The Unexpected

Chapter 6 - Time to Face the Music

A/N Where do I even begin, thank you all so much for your views, votes and comments. I never thought I would even have a single reader on this however I have been pleasantly surprised by the support. It truly does mean the world to me. Once again if you are looking for edits of the nursery nurse please head over to my tiktok: ventu.nursery. I hope you enjoy this chapter and always all feedback is welcome!

Charlotte had managed to keep herself occupied all week with the constant barrage of never-ending complaints from the parents about how their little ones had managed to sustain an injury from another child or how a child's photo was not taken in the best lighting. It felt like just another average week to her.

There were however two things that has plagued her mind all week. The guilt that panged in her chest from keeping this so-called "white lie" from Marjorie had left her feeling like she couldn't even talk about the weather with her without it all spilling out of her mouth. It wasn't entirely her fault, she would reassure herself, Reece started this snowball effect, however it didn't stop her feeling that she has betrayed the one who was always there beside her when things got tough for her.

On the other hand, she couldn't keep the anticipation and excitement for Mia's return off her mind, sure the thoughts were laced with the secret she was keeping from Marjorie, but it didn't stop her from thinking about what lied in store for her and Mia.

Charlotte still had this underlining insecurity that one day she would wake up to find her number blocked, that Mia would one day realize that Charlotte was nothing special, and she was just another fling. These feelings quickly dissipated as Mia's name flashed on her phone screen, the ping of the email coming through and the continued buzz of the phone rang.

The distance was hard, however with the constant updates from Mia, it felt like she had never left. In some ways it made Charlotte comforted that someone had come into her life and had well and truly turned her world upside down in the best way possible. She now felt that she could talk to Mia openly about so many things and she wouldn't judge her or criticise her decisions, however she never spoke about the white lie that her and Reece her construed to cover up who Mia truly was. It was a lingering black cloud that was constantly over her head and eating her up inside.

Today was the day – Friday, she couldn't keep the deception up. She felt herself peeling at the seams, ready to crumple down in front of Marjorie and beg her for forgiveness, that's if she could ever forgive her. Charlotte knew she couldn't keep this façade up over the weekend, especially with Mia coming back and promising another date of which the details had been kept as a surprise.

Charlotte did her usual routine of closing down the room and making sure that things were laid out for the following week to make the mad rush of children coming through a little easier to handle as their parents quickly dashed away to work or back home for some R & R and leave Charlotte as the rest of the staff to deal with tears and tantrums.

Charlotte switched off the lights to the room and closed the door with purpose, wanting to leave the mess of the week behind. She turned on her heels and made a beeline to Marjorie's office. The feeling she had inside her was the same as the last time she had crossed paths with the door, the nervousness and avoidance trying to pull her as far away as possible from that office and from the nursery itself. The guilt was too much though and Charlotte knew she had to do the right thing to keep the close friendship with Marjorie, the bubbling relationship with Mia and as much as she hated to think of the unexpected new bond that Reece, and she had formed over a shared woman.

Charlotte stood outside the door, her breath hitched as she felt her palms sweat, here it was, the lion's den, the place where she would have to face her fears and face the repercussions. Charlotte tentatively knocked on the door, an audible swallow lined her throat. She waited for what seemed to feel like forever... with no answer.

"Marjorie?" Charlotte called out to the other side of the door. "Can I come in? I need to talk to you about something." Her voice trembling on every syllable.

Charlotte pushed down the handle to the door with such force she thought she would break it off, she was only met with resistance and the audible click of the lock. Charlotte furrowed her eyebrows confused; she then shrugged her shoulders. Maybe the universe was on her side. Charlotte strolled, somewhat relieved at the fact that she hadn't had to face Marjorie just yet.

This feeling quickly disappeared as she saw not only Marjorie in the car park but Reece as well, both seeming to be in a in depth conversation. Well, it was now or never and at least Reece was there so she wouldn't seem like the only bad guy in this situation. Charlotte took another deep breath before stepping out into the shadow filled carpark, she made her way over to the pair with a mixture of nerves and purpose.

Marjorie turned on her heels and flashed Charlotte a big grin. "Alright my love?!" She greeted her ecstatically. Reece on the other hand looked at Charlotte with anticipation and longing for her not to say anything.

Charlotte cleared her throat and looked between them with seriousness. "Look, Marjorie there's something you should know..." Her voice trailing off into the night that was forming around them all.

"What's that my...." Marjorie began however she was cut off but a car pulling into the nursery, it was a bit late for parents she thought, plus all the children had been picked up. As it got closer, the three observed it wasn't just some ordinary car pulling into a nearby parking space but a black mustang which seemed to compliment the background of the diming light which was forming.

The driver's side slowly opened, and a red-headed figure rose slowly from the car before gently closing the door as if not to damage the precious machinery. It was Mia. She seemed to glide over to the three of them so easily. She smirked at them all before directing her attention to Charlotte.

"Surprise sweetheart. I'm back." Mia stated her voice sensually cutting through the building tension that had formed. There was no escape now, it was time to come clean.