The Symphony

Tension Rises

Behind every exquisite thing that existed
there was something tragic
- Oscar Wilde
_______

Charlie's pov
Wilhemina and I have been on a few dates since that spectacular first. Tonight, I invited her over to my house for dinner. She seemed hesitant at first but I reassured her there was nothing to worry about. I just want to do a cute romantic gesture for her. Judging by the way she blushes every time I do the smallest thing, she doesn't get a lot of that.

I set up the table as I wait for the food to finish up. Once the mood is set, I head back over to the kitchen and set the rice and vegetables on low. The chicken still has a while left to cook and just as I'm about to text her, the doorbell rings. I put my phone down and quickly ditch the apron before running to get the door.

I pull it open with a wide smile on my face, "hi" I chirp as I gesture for her to come in. "Hello" she replies quietly, her eyes grazing over me before diverting around the room. "Everything's pretty much done if you're ready?" I ask, she nods and follows me into the dining room. I pull out the chair for her and she smiles softly as she sits.

"Ok so I wasn't sure if you like spicy food... so I made mild jerk chicken with rice and veggies" I tell her, she stares at me blankly for a minute then snaps out of it. "Ok" she replies simply with wide doe eyes, "let me just go get it" I offer and she nods. I quickly go take the chicken out the oven and turn the oven and stove off.

I put some of everything on two plates and carefully carried them over, placing one in front of her. I sit across from her and watch as she stares at it, cautiously picking up her fork. "Are you ok?" I ask softly, "mhm" she hums as she sort of pokes at the food. "What is it, love?" I try again, "what's umm... 'jerk chicken'?" she asks quietly almost ashamed.

"Oh! It's a bit hard to explain but it's smoky like grilled chicken but you marinate it, typically overnight. I just chose to use the oven instead of the grill so it's a bit less crispy but same flavor pretty much" I explain happily. "You said it's spicy?" She asks looking up at me, "it's more mild, like a little kick but it's also a bit sweet too" I smile softly at her.

She still looks worried so I place my hand on top of hers and she looks back up at me. "Is there something else? You can ask me anything... and I can make you something else if you don't wanna try it" I offer and she shakes her head softly. I think I have an idea of where her head's at right about now.

"I didn't put a lot of salt in it. I mostly used seasonings that don't have salt because the spicy ones have quite a bit of it" I say and she looks at me narrowing her eyes. Oh shit. She doesn't say anything else, just looks back down and starts eating. I decide to leave it alone for now and just watch as she tries it.

She hums in approval and I sigh softly in relief as I begin to eat as well. She seems rather quiet but I don't want to pry, so I just let the silence linger for a while. I see her start to relax more and I decide to go in for conversation. At first she's kinda quiet but soon enough the discussion blossoms and we're laughing like usual.

Once dinner is finished I take her hand and lead her over to the living room. "Would you like some wine?" I ask as she sits down on the couch. "No, thank you" she smiles softly and I nod before sitting next to her. I hand her the remote after turning on the tv and tell her to pick.

As she's looking through the options I go to reach and put my arm over her shoulder. She flinches away from me and I immediately back up looking a bit confused. "What? I didn't yawn like a douche bag" I joke but she doesn't even crack a smile. "What happened? You've been kinda tense since dinner" I point out cautiously.

"No I haven't" she replies coldly and I'm taken aback for a moment. I've never heard her speak like that, not even when we first met. It takes me a second to collect myself and with a shake of my head I'm back. "Winnie I don't understand..." I mutter, "don't call me that" she scoffs. This is just getting worse and worse and I don't know what to do.

"You know very well what you insinuated with your little comment" she asserts. What comm- fuck. Was I not supposed to say that? "I didn't mean it in the way you're thinking" I clarify. "Really? Well then how did you mean it, Charlie?" questions. It's like the rug was snatched from underneath me and I fell through the hole in the floor.

I can't get anything out as I'm honestly just stunned that she reacted this way. I was only thinking of her and trying to be considerate. I really don't understand why it would upset her this bad. I can't even read her body language anymore, she's so closed up. "I'll be going" she states and I just sit there and watch her leave.

Instead of sulking, I busy myself with cleaning and some paperwork I've been putting off. It finally gets to the point where I can't keep my eyes open, so I head to my room. Quickly I do my night routine and fall into bed, sleep hitting me directly after.