Page 25 of Love Off-Limits
“Apreventableaccident,” Isaac said, his tone cool. He dropped onto the stool beside me and some of the fire in his eyes dimmed. “What’s been up with you lately, man? You’ve been distracted, distant, for weeks.”
“I’m fine,” I said, shrugging off his concern. I pushed a hand through my hair. “Don’t worry about it.”
“You’re not fine.”
“I’m fine enough. Just...please leave it.”
“Leave what? Can you just talk to me for one second like I’m your friend and not your boss? What aren’t you telling me?”
“I’m not sure I can do that, Isaac. You’ve been my boss almost as long as you’ve been my friend. I don’t know if I can separate thefriendpart out.”
Isaac shook his head, his expression reflecting equal parts hurt and confusion. “What do you even mean by that? I never treat you like you’reonlyan employee. This is our show.Webuilt this. Not me. All of us.”
I scoffed. “But what would I have been had I not gotten wrapped up inRandom I? Do you ever think about that? Because I do. Would I have gone to college? What would I have studied? I didn’t know anything about videography when you tossed me your phone and asked me to record you. Nothing. But that’s what my life has become. Me filming you.”
This time, the pain flashing across Isaac’s expression was clear. “It’s always been more than that,” he said softly. “And you know it. I don’t pay you like all you do is run a camera.”
“It isn’t about the money.” Trouble was, I didn’t know what itwasabout. If I couldn’t figure it out, I sure as hell wasn’t going to explain it to Isaac. I stood. “I gotta go.”
Isaac moved quickly, stepping in front of me and blocking my path to the door. “Why don’t you take a couple of weeks off?” he said, a hand raised to my shoulder. “Decompress, regroup. Maybe get out of town for a bit. Then we can talk. Figure out what you want to do.”
Suddenly, I didn’t want to talk to Isaac about anything. I couldn’t resent the guy. He was too good, too understanding. His willingness to let me take some time off was proof of that. If I explained to him how I was feeling, he’d do anything to support me. Invest in a new business. Use his platform to promote me, set me up. But it suddenly occurred to me thatthatwas part of the problem. Maybe I wanted to see what I could make of myselfwithoutIsaac’s influence and backing.
I wanted to see who I was when I wasn’t standing next to him.
I finally looked him square in the eyes. “I do need some time off, but I’m not sure two weeks is enough.”
He nodded slowly. “Okay. Tell me what you do need.”
“I don’t know that yet. I just...know I need to go.”
He pushed his hands into his pockets. “You know I’ll support you in whatever you feel like you need to do.”
“I know.”
He extended his hand, and I shook it, not resisting when he pulled me into a hug.
“I, um...” I swallowed the lump forming in my throat. “I need you to not pay me while I’m gone,” I said. Knowing Isaac, he’d conveniently “forget” to mention to HR that I was no longer around. “If I’m doing this, I have to really do it. On my own.”
“This is starting to sound a lot like you’re quitting.”
My eyes dropped to the floor, but then I lifted my gaze to meet his, feeling more certain than I had in a long time. “I might be.”
He shook his head. “Damn. I can’t imagine this place without you.” He took a step backward. “I won’t pay you. I’m not sure I understand why you have to leave, but I trust you. If you gotta go, I won’t stop you.”
I swallowed. “I appreciate that.”
“Okay,” he said, a note of finality in his tone.
I moved toward the studio door, my heart pounding in my chest.
What had I just done?
“Tyler,” Isaac called.
I turned around.
He grabbed the camera from the tripod just behind him—the one I used nearly every day. He turned it on and pulled out the memory card, then held the camera out to me. “Here. Take this.”
