Never Judge

"Businesswise, she is good." Alexi said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"That's all? She's amazing Alexi!" Ayanna exclaimed.

"Her abilities don't mean anything if she is a rotten person deep down." Alexi coldly answered. "Don't let you business mind over cloud your judgement Ayanna." Alexi warned her.

"You personally saw how she was today Alexi. She has given us no reason to doubt that she is a genuine person." Cedric explained to his friend.

"I trust Jen." Alexi insisted.

"Alexi, shouldn't you consider that she is possibly letting her emotions get to her?" Ayanna asked. "There is nothing wrong with that, there is nothing wrong with her heartbreak, but you shouldn't take it out on someone who just wants her freedom to love." Ayanna said in a more tender and understanding tone.

Alexi sighed. 

"Fine, I won't take it out on Selina, even if she clearly hurt Jen." Alexi said in surrender. 

Cedric smiled and nodded at his friend.

"I'm going out for dinner with Jen tonight. Can I interest either of you in a double date?" Alexi asked.

"I'll go." Cedric said with a nod. 

"Can't, a double date means my husband has to be there. Ray has a business dinner." Ayanna said with a shrug.

"Where?" Cedric asked Alexi.

"There's a new restaurant she wants to try." Alexi explained.

"Alright. I'll talk to Adrianna." Cedric said with a nod.

Later that night, Cedric took a cab to pick Adrianna up at Islands Inc.'s office.

"What's with the double date?" Adrianna asked her husband as she leaned on his shoulder and held his hand. 

"Alexi wanted Jen to be more comfortable with being a couple." Cedric explained.

"Are they even a couple?" Adrianna asked with a laugh.

"Nope. But you know how Alexi is with this." Cedric said with a sigh. 

In order to keep their relationship a secret, Alexi had reserved a private room as Jen arrived through the front door and Alexi through the back door in the kitchen. Since Cedric and Adrianna were having dinner as just themselves there was no need for them to take extra precautions. 

When Cedric and Adrianna arrived Alexi and Jen were already inside, Jen happily greeted the couple, she looked relieved that someone else was in the room with them, while Alexi glared at Cedric. Clearly he was trying to get intimate with Jen.

"Cedric met someone interesting today Jen." Alexi said as he pulled Jen over to his lap.

"Alexi." Jen complained as she blushed.

"It's ok, Cedric and Adri are worse." Alexi teased. "He met Selina today."

Jen suddenly froze when Selina's name was mentioned, Alexi gently caressed her and helped her calm down.

"I know she hurt you Jen." Alexi whispered as he held Jen by the hand.

"She did, but it's not her fault." Jen said as she began to cry. "I chose to be with her, to follow her, some relationships really just end." Jen said with her voice shaking.

"She let you follow her around for years, you sacrificed your career and your education because you loved her." Alexi said as he whipped the tears off of Jen's eyes. 

"She led me to a better place, to a better version of myself." Jen said as she lifted her chin.

"I guess, if it weren't for her I would never have met you." Alexi said as he gently placed a kiss on her cheek.

"Jen, I think it's unfair that I've heard the story from her side, but I haven't heard it from you." Cedric said as he held Adrianna's hand.

"Do you really want to?" Jen said shyly. "I'm not of the same level as all of you." 

"Don't worry Jen, you spent months with us. We trust you." Adrianna said with a smile.

"Alright." Jen said with a nod. "Let me sit properly." Jen scolded Alexi who lifted his hands to show that she could move to her own seat.

Jen moved to the seat next to Alexi and let him hook an arm around her waist. She took a deep breath and began her story.

"Selina and I were best friends. We've been friends since we were eight." Jen said with a sigh. "When we were in our junior year, I realized that I saw her as more than just a friend. At first I was so confused, so it took me over a year to gather up the courage to tell her how I felt. As a matter of fact I waited till our last months in school before finally admitting to her my feelings."

"And she accepted it?" Cedric asked.

"No, she didn't accept or reject. She just continued to treat me the same way." Jen said with a frown. "I took that as a sign that she liked me back, so when she said she wanted to study in New York I happily followed, my dream school was there as well anyway. My family couldn't afford to send me there so I saved up, worked several jobs and was eventually able to earn enough to study in New York with her. The first two years were great, we spent almost every moment together, we even lived in the same apartment. Eventually she let me get a little bit more intimate with her. I could hug her, hold her by the waist, and hold her hand. Whenever I would tell people that I loved her she never said anything, she never rejected me in public, which I took as a good sign. Suddenly one day she tells me that she wants to go to France to be a model and pursue a career in fashion. I was torn, but I chose to follow. I believed our love was stronger and that I could uproot my life for her, at first things were great, but Selina kept moving, one moment it was Paris, after a while London, then Milan, eventually Berlin. It was there that she told me she didn't love me, she told me that she never thought of me that way, that to her all I was was a friend, but now she saw me as even less than that." At her words Jen broke down in tears. 

Alexi pulled her to him again, letting her sob onto her chest as he caressed the back of her head, trying to comfort her. After a while Jen whipped the tears away and sat back up.

"I'm sorry. It's a painful memory." Jen told Cedric and Adrianna.

"We understand." Cedric said with a nod.

"Gave Selina the best years of my life. I sacrificed so much for her, then she tells me after five years of me chasing her that she doesn't love me back." Jen said in a sad tone. "Luckily I finished my studies in Berlin that year. After a while I flew back home and landed a job at Saints Hospital on Kashmere. I tried to hide the damage Selina had caused me, but deep down it has always been painful. That's why I can't love anymore, I shouldn't love."

Alexi lifted Jen's chin and looked her in the eyes. "You can love, I will teach you to love again. I will wait for your heart to heal and I will wait for you to open it up to me." Alexi's voice was filled with a tenderness Cedric had never heard from the man.

"Please don't." Jen told Alexi. "I don't want you to keep waiting for nothing." 

"I'd rather wait for you forever, than be with someone that's not you." With that Alexi placed a gentle kiss on Jen's lips.

Adrianna nudged Cedric making him look at her.

"What? I'm romantic too." Cedric complained, making his wife and friend laugh. 

"Thank you for trusting us with your story." Cedric told Jen as he pondered about the two sides he had heard.

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