Half a heart

Chapter 1

⚠️Tw: anxiety, depression, assault, Ben Hope, abuse, crying⚠️

Charlie's POV:

I woke up this morning with my cat Sprinkles curled up asleep on my lap again. Carefully, I moved Sprinkles off me and hopped out of my bed and into my bathroom and got into the shower to freshen up before school.

After my shower, I got dressed and packed my bag. I headed downstairs for breakfast, feeling a pang of disappointment that my big sister, Tori, wasn't home from work yet.

She's a detective and had been working tirelessly on a case. Last night, she was so excited when she finally found a lead.

I made my breakfast and found a note on the fridge from Tori. She promised she'd be back tonight and mentioned my lunch was ready in the fridge.

Grabbing it, I put my lunch in my backpack and stepped out the door, heading to the bus stop.

A boy about my age, with blonde hair and an aura that screamed "golden retriever in human form," approached me.

"Do you mind if I sit with you?" he asked, his smile gentle as he sat down next to me.

"Hi, I'm Charlie," I said.

"Hi Charlie, I'm Nick." We talked for a while, getting to know each other.

When the bus finally arrived, I was surprised to see Nick getting on too. I took my usual window seat.

"Hi, I'm sorry to disturb you, but there are no other seats. Can I sit next to you?" Nick asked again, and I turned to see him standing there.

"Of course, you can sit next to me," I replied.

"Thank you, Charlie." We continued talking until the bus reached Truham Boys' School.

"Well, I better get going. My stop is here," I said, starting to walk off the bus. Nick followed.

"Are you following me now or something, Nick?" I teased.

"I go to school here too, you know, Charlie," he joked, and we walked through the school gates together.

We went our separate ways, and I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. It was a text from my boyfriend, Ben.

Ben:) Charlie, where are you? Meet me in the music room x

Me;) I'll come meet you now xx

I made my way to the music room and saw Ben leaning against the wall, running a hand through his hair. As soon as I walked in, he came towards me and crashed his lips against mine.

I kissed him back until I felt his hand move to the front of my pants. I flicked his hand away, and he slapped me, then roughly squeezed my ass. I flinched, feeling deeply uncomfortable. Just as he was about to try and undress me, the bell rang.

I wiped away any tears, fixed my sweater, put on my coat, and left the music room to go to my new form class. My eyes were red and puffy as I entered the room. Nick waved at me.

I took off my coat, put it on the back of my chair, placed my bag under the desk, and sat down next to him.

"Well, hello again," he said, smiling brightly.

I waved weakly and continued doodling in my sketchbook. A hand touched my right shoulder, and I jumped back in my seat.

"Hey, are you okay, Charlie?" Nick asked, worry washing away his smile.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. You just scared me, that's all," I replied with a small, weak smile.

The bell rang for the first period. Ben kept texting me, but I tried to push him out of my mind...