Stepping In

On her very first date with Ryan, Stella'd had Eve tag along. But instead of being upfront about it and introducing her friend to her potential boyfriend. Stella and Eve had decided to play it cool. 

Playing it cool in their books being Eve wearing a horrendous green wig and trying to blend into the background so she could observe Ryan, and make sure that he had only good intentions.

That plan had gone about as horribly as possible, ending up with Eve being spotted almost as soon as the date had begun. Stella, being too stubborn for her own good, had not apologized. Instead she had grabbed her best friend's arm and she had raised it as though the two of them had just run a marathon together. 

"This is my best friend. The two of us are a package deal. If you are going to go out with me...then you are going to have to deal with her on a regular basis. So either you like her or you don't. What's it going to be?" Many a man had been put off by her and Eve's closeness. Often choosing to break things off because they did not like the fact that Stella and Eve hung out so much. But Ryan, after being bombarded with their quirky brand of friendship, on the very first day had not panicked. Instead, he had looked at the two of them and he'd said what was probably the sweetest thing that Stella had ever had anyone say about the two of them.

"I could buy both of you dinner and then the two of us can drop off your friend and we can carry on with the rest of the date," 

"If it makes the two of you feel more comfortable, you can take pictures of me, and be sure to distribute them if anything happens to you," And just like that, he'd won both Stella and Eve over. 

For the first time, Stella had met a guy who had realized that the two of them were close because they cared. He had not taken Stella bringing Eve along on the date as some sort of threat. Instead he had realised that Stella was bringing someone with her so that she felt safer. No one had ever noticed that before. And from then on it had not been just Stella and Eve, but it had been Ryan, Stella and Eve. 

Their little tight knit trio, safe and good. Then there had come Gunther. For a little while, a horrible, horrible period of time, it had been Ryan, Stella, Eve and Gunther. That parasite leeching all of the joy out of their interactions, constantly correcting Eve, speaking over her. Trying to pretend like she was somebody who did not know her own mind. Making decisions for her. And for the first time, Stella had been unable to reach her friend. No matter what she did or said, it had been as though Eve had earplugs on, unable to hear others, and not even able to hear her own voice. Instead taking whatever Gunther said as law. 

Had Stella not had Ryan by her side, she would have crumbled. But her wonderful, wonderful boyfriend had kept her strong. 

"Eve needs you. She might not realize it now, but she needs you to hold it together so that when she finally kicks that creep to the curb, she will have a safe space to land,"

"Are you sure she'll come back?" Stella had asked, and Ryan had nodded with a certainty that had made Stella believe every word he said to be true. In her weakest moment, she had clung to him for strength, and he had given it freely. He was still his strength, still the pillar that held her together. Currently they were in the kitchen finishing off their evening meal. Something that she had cooked instead of Ryan. She decided to bring up the issue that had been eating away at her for quite some time.

"Do you think that I went overboard with the whole blind dates thing? Should I just toss the video and tell her it's alright for her to continue on as she is?" Just voicing the words made Stella's heart hurt. Seeing Eve just close herself off from love. Trying her best to not get attached to anyone was very difficult. Her friend was someone with a lot of love to give. It was a shame that she was not doing that all because of that useless Gunther.

Ryan reached over and took her hand in his. 

"Both you and I know that Eve, staying alone for so long, especially being that she's someone who craves acceptance and love, is not good. Deep down you know that, and I think it's why you pushed so hard to get her to go on these blind dates,"

"If you really did not think that it was good for her. Then you would not have pushed,"

"So you think I made the right decision?" Stella asked, not really sure what she wanted his answer to be. But knowing that she needed to hear him say something positive in order for her to feel that she had not overstepped and pushed her friend into something that she did not want. 

"The fact that you went ahead with the video and got her to agree to go on these dates means that you believe that good will come out of this. Trust yourself and trust in the process, and most of all trust in Eve. She's a strong woman and either way she will come out of this much better than when she came in," Stella pushed her chair closer to Ryan's and gave him a big, big kiss on the lips. Not even bothered by the fact that the two of them had just eaten a garlic-rich meal.

"Sometimes I am reminded of why it is that I love you so much," Ryan stared at her, his mouth curved up in a playful smack. 

"Only sometimes, how about all the time?" He asked. Stella smiled at him. "How about I show you some of that love now?" She said, her tone going low and sultry, looking him up and down in a very deliberate way. 

"Shall we?" Ryan asked, nodding towards the bedroom, and she smiled at him. As they made their way there, Stella decided to just let it all be. She had done her part in convincing her friend to go out into the dating world again. She just hoped that Eve would seize the opportunity.