Much time had passed since that fateful encounter. Hilary, Melody, and Stanley all met up to chat the day away while continuing their shifts. Hilary excused herself to the restroom, leaving the two by themselves. The awkward tension lingered between the two of them, as Melody also left.

She wasn’t in the mood to bother and talk to him. Now that she thought about it, had she ever spoken to someone like him before? If only it’d be so easy, but why did Stanley make it so much harder?

Melody, however, didn't pay attention to where she walked and slipped and fell on the floor near the wet floor sign as her mind blackened out for the time being. When she opened her eyes, people surrounded her with concern and worry. One of them looked familiar to her.

"Hilary, is that you?" She thought out loud.

"No, it's Stanley, are you alright?" Her vision came clear as Stanley appeared in her view.

Melody jumped back and screamed. "Oh, gosh!" After being given a minute to compose herself, she held his hand, pulling herself up and brushing herself off. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure? You took a pretty nasty fall." Stanley pointed out.

"It's alright, thanks for the concern though," Melody muttered, turning her head away.

"What happened?" Melody turned back as Hilary ran over to check up on them. "Melody, are you alright? You usually focus on your tasks and don't mess up like that." Hilary told her.

"I guess I wasn't paying attention," Melody admitted, hanging her head in shame.

"What did you do? What did you think about that distracted you so bad?" Hilary questioned. Melody held her breath, refusing to admit why her mind went blank for a moment there. Hilary looked back between Melody and Stanley. "No way, it's Stanley, isn't it?"

"Does it matter?" Melody replied, rolling her eyes.

Why does Melody hate me so much? Stanley thought with a frown.

Later, during break, Hilary approached Melody and whispered something in her ear. "Hey, if it's alright with you, can we talk about something alone?"

"Huh? But why not now?" Melody questioned. "And what about Stanley?"

"He's over there helping a customer." Hilary pointed.

"So, you don't want him to overhear our conversation? I'm not sure if he'll hear us or not"

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

"Oh. Well, let's keep it quiet, ok?"

"Alright."

.-.-.-.

The two headed over to a broom closet and hid from everybody else to discuss their little topic. It dawned on Melody that Hilary acted differently than usual. Her hands twiddled, her foot rubbed the ground, and her head hung low, narrowly avoiding her contact.

"So, what did you want to discuss with me?" Melody inquired. "Something so important that you don't want anyone else to hear?"

"It's about Stanley," Hilary replied, her face flushed with pink. "What do you think of him?"

Melody stepped back, hitting her head on the door frame in the process. "Ow! W—Why do you ask?" She rubbed her head.

"I've noticed that you look at him and talk about him a lot recently." Hilary squeezed her arm tight. "Like, I hear you thinking out loud about him too."

"W-What are you saying? Are you implying that I...?"

"Is that a no?"

"Obviously."

"Oh. And here I thought you weren't honest with yourself and with me, but I guess I was wrong." Hilary placed her hand on the back of her head and sighed.

"Yeah, of course," Melody confirmed.

"Sorry, guess you don't love him... as I do," Hilary murmured.

Melody nodded in agreement. "Exactly my point—" Her eyes widened upon realizing what she had said. "Wait. What?!"

"I've been thinking of professing my feelings to Stanley, but I was afraid that you also had similar feelings for the guy," Hilary explained. "Thank goodness that's not the case! I hope he reciprocates my feelings."

But really? That guy, of all people? "Do you think he will? Would he be that type of guy?" Melody questioned.

"But if I don't get the chance soon, then I'll surely regret it," Hilary mentioned. "But if you change your mind, I can give you twenty-four hours to—"

"Don't bother." Melody interrupted. "If you love him that much, then go, I want to see you happy."

Hilary gave out a slight smile, to which Melody gave one back. "Thanks, Melody." Hilary bowed and left the room.

Melody's smile faded after that. Was she serious? She knew Hilary wouldn’t lie to her like that. But Hilary deserved so much better than that pathetic man. She had to follow her friend and see if it was true or not.

.-.-.-.

Melody snuck around and crept to follow Hilary and Stanley out of the market once their shifts finished up. When the two got over to a bench to sit down and chat, Melody rushed behind a planter wall and peeked her head out, trying to listen in on their conversation without getting caught.

She couldn't hear what either of them said, but judging from their expressions, they seemed happy to be in each other's company. Seeing them like this made Melody's heart drop. Stanley's eyes widened as he stayed in silence, but then grew a wide grin as his eyes got misty-eyed; the same went for Hilary. The two got up and embraced one another in silence.

Melody turned back and slumped against the planter wall. She buried her head in her arms and crossed her legs, sobbing silently to herself. The confession seemed to be a success, and they left Melody out of it unintentionally.

She didn't even like Stanley all that much. At least, she didn’t think so. But why did she feel so empty inside? Why should she care? It had nothing to do with her. Still, the idea that her only friend, the person who seemed to understand her, had fallen in love with someone so...

Melody let out a quick, but heavy sigh, making sure not to attract attention or get caught. She rubbed her eyes as she got up and walked back home, leaving the two behind.