“Excuse me,” Maisie says a couple of times as she squeezes through the crowd of people watching football on the Plasma screen strategically placed on a wooden pillar near the bar counter. The places smell of dried sweat and booze, a smell that makes Maisie’s stomach churn.

She ignores her discomfort and continues to snake her way through the crowd.

Maisie decided to surprise Tripp at work since the bar she was at was close to the bar Tripp works at and also because she feels guilty. She hates that Loren got into her head. It’s not that she was doing anything wrong but then she can’t fight the feeling that’s eating away into her heart.

Finally, she gets to the counter where Adeline is pouring drinks and attending to the customers talking over each other trying to get a drink.

“Hey,” Maisie calls out to Adeline. “it’s pretty packed today,” Maisie's states placing her bag on the counter.

She catches Adeline’s attention. “Yeah, football season just began,” Adeline mutters taking a glass and filling it halfway with gin.

“Where’s Tripp?” Maisie asks looking around.            

Adeline slides the drink she was making to the guy standing beside Maisie. “In there,” She points at Big Jeff’s office. “ Finally getting his paycheque from Jeff,” Adeline says, taking out another glass cup.

Maisie’s face squeezes in confusion. “Paycheque?” She repeats.

“Yeah, Big Jeff has been hoarding it for days. Didn’t you know?” She asks as she raises an eyebrow.

Maisie feels a rush of anger but she tamps down her rage, relaxes her face and spread her lips to give a tight smile. “Of course I knew.” She forces the words out. “Once he gets out, could you help me tell him that I am outside?”

“Sure,” Adeline responds with a small smile.

Maisie picks up her bag and makes her way past the ground, this time pushing them out of her way in annoyance.

~~~

Maisie is pacing around outside the bar breathless in anger. She doesn’t know why she is so infuriated about this little thing, he has done worse and she didn’t get this mad, she didn’t even say a word.

The noise of the bar becomes audible as the door opens, Tripp walks out of it and the noise reduces when he closes it. A smile on his face as he strides towards Maisie who’s standing still now.

He just got his paycheck and his woman came to visit him at work, the day keeps getting better and better.

“Hey, Babe,”  Tripp mutters as he tries to place a kiss on her lips. Maisie tilts her head to the kiss, which leads to a weird kiss on the cheek.

Tripp smile slowly turns to a frown, realizing at the moment that he thought too soon, this might not the best night. He stands upright to see her face. Her cheeks flushed and eyebrows farrowed as she stares at him intensely.

“What’s wrong?” He asks choosing his words carefully.

“Nothing,” Maisie folds her arms. “I came to see you, now I have seen you. I am going home.” Maisie says through gritted teeth.

“Okayy-” Tripp drags slowly. “I guess I will see you at home then?” His words come out as a question since he himself isn’t sure of what he is saying.

Maisie raises her eyebrows, irritation clearly written on her face. “Seriously?” She yells.

This catches Tripp by surprise, she doesn’t do this. Yell in public or in private. This is weird.

“What? I asked what was wrong?”

“And you quickly accepted when I said nothing, you know you do this all the time.”

“Do what?” He asks, anger slowly creeping in.

“Disregard my feelings, when you know I have a lot to say.”

“Then say it, you are not a fucking five-year-old. You have something to say? Say it!” His voice comes out louder than he intends.

He doesn’t even know why they are fighting, it’s insanity.

“Oh really?” Masie says in disbelief.

Tripp runs his fingers through his blonde hair in frustration, pushing back the stand of hair covering his face. “What happened?” He says in a calmer tone.

“Why didn’t you tell me you didn’t receive your paycheck?”

Tripp’s face relaxes when he hears it’s something trivial. He resists the urge to say “Is that it?” since he doesn’t want any further argument.

Tripp sighs before he speaks, “Because, I didn’t want you to freak out and get worked up like you always do.”

“Oh I am sorry, but someone has to get worked up. We are barely surviving Tripp, someone has to worry and we both know it’s not going to be you.”

“I didn’t want to add anything to your plate.” He tries to hold her hand but she doesn’t give it. “You already do enough for us.”

Just when she is calming down, a question pops into her head. “Where did you get the money to pay for our utilities?”

Tripp breaths out in frustration. “I borrowed it from Adeline.” He says throwing his hands up. “And now that I have gotten my paycheque, I am going to pay her back.”

“You know how I feel about debt.”

“It’s not you debt, it’s mine.”

“That’s where you are wrong,” She points at him, then herself. “It’s ours. And I don’t like it.”

“Oh, I forgot to put your ego in considera-”

“My ego? You are the one with the ego but it’s not for important things.” Maisie yells. “You don’t seem to get that we cannot live in debt. We just got out of one with Nate, remember?” She pauses as if she is giving him time to think.  “What happens when we don’t have money to pay back?”

“I borrowed money from Adeline not the fucking Mafia, so don’t get all dramatic.”

“I am being dramatic.” Maisie laughs bitterly.

Tripp sighs “Yeah you are blowing this out of proportion. Did something at work that got you mad? Because I feel like you are intentionally trying to pick a fight and I am not going to stand for it.” Tripp walks out.

In an attempt to give a dramatic storm off, without thinking, he walks in the direction of the parking lot instead of the bar.

~~~

Much calm, Maisie realizes she did blow the situation out of proportion. It’s unlike her. One minute she was feeling guilty and the next she was angry. She was just trying to replace the guilt with anger, so then he will be the one in the wrong.

Maisie is currently walking trying to find Tripp in the parking lot. She turns to her side and there he is, lying down on the hood of their old car, smoking and staring at the stars.

She squeezes herself in between cars to get to him.

 His face tilts to the side to see who’s in front of him, he then sits up on the hood.

“Hey,” She mutters.

Tripps taps the cigarette on the hood a couple of times and then flicks it, to put it out. With full knowledge that Maisie hates the smell and the fact that he even smokes. “Hey,” He says disposing of the cigarette to the floor and dusting off the ash on the hood.

Maisie turns, pressing her butt on the headlights. She puts her hands on the hood of the car and then pushes her self up. She shifts forward a little, ignoring the sounds her actions make. She adjusts her skirt a little.

“I am sorry for yelling and not telling you about my paycheck.”  Tripp starts off, facing her.

She looks so breathtaking under the night sky, her messy blonde hair, her rosy cheeks and the dark circles underneath her eyes. At this moment, he can apologize for anything.

“I am sorry for being a bitch and yelling too.” She says with a small smile playing on her lips.

“Come here?” He says with his arms stretched.

She shifts a couple of time to get in the position where she can rest her head on his chest. He wraps his arms around her. They both lay under the stars, welcoming the comfort of being in each other's arm.

“I didn’t want you to have to worry when it’s something I can handle,” Tripp says, kissing the top of her head.

“I know,” She mutters.

They both stare at the sky in silence for a few seconds before Maisie snakes her way out of his grasp. She turns to face him, with a wicked smile on her face.

She pulls him in for a passionate kiss. Aggressive holding each other’s hair, tongues dancing together with the faint taste of cigarette mint and beer and face plastered against one another. They both stop to catch a breath.

“Is the back of the car tidy?” Maisie asks out of breath.

Tripp’s face lights up. “Are you insinuating what I am thinking?”  

Maisie bits down on her lips, her eyes on his. “What are you thinking?” She whispers. 

“Damn it, I love you.”

~~~

Maisie's attention goes to a sound of laughter that comes out of nowhere. To her surprise, it's Steve and Scarlett.

Scarlett is laughing hard at Steve's joke.

Maisie looks at them in confusion, she is sure that whatever Steve said isn't that funny. Steve isn't funny.

Maisie raises her eyebrows at the scene, watching with full concentration.

"Good morning," Steve greets Maisie with a small wave.

"Morning," Maisie responds.

Steve heads towards the elevator and Scarlett walks to the receptionist counter.

"See you around," Steve calls out to Scarlett.

"Yeah," Scarlett replies as Steve walks into the elevator.

Her eyes go to someone who she can never get tired of seeing, "Good morning," She mutters leaning on the counter, a grin on her face. She drops a plastic cup of coffee on her desk. "For you," he says.

"Thanks." She says with a small smile. "When did you and Steve become friends?" Maisie raises her eyebrows going right into the question.

Scarlett shrugs. "Let's just say we bonded over similar interests."

The "similar interest" was her. Scarlett wanted to confirm if she was indeed engaged, so she asked Steve this morning.

Steve so happy that Scarlett was interested in what he has to say, started blabbing about how Maisie has been engaged for four years and the doubts that she will ever get married to her fiancé.

Let's just say, that's what Scarlett needed to hear. It's not like she won't have continued pursuing her even if she's in a serious engagement.

She's worth fighting for.

"Oh really?" Maisie looks at her suspiciously with a smile on her face.

"Yeah, I'm trying not to be a bitch."

Maisie remembers calling him an bitch yesterday, "You shouldn't listen to what I say, my opinions don't matter."

"Well, it matters to me." She says in a low tone as their eyes meet.

They stare at each other intensely and quietly, like they are trying to read into each other's soul.

Maisie's breathing becomes forced as she forgets to breathe through her nose.

"I'm engaged and I am straight.” She blurts out, out of the blue.

It has been lying heavy on her chest, she can finally breathe.

Scarlett chuckles then start laughing hard.

Maisie's cheeks turn red on embarrassment as she watches her laugh.

"How can I be so stupid to think she was flirting with me?" "Of course she is not flirting, look at her and look at you." "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" All these going through her brain at the moment.

“I am sorry, I thought you were flirting with me. I am so stupid.”

She stops laughing and then moves as close as the counter will allow. "I am flirting with you, love.” She says lowly.

The softness and the sexiness of her voice get Maisie legs wobbly. Thank Goodness that she's sitting.

A sensation hits her lower stomach and in between her legs which make her cross it immediately.

"See you around." Scarlett winks before walking away.

"Fuck." She mutters to herself.