In Charlotte's Eyes

ONE: It's Finally Over, Parker

Three and a half months passed. It was now November. Parker’s life felt stable again. His mind felt around the same as before Charlotte left. He missed Charlotte and Suzuki, but he got Rebecca and Audrey as consolation—though Rebecca was a bit too wild for him most of the time.

Parker had finished a company meeting, so he checked his phone for the time. After synthesizing the time, he noticed that Audrey had called him earlier. Once he had the opportunity to sit down, he returned her call.

It didn't take long for her to pick up. “Hi, Audrey.” He greeted before she could say anything.

“Hey, Parker. Thanks for calling me back.” She sounded tired.

“Of course. What's up?” He spoke quickly, curious.

“I have some unfortunate news relating to Charlotte.”

“Ah..” Parker’s brows softened, and they fell with his frown. He had a feeling he knew what this was about. “It’s already been nine months, hasn't it..?” He muttered, sorrowful thoughts about his once best friend returning.

“Y-Yes.” His best friend’s sister paused, seemingly sad about it, too. She cleared her throat briefly. “Sh-She’s finally been presumed dead. Wherever she is, the mold would have killed her by now. If not, her body is rendered completely useless.” She sighed.

Parker curled in his seat a little, upset. “It's been months, and it's felt like she's been dead for a long time, but..”

Audrey drew a shaky breath, on the verge of tears. “..Even so, there was a small chance she may come back. Now it's over.”

“Yeah..” He was at a loss for words. “Audrey-..,”

He was going to try and say something comforting, but she cut him off. “A-Anyways-, sorry. I called you for another reason.”

“What do you need, Audrey?” He asked gently.

“Now that she's gone.. I need some help dealing with some stuff.. uh-, specifically- the estate sale. My family is taking care of funeral plans, but if you'd be willing.. I'd like some help with the sale.”

“Absolutely.” He agreed with no hesitation. “When are you holding the sale?”

“The weekend after this.” She paused. “This weekend we need to organize everything; choose what to keep, get rid of, pricing, etcetera. It's.. gonna be a lot. I can't work over the weekdays because of work, so I'm gonna have to work my butt off this weekend.” She sighed. “Luckily she doesn't have that many things..” She muttered.

“I'll help you every step of the way.” He affirmed with resolve. “She meant as much to me as she did for you.”

Audrey lightly chuckled, pensively. “She definitely meant more to you than me..”

He smiled lightly. “Don't say that.” He quickly pivoted the topic. “So, what, are we gonna meet this Saturday at her house?”

“Yeah. I'll be there early in the morning. You can show up whenever you want.”

“I'll be there as soon as possible.” He nodded.

“Thanks.” Her voice trailed. “Anyways, I'm sure you're busy. I don't want to hold you longer than I need to.”

“No worries.”

“Bye, Parker.”

“See you later, Audrey.”