"It Truly Is," She Agreed, "I've Never Been In A Town So Small That Everyone Does Things Like This And

She still hadn't quite gotten used to running into Dr. Lane, and every time she half-expected him to yell 'hey, I know you from therapy!' Which was ridiculous because he was a professional as all her many therapists had been, and this only had to be weird if she made it weird. "The Autumn Spice is probably my favorite. The cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg really make it taste like the holidays," she suggested, "but we're also doing a special for Creek Fest. It's a flight I've curated, it's just $5 and has that one, our Pumpkin Pie, Apple Cider Mule, and Ginger Pear mocktails. And we're actually donating those proceeds to Harmony Healers this week."

WHO: Josh & @leyla-tehrani

WHERE: Creek Fest

WHEN: September, 2023

"So, what do you recommend?" Josh asked as he looked over the menu, eyes scanning the drinks. Not much of an alcohol guy, Josh had to admit that he was pretty excited to see the Mawk Tales set-up, liking the idea of having something booze-free to drink, but still feel fancy about. Other than the eighteen million hot apple ciders he planned on drinking that week, on top of the hot chocolate, coffee and tea, since they were bound to find their way to him, too. "Honestly all of them sound good, I'm not sure where to start!"

"Great," she said excitedly, looking forward to the opportunity this would provide her business. "I can do that, and then once you give it a listen, we can set up a more formal meeting to work out all the details," she offered, before with a small smile, adding, "so you can enjoy the rest of your visit sans business." She beamed, rather proud of her drinks despite not being much of a non-alcoholic mixologist before deciding on the business idea. She was largely self-taught, and she liked to see good feedback to her products.

"I can make that work.." he thought over options in his mind, "maybe but together a playlist, send it over, I can put something together." Sure, they would have to discuss details, contracts and the like but overall, he was in. As Leyla set the fight of drinks down in front of him, Alec took a moment to inspect each of the drink as he debated which to try first. He picked up the watermelon lime to start, taking a sip to taste, then another. "Mmm.. not bad," he nodded.

"I agree," she hummed, "they're just...majestic." Smiling as Elise mentioned cats, she admitted, "you have cats? How many? I've been spending more time than a normal person should at the cat cafe. If I'm not careful, I'm going to take one home." Leyla could talk about animals all day. People? She wasn't so sure about most times, but animals? Animals were trustworthy. "That makes sense, sounds like something you'd have to really dedicate too, like no other jobs. Doesn't sound like a bad sports career option, though. I bet it was fun as a kid though, to grow up that way?"

"There's a large and quiet elegance about horses," Elise said, nodding along. "I have cats and those are...fake elegant, whereas the horses are the real thing." She smiled at the interest, most people did not care about dressage in the least. "Nah, you have to be really good and have the time to do it as an adult, it's kind of like many other sports, except it's hard to do for fun if you're not competing."

"Girl Code," she explained, showing the older woman her book, "it's a book for female entrepreneurs. Building confidence, women supporting women, that sort of thing." Probably not the fiction most read on the beach, but she was always striving to be better in business, still feeling a bit like she was playing catch up. "Daymond John's The Power of Broke is in my bag if I finish this today. I'm hopelessly boring unfortunately. What did you bring?"

for @leyla-tehrani

"So what is it you're reading?" Aleja asked curiously, looking over at the woman a short distance from her on the beach. She'd brought her own large bag of books and things, but could never bring herself to focus while sitting in the sand and sun.

Vitus hadn't built the walls, those were under construction long before him, but he'd been the one to slide under as it sealed shut. Like an action hero. Then, his betrayal had simply melded it in place. Opening up would mean pain, and no amount of therapy had successfully opened the cage that protected her heart, her very brittle, fragile heart.

She hadn't meant to break him--or maybe she had. But she had meant every word. Sleepless nights spent at his side pressing all the broken pieces back together, solid when he shook, warm when he was too exhausted to fall easily into dreams, a breath when he couldn't find air. There was never anywhere else she wanted to be. The irony of the Lighthouse in view wasn't lost on her. She had tried to be a light in the storm, a guide back home. Even when it got complicated, it was easy. And it wasn't enough.

She wanted answers. Answers he couldn't offer, ones she wasn't even sure would make her feel better. "Deep breaths," she whispered, cursing herself for showing him any mercy. She had sworn to herself she wouldn't if they were ever to cross paths again, but they were the same broken. "You need to find out why," she said, "the people you'll keep hurting until you do, they deserve that."

His promise that he did love her went unacknowledged because she did know he had, but it hadn't been real. Real love, if it existed, did not do what he did. She simply chose to no longer believe. Part of her would have given him her hand, let him find comfort in it. In her. But she couldn't, she had to protect herself first. No one else was going to.

"Please stop saying sorry," she breathed out, a single stray tear sliding down her cheek unchecked, "you had reason to worry, and I know I have punished you enough. But I don't want your apology. You broke my heart, you broke my trust, you made my nightmare a reality. Someone newer, shinier, thinner, prettier, more exciting, whatever it was. I know you said it wasn't me, and I know that, but you can see how I'll struggle with that anyway, right? I asked you for faithfulness, a lot of other people make different arrangements. You could have just told me you didn't want to do that anymore." She was circling back to the question that screamed in echos within her mind. Why, why, why. And there was no why. With an exhale, she let it go out with the waves retreating back into the ocean. At least for now. "Deep breaths, Vitus, take deep breaths."

Vitus had hoped for something softer, with her, after all these years. Time had a way of doing that—taking the bite out of memories, until the once-visceral pain turned phantom, like a long-gone limb. But Leyla's eyes didn't melt into her core like his own did. Her voice didn't compress and fold itself over, bowing under the weight of him. No, Leyla remained as hardened and sharp as the day he lost her.

Out on the beach in broad daylight, the last event of summer buzzing around him, Vitus was trying his best not to cry. But then she said that—You were easy to love. Why wasn't that enough?—and the thing in his chest quit howling long enough to crumble. It punched a shuddering breath out of his lungs. Vitus wrapped his arms around himself, trying to stabilize, as the first tears finally tipped over and fell down his face.

He had never thought himself easy to love, but especially not when he was in his twenties, and especially not when they met. Leyla had held him on the bathroom floor while his hands shook, on the tail end of a coke comedown. She'd seen him crawl into bed at four in the morning, exhausted and empty after draining sessions with his clients. She'd let him cry into the cradle of her neck after a day's worth of panic attacks as he tried to build a new place in his life for his parents. And through it all, she'd loved him. She'd loved him, she'd loved him. And he'd loved her too, because she knew what it was, to live like that. To be shredded and unwilling to look at her pieces long enough to reassemble them.

And yet. He'd still cheated on her. And then he'd done it again, and again, and again, to other partners that came after her. How many people had come up against his fever, promised to love him through it, only to end up burning to death in his arms?

"I don't... know. I mean, yes, but it wasn't you," he said again, speaking through the guilt pouring down his cheeks. Vitus pawed at his face, if only to save her the sight of him like that, but it didn't quite work. "Nothing is ever enough. I don't know why. I wish I could tell you, but I don't—Something in me is just—" He gestured at his sternum, trying to indicate the ache in there, the beast that had been demanding more more more for as long as he could remember. "I know how much you loved me. And I loved you like that too. I really did."

To make matters worse—Leyla's lips quivered, too, and Vitus immediately wanted to step forward. He wanted to reach, offer his open palm to her, say what can I give you? just like he did the night they met. He didn't. He stayed in place, battered by guilt over the fact that he had broken her so severely ten years ago that she still didn't believe in love, still couldn't talk to him without crying.

"I'm sorry. I'm really glad you're doing better. I worried about you, a lot, after—" A sniffle. Another hand across his face, as if he could wipe his identity right off of himself, bury it in the sand, and start fresh as someone new. "I'm so sorry, Leyla. I know it can't fix anything. But I just—I never stopped being sorry."

The world felt very small in that moment, almost comfortingly so for once. Leyla wasn't the best at letting people in, or letting them stay in. It didn't make her the best lover or friend, but Cemile was one of the few that got in and stayed. The busyness of the start up had meant she hadn't been able to keep in touch as much as she would have liked, and this was exactly what she needed. Having a friend sent waves of relief through her. "I finally did it, started my own business. I couldn't do it in the city, too much noise, too many memories, so I did some research and found this place. Put a non-alcoholic bar right on the coast, and it's doing really well. I feel a bit like I'm in my Hallmark era...I mean, without the shirtless lumberjack rebuilding an old inn." Scrunching up her nose at the idea of romance in her movie, she was not looking for that right now. "Okay now your turn."

Cemile turned slightly at the sound of her name being called, giving a rare smile once she saw who it was. The paint was no longer her priority, her friend now being the center of her attention. "Leyla?" she asked, mostly out of disbelief than anything. She hadn't seen her in a while, but still tried her best to keep in touch. She probably missed a conversation or two since her big move, but was delighted to get the chance to catch up with her. She tried her best to fit in the small town, but it still was a bit daunting. So the familiar face was a welcome surprise. "What are you doing in Merrock?"

"Thanks," Leyla murmured, so maybe she didn't give him enough credit on the customer service front. As soon as the question left her mouth, though, she was sure it was a stupid question. Maybe she was more talking herself into it. There was a time in her life when she could barely keep herself alive, so the idea of caring for a living animal all on her own was daunting. However, she supposed she wasn't alone. Like with Darrius's dogs, they all cared for them. "I imagine it's hard to be here every day and not at least take one home with you. What's your cat's name?"

Ever since Chandler's trip to Mock Tales, he noticed whenever the owner came into his cafe. This was only due to the fact he'd been watching her to make sure she didn't realize he was drinking at a sober bar, but she didn't need to know that detail. Honestly, he couldn't remember her name but he did remember her drink order and before she even approached him, he was already working the espresso machine. He nodded to her in greeting, but didn't say anything until she ordered. "I'm on it." He confirmed, then turned his attention more to her when she said she had a stupid question. There's no such thing as a stupid question was the customer service response, but he was too busy wondering just how idiotic her question would be. Pretty dumb, he decided. They did have the name of the shelter shown in a few places around the cafe, but when it came to someone being interested in adopting one of these kittens he wasn't going to be mean and possibly discourage them. "Yeah, all of them. We work with a local shelter to find homes for them. I adopted my cat from here, actually."

"A lot of competitive spirit," she laughed. She hadn't been here very long, but that was clear. "Me too, my sport was running," she said, before glancing over at where some kids were before looking back, "which one's yours?"

Lara gave her a smile. “Yes! Hope that everyone just has a lot of fun. I know this town has a lot of team spirit,” she said, trying to give extra context to what she meant. “I played in school… for gym class. My daughter is more athletic,” she added.

Leyla got a bit of a rush anytime anyone recognized her place because it was her pride and joy. The cumulation of years of work and battles. It made the journey worth it all to finally have the one thing that could belong to her. "Thank you for saying that!" She replied, her countenance brightening all the more. "It's sort of my passion, having a comfortable place for anyone and everyone to come and be welcome. Not that the other bars aren't welcoming, I'm sure they are, but sometimes you just want or need something different." But she was blabbering on, so she just smiled and nodded, "it's an open offer anytime."

Sounded like she was talking to the right person then, Leyla thought she seemed like she really knew what she was doing around here. "I've actually been involved in a program kind of like this before," she said, though leaving out that she was in it not volunteering, "I think they're great programs. Animals are true healers, in my opinion. How did you get involved?"

Livvy's eyes brightened a little bit at the mention of Mawk Tales; even though the establishment was newer to town, she had fallen in love with heading there after work for a few drinks and social time with co-workers, not having to worry about heading home drunk afterwards. "I love it there! It's such a great idea, especially in a town full of bars," she laughed. "I'll absolutely run that by the founder, see if we can get something figured out."

When she was asked how long she had been working on the program, she let out a thoughtful 'hmm,' before answering. "I've been working with the program since June of last year, then in January started training and taking some courses to get more involved. The founder's looking to retire in the next year or so, I'm hoping I can step up and take over for her."

FIONA PALOMO as SOFIA outer banks season 3