through them. She was more of a rom-com woman anyways.
Though, it would start later than normal. Charles had his sister’s anniversary part to attend to. It worried me a bit. If what Rebecca said was true, Ava was not a nice person. And the fear he had shown when he saw her. No one should be afraid of their sibling. Not like that. Like they could kill you at any moment. The protective side of me wanted to go with him, but I didn’t think that was a good idea. I was under the impression that he didn’t want me to meet her. Which was understandable. I didn’t even know if I wanted to meet her.
Bottle of wine purchased, I headed to my apartment from the store, and set the bottle on the kitchen counter top. I pulled two wine glasses from the cabinets and inspected them for dirt. I don't use the glasses often, preferring to drink straight from the bottle, so there was a collection of dust on both glasses. They needed to be cleaned along with the rest of my apartment. I am not a tidy person.
I ate some leftover Hamburger Helper for dinner, and then started my cleaning spree. I made it to the bedroom before there was a knock on the door. My eyes fell to my alarm clock. It was only 8:30 so there was no way it was Charles. He said not to expect him until at least 10. But I wasn’t expecting anyone else, and there’s no way it was some salesman or Bible thumpers.
“Hello?!” I called, a few feet away from the door, ready to run and hide if necessary. Unfortunately, my door doesn’t have a peephole so I had to rely on the old fashioned method of screaming through a door.
“It’s me, Charles,” Charles called through the door, his voice cracking a bit.
A breath of relief washed through me and I opened the door a smile on my face. It faltered when my eyes took in Charles’ disheveled appearance. His grey suit jacket was unbuttoned, revealing the white button-up underneath that had a nice big red stain that was still wet and smelled of alcohol, wine. His hair was sticking out on one side, as if someone has grabbed him by it. A nasty, red scratch was on his neck on the same side of his messed up hair.
“Jesus Christ, Charles! What the hell happened?!” I grabbed his hand and ushered him inside, dragging him straight to the bathroom. After forcing him to sit on the toilet seat, I grabbed the hydrogen peroxide and cotton balls from under the sink. “This is going to sting,” I inform him after soaking a cotton ball in the peroxide. He didn’t even flinch. Just stared at my sink vacantly.
After I was done I threw the cotton ball in my trash and turned back to him. I stared at him for several moments before asking, “What happened?” He was upset, red slightly puffed eyes he refused to look at me with, and I thought talking might help. All I got was silence. “Hey,” I called softly, placing a hand on his cheek to get him to look at me. “What happened?”
His eyes finally met mine. “Do I have to talk about it?”
“No.” I shook my head. “Not now, but soon.” My thumb brushed against his dry yet soft lips. “Sound fair?” He came to my place in that disheveled state, I deserve to know what happened.
The sigh he released was heavy and tired with a hint of relief. “Yes.”
I gave him a reassuring smile. “Good.” The smell of the alcohol permeated my nose, bringing it to the forefront of my thoughts. “Do you want to take a shower?” I indicated the stain on his shirt.
His eyes turned to his and his face fell. “Yeah. I guess I’m going to have to.” He stood and I got out of the way. My bathroom wasn’t the roomiest around, and both of us standing together put us nearly chest-to-chest. I wanted to touch him. To wrap my arms around his waist and melt into him. But it wasn’t the right time for that. I did, however, get a kiss. It was short and filled my body with warmth. “Thank you,” he said, resting his forehead on mine.
“For what?”
“Not prying.”
It was my turn to kiss him, a
Though, it would start later than normal. Charles had his sister’s anniversary part to attend to. It worried me a bit. If what Rebecca said was true, Ava was not a nice person. And the fear he had shown when he saw her. No one should be afraid of their sibling. Not like that. Like they could kill you at any moment. The protective side of me wanted to go with him, but I didn’t think that was a good idea. I was under the impression that he didn’t want me to meet her. Which was understandable. I didn’t even know if I wanted to meet her.
Bottle of wine purchased, I headed to my apartment from the store, and set the bottle on the kitchen counter top. I pulled two wine glasses from the cabinets and inspected them for dirt. I don't use the glasses often, preferring to drink straight from the bottle, so there was a collection of dust on both glasses. They needed to be cleaned along with the rest of my apartment. I am not a tidy person.
I ate some leftover Hamburger Helper for dinner, and then started my cleaning spree. I made it to the bedroom before there was a knock on the door. My eyes fell to my alarm clock. It was only 8:30 so there was no way it was Charles. He said not to expect him until at least 10. But I wasn’t expecting anyone else, and there’s no way it was some salesman or Bible thumpers.
“Hello?!” I called, a few feet away from the door, ready to run and hide if necessary. Unfortunately, my door doesn’t have a peephole so I had to rely on the old fashioned method of screaming through a door.
“It’s me, Charles,” Charles called through the door, his voice cracking a bit.
A breath of relief washed through me and I opened the door a smile on my face. It faltered when my eyes took in Charles’ disheveled appearance. His grey suit jacket was unbuttoned, revealing the white button-up underneath that had a nice big red stain that was still wet and smelled of alcohol, wine. His hair was sticking out on one side, as if someone has grabbed him by it. A nasty, red scratch was on his neck on the same side of his messed up hair.
“Jesus Christ, Charles! What the hell happened?!” I grabbed his hand and ushered him inside, dragging him straight to the bathroom. After forcing him to sit on the toilet seat, I grabbed the hydrogen peroxide and cotton balls from under the sink. “This is going to sting,” I inform him after soaking a cotton ball in the peroxide. He didn’t even flinch. Just stared at my sink vacantly.
After I was done I threw the cotton ball in my trash and turned back to him. I stared at him for several moments before asking, “What happened?” He was upset, red slightly puffed eyes he refused to look at me with, and I thought talking might help. All I got was silence. “Hey,” I called softly, placing a hand on his cheek to get him to look at me. “What happened?”
His eyes finally met mine. “Do I have to talk about it?”
“No.” I shook my head. “Not now, but soon.” My thumb brushed against his dry yet soft lips. “Sound fair?” He came to my place in that disheveled state, I deserve to know what happened.
The sigh he released was heavy and tired with a hint of relief. “Yes.”
I gave him a reassuring smile. “Good.” The smell of the alcohol permeated my nose, bringing it to the forefront of my thoughts. “Do you want to take a shower?” I indicated the stain on his shirt.
His eyes turned to his and his face fell. “Yeah. I guess I’m going to have to.” He stood and I got out of the way. My bathroom wasn’t the roomiest around, and both of us standing together put us nearly chest-to-chest. I wanted to touch him. To wrap my arms around his waist and melt into him. But it wasn’t the right time for that. I did, however, get a kiss. It was short and filled my body with warmth. “Thank you,” he said, resting his forehead on mine.
“For what?”
“Not prying.”
It was my turn to kiss him, a
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