MIDNIGHT RAIN, ʲ.ᵏ

𐬻chapter eleven𐬻

it was summer in cork, which could only mean one thing. the biggs were on their annual vacation to the english countryside. like they did every year, they packed up their car on the first day of may and drove two hours to the dublin nation airport. johnny had not seen charlotte in three days. this, of course, did not make him happy. it felt like it had been years. up until then, johnny hadn't quite realized how much he needed to see her. she wasn't like bella, using him for attention and popularity, and she wasn't like his friends either. she was something else entirely. a friend, yes, but more. she was so much more. and in that moment, he wanted nothing more than to see her. he knew it was irrational, that he had his other friends if he wanted to hangout with someone, but he didn't just wanna hangout with someone. he wanted to hangout with her. simple as that. he had gone through so much with charlotte, due to bella's meddling and just in general. he had earned time with her. if gibsie wasn't in the picture, which johnny could barely even stand to think about, charlotte would be his favorite friend. of course, gibs would always be in the picture. but that didn't change that charlotte, for the short time he had known her, really grew on johnny. it was a scary feeling, knowing he cared so much about someone he had known for such a little amount of time. the feeling was undeniable though. he thought of her, and suddenly his heart was beating faster, the sky seemed clearer, and his day felt better. he knew it was soon. he was startlingly aware of that. yet he couldn't help it, and even if he could, he wouldn't. there was nothing that could change the way he felt about her. and what he felt for her...well, he didn't really have the words to describe it. it was unlike what he had felt before. and he wasn't quite sure what to do about it. in fact, he had no clue at all. he sighed, rolling over in his bed and petting suki. he was more than a little relieved when his phone rang.
"hi gibs," he said, a smile slowing pulling at his lips.
"hey cap," his best friend said enthusiastically, "wanna come out with me and the boys tonight?"
johnny thought for a moment, but without charlotte here, he had no reason to say no, "sure gibs, you picking me up?"
"sure thing kav," gibsie agreed before hanging up. if anything, johnny was relieved. he could finally get his mind off charlotte, if that was even possible. at this point, he was doubting he could go even ten minutes without thinking about her. if his friends knew he was spending the first week of his summer break obsessing over charlotte and counting down the days until she returned they would never let him live it down. shaking his head, johnny stood and walked to his closet, pulling out jeans and a plain red shirt. he got dressed slowly, making sure to be careful around his recently restitched adductor. he took the stairs at a leisurely pace, making sure suki could follow him closely. sometimes, it was hard to live alone. johnny had plenty of friends, sure, but they could never be parents. his favorite time of every year was when both of his parents were home from work at the same time. he loved when they got to be a family again. the bagel he ate was familiarly plain, the same breakfast he ate everyday. in a way, he was looking forward to going out, just to have something to do. the academy pushed off their meeting until the following saturday, so he had a clear schedule for the day. it was a rare occurrence, one he usually enjoyed, but without charlotte here to enjoy it with him, he didn't know how exactly he felt about it. it was strange, having so much of his happiness rely on her, but then again, he wasn't surprised. charlotte was...magnetic. he was drawn to her, in ways he had never felt before. it went beyond plain physical attraction, and it was much more than an average friendship, but he didn't know what it exactly was. some secret, third thing. not a friend, but not more. something in between perhaps.

gibsie arrived at his house in the late evening. it was just him and johnny in his white range rover, the rest of the rugby team already at the bar and grill. now, johnny didn't have the intention to go out and get drunk, that's just what happened. the professional rugby match playing on the bars tv was too good, the lads were too encouraging, and he missed charlotte too much. not that he was making excuses. he didn't know exactly how he ended up in the back of a random taxi with gibsie, but he figured the other lad had practically dragged him there. he was exactly thinking straight when he got his phone out, and he definitely wasn't thinking straight when he dialed charlottes number. she answered on the first ring.
"johnny?" she said. he didn't know why he hadn't called before this. maybe he should've.
"hi char," johnny smiled, even though she couldn't see it, he hoped when she heard his voice she would know that he was smiling, and she would know that she was the reason why.
"are you okay?" she asked, sounding worried.
"course i am baby," he laughed, holding his phone closer to his ear.
"are you drunk?" she asked after a moment.
"little bit, i missed you though," he admitted.
she sighed, "i miss you too johnny."
he smiled so widely it hurt. he couldn't explain why it made him so happy to hear those words, but the effect was the same. a voice joined in on the other side of the line. a boy voice.
"listen johnny, i'll be back tomorrow afternoon, ill stop by, but i have to go," charlotte said slowly, like she was talking to a child.
"right," he said shortly, trying to figure out if the guys voice was something he had made up or not, "love you char," he said, resting his head against the cold car window.
"get home safe johnny," she sighed, "is gibsie with you?" she asked.
"mhm," he slurred, his eyes getting heavier and heavier by the minute.
"can i have a word with him?" she asked.
"yes ma'am," he said tiredly. he handed the phone off to gibsie sluggishly. he really needed to stop drinking. he wasn't quite sure what charlotte and gibsie were talking about, but in the moment he didn't really care. all he care about was the fact that the car door was cold against his warm forehead, and that by the time he woke up the next day, his girl would be back.