Shane not knowing what to do or say, held the woman in her arms, and didn’t say a word until Carmen made a move.

Suddenly, gathering her strength, she released from the hug telling Shane "I’m sorry. You’ve got a big day ahead of you, I didn’t mean to…" Carmen couldn’t even finish as she moved to the dining table. "To top it all off, you’ve had nothing to eat."

"Don’t worry about it Car. We can stop on the way to WAX and that will be fine. Besides, look, the coffee is brewing now, and as soon as I have a taste, I’ll be off and running" Shane said jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

Smoothing her hair behind her ears, Carmen looked up to the woman she loved. Amazed at the progress she’d made, she realized she would miss seeing her throughout the day. But she was glad she felt well enough to return, for she knew doing hair was one of the main ingredients to Shane’s livelihood.

Now feeling exhausted and with no energy, Carmen made a mental note to come back home and go back to bed once she dropped Shane off. Dealing with the issue of her family had taken its toll on Carmen, and if she wasn’t taking care of Shane, she found herself taking more dj gigs, just to keep her mind occupied. Usually, she only slept for a few hours at night, and when she couldn’t sleep, she just stared at the ceiling, careful not to wake Shane.

Shane came and knelt down in front of Carmen, taking her hand. "Everything is going to work out fine.. I promise you." Shane knew she was taking a chance at what she said, but she hoped after today, that she wouldn’t have to eat her words.

AT WAX….

"Good luck babe. And you call me if you need anything. Are you sure you don’t need me to pick you up?" Carmen asked.

"I’m sure. Derek is gonna drop me off since I’m only working half days for now. Besides, you need the rest. I can see it in your eyes."

Shane reached over and lightly kissed Carmen, and, after kissing the top of her hand, exited the car and entered her second home.