One last Chance

I need you

*Evelyn

"Evi? Evi, please help me. I need you!", I had never sat upright in bed so quickly as after those sentences.

Until a few seconds ago, I had been sound asleep and had probably only taken the call half asleep. However, when I had heard my ex-boyfriend's completely distraught voice, I had sat upright in bed.

"Charles?", I looked at the screen of my phone again.

"I'm sorry to call you, but I didn't know who else to... I need you."

"What's wrong?"

"I have a huge problem. And I know I have no right to bother you with it, but..."

"Get to the point Charles."

"I'm at your door, will you open it for me?".

It took me a moment to push myself out from under my covers. I was shivering a little. It was damn chilly in my hotel room.

With slow steps I walked to the door and kept looking at the cell phone in my hand. Had I maybe just been dreaming this?

Charles and I hadn't spoken a word to each other since we broke up. I didn't even know where he got my new number . But there was a call and I could now hear someone outside my door.

Completely confused, I opened the door and saw the Monegasque standing in the hallway, completely lost.

He lifted his head. I could see tears in his eyes, even though it was so dark.

"Evi." he whispered, taking a step forward and pulling me into his arms a little unexpectedly.

He smelled of alcohol and a lot of perfume that sure wasn't just his own.

I broke the embrace as quickly as I could and took a step backward so he could enter. Guiltily, he lowered his eyes. I ended the call, then walked back to my bed.

He closed the door, then followed me.

I sat down, pulled the covers over my legs, turned on the lamp next to my bed, then looked at him expectantly. He slowly dropped down beside me and closed his eyes.

For a moment I wasn't sure if he might have just fallen asleep, but then he started talking.

"I shouldn't even be asking you for help, I know that, but I don't know who else to ask. I just...I need you. I trust you. Only you, for that matter."

"I absolutely don't understand, Charles."

"Mella called me. Or rather, her lawyer did. I guess she hasn't been taking very good care of our daughter. Child Protective Services got involved and they want to take away her custody. If I don't pick her up by the end of next week and take custody, she'll go into foster care," he took a deep breath.

This topic was painful and he knew it. He had broken up with me a little over two years ago and had been with Mella just a few weeks later. She had then been pregnant by him pretty damn quickly. As far as I had heard about Max and Seb, however, she had broken up with him even before the little one had been born. She had smiled her way to a millionaire in Monaco, but had then moved away from Monaco with him. As far as I knew, Charles had never had any contact with his daughter because his ex had prevented it.

It had been a blow to me to see how quickly he had been over me, while I had suffered forever from our separation.

"I know I can't ask you to do this, but I don't want to put this little girl in foster care. I want to take care of her. But I can't do it alone. If only because of the job, I can't. I can't do it alone. But I don't have the time to find someone I trust enough to travel with me and take care of my daughter when I have to work."
"And that's when you came upon me?", I was still sitting while he lay next to me with his eyes closed.

"Evi, I don't know who else to ask. You're one of the few people I trust enough. I know this is shitty of me, but I'm begging you.", he opened his eyes and looked at me now completely desperate.

"Please, help me."

"And if I say no?"

"Then I'm lost. I'm lost without you.", there was so much desperation in his voice that I could hardly stand it.

"I know Max and Seb will hate me for being here, and I know you hate me too, but..."

"I don't hate you, Charles. I never have."

"Not even after everything I've done?"

"It hurt. A lot, in fact. But no, I never hated you. That's just the way life is sometimes. One loves and the other doesn't anymore." those words felt awful, because I had loved him long after the breakup, even though I had known he had already had someone new. I had just wanted him back.

That pain was still not completely gone. That feeling of loving someone who had long since broken up with you. The thought that he had probably already stopped loving me while we had still been together had hit me the hardest and was now running through my mind again.

But no. Hate had never been there.

"I'm sorry." he whispered, lowering his eyes.

Then there was silence.  I tried to swallow that stabbing pain before I slowly began to nod.

"I'll do it," I whispered.

He raised his head immediately and looked at me in complete surprise "Really?".

"It's not your daughter's fault that her mother won't take care of her and you can't do it full time. I'm doing this for your daughter. Until you find someone who can take over. Someone you trust.".

He breathed a sigh of relief, then pulled me back into his arms and began to cry.

"Evelyn Vettel, you are my savior," he sobbed.

I wasn't sure if it had really been the right decision, but what could I do? I couldn't abandon him after all. Above all, I couldn't abandon his daughter. She was not to blame. Not for anything that was happening around her. And I knew that Charles would do everything to be a good father to her. So I did it to give her a good life. Until Charles found someone who could take over the job. I bought him and his daughter time.

"Thank you.", he whispered and loosened the hug.

His look seemed relieved "I'm already looking for a bigger place. But for now, we'll stay in my apartment. You can have the guest room, Alyssa will sleep in my room. It's quite good that now there's only one more race before the summer break, then we'll have enough time to look at apartments and settle in afterwards.", he looked at me hopefully.

"You don't know the weight you're taking off my shoulders right now," he whispered, putting his hand to my jaw and then pressing a kiss to my forehead.

For a small moment, I surrendered to that moment, only to pull back a bit.

He lowered his eyes guiltily as I slid away from him a bit more. I pulled the covers up a little higher.

"Can I stay here tonight?" he whispered without lifting his eyes.

He seemed so lost. It wasn't just the thing with his daughter. He had made a momentous mistake at the race in France today and had almost ruined his own chances of winning the world championship. It wasn't impossible yet, but with every point Max got more, his chances dwindled. I could see how much it was weighing on him. Everyone could see that.

"Stay on your half of the bed and you can stay," I muttered.

His head immediately went back up. A relieved smile brushed his lips.

"Thank you Evi. I... I don't want to be alone right now."

"It's okay. You need the sleep."

"Yeah. I... I'm already flying to Monaco tomorrow to get the apartment ready for Alyssa. I'm going to need furniture and stuff. Can you... I mean can you come?"

"I'm going to have to go back home to get some stuff. I mean I need clothes and my uni stuff," he nodded.

"Can you come to my place afterwards? I'm organizing the flights too. But I want to get Aly as soon as possible and I want you to be there.".

"We'll figure it out," I nodded, he ran his hand over his face.

"I don't know what I would do without you.".