Shivley: A Now United Story

Ch 47: favorite crime

There's so much happening around the world, and I hope that wherever you are, you are safe. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to put out another update! Thank you for reading and I hope this fanfic gives you the same escapism it gives me in writing it.

Shivani and Bailey were sitting at a café at the airport waiting for their ride. Shivani had decided that she was too stressed out to branch out with her drink and ordered an earl grey tea and Bailey opted for some fancy oat milk latte.

They were both sitting at a high table, sipping their drinks to avoid making conversation. When Edward and everyone else had left, Shivani had wanted to sit somewhere where she could just put on her earphones and listen to music and not make conversation, but Bailey had asked if they wanted to sit at a café and so here they were.

It was now that point in this interaction where it was officially awkward. Apparently both Shivani and Bailey had the same idea because Shivani said, "So-" at the same time that Bailey said, "Well-."

They both shared an awkward laugh, and Shivani gestured at Bailey to go first.

"How have you been?" He asked this sort of awkwardly, which was apparently the theme of the day, and leaned back a little in his seat.

"I've been okay." This was a lie but Shivani wasn't exactly ready to open up the chamber of pent up emotional feelings because she had a feeling she would cry. And that was not something she needed Bailey to see.

Bailey just nodded like he knew she was holding back, but he didn't really want to press her any further.

"Well I haven't really been okay."

Bailey said that so quietly and quickly that Shivani almost missed what he'd said. He sounded really sincere and Shivani remembered how he'd dealt with the Ylona situation and it had been resolved, but Ylona hadn't taken it well.

Shivani didn't fully think it through before she asked, "Do you want to talk about?"

This seemed to catch Bailey off guard and he raised his eyebrows slightly. "Um...do you mean that?"

Shivani shrugged. "Yeah...I mean if you need to talk, we can talk. Based on how LA traffic, I have a feeling we're going to be here for a while before Shawn and Edward return."

He nodded. Then he rubbed the back of his head kind of sheepishly before he said, "I feel like...I feel like I keep letting people I care about down. And it sucks."

Shivani was thinking about what he was saying, but he seemed to interpret her silence differently.

"Oh god. I can't believe I said that. You're definitely judging me. Oh my god. Just maybe let's pretend that-"

"Okay you need to stop doing that." Shivani was surprised she sounded so harsh, but after flying to LA on her own without telling anyone, she had gained a strange surge of confidence.

"Stop doing what?" Bailey asked.

"Stop hiding the part of you that cares and feels things! Look you're a good person, despite what I used to believe, but you have to let people see that because right all anyone sees is a guy who has a really big ego and thinks he's the shi- thinks he's a really big deal!"

Bailey was a quiet for a second and then slightly laughed.

"What?" Shivani hoped she hadn't upset him too much, but it needed to be said.

"Nothing it's just...I think it's funny that you can't swear."

Shivani rolled her eyes, clearly he wasn't actually listening to her. "Forget it. Maybe we shouldn't talk."

"No wait I'm sorry. It's just...what good will that do? The people that I keep letting down are the people that know that part of me. So clearly I'm better off hiding it."

Shivani shook her head. "That's what happens when you become friends with someone. You form close relationships and you risk getting hurt, and you can choose to keep everyone in the world at a distance, but then you end up alone and that's fine, but...you don't seem like someone who wants to be alone."

Bailey sighed. "And you believe that?"

Shivani thought Bailey was putting up a front again, but his tone made it clear that he genuinely wanted to know.

"Yeah I actually do."

Bailey shrugged. "I mean...then why aren't we friends?"

That was a fair question all things considered and it wasn't like Shivani wasn't friends with him per say, but after everything that had happened there was no way they could be friends. At least she couldn't, not with the way her heart felt as if it was racing out of her chest. There was something about Bailey that always put her on edge, but it wasn't because she was scared of what he would do, but of what she would do.

"I wouldn't say we aren't friends exactly...it's just...I honestly don't think there's a word to describe our relationship." To her surprise, Shivani found herself laughing. Then Bailey did too. 

"You're...right," he managed in between laughing. "Wow I really messed things up."

"Well it wasn't all you. Besides cut yourself some slack, you were dealing with a lot."

Bailey gave a small smile. "Yeah well there's no way I could've done this without you."

"Yeah you could have." Shivani brushed off what he said because something about getting too personal with Bailey made her cheeks heat up more than she wanted them too. 

He shook his head firmly. "No I mean that. And I'm not saying that to get myself into your good books or anything."

Shivani shrugged. "You should really give yourself a lot more credit, but...I couldn't have made it into Now United without either I guess."

"Wait why do you say that?" Shivani thought she saw a brief moment of panic cross his face when he asked this.

"Because the whole fake dating thing was messed up, but it definitely worked to put me on Simon's radar."

Bailey let out a small breath of relief. "Oh okay."

"Why what'd you think I meant?"

"Nothing."

Wait was he anonymous?

"I just didn't think I had done anything positive. Especially to you," he clarified.

Oh. Maybe he wasn't anonymous. Shivani didn't really know what to say, but thankfully Bailey's phone buzzed right then with a text from Shawn. 

Bailey looked at his phone and let out a small laugh. 

"What?" Shivani asked.

"Apparently Noah is here to pick us up."

Well this was about to be a wonderful car ride home. 

As they got up, Bailey put his hand on Shivani's arm. 

"I know it's been weird," he said, "But I hope we can at least be friendly?"

Shivani shrugged. "Deal."

With that they walked outside and Shivani felt like she was turning the page on a chapter in life, or something poetic like that. But then she saw Noah and she was right back to being the immature girl who was caught up in unnecessary drama.