"Oh, Monk, that can't be true. What about your antique cleaning set?" Sharona asked him. Adrian shook his head. "It's not quite the same." he said, picking the kitten up, feeling sort of ashamed. After all, what he said was only half true. Now there was Boris, and Benji, and then there was.... Sharona. He knew he loved her, but he just wasn't sure if it was in that special way or not. Come to think of it, it probably was, but Monk was to nervous to express that emotion because he wasn't sure what reaction he would get from Sharona. If it was a rejection... well, it would be hard to handle. There would hardly be anything left for him to live for. The only reason he kept trying, kept hope, was Sharona. If she rejected him his life now would be over. And he had worked so hard to pick up the pieces, and they would all just fall and shatter again if she rejected him.
"I'm gonna make some coffee, okay Adrian?" Sharona said, starting up the coffee machine. He nodded. She was the only one who ever called him Adrian, and if anyone else called him that he felt out-of-place and uneasy. He stood up and sat down in an armchair, watching her bustle around the kitchen, getting out coffee mugs and straightening the rest as she went. He chuckled inwardly, because she knew if she didn't put it back to the way it was he would have to follow her around and fix it again. As Sharona waited for the coffee, she turned to Monk. She looked him in the eye and smiled, and he turned away.
She'll figure out my feelings sometime... Monk thought, but it doesn't have to be now.