They Canceled My Ticket I Canceled Them Chapter 01
There was an unspoken rule between the five of us: we never said what we meant. We guessed.
We guessed what to eat. We guessed where to go for the weekend. We even guessed who was paying.
They called it the kind of shorthand you only get after ten years of friendship.
But every single time, I was the only one who guessed wrong.
Two weeks before Labor Day weekend, I typed into our group chat: *Where are we going for the holiday?*
The other four sent the exact same reply: *Guess.*
I asked my boyfriend, Marcus, in private. He glanced at his phone. “Heard Lake Tahoe is gorgeous in September,” he said casually.
That night, I booked a flight to Reno.
The next day, Madison posted a photo of palm trees in the group chat. *Already looking forward to the ocean breeze.*
I canceled the ticket and rebooked for Key West.
The day after that, Daniel forwarded an article about hiking in Moab. *Every adult should walk through the desert at least once.*
So I changed my flight again.
In seven days, I changed my plans eight times. This time, I thought, I would finally guess right.
But the night before we were supposed to leave, I saw a group chat on Marcus’s phone. One that didn’t include me.
Madison: *I’ve decided. Seattle.*
Daniel: *Works for me. Buying my ticket now.*
Tyler: *By the way, don’t forget to give Ellie the right hints.*
Marcus sent a thumbs-up emoji.
And that’s when I understood. They hadn’t chosen a destination. The only one who had been guessing all along was me.
This time, I wasn’t changing my ticket.
I was going to the wrong place, and I was going to have the vacation *I* wanted.
…
“I hear Seattle’s famous for smoked salmon.”
Marcus Winslow leaned against the kitchen doorway, his tone as casual as if he were commenting on the weather.
I was washing a glass. At his words, my hand stilled.
The water kept running, sluicing down the side of the cup.
He came over and turned off the faucet.
“You’ve always been smart. I don’t need to spell it out for you, do I?”
He glanced down at his phone. The screen showed an Instagram story Madison had posted ten minutes earlier: a photo of a quaint waterfront café in Seattle.
I picked up a towel and dried my hands, saying nothing.
The script was simple. I was supposed to act like I’d just figured it out. I was supposed to cancel my ticket to Moab and immediately rebook for Seattle. Then I would type into the group chat: *So it was Seattle! I knew I’d get it right this time.*
After that, they’d send a few laughing emojis, savoring my performance. In the end, I’d probably thank them for not leaving me behind.
I’d been a foster kid in the Reed household since I was fourteen. Daniel and Tyler were the closest thing I had to brothers. When I started dating Marcus, their best friend, I grew even more terrified of losing this family I’d found for myself.
This time, I glanced at the calendar on the wall.
“Sounds nice. Have some for me.”
I walked past Marcus and went straight into the bedroom.
He let out a short laugh behind me, apparently bored that I hadn’t followed the script.
The day we left, Chicago was gray and overcast.
We’d agreed to meet in the departures hall at O’Hare. By the time I arrived with my suitcase, the other four were already settled in the lounge of a coffee shop.
Madison, in a floral sundress, held a macaron up to Marcus’s lips.
Daniel adjusted her wide-brimmed sun hat while Tyler showed her a video on his phone. She was laughing so hard she was practically draped over the arm of the sofa.
“Look who finally made it. Our Ellie.”
Tyler spotted me first and raised a hand.
“Another five minutes and we would’ve left without you.”
I rolled my suitcase to a stop beside their table.
“Traffic was bad on the highway.”
Daniel stood and held out his hand.
“Give me your license. I’ll print your boarding pass at the kiosk so we don’t all have to wait in line.”
I pulled my license from my wallet and handed it to him.
Daniel tapped the card against his fingertips, a flicker of amusement in his eyes.
“Moab sand probably doesn’t make a great breakfast, Ellie.”
I didn’t answer.
Ten minutes later, Daniel returned with five boarding passes.
He handed one to me.
“Take a look at where you’re *really* going today.”
I looked down. Destination: Seattle-Tacoma.
Madison came over and looped her arm through mine, her smile treating it all as a harmless joke.
“Ellie, I knew you’d guessed wrong again.”
“Good thing Daniel saw your booking on the shared itinerary last night. Who’d have thought you actually bought a ticket to Moab?”
Marcus walked over and casually took my suitcase handle.
“The desert is all dust and dry air. Madison has asthma. We couldn’t possibly take her somewhere like that.”
“Your instincts for the group are getting worse and worse,” he said.
Tyler chimed in from the side.
“You should thank Daniel. He called the airline, canceled your ticket, and even paid the fare difference himself. Otherwise, you’d be landing in Utah all alone right now.”
Daniel could see my confirmation number because we all used the same travel app. Marcus knew my airline password. Not one of them had asked me first.
And now they were framing it as a gift—invading my privacy, canceling my flight, and rebooking me without a word.
The edge of the boarding pass dug into my palm.
“Actually, you didn’t have to do that.”
I looked up at them.
“I would’ve been fine going to Moab by myself.”
They all went quiet for a moment.
Marcus frowned.
“Elena Preston, it’s too early for this. Are you really going to start a scene?”
“We’re traveling together, and you want to run off to Utah alone? Are you trying to make everyone uncomfortable?”
Daniel put a hand on Marcus’s shoulder, cutting him off.
“Ellie, I was just worried it wouldn’t be safe for you alone. Seattle’s great. Lots of restaurants by the water.”
Madison gave my arm a little shake.
“Exactly. And don’t you love the ocean? We can all take a walk on the beach together.”
Madison was the one who loved the ocean. I was the one with the shellfish allergy.
They remembered dust could trigger her asthma, but they never remembered my allergy.
I pulled my arm free and slid the boarding pass into my pocket.
“We should get through security.”
Once we boarded, Marcus took Madison’s boarding pass and led her to the row ahead of mine. Their seats were together.
Daniel and Tyler sat in the row behind us, in the window and middle seats. The aisle seat was mine.
After I sat down, Tyler handed me a bottle of water and dropped a stack of Madison’s magazines onto my lap.
“Hold these for her, would you? Her carry-on’s packed.”
“Okay.”
I shoved the magazines under the seat in front of me.
After takeoff, the cabin gradually grew quiet.
I leaned back, looking out at the clouds.
My seat used to be next to Marcus. Daniel and Tyler would sit behind us, reaching over to ruffle my hair and ask if I was hungry.
Then Madison showed up.
She’d just come back from abroad with nowhere to live, and Daniel had promised her late father he’d help her get settled in Chicago.
At first, they just said Madison had recently lost her father and that I should cut her some slack.
The front passenger seat in the car went to her because she got carsick. She chose the restaurants because she had a sensitive stomach. Soon, even Marcus started saying she needed looking after more than I did.
Each time, they took just a little more. And each time, I told myself it wasn’t worth losing my family over something so small.
By the time I realized what was happening, I’d become the outsider, the one always guessing, always trying to fit in.
A flight attendant reminded everyone to put their tray tables up.
I sat up and pushed mine back into place.
In the row ahead, Marcus was tucking a blanket around Madison’s shoulders. They were huddled close, their voices a low murmur.
I closed my eyes and turned my face toward the window.
This would be the last time I played their game.