amelia roberts - the person she could've been

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

After Charlotte parked the car in her driveway, she sat in silence, her eyes drifting to Mia, who stared blankly ahead, her body still and cold like a lifeless shell.
Charlotte parted her lips to speak, to offer something—comfort, words of love—but before she could, Mia suddenly spoke.

"Why did you call me that before?" Mia’s voice was soft, but the question cut through the quiet like a knife.

Charlotte blinked, startled.
"What do you mean?" she asked, her mind scrambling to understand.
She was still so focused on Mia’s well-being that she hadn’t registered the words from earlier.

"You called me sweet girl,"
Mia said, her tone carrying disbelief. "Why did you call me that? You never use nicknames or pet names for anyone."
She turned slightly, her expression still pale but now laced with confusion and perhaps something deeper—something vulnerable.

Charlotte’s heart sank as she realized the weight of the words she had spoken without thinking. She had been so caught up in Mia’s pain, so desperate to comfort her, that she hadn’t considered how that particular phrase might hit.
"I just... I didn’t know what to say," she admitted, her voice low.
"It just came out. I was more focused on you than on what I was saying."

Mia turned away, her gaze drifting to the window again, her face still pale and distant. After a brief pause, she spoke again, her voice colder this time.

"My father used to call me that," she said, her words sharp with the sting of memory. "He always called me my sweet girl - well, before he left us."

Charlotte’s breath caught in her throat. She hadn’t known. She had no idea those words had such deep, painful ties for Mia.
"Amelia, I am so sorry. I didn’t mean—"

"It’s okay, Char," Mia interrupted, her tone more resigned than angry.
"You didn’t know. How could you? I rarely talk about him."
She finally turned to face Charlotte, her eyes weary but not blaming.

Charlotte felt the weight of her girlfriend's pain pressing down on her. "I don’t know what to say," she admitted, feeling helpless in the face of such a raw wound.

Mia softened a bit at Charlotte’s clear discomfort.
"Don’t worry, sweetheart," she said, a faint attempt to ease the tension between them.
"Let’s just get inside. I could use a shower after all of this."

Charlotte managed a small smile, grateful for the reprieve. She opened her door and stepped out, walking with Mia toward the house.
Though the air between them was still heavy with unspoken grief, the simple act of moving forward—of going inside, of caring for each other—felt like the first step toward healing.

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A/N:
Charlotte ALWAYS full names everyone. So, I felt like it was fitting to make her say a pet name during this vulnerable moment.  :^)