Nothing ever mattered to me more than this

 "MONA!" Gabe was glad Sammie wasn't home, or this conversation probably wouldn't have happened with Rico. "Are you insane?"

A part of him was glad Rico could confide in him, but Mona? Mona of all people.

"Well."

Rico looked a little bothered as if he might feel it was just as strange as seeing a UFO.

"I don't even know her, and I've heard stories," Gabe gave him the eye. Now Rico was growing restless as he rubbed his hand at the back of his neck. Perhaps, he was just ill. 

Rico dropped to the couch and Gabe came around to sit across from him. He kept  looking him in the eye as if he needed Rico to get over this one night thing with Mona or it might be the plague.

"Well, it's been so long, you know." Rico practically winked about his dilemma.

"You mean, going that long with out sex?"

"Yeah." He could barely say it. "It just happened OK. I know she..she was really distraught and so upset about seeing Hoyt and all..and..and I dunno..it just felt..."

Gabe shook his head, no. "Why Mona?"

"I dunno," Rico sighed. "OK, maybe....maybe finding out from Reese ..that she wasn't interested in me at all..I just." Now Rico was shaking his head, no. "I don't know..I really don't." He looked Gabe in the eye. "It's just, I remember the first time I met Mona, we really did hit it off, but then when I found out she was with such a DICK, like ..like Tristan..um, I just always wondered..what was it about me, you know."

"Oh really," Gabe rolled his eyes at that and went to get them some sodas from the fridge. "Well, where's Mona now?'

"I took her back to  her parents," he told him. "I know she doesn't want to be there."

"What's she gonna do?"

"I don't know." Rico shrugged as he kept his eye on his drink. He wouldn't even open it. Gabe sensed that Rico was mad at himself and Gabe was certain he hadn't helped matters. "She'll probably go back to Hoyt." He scratched the back of his ear as if he should leave this matter alone. "She works for his mother. They've..they've invested a lot, you know, into their relationship."

"Well, you're not gonna fight for her?" Gabe found himself asking.

Rico sighed.

"I guess the sex wasn't that good," Gabe smirked as he took a sip of his cola.

Rico squinted hard with a sigh and hugged himself. "I thought she really needed me. I really did."

"Well, the thing is, you need to be there afterwards and days and weeks that go on. The blah days, the days that are shitty for the both of you. And maybe Hoyt knows all that, and she could care less."

Gabe's voice was like thunder.

"Well, he was with that friend of his from high school, you know." Rico pressed his lips tight.

"So. Friends need friends. I'm sure he told her all the shit Mona puts him through," Gabe sighed. "Is that what you want?"

"Not really."

Rico looked at him.

"Just leave it alone," Gabe told him. Rico nodded. 

"Vada is looking like a winner, in my book," Gabe said as he took another sip. Rico finally popped the can and took a drink.

"But you know, don't let this bring you down." Gabe nodded wishing he didn't know so much about this, but it would give him and Sammie something to talk about. Still, he knew it was best that she didn't know. Cause Vada didn't need to know this.