Characters: Michael, Chase, Zoey
Timeframe: Shortly after 'Rumor of Love', while Chase is away
Pairing: Zoey/James, Zoey/Chase
A sigh. A nervous stare. A scratch of the head.
Three seconds.
And then it hit.
'Zoey has a boyfriend' replayed in his mind.
A head shook.
His feet shuffled as he looked down at his untied shoelaces.
A shaky laugh.
"Guess I should've know." He said as it finally registered in his brain. He tried to smile as he looked up at his best friend's face on the computer screen.
"Oh come on, Chase. You don't know that. She did say that she loves you, right?" Michael said, desperately hoping to help.
Because that's what best friends do, right?
"Love, not in love. There's a difference."
"Look, man." Michael said. "I wish I could help. If you want, I can talk to her?"
He shook his head. "No, it's fine." He sighed. "I haven't heard anything from her since that night."
"She does miss you."
"I believe that, but it's still hard."
"I know."
Chase leaned back in his chair. "Thanks for telling me at least."
"Any time, man."
After a quick goodbye, Michael signed off and closed his laptop, resting his face in his hands.
He exhaled, and turned as the door opened, leaving him facing the two people he really didn't want to see at that moment.
"Hey, why weren't you at dinner?" Zoey asked.
Michael's gaze dropped to her hands, which happened to be intertwined with James', and he shook his head.
"Oh, you know…homework, and uh….stuff."
Zoey raised her eyebrows. "Stuff?"
Michael sighed. "I was talking to Chase."
James' face stayed neutral, but Michael caught Zoey's eye for a moment, and he swore he saw her eyes harden.
And he knew.
"Oh….how is he?"
Michael gave her a look and she nodded her head, so subtle that he almost missed it.
A deep breath.
An awkward silence.
He stood up and walked out, not looking back.
A/N:
This was originally going to be from Chase's point of view, but it slowly drifted into Michael's instead. I'm sorry it's so short and poorly written, but my thoughts are so clouded up right now that this is what I was able to write. Sorry.
My life is chaos right now, so forgive me for being so inactive. I think things are starting to make a turn for the better, though, at least.
Please leave your thoughts/suggestions/comments in the reviews, even if you're just a guest and not a user. I like to hear them, and the more reviews I read the more motivated I am to keep writing. Or even just send me a message to say hey.
-Sarah