It had been a long night. A very very long night. The wind picked up as Shane sat by himself in the park. Listening to the wind blow harshly, howling in his ears. People passing by, going about their lives like it was normal. Because to them, it was. Not for Shane though.

All day long he had Guest on his mind. Every corner he’d take, he’d hope to run into her. Every walkway, he looked for her. He had her number, could’ve easily called or texted, but he didn’t. He never texted first, because he physically couldn’t bring himself to.

Hours had passed and he made his casual stride towards the bar like he always did, and when he walked in he was immediately greeted with her scent. Like a shark in the water smelling blood and gravitating towards it. Her smell was very distinctive that separated her from everyone else. she smelled of something warm, vanilla and the faintest hint of coconut with florals mixed in between.

He cleared his throat slightly as he walked into the bar, careful strides with his hands inside of his pockets, stepping in beside to sit next to her at the bar.

Hey.

He greeted her like he always did, short and controlled like everything else about him.

The night carried on and the two of them did their casual conversations like they always did. Guest had opened up about a lot of things that happened in her past regarding ex’s. The topic randomly came up with one too many drinks in her system that made her word vomit without having the proper control to keep it all contained.

He listened, filed every detail away like a man prepping for a mission he was so certain he would win with the proper training and preparation.

His jaw twitched slightly at the mention of one particular detail in her story. The last man that got the privilege of being with her, abused her so badly in every way possible, to the point where she always kept a first aid kit handy. Just in case. She had learned to properly stitch wounds, did heavy research into it because she knew that if she kept going to the hospital every time an incident occurred, the doctors would start asking questions and it would be a bigger thing than what she wanted. So she kept a first aid kit on her at all times in preparation for whatever could happen, but luckily enough she got out.

The two of them sat in one of the far booths in the bar. An area that was almost secluded in its nature. Dim lighting, almost romantic depending on how you looked at it. There was nothing Shane didn’t think of.

Guest I really hope you know that I would never hurt you. I’m nothing like Derek, I would never hurt a woman. Ever. I would never hurt you. I know you’re used to guys like that, and I am.. I’m so sorry.

He paused, realizing this is the most he’s shown in where his stance was since they have known each other. His jaw clenched slightly before releasing.

Don’t put me on the same shelf because I belong on a different one. I belong on a shelf as the guy that wants to keep you safe. A guy who shows up that you know you can count on. A guy that just wants to protect you. That’s the shelf I wanna be put on.