The city drifted by in streaks of light and shadow beyond the car windows. Inside, the quiet between them felt full, like a breath neither had released yet. The engine hummed beneath them, soft and steady.
Jenna sat in the passenger seat, still in the gown, hair slightly undone, fingers tangled nervously in the fabric of her sleeve. Kourtney kept one hand on the wheel, the other relaxed in her lap, her eyes focused ahead.
Neither of them spoke—until Jenna finally did, voice barely above a breath.
"I'm sorry."
Kourtney didn't look away from the road. "Don't be."
Kourtney glanced over briefly, brow raised. "So how did you end up there in the first place?"
Jenna hesitated, then exhaled. "When I got to Bella's room, she wasn't there. Her vanity room was empty, except for a note left on the table."
"A note?"
"She wrote that she couldn't attend tonight. Said she had an important date tonight. And then she asked whoever found the note to go in her place."
"Seriously?" Kourtney frowned, eyes still on the road. "That's how you ended up in that mess?"
"I know," Jenna nodded. "I tried calling you right after, but I column't reach you. I didn't want her to get in trouble or lose her spot, so I just... stepped in."
Kourtney nodded once, not surprised by Jenna's reason. "I called too. After I got to the café. Straight to voicemail. Figured something was off."
Jenna sighed, leaning her head back. "I left my phone in her room. I didn't realize until I was already in the ballroom. And then thighs escalated"
Jenna looked down at her lap. "But you showed up. Right on time."
Kourtney didn't respond, but her expression shifted—just a little. A glint of something between reassurance and resolve.
"Thank you," Jenna added, voice tight but sincere. "For being there."
"I always will." She replied
There was a long pause. The car turned down a quieter street, shadows stretching across the hood.
Then Jenna spoke again, slower this time.
"That call you got. Right before you left. What was it about?"
The air shifted—not tense, but not the same.
Kourtney's fingers tapped lightly once against the steering wheel. Then she looked at Jenna, not blinking.
"It's almost about time, Jenna."
She didn't ask what that meant. Didn't need to.
The moment passed between them—wordless, understood.
Kourtney looked back at the road, and neither of them said another thing.
Outside, the city rolled on.
And inside, something had just begun to move.