Charlotte After Dark

Chapter 45: The Life You Left Behind

Author's Note: Hi everyone! Sorry for my quiet, unexpected absence. My computer died and it took me a while to get a new one, but I'm back J J J I've also been working on a blog I'm starting, so that took a big chunk of my time. Hope you enjoy!

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Chapter 45: The Life You Left Behind

I paced outside the door with apprehension, wringing my hands together as I chewed the inside of my cheek. Luca's words echoed in my mind as I repeated them over and over again to myself.

"We must all make our attempts in this family," Luca said.

My marching was muffled by the lush carpet below and I was thankful for it. He was going to say no, I knew it. I fought with myself to gather the courage to knock on the door, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I took a deep, calming breath in, hyping myself up.

"This isn't the State of the Union address, just knock on the door and ask," I told myself, willing myself to take the few short steps closer to the door. I raised my hand up to knock and it paused there like it was frozen in time.

"You've been down dingy alleyways more terrifying than him, just knock," I continued to talk to myself.

I took a confident breath in and exhaled sharply, bringing my fist down to knock but the door opened abruptly.

"Is there are reason that you are talking to yourself outside my door?" Joaquin asked, standing in the door way, wrapping his arms across his chest and letting out an annoyed sigh.

"I, uh," I stammered. I had rehearsed this speech over and over in my head the whole night and suddenly the words escaped me.

"Yes?" Joaquin asked.

I laughed nervously. "I need your help."

"Well, isn't that a peach. Why would I ever subject myself to that?" Joaquin replied, leaning on the door frame.

"Out of the goodness of your heart?" I responded.

Joaquin snickered. "As you can see, I'm very busy so I'll have to reject your request," he replied, readying himself to shut the door in my face.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I interrupt your nine o'clock basket weaving appointment?" I replied. I mentally slapped myself, unable to censure myself before I spoke. This conversation wasn't going nearly as well as I had rehearsed.

"Now I really want to help you," was Joaquin's sardonic reply before he started to close the door in my face.

"Wait," I said, stopping the door.

Joaquin stopped and looked at me with an expectant yet perturbed expression.

"You know I wouldn't be asking you for help unless I was really, really desperate," I pleaded with him.

"You have an awfully strange way of acting desperate. First, you interrupt my night with your incoherent mumblings to yourself outside my door, and then insult my extracurricular activities," Joaquin stated.

"I want you to teach me to dance, like really dance," I admitted to him.

"Absolutely not," he replied without a second thought.

"You didn't even think about it!" I exclaimed.

"I don't need to think about it. It's absolutely out of the question," he explained.

"Why?" I asked, unbelieving.

Joaquin opened his mouth to speak before he closed his mouth. There was a far-off sound of excited laughter and conversation from the other end of the hall as Joaquin's ears piqued up like a cat. He look down the hallway before looking back at me with a disgruntled sigh.