This is Real

Date for Three

Shay bit her lip to refrain from grinning as she felt Ian's eyes on her again, subtely glaring at her behind Sasha's back so the blonde girl wouldn't see. Shay couldn't really blame him. Sasha hadn't been paying the guy any attention ever since the two girls arrived at the restaurant that Sasha and Ian had agreed to meet up at. The moment Shay had entered right behind Sasha, the brunette had already caught the falter in Ian's smile, something he had tried very hard to hide.

During the entire dinner, Ian would try to engage Sasha in a conversation, but it seemed like Sasha was still having a hard time getting comfortable around her ex who had previously cheated on her. Sasha would still try and talk to Ian, though, just to be polite, even if the conversation usually just trailed off in an uncomfortable silence after a few replies from both of them. After Ian's third attempt at small talk, Shay had had enough. She felt like she was swimming at the amount of tension between the two of them.

And since Shay was really only Sasha's friend, she only knew how to get the blonde girl's attention. Which she did successfully. Sasha couldnt hide the relief in her face when Shay had finally broken her silence, and the conversation around the meal was finally flowing. Shay made the effort to include Ian in the conversations, but unfortunately, she didn't really know him so Shay still had to shift back towards Sasha, who, by then, was able to get comfortable enough to talk freely.

It really wasn't Shay's fault that the two girls kept slipping into conversations that somehow didn't include Ian. They would sometimes need to cover their mouths as they giggled about an inside joke. Whether or not it was Shay's fault wasn't an issue to Ian, though. The only thing Ian knew was that if it wasn't for Shay, Sasha would be talking to him instead.

And so that's how the three of them found themselves, walking towards the movie theater. Ian was surreptitiously sending Shay signs that he wanted her gone, but Sasha would lean slightly towards Shay and Shay would of course put her first. She couldn't leave the girl when it seemed like she was only ever comfortable with Shay there. It was not because Shay didn't trust Ian not to make a move on Sasha. And it was definitely not because she was wary of the two of them getting back together.

And even if it was, Shay was only looking out for Sasha... Right?

"Shay?"

Shay looked at Sasha, realizing that she had let her thoughts run their course and she had tuned out of the conversation that Ian had started about his work. Shay smiled apologetically. "Sorry. I'm a little tired."

Sasha looked worriedly at her. "Was this the photoshoot?"

Photoshoots, Shay corrected in her head. Two of them. One of which required that she wake up at five in the morning because the shoot was a couple of hours away. "Yeah."

"You had two, right?"

Shay raised her eyebrows. "When did I tell you about them?"

"A couple of weeks ago." Sasha shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly, as if she would have taken note of anyoen else's schedule like she did Shay's. She didn't want to seem over eager about keeping track, wanting to know when she would be able to see the brunette again. But friends did that anyway, so it was ok if Shay noticed... Right?

"Stalker," Shay deadpanned.

Sasha laughed. "Definitely. I'm your number one fan, remember?"

"I'm yours, too," Shay couldn't help but reply, not at all trying to get a rise from Ian, who was once again silent and unintentionally excluded.

Sasha scoffed. "Please. You're a Paily fan."

"Are you ever going to let me live that down?" Shay whined, pausing in her walk, shoulders slumping.