In Charlotte's Eyes

ONE: Charlotte Lapses

Time was passing by in a slow blur. Charlotte spent almost all her time sitting alone. Time seemed to move so slowly from minute to minute, but in the grand scheme of things it had felt like so much—too much—time had passed. The shift system the others were using didn't make sense, and she couldn't decipher it. So she stopped trying to figure out the time, holding on to the last bit of hope she had left that Airy would come back.

The others were working on getting a second stake down. Charlotte would come to assist whenever they asked her. That was about the only social interaction she'd get.

“Ready?!” Whippy Creamy cried to the group. “Three! Two! One! Push!”

Everyone struggled against the second stake. Slowly, the stake groaned. Everyone struggled, pushing themselves to squeeze every bit of strength they had.

“Come on!” Whippy Creamy breathily shouted. “One more push! Go!”

Charlotte grit her teeth. And, finally, the stake tipped over. There was another pause, before everyone broke into a chorus of cheers.

“Yeah! That's what I like to see!”

“Good job, everyone.”

“Only three more to go!”

“Celebratory pool party!”

Charlotte sighed, glad that that was over with. As everyone started heading to the pool, she followed, although planned to skip out on the event. Nobody was worth the time to get to know. Airy would come back, and-

“Hey, Moldy.” Circle greeted her from behind.

Snapping away from her zoned out state, she stopped walking and looked at him. He had a welcoming smile. “Hm?”

“Are you coming up to the pool to celebrate with all of us?” He asked with a positive aura.

She looked away a bit awkwardly. “Nnno. I'm good.”

“Really?” He sounded disappointed.

This was the first time anybody had invited her to join everyone else in celebration. Charlotte didn't know how to feel about that. “Why?” Her face scrunched.

“Well, you're my teammate.” He nodded affirmatively, trying his best to remain positive. “Uh- all of us wanna hang out with you again, y'know?”

Looking at his clearly unrehearsed request, it reminded her of someone. The thought made her soften up. She looked away, a sense of.. something.. filling her heart. “Are you sure..?”

“Well, yeah.” He nodded, his face resting into a casual expression. “Come join us, will you?”

Her face finally surrendered a smile. “Alright.. fine.”

“Nice!”

The two left it at that, continuing their trek towards the pool. Charlotte felt.. good. For the first time in a while, even. As the two were about ten yards away from the ladder, Charlotte suddenly felt faint. Her body betrayed her, and she immediately dropped to her knees, grunting on contact with the floor.

“Moldy?” Circle stopped in his tracks, turning to her with concern.

Charlotte said nothing. She felt like she needed to throw up, but nothing was coming up her throat. Eyes wide and heartbeat picking up in pace, her forearms supported her weight. She panted.

“Moldy..?!”

What the fuck..? Charlotte groaned in pain. There was internal pain, but she didn't know why. She had never felt so uncomfortable in her own skin in her life. She felt herself go unconscious for a second.

“You should have listened to me, Charlotte.” A voice chastised her in a coo.

Charlotte crashed into the ground face first, immediately regaining consciousness. She groaned uncomfortably.

“Moldy, are you okay?!” Circle half shouted.

“P-Parker..” She silently murmured. That was Parker’s voice. But why..? First and foremost, she needed to get rid of this sudden pain spell. She used all of her present strength to flip herself onto her back, writhing and wincing in pain on the floor. Her arms and body shook. “A-Ah-!” She looked pitifully up at Circle.

He stared down with panic. “A-Are you okay?! What happened?!”

“Nngh-..” She slowly sat herself up. The sensation of needing to throw up faded slowly. She looked at him. How embarrassing—to be seen so vulnerable. God, damnit.

He put a hand on her shoulder. “Do you need help?”

She swatted his hand away gently, a silent surprise escaping him in reaction. She avoided looking at him. “No, I.. I'm just..” She stood herself up, a lump in the back of her throat. “I'm tired.” She forced out, walking away from him, to her wall of solitude.

She got a few feet away, before Circle feebly called to her. “Wait..! You're not..?” He didn't finish his sentence.

No, she would not join him and the others at the pool.