It wasn't Andie's intention to brood as terrible as she did, but she couldn't help it. And it only worsened when Teddy left her to her own devices. He didn't want to leave her, but he was in the middle of his workday.

Just as the drama of Andie potentially running off escalated, he was headed out for a bank run. His plans were put on hold when he exited his office to find Andie amid an argument with a stranger. He stayed with her for a while as he contemplated whether to take her home himself or wait for Eric to arrive. He opted for the ladder and felt it would be best if he wasn't here when Eric arrived, no matter how badly he wished to stay.

Sometimes he had to remind himself that Andie wasn't his.

She didn't want him to leave, and it tugged at his heart to see her so distraught. He felt deeply concerned for her as he saw a kind-of hollow in her eyes. He feared that the issue at hand was manifesting into something much darker inside her head. She was very good at turning minor hiccups into devastating events. And this incident was slightly above a minor hiccup, so Teddy could only imagine the demons that must be torturing her now; pulling her far under the veil of reality.

He left her with a tender brush of his knuckles along the curve of her cheek, but she didn't look up. As he ascended the stairs, he dialed Eric.

"Please tell me she's still there," Eric said the second he answered his phone.

"Of course, she's still here, but she isn't in a good place. I think you'll need to approach her carefully when you get here."

"Don't worry, I have no intention of getting onto her until she's feeling better about all of this. I just can't believe that Morgan would show up and cause such a fuss like that."

"It was strange, but there's something more to her than that. You should have seen her; she was so distraught as Andie tried to explain everything... Mentioned stuff about her brother doing it, and how much she hated it..."

"Morgan's brother never did this kind of stuff to her. He ended up becoming the sole guardian at one point because their father was never around, so he disciplined Morgan like a father would discipline his daughter. And to tell you the truth, without John's parenting, I worry that Morgan wouldn't be in a good place. She may have never graduated high school or gone to college."

"Whatever it was, it didn't sit well with her. I kind of feel bad for the girl. I'd wager she has some issues with authority now which would explain her reaction to me."

"You royally ticked her off, didn't you?"

"Not intentionally. I couldn't help but get onto Andie a little bit when I spotted her in the Green Parlour after hearing you had tried to get ahold of her all morning. And Morgan didn't care for that, and of course, I don't blame her. Anyone who isn't familiar with this wouldn't understand it."

"Yeah, that's a fair point. What a mess. You're still there, right?"

"I'm just heading out. I have to get these checks to the bank before 2 PM or else they probably won't authorize them until the day after tomorrow. But Andie is downstairs waiting in your office. I'm sorry, man, I hated to leave her."

"No, it's fine. I'm almost there."

"All right, I'll catch up with you both later."

"Bye."

Now outside with a bank envelope in hand, Teddy ended the call with one last look at the establishment before begrudgingly getting into his car and driving away.

But he was right about Andie's demons dragging her under, and while he drove away, Andie hunched over Eric and Teddy's desk and wondered what she was still doing there. She knew that she wasn't thinking clearly, that it was the anxiety and stress of her confrontation with Morgan that fed into her manic thoughts, but she couldn't stop herself now that she had begun.

Rubbing her forehead on the cold wood of the desk, she recalled every moment that Morgan had been there for her over the last six years. She had been there for Andie because Eric hadn't been. And how did she show her loyalty? By choosing Eric instead?

No, no, no, that wasn't correct. She wouldn't have had to choose a side if Morgan hadn't been so against her decision. Why should Morgan's distaste for something that made Andie happy be the ultimate decision for Andie?

It shouldn't, of course. Morgan should have been understanding, or at the very least supportive of her friend's happiness.

Unless... Unless it was all wrong. What if this thing between her and Eric, and even Teddy, was morally wrong, and Morgan's reaction was a reflection of that? What if Eric and Teddy weren't normal, and this thing that Andie was partaking in wasn't normal, and out of this whole hideous situation, Morgan was the only normal one?

Sitting up, Andie looked at the olive green wall that saw the start of something amazing between her and Eric.

Or the start of something wicked and depraved...

Whimpering at her voice hissing words into her head, Andie placed her fists on her temples and whimpered. In these moments of panic when she couldn't hear anything outside of her insecurities, bad decisions were always made. This time, she needed to stop herself from doing something stupid. She needed to wait for Eric; he was almost there.

She closed her eyes and thought of him. Eric would make everything better. He would explain Morgan's distrust, and he would tell her that it wasn't her fault; that none of this was her fault. And he would hold her in his arms, soothe her, and talk her away from the precipice where she teetered so dangerously.

...And that would drive her further away from Morgan...her dearest and oldest friend who never left her side whilst she recovered from Eric's abandonment. And what if she and Eric didn't last forever? What if they were to break up in a few years? Andie would have lost her best friend over some guy.

Shaking her head, Andie stood from the chair and paced anxiously up and down the length of the office.

It was happening. Her anxieties were manifesting into real decisions that would surely ruin Andie's life because there just wasn't a life without Eric. Without him, she was an empty shell of a girl who suffered a degree of pain worthy of countless therapy sessions and lots of medication. That wasn't the life she wanted. She wanted a life with Eric... She needed Eric.

But Morgan...

Crying softly to herself, Andie opened the heavy office door and slipped out, unseen by anybody, because she was entirely alone.

***

Eric would arrive at the Green Parlour to find it void of anybody. Andie wasn't in the office where Teddy left her. And s thorough search around the premises would prove that she had left.

After a panicked phone call to Teddy, who confirmed that Andie wasn't with him, Eric raced back home, hoping that she had returned there. He would understand if she felt the need to leave the establishment and find the comfort of their home.

But upon entering his condo and calling her name while scouring every room; he didn't find her there.

Eric stopped in the kitchen, winded and confused as he wildly searched his brain for anywhere else that Andie could have gone. That's when, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a white piece of paper tucked at an angle at the corner of the counter.

Something in his chest seized and for a moment, his lungs refused to breathe. He slowly approached the piece of paper, and reached for it warily as if it could cause him great pain.

Part of him already knew that it would.

Unfolding it once, the wrinkled note read; "I'm sorry," and Eric's world came crashing down around him.

He couldn't believe...that she actually left. Every time she had felt that nervous desire to flee, he had been there to comfort her and remind her of how rare their love was. But this time, he didn't get to her in time. That, and a new obstacle presented itself.

Morgan.

The note crumbled in his fist which he pressed against his forehead.

Blast that girl.

Had she any idea the effect her words would have on Andie? Clearly not.

Eric couldn't let her get far. He knew she was heading back to Chicago, probably back to her old life with Morgan, and he likely wouldn't find her along the way. But he could trail her entire journey and find her in the windy city and then he would talk some sense into her; just like he should have done if only he had arrived at the green Parlour a little sooner...

Leaning into the counter, Eric closed his eyes and released a long breath. He needed to go about this rationally, but... he couldn't believe that she actually left. They had worked so hard together to prevent this, and Andie had made such incredible strides in trusting him and believing that this was good for them.

But one confrontation with an offended friend sent the whole thing toppling down.

Within fifteen minutes, he was leaving with a duffel bag thrown over his shoulder. In his hand he held his phone which he used to call Teddy.

"Please tell me she's with you, because I just got back, and I expected to see you guys here, but the place it totally empty," Teddy said the second he answered Eric's call.

"No, she's gone."

"Don't play with me."

"I'm sorry, man, I wish I was kidding, but she's actually gone. Left a note and everything."

"Oh my God..."

Teddy sounded just as distraught as Eric felt, and he didn't blame him in the slightest. He knew that Andie meant a great deal to him. Over the past few months, the three of them had become very close.

"I'm going after her."

"Good. I'm coming with you."

"It's a long trip to Chicago, Teddy."

"We can fly. I know Andie is driving, but if we beat her there than we can get to her right away and prevent her from settling down into her old life in Chicago."

At his car, Eric tossed his duffel in before sitting in the drivers seat and closing the door behind him. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I hate leaving her on the road by herself. It kills me imagining her make this twenty-hour drive on her own. It's not safe," he growled, a wave of anger rushing in.

"I know, dude," Teddy responded, his voice softer and less emphatic than it had been before. "Her friend was very convincing. And you're right—forget what I said about flying. Let's drive. Then, at least, we'll be on the same route as her. I'd like to think that in case of an emergency she would still reach out to you."

"I'd like to think that too... are you sure you want to come?"

"It's Andie, man."

"Yeah..." Eric released the bridge of his nose and turned on the car. "I'm on my way."