The Clean-Up

"I am not cleaning up after them. You know that, right?" Becca said, standing in The Brewberry kitchen on Monday morning, the beginning of their week which they were supposed to clean up Punk's shop every night at closing. It was also Shiv's last week as a full-time Brewberry worker.

"Yeah, you can't make me spend my last week before college cleaning up after them." Shiv frowned.

"A bet is a bet." AJ shrugged, piping some cream onto some mini-Strawberry and Pistachio gateau's she had made for one of their specials for the week.

"I don't think it was such a serious bet." Becca said.

"If we won, would you have made sure they came here and cleaned up for us?" AJ turned to her as Becca folded her arms.

"Of course I would." Becca said, "But that's different." She said as AJ rolled her eyes.

"We can clean up fast. We'll be done in no time." AJ said.

"I can't believe you're doing this to Shiv on her last week." Becca huffed.

"We lost." AJ laughed, "I'm not responsible for us being a little dumb."

"Did you go home with Patrick after the quiz night?" Shiv asked Becca curiously.

"Work as we talk, ladies." AJ reminded them. Sometimes she did have to put her boss hat on with them. They had the tendency to break into conversation and neglect their work she'd set out for them.

"I did go home with him." Becca nodded, putting some cake mix into a tray whilst Shiv helped AJ with piping the cream.

"Are you serious about him?" AJ asked curiously.

"I like spending time with him." Becca nodded, "He's so easy going. And he makes me laugh. And it's so cute the way he loves farm animals. He spent half an hour talking to me about one of the little baby calves at the farm."

"Sounds like hell." Shiv nodded as Becca rolled her eyes.

"He's sweet." Becca shrugged, "I'm not saying it's super serious but… I have fun when I'm with him. I know that much."

"That's good." AJ nodded to her sincerely, "It was easily spotted how much you liked one another at the quiz night. I don't think I've ever seen that side of you before, actually." She admitted.

"Mostly because you're a raging bitch ninety percent of the time." Shiv added.

"That's not what I mean." AJ tutted.

"It's probably true." Becca laughed, "What is Lyla doing?"

"She's setting up out front." AJ said, "I'm going to go check on her. You guys keep up with the prep." She told them, washing her hands and drying them before heading on out of the kitchen and into the main coffee shop area where Lyla was setting up tables and getting the place ready for opening. She hadn't yet told her best friend that she'd asked Punk to move in with her.

"I can't believe this is Shiv's last week being full-time." Lyla said, making her way over to AJ who was standing behind the counter, "It's going to be so weird only seeing her once every two weeks."

"I know." AJ sighed, "Won't feel the same for a while."

"Do you think we'll need to hire someone else?" Lyla asked her.

"I think we should see how we go first. I think we'll probably manage." AJ nodded, "Although, actually, I was hoping to talk to you about something." She said as Lyla looked across at her.

"Oh, this seems serious." Lyla said.

"No, it's not." AJ shook her head, "I was actually going to make it a surprise and just go through with it but then I had Phil in my ear about it. He's like a little budgie sometimes." She rolled her eyes as Lyla laughed.

"What's up?" Lyla smiled.

"Well, I've been thinking a lot about what you told me about Lewis. And how you feel about him." AJ said, "I wanted to surprise you with a flight ticket to New Jersey. Just one-way. You can spend however long you want with him. I'll manage just fine here." AJ nodded, "I think if you still think about him after six years… it's bound to be worth giving things a real chance, right?" AJ said, watching Lyla look at her, as if trying to find the right thing to say.

"AJ." Lyla sighed a little.

"No, I know what you're going to say. You can't leave me to run this place, but you can. You can take a break and spend more time with him. I want you to." AJ nodded.

"I can't." Lyla shook her head.

"You can. I will be fine." AJ smiled.

"He's married." Lyla said as AJ halted her next words, staring at her best friend with sudden confusion.

"You… never mentioned that part." AJ finally said.

"Because it's awful." Lyla shook her head, "I can't go spend time with him. He… He has a family." She nodded as AJ folded her arms, shaking her head a little with confusion.

"So… you're having an affair?" AJ clarified as Lyla massaged the bridge of her nose, "You've been sleeping with him, and he's married?"

"I see him like twice a year." Lyla said.

"That doesn't make it ok." AJ made clear, "You… you made it out like you were lovers torn apart by distance. Like you moving here was the reason you couldn't be with him."

"I'm not saying any of it is ok." Lyla assured her.

"How long has he been married?" AJ shook her head.

"A few years." Lyla shook her head.

"Lyla." AJ whined a little.

"I know, ok? I know it's bad." Lyla assured her, "But I can't help how I feel-"

"And what does he feel? He went and got married." AJ said.

"I didn't expect he'd wait around on me." Lyla shrugged.

"But you still see each other whenever you're in New Jersey?" AJ asked as Lyla nodded, "Jesus, Lyla. This was probably worth mentioning to me."

"I know. I know but I just… I hate myself for it. I couldn't have you hating me too." Lyla sighed.

"So, when you were in New Jersey a few months back… you slept with him then?" AJ asked her.

"Yeah." Lyla nodded.

"Surely you're just torturing yourself. If he's married, then… what's the point?" AJ shook her head.

"I still care about him. And he cares about me. He's not happy in his marriage." Lyla said, "They only got married because she got pregnant."

"Still not ok." AJ assured her.

"I know that." Lyla said with frustration, "I know it's completely messed up and awful. But I can't help how I feel about him."

"So that's why he can't come out here?" AJ realised as Lyla nodded, "Surely you can't go on like this. You should be with someone who can give you their full attention at all times."

"I've tried to end it. But it's just turned into this routine. I go back to New Jersey, I text to let him know I'm in town and then we see each other. Then when I leave, I count down the day's until I'm going back again so I can see him." Lyla shrugged, "It's pretty pathetic, actually."

"It's not pathetic." AJ sighed, "It's just… not fair. And it's wrong. He has a kid. If he was so in love with you then he wouldn't have married someone else. Regardless of the situation."

"I broke up with him, though. I live out here." Lyla said, "I was the one who bailed."

"You should end it. For your own sake." AJ said, "It's not right."

"I know." Lyla assured her, "But whenever I've tried to date someone else, I just see him. I just think about him."

"And what did you tell me? Maybe the right guy just hasn't come along yet." AJ said, "But you're not going to be able to move on if you still have strings attached to him. You gotta cut it off. Imagine I told you Phil was having an affair with someone else. How mad would you be?" AJ said, trying to put it into perspective for her.

"April, I know how awful it is. I know I'm a terrible person, ok?" Lyla shook her head.

"You're not a terrible person." AJ sighed, "But you're never going to get what you want if he's married to someone else. Surely you realise that."

"I do." Lyla said.

"Now I'm glad I didn't buy that ticket." She scoffed as Lyla ran her hand through her hair, "You have to move on, Lyla. Not just because it's a terrible situation but… it's a lost cause. You're only going to suffer. And for what? Just to see him twice or three times a year?"

"That's easy for you to say, April. But I love him." Lyla shook her head, "If I had just stayed with him and didn't come here…" She said with frustration, looking her friend in the eye, of course not meaning it, only saying it out of anger and also embarrassment that she now knew the full truth.

"I didn't force you to come here." AJ said with anger.

"Do you honestly think you would have been able to come here without me?" Lyla asked, "You were a mess, April. Riddled with anxiety. You could barely look people in the eye." She shook her head as AJ looked across at her with a lump forming in her throat, "You needed me to come with you. So I went."

"I don't need you now." AJ said with hurt in her voice.

"No. Of course not. You have a boyfriend willing to do anything for you. You finally have it all." Lyla nodded.

"Hey, what's going on out here?" Becca asked, coming out from the kitchen with Shiv after hearing raised voices, "We good?" She asked them both.

"I finally have it all?" AJ shook her head, "All I ever wanted was to come here with my best friend and open our own business. I never wanted a boyfriend. It just happened." AJ said, "Don't get all mean on me just because you feel ashamed that I know the real truth."

"Woah, what's going on?" Becca asked with concern. She'd never seen AJ and Lyla seriously fight before.

"Nothing." Lyla shook her head, "We open in five minutes." She looked at the clock, walking away into the kitchen as Becca and Shiv turned to AJ with confusion.

"Evening, ladies." Punk smirked happily, standing behind the counter in his shop after they had closed, awaiting their cleaners for the week.

"We got mops, the vacuum, scrubbing brushes all waiting for you." Daryl smiled, standing beside Punk.

"And I got my cute gloves sitting by the oven. For anyone who needs them." Finn added.

"Mean, horrible boys." Becca hissed, "There's a special place in hell for all three of you."

"Is Maple here?" Shiv asked, whilst Punk noticed AJ heading straight for the mop, barely saying hello to him, whilst Lyla just stood looking around.

"She's having dinner." Daryl nodded to Shiv.

"Can I see her before you put me to work?" Shiv frowned.

"Fine." Daryl shook his head as Shiv made her way into the back of the kitchen with Daryl.

"Hey, you ok?" Punk asked AJ who was carrying the mop bucket over to the sink in the corner.

"Yeah." AJ said bluntly.

"You sure?" Punk shook his head, looking over to Lyla who was talking to Becca whilst they began stacking the chairs onto the tables, per Finn's request who was ordering them about gleefully.

"I'm fine." AJ insisted, "I'll do the toilets." She told him.

"This is just a bit of fun, right?" Punk said, wondering if they were actually all legitimately mad about their little bet. He didn't think it was that serious, and he knew AJ was perfectly fine this morning, even joking about it.

"Yeah." AJ nodded, filling her bucket and grabbing a sponge, "Just tell the girls what they need to do." She said, walking off over to the corner where the two bathrooms were for the customers.

Punk shook his head with confusion, turning to Becca and Lyla, about to say something when he heard Daryl shouting on him.

"Phil!" Daryl called.

"What?" Punk shook his head, walking on through to the kitchen where Daryl and Shiv were standing at the back door, watching Maple having her dinner, "What is it?" He asked.

"AJ and Lyla had a big fight this morning." Shiv told Punk quietly.

"About what?" Punk shook his head.

"I don't know. Me and Becca just caught the end of it, but they were really mad with each other. I've never seen them like that before." Shiv said with concern.

"Is that why they both look like they've been chewing on lemons?" Daryl asked.

"They haven't spoken to each other all day." Shiv said in a whisper, "It's really weird."

"Was it something work related?" Punk asked, "Give me something to work with, Shiv."

"I don't know." Shiv said with frustration, "Me and Becca were in the kitchen at the time. We only came out after we heard them shouting. AJ said something about how all she ever wanted was to just come here with her best friend and open a business." Shiv said, "I can't piece anything together. Anytime we asked either of them if they were ok today, they just said yes and walked away."

"Maybe it's to do with the bet." Daryl shrugged.

"No." Shiv scoffed, "We literally don't care about the stupid bet." She shook her head.

"I'll talk to her." Punk nodded, "Or… I'll try." He said.