"Earl!" Wade yelled as he approached his father's house.

"Wade, there you are," Earl came out with a small pile of clothes under his arms, "Here, you can give these back to Dr Hart."

He loaded his son's arms with Zoe's clothes.

"So you were with her last night!" Wade accused.

"What? I can't talk to your Dr Hart? Worried I'm going to embarrass you?"

"She's not my Dr Hart, she isn't my anything."

"Yeah, and that's your own stupid fault, foolish boy."

"What?"

"I know you cheated on that poor girl," Earl said pointedly, and watched his son pale at his words.

"Did Zoe -"

"No, Zoe didn't tell on you to me. She's a loyal one, you know. And she adores you, even after you went and broke her heart. I guessed it from the way she was talking about you, and you just confirmed it for me."

Earl shook his head at Wade, a face full of disapproval.

"Silly boy."

Wade hung his head, smarting from the sting of a parent's disapproval. Even if he was a hopeless old drunkard, Earl was still his father, and he cared what he thought of him. He winced as he imagined what his mother would have thought of this.

"You need to get her back."

"I tried!" Wade defended himself reflexively.

"Well you didn't try hard enough."

"It's too late. Its over. We've moved on. I have another girlfriend now, and Zoe has a boyfriend."

"Had," Earl corrected.

Wade narrowed his eyes at Earl suspiciously.

"How do you know about that?"

"Well she broke up with him right in front of me."

"Earl. What. Did. You. Do?"

"I didn't do a thing. She did all the talking…. I may have just brought some problems to her attention."

"You got her drunk and told her to break up with Joel?"

"She was already drunk, and I know better than to tell any woman what to do."

"Earl!" Wade clutched his head in frustration.

"She wouldn't have broken up with him if she actually loved him. She doesn't, by the way. Says he's a boring old man. She misses you."

Wade paused at that, a wave of melancholy coming over him. He missed her too. He missed her so much sometimes he felt sick when he saw her. He missed holding her. Missed her warmth, and her laughter, missed her smell (which he could currently detect on the clothes in his arms, and it wasn't helping). Missed the face he made when teased her, missed the way her lip dropped when she wanted something, even missed her bad jokes. Most of all, Wade missed the way she used to trust him, and the way she used to look at him when he walked into the room… like he made her happy.

"She say that?"

"She didn't have too. It's written all over her, if you'd just pay attention."

"Well. It doesn't matter, I'm with Vivian now."

"That Vivian is a nice girl, but she ain't no Zoe Hart. And you know it. I know you do."

"Dad… just leave it alone," Wade pleaded weakly.

Crazy Earl was right - it didn't feel the same with Vivian. But he did like her. He liked what he had with her. He didn't want to think about Zoe Hart anymore, and what they could have been.

"You and her had something. You made each other light up, like fire. That isn't something you should leave alone."

"Well I am leaving it alone, okay? I'm with Vivian, and that's the way it is. Now leave it be. And don't mess with her again!"

Wade walked away defiantly, but he could still feel his father's eyes on his back, so he turned back and yelled in frustration.

"She'd never forgive me anyway! Like you said, I broke her heart."