𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐅𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃─𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐬

seventeen.

─☼☼☼─

𝙏𝙃𝙍𝙀𝙀 𝙈𝙊𝙉𝙏𝙃𝙎 𝙀𝘼𝙍𝙇𝙄𝙀𝙍

𝙏𝙄𝙈𝙀 𝘼𝙇𝙒𝘼𝙔𝙎 𝙎𝙀𝙀𝙈𝙎 to pass at a substantially slower rate when all you do is watch the seconds tick by.

Charlotte Carrera was learning that the hard way.

Because each second that passed was a will he or won't he moment.

Will Rafe show up? Or won't he? Will he be high if he does? 

Part of her was afraid to know the answer. Part of her almost wished he didn't show up. Maybe that would hurt less.

But no, it wouldn't hurt less. Maybe it would hurt more.

Because standing alone in that stuffy hallway in the convention centre would be humiliating.

Tonight wasn't a huge deal, not really. But it was a big enough deal that Charlotte thought Rafe would have cared enough to show up on time. It wasn't important to him in the slightest. But it was to her. Shouldn't that count?

It was one of those stupid banquets that student organizations put on at the end of the year. The ones where everyone got way too dressed up for something that didn't really matter in the long run.

But it meant something to Charlotte. She was being recognized for her hard work this year. And that she was proud of. Even if all of this was a ridiculously over the top showcase.

Rafe had promised that he would come. He had talked to her only one night previous, swearing that he wouldn't forget and that he would be there on time to walk in with her.

He lied.

Because the banquet had started twenty minutes ago and he was yet to be seen.

It was the end of February, so the air outside was chilly. However, Charlotte felt like she was in a sauna as she tried to fan her face.

She had a tendency to get hot when she got worked up.

And worked up she was.

A pit had formed in the bottom of her stomach, a lump in her throat. She felt like she was going to throw up, because she had a clear vision as to how the rest of the night was going to go, and it was not at all how she planned.

She had expected—hoped— that Rafe would show up on time. That the two of them would be the best looking couple in the room as they walked in together. That she would receive her stupid award and he would stand up and clap for her even if he had no idea what the award was even for. That they would leave hand-in-hand, get dinner and then retire back to her room where they would make up for two weeks apart.

But all of that was going to be hard to do it Rafe never even showed up.

Charlotte could feel the anxiety clawing up from her chest and through her throat, almost making it hard to breathe.

Five more minutes and she would have to enter alone. Five more minutes and she would have to sit through the entire banquet knowing what she had to do afterwards.