melancholy;

“Not really,” Gabriel agreed, his voice soft.  “Unless you decide to take criminal justice and you’re in one of my classes.  Which, to some extent, would be a fair play on your part.”  

There were a lot of reasons his heart shouldn’t be soaring with her saying essentially, she was in.  It did anyway.  Her words were backloaded with a lot of uncertainty and hesitation, though, and he couldn’t blame her for any of it.

“At some point, we’ll have to talk,” he pointed out.  “Like… really talk things through if we decide to make this work.  The only thing I can promise you for certain is I’ll be honest this time around.  It makes me kind of sick I have to say those words out loud, but… they’re not just words.”

.

“Do I seem like the kind of person who would further her education for the drama of it all?” she joked. Even if she objectively loved pettiness, she saw no need to give anyone any more power. Her college degrees would be for her, not out of spite. 

There was every chance she was setting herself up for heartbreak. What was it someone said about insanity and repeating patterns? Evie never learned. The worst-case scenario was that she learned Gabe couldn’t be trusted once and for all. Yet she found herself wanting to try. 

“I know,” she murmured. Talking wasn’t her strong suit, but it eventually became wholly necessary. “Only time will tell. I think we should at least discuss it.”

Status: Closed {for @eviexmorris​ }

Location: Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort

A resort felt like something way out of Breanne’s reach. A place to work at and not exactly visit. So when invited to one for her birthday she jumped at the chance. One of the resorts in the Cascades (as opposed to wandering around service roads for tiny little pools) was their destination. A very fancy pool situation with a spa. She wasn’t sure what to pack for, cold weather? Heat? Clearly a swimsuit for the pool area. So Breanne packed for both for the weekend getaway. “This place is cool! Did you see the pool area? It’s huge!” She gushed. It had a very different vibe than the upscale hotels her parents worked at. Mainly because it was in the middle of the wilderness.  

.

Resorts weren’t ordinarily a place Evie would go, but birthdays only came but once a year. What was the point of having friends if one couldn’t spoil them every now and again? At least, that was her mindset. 

The resort was only a few hours away and surrounded by the most beautiful scenery. Evie consistently underestimated the beauty of Mother Nature, but no more. In fact, she couldn’t take her eyes away. The allergy shot in the arm to combat the pollen was worth it. 

“I did! I can’t wait to enjoy it,” she enthused. While Evie was a city girl, she still found herself mesmerized by the wilderness. 

He had already laid it out there they didn’t have to really talk things through.  Her acknowledgment she didn’t want to landed just fine.  It was like nothing could really touch him or resonate too deeply while they were cuddled together in her bed.  “You’re probably right,” he agreed eventually, his voice nothing more than a low hum through his chest as his fingers trailed lightly over her head, soaking up the feel of her for as long as she’d let him.  “But the real-time, present is very different.  And we have an opportunity, if you want it like I do.  It wouldn’t be a do-over.  I know what I want now and I’m free to do it, in all the ways that matter.  Consequences aren’t as drastic.  Your job is safe.”  It was probably too bold to say her heart would be safe also, but it was probably true.  At least, it was as true as he could guarantee without knowing the future.  “It just depends what you want.  And honestly? You don’t have to know that or tell me now.”

.

.

Things were different now.

Evie wasn’t a naïve uniform who felt special that a detective had paid attention to her. She wasn’t the same naïve uniform who had been heartbroken that she’d been lied to and left with the damage. He wasn’t the same man he had once been. Letting him back in was risky and it was all a matter of it being worth it in the end.

There was no such thing as a do-over where they were concerned and maturity was realizing he hadn’t been completely in the wrong, much in the way she hadn’t been completely innocent.

“I don’t think there would even be consequences,” she pointed out. Except that she was putting herself on the line with the possibility that things could fall apart again. It was infuriating that once again, he had wormed his way back in. Maybe she would always hold that little snippet of something for him. Now was the time to measure her words carefully. “I don’t know what it is I want fully, but I also know that sometimes the best way to figure it all out is to just do it.”

Ben: Sounds great. Want alcohol too?

Ben: You work too much probably.

Ben: I absolutely do. Thursday then?

Evie: Probably correct.

Ben: Yes. My schedule is pretty open.

Evie: I've got Thursday off and it's my last day off till next Wednesday.

“Well hey, you’re here now to have some fun with your favorite and most attractive friend-” Dawson wiggled his eyebrows teasingly to her and continued, “so let’s forget about the traffic and drink up,” he chuckled with a grin. “What do you want to drink? And how was your day?”

.

“You’ll do,” she returned with a roll of her eyes and a sardonic snort. Taking a breath, no matter how cold it was outside, was freeing. Evie shrugged out of her coat and tied the arms around her waist. “I’ll take bourbon. Work fucking sucked but that was because I was stuck behind a desk all day. If I’m not behind a desk, I’m stuck busting small-time porn studios who are a little fuzzy on the papers. How about you?”

Ben: Something like that.

Ben: Me either. We have a lot in common.

Evie: Want to hang out sometime soon? I miss hanging out with you.

Ben: I don't know about insinuation. I think that's exactly what I said.

Ben: Only when mono is going around.

Evie: I'm harshing your mellow. Got it.

Ben: Well it kind of hurts if the female presence is distracting and you never get around to paying attention to someone else.

Ben: I know. Sometimes you trip and land with your tongue in someone's mouth. Actually happens to me quite a bit.

Ben: Okay.

Evie: Are you insinuating I'm distracting?

Ben: Need is a strong word. I'll go out with you anytime but I can get my own ass.

Ben: How does one do that unintentionally?

Ben: Just... be careful. Don't give him another chance to do it again after how hard you've worked. If you think he's going to, cut him loose. Otherwise have your fun.

Evie: Psh, please. It never hurts to have a female presence.

Evie: I didn't go there to make out with him.

Oh, I can't lie, I'm so lonely Oh, make it right and just hold me

He knew there were plenty of reasons they shouldn’t be laying where they were, as they were.  If he was really interested in convincing her he wouldn’t ruin her life again, and to maybe bless him with an opportunity to have the relationship they should’ve had before… it was probably for the best they hadn’t had sex, either.  The reluctance he could hear in her voice was natural. 

“We don’t have to talk about any of it,” he pointed out.  “We don’t have to tell anyone else about it.  But… just know.  I have some regrets.  And last night isn’t one of them.  If do-overs are a thing, I’d gladly take one with you.  And I’d do almost everything differently.” 

.

The reasons he shouldn’t be there, let alone in her bed, were left on the other side of the door. For a moment, it was easy. For a moment, the past four years were gone and she was just Evie Morris. He was just Gabe Williams. It took a moment to remember such when her head settled and she realized just who she had in her bed. 

“I’d rather not,” she agreed quietly. She swiped up a hand to rub her eyes and let her arm fall back down. “I don’t think do-overs will help anything in this situation.” 

These were the words she wanted to hear back then but was too afraid to.