Page 123 of The Replay

"Falling in love is a battle between your hopes and your fears." He smirks. "And if you last long enough in the struggle, you eventually get a chance to not only build a bond, but choose it over and over again."

"So wise," Pen smiles. "And so right."

"You have a past with Mariana," Bear adds. "If your bond to her is a string, it's been plucked since she joined the team. Right now it's singing. The question is, will you listen to it?"

"Downright poetic," Logan says. "And correct."

"Wait." Evie latches to Logan's arm. "Is this… an intervention?"

Chapter 39

Dom

Evie and Pen gaze at each other and take quick, excited breaths.

"It's the first time we get to participate!" Pen says.

I lift my hands as if I can stop them.

"It's not an intervention," I try.

Rafa, distracted up to that point, smirks at me. "I'm pretty sure it is."

"I'm so fucking thrilled!" Evie grins and waves her hands in an encouraging manner. "Come on, let us watch. Do your thing."

"My Evie— I love you," Logan says. "But don't commentate on the intervention."

I start backing away slowly.

"But we have to report to Nat and Ames!" Evie argues. "They'll be really sad to miss out on this."

I grab my crutches and try to take a few steps out of the group.

"Evie," Logan insists, but he also goes around me and, with firm hands on my shoulders, brings me back to the circle. "Don't give him a chance to escape."

Evie nods and pretends to lock her mouth closed.

"It's not like I would have been fast," I complain. "Fucking injury."

Bear chuckles. "No need to make a run for it. You know we're just trying to help."

"So, what are you going to do about Mariana this time?" Saint asks.

Logan cocks his head. "You would have to be more assertive with her parents than you already were."

"You don't get it." I cast my eyes to the floor. "It's not that simple."

The terrace I've made into my territory is predominantly white, with swatches of an ochre tone. I have no idea what kind of material it is. I'm tempted to get my phone out and look it up. Use it as a short distraction. If I can't run, I can try this instead.

If I could, I'd make distance between my heart and confronting this. The breakup— the end will hurt even more if I'm not careful.

"It never is simple." Bear's deep voice grabs my attention. "You think it was simple to risk losing Pen if we messed up our relationship?"

"I had to wait years to get my chance with Evie." Logan takes his fiancée's hand. "And she did not want to fall for me. Nothing simple about that either."

"You remember how I struggled to believe I could be with Ames the way I wanted to be," Saint says. "If it weren't for an intervention just like this one, I may have never dared. But I got everything I wanted and more. Will you let us help you do the same?"

I shake my head. It's a small movement— I'm not really fighting my friends now, but my indecision. A heavy, gray wave of discomfort rises around me. It takes over from the bottom up.