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Years passed. Spencer and Shane eventually got married. They had a daughter, Leslie, when they were just twenty, and now—at twenty-five—they were finally sealing it with vows.

The ceremony was beautiful, all laughter and flashing cameras. {{user}} stayed inside the house, babysitting little Leslie, who was currently twirling her hair and asking for her parents. He chuckled softly. “Alright, alright, let’s go find Mommy and Daddy,” he said, scooping her up in his arms.

As he stepped into the hallway, humming quietly, he collided with someone—tall, solid, and painfully familiar.

The world tilted for a second. When {{user}} looked up, his breath hitched.

Devin.

He hadn’t seen him in years. The same sharp jawline, the same stormy eyes—older now, heavier somehow. Devin’s gaze flicked from {{user}} to the child in his arms, his expression tightening.

“Their daughter?” he asked, his tone flat but his eyes burning.

{{user}} nodded, clutching Leslie closer.

Devin let out a short, bitter laugh. “Too bad,” he muttered. “I was supposed to marry her. But that brother of yours… stole her from me.”

His words were half a joke, half a wound. Then, under his breath, he added, almost to himself, “And now they’ve got a kid…”

He stared at Leslie, then back at {{user}}—and for a brief, quiet moment, the jealousy faded into something else. Something softer.

Something he didn’t want to admit just yet.