During a moment of clarity, I came to the realization that I was being very unfair to Bret.
Yeah, he creeped me the fuck out, just like his son:
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I'm kidding. DO YOU HEAR THAT, DALLI? I'M KIDDING!
From their first meeting, I had the sense Bret was going to be trouble:
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Especially when DPC focused on their hands touching:
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I saw that, and thought, "Get you're grimy-ass hand off of her." And then to pile it on, DPC threw this at us as she left:
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But then, nothing happened.
Later, during the bar scene I showed in
an earlier post, Bret offered her a place to stay...
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...and I was thinking, "Yeah, we all know what you want." He even gave her "The Look":
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But then, nothing happened.
During Zoey's first tattoo scene, Emma and Jonah dipped out, leaving Bret and Zoey alone. He even told Jonah to lock the door (yes, I know it was past closing, but still)...
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...and I was thinking, "OK, now he's going to make his move."
But then, nothing happened.
Afterwards, he invites her to his place for a few beers...
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...and I was thinking, "This is it. His drunk ass is going to be all over her."
But then, nothing happened.
Wait a minute...he's supposed to be a creepazoid, right? When he walks in on Zoey getting her piercing...
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...something actually happens:
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He has the decency to walk out and give Zoey her privacy when he could have stayed and observed for "quality control purposes."
Towards the end of the Interlude, he showed up at Zoey's apartment because he was "in the area"...
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Yeah, the fuck you were, Bret. Then to console her, he moved up nice and close, and wrapped his arm around her:
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But then, nothing happened.
The Interlude has other implications of his feelings, including the "...but as friends, right?" comment, or the unenthusiastic kiss with Emma as Zoey was leaving, or the fact that he didn't deny a relationship with Zoey to Emma.
The truth as I see it is there is no doubt in my mind that he has feelings for her. But he never acted upon them. What he did do is provide Zoey with:
- Employment
- Companionship
- Friendly advice
- Consolation
So in my moment of clarity, I was forced to realize Bret's actually not that bad of a guy, although he still looks like a fucktard with that hair.
Fortunately, the clarity has passed, and I'm back to thinking he's creepy motherfucker.