Exception

Chapter 11

The next day, Charlotte got a text from Engfa asking her to come by her office. Normally, Engfa messaging her wasn't anything weird, but something about the way this message was worded seemed off. It felt tense—almost like something urgent was going on.

As Charlotte walked toward the office, her stomach twisted with nerves. Engfa had been acting differently lately, and even though they had confessed their feelings for each other, there was still a lot they hadn't really talked about. Maybe this was finally the time to clear the air.

When Charlotte entered, Engfa was sitting at her desk, staring at her computer with this frustrated look. Her fingers were drumming on the desk, and her whole posture screamed stress.

"Hey," Charlotte said softly, closing the door behind her. She didn't want to startle Engfa, but she could already tell something was wrong.

Engfa barely glanced up. "Charlotte," she muttered, her voice a little clipped. "Thanks for coming."

Charlotte nodded and walked closer. She could feel the tension in the room. As she moved, her eyes landed on Engfa's hand, resting on the desk—and that's when she noticed it. A fresh cut, right on the side of her hand.

"What happened to your hand?" Charlotte asked, her concern instantly rising.

Engfa looked down at her hand like she'd forgotten about the injury. She sighed and shook her head. "It's nothing. Just a scratch."

Charlotte frowned. "A scratch? That's not 'nothing,' Engfa. Did you hurt yourself?"

Engfa's jaw tightened. "I... got into a fight. It was stupid."

Charlotte's eyes went wide. "A fight? With who? Why didn't you tell me?"

"It doesn't matter," Engfa said quickly, her voice sharp. "I don't want to talk about it. It's over now, okay?"

"No, it's not okay!" Charlotte's voice rose slightly, worry mixing with frustration. "You got hurt! You're sitting here with a cut on your hand, and who knows what else, and you're acting like it's no big deal!"

Engfa leaned back in her chair and rubbed her temples. "I just... I didn't want you to worry."

Charlotte stood still, looking at Engfa, feeling her heart twist. "Of course, I'm going to worry! You don't have to do this alone, you know? I'm here for you."

Engfa let out a deep breath, clearly trying to calm herself down. "I know, I know. It's just... hard."

"Hard? Engfa, you literally got into a fight and didn't even tell me. Why? Do you think I wouldn't care?"

"I didn't want to drag you into it. I thought I could handle it."

Charlotte stepped closer, her voice softening. "You don't have to handle everything by yourself. You're not invincible, you know?"

For a moment, neither of them said anything. Then Charlotte noticed how tense Engfa's posture was and saw something in her face she hadn't seen before—vulnerability. That made her heart hurt even more. She gently placed her hand over Engfa's injured one.

"You should've told me," Charlotte whispered, giving Engfa's hand a light squeeze. "I'm your friend, or—more than that now. I want to be there for you, not just when things are easy."

Engfa finally looked up, and there was this guilt in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "I just didn't want you to see me like this."

"Like what? Hurt? Angry? Stressed?" Charlotte shook her head. "You don't always have to be the strong one. It's okay to let people in. You're not Superman."

Engfa snorted, a tiny smile playing on her lips for the first time since Charlotte got there. "Superwoman, you mean?"

Charlotte rolled her eyes but smiled back. "Whatever. You know what I mean."

Engfa sighed, the weight of everything slowly lifting from her shoulders. "I guess I just didn't want to seem weak."

"You're not weak," Charlotte said firmly. "But you are reckless. Fighting? Seriously, Engfa? You could've gotten really hurt!"

"I wasn't thinking straight," Engfa admitted, looking away. "It just... happened."

"Next time, think," Charlotte scolded, her voice gentle but serious. "Getting into fights isn't going to solve anything. If you get hurt like this again, I'm going to be mad."

"I'll try," Engfa muttered, sounding both guilty and a little stubborn.

Charlotte knelt down next to her, pulling the first aid kit from the drawer. "Here, let me at least clean this up. You're lucky this isn't worse."

Engfa looked at her, surprised. "You don't have to..."

"I know I don't have to," Charlotte interrupted, already dabbing the wound with antiseptic. "But I want to."

Engfa winced as Charlotte worked, and Charlotte frowned, noticing that the injury seemed deeper than she first thought. "You really should've gone to the nurse or something."

"It's not that bad," Engfa muttered.

"It is that bad," Charlotte said, shaking her head. "And I'm pretty sure you're hiding more than just this scratch."

Engfa stayed quiet for a moment, then mumbled, "There's another cut... on my back."

Charlotte froze, her heart pounding. "On your back? Engfa!"

Engfa didn't meet her eyes. "I didn't want to make a big deal out of it."

Charlotte's anger flared. "Not a big deal? You got into a fight, you have a cut on your back, and you're just pretending like it's nothing? What were you thinking?"

Engfa sighed. "I know. I was stupid, okay?"

"Yeah, you were," Charlotte said, her voice shaky with frustration. "You could've really gotten hurt."

Engfa lifted the hem of her shirt to show the cut on her lower back. It was worse than the one on her hand—longer, deeper. Charlotte's heart clenched at the sight.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Charlotte asked again, her voice softer now. She grabbed more antiseptic and started cleaning the wound carefully.

"I didn't want to worry you," Engfa said quietly. "I thought I could handle it."

"Well, you didn't," Charlotte replied firmly. "Next time, tell me. Please. You don't have to do this alone."

"I'll try," Engfa whispered, her voice barely audible.

Charlotte finished bandaging the cut, her hands lingering for a moment on Engfa's skin. "You promise?"

Engfa nodded slowly. "I promise."

Charlotte stood up, feeling a mix of relief and worry. "Good. Now, you need to rest. And no more fights, okay?"

Engfa smiled, this time a real one, and nodded again. "No more fights. I promise."

Charlotte's heart finally felt lighter, knowing that Engfa was okay and that they were in this together.

As she got ready to leave, Engfa grabbed her hand, stopping her. "Thanks for being here. Really."

Charlotte smiled back. "I'll always be here for you. Just... stop scaring me like this, okay?"

"I'll try," Engfa said with a grin, squeezing Charlotte's hand.

And for the first time in a while, Charlotte felt like everything was going to be okay.

A/N: Please do vote for my story. I hope you guys like it!