Staring at it intensely, watching and analysing ever corner, every fold, he refused to take his eyes away as the thoughts and torment built inside, never fading over the last couple of days. If anything, it had got worse. Studying it, letting his eyebrows furrow in concentration, the mark it was beginning to create around the table, and in his mind, was slowly growing deeper. If it didn’t move anytime soon, then he’d never get over it. Slouching back, taking a more relaxed approach, nothing changing inside, he sighed and continued his observation. If he didn’t want to forget, then how could he?

"Mark. Are you just gonna sit here all day and still stare at it?" Paul asked, entering the room and slumping down next to him.

Not answering, Mark kept his attention ahead of him, ignoring everything Paul said.

"Mark… hey Mark." Ben tried attaining an answer.

Still nothing.

"You know what guys? This roll of dosh has been sitting on this table for far too long now. I say we go spend it." Paul suggested, standing up and scooping the cash into his hands. "What do you think?"

"Put it back!" Mark told, leaping to his feet, causing Paul to jump back a little.

"A-ha! A reaction! At last!" Paul cheered, grinning.

"Paul, just put it back." Mark ordered.

"No." Paul smiled. "I wanna spend it! Let us spend it Mark!"

"No." Mark said simply. "Just put it back."

"What, so you can sit there and stare at it all day like some homicidal millionaire? No Mark." Paul stated.

"Come on Mark, I’ve got to admit, these last couple of days you have been acting weird." Christian admitted.

"Just put the money down." Mark said, relentlessly listening to nothing else.

"What the hell has got into to you!" Ben exclaimed. "I know Louise has gone, but deal with it! You can’t sit here all day… get over it."

"But she hasn’t just gone Ben! I let her go! I didn’t explain to her, I didn’t try and get her back and now she’s gone and I’ll never get her back and its all my fault…" Mark raged, before slumping back onto the sofa, head in his hands. "If only I had said something more…"

"Mark, Mark it’s not your fault." Christian consoled. "You can’t help the fact she’s gone. Things like this happen and you… and you just have to deal with them."

"But she’s gone Chris. Gone forever and I’ll never get her back now. I’ve lost my chance, my only chance," Mark said sadly. "I didn’t want that money, but he… he just shoved it in my hands so I had no choice to hold it. You saw that."

"We know Mark," Christian answered. "Things often look differently to what they actually are."

"I suppose that applies to Louise as well." Mark enlightened. "She was different to all those others, special, she didn’t care what others thought but now she’s back there with him. I know she doesn’t want to be. I just know…"

"But she chose Mark," Ben said quietly. "I hate to say it, but she did, she went back with him."

"I know…" Mark sighed.

"I bet she didn’t want to though." Paul mused. "In fact, I know that she didn’t want to." He smiled.

"And how do you know that Paul?" Christian asked sceptically, not wanting Paul to offer hope unless there was some truth behind it.

"Well you know I went shopping with her that day before he muscled his way in here."

"Yeah…" Mark trailed off, hope lighting inside, trying to burn.

"Well we were chatting about stuff, about how she felt about you and I asked her if she loved you," Paul revealed.

"And?" Mark asked eagerly, his hope engulfing in a wash of happiness.

"She said she didn’t know," Paul told honestly, watching Mark’s face fall; his fire fade. "But… but I asked her if she’d go back with Anton if he came back for her…"

"Well…?" Christian persisted, a small dash of danger lying behind what was about to be revealed.

What if it wasn’t what Mark wanted to hear? Or what if it was something Paul didn’t want to tell?

"She said she wouldn’t go." Paul sincerely told.

"Yeah, well that was wrong wasn’t it?" Mark questioned, his answer he automatically found.

"No, no that’s not the best bit!" Paul defended.

"Oh, it gets better?" Mark said sarcastically. "What, did she say she was going to marry me too?"

"Alright, so it sounds wrong now, but you didn’t hear her reason for why she wouldn’t go back did you?" Paul enticed.

"So it does get better…" Ben smiled, hopeful for Mark. "What was her reason?"

"She said to me, that she’d only go back if there was nothing else. Apparently that’s mainly why she was with him; he isn’t her true love or anything, and that’s what she’s after. She doesn’t have anything else Mark, and when she saw you with that money, it’s like she lost it all. She said there was something strong keeping her here and there was. It was you Mark. But when she saw you with that money… well… it’s easy to work out isn’t it?" Paul explained.

"So you think she only went back with him, because she thought there was nothing to keep her here?" Mark simplified.

"Yeah." Paul answered. "And I think that reason she was here was because she loved you. I even think it’s true love."

"Do you think it could be Chris? Do you think I could be her true love?"

"You could be… but love is complicated, you know that. Look where it’s brought you now." Christian said truthfully. "Do you love her?"

"I… I think so." Mark exposed. "How do I know for sure?"

"Mark, you’ll find out sooner or later how you really feel. You won’t know, but something inside will tell you." Christian added. "You can’t force things like this. It’s not like a piece of cake you can say whether you like or not. It’s… it’s strange…"

"Well, all these lovely analogies of love are really touching," Ben began. "But talking about it isn’t going to get you anywhere. Do you want her back?" He asked directly.

"Yeah, yeah I do." Mark replied.

"Well then. We’re gonna have to think of a way of getting her back." Ben proposed.

"What? Excuse me. We?" Mark queried.

"Yeah, we?" Paul added.

"Yes we." Ben confirmed.

"I agree with Ben. You do want her back don’t you Mark?" Christian intervened.

"Yeah, bu-"

"Well then, that’s all that counts. If you really think this is love, then you have to go for it. You can’t let her live the way she is with Anton if it’s not what she wants. If she wants you, and you want her then you should let nothing in your way stop you. Don’t lay defeated Mark. Get back up and fight." Christian enthused.

"Wow. And that was the god of love speaking," Paul said in a commercial voice.

"Shut up Paul." Christian laughed.

"So, how do you intend we actually do this?" Mark inquired.

"I say we spend the money!" Paul grinned.