In Charlotte's Eyes

Rally

Hey y'all! Quick update: I've decided to change my update schedule from Tuesday and Friday to Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for more consistent updates.

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Everyone was together for the first time in a while. They decided to play some tennis together. The sun was shining bright overhead. At the moment, they were all taking turns playing a one on one game against each other. Parker and Suzuki were currently playing against each other, while Charlotte, Carlos, and Aaron were spectating from a bench just outside of the fence circling the tennis courts. Charlotte had just played a game against Suzuki, so she was panting a little bit, drinking some water. Things were quiet as Suzuki served and the game went on.

A few minutes went by, Parker taking an early lead. Suzuki was clawing back, though. To break the silence on the bench, Carlos smirked at Charlotte. He snickered quietly to catch her attention. “Those were some pretty cute pictures you posted the other day.” He was referring to the pictures she and Parker took while caving.

She gulped down the water she was drinking. “Huh?” She raised a brow.

“Those pictures of you and Parker. You posted them on Awesomegram.” He elaborated, smirk not faltering. A fist rested softly on his cheek.

“Yeahh, you guys looked like you were having a ton of fun.” Aaron commented, turning to them. He was currently up against the fence, watching the game.

“Oh.” Charlotte chuckled. “Yeah, did you guys like the background? The waterfall there was sick.”

“I admit, it did look pretty beautiful.” Carlos tilted his head a little, looking down at her. “Did you guys make out afterwards?”

Aaron snickered from the fence. Charlotte started bursting out laughing, finding that hilarious for some reason. “Don’t be stupid.” She said lightheartedly, halting her laughter. “It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows.”

“I dunno, I think I saw a rainbow in the background of one of those photos.” Aaron said.

She laughed lightly. “Shut up.”

“But, how wasn’t it all sunshine and rainbows, as you put it?” Carlos raised a brow.

“Did you guys get down and dirty?” Aaron asked, bouncing off Carlos’ question. Carlos stifled a laugh.

Charlotte rolled her eyes, smiling. “We definitely did get dirty. We did get off to a bad start, though.”

“Mhm.” Carlos hummed, intrigued. “How so?”

“We got into an argument.” She bluntly stated.

“Oh.” That caught Carlos off by surprise.

“Really?” Aaron turned around, putting his back against the fence. He crossed his arms. “What for?”

“Parker got a bit pissy with me about not wearing a helmet.” Charlotte frowned, rolling her eyes a little at the memory.

Carlos hummed. That’s interesting. “You guys made up though, right?” Aaron asked, a hand raising from his crossed arms.

“I guess.” Her tone was nonchalant. “We didn’t really talk about it afterwards.”

“Why weren’t you wearing a helmet?” Carlos interjected, his expression serious.

“I didn’t feel like wearing one, okay?” She explained, slightly annoyed. “I’m able to take care of myself.” She explained sourly.

“You don’t need to get defensive.” Carlos calmly stated.

“I’m not.”

“Carlos, it’s your turn.” Aaron changed the subject. Carlos looked towards the tennis courts. Suzuki made his way out, chuckling. He held out his racket to Carlos for him to take.

“Who won?” He asked the blue and yellow shuriken, taking the racket from him.

“I did. But it was very close. That last rally was very, very fun.” He smiled fondly.

"I'm not surprised." Charlotte snickered.

Carlos made his way onto the court with Parker. He wondered how Parker felt about their fight. The two hadn’t even properly talked and made up yet. Charlotte seemed mostly unaffected, but was Parker? On the surface he was. He wanted to know more. Maybe it wasn't his business, but he wanted to know. Parker lightly smacked the tennis ball to him. "You serve first." He said in a friendly manner. It bounced once before Carlos caught it with his free hand.

He would talk to him before they all said goodbye. But, for now..

Carlos bounced the ball once, competitively smirking at Parker. "Let's have some fun." He tossed the ball in the air for the serve.

…

Charlotte and Suzuki had already left in their own cars. They told the group that they were gonna hang out together and watch a show. Aaron was sitting inside Carlos' car, on his phone as he waited for Carlos. Carlos and Parker were standing outside of his car. "Is something wrong?" Parker asked. "Why talk privately?"

"It's about Charlotte." He replied bluntly. His brows were stern. "She told Aaron and I you had a fight during your last spelunking trip."

"Oh." Parker was taken a bit aback, flustered. He rubbed the back of his neck. "She told you that, did she? Huh." He laughed uncomfortably. "I-It was just about her helmet. It's not a big deal."

"It could be a big deal." He replied, arms crossed. He sighed through his nose, looking down and closing his eyes. "It may not exactly be my business, but I care about my friends. Both you and her." He looked up at him again. "So, what happened exactly?"

"Eh.. well." Parker huffed awkwardly. "I dunno. I just told her that it wasn't safe, and that she could end up injuring herself." He muttered, looking away. "She was insistent on being able to keep herself safe." He spoke more clearly.

"You guys didn't get into a.. fight, fight, right? Like, a physical fight?"

"Oh- no, nothing like that!" Parker chuckled awkwardly. "A small shouting match, but nothing more."

"Shouting.." Carlos narrowed his eyes. "Were there any insults?"

"Uh.. no..?" He lied. He remembered Charlotte calling him an asshole. That hit deeper than it probably should have. "N-None that I can remember.." He muttered, feigning ignorance.

"I don't know, Parker." Carlos sighed, turning slightly to the side. "The way you're talking, it seems like this fight hurt you inside."

There was a moment of silence, as Parker tiptoed with words to use to respond. "Uh- Well-.. ihh.." He trailed off, looking away.

"She didn't end up apologizing to you, either, right?"

"Well.. no, but- she doesn't have to." He sounded like he was trying to convince himself, smiling lightly. "I was pushing her, when it's not up to me to decide what she wants to do with her life."

"You were looking out for her." He pointed at him. "You're not in the wrong at all."

The door to Carlos' car opened. "Yo, what's taking so long?" Aaron asked. He didn't seem agitated, but he was clearly getting impatient.

"Sorry, Aaron. One more minute."

"Aight, aight." He shut the door.

Carlos looked back at Parker. "Look, all I'm gonna say is, while your relationship with her isn't my business, just make sure you're realistic. Don't paint her in a better light than she actually is." Carlos began walking towards his car, putting a hand on the driver's side door. "I'm looking out for you, man." He added. "If you need to talk or any help, just let me know." He smiled confidently at him.

Parker nodded. "Yeah. Thanks." He awkwardly and quietly spoke.

"Cool. Hope you two properly make up and make out!" His tone sounded so genuine, it caught Parker off guard. He shut the door and started his car.

Parker chuckled. Well.. maybe he should talk with Charlotte. He'll save it for another day.

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