"Nothing in the world could bring us down. Now we're so high among the stars without a worry and neither one, one of us wants to say we're sorry. I'd rather be anywhere, anywhere but here," Good Years, Zayn

Ever since Nishan got that phone call, he had been acting so different.

He said that everything was funny, but it was pretty obvious that things weren't fine, with the way that he was snapping at everyone around him, including me. He just started acting more aggressive and angrier, not wanting to spend time with me or Noelani. I was a little hurt, I admit, but even if this was his way of lashing out because he couldn't control his emotions, he shouldn't take it out on this little baby.

Especially when he was the one who said that he wanted to create this family.

"It appears Master Nishan has got himself into a funk," Michael slunk in from the hallway as I was cleaning up one of the sitting rooms. "Locking himself away in that estate of his." He sighed and I shook my head, trying to wrap my head around what had happened. "I know he had said that he was relieved of his job because of the evidence they have against him, but it doesn't make any sense."

I wanted to ask Nishan more about the case, but he wouldn't even give me the time of day. Talk about mood swings. "Hey Michael, would you know anything about that case that Nishan was on five years ago?" It was worth a shot because as much as a dick he was acting, I wanted to try to help him. "Yes," Michael nodded as he leaned against the counter, recalling the past. "Nishan was a rookie along with his partner, Diego Tatum, and they were put on this case to try to figure out who was killing all of these business moguls in San Antonio. I mean, there were at least 15 well-known people dead," I nodded, recalling Alonzo Hasashi, who was on his way to becoming a Fortune 500 CEO.

"It turned out that these moguls were involved in shady business behind the scenes. They were often embezzling money for the mafia for even higher profit, scamming money from customers' bank accounts and using them for other resources that weren't stated in the contract, things like that," Michael explained. "Well, once word got out that they were involved in these things, they were slowly becoming bankrupt, unable to pay back their debt to the mafia, they were eliminated. All Nishan did was catch those four leaders of the mafia," Michael summarized as specific as he could.

"One night, he thought that he had a lead on the 5th leader, but it turned out that it was only con information and he was stabbed in the stomach by someone, he doesn't know who. He had to go off of the case for a few months to heal and the assailant was never found. He realized that his partner never came to visit him and when he came back from healing to a higher position, he was told that his partner left the state for good," That seemed a little suspect to me. "Then how come he wasn't suspected?"

Michael shrugged. 

"No one knows," I nodded, knowing that I was going to try to dig into this a little further. My nosy ass couldn't help it. "Do you mind seeing if you could get the footage from the camera at the gate from the day that package was delivered?" I inquired sweetly and Michael nodded, raising a brow. "I can do so," He said as Eve Lawrence in all her glory sauntered into the room. "Hello my loves," She seemed pretty perky today and I was kind of glad to see that attitude on her, compared to a certain brooding man 400 feet away.

"Hey Ezra," Eve spoke to get my attention and I turned to her, dusting my hands off on my apron. "I know that you graduate at the end of the semester, so I wanted to offer you a part-time job working in Nishan's estate," She winked, giving some whole new meaning to what she just said. "I mean, you can always come and visit us. I'll always make time for my son-in-law," I blinked stupidly, registering what the fuck she just said to me.

"I guess I'll take it," I shrugged, choosing to ignore her last words because they weren't important enough. Michael smirked knowingly as he slowly left the room, going to handle some butler duties. Eve took a deep breath and stepped closer to me. "I know Nishan is going through some tough times right now," She took the time to figure out what she was trying to say. "But this is the first time that something he had worked so hard for has gone wrong, so he doesn't know how to handle it or what to do," I nodded, understanding.

"He's a hot head, but he's so prideful that he won't ask for help."

I let out a series of grumbles, knowing that it would take a lot for Nishan to admit how he was feeling. Certain situations called for different actions. If it was something so small, he probably wouldn't care about letting someone in because it didn't matter. But something this big, big as his lifetime job on the line, he probably didn't know how to cope.

But even so.

"Yea, that may be true, Eve," I fixed her with a tired stare, knowing that she felt the same we did. "But he still shouldn't push away the people who are here for him. It'll hurt even more in the end when he realizes he wants to talk and no one's here to listen," I explained in the simplest terms, watching her face crumble into disappointment and sadness. "...you're right, Ezra, but what can we do? I just hate seeing my son like this," She frowned, recalling the last time he was in a funk like this. It was how he most likely dealt with Easton and Naomi's death, not allowing anyone in until someone (me) confronted him.

She was right.

What could we even do?

Not a motherfucking thing.

"...I guess it's time for me to take a break and do some homework," I mumbled, just wanting to get my mind off of things. Nishan's attitude also could've been the fact that Eve and Leon decided to put back the frames of Naomi on the wall. I wasn't sure, he wouldn't let me in and it burned my heart.

I bid my farewell to Eve as I headed to a private room, where Noelani was laying down in her crib, crying upon sight. "Hey baby, I'm here," I reached down to pick her up, feeling content when her head made contact with my chest. She started cooing, sucking on her pacifier. "You still love me, right?" I asked playfully, sitting down in the rocking chair next to the crib. It seemed like she did. I guessed that I could spend a little time with her before doing my assignment for finance class.

"Noelani, I don't know what we're gonna do, baby," I rubbed her back, trying to find an out in this situation but it seemed as if there wasn't any. "We gotta help papa get out of his funk," I sighed. I only knew Nishan for about four going on five months, but I knew him so well and I could read him like a book. Moments like this were crucial because they could make or break us before we even got started. 

I wanted to help him, I really did, but I wasn't even sure what to do or what to risk. My moral compass was pretty strong, I would say so, but I was willing to throw it all on the line if it meant helping someone that I loved.

"Times like this, I wish that I could turn to Celina and ask her what to do because she has all the answers," I looked down at the ring on my finger, wishing she was here to give me one of those hugs that seemed to take away all of my worries. I couldn't wait to achieve my dream and see her again. It had been 3 years, too long for me. 

I sighed for what seemed to be the millionth time today, pulling out my phone to text some friends to get my mind off of this.

Ezra Moore: hey guys, are you free tonight?

Playboy Andy: aren't I always?

Just Korina: yeah, of course.

Ezra Moore: okay. I'll let you guys know the plan when I get off work. I just want to let off some steam

Just Korina: aye! I'm down!

Playboy Andy: pls Ezra, don't let the gorilla out of her cage.

Just Korina: Are you sure you can even be out past your bedtime? I thought the nursing home curfew was at 8:30.

I snickered at the messages, realizing why I found them so funny and fun to be around. They knew how to make everything comical. I decided to text Travis once more to see if he would budge this time despite the nagging voice in my head.

Ezra Moore: Hey Travis, can you talk?

Travis Walker: no.

Ezra Moore: Then how about later?

Travis Walker: no.

I took a deep breath, closing my eyes as rage coated my very veins. It took a lot to get me upset and this was working my everlasting nerve. I was trying so hard, honestly. We weren't even having that big of an issue before, but this was becoming drawn out and I had no idea why. If he was having some problems, he should be bold enough to say it. Before I knew, my fingers were tapping away at the screen, prominent tidbits of annoyance coming through each word in that text box.

Ezra Moore: You know what? I'm done trying to talk to you. You obviously don't care enough about this motherfucking friendship as much I do, so fuck it. When you get your big ass head out of your ass and stop acting like a dick, you know where I live.

And it was sent. A feeling of relief washed over my body as I locked my phone. I was not going to allow this to work me into having an asthma attack. I just needed to stay calm and be there for myself. 

"Hey Ezra," I heard a happy voice coming from the entrance and I looked up to see Natalie waltzing in, garnering a happy giggle from Noelani as she made grabby hands to be picked up. Natalie chuckled before obliging and a weight left my lap. "How are you?" She asked me and I shook my head, obviously frustrated. 

"Just when I thought we were movin' on up, we take two damn steps back," I rubbed my forehead, thinking that I really didn't know Nishan as well enough as I thought I did. Maybe we rushed too far into this. Maybe we should've taken the time to really learn each other's ticks and movements because it was evident that I had no solution to this problem.

"Don't go thinking negative now," Natalie warned me, sitting on the bed. "He's my brother and even I don't know what to do, so it's not your fault, Ez. He's just a big kid doing the worst because he just wants a hug. He just needs to get over his feelings and stop moping and figure out a solution. For someone so popular and so hardworking," Natalie scoffed. "He falls when he comes to a wall," She had that right for sure. Nishan was so confident in himself and the work that he did, but it didn't surprise me that he fell when the going got tough. 

Just a big ass baby.

"I guess I'll try talking to him one last time," I let out a sigh of trepidation, knowing that I was stepping in the devil's den, most likely going to get burned for the fourth time. I was in need of some affection, so I was hoping that he was up for that because Travis was lacking in that department.

"Go ahead," Natalie motioned towards the door, clutching onto Noelani, who was falling asleep. "I'll take care of her," I huffed deeply, boosting myself up out of the chair. "I'll be back," I murmured, taking the back door entrance to the estate in the far back corner of the land. Like the main house, Nishan's estate had a fountain leading up to the entrance, places to park, a beautiful array of flowers in the garden, and a long and wide mass of 30 acres of pure brick and limestone. His house was truly a paradise on the outside, with a koi pond floating on each side of the walkway and solar panel lights that lit up in the garden.

As I walked up to the door, nodding to the guard who was standing at the beginning of the stair path, I gulped, unsure of how this was gonna go. This was either going to be bad, or really bad, Either way, I rung the doorbell.

I could feel myself sweating bullets as I kept my head down and within seconds, the sounds of the knob clicking and turning ricocheting in the air. Within 10 seconds, Nishan was standing there, frown on his face as he cracked the door open, not sparing me a single glance. Ouch. Is that how we were treating each other now? Nonetheless, I did what I came here for.

"Hey," I spoke cautiously, teetering on the porch awkwardly. This was so uncomfortable for me because I had no freaking clue how he felt. He gave me an icy look and I clenched my jaw, trying to understand him. Like Travis, they both wanted to lash out or avoid people without talking. That never solved the issue for anyone and I was trying to play devil's advocate and help him. "I just wanted to know how you're feeling and if I can help you because I can," I said, watching his fist tightened on the doorknob as he stared down at me, facial expression unreadable. 

All it took were those words to make him snap.

"I don't fucking know, Ezra! Can you just like, leave me the hell alone for right now!?" He sighed, exasperated and my cheeks flushed with anger. I was just trying to help him figure this thing out. "Listen," I took a deep breath, knowing that the old me would've cowered and probably cried but not this me. "I know good and god damn well you're not standing here and getting pissy with me when I'm just tryna help you!" I spat, really having enough of his attitude. "Whatever, do what you want," I shook my head, seeing the panic in his eyes as I took a step back, feeling my hidden accent coming forth. "I was just trying to tell you what I found," I twisted on my heel, desiring to leave. I really had enough and this was all it took for everything to come crumbling down. 

No one knew what this meant, but the fear in my heart was beaten by the anger in my mind. He needed some time alone, that was evident and I was not going to sit here and be his punching bag for his emotions. I dealt with enough of that. It was clear that he needed space and I was gonna give it to him. We would just have to deal with the pain that came after.

"But you can find me when you get your shit together."