-Eric-

I groaned into my hands, still trying to come to terms with the fact that I'd foolishly agreed to Jacqueline's job offer. And what made matters worse, truly, was that I hadn't even bothered to account for the possible consequences. It was just a short-term internship, so I'd quickly fooled myself into believing that it wasn't such a big deal. It was a good idea, even! After all, who was I to look a gift horse in the mouth... especially when I could use the money?

"It's fine. You can always ghost her," I muttered to myself, though I knew damn well that I'd feel guilty and inevitably end up dragging myself back to the law firm anyways, regardless of how negligent that may be.

What the hell was I thinking?

It wasn't actually until I left her office and had to warily sneak out of the building that the reality of my circumstance settled like a heavy boulder upon my shoulders. I could feel the jitters in my bones as I tiptoed across the quiet space, peeking across every corner out of concern that I might encounter him. In those few, painstakingly lengthy seconds between the hallway and the exit, my heart nearly gave out.

And that was just today.

That hallway would become my day to day, as much as I'd like to avoid this building altogether. I was willingly tying myself to the one place where I could bet on getting jumped, and there was no clear guarantee that Shawn would just find it in himself to spare me. Especially not after I'd purposefully ignored his threat to stay away. It had been the singular order he'd made, and I'd managed to not only ignore it, but actively defy it.

Oh god.

Luckily, it wasn't a very long wait for the bus.

I scurried inside the moment the doors opened, distractedly shuffling back towards the back and picking an empty row. I settled down into a window seat, finally able to relax now that I was leaving this place.

I sunk into the bus seat and released an exasperated sigh, glaring down at my shaky hands as they clung to the metal bar attached to the back of the seat before me. I knew better than to go searching for trouble, really. So, why was I here?

Mason liked to believe that I always dove into chaos without considering the potential outcome, but that wasn't entirely true. Well, it hadn't been until now.

I usually understood the consequences of my actions right away, so that wasn't really the problem. Now, it was an entirely different issue that I'd then recklessly choose to barge ahead once I'd decided the risk was worth it, undeterred by the possibility of failure.

And there was an innate stubbornness to me. I knew that. But it'd never led me quite so astray before.

Here, though, I could definitely say that I'd been bamboozled by my own rationale, or lack thereof. And there was no real incentive aside from the pay. So, why? Why had I caved so easily?

"What the fuck," I grumbled, pressing my head against the back of my hands. "I have to back out. T-there's no way I can do this."

"Did you really not break up with him?" a voice suddenly called out, and I nearly jolted out of my seat in response.

I clutching at my chest in shock, my racing heart trying to settle down after being so abruptly startled into overdrive. I glanced around before locking eyes with the older woman from earlier in the day, who was clearly also heading back home from wherever she'd gone off to.

"It's you," I greeted through harsh breaths, settling back down into my seat before turning back to look at her. Huh, I hadn't even noticed her. "You scared m—wait, what did you say?"

"You didn't let him walk all over you again, right?" she frowned, clearly misunderstanding the situation altogether. "If you didn't give him a piece of your mind, then I will!"

I winced at that, unsure of how to reiterate that I'd more or less lost my dignity the second I decided to get on the bus this morning. I thought I'd done a good job at explaining as much this morning, but she clearly thought I'd been on my way to seek vengeance... not grovel.

But that was not quite what happened, unfortunately.

This was just the unfortunate consequences of my own actions, a canon event that couldn't be salvaged or improved upon.

"I—no? I said my piece," I explained, shrugging when she urged me to elaborate. "Things didn't go... too terribly, all things considered."

And that wasn't necessarily a lie. Prior to my irrevocably idiotic mistake, it did seem like I'd more or less smoothed things over with the jerk. As much as Shawn didn't want to admit it, he had seemed a lot calmer by the time he headed off to his meeting. Oh, and he hadn't tried to murder me, as an added bonus.

That was surely an improvement, right?

"So, did you break up with him?" she suddenly demanded. "You better have. That boy doesn't respect you at all!"

She pointed at the bruise on my face as a reminder.

I blinked, staring at her with wide, conflicted eyes. I was certain that I had mentioned how he was most definitely not a boyfriend or anything of the sort. She, however, seemed fiercely convinced otherwise.

"I—I wouldn't call him a boy," I corrected, wincing when I realized that was probably the least of my worries. "O-or a friend."

That only seemed to irritate the woman more, though. She shook her head, leaning forward and shaking me by the shoulder. "This is why you don't mess around with older men, kid. They may be better in bed, but it's hardly ever worth the headache."

I sputtered, looking around wildly only to find everyone else ignoring us. Or, well, they were doing their absolute best to try and ignore us. I could see a businessman stifling a laugh a few rows further back, but I was already too embarrassed to look in his direction to confirm or deny.

"Y-you got it all wrong, alright? I—I'm not into guys," I explained while flailing my hands, unsure of how she'd even jumped to such a conclusion.

"We get it, you're into men. Oh god, you sound just like my daughter," she retorted, leaning forward to look at my face. "You don't have to be embarrassed. But you could at least find a kind one, right?"

I nearly fainted as a few people snickered under their breath. "N-no! Not into men either," I assured her, my heart racing for some forsaken reason. "And even if I was, I would never go for him! He's... well, he's such a jackass."

The older woman rolled her eyes as if she didn't fully believe what I was saying at all. I didn't really understand why she wouldn't, but I chose not to pursue the issue any further than that. Quite frankly, this wouldn't matter the moment I stepped off the bus in forty minutes. So, I just had to impatiently wait for that.

"Listen to me."

I nodded my head.

"Don't let him treat you like that. And don't be scared to tell him off," she advised. "Sometimes men need a little incentive to behave. I'm not saying it's right, but—"

"I-it's not like that," I tried once more, releasing a frustrated groan at the mere thought of him. "Damn it. Shawn is just... so difficult. But also, this was a misunderstanding." I pointed at my bruise for emphasis, which I'd honestly forgotten was even there. "I didn't even know him when it happened."

Her eyes widened a bit, but she simply nodded in agreement. "Hmm, is that the name of the brute? Shawn?"

I sighed, nodding my head. I hadn't intended to share that. "Y-yeah."

She pondered carefully before releasing a tired sigh, narrowing her eyes in a sudden bout of seriousness. "Next time you see him, you don't back down until he apologizes, alright?

I winced, even as I nodded my head in agreement. I hadn't intended to see him again, though I probably would regardless of what I wanted. Now, seemingly, I'd be stuck in that office groveling for an apology that wouldn't realistically come. Fucking hell.

---

I didn't go back to the dorm right away, which was likely a mistake considering I was meant to be studying this whole time. But I was still feeling antsy from a long day and was honestly craving something sweet anyways.

So, I got off the bus a few stops earlier than usual, waving at the woman as the bus carried on. I'd actually managed to catch her name this time, though only by yelling out to ask her while already stepping off the bus. Lucy.

I tried not to think too much about what she'd said, though it made sense to expect an apology... right?

But, was that even logistically possible? Hell, what was I supposed to do? Just barge into Shawn's office and demand an apology? He'd probably just freak out about me being back at his workplace in the first place, if he didn't already know.

I shivered at that while grabbing a shopping cart from the row beside the entrance, definitely not wanting to know his reaction to the news.

"Whatever," I grumbled while pulling out my phone and heading towards the entrance, humming in approval at the rush of cool breeze that greeted me once I stepped inside the bright, air-conditioned building.

"What the hell did Mason want anyways?" I muttered under my breath, already having forgotten. Hmm, he definitely wanted some Doritos, but that was all I could really recall.

I picked out some cinnamon rolls from the bakery section while scrolling through my phone to find Mason's texts, most of which comprised of him spamming me in a feeble attempt to find out where I was this morning.

Though, after I'd confirmed I was alive and busy, what greeted me was a small list of desired snacks for when I made it back home. I chuckled under my breath, since that was exactly the kind of shit I pulled whenever he stepped out.

"Oh, energy drinks," I grumbled, narrowing my eyes when I remembered he'd drank my last Red bull just yesterday. The sleepy heathen.

I ended up getting a 24-pack, even as I recalled Mason's parents scolding us for drinking so many the last time that they stopped by to visit us at the dorm. Honestly, that had been entirely my fault, since I'd been feeling lazy that week and they'd spotted the assortment of empty cans littered around the desk.

Sorry to Richard, but there was no way a 6-pack would last us with so many projects' due dates right around the corner. Besides, I usually was good about that. I'd drink one at most... maybe two. Sure, once I'd drank four in a single day while trying to rush through three projects all due on the same day, but I'd almost definitely cut myself off after the heart palpitations started.

"Hey, do you need any help?" A brunette worker suddenly asked, grinning as she passed behind me to put back a six-pack of energy drinks on the row beside me. She had a pretty smile and a short, pixie cut, her hands gently grazing across the row as she neatly organized the six-packs.

"Oh. No thanks," I replied, flashing a polite smile before focusing back on Mason's list. He wanted one of those ready-to-eat rotisserie chickens, so hopefully they still had some set out at the front.

"Oh... y-you sure?"

I frowned at that, tilting my head, darting my eyes between her and my phone. "Oh, yeah. Thanks for asking, though."

She didn't reply. Instead, I frowned as I caught sight of her rushing to turn the corner, suddenly out of view. I glanced around in confusion before focusing back on my list, unsure of what the hell that was about.

And I thought that was the end of it, really.

I was glancing through the juices, a row further down, when I was nearly scared to death for the third time that day.

"Hey there!" a cheerful, male voice greeted from right behind me.

I nearly tripped at the suddenness of it all, gasping while leaning back against my shopping cart, clutching at it to keep from collapsing onto the ground. I wearily straightened up, frowning at the worker as he smiled brightly at me.

What the hell?

I raised an eyebrow while nervously finding my bearing, clearing my throat before replying. "Uh... do you?"

That didn't seem like the response he was expecting, since he just huffed and crossed his arms across his chest. "Fine. Are you gay or not?"

I just stared at him, trying to process his question as he took a step closer, grinning while crowding me against the row of energy drinks. I stood there a bit dumb-founded, trying to wrap my head around why they had so many workers just wandering around with so much free time.

"Uh... no?"

He snorted while brushing his hair out of his face. "You sure? You keep checking me out."

I nodded my head aggressively, trying not to look him in the eyes. To be fair, the dude was... quite handsome. With black, wavy hair that cascaded down to his shoulders and such a charismatic smile, he was definitely hot enough that I couldn't really understand why he was hitting on a random stranger.

But hey, perhaps I was missing something?

"My co-worker and I thought you were cute," he explained, chuckling under his breath. "I thought you were cuter, though."

"Y-you did?" I squeaked out, clearing my throat while darting my eyes around, searching for an escape. "Thanks?"

He nodded his head slowly, leaning closer while setting a tentative hand on my chest. "Can I have your number?"

I nervously shrugged, tensing up as he took my phone from my hands. I stared in disbelief as he put his number in and then reached around to slip the phone into my back pocket, grinning up at me. "You'll text me, right?"

I stumbled over my words before shaking my head. "S-sorry. I'm dating someone already," I lied, pressing myself back against the row of products hard enough that something was jabbing into my lower back.

He grumbled. "You got a boyfriend, really? What's his name?"

I panicked, suddenly blanking. That had to be why I didn't just use Mason's name as I had a few times prior. That had to be it.

"Shawn," I blurted out.

The worker didn't seem to buy it, but he did step back, grumbling about how the hot ones were always taken. "Well, you still have my number, right? It's under Lucas, and I put a cute emote next to it. Feel free to use it if you two don't work out," Lucas replied nonchalantly before walking off.

What the hell?

I rubbed at my temple in disbelief, shaking my head. That man was stressing me out so much that he was living rent free in my head. Great.

-Shawn-

"Say it with me... I will not talk to the creep," I repeated once more, ignoring Meghan's frustrated groan. "Do it."

I had just returned home after a long day, and I'd just happened to catch her re-watching one of her anime shows. And so, of course, I'd paused what seemed to be a show about volleyball and settled on the couch across from her, eager to correct her erroneous ways.

Meghan rolled her eyes, having humored me for a measly two lines before shooting me a dirty glare. She took out her phone, scoffing when I just reached over and quickly snatched it from her.

"Say it."

She narrowed her eyes... but complied. "I won't talk to the creep."

I nodded my head in approval. "I won't go anywhere near that bastard," I said, signaling for her to continue along with me.

"I won't go anywhere near Eric, alright?"

"Ahh! The bastard!"

Meghan sighed. "Dad."

"Or, the threat, though that sounds more ominous than anything."

"Why are you still freaking out?" she asked, clearly exasperated. "Can't I watch the show in peace? And then you wonder why I just stream things from my laptop in my room."

I gritted my teeth, unsure of whether to inform her that he'd be working at the law firm. On one hand, I wanted to ban her from going altogether. Though, I knew well enough that doing something so extreme would only pique her interest. No, I had to be strategic here.

"I-if you see him again, I'll ground you until you're... eighty!"

"Eighty?"

"Yes, eighty!"

Meghan scoffed. "Can you just kill me now and let this be over?" she retorted, putting on her ear buds and making a point of turning them on from the device. I scoffed as the phone announced she was blasting a song, which I obviously turned off.

She snatched her phone back and turned the song back on, narrowing her eyes, yelling over the booming song. "I won't talk to him, okay? Now, please leave me alone and go make us something to eat already."

I grumbled under my breath, still trying to wrap my head around why Jacqueline had hired Eric. If it wasn't to irritate me, then why? That had to be it, right? "He's not even all that useful," I muttered under my breath.

Surprisingly, Meghan snorted under her breath, somehow able to hear me despite the loud buzzing of her ear buds. "Didn't he fix your computer?"

I narrowed my eyes. "And? How does that merit an internship?"

And that, ultimately, was my downfall. I could see the glint of intrigue in her eyes as she removed an ear bud, chuckling to herself while quirking an eyebrow. "Jacqueline?"

"You're banned from the office," I blurted out, having no other options left. It was this or sending her to boarding school, which would inevitably result in me going into a deep depression over not being able to see my baby girl.

Meghan rolled her eyes. "Y-you can't just ban me."

I furrowed my eyebrows, debating whether it was worth giving her picture and name to our security guard. Mind you, she'd known Meghan since she was a little girl, but I was the one in charge, damn it! They still had to escort her out if I made a point of banning her, right?

But no, that wasn't going to work either. Meghan would just sweet talk her way through the front desk and do whatever she wanted, even if I protested. I mulled over my options, considering calling Jacqueline for a last-ditch effort before remembering how determined she'd seemed. Yeah, I had a better chance of discovering aliens than changing Sterling's mind. Especially after forcing her to double-down. Damn it.

So, that really only left one option. I grumbled under my breath while taking the steak out of the fridge, somewhat pleased that Meghan had remembered to move it down from the freezer. I glanced back towards the living room, noticing Meghan had taken the opportunity to escape up to her room.

Huh. Right...

If I couldn't stop the brat from getting hired, then I'd just have to make him quit.

---

A/N: Thank you for reading.