Breaking Point

Zane's POVI spend the rest of the day trying to shake off the conversation in the boardroom, but it clings to me like a bad smell. Every time I think I'm free of it, the words come back, louder, nagging at me."Getting too close."What the hell does that even mean? It's not like I'm hanging around Ash's office like some puppy waiting for scraps of attention. I'm doing my job. So why is this bothering me so much?I lean back in my chair, staring at the computer screen in front of me, but the words are just a blur. I can't focus. My mind keeps replaying everything that happened today—the way Ash looked, the tightness in his voice when he mentioned his father.There's something about the whole situation that feels off. I don't know if it's Ash's dad or Ash himself, but something's not right, and I don't like it.With a sigh, I push away from my desk and grab my phone. Maybe I just need to clear my head for a bit, get away from all this. I'm about to call Joshy and see if he's free for dinner when a message pops up on my screen.Ash: Drinks after work?I blink, caught off guard. Drinks? With Ash?I hesitate for a moment, my thumb hovering over the screen. I'm not sure if this is a good idea, especially after everything that's happened today. But then again, maybe it's exactly what we need. A chance to clear the air and get back to normal.Zane: Sure. Where?The response comes almost immediately.Ash: I'll pick the spot. Meet you outside in an hour.Well, that's that. Guess we're doing this.Ash's POVI'm waiting outside the office building when Zane steps out, looking a little surprised to see me. Not that I blame him—I don't exactly make a habit of inviting people out for drinks, especially not my employees.But today... I need a distraction. And Zane's the only person I can stand being around right now."Ready?" I ask, trying to keep my tone casual.Zane nods, his usual sarcastic edge missing for once. "Yeah. Where are we headed?""There's a bar a few blocks down," I say, nodding toward the street. "Quiet place. Shouldn't be too crowded."We walk in silence for a few minutes, the city buzzing around us. I can feel the tension between us, thick and heavy, but neither of us says anything. It's like we're both waiting for the other to make the first move.When we finally reach the bar, I lead Zane inside and find a booth near the back. The place is dimly lit, with low music playing in the background. Perfect for a quiet drink—and a conversation I've been avoiding.We order drinks, and for a few minutes, we just sit there, sipping in silence. But I can feel Zane watching me, waiting for me to explain why I invited him here."About earlier," I finally say, breaking the silence. "What my dad said... I didn't mean to drag you into that."Zane shrugs, taking another sip of his drink. "It's fine. I've dealt with worse."I raise an eyebrow. "Worse?"He smirks, a little of his usual sarcasm creeping back in. "You don't get far in this line of work without dealing with a few difficult people."I can't help but smile at that. Zane's resilience is one of the things I admire about him, even if I won't admit it out loud. But there's still a heaviness in the air, something unspoken between us that we can't seem to get past."Look," I say, leaning forward slightly. "I don't want things to get... weird between us."Zane's eyes meet mine, and for a moment, I see something flicker there—something almost vulnerable. "Weird?""You know what I mean," I say, my voice low. "This job... this dynamic we have—it works because we don't cross certain lines.""And what line do you think we're crossing?" Zane asks, his tone neutral, but there's a tension in his posture that wasn't there before.I hesitate, unsure how to answer that. Truth is, I don't know where the line is anymore. And that's what scares me."I don't know," I admit, leaning back in my seat. "But I don't want to mess up what we have."Zane doesn't say anything for a long moment, just stares into his drink like he's searching for answers at the bottom of the glass. When he finally looks up, there's a hard edge to his expression that I wasn't expecting."I'm not going to pretend I understand what's going on in your head, Ash," he says, his voice steady. "But if you're worried about some imaginary line, maybe you need to figure out why that line matters so much to you."The words hit me harder than I thought they would. Because he's right. Why does it matter so much?I take a slow breath, my mind racing. I invited Zane out tonight because I thought it would clear things up between us, but now, everything feels more complicated."You're not just some employee to me," I say quietly, the words slipping out before I can stop them.Zane freezes, his eyes widening slightly. I don't know if it's surprise or something else, but he doesn't say anything for a long moment.Finally, he leans back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. "Then what am I?"I open my mouth to respond, but the words don't come. Because I don't know the answer to that. Not yet.Zane's POVAsh's words hang in the air, echoing in my head."You're not just some employee to me."What the hell does that mean? Is this his way of admitting something? Or is he just messing with my head, trying to keep me off-balance?I don't know what to say, so I just sit there, waiting for him to explain. But he doesn't. He just sits across from me, looking as conflicted as I feel.Finally, I let out a frustrated sigh and stand up. "I need some air."Without waiting for a response, I head toward the exit, the cool night air hitting me as soon as I step outside. I take a deep breath, trying to clear my head, but it's no use. Everything's a mess.I hear footsteps behind me and turn to see Ash standing there, his expression unreadable. "Zane—""What do you want from me, Ash?" I interrupt, my voice louder than I intended. "You keep sending me these mixed signals, and I don't know what to think anymore."Ash stares at me, his jaw clenched. "I don't know either."His honesty catches me off guard. I wasn't expecting that. But it doesn't make this any easier."Figure it out," I say quietly, the weight of everything pressing down on me. "Because I can't keep doing this."For the first time since I've known him, Ash looks... lost. Like he doesn't have all the answers. And for some reason, that scares me more than anything.