Nick's already here, methodically stacking chairs, and his knowing grin when he spots me sets my teeth on edge.

"Wasn't expecting you for another couple of hours."

"Thought I'd get ahead," I mutter, snagging a paint roller and beelining for the back wall.

"Yeah? Or are you working off whatever's eating you alive?" His perception is razor-sharp, but mercifully, he doesn't push.

I focus on the wall, watching fresh paint cover old scars. If only fixing myself were this simple—just keep rolling until the cracks disappear beneath a fresh coat. But I know better. Some damage runs too deep for quick fixes.

When Nick catches my eye again, his expression shifts to something lighter.

"Hey, got something for you." He produces an envelope from behind the counter, sliding it over with barely contained excitement.

Two tickets spill into my palm. Jimmy Eat World at the Summer Sounds Music Festival—a show that sold out months ago.

"You're kidding."

"Nope." His casual shrug can't hide his pleased expression. "Figured you might need an excuse to get out of town. Maybe bring a certain someone?"

My fingers trace the tickets' edges as guilt twists in my gut. "Not sure that's smart. Nora and I… we talked."

His grin falters. "And?"

"I told her we should be friends and pretend nothing happened between us."

"And is that what you actually want?" The disappointment in Nick's voice cuts deep.

"What else can I do?" The words scrape out of my throat. "I've got enough baggage to sink the Titanic, twice. She doesn't deserve that shit."

"That wasn't my question." Nick studies me with that infuriating patience of his. "What's the real fear here, Nate? What are you running from?"

My chest constricts as the truth claws its way up. I release a shaky breath. "Are you ever afraid of becoming someone you hate? Like it's written in your DNA?"

"You're afraid you'll become like your dad." He states simply, not a question.

Hearing him mention dad makes my shoulders tense. "Sometimes it feels inevitable. Like one day I'll wake up and see his face in the mirror. The anger, the destruction—it's already there, waiting."

Nick's expression softens. "Do you honestly believe that? That you could be him?"

My silence speaks volumes.

"Nate, you were a kid forced to be an adult, trying to protect your mom. That level of responsibility would break most people, let alone a child. Sure, it left scars. But you're not him. The fact that you're terrified of becoming him proves it."

His words crack something open inside me, letting light leak through.

"You can't keep pushing people away because you think you're broken. And you don't get to decide how other people feel toward you. That's up to them. Life's messy, Nate, but that doesn't mean you don't deserve someone who sees through the shit. Someone who accepts you as is—not as a project, but as a person."