He can't go through another heartbreak.

The bar got quiet by one o'clock in the afternoon. A lot of people who were in the pub from ten o'clock in the morning at the time Jackson and Steven arrived had left. These friends were two out of the seven people in the bar, including the bartender.

Jackson and Steven finish the entire bottle. However, Jackson drank more than his friend, and he crossed his sober line. Steven noticed that his pal was drunk and decided that it was time for them to head home.

"Jackson, wake up. I need to drive you to your residence!" Steven said as he shook his buddy out of the brief nap he had taken on the counter.

"Will you allow her to slip out of your grip?" Jackson mumbles as he slowly opens his eyes and gazes at his friend with a tired smile.

"What are you saying, man? Are you drunk talking?" Steven said. He sat back on his stool since he saw that Jackson was awake now.

"I'm not. I know that I am drunk, but I am not talking nonsense. I am asking you if you will allow Julie to walk away with another guy and not do something about it? Jackson replied with his head still resting on the counter, and his eyes fixed on his friend.

"What do you want me to do? I can't beat the crap out of the man even if I want to. I also can't fire him from his job because it would be inhumane to do so, and that will not be a guarantee for Julie to stay away from him. Plus, I can't kill the dude, it will be a crime." Steven answered.

Jackson gives a startled gaze at his friend. Steven giggles loudly. "I was kidding about the last part. I am not a murderer for the sake of all that is good." He replied after ten seconds of laughing at his remarks.

"I am not speaking about what you will do about the other man. I am referring to what you will do for Julie to earn her trust again." Jackson stated.

His statement had Steven thinking effectively. After giving himself two minutes to reflect on what Jackson said, Steven replied. "I don't know! I mean, I give the lady a gift basket plus beautiful love flowers, and she only says thank you."

Jackson hit his friend on the head and screamed, "Ouch..." He had forgotten and used his injured hand to deliver the slap. Steven rubbed his palm intensely against his hair to reduce the pain.

"Why did you slap me again? Look at the mess you have made! Your bandage has bloodstains on it because you reopened the cut! What the heck is wrong with you?" He shouted at his pal. Jackson moved his hand a little, and he felt a sharp pain running through his veins.

"What's wrong with me? You acting like a jerk is what's wrong with me! Did you ever wonder that the reason Julie went into your office in the first place was to say thank you and more than that?" Jackson asked as he intensely gazed at Steven, but his buddy did not respond to his question. Steven could not defend himself. He knew that his friend was right. Jackson waited on Steven to say something else to redeem himself, but all he got was silence and awkwardness from him.

"Maybe if you were not fooling around with Chloe like I have told you countless times, you would have heard what Julie wanted to tell you. What is your problem? Why do you always attach yourself to people who keep hurting you? She doesn't love you! She loves your money, is that hard to understand?" Jackson said calmly but in a harsh tone.

"Your point of view of me seems shockingly messed up, bro! Should I be like you who drives everyone that causes him a slight pain away from his life? I don't know what your father did to you, but he does not deserve the silent treatment you were giving him all these years! At least you have a father who wants to be in your life!" Steven sadly stated. However, Jackson did not reply.

"Plus, you know that my father abandoned my mother and me before I got delivered out of her womb! So excuse me for desiring to keep the people who had shown me love in my life. Even if they had hurt me in the past." He continued with his statement in an aching voice.

"Did your father ever attempt to kill your mother in front of your six-year-old eyes? Jackson asked his friend with an emotionless expression.

Steven felt frustrated about what his friend meant with his words. He had just told Jackson that he had grown up without a father, so what was his friend asking about another issue? "What? No!" Steven answered.

Jackson gave him a sarcastic smile. "Well, that's what my father did! Do you think it's worth growing up with that kind of man in my life?" He stated.

Steven's heart broke for his friend. He knew Jackson had childhood trauma, but he never realized that it was this dark. "No, I don't think so. I am sorry. If I knew what he did, I wouldn't have mentioned him in our conversation." Steven explains with pity in his gaze.

"There are some people you forgive and allow back in your life. And there are others you forgive but don't want them in your life because they are toxic to your growth and happiness. Do you understand what I am trying to tell you?" Jackson said as he sleepily closes and opens his eyes.

"I understand, big brother," Steven said. He stood up from his seat and helped Jackson stand on his feet. Afterward, they walked out of the bar together.

The bartender looked at them through the glass door and let out a silent laugh. "From what I have seen over this time, those guys could die for each other!" Liam said to himself as he collected the cash left by Jackson and the tip by Steven from the counter.

With a bruised face, injured palm, wounded jaw, and ripped shirt, these two friends walk toward Steven's car. He then slowly set Jackson in the front passenger seat and put on his seatbelt. Next, Steven got in the driver seat and drove away.

Jackson relaxed peacefully in his seat and slept calmly. His friend stared at his gentle face and prayed that his buddy should not encounter any more drama because he believes that Jackson had reached his limit in handling another heartbreak.