"But then she basically said we were done. Which, knowing her...isn't likely. She always goes back and forth on everything! I mean, am I wrong? Is it wrong of me to be upset by this? Am I in the wrong here? I mean, I know I don't really pick up on a lot of things...but this can't really be my fault, right?" I ask. "I'm tired of being the one to fix everything. I'm tired of being the only one to apologize!"

"Good. She's drama anyways." Shane says after I finish ranting about Natalia. While I know I should probably go after her, I'm tired of being the one to chase her. I'm tired of being the only one trying to hold this entire thing together. I haven't been in many relationships, but they can't always be this difficult, right?"

"It's not always drama." I mutter, tossing Shane's baseball from his desk up in the air and catching it quickly.

"Lately, that's all she's ever been." He replies with a sigh. "I know I tend to be pretty...I don't know. I know I've been making this harder on you than it needs to be, but this is just frustrating to watch. I mean, she has been so much lately. I have no idea what's happening with her. She hasn't always been like this. She was...calm. Patient. She was everything that I thought was going to be perfect for you. And even if she wasn't constantly those things, you would be able to level her out. But this...I mean, all of this is just too much. You don't deserve this." He explains.

"She's the only girl that has ever looked at me the way that she does, though..." I reply.

"No. She's the only one that you have noticed. You're a good looking guy, Gray! Tons of girls have noticed you. She's the only one that broke through to you, but that doesn't mean she's the only one." He adds.

"I want for things to work out, though." I reply.

"Yeah, I know. Sometimes, things don't work out the way we want, though." He sighs.

"I told her we would talk when she got home." I tell him.

"To your place?" He asks.

"Our place." I correct him.

"Grayson." He groans. "Come on. Get real. You can't just seriously move her in this soon. With everything going on between the two of you? Do you really think it's the right time?"

"You moved Sofia in like two days after you two started dating." I remind him once again.

"Yeah, but we've known each other for longer than what? Two fucking months?" He laughs.

"You were on board with this for so long. God, I feel like we've had this conversation fifty times." I bite back.

"Well, you never seem to fucking get it either." He snaps back, equally as harsh as my own reply.

"Maybe I just don't need you to be in my fucking business anymore. Take care of your own relationship. Don't worry about mine."

"You know what, you're right. Take care of your relationship and i'll take care of mine. But don't forget that without my advice, you would have never had the balls to even talk to her."

"And if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have Sofia at all. So I guess we both owe it to one another."

"Just get out." He says, rolling his eyes and pointing at the door. "I'm not about to fight with you just because you're in a fight with your girlfriend. Or should I say ex-girlfriend?"

"What the fuck has your problem been? Lately all you have been is an asshole to everyone. Me, Natalia, and Sofia are all getting your shitty attitude and it's completely uncalled for."

"I'm not being an asshole. I'm being honest. Sorry i'm not going to kiss your ass like everyone else just to spare your feelings." He mutters.

"No one does that." I reply.

"Everyone does that." He laughs. "And i'm not going to. I'm being honest with you. You know, I know it's hard for you to notice basic fucking things, but I think the answer is pretty clear. She just isn't into you." He replies, leaning up in his chair and placing his hands on the desk.

I don't know what he means by his words. I understand what he's saying, but I don't know why he said it. Truthfully, this hurts. He notices the look on my face and lets out a heavy sigh.

"Gray." He exhales.

"I'm taking the rest of the day off." I reply, tossing the baseball back to him which he catches with ease.

"Gray, wait." He replies.

"No. I just need to go." I reply as I leave his office.

"Gray!" I hear as I'm walking down the hallway. I turn and see Shane trying to catch up with my quick stride.

"Just leave me alone." I say with a laugh, still trying to walk away from him and towards the elevator.

"No. I didn't mean it the way that it came out, I swear. I just-"

"You're just being a fucking dick." I snap.

"Yeah." He agrees. "I am. And I'm sorry." He sighs.

"Don't be. You said what you said. Probably true anyways." I reply.

"No, it isn't." He says, grabbing my shoulder and forcing me to turn towards him. When I jerk my shoulder away from him, he frowns. "Gray."

"I'm. Going. Home." I say.

"Cool. I'm going home too." He says, following me to the elevator. "I'll get us an Uber."

"You drove here." I reply.

"And I'll leave it here over night. It'll be fine." He shrugs.

"Just leave me alone, Shane." I groan.

"No. You've never been pissed at me before and I'm not about to just let you leave without saying I'm sorry." He replies.

"You already said you were sorry." I add.

"Yeah, and you haven't forgiven me yet so I'm just going to stick by your side until you do." He replies as he presses the button for the bottom floor.

"You're annoying." I mutter.

"You are too." He replies, giving me a smirk.

I roll my eyes and smirk, absolutely annoyed that he's easily forgivable.

"I'm still mad." I remind him.

"That's fine. But i'm not leaving you." He replies. "Now stop being stubborn and i'll drive us back to the apartment."

"Fine." I grumble.

"You'll forgive me soon enough." He smirks.

"I know." I reply.

It's what I always do.

-

Unpopular opinion: Shane is still easily one of my favorite characters. Ugh. What an asshole but we do love him.