Trading My Ex for His Uncle

Valarie opened the door and stepped out.

After she left, Brandon pulled out his phone and dialed Yale. "Got time for a drink tonight?"

"Sure. But last I checked, Valarie keeps a tight leash on you. You sure you can go drinking?" Yale asked.

Hearing the teasing in Yale's voice, Brandon lowered his gaze. "She doesn't care what I do anymore."

She didn't even want him now, so why would she care if he went out drinking?

"Alright then. I'll call Nolan and Jayden. You and Jayden need to settle your beef anyway. You two fighting online all the time is just making people laugh at you," Yale grunted.

Brandon frowned. "If you invite him, I'm not going. I don't want to see him."

If Jayden showed up, the first thing he'd do was try to convince him to see Michelle. And right now, just hearing her name annoyed him.

If it weren't for Michelle, things wouldn't have spiraled so far between him and Valarie.

"Fine, fine. I won't call him. See you at the usual place," Yale said.

"Yeah," Brandon hummed.

He hung up and drove straight to the bar.

Not long after, Nolan and Yale arrived.

Seeing that Brandon had ordered several bottles of hard liquor, Yale raised an eyebrow and took a seat across from him. "Brandon, what's really going on between you and Jayden? I heard Michelle got hurt saving you, and you haven't even visited her once?"

Brandon downed his drink in one gulp. "No, I haven't."

"That's kind of harsh, don't you think? Even if you don't like her, she's still been

our friend for years," Yale pointed out.noveldrama

"When I brought Valarie to meet you guys, you saw how Michelle and Jayden kept making digs at her. I

made it clear that I don't want toet

attend any gathering where Michelle is present. But Jayden keeps tricking me into showing up anyway," Brandon explained.

"Besides, every time Michelle is there, Valarie just happens to find out and show up too. You really think that's a coincidence?" he asked.

It was obvious. Either Jayden or Michelle had been feeding Valarie information.

Yale sighed. "Man, I don't get your whole tangled mess. You and Valarie should be together, and Jayden should just date Michelle. Wouldn't that be easier than all this drama?"

"Valarie said she'll forgive me if I stay away from Michelle for a month. So no matter what Jayden or Michelle try, I'm not seeing her," Brandon said.

It was cruel to Michelle, but if Yale had to choose between his girlfriend and his friend, he knew which one he'd pick too.

"I get it." Yale nodded. "I'll try talking to Jayden. When it comes to Michelle, though... that's out of my hands."

The only reason they had ever gotten close to Michelle in the first place was that she and Jayden had grown up together. She'd always been part of their group.

But if they were talking about real friendships, her strongest connection was still with Jayden.

To be honest, Yale had always felt that Michelle was a little manipulative.

She knew damn well that Jayden liked her but still played innocent and used him to get closer to Brandon. And now, she'd successfully driven a wedge between Brandon and Valarie.

"Don't worry about it," Brandon said, swirling his drink. "I don't care what they do."