It had been almost a month since they started dating, and much to everyone's surprise, their relationship was as healthy as it was adorable.

  Now that they were public, they no longer had to hide their kisses; although they still snuck into the back room from time to time for privacy. She was usually the first to initiate any action, but he was gradually becoming comfortable enough to do it himself.

  He wasn't sure how relationships worked, and he greatly appreciated her endless patience. Neither of them wanted to force or rush anything, in fear of it becoming too much for both of them. After all, this was just as new to her—considering she had never dated a sociopath before.

  But the important thing was: they were both happy.

  Marina bought a small refreshment from the in-store restaurant and settled down on a bench beside the bathrooms. She placed her tablet in her lap as she drank the juice, her keen eyes floating across the store like a hawk.

  Her gaze landed on customer service, where the store's strangest yet cutest couple resided. She watched as the two of them efficiently handled three customers back to back, and they did it all together.

Nowadays, they never ceased to surprise her. She couldn't fathom how Ali had managed to unveil all of these different sides of him, and how content they seemed with each other. Was it really as genuine as it seemed?

She glanced over at Ali, who was undeniably one of the kindest people she knew. The way she looked at Sawyer told her, and everyone nearby, just how much she liked him. She wore her heart on her sleeve and her feelings all over her face without a single drop of insincerity.

But Sawyer, the only sociopath she hoped she would ever know, was a different story. It was true that he smiled more around Ali, but how could anyone be so sure that it was unfeigned? How could anyone be so sure about anything with him?

Marina pursed her lips as she looked over at Ali again, eyeing her carefree expression. She suddenly stood from the bench, leaving her tablet behind, and marched over to them.

"Hey, Marina, what's up?" Ali greeted cheerfully, then scrunched her eyebrows upon noticing the firm look on her face.

"Hi, Ali," Marina responded quickly before she turned to the dark-haired boy beside her. "Sawyer, follow me. We need to talk."

Sawyer slowly averted his eyes from Ali and peered down at their supervisor. He didn't reply for a moment as he robotically searched her face, while she steadily maintained her determination.

He finally nodded and leaned down to peck Ali on the lips, then followed Marina out into the parking lot. The summer sun shone down on them as they stared at each other with the same amount of intensity.

  "Listen, Sawyer," she began, her voice sharp. "After almost five years working together, I think you owe me a moment of truth. No BS. No manipulation. Just tell it to me straight, got it?"

  He tilted his head, intrigued. She had never been so stern with him; she usually saved that for Brady.

  "Okay," he replied plainly, having not a single clue as to where this conversation was going. Marina paused to choose her words carefully, chewing on her lower lip, while he studied her curiously.

  "Just—do you actually have feelings for Ali? Is she really just as important to you as you are to her? Or have you been manipulating her this entire time? Please, Sawyer, be honest with me just this once. I don't want to see her get hurt," Marina blurted out rapidly, her eyes wide with distress, before looking up at him again.

  His expression remained unchanged for a few seconds as he merely stared at her with his dark, stormy orbs. She almost thought he wouldn't answer her at all, until she saw something abruptly snap in him.

  He clenched his jaw before he spoke, his voice sounding like it belonged to someone else entirely. "I have never manipulated Alice, and I'm never going to. Do you know why, Marina?"

  She slowly shook her head, frozen underneath his unwavering gaze.

  "Because I want it to be real, I want us to be real. I need this one thing in my life to be completely genuine, and not something I lied my way into, because I–I..." Sawyer paused, the words getting lost in his throat, but she understood what he didn't yet have the courage to say. "Alice is the first person I haven't had to manipulate into liking me. She's the first person who knows me, the real me, and hasn't treated me differently because of it."

  Marina's lips parted in amazement as he continued on, wearing the most human expression she had ever seen on him.

  "She's teaching me so many things, and making me feel so many things, that I thought weren't possible for someone like me. Of course I have feelings for her, how could I not? She's the best person I've ever met. I don't need to manipulate someone who's everything I could possibly need and want, all on her own," he said, not a speck of doubt laced in his voice, as an unrestrained smile found its way onto his face.

  Marina softened, feeling tears pool in her eyes upon watching the emotionless boy she knew pour his heart out. She almost felt an indescribable maternal type of happiness for him. "Sawyer, I..."

He craned his neck to peek inside the department store; his smile widened instinctively when he saw his girlfriend's face. "She's everything to me, Marina. I promise you. I couldn't lie about how I feel about her even if I tried."

"For the first time, I completely believe you," Marina assured him as she swiftly wiped her eyes, flashing him a warm smile. "And I'm happy for you, Sawyer. I really am. I'm sorry I didn't believe you beforehand."

"I wouldn't believe me either."

She chuckled, nodding. "Yeah. Well, that's all I had to say. You can, um, get back to work now."

Marina watched from the parking lot as he walked back into the store, heading straight for his girlfriend. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, catching her by surprise, and planted kisses all over the top of her head. Ali reddened and laughed, reaching up to kiss his cheek.

Marina could now smile freely when she looked at them, knowing that the both of them truly were in love with each other.