In Charlotte's Eyes

Jealousy

“Yo, Ky!” Leon laughed excitedly. He pointed towards the corner of a wall. “Look at this.”

Kylee was by his side quickly, kneeling down to look at what he was pointing at. It was a lizard. It was camouflaged with the stone. Kylee gasped in awe. “Oh, look at how tiny it is!”

“Right?! Isn't it adorable?”

“Ahh..! I want to pet it. Nice find, Lee!” She whispered.

Charlotte looked at them bitterly. Parker stood behind them, trying to peek over their shoulders without touching them. “Hold on, let me see.”

Charlotte huffed, picking up a palm sized stone. She made sure the group of three weren't looking at her, then she chucked it into the darkness. It crashed against something, making a semi-loud clack. “What was that?” Leon asked quickly, wary.

“Dunno.” Charlotte replied, deadpan. “I'm gonna investigate it.” She started walking away.

“Hold on, Charlotte!” Parker followed her.

Leon looked at Kylee. “C'mon, let's not fall behind.”

She looked at him and nodded. She turned her head back to the lizard and waved. “Bye, lizard.” She whispered to the still animal.

Parker scampered to Charlotte’s side. “Pffh.” She huffed, subtly kicking away a pebble.

Parker hummed deeply to himself. He didn't like the way Charlotte was acting. He could tell something was bothering her.

“Hey, y'all.” Leon caught up, Kylee behind him. “Find out about the noise?”

“Nope.” Charlotte responded quickly.

There was a moment of awkward silence.

“I think I saw something this way earlier.” Kylee reported, pointing in a direction in the darkness.

“Great.” Leon answered optimistically. “Let's go.”

Parker chuckled. “Right behind you.”

“Same.” Charlotte agreed.

“Follow me!” Kylee skipped to a start, walking fast.

…

“That was fun.” Leon smiled.

“It was.” Parker agreed.

“Do you guys feel like doing something else?” He eagerly followed up. “We could eat somewhere.”

“Ooh, yeah!” Kylee agreed. “I know the perfect place to get to know each other better.”

“That sounds nice.” Parker welcomed the suggestion with a large smile. “What do you think, Charlotte?” He looked down at the short piece of bread.

“No, I gotta go home.”

“Oh. Really?” He frowned, sad. “Why?”

“I have something I need to do.” She responded vaguely.

He looked down. “I see.” He looked at her, letting his arms spread out, welcoming her for a hug. He felt like she needed one. “Well, goodbye, then, Charlotte.”

Charlotte’s eyes darted from his offering arms to his eyes. Her expression seemed unimpressed— he was kind of expecting her to just walk away. To his surprise, she accepted his hug without a word. She wrapped her arms around him and leaned into him for a few seconds. She took a breath. “Bye, Parker.” She pensively muttered.

After that, she separated, the same reserved expression on her face. She turned and started walking away. Parker smiled a tiny bit.

Kylee hummed in amusement, smiling. “You guys are cute.”

Leon smiled, too. “I'm inclined to agree.”

Parker awkwardly laughed, rubbing the back of his head. “Thanks.. I guess.”

“How long have you two known each other?” He asked.

He chuckled. “Ah.., I dunno.” He looked up to the sky. “How long has it been, three years..?” He shook his head, looking at Leon. “Something like that.”

“Nice.” He grinned at him. “Now, about eating..” He looked at Kylee. “Where’d you want to go?”

…

“What do you guys think of her so far?” Parker asked the duo. The three were sitting in a booth, waiting for their orders. “Charlotte, I mean.”

“Oh, her?” Leon put a finger to his chin. “She's fine. Athletic, strong.”

“It feels like she doesn't really like us that much, though.” Kylee said with a small frown.

Leon chuckled. “Yeah. I didn't want to say it, but..” He shrugged.

Parker sighed. “I'm sure she doesn't- nnh..” He paused, looking down with furrowed brows. “I don't know why she'd dislike you guys. I guess she's just a little cautious.”

“Is she usually like this with new people?” Kylee asked, leaning forward on the table.

“Hm..” He thought about that. “I'm not sure, honestly. She doesn't really make that many friends..? She mostly keeps the ones she has really close.” He chuckled awkwardly. “I think.” He smiled.

“Well, she did just get out of jail, right?” Leon said. “She might still be adjusting.”

Hopefully. Parker didn't want Charlotte to treat them as adversaries. There was a moment of silence.

“Anyways, what are your guys’ other hobbies?” He asked.

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