A/N Here's a quick update. It's a really short chapter, but I have the next chapter ready to go if anyone is interested in this story continuing. I'm having fun writing it, and I hope you are all enjoying reading it. Thanks!

Chapter 3

What's a Mann to do?

Marshall sat in his car, wondering how he had gotten home. He was so angry with Mary; he didn't remember the drive home. His mind was still in the elevator, where he had almost ravaged her. Oh how he had wanted to, but he had to control himself and stick to his plan. He knew she understood what he was saying during his little speech earlier, and knew she would be freaked out, but he didn't expect her to call Faber. When he heard her on the phone with him, he wanted to grab her and shake some sense in her and tell her she was making an even bigger mistake than with Raph.

He couldn't remember ever feeling as angry as he was when he heard her tell Faber she wanted 'easy, not messy.' He felt as though his whole body would explode. It took him a good ten minutes to calm down and come up with a plan. Apparently, his subtle hints backfired, so he needed to change his strategy. He couldn't just come out and tell her he loved her. Mary was not the sugary sweet type, so he would have to be more direct. He would take a page from her playbook. She thought she wanted easy? He'd show her how good messy could be. Give her just a taste, to see how she reacted.

It wasn't easy, to pull back. When she moaned, he wanted to let go and show her just how 'messy' elevator sex could be. But, he needed her to think, and feel. This was it. His Hail Mary (no pun intended). She could choose to think about him, and wonder how good they could be, or she could choose Faber. He shivered, just thinking of the two of them together. If she chose Faber, he knew he'd have to leave. Even though he promised her he would never leave, he just couldn't stay. He tried to push his feelings back, when she was with Raph. He tried to be the supportive best friend, and partner she needed.

After they broke it off, he thought she might have started to realize how much he cared. He had her back, all the time, and she his. But he couldn't sit by and watch her continue to make mistakes, all the while, feeling a piece of his heart break every time she talked about doing a 'cowboy' or relieving stress with some random stranger. For his own sanity, he would have to move on. He thought about staying, and just finding someone in Albuquerque, but he knew he would never be able to give his heart fully to someone else when he was still with Mary every day.

He hated the thought of leaving. Mary was the best partner and friend he had ever had. But he had never expected to fall so completely in love with her. Now that he was, there was no going back. He would always love her, but he had to move on, and he couldn't do it here.

Marshall shook his head, realizing he was still sitting in his car. He got out and went inside, felling the loneliness wash over him as he stepped into the darkened house. Without turning on any lights, he walked straight to the kitchen and poured himself a drink. He downed it, and started to pour another, opting instead for the bottle. She toed off his boots, and plopped down on the couch, flipping on the TV. Maybe Star Trek would keep his mind from wandering to Mary and what she was doing, or thinking. He sat, watching the crew of the Enterprise, while consuming much of the bottle in his hand.

The more drunk he got, the more his loneliness faded, and his anger re-appeared. He picked up his phone and started to push speed dial 1, Mary. He stopped, remembering that she would be on the flight. What would he say to her anyway? He said all there was to say, didn't he. He wanted to scream at her, and tell him he was here and had been here all along. Instead, he typed a quick text and hit send. He wasn't sure if, or when, she would get the message, but he knew she would understand it.