Nightcrawler (A Slimecicle FF)

ELEVEN

(Days later)

After they told the guys what happened that night, they left Santana alone. Well, some of them warmed up to her more than others, including Ted. It was weird to see the two of them hitting it off so well, but Charlie soon realized that Ted was most similar to who she normally was around, and it gave her a taste of home.

She didn't ever leave the apartment, which was both a good and bad thing. She refused to tag along whenever Charlie would leave to go on a shoot or to hang out with the guys, which would have comforted him if he didn't have the constant fear that she left whenever he was gone. For all he knew, she could have had another life without him knowing.

If she was going places behind his back, she hid it well. She was always on the couch when he got home, either reading or watching TV. There was always something new for her to watch, and it was cute to see her so invested in whatever was on.

Of course, he'd never say that to her face.

With how little she got out, he started to wonder if she felt like a prisoner. So one day, he put the theory to the test by knocking on her bedroom door.

"It's open."

She sounded like she was in a good enough mood, so he pushed open the door and leaned against the frame.

"Hey," Charlie smiled warmly at her, and she nodded at him. She rarely smiled, so it was hard to tell when she was in a good mood, but he typically assumed that when she wasn't yelling, she was fine.

"Hi."

"Are you not onto your third book already?" He asked.

She shrugged. "Yeah. So?"

He scratched his chin before adjusting his glasses. "Erm...don't you want to get out? I know what happened a few days ago was hard, but...I don't know..."

"You take years to say something," She smirked for the first time that week. "But I'm fine. Though I think you're running out of books."

Charlie sighed. "Why don't I take you shopping today? I'll introduce you to Condi and—"

"More people?"

"Yeah," He sat down on the bed next to her. "I know this is hard for you, Santana, but I want you to start getting used to this lifestyle."

"I talk to the guys," She argued. "Well, most of them."

That was true. She still clashed with Schlatt, and she thought Travis was too loud, but whenever he had the guys over she would make an effort to engage in conversation with them. She'd even admitted that though Travis was annoying, he was one of the nicest.

"That's when they're here," Charlie reached over and put the bookmark on her page, taking the book from her hands. "Okay, here's what I'm going to do."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out some cash, handing it to her. "Go to the store and buy some groceries for dinner, okay?"

She looked down at the money in her hands. "You're letting me go by myself?"

"I want to show you that I trust you, so yes," Charlie raised an eyebrow. "But...tomorrow, you have to come with me and the guys. We're going shopping. I'll buy you some decor for your room, and some clothes, but you have to act like you're having fun."

"I have money, you know," She muttered. "You don't have to buy me stuff."

He gave her a look that said, "really?", and spoke. "You have twenty dollars."

She sighed, brushing her hair behind her shoulder and looking out the window. She was in black, ripped jeans and a white shirt, wearing one of Charlie's plaid shirts over it. It was quite baggy on her, but that made it that much cuter to him.