Broken and Together

Chapter Four: Study Partners

    Only a day passed before Michael and Charlie spoke again. This time it was Michael who called her, which pleased her greatly. He told her he was still vaguely concerned about not getting enough technician experience; he then mentioned the offer she'd made at the bowling alley. They both agreed to meet at her place, where she would help him learn the basics as they studied together. The idea sounded pleasant and enjoyable to both of them, and Michael was glad he'd racked up the nerve to call her about it. Truth be told, he was vaguely reluctant to get close with her again. Thoughts of the final few times they spoke before distancing for years still haunted him, those conversations shortly after Evan's death. If he was being honest, though, he knew spending time with her helped him a great deal. He couldn't remember a time in the past few years where he'd felt even a little relief from the stress of his life.

    Charlie sagged against the wall of her living room, letting out a breath. She'd just gone on a desperate cleaning spree. She wanted her apartment to look spotless, or at least as much as it could. Michael thinking her a slob was one of the last things she wanted right now.

    "Okay." She straightened, shoving her vacuum into her closet. "That should be good enough." She swiped a strand of hair from her eyes, then snatched her bottle of water and took a swig. "That was way harder than I thought it'd be, but—" she sent the room a satisfied look— "it turned out quite good." As she said this, a knock came at the door.

    She immediately hurried over and pulled it open. "Hey, Mike." She crossed her arms. "You're a little late."

    "Ah...yeah, sorry about that." He rubbed at the back of his neck sheepishly.

    "I don't mind." She stepped aside, letting him enter. "The extra time was good, actually. I had enough time to finish up cleaning." Tensing, she quickly added, "Not that I was cleaning that much."

    "Mm." Michael nodded, glancing around. "Your place looks nice. Certainly better than mine."

    "Thanks." She shut the door and came up beside him. "I just moved in about a week ago. It's the only decent apartment I could afford. It's pretty spacious, but it's got only one bedroom."

    "Hey, that's a win." He nudged her. "In some apartments, the bedroom, living room, and kitchen are all in the same area."

    She gave a slight chuckle. "Guess I'm just lucky then. Oh! We can study over here." She led him to the table, which sat near her kitchen. It also stood in front of the small balcony attached to her apartment.

    Michael gazed through the glass doors for a moment. "Hmm. You have a nice view."

    "Yes, I'm lucky I got an apartment on this side of the building." She settled on a chair. "The porches on the other side face an old gas station."

    "Ah." He sat beside her, his blue eyes flicking to the books and notepads laid out. "So where do we start?"

    "With this." She slid one of the books over to him. "These are the very basics. We can go through it together, then move onto stuff more specific to animatronics. How does that sound?"

    "Good," Michael said. "You're beginning to sound like a serious teacher now, though." He sent her a smirk. "Should I be scared?"

    "Only if you misbehave." She teasingly booped his nose.

    "Pfft." He brushed her hand away. "Alright, you weirdo. Now where do we begin?"

    "On this page." Charlie flipped through the book, then pointed at the first paragraph. "Make sure you take notes. I could use a refresher course, anyway."