Four Page Letters (TeacherxStudent)

Chapter 24

Charlotte

I woke up to an empty bed. But the smell coming from the kitchen let's me know im not alone. The memories from last night came rushing back all at once. Most memorable, I have a girlfriend.

Smiling to myself I rolled out of bed. I went to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth, looking over myself in the mirror. I ran my hands through my hair to try and straighten it out. I took a deep breath before turning out the light and heading downstairs. I found Rosalynn in the kitchen leaning against the counter watching whatever she had in the skillet. "Good morning beautiful." I said softly, careful not to startle her. She turned to look at me and I saw the softest expression in her face. But it was the way she smiled that melted my heart. She looked genuinely happy to see me, and that's a feeling I'm unfamiliar with. She walked towards me and threw her arms around my neck, pulling my body into her. "Good morning my love. How'd you sleep?" She pulled back to look at me. "Better than I have in a long time." That was the honest truth. Living alone with nothing but your thoughts can keep you up a few nights in a row. But last night I was able to sleep so peacefully. And I had her to thank for that.

"Come on, I've made you breakfast." She smiled pulling me over to the table. She motioned for me to sit down while she brought my plate to me. I thanked her before she returned to grab her food, taking a seat across from me. We ate a couple bites of our food in a comfortable silence. Bacon, eggs and french toast and everything tasted amazing. Although we are enjoying this beautiful breakfast there's one thing we can't avoid. We need to finish that 'talk'.

"So... I guess theres some stuff we should probably address." I looked up at her and she nodded. But I could see the worry in her eyes. "Where should we start?" She asked. "I guess this whole relationship.. I'm sure there are guidelines or something right?" She watched me, "Well I wouldn't say guidelines but of course we'll face different .. challenges.. then others. Meaning it will be a secret. Like we won't be able to go out on dates or really anything publicly. Even though we can't announce to the world we're together, I would hope that we both carry ourselves as such. We don't have to say who we're dating but I want people to know you're off limits." I smirked. I know she has a jealous side to her that I got a glimpse of when we were at the dance. She spoke again, "I know thats a lot to ask for and a lot to deal with just for a relationship but would you be okay with that?" I gave her a reassuring smile. "I know what I'm signing up for. I want you and whatever that entails." Her cheeks went red and she looked down at her plate. "It won't be like this forever. You graduate soon, and then we could go public or do whatever we choose."

My face dropped. "Yeah.. about that." I ran my hands through my hair. She watched me nervously. "What is it?" I took a deep breath before responding. "Well umm... Ive decided to go to college." She nodded, taking a bite of her food. "Thats amazing love. Where to?" "Uh.. NYU." She dropped her fork and looked at me. "Wow.. thats.. thats great. Any reason you want to go so far?" I picked at my fingers. "Well I've always had this dream of living in a brownstone. Having an office below my home where I can service my clients comfortably." She nodded. "Clients? What is it that you want to do?" I thought for a moment. "I want to be a therapist. More specifically I want to work with kids and teens who've had to deal with shitty times like me. There was a time I thought I wanted to be an author but as time goes on I just think that being a therapist is my calling." She nodded, trying to smile. She sat there picking at her food and I could tell she was lost in thought.

"Ros.. what are you thinking about?" She sighed, "I guess .. I don't know. Just wondering what that means for us?" I didn't want to admit that had worried me. I had thought about whether or not our new relationship could withstand such distance. "Well.. we could try the long distance thing. And I would still be home for breaks and holidays." She nodded. "I've never been in a long distance relationship. I just .. I feel like I just got you back. And we don't really have a lot of time left before I have to lose you again. Plus you'll be starting a new chapter in your life. I mean what if you get out there and meet someone ya know? I won't be there. We'll both be lonely and I cant tell you what not to do. I don't want to be some weight on your shoulders while you're away that stops you from living your life and experiencing new things." She looked back down and began biting on her lip. I feel like no matter how many times I tell her that I will always wait for her, she just doesn't get it. I know she's been broken before. Which is why she has so many doubts and probably thinks the first moment I'm out of her sight I would cheat on her. I want her to be able to trust the fact that she is all I want.

I walked over and sat closer to her, taking her hands in mine. "Listen. I know this is a lot to take in. I understand your doubts but I need you to trust the fact that I want you. That I love you. I need to get out of this town. Theres too much darkness here, I need a new start in a new city where no one knows me. But most importantly I need you to know and understand that no matter how many miles away I am, no matter how long I'm gone for.. I will always, always come back for you. As long as you're still here, my heart will be too. I've loved you far too long to just go off and find someone else. So lets just enjoy what time we have now and in the coming months. As far as the long distance thing, we'll cross that bridge when we get there, okay?"

She nodded, giving me a small smile. I figured she was still having doubts or her mind was in overdrive but she didn't comment on it. "You know, you are wise beyond your years." She said which made me smile. "Lets just say I've had a lot of growing up to do." She leaned in slowly and captured my lips. Just one kiss is all it takes to accelerate my heart beat. Each and every time. She pulled back and smiled. "Lets finish eating. Your food is getting cold." I went back to my plate and we ate in silence. Afterwards she took both our dishes and placed them in the sink. I excused myself to use the bathroom and when I came back she was standing at the sink washing the bit of dishes I had. I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. "Do you have plans for the day?" I asked her. She dried the last dish then turned to me, wrapping her arms around my neck. "Nothing at all." "Do you need to go home?" She smiled shaking her head again. "Are you trying to ask me to leave Charlotte?"

"Kinda?" I said. She raised her eyebrow and I could see the hint of sadness in her eyes. "No- not like that. I mean, I would like to do something for us tonight. But it requires you to not be here until maybe 7 o'clock?" She released her hands and stood back against the sink, arms folded in front of her. "What do you have in mind?" I shook my head, "You'll see later. Umm also.. I was wondering if you maybe wanted to just grab some extra clothes or anything you might need for a while? I uh.. would like to spend this break with you if you'd want to." Her eyes lit up and she tried to hide the blush spreading over her face. "I would love to Charlie. And I guess I could find something to to do with my time until 7." She wrapped her arms around my waist and leaned in placing a kiss on my forehead. "Im going to get dressed and then I'll leave you to it." She smiled before walking away. I wanted to be able to spend Christmas with her. Which means I needed to go out and get her the perfect gift for the vastly approaching holiday. I also wanted to make tonight special and I had a pretty good idea in mind.