Bad Decisions

Chapter Twenty-Six

-Devin-

Over the next couple weeks, he tried hard to do everything right. He showed up on time, didn't complain about any of the work, and did nice things for Avery whenever he could. He worked quickly so he could take on some of Avery's tasks and anything extra that needed to be done. He really was trying to make Avery's job easier. 

Avery didn't speak to him except to give him tasks for the day or to instruct him on how to do something. When he tried to make conversation, Avery was civil with him, but it never went back to how it used to be, no matter how hard he worked. He slowly began to realize that Avery would never trust him again. He couldn't just expect to do what he was supposed to, like he should have done all along, and have it be enough. It was too little too late.

He felt more lonely here than ever. He'd treated the one person who tried to get along with him the worst, and now Avery wanted nothing to do with him. He had no one to talk to and nothing to do but work. It was almost like being in solitary confinement, and he'd brought it all upon himself. Being here without a single friend and everyone hating him was worse than any punishment his dad could have come up with.

To top it all off, he was in love with Avery. There was no denying it anymore. Over the months he'd spent with Avery, he'd fallen for him - fallen for Avery's cheerful smile and bright personality, his optimism, his big blue eyes, his enthusiasm for the outdoors, the way he cared for everyone, and the heart that he put into everything he did.

He missed Avery so much. He missed holding him tightly at night. He missed putting his hands on Avery's waist and making him moan as Avery rode him slowly. He missed the way Avery had looked at him. 

He lay in his bed and he did something he'd never allowed himself to do. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes, and he let them fall down his face onto the pillow.

-Avery-

He knew he should be glad that Devin was leaving him alone and being a model employee, but he couldn't help but miss his friendship with Devin. He felt awful shutting him out and pretending like they'd never spent all those nights together. It wasn't like him to ignore someone and he felt like he was being cruel.

"Hey, Earth to Avery," Sam said, tapping the side of his head.

He looked up at his coworkers, noticing that everyone else was done eating. His plate still had at least half his food on it.

"Sorry."

"You were zoned out. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. I just feel bad about Devin."

Sam rolled her eyes. "Why? He's getting exactly what he deserves."

"And maybe he's the better for it," Peter said. "He's been the hardest working person here these past couple weeks."

"I still don't trust anything he does," Marc said. "He stares at Avery all the time."

"I noticed that too," Sam said. "It's weird. He's probably plotting his revenge."

Avery pushed his food around his plate. He hadn't noticed Devin staring at him, but then again, he purposely tried to avoid looking at Devin.

"Avery, are you sure you should still be working with him?" Amanda asked. "I know you told Mitch you would do it, but I'm not sure it's a good idea. And I'm starting to feel guilty as hell that you're doing it because the rest of us refused."

"It's okay," he replied. "If I really didn't want to work with him, I would have told Mitch to go ahead and send him home."

"Why are you still giving him a chance?" Sam asked, frustration evident in her voice.