George was smiling like a damn fool. He knew it, too and didn't give a damn. He was watching her laugh and joke with her friends foolishly. He admired how she smiled wide causing the corners of her lips to upturn from ear to ear. She is happy and for a reason - that George refuses to admit - witnessing her happy, made him happy.

Evelyn wanted to spend some time with her friends today and was glad she did. She had met the three girls during her two semesters and the squad had managed to stay in touch for the most part of summer. They will be heading back to class in a month or so, and Evelyn wanted to get together before it was too late.

While Evelyn reconnected with her friends, George opted for strolling the mall solo. He would have called his own friends, but he honestly wasn't in the mood to be bothered. He has been feeling like this more often these days, the desire to be left alone. He just wants time away from everyone.

Of course, this excluded Evelyn. She is the reason why George wanted to be left alone. She is all he needs to get through the day these days. All he needs is to hear her voice, see her smile, or touch her and he would be fine. Her presence is his sedative.

He hated to admit it, but he is truly dependent on Evelyn. George has yet to reconcile or try to mend things with his parents and he no longer has the drive to. He has yet to talk to Evelyn about this and does not want to believe that he ever will. He has simply concluded that his family problems are no longer worth worrying about or even mentioning, especially to Evelyn.

When Evelyn raises questions about his parents he would simply change the subject or tell her that he does not want to talk about them and Evelyn would get the picture. She never probes for answers and George appreciates this. He will open up that Pandora's box on his own terms. If he ever finds said terms.

"You ready to go?" Her voice calls from behind him.

George turns around with a small smile and nods. He had, yet again, dazed off into his own thoughts. His thoughts are obviously too big for his head and it causes him to blank out, much to his expense.

George had missed Evelyn waving him over so she could introduce her boyfriend to her girl friends. The girls truly wanted to see the hunk that had stolen their time with Evelyn. When the boy didn't respond to Evelyn's signals, she apologized to her friends and apologized before saying her goodbyes. She needed to make sure that George was okay.

He has been worrying Evelyn a lot lately. Not he himself, but his actions and lack of verbal communication. He has been shutting the world out lately and Evelyn does not know if he is dealing with something mentally or emotionally. Not that it mattered because either burden is just as terrible as the other.

Evelyn does not remember exactly when George started caving into himself emotionally or mentally but she knows that she has to put a stop to it quickly. George is supposed to be an annoying asshole, not some shadow lingering and smiling when he saw fit.

"Yeah. Got everything?" George smiles at Evelyn.

The smile is small but genuine.

Evelyn nods and readjusts her bags so that she could steal George's hand. George only glanced at their weaved hands for a short moment before leading them toward an exit. While the two walked George forced himself to relax in Evelyn's grasp. He truly hates how dependant of her he is.

It is not supposed to be this way in a relationship, not in his mind at least. The girl should depend on him. George should be the provider and protector. Evelyn should be leaning on him and not the other way around. That is how his relationships always were. He was never the dependent.

Although, looking at his parents for an example, George understands perfectly that sometimes this pre-historic role of a man being the dominant and a woman being the submissive is not followed as such, but it still perplexes him.

His mother and father switch up their stereotypical gender roles all of the time and it has kept them together since the stone age.

George should not feel so strange about it happening with Evelyn, right?

It should be okay for him to not always be the strong one, right?

It is perfectly fine for George to look to Evelyn for guidance and protection, right?

George does not know the answers to the questions and it agitates him to no end. He knows that he should discuss his thoughts with Evelyn, but he is far too afraid of what she would think.

He knows how strongly Evelyn feels about an "equal opportunity" relationship - whatever the hell that means - and he knows that his thoughts will lead to a heated argument and George does not want to argue, not with another person he cares about.

"You know when someone is talking, the respectful thing to do is listen." Evelyn sighs, reeling George away from his thoughts. "Or at least fake it."

"Sorry. What were you sayin'?" George clears his throat.

Evelyn cuts her eyes at George.

She had been trying to get the boys attention since the two hopped in the truck. She had a full conversation with herself before she realized George was doing it again. He was zoning off into his own world, again.

"What?" He releases his grip on the steering wheel. "I'm serious, what were you saying?"

Evelyn rolls her eyes and glances around the apartment complex parking lot. She is trying her best not to pry, but her curiosity is kicking her ass.

Of course, she is concerned about George, but she is more curious than anything to know why the well-known annoying asshole is opting for a more somber and secluded demeanor? It has been eating at her - the desire to ask - and she will no longer deprive herself of fulfilling this desire.

"You been actin' weird, I want to know why." She turns her attention to George. "Don't give me no shit about not wanting to talk, you have no choice but to."

Her tone left no room for questioning. Her almond eyes held a certain sternness that dared George to defy her.

Do not get George wrong, he could easily call Evelyn bluff and ignore her statement completely, but he knew that this time he wouldn't. That and the fact that he does not want to see how hard Evelyn can really punch.

Therefore, George unbuckled and adjusted himself comfortably in the seat. He definitely needs to be comfortable to tell Evelyn about the bedlam going on in his head.

"George I'm not fucking playing with you. Tell me--"

"You shut up and maybe I can get the words out." He quips, biting back a smirk when Evelyn quirks an eyebrow.

"You got one more time." She warns simply.

George smiles and inhales deeply.

"I have a lot on my mind." He breathes.

"No, really Einstein?" Evelyn mocks bitterly.

"Anyways..." He cuts his eyes at Evelyn. "I got a lot of shit going on up here and I don't know how to deal with it." He sighs heavily.

Evelyn remains silent. She already knows this. She just needs him to tell her the reason for it all, then she would be able to offer help. Problem solved, right?

George wraps his fingers around the stirring wheel and tosses his head against the head rest.

"I mean... I know how, but I don't." He continues. "Like, if I just fucking stopped caring, problem would be solved, Y'know?" He releases the stirring wheel.

George is rambling and he knows it. He cannot seem to gather his thoughts correctly. The sentences are aligning in his head but not on his lips. The most frustrating part about his case of gibberish is that he knows Evelyn understands.

This should be the least of George's worries, but the fact that Evelyn is coherent to the bedlam in his head worries him. She understands him and that's something he likes about her. This is frightening to George.

"It's like the voices in my head are telling me to just stop fucking caring, but they are my family. I'm supposed to care. Even if I just want them to eat a dick and fucking listen to me." He licks his lips as he inhales. "I do everything right and somehow I'm still wrong." He breathes.

Evelyn never moves from her spot or opens her mouth as George clenched his fist in his lap. She didn't even blink when he pounded his fist over and over into the steering wheel. She remained perfectly still as the cars' horn honked violently.

George needs this moment. He bottled his feelings and now he has to empty the contents. It is much better than having her whisper sympathetic confirmations that everything will be okay. That would be trivial.

George does not need Evelyn to speak. Evelyn is sure of this. She knows that sometimes the best support is the silent mouth and open ears. This is exactly what she will give George.

"And then my sister... I see her every blue moon and its like she's always haunting me! I don't fucking understand how I'm suppose to be like her! Why can't they understand that?" George bit down on his trembling lip harder. "The fuck I did to deserve this?! I do everything right!" He croaks.

The emotions that are being set free feel as though they are doing more harm than good. George did not want to return to this space. It is way too dark and consuming. He hates being so hateful when mentioning his family.

He hates knowing that he has tried fixing the bond between him and his parents only to have them break it every fucking time. Just as the glue was healing, they tore everything apart. So much for fucking gorilla glue.

The tear fell before George could stop it. He felt the dampness before he could register it. He was crying like a bitch and he could not stop himself.

With his eyes aimed at the thighs of his jeans, his own waterfall fell fervently. His body was shaking, his fist tightly clenched. He was crying like a bitch and could not stop himself.

"Fucking hate them." He gritted. "Fucking hate them."

This time Evelyn did not remain seated or silent. She unbuckled herself and leaned toward George. She examined him for a moment before reaching for him.

She gently cupped his jaw and forced him to look at her. His eyes were puffy, his nose a red madness of its own. He still looked beautiful in Evelyn's opinion. He was still a beautiful asshole.

George tried not to look at Evelyn but failed miserably. Her face is as soft as her smile. She has him in the palm of her hands - literally - and he cannot look away.

"You don't hate them." She whispers.

George found the will to look away rather quickly. He could not believe Evelyn said that. She may not know the entire story, but why would she go against his word?

"Don't do that." She cocks her head to meet his gaze again. "You know I'm right."

"Fuck them." George grits.

"George stop. You know you're lying to yourself, right?" Evelyn sighs and caresses George's jaw. "You're not hateful and you don't hate them."

George felt himself calming but that only induced his anger. He jerks away from Evelyn and turns toward his door.

"I don't want to talk about this." He snatches the key out of the ignition with his free hand and pushes the door through. "I don't fucking want to talk."

Evelyn rolls her eyes and follows George's lead. She refuses to beg him for an answer, but she also refuses to go without one.

"No! You don't get to keep walking away!" Evelyn calls after him. "Come back and talk!"

George locks the car and continues walking toward his building. He needs to calm down - on his own - before he snaps. He breathes heavily once he reaches his door.

"You don't hear me?" Evelyn jogs up behind him. "Do you not--"

"Shut up! Shut the hell up, Ev!" George turns away from the door. "Please leave me alone." He verbally retracts.

Evelyn opens her mouth to snap about his snapping, but she only ends up chuckling instead. His yelling at her will not and does not affect her. She knows he is just being a sensitive asshole. A sensitive asshole that she will fix if he does not fix his tone.

"Why are you fucking laughing?" George frowns.

Evelyn shrugs and points toward the doorknob, still chuckling.

"No. I'll unlock the door when you tell me what's so fucking funny." George tucks the keys into the pocket of his jeans. "What's so fucking funny, Ev?"

"You yelling at me like I won't beat your ass." Evelyn revives herself. "And the fact that you're being overly sensitive when I'm just trying to help."

"I'm not being sensitive." He turns away from her. "I don't want to--"

"Talk. I get it. Ole big ass George Tadeo Mills doesn't want to fucking talk about his hurt feelings. Sob story of a lifetime." Evelyn mocks.

"Don't fucking mock me." George grouses as he pushes the key into the hole.

"I'm not." Evelyn chirps. "I'm just mocking your voice right now."

"Evelyn this shit is not fucking funny. Stop laughing or I'll--"

"You'll what? Cry? Punch something? The worst you can do is stop being mad at the world and own that you're hurting!" Evelyn pushes past him. "You call everyone in the world out for being scared, but here you are a--"

"Don't you say it. I'm not scared." George warns, slamming the door behind him.

"You're a scared little boy. Hurt and feeling alone." Evelyn steps up to George. "And its normal. How you gonna fix it should be your problem."

"Evelyn you don't know the half to even try to preach to me." George scoffs sidestepping her.

"I know that your parents don't see what I see."

George stopped in his motion. He almost turned around to ask what Evelyn meant by that. Almost.

Evelyn did not wait for George to turn around or respond at all for that matter. She had a point to get across.

"I see a boy that feels like he is trying to find out how to be a man." She continues never moving from her spot. "I see a boy who took a class three fucking times until he got it right. I see a boy who opens up just a little, but it's just enough."

Evelyn sighs and catches up to George. He has his back to her, but she knows he is listening. Therefore, she inhales deeply with a smile.

"I see a man that just wants to be loved and valued. I see a man that is not alone." She snakes her arms around his torso. "I see a man."

George did not move. He did not want. He did not need to. He simply stood still and broken while Evelyn's words sunk in. He was not a fuck up, but a man.

"A man." He parrots softly.

Evelyn nods presses herself further against his back.

"Yes, a man."

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