Taking The Plunge (The Puppy Honey Series)

Chapter 6:Regrets

"What if I told you that what I wanted was a wrong decision?"

This was too cruel. How could those words reopen a wound that he was so desperately trying to heal? Here he was, trying his best to live up to what Pick wanted. Just friends. In a mere matter of seconds, Pick had managed to upset the balance Rome thought he had found. When was this going to end? Just when he thought his life would finally go back to how it was, Pick had to drop this kind of bomb on him?

''P'Pick. Please.'' Rome pleaded. ''I'm really tired. Tired of chasing after you. Tired of my own feelings. To understand myself.'' He was mentally exhausted. ''What is it that you want from me, P'?''

''I-'' How could Pick phrase it?

He missed Rome. There, he admitted it. Not out loud, but still, that was progress enough. Pick had no idea that the lack of Rome's presence in his life would affect him this much. He was grouchier than usual, easily irritable and most importantly, it irked him that Rome was going on with his life as if nothing had happened between them. Had Pick been easily replaced by Nai then?

''You can't answer me, can you, P'Pick?''

Pick gave a harsh sigh of frustration, ''Must everything be said in words? Can't you see for yourself how I feel? Don't you know?''

''It doesn't work that way, P'Pick! I'm always expected to understand you, but it's never the other way round!" Rome cried out. ''How do you expect me to know when you don't tell me?'' He tried to wrench his wrist out of Pick's grasp, ''Until you figure out for yourself and that you're certain what it is that you want from me, from us, I don't want to talk about this anymore. I'm not some puppet on strings that you can play with, P'Pick.''

Pick tightened his grip on Rome's wrist, not out of anger for the younger male, but out of anger at himself. How had things deteriorated to this point?

''Rome, you're making a big deal out of this-''

''Let go of my hand. Now.''

With a heavy heart, Pick slowly relented and Rome rubbed at his wrist.

''Is everything alright here?''

Nai was kind of early since club activities wouldn't commence until about twenty minutes later, but he had wanted to put his stuff down first before grabbing a quick bite. Judging by Rome's blotchy face, the two were obviously in the midst of an argument. Nai didn't like the way Pick was always making Rome upset and while it wasn't in his nature to butt into other people's problem, there was something about Rome that sparked a sense of protectiveness in him.

''Rome. Go inside for awhile.''

Rome opened his mouth to argue, but something in Nai's eyes told him that he shouldn't bother. He avoided Pick's gaze and did as instructed, shutting the door behind him.

''It's not my place to say-''

''Exactly. It's not your place to say. This is me being nice: fuck out of my business. It's between Rome and I.''

Playing nice obviously wasn't Pick's forte. Nai stepped in between them and stared down at Pick with a measured gaze, ''It is my business when you're hurting him. Haven't you caused him enough of that, Pick? Are you only going to be satisfied once you've fully broken him?''

''You don't know a thing about us, or what I feel for him, so don't fucking bullshit me.''

Nai laughed in disbelief, ''Do you even hear yourself? You told him you didn't like him and he accepted it. You clearly don't know what you want. Do you think it's easy for him to come here and face you and act like nothing's wrong? You weren't there when he cried his eyes out because of you, so don't tell me that I don't know anything.''