Cory shook her head but leaned into her girlfriend’s touch when her hand was placed on her cheek. She didn’t respond, covering her hand with Cory’s to have her hold her a little longer. At Arden’s second question, she pulled the hand that she was holding down to their sides, folding their fingers together. She pulled away a moment later and pulled the girl inside before sighing. “She left,” she said quietly as she took her over to the living room. “Eva’s still here, though.” She glanced in the baby’s direction with a small smile before looking back at Arden with a small bout of nervousness. “Would you like to meet her?” she asked, taking her hand out of the other’s before she sat down on the couch. 

Arden understood exactly what was going on as soon as Cory said her mother had left. She did to Cory what she had done four times already, and left her to raise another baby. Arden swallowed hard, feeling anger toward the woman rise in her throat, upset that her girlfriend had to do this again. She nodded though, not voicing these feelings. “I’d love to meet her,” she said softly, following Cory into the living room. Her gaze immediately fell on the tiny baby in the rocker, and she bit her lip. She knelt down in front of the little baby chair, looking back at Eva. “Hi, cutie,” she whispered, smiling at her. She looked over at Cory again, and her smile turned sad. “I’m sorry she did this again,” she told her softly, wishing she could do something to help. What kind of mother constantly abandoned her children like this? “None of you deserve anything she’s done.” 

When Emmett left to go to school that day, Cory had called Arden over, telling her that she needed her as soon as she was available. Cory had already taken out old furniture that they’ve kept for Eva. She never thought she was ever going to be able to use them again. Many times, she thought of getting rid of it for storage space, but there was obviously a reason that she had never gotten around to do it. After awhile, the baby fed and changed, she was sleeping in the living room when Cory heard the knock on the door. Her eyes were still wet and red from the small moments she’s caught herself crying while taking care of Eva. Her and Em did agree that they couldn’t just give up on this baby, to let her go and be put in a shittier situation than what she was already born into, but Cory was still sad. She was 25, thinking of going back to school, trying to pay off debts that weren’t even hers, taking care of her brothers, and now it almost felt like another 18 years were sentenced onto her life that made sure that her life wasn’t going to be hers. Quickly, she moved to the front and opened the door. She smiled at the woman across from her before moving to the side to let her in. “Hey, baby.” Cory leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.

Arden was so glad to have Cory back in her life, to be back in the family that she had grown to love and feel like was her own. She smiled at Cory when she opened the door, leaning in to her girlfriend’s kiss on the cheek. “Hi, beautiful,” she greeted in reply, a grin on her face until she pulled away and could see how red Cory’s eyes were. Her hand went to the other girl’s cheek, a look of concern crossing her face. “What’s wrong?” She asked her. They hadn’t been seeing much of each other because of Cory’s mom being in town. She knew that Cory didn’t want them to meet and Arden respected that, keeping her space. But she knew that it was making things hard around here for everyone with the older woman here. She moved her other hand up to Cory’s other cheek, before leaning in and gently kissing Cory’s forehead. “Is it hard having your mom around?” 

Cory slowly walked over to Arden who sat back on the couch and she sat on the arm of the chair, keeping her distance still from the girl. She looked down at her hands in her lap and she shook her head. “I didn’t want to make you feel that way,” she said quietly. Cory felt like her body was on overdrive from the anxiety of showing and feeling her vulnerability. She hated it. But she hated missing Arden more. “I am sorry, Arden, I-” she felt the tears in the back of her throat choke her up and her eyes welled with tears, too blurred to see the girl sitting on the couch next to her. “I’m sorry.” 

Arden kept her eyes on Cory, despite the tears welling up in her eyes. She had a choice to make, and the decision felt obvious. She missed Cory like a limb, she wanted everything to be back to normal, she just had to get past this mental block that was preventing her from forgiving. Slowly, as if approaching a wild animal, she stood up and kneeled on the ground in front of Cory. She knew how hard it was for the other girl to be vulnerable, to communicate in this way, and a good part of Arden just felt grateful that she was opening up. Slowly, her hands shaking, she reached forward and took Cory’s hands in her own. “Then don’t make me feel that way anymore,” she whispered, looking up at Cory’s face. She raised one of Cory’s hands to her lips, pressing a lingering kiss on the back of her knuckles, before hesitantly looking back up at the brunette. “I miss you.” 

“No, Arden!” she said exasperatedly. “But what is it that you want me to say to you?” Cory’s eyes started welling up with her own tears out of frustration and her sadness. “That everyone in this house has been feeling your absence like no other person before? That I miss you and that I love you, and that I’m- I’m so stupid for saying what I did.” She felt she was just spewing her words now. “It’s just hard, you know? To let someone else take over. To- to maybe admit that I’m not always doing whats best for my kids.” A tear fell down her cheek when she said the last part, but then shook her head, that wasn’t the point she was trying to make. “I realize that this family needs you a lot more than I think any of us expected. I need you.” Her breathing was shallow and she could feel her whole body flush as she felt her emotions and felt shame by it. She looked away from Arden and leaned on the table. “So, please Arden- stay.” Her unsaid words were that if she couldn’t stay, then she had to leave for good and Cory was really hoping she wouldn’t choose that. 

Arden flinched slightly when Cory yelled her words, but then she kept talking, and Arden felt the tears fall down her cheeks. “You made me feel like I lost my family again,” she said, her voice coming out cracked. “Like-like an outsider, when I was considering you my family.” She sat on the couch again, elbows on her knees, letting her head fall into her hands. She was feeling every emotion again, everything she had been trying so hard to suppress ever since her and Cory broke up. “I don’t want to leave, I miss you more than I even thought possible, but.... I don’t ever want to feel this way again.” She sniffled but the tears were still coming, and it was like a dam broke inside of her. Why did she lose everyone she ever loved? “The boys are so lucky to have you, Cory. I never once thought otherwise.”

She knew that all of her words sounded like how Arden felt, but it wasn’t at all what Cory had meant. She knew that the other girl was apart of this family, more than almost anyone else that’s walked through that front door every day. Cory paused when Arden asked her what she was apologizing for and she felt like throwing herself on the floor then, wishing that Arden just knew that it was for everything. She bit her tongue, feeling like even if she apologized, it wasn’t going to fix anything. The uncertainty scared her. If she didn’t do or say anything, at least Cory was aware of how things were going to happen- or not happen. “You know,” she said quietly, looking down at her hands where she picked at the nail beds. “Everything.” 

Arden waited for Cory to say something, anything, but when she did, her words were ultimately disappointing. There was so much unsaid, and every time she tried to initiate a conversation, she got three words out of the other girl. “Cory...” She started, and then sighed. “Do you realize how exhausting it is, to try to talk to you and you’re not telling me anything? I don’t know what to do. It’s like you don’t even want to try,” she felt more tears come to her eyes, and she quickly tried to blink them away. “I feel like I said everything I had to say and you just..” Arden threw her arms up dramatically. “Like what the fuck, Cory? Is this what you want?” 

Her eyes had widened at Arden’s response and she felt like she was ready to scream, feeling so stupid and always saying the wrong things. “N-no.” Cory moved forward a step, feeling herself becoming frustrated more than anything. She felt like she was being assumed the worst and maybe she was. “I don’t think that- I’m just- I dunno, I just wasn’t expecting to see you… here.” She grit her teeth then, her own tears welling in her eyes. “You’re always so quick to run, now?” she asked, her hands balling into fists at her sides. Cory flicked a hair away that had somehow fallen into her eye. She closed her eyes then and sighed loudly. “I’m sorry, Arden.” She opened her eyes and looked at the girl in front of her. 

Arden didn’t even know what to think anymore, frustrated and feeling like Cory wasn’t talking to her in the way she wanted. She just wanted to stop feeling unwanted. “You made it really clear that I don’t belong here, so I don’t know why you expect me to stay,” she commented when Cory said she was quick to run. And maybe she was, maybe she thought that was easier, but she was in pain and didn’t know how to deal it when every time she saw Cory it went badly. She paused what she was doing when Cory apologized, and sighed. “Sorry for what?” She asked, hoping that she was opening the door for them to have a conversation, but knowing Cory, it might be like pulling teeth. 

The feeling’s that she had towards Arden came at her without any warning. She had missed her so much. Missed seeing her, talking to her, just being with her. It hurt to see her here in her home like it was any other day at the Blake house before their fight had ever happened. Her gaze fell to the clock as well and she frowned. Cory was going to talk to Emmett, at least to talk about next time giving her a head’s up if he was going to ask her ex to watch their brothers so she wouldn’t be so caught off guard. “Yea- no, it’s- it’s fine.” Cory shook her head and looked down at the ground. She didn’t know what else to say to her. She’s tried, many times, to call, to text, to say sorry, but she always stopped herself. And now it was like god was playing a joke on her that he put Arden here in her house, to mock her because she just couldn’t say the words she needed to say. “Thank you.” She paused, putting her hands in her pockets to keep them from picking at anything else. “-For watching them. I can pay you?” she asked, not knowing if Emmett had promised that to her to get here. 

Arden just nodded when Cory said it was fine, and wished more than anything that she would say something else. They hadn’t talked in weeks and it was eating her alive - but she felt like she said her part. She felt like it was Cory’s turn, but she didn’t seem to have anything to say. Arden’s head snapped up when Cory offered to pay her, her gaze incredulous. “You think I’m only here because I expect to get paid for it?” She shook her head, feeling a lot of negative emotions rising in her throat. She felt like she kept learning about the opinion that Cory had of her, and it wasn’t very high. It was making her feel horrible - she had put everything into this relationship and it didn’t seem that Cory could see any of that. Without warning, she felt her eyes well up with tears, and she was quickly collecting her things, wanting to get out of there as quickly as she could. “I shouldn’t have come here,” she mumbled as she shoved the book she had been reading back into her bag, slinging it over her shoulder. 

Cory was tired, grimy, and annoyingly sticky from a patron getting too drunk and spilling their drink when they got overtly excited watching the local hockey game on the tv that night. Everyone had been watching it and even she had paid attention to it during some points during the night, feeling pride towards number 5 on the screen. Despite the spillage, when Charlie’s team won, Cory got a little too into it with some of the men watching the game and cheered and took a few shots with them, proud to announce that one of those boys was practically hers to the entire bar. She might’ve gotten too zealous and promised a few signatures of the boy in her tipsy state. But now she was home and ready to shower and when she opened the door to her home, she was ready to continue her excitement over Charlie with Emmett when she was met with someone else entirely. “Our fuckin’ boy did it! Oh-” Her girlfriend- ex- taking a break- Arden. Her smile that was for her brother had fallen at the sight of the girl. “Oh,” she repeated, putting her bag down on the floor. Cory straightened her top and pulled her hair out of her messy bun. That’s stupid, why did she feel the need to do that? After a moment, she put her hair back in a bun on top of her head. She felt like she didn’t know what to do with her hands. “Um- where’s Emmett?” she asked, finally, awkwardly. 

Arden didn’t realize how much she missed the Blake house until she was here again, and it was kind of painful. The boys had all greeted with a hug and she almost cried - she had been here pretty much every day since she had met Cory, and she had grown to love these boys so much. Being away from them for this long had been difficult, despite Arden trying to keep herself busy with work. She had made dinner and they watched the hockey game together, cheering for Charlie every time they saw him on the screen. She must have sent him a thousand texts congratulating him after the game was over, so proud of her friend. But after the boys had gone to bed and Arden was left alone in the Blake house that she missed so much, she was filled with emotion. This had grown to feel like her home too, and now that she was exiled from it, she felt like she didn’t have a place in the world. Like she was just here playing pretend for one more day. Arden looked up from her spot on the couch when the door opened, expecting to see Em, but hearing a more familiar voice instead. She froze, not expecting this to happen, and seeing Cory was even more painful than being in this house. God, she missed her so much. She sat and watched as Cory undid her hair and then redid it, and she felt the exact same level of flustered. “Oh - uh, he really wanted to make it to Charlie’s game tonight..” She explained, casting her gaze downward. “I - he swore he’d be back before you were but I guess he lost track of time..” She glanced over at the clock and then cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, is it weird that I’m here? I just.. missed the boys really bad, too. I didn’t want to say no.” Arden was fiddling with her hands, refusing to look at the girl in front of her. This was so uncomfortable and she hated it. It should never be this way with Cory. 

Her eyes darted up at the ceiling, thinking of Emmett when Arden said what she said. Cory understood what she was saying. She kicked him out before, though, and yet it still seemed to not work. Maybe she just needed help to figure out how to handle this with someone she actually cared for. “I know,” she said quietly, not knowing what else to say without it sounding like an excuse. She didn’t want to do that to Arden. Cory knew that this was one of the reasons why she didn’t bring anyone home, that Arden was the first person she ever brought into this house to meet her brother’s and care for them the way that she did. It wasn’t mainly because she was afraid that the other would hurt them, that she didn’t trust Arden, it was because she had the hardest time actually letting them in despite saying otherwise. She already knew she didn’t deserve anything that Arden gave her, and she just proved it that night. 

Arden waited for Cory to say more, to say anything, but she left it at those two words. Her shoulders slumped, and she ran a hand through her hair, feeling defeated. “I.. don’t know what else to say,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. She was exhausted by this fight, she didn’t want to fight with Cory anymore but she was still so hurt by Cory’s words and in such shock that she acted that way. “Maybe it’s best if we take a break from this. If I stop trying to help you with your stuff,” she said, feeling like she was forcing her presence into Cory’s life when it wasn’t wanted. And she didn’t want to feel that way. She also didn’t want to be without Cory, but that didn’t even feel like there was another option right now. “A break from everything, actually.”

“That’s not- that really wasn’t what I meant to say,” she told her. “I just can’t…” Cory paused what she was about to say, practically repeating her words out loud earlier. She couldn’t take having someone else take over and tell her what to do with her brothers. She dreamed of a time where she could have help, to have someone like Arden come in, an angel, but for some reason, in the end she wasn’t able to accept it as much as she wished. “I don’t like not knowing what to do and not knowing how to handle it, I got pissed because you were right.” Her admittance might not help her any, but at least she was able to admit it out loud. “Anyone else, I would’ve been able to agree with you, Arden, but Seb, he’s-” She shrugged, feeling frustrated. “Don’t leave,” she begged. 

Arden had her hand on the door knob, ready to leave, to walk away from Cory treating her like this. But with every word she said, Arden was finding it harder and harder to just walk away. She looked at her girlfriend, at the woman she had been basically playing house with for months. “I respect your friendship with Seb, you know I always try my hardest with him. But what happened today.. you chose him over everyone else,” she sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “I’m supposed to be your partner. I’m supposed to help you with these things. But you pushed me aside like I didn’t matter.” The tears started flowing slowly again and she looked away, up at the ceiling so avoid more from coming. She was all about communication and not just walking away from a fight, but right now that’s all she felt like she wanted to do. 

Cory flinched at her words, looking down at the ground. She noticed her back off and move towards the door, and she was conflicted. She didn’t want to watch her leave, she didn’t want her to be out of her life and that fear overtook any other feeling that she was having at the moment. She struck out once tonight, she moved to try one more time. Taking a step forward quickly, running after Arden, she tried to reach for her. “Arden, wait. I’m sorry.” She wasn’t going to cry, she wouldn’t, not with her apology hanging in the air, the embarrassment and shame of everything overcoming her. “You didn’t deserve that, I’m sorry,” she repeated, hoping that it would do something to not lose her forever. 

Tears were falling down Arden’s cheeks now as she walked toward the front door. She was planning on leaving without another word, but as Cory came after her and stopped her, she turned around. “No, I didn’t deserve that,” she said, her voice breaking slightly. She angrily wiped the tears off of her face. “Is that really how you feel, Cory?” She asked, needing clarification. If after all of this, Cory still didn’t she was part of the family.. well, it hurt. It felt like she was losing her family for a second time. “I just don’t know what we’re even doing if that’s how you think of me.” 

Hot, angry, sad tears were at the corner of her eyes when Arden mentioned her brothers and how Seb wasn’t showing that he cared for any of them, including herself. She felt ashamed, hearing the truth, but not wanting to believe it. She bit the inside of her lip, tasting blood, to try her best to keep herself from saying anything worse. She just let Arden yell at her, spit the truth at her and how fucked up she acted towards Arden who didn’t deserve it. She really didn’t mean for her words to be interpreted the way that it had. The entire time, Arden was apart of this family, but after so many years of doing it on her own, it was a hard switch to let someone else tell her that she did something wrong. Her entire life was about taking care of this house and the family and understanding that this was the one time she didn’t do it right, upset herself more. Her pride was an issue, she couldn’t take being told that what she did was wrong. Cory backed off and stood there, her arms slacking as she looked anywhere but at Arden. She didn’t know what she was supposed to say, believing that anything that she might would just dig herself an even bigger hole. It would help herself to admit to Arden that she was right and that Cory was wrong, but she couldn’t right now. She just felt so misunderstood and frustrated and for the first time in a long time, feeling like she hated her life and all she could do was lash out. “Arden, please…” Please what? There was nothing that she could or would say right now. 

Arden just shook her head as Cory tried to reason with her, feeling like maybe this was the end. She promised herself she would never let anyone treat her badly again, and the way that she was feeling right now was not great. “No, Cory, I understand where we stand now. I can see myself out,” she said, although honestly the last thing she wanted to do. She felt so confused by the bad turn that things took today, and with how she was sure Cory was feeling, she wished that she could be there for her. But not after the way she spoke to her today and the things she said. Arden felt like from Cory’s view, she didn’t mean anything to her. She wasn’t family, she was part of this, even though Arden had practically been living here and taking on a lot of the responsibilities around here. It was all pretend, apparently. Walking back Cory, she headed in the direction of the front door, knowing that she had to get out of here. She didn’t want this to be the end of them, but she also had never been hurt so deeply before. 

Cory quickly stepped back when Arden turned around and snapped at her, her eyes wide. “Wow, okay,” she started, taking a deep breathe as she felt anger surge in her chest. “I didn’t pick a fucking drug addict over anyone.” Then she stepped forward, mimicking her stance and crossing her arms, looking up at her. “And you don’t have any right to sit there and fucking tell me what I’m doing right or wrong with my own god damned family, do you understand what I’m saying now?” The last thing Cory needed was a fight with Arden, not after having one with Seb, wishing that she could instead talk about it without anger, but she couldn’t sit here and let Arden think she knew how to run her kids and their life better than Cory. “I was nice about it before, but now, again, you don’t know shit about any of this.” 

Cory’s words were sharp and hit her chest like knives. The purposeful distinction that Cory was making, letting Arden know that she wasn’t part of her family, that Cory didn’t consider her to be as important to her as Arden considered Cory, was breaking her heart in two. “Oh, I understand it perfectly, thank you so much for clearing that up,” Arden spat, her words dripping with sarcasm. “You’re honestly going to stand there and act like it’s not your fault that Emmett cried on his birthday? You let this man into your home to treat your brothers like shit, to traumatize them even more than they already are, and you’re so far up his ass that you can’t even see that he doesn’t give a shit about you.” Arden shook her head, feeling exasperated. “I get it, I should shut my mouth, I don’t have a family so why should I be telling you how to run yours, right? It’s not like I’ve been here every fucking day caring about and loving these boys. I’ve given literally everything to you, and the second I’m not agreeing with you, fuck me, right?” She felt hot tears prick her eyes, but she blinked them away, not willing to give Cory the satisfaction of seeing her cry right now. This was it, she realized exactly what she meant to Cory - or what she didn’t mean - and it felt like this entire relationship had just been them playing pretend. 

Once Caden and Maren left, Cory stood in front of the door for longer than she should’ve, knowing that Arden was in the kitchen. She was a little afraid, realizing when she sat on the couch earlier, thinking over everything that happened, she knew that she might’ve upset her girlfriend. Her pride was getting the better of her though and as she slowly walked into the kitchen, telling her brothers to go to the other room, her eyes found Arden. “I didn’t mean for what I said earlier to come off the way that it did.” No, she was not going to apologize, but she hoped that this was close enough for the two of them to get over it. She was still upset, wishing that she could’ve kept Seb close to her that night, hearing some of the things that he told her rubbed her the wrong way, hoping that he wasn’t actually going to never come back. Cory couldn’t help worry herself. There was a piece of glass that was still on the floor, obviously missed, and she went to go pick it up and throw it away. She bit her lip and then moved towards the taller girl, wrapping her arms around her middle from the back. 

Arden was struggling to control her anger after the way Cory acted earlier. She wasn’t going to blow up in front of everyone, and she didn’t even want to blow up on Cory, but she felt like it was almost inevitable. Arden barely had a temper, never got upset, was so patient.. but she felt like Cory had crossed so many lines earlier, and she couldn’t even believe she acted that way. She didn’t say anything when Cory spoke to her at first, the words only fuelling her anger. She kept doing what she was doing, her back to Cory, but then she felt her girlfriend’s arms wrap around her and she snapped. Did she really think everything was okay right now? “Then how did you mean for it to come off?” She asked, breaking out of her embrace to turn and face the other girl, crossing her arms over her chest. “Because I just stood there and watched you pick a drug addict over your brothers. So please, what don’t I understand, Cory?” 

Cory smiled on Arden’s skin hearing her pleas. She kept her touch against her moving, her lips trailing all way across every inch she could reach until they met her center. Moving her thumb away, Cory pressed her tongue against her, tasting her for the first time made her only crave more before her lips went around the girl’s swollen bud, sucking on it, wanting to find all the ways that made her tick. Her tongue swirled around her, finding her entrance as her thumb once again found her clit and rubbing slow circles before picking up the pace. “Does that feel good, baby?” she asked, pulling away for a moment to look up at the beautiful girl, wanting to see her reaction to Cory pleasing her. 

Charlie was feeling a little overwhelmed at the similarities he was hearing from Arden’s words, but he just didn’t know how similar. Not yet. He didn’t know if he was there just yet. He did smile at her after she spoke, knowing how the two of them were now and how they seemed to make the perfect sense together. How easy it was to call them their family. “I guess this is where you tell me that it’s going to be me that has to figure all of this out? That you can’t decide for me?” he asked, smiling over at her. Emmett had said he needed a few days, but with each passing moment of Charlie sitting here, he didn’t know if he could handle a few more days without seeing Emmett and it felt like maybe there was his answer in there somewhere. He asked for a few days to get over what it was that was happening between the two of them, but what if Charlie didn’t want him to get over it? But then what if Charlie didn’t feel the same way in the end? As he thought everything over in his head silently, he placed his face back in his hands. “Why is this so hard, it shouldn’t be this hard.” He knew he was making it hard for himself, mostly. “I’m just scared of hurting him,” he admitted with a sigh. Charlie moved his hands away again and looked at Arden after a few long moments of silence. “I know I’m not a Blake, but I’m glad I can call you my family, too.” He was more than appreciative that he knew that he could come to her and he hoped that she felt the same with him. 

“I wish I could tell you exactly what you needed to do,” Arden laughed. She also wished that someone could have done that for her when she was pining over Cory, but it was something that you just had to figure out on your own. “But I know that you’ll figure it out. You’ll know that you need to do.” She just hoped that he was smarter than her, and didn’t keep everything bottled up so tightly. He deserved to be happy, whatever that meant for him. “I think that the fact that you’re so worried about hurting him says something in itself. You just need to be honest with him, and yourself. That’s all that matters.” She just shrugged her shoulders, giving him a reassuring smile. He’d get there. She looked at him curiously when there were a few long moments of silence, and his next words made her want to cry. He was sure he could see it in her face, the way she cycled through emotions. She reached out and took one of his hands in both of hers, holding it close to her. “You’re my family, too,” she told him, honestly. She was so lucky to have met everyone she did. “Look at us. We went from having no family to having.. the best one. I spent so long wishing for something like this.” 

He turned his head to look at her when she asked the second question. Charlie just stared at her, the words running through his head. “He’s my best friend, that’s all I know.” He shrugged softly. He couldn’t explain to her that there was something that followed him his entire life keeping him from truly finding some sort of happiness. He kept up a great front of being the happiest, being kind-hearted, being confident in himself, but in the end he was probably the biggest cynic, angry, and the hardest on himself. “I don’t know, Arden, something is going to happen and that’s going to change his mind about me. I just didn’t want it to be so soon,” he said quietly. “I’ve never had what I have with Emmett before, and I know you’re my friend and I can tell that what I feel towards you is different than him. I just, I never thought about love like that. At least for me.” 

Charlie’s words made Arden so unbelievably sad. How could someone as good as Charlie think that love wasn’t for him? “Charlie,” she started, her hand still gently rubbing his shoulder. “You deserve love and to be loved. More than anyone else I know.” She knew what it was like to not have family, to spend most of your life not knowing what it was like to be loved. But that didn’t mean it was never possible for him. “You have standards for yourself that impossibly high. You’re not perfect, no one is. And Emmett knows that. He knows who you are, and he knows you make mistakes, and you have emotions that aren’t always easy. He doesn’t just want to be around you for the good days.” She smiled at her friend reassuringly, bringing her hand back into her lap. “I know that Emmett is not going to stop being in your life if you don’t return those feelings. But don’t... prevent yourself from having something good just because you think that love isn’t for you. It is, Charlie. I promise you.”