illicit affairs | Charlie Barber x Reader

chapter twenty eight: a cozy day in

HAPPY IA DAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL READERS AND SUPPORTERS!!! I won't keep you long and I'll keep the chit chat to the end of the chapter so you can enjoy this update :)laters, gators (ow i know, sorry LOL

-Dal

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Every Sunday was the same. You had a routine and you stuck with it. It was usually the quietest day of the week for you, being off of both work and school. So, instead of heading out of the apartment that didn't feel like home, you locked yourself in.

You usually embraced the silence around you, knowing those moments were scarce for you. It wasn't often that you could just sit back and enjoy your book or study in peace.

The neighbors around you got that memo too, their voices not being muffled by the thin walls around you. They seemed to enjoy it too, that buzzing of quiet growing throughout the whole complex.

But to your surprise, it was a little too quiet for you this Sunday.

With your eyes slowly fluttering open, you woke up to a chilling empty bed. For the first few minutes of your day, you stared at the ceiling, contemplating what to do. With that emptiness still residing in your chest, you were reminded of the blame you put on Charlie the night before.

It was his fault for everything, including the fact that you chose the worst person to fall in love with.

With the silence still floating around you, your soft heartbeat was the only thing you could hear. It only reminded you of him, your heart chanting his name.

Char-lie, Char-lie.

This was enough for you to shove your fingers into your eyes, hoping it would be enough to quiet all signs of him around you. But when that didn't work, you groaned as you sleepily rolled out of bed, your feet leading you towards your bathroom.

As long as you sat in silence, you knew you were doomed, destined to think about Charlie. So, doing what you could to chase the quiet away, you leaned over and turned on the water in your shower.

With the noises filling your ears, the hole in your chest seemed to shrink as you peeled off your pajamas.

Underneath the water, you scrubbed your skin hard, trying to distract yourself. You only wanted to forget about Charlie momentarily, wishing you could forget everything around you. You didn't want to remember the deadlines or graduation quickly approaching you. You didn't want to remember the last conversation you had with Andrea or the idea of Charlie trusting you enough around his son.

You wanted to be free. You wanted to rub those sins off of your skin, hoping that when you stepped out, you would be able to see the world in a different way. That your soul would be cleansed.

However, when the hot water ran out and cold water massaged against your skin, you knew it was over. The hopeful undertones of the noise around you failed you and it was time to get out.

As you shut the water off, you audibly sighed as you ran your hands over your hair. The water you pushed out of your hair rolled over your back, falling beside your feet. You stood there for a second, not wanting to face the day of silence ahead of you.

You reached around the shower curtain for your towel, wrapping it securely around your body. With a deep breath filling your lungs, you pushed the curtain aside and stepped onto the rug.

Your hair was still dripping wet, you lowered your head to focus on the fibers of the rug sitting in between your toes. It was the only thing that soothed you after the warm water ran out, painfully reminding you of what lies ahead.