The ride to his place is fast and when I see it, we are pulling over a beautiful open-concept house. He also lives by the lake and the contrast between nature and modernity is really awe-inspiring. The windows are large and tall and the brick and exposed concrete walls complement the touches of yellow, grey, and dark blue in the furniture and décor.

"Nice place," I say as soon as we step inside.

"Thanks. It belonged to my grandparents, but they left it to me after they moved downtown. My mom wants them close to her now that they're older. I was looking for a place to live... It all worked for everyone in the end," Thomas says, a sweet smile on his lips.

"How long have you lived here?"

"Around five years. It looked more like a cabin when I moved in, but I was able to make it more like myself over the years."

And I can see what he means. His house is vibrant and warm, just like him.

As my eyes take it all in, I'm instantly drawn to a wall by my side. There are pictures of different places from all over the world, shelves full of souvenirs, and more pictures of him with his family and friends.

Going from picture to picture, I pick up one of him and his parents with a gorgeous woman who looks just like him. "You and your sister are so similar. I actually recognize her. She always stops by the bakery on Friday afternoons. She's a lovely person," I say, examining the photo.

"Yeah, she can be too much sometimes, but she's great," he says, his eyes on the picture too.

"Is it true what they say about twins?" I put the picture away, turning to look at him. "That you guys have this unbreakable bond?"

"I don't know." He chuckles. "People usually ask us that, but since we don't have other siblings, we have nothing to compare. We are pretty close, so it's like we just get each other, I think. I can't really explain it."

There is so much love going on for them in these photos. The ping of jealousy squeezing my heart is something I can't help but notice. I talk to my parents often, and I don't doubt they love me, but we are not close like this. I don't know why, but it's like we're all so very different that we could never really connect.

"Hey, where did you go?" Thomas touches my shoulder, startling me.

"Sorry." I shake my head, turning my attention to him. "Is Rachel an ex-girlfriend?" I blurt, unable to not bring her up. I promised myself I would never put myself in this position again. Friends or not, I need to know where he stands with this girl. I don't need to find myself in the middle of another relationship, and I'm already in too deep with him.

"Yeah..." He takes a deep breath before moving to the kitchen. "Are you thirsty? Would you like something to drink?"

"I'm good." I keep looking at him, expecting him to elaborate, but he keeps his back to me as he gets himself a bottle of water, and takes a long gulp.

"She's... I haven't seen her in a long time. Years, actually." He turns to me, his eyes pleading for me to drop it.

"Were you guys serious?" I choose to pretend the plead in his tone is not there.

"Engaged." He nods, my eyes widening in surprise.

"Oh."

"Yeah... Remember, I told you I have a gift of screwing things up." He gives me another small smile, but I'm too invested in him to let the subject go.

"What happened?" I press and he sighs.

"I kept traveling, volunteering abroad. She said she was okay with it, but..."

"So, she broke up with you?"

"Yep."

"And now?"

"Now she has moved back to town. She's engaged to a nice guy apparently, and..."

"And?"

"And this is it." He opens the fridge again, this time pulling two beers. "Come on, let me show you the patio outside." He motions for me to follow him through a set of French doors by his side.

"Wow!" I stop dead in my tracks as I take the view. His house is on a steep slope, and his backyard overlooks the lake with the city far on the horizon.

There are a couple of wooden chairs spread near the edge of the slope, but Thomas opts to sit down on the ground, with his back resting on one. "Here." He offers me a bottle.

"Any reason why we're sitting on the ground when there are perfectly nice chairs around?" I take a seat by his side, crossing one leg under the other.

"Nope." He clinks his bottle to mine and I shake my head when I see he's holding a smile.

"I always dread leaving, you know?" He takes a long sip of his beer. "But I always love every fucking minute of each trip."

"Do you feel guilty about leaving it all behind?" I look at him, but his eyes are on the city in front of us.

"Yeah. I feel like I've become more of a silent partner at the Clinic over the years. And the shelter... I love my parents and I'm more than glad to help them run it from afar. God knows they need a break. But I just... That's their dream."

"Not yours." I keep my eyes on him as his head rests on the chair and his eyes close.

"Exactly," he murmurs.

"So, what's your dream?"

"The world." He opens his eyes and turns his face to me. "I want to explore each corner of the world, be able to do more on a larger scale. There are so many things to do and to see out there." He sighs and finishes his beer.

"What's holding you back?" I ask, and he shakes his head.

"I'm afraid I'll never settle down if I decide to just up and leave whenever I feel like it. Which is always." He scoffs, a bitter smile on his lips.

"What do you mean?" I whisper.

"I want to have a family one day, kids, a pet, the whole shebang." He shrugs, a genuine smile forming on his lips when I raise my eyebrows in surprise.

"You don't have a pet? Are you sure you're a vet?" I joke.

"I'm never really at home. When I'm not at the shelter, I'm at the clinic or traveling somewhere. I don't think I'm pet-owner material." He shrugs, making me laugh.

"I guess you're right." I finish my beer and we both sit in silence for a while, just enjoying the fresh air and the cool night.

"What about you?" he asks me after some time. "Do you have any dreams?"

"I don't know... I wanted to do something I really liked and after freaking out for a good year after I opened the bakery, things are doing good. I don't think I have a big dream like yours or something. Maybe buying a house, finding a boyfriend someday in the future..."

"A boyfriend, huh?" He turns his body, so he is facing me, and I chuckle at his ridiculous smirk.

"Someday, yeah." I roll my eyes.

"Just saying..." He raises his hands in mock surrender.

"At least, I'm not having baby fever like someone else."

"Damn, you're so bad!" He laughs, but it doesn't really reach his eyes this time.

"So you keep saying." I bump my shoulder to his, and he smiles. "You were shocked to see Rachel today." I press, too curious to know the story there.

"Yeah..." He sighs.

"I'm here if you want to talk."

"I know. It was just weird seeing her after such a long time. We lived together for two years, but then she moved back to her hometown after we broke up. She's the closest to marriage that I've ever been and... I think it messed with my head seeing her here after so long."

"I don't want to be caught in the middle of another relationship, Thomas." I look into his eyes, so he sees how serious I am.

"Lisa, it's-"

"I know we're just friends, but I promised myself I would never be that person again. No matter what, I'd never come between a couple. If you find someone and she's uncomfortable with my presence in your life, I'll just..."

"You'll just what? Bail? What the hell, Lisa?"

"I told you I don't think a man and a woman can really be friends and that's what I'm talking about. You're such a nice guy, with so much love to give and... if you're with someone... I'm not sure I could... I mean..."

"Hey, wait a second." He frowns, his eyes searching mine. "I don't think I'm following you. You're saying we can just be friends while we're both single?"

"How would you feel if the girl you were seeing spent a whole day holding hands with another guy, huh? He has his arms all over her, but hey, they're just friends having a good time! Would you really be okay with that?" I snap, and his eyes harden with each word that comes out of my mouth.

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable today. I was just glad to have you here; to show you around... I don't know, I... I'll just keep my damn hands to myself!" He stands up and takes a step back.

"Thomas-"

"I don't want to fight with you, Lisa. Can we call it a day and talk more tomorrow? I think we're both tired. We can finish this talk tomorrow. Please." He searches my eyes and the freaking please is what gets to me.

"Yeah... Okay."

______

A/N: *Sighs*

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- Celeste.