From Mine to Ours

42: Home.

A/N: A reminder that I'm grateful to all of you reading this. <3

"Alright, see you guys next week," I wave at her on my way out, making sure to close the door carefully as I leave the office where Sarah and Jennifer are still working with me in.

Once I turn around, I pause mid-step at the sight of a fuming Cadence digger her pointer finger into Oliver's chest. His eyes are wide even from where I'm standing on the other side of the floor and I wouldn't be surprised if he started bursting into tears with the way Cadence seems to be expressing her... unhappiness.

I can't make out any words, especially with all of the hustle and bustle obviously filling the building. But I notice the way Oliver isn't backing down this time. His shoulders are slouched, his fingers tying together and his eyes dart to anywhere but her reddening face. But he's still talking back all the same.

I've never seen him talk back to her.

I can't help the curiosity that builds in me. Ever since that chat with Tyler the other week, I've been keeping a closer eye on Cadence whenever I'm not needed in the studios.

Speaking of, our outfits for the autumn collection are getting their finishing touches and we should be able to start trying them on any day now. Nervousness still sometimes gets to me no matter how many times I've already been in front of a camera at this point. Especially for these big seasonal projects, I just can't help but want to try and be as close to perfect as possible.

"Noah!" Oliver's particularly high-pitched voice startles Cadence out of whatever tangent she's going on. Her head whips to me with furrowed brows before she grunts and struts off in the complete opposite direction I'm coming from.

"Hey, Oliver," I look up past his head in the direction se ran off in. "What was that all about?"

He bites his lower lip, following my line of sight briefly before exhaling slowly. "No-nothing, just Cadence being Cadence," he shrugs, his eyes darting all over the place again. My eyes squint, but before he can notice my sudden suspicion, I send him a smile.

"You okay?"

"Yeah! I'm so glad to be back up her with the marketing team," he laughs breathily and I can actually see the relief on his face as he speaks.

"I get what you mean," he follows me towards the elevator and doesn't make a move to walk away.

"Um, Noah, how are you doing?"

I tilt my head, noting his familiar nervous gestures once again. "I'd say I'm doing pretty good... why?"

He shrugs again, but I stop him from saying anything. "That wasn't your standard 'hey, how are you doing?' type of question, why'd you ask?"

He looks up at me, his eyes wide again before he looks back down with a sigh and follows me into the empty elevator.

"I just couldn't imagine going through what you are right now... having your privacy stripped away from you like that," his head hangs low and his hands are kept to his side.

"Ah, we're handling it, don't worry about me," I try to reassure my friend, but his entire aura just seems to darken with ever second.

"I know, it's just..." he sighs again right as the elevators ding at the ground floor and people start flooding in while he attempts to stroll out. He looks up at me with a really sad smile, his hands running through his hair once he finally makes it through the doors. "I'm sorry, Noah," he almost mouths as the sound around us gets louder and louder

His lips purse together as he turns away. I could see the glaze over his eyes for a fraction of a second before in the overhead lighting. Sorry?

But it's not your fault...