Mae had spent most of the night following what happened at Pastabilities lying awake in bed. She knew that tomorrow, there would be no getting out of the inevitable conversation with Bea. If she told her she was still having problems with her self-image, what would happen? Would anything happen?

"What if she tries to get you professional help?"

"No, I can't do more therapy."

"Why not? God knows you need it. I mean, who else has conversations about how much they hate themselves on a regular basis?"

"Gregg."

"You're different, though. Gregg said himself that he's gotten better. You, on the other hand, have been doing this since high-school, and it hasn't gotten better, and that's not even mentioning the shapes."

"I'm fine. The shapes haven't bothered me for a while. I don't need another Dr. Hank."

"Whatever you say. I guess we'll see how it goes with Bea in the morning."

"Yeah."

It took Mae a few hours to fully fall asleep. Then, before she knew it, she was being shaken awake by Bea.

"Mae, wake up. It's already noon. I made lunch."

Mae felt exhausted despite it being noon. Slowly, she stood up.

"Alright. Just let me get dressed, and I'll be right out.", said Mae. She went and got dressed in some random clothes she had lying around. They really needed to do some laundry soon.

Mae went out into the kitchen, where Bea had served lunch. It was just some grilled cheese sandwiches. They also needed to go shopping.

Mae sat down and took a bite of her sandwich.

"You look tired. Did you sleep well last night?", asked Bea.

"I slept fine."

"Uh-huh. Sure."

Mae and Bea continued eating. It was silent for a few moments. They both knew what was coming next.

Bea broke the silence, "Mae, are you ready to talk about whatever's going on with you?"

Mae stopped chewing. What would she say? Could she really tell her about it? What if she left her? Who would want to date someone with as much wrong in their head as her?

"I-I… I don't think I can."

"Mae, whatever it is, I won't be mad at you. I will be mad if you don't tell me what's going on."

"It's nothing. The move has just been a bit jarring, that's all."

"You idiot! What did you just do?!"

"Goddamn it, Mae! You and I both know it's more than that! I'm not fucking stupid!"

"I didn't mean that. Look, this is my problem. You don't need to worry about me.", replied Mae frantically.

"Yes, I do! I do need to worry about you! You can't just stop me from worrying about you! The only way for you to do that is to tell me what the hell is wrong!"

Mae whimpered slightly, her voice being reduced to almost a whisper, "I… can't. I can't do it."

Bea growled in frustration, "Fine, don't tell me. I'm going to go get some groceries. I'll be back in a few hours." Bea walked away, and a few moments later, Mae heard the door slam shut.

Mae buried her face in her hands.

"Fuck!"

A few moments later, there was a knock at the door.

"Mae? Bea? Are you in there?", called the voice of Angus.

Mae looked over at the door, deciding whether to answer it or not. Ultimately, she decided to open it. She found that both Gregg and Angus were on the other side.

"Dude, is everything okay? You look like shit.", asked Gregg.

"I'm fine."

"That didn't sound fine.", said Angus, "What happened?"

"I'm just an effing idiot, that's all."

"Do you wanna talk about it?", asked Gregg.

"…I guess.", replied Mae, letting Gregg and Angus inside.

Gregg and Angus sat on the couch, and Mae decided to sit on the floor, just like old times. It made her feel a bit better somehow.

"Okay, tell us what happened.", said Angus.

Mae sighed and explained what the argument they were having was about.

"Dude, you still haven't told her?", questioned Gregg.

"Tell her what? What did you two talk about?", asked Angus.

"Well, do you remember back when you would sometimes find me crying in the middle of the night, and I would tell myself I'm not a good person, and then you'd always hug me and make me feel better?"

"Yeah."

"That's happening to Mae right now."

"I sort of figured there was something like that going on. I mean, you remember what she said at the party, right?"

"Yeah, but I thought it was just Mae being drunk. A lot of people get like that when they're drunk."

"If you knew this was happening, why didn't you say anything?", asked Mae.

"I thought I'd let Bea handle that one. I didn't think it would take this long for you to say anything.", explained Angus.

"Well, it's been over a week, and she still doesn't know. It's just… what if she leaves me when she finds out?"

"Then you two aren't compatible. If she isn't willing to handle your problems with you, then it was never going to work between you. From the looks of it, though, she's actively trying to fix problems she knows are there, which you should take as a good sign for your relationship. The only way that's going to mean anything, however, is if your willing to let her help you."

"I know. It's just hard, though. I hate knowing that she's going to have to deal with all of my problems when I can't do anything to pay her back."

"Mae, you pay her back by being with her and showing that you trust her not to leave you over something like that. What you're doing now is only driving her away. If you're serious about a relationship with Bea, then you can't hide these things from her. It's not healthy."

"Dude, if you want, we can be here when you tell her.", offered Gregg.

"No.", replied Angus, "She has to do this herself." He stared into Mae's eyes with the utmost seriousness, "We're going to leave. When Bea gets back, you're going to sit down and tell her everything you just told us. If you don't, I'll tell her myself. After that, I doubt you two will be together for much longer in this state. Do you understand?"

"Angus, you can't just sabotage their relationship like that!", argued Gregg.

"I'm not sabotaging it. I'm making sure the relationship doesn't break them apart forever. It's better to end a bad relationship early than to let it slowly eat away at you until one of you breaks. Now, I sincerely hope I won't have to do that to you. Will I need to do that, Mae?"

Mae looked back and forth between Gregg and Angus before finally answering, "Fine. I'll do it… Do you think I'm gonna have to go to therapy again?"

"I think you'll be fine. I'm fine now, for the most part. Just let Bea handle it whenever it happens to come up. Also, don't worry, I'm sure you'll get an opportunity in the future to be there for her when she needs it. She's been through a lot, just like the rest of us.", said Gregg.

"Okay. If that's settled, I think we should go. Think about what you're going to say to Bea." Angus stood to leave, and Gregg followed. Gregg waved to Mae as the door to the apartment closed. She was once again left alone with her thoughts.

"I can fix this. Bea will be back from buying groceries in a couple of hours."

"What are you going to say that won't just sound like some edgy, hormonal teen shit?"

"I don't know. I think I'll just wing it."

"Right. That always works out. You'll probably just sound like an immature moron again."

"I'll just use the talking skills Bea taught me for the interview."

"Oh, hell no. Passing an interview and dumping out your deep insecurities are two completely different things. If you try that shit, you might as well consider the relationship over. Bullshitting your way through this will screw everything up even more than it already is. Don't do it."

"What should I do then?"

"How about we start with some laundry? You can start pulling your weight around here. Even if you can't make money, you can at least do some chores."

"Fine. I'll do the laundry."

Mae gathered up all of the strewn about clothes she could find, putting them all in a basket before heading downstairs. There were a washer and dryer in the basement. The work managed to take Mae's mind off of Bea for a little while.

While the clothes were in the wash, Mae decided to do the dishes as well. Anything to occupy herself while anxiously waiting. Eventually, the dishes were done, and Mae had the clothes in the drier. She picked up around the house. Finally, the house was clean, and it was time to put away the clothes.

Once the clothes were put away in their closet, Mae tried to think of something else to do. The laundry hadn't taken too long, only about an hour. She knew Bea probably wouldn't be back for a while.

"What do I do?", she mumbled to herself. Then, she heard her door unlocking. Was Bea back already? How did she get everything so fast?

Mae went to the door to find that it was, indeed, Bea. She didn't have too many groceries, though. She didn't even need to make a second trip, though she was carrying a lot of stuff in each hand.

"Bea? What are you doing back so early? I thought it would take a lot longer.", questioned Mae.

Bea put all of the bags down, "Part of me was really hoping you were ready to talk, so I only got what we needed and came back."

"Oh, uh, yeah…"

"I see you did some cleaning while I was gone. Thanks."

"No problem. So…"

"Hold on, let's sit down first. Do you want to sit at the couch or the table?", asked Bea.

"Couch." Mae and Bea went and sat on the couch, turning to face each other.

"Okay, tell me what happened earlier. What's going on with you?"

"Well, I guess I was just afraid to tell you. I didn't want you to leave me."

"Is this something I would leave over?", asked Bea.

"I don't know."

"Well, tell me, and we'll find out."

"…Okay, like, do you remember back at the Moonlit Wonder or whatever when I was really drunk and saying things?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"So, when I was rambling and stuff, I know I sort of confessed to you, but I also said some other things, too, and they may not have been completely from the alcohol."

"So, what you're saying is you're the next Gregg. Is that what I should be getting from this?"

Mae stared at Bea, surprised she was able to make the connection so quickly. She was valedictorian for a reason.

"Gregg isn't the only person who has ever hated themselves before.", said Mae.

"Yeah, but he was always the most open about it, relatively speaking. I mean, I've hated myself before, but it never really became more than a phase. How long has it been going on?"

"It started with the softball incident."

"How bad is it?"

"I feel like I'm always arguing with myself over everything and telling myself I'm not good enough. It's also, like, because I have these voices in my head, it makes me feel even worse just for having them. I don't want to be a burden on anyone because I can't stop having mental problems."

"Maybe, we should get a therapist."

"No! Please! I can't do another Dr. Hank!"

"Not all therapists are bad, Mae.", argued Bea.

"What about Gregg? He's fine now. He dealt with it by himself. He never saw a therapist."

"Gregg has bipolar disorder, and it's fairly minor. It makes sense that he'd feel like that. He dealt with it because Angus could help him. I just… don't know if I can help you like he could with Gregg."

"Sure, you can! You're always the person who calms me down whenever I decide to have a mental breakdown.", said Mae.

"Yeah, but I don't know how to get rid of it. I couldn't help my dad, so why would I be able to help you?"

"Well, could you at least try? Just be here with me. That's all I need right now."

Bea sighed, "Fine. If it keeps going on, though, you're seeing a therapist. Also, please don't hide something dumb like that from me again. I was worried. Don't make me worry more than I need to."

"I'm sorry. I wish I could do something to repay you."

"You can do two things. Don't do anything stupid and don't hide things from me. Deal?"

"Deal."