✦ ✧ ✩ Curtain Call ✦ ✧ ✩ - Charlie Gillespie

Chapter 59

As we laid next to each other I couldn't get my lips off of his neck. He was holding me tightly by the waist. When were together, everyone around us ceased to exist. But I knew this wasn't always like this. And I still had a lot to deal outside these four walls.

"Eri" he whispered, and I could read in his eyes he noticed what I was feeling too, but we were both too scared to say anything about it, "We can't escape talking about us anymore"

"I know" I replied, "But let's just enjoy tonight okay?"

"Okay"

Hours had passed and we both needed to get ready for the night, so we went our ways, him to find Owen and me to fin Maeve, like we were two high school kids.

"Eri" she said when she saw me walk out of the room. Her and Owen were sitting in a little bench under a tree my mom made my dad build when I was 10. The way the branches fell around them was out of a fairy tale, and I felt guilty about interrupting the picture they were creating.

"We can talk later" I said, waving at Owen that also stood up to walk towards the room and find Charlie.

"No it's ok" they both replied and giggled, like they knew something we didn't.

She took my hand and walked with me through our garden, fixing my hair as we did. For some reason she is always fixing my hair.

"He gave me a sunflower"

"I know, I saw" she said, smiling brightly at me, "How do you feel?"

"I feel-"

"Let me guess, scared"

"It's like we're having the same conversation over and over" she just smiled, "I know it's just a flower, it's stupid, right?"

"God no. I freaked out when I saw those jasmines."

"Beauty, sensuality and purity"

She sighed.

"He sees me" she replied, "He sees me as more than a dumb girl with a lot of boy toys who never cared to know the real me"

"I can't believe anyone ever saw you as that" I replied

"Well you never did, and I've always loved you for that"

"You deserve no less" I said, squeezing her hand, "I love you"

"I love you too" she answered and smiled widely.

"I want to be flattered, but that smile was not about me" I said, tilting my head a little.

"He told me he loved me." I opened my eyes widely and the biggest smile drew on my face as she talked, "And I told him that I loved him too." When she finished saying those words I jumped on her to give her the biggest hug. She deserved someone that saw her the way I saw her all my life.

"It's so easy with him" she continued, and I listened carefully as she spoke softly, "He was so nervous, but I knew, you know? I knew it was coming. But it's not like I always did, hell, just two days ago I thought he wasn't ready. But he just looked at me, and I knew. I knew we were thinking the same thing. And he said it and I just melted, you know that kisses that you can feel with every inch of your body. He was kissing my lips, but I was feeling it from the top of of my head to the tips of my toes. It was so..."

"Like something you never felt before. Like you found your place."

"Yes, exactly!" she said, and bit her lip twirling around, as I tried to push my need to talk about myself. Not every chapter in the story is about me.

[Charlie's POV]

I watched her walk around with Maeve as Owen approached our room. He sat down in the bed and looked around.

"I see she liked the sunflower"

"Hey don't be gross"

"I'm sorry" he replied, and smiled at me. I shook my head and smiled back.

"Yeah she really loved it" I finally stated, and for some reason fought the smile forming in my face.

"Hey, you almost made the Eri smile"

"Look at you getting all mushy"

"Oh no the Eri smile was a thing way before Maeve" he said, and I finally let that smile out. I looked out at the window at Eri smiling at Maeve as she spoke, and I felt so lucky that I got her kind eyes  to be in my life.

 "Hey man, I told her." Owen said, interrupting my thoughts.

"You told her what?"

"Please don't react I can't take it" Owen said, and I frowned my eyebrows at him, "I told Maeve I loved her"

"DUDE" I said, and threw myself on him, trapping him in between my legs and arms, "LOOK AT YOU GO! Are you happy? Did she say it back"

"Yes she did" he said, pretending to choke because of my arm. I let go and sat back down,  took a big breath to gain courage and continued, "I really do, I really do love her"

"That's amazing man, I'm really happy for you" I said, giving him a couple of pats in the back.

Of course my mind wandered off to Eri and our mini conversation. But I didn't want to focus on that. Maybe I was too scared to focus on that. And I didn't want to admit how envious I was of how much easier it seemed for them. Not every chapter in the story is about us.