„Wow," Dean exclaimed. By the reaction on Renee's face he could easily see that his assumption was right, even though she didn't admit it. „You know, if you told me before, we would avoid all those embarrassing moments and fights we've been having lately. But now I understand why you were mad at me. I was wrong to judge you for spending time with Seth. Hey," Dean suddenly realized, "does he know?" he wondered, but soon came to a conclusion without Renee's help. "Of course he does. Doesn't he? I bet Roman knows as well. Hell, is there anybody else who knows the truth? Am I the only who didn't have a clue?" Those questions sounded like they were meant to attack Renee, they indeed made her feel guilty, but in reality, Dean was just expressing his surprise; he meant no harm to her.

"I'm sorry," Renee apologized, believing it was the right thing to do and exactly what he wanted from her.

"Hey," he approached her, looking at her thoughtfully, aiming at destroying her sad look. "I'm not blaming you. I am sure you had your reasons to keep it from me. But I'm glad I know; although I'd prefer hearing it from you." He said it as a challenge for her to stop hiding from reality and admit the truth.

Although with little confidence, she finally told him, "I have feelings for you. I do, but does it even matter? Look, let's be honest here, what the does the fact that you know really change? You're in a relationship." Dean showed his agreement by hesitant nodding. "You care for your girlfriend, don't you?" she asked him.

"I do," he replied, just as she expected. She kept moving her sight to avoid having an eye contact with him but he finally found her and made her look at him. "But I care about you, too," he added and made sure to sound persuasive enough. He wanted her to believe him.

Hearing those words pleased her, but she didn't want to let that show. His presence, though, as much as his attitude, made her heart race. She wished to see a happy ending, but her brain kept coming up with excuses, trying to make her see it would never happen for them.

"What does it mean?" she wanted to know.

He knew that sentence made sense in the context, but he started laughing at how stupid it sounded. Of course, she didn't really need an explanation as to what those words meant, rather a confirmation that him caring about her wasn't an empty phrase.

Dean sighed. Then he turned to Renee with a command, "Come here." He took her hand and pulled it toward him. He made her sit down, but when she was sitting on the chair, he changed his mind. Floor seemed like a much more pleasant place to sit to him and he asked Renee to accompany him. When both of them found a comfort spot on the soft carpet, he started, "Tell me, Renee, how long have you known how you feel about me?"

"Well," she thought about it, "a few weeks."

"Okay," he accepted and evaluated the new information. "You have had a lot of time to think about it, haven't you?"

"I guess," she replied.

"Now imagine my situation. You want me to be honest? I've got no idea what it means," he admitted. "You're right, I'm in a relationship, and I like Cassie a lot. Yet, I'm here. I don't want you to think that you mean nothing to me. But, at this point, I cannot say I'm done with Cassie, either. Frankly, I'm confused. I don't know what I want."

"Dean," Renee stopped him. "I don't ask you to decide. I'm not going to force into something you're not sure about. Yes, I may be in love with you, but, ultimately, I want you to be happy. If she's the one that makes you happy, than I'm happy," she said but it was hard to believe her.

"Really?" Dean responded and, although he didn't mean to, he sounded a lot like the Miz. When he realized that, he just went along with it. "Oh, really…" A sarcastic tone was suitable. "I don't buy it. Why?" he asked. "If you really have feelings for me, why would just give up that easily? If you want me, fight for me," he said as if it was no big deal and an easy thing to do. The challenge he proposed made him happy inside. The idea of her trying to persuade him she should be the one to be with was appealing.

"Fight for you?" she laughed. "Dean, this is real life, not wrestling. Sometimes it's better to give up than to spend so much time getting beat up and losing in the end," she ended with little enthusiasm left in her. She stood up and looked away; the sight of him was getting painful. It was reminding her what she would be giving up.

"So you're not going to do anything about it?" he couldn't believe it.

"There's nothing I can do. I mean, you want me to fight? But what would I be fighting for?" she asked. "What is this ultimate prize?"

"Well," he paused, "me." Dean smiled. Renee had to smile as well, although she didn't consider it particularly funny.

"That's nice. But as long as you don't feel the same as I do, it means nothing. It's funny," she laughed. "When I was imagining this scene, I thought it would simple. Like boom! And there he is, and he loves you, too. But he doesn't," she sighed.

"Maybe he does," Dean made her believe it may not be over yet. "Maybe he just doesn't know it."

"Then why don't we give him some time so that he can realize what he really wants. No pressure," she added as casually as she could.

"So…," he wondered, "is that it? Several weeks you hide what you feel from me," he intentionally avoided mentioning that she loved him, "and when I finally find out, nothing changes?" he asked as if she had an answer to that question.

"It's strange," she added, "but I guess that's how it is."

"That doesn't seem right."

"I didn't think it would be like this, either. I thought that when you'd finally know, every single problem would be mystically solved. Now it seems like there are more problems than before." Dean couldn't but agree with it. "Yet, I feel relieved. The fact that there is nothing more I can do is somewhat satisfying."

"Come on," Dean sighed, "there is always something you can do. "

"You're right," she agreed with him this time. "But I'm not going to do it," she said believing she knew exactly what he meant. "As I said, as long as you're with her, I'm not going to interfere. But, please, if you think, or if at some point you realize that there's no chance you and I can ever be together, let me know, so that I can move on."

"What if I realize that you are the one I should be with?"

Renee sighed before attempting to explain to him what is wrong with that question. "Should…," she repeated. "That's not the right word to use. Do you know that Bruno Mars's song Marry you?" she suddenly asked him. "He sings I think I want to marry you. But you don't want to hear somebody say they think that they want to marry you. You want them to be sure. And there's the exactly same issue with your question. What happens, what should you do, when you realize you should be with me? I don't care about that. I don't want you to be with me just because it's better and a right thing to do. I want you to want it. So when you'll want to be with me, that's when you should take action."

"You're really not making this simpler," he concluded.

"We're adults, Dean. We need to think things through before doing something. We work together," she reminded him. "If we get together and it doesn't work out, we'll have to deal with the consequences. That's why I want you to be sure and avoid making quick, spontaneous decisions."

"Okay," he replied, understanding her reasons, but unhappy with the results.