California, romance and poetry Tome 2 (DPS Fanfiction) Charlie Dalton x OC

California

"If you come back to California, you should just hit me up

We'll do whatever you want, travel wherever how far"

California - Lana Del Rey

She admired the sky for a few minutes, put on her sunglasses, got into her car, placed her hands on the wheel, and set off for California. Margaret left the window open, letting the wind caress her soft hair. Her red lips formed a smile, and a soft laugh rose from her throat for no apparent reason, but the young woman just wanted to be happy as she drove along the long roads to the beaches of the West, all because of a stupid letter and a painful past.

A few days ago, she had received a letter from Knox Overstreet, inviting her and all their old friends from Welton to California, to a small town where he had a big house. He hadn't specified much more, which intrigued Margaret a lot. When she read his name, she cried, then laughed, and cried again. So many memories haunted her. She had never forgotten those few months at Welton. How could she? She had lost a brother, friends, and... Charlie.

Since Welton, many things had happened. Her father had enrolled her in an all-girls school, but Margaret ended up running away on her 18th birthday and took refuge at her grandmother's house. Her grandmother paid for her literature studies. She only had two years left, but she had no idea what she wanted to do afterward. Welton haunted her, but she moved on, living her life while silently repeating "Carpe Diem" in the back of her mind every day.

She had met several boys, but none had captivated her like Charlie. Still, she didn't regret it. He had promised her a life he never gave her. He had promised to find her, and she waited, but he never came. She didn't blame him. She figured she had been too naive, but she wasn't the only one. She had loved him so much that losing him made her sick. She fell into a deep depression for months and got back up without anyone's help.

And yet, she could still feel her heart race thinking about all those stolen kisses, those nights sharing a cigarette, and the words he had dedicated to her. He had made her dream, and she had felt loved for the first and last time in her life. Nothing can erase a first love, especially one like this. And she was going to see him again. It drove her crazy; she didn't know how to act or what to feel. All those years came back to haunt and torture her, and the faces from her nightmares were going to return like the dead among the living. Margaret was scared... so scared.

She arrived the next afternoon, observing Knox's house and wondering what he had done all these years to have such a beautiful home. She gathered her courage, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door. She waited for long seconds, and then he finally opened the door. Margaret looked up and couldn't believe her eyes. Knox was indeed standing in front of her, but he was so different that it took her a moment to recognize him, and he also needed time to recognize her.

"Mag?"

"Knox?"

They knew it was them, but they needed to hear it out loud. Once they got over the shock, they hugged, and Knox invited her in. He explained that the house belonged to his aunt, and after her death, she had left it to him.

"Oh my God, Maggie... you've changed so much! You look so much like Neil, it's crazy."

She smiled and added that he had changed a lot too. He then offered to take her upstairs to put her things away, and she happily accepted. She went up to her room, which was spacious and perfect for her. Margaret put her belongings in the closets and noticed some old books in a corner of the room, her favorites, showing that Knox had thought of everything. He had even placed some vinyl records as decorations to brighten the room. The room overlooked the sea. Margaret approached the balcony and saw that a tree overlooked it, reminding her of her room at Welton.

Knox called out to the young woman to tell her that others had just arrived. She quickly went downstairs and saw two tall men talking to Knox. Their gazes turned to Margaret, and she couldn't help but laugh.

"Meeks, Pitt?"

They nodded to confirm. They had both changed a lot. Pitt was still very tall, much taller than Margaret, and Meeks no longer wore glasses and had cut his hair, which made him look much more grown-up, and the young woman found him adorable. She hugged them so tightly they almost suffocated. They told her they were both enrolled at Yale. Margaret was really happy for them, but they added that they were mostly focusing on creating their radio station.

It wasn't long before another guest joined the group. Todd Anderson knocked on the door, and when his friends saw him, they were astonished. The young man was much taller and smiling. He had grown a mustache and goatee, and his hair had darkened, making him look so much older that everyone had a hard time recovering from their respective shocks. He shared a long hug with Margaret and explained that he was studying at Harvard to become a literature teacher like Keating.

"Will you teach at Welton?" Pitt joked.

"They could really use it," Margaret commented.

The evening continued with laughter and joy. Wanting to recover from her emotions, Margaret went back to her room to admire the sunset over the beach. As she observed the tree near the balcony, she amused herself by climbing it to reminisce about her old years at Welton. She saw herself, young, waiting for Charlie, jumping into his arms and running to the cave where they recited old poems. Such sweet but bitter memories. She was watching the sun when she heard footsteps approaching. She thought it was probably Knox coming to get her for dinner, but it wasn't Knox or any of her recently reunited friends standing near the tree. It was a man, tall and handsome. He smiled but seemed quite serious. Margaret stared at him for a few seconds, and he said:

"Jump, I'll catch you."

Her eyes widened as she realized who was in front of her.

"Charlie?"