The next morning, I wake up early and head to the kitchen. I decided that if I want to make amends with Charlotte, I'm going to have to try a whole lot harder. I figured a good way to start might be by making her breakfast.
"Zayn?" Charlotte asks as she walks into the room. She has her school bag slung over her shoulder and her keys in hand.
"I was hoping I could catch you so we could talk before you went off to school?" I ask, biting my lip.
"Well I guess I can talk for a bit. I was going to leave a little earlier than usual to go pick up breakfast from a coffee shop or something," Charlotte replies before setting her things down on the counter.
"Great," I reply with a warm smile. "Now close your eyes. Good. Good. Wait a minute....and voila!"
Charlotte gasps at the plate I set out in front of her. She examines it closely and begins to laugh. Her pleasant laugh echoes throughout the room, creating a sense of warmth.
"You made me scrambled eggs? You hate eggs!" She exclaims.
"I hate eggs, but you don't. I thought maybe this could be an apology for the way I acted?"
"I don't know Zayn. It might take more than eggs to fix that..." She says, a sad look in her blue eyes.
I groan. "What more do you want me to do? I try to fix this with a grand gesture like making you eggs and even that's not good enough for you? I'll have you know I normally just forget about it and walk away like it never happened."
"Jesus, calm down. Thank you for the eggs, but you might need to fix more than eggs. Maybe you should try to fix your attitude. No matter what I say, it always seems to offend you. You get defensive, your short temper gets the best of you, and you take it out on me," she explains.
I sigh. "You're....you're right. I was going to attempt to make things right with you last night but my nature got in the way. I'm used to acting coldly towards people. Call it a natural reflex. Being friends isn't something I'm used to."
"Is it something you'd be willing to try? We don't have to be friends but lets try to get our conversations and interactions down to be 25% fighting and 75% normal?" Charlotte asks, a skeptical look in her eyes.
I stop to think. Maybe less arguing would be nice. It will certainly take more work from my end, but less fighting will mean less stress and more time to focus on work. I guess that's good enough for me.
"I think so. Is that ok?" I question, looking toward Charlotte for confirmation. She nods eagerly before happily taking a bite of her eggs.
"Good," I say, a smile tugging at the corners of my lips. I sit down with her and poke at my eggs. After a few moments, Charlotte's eyes light up.
She exclaims, "I got invited to a frat party yesterday! Two of my friends from school are throwing it and I'm totally going to go."
Her words stop my train of thought. She's a new student and she's going to a frat party? This party will obviously be filled with frat boys- which I know from experience are not good- and she won't know anyone there. It's not sounding like the best idea to me.
"Charlotte you can't go. You don't know anyone there, you don't even know where it is, it's going to be late at night...and need I remind you that you barely know how to get to my apartment sober? It's too dangerous and unpredictable," I say.
"C'mon stiff! It's not like I haven't been to parties before. I'm experienced."
"Well you've never been to a party here before and you certainly won't start now. I'm not going to let you go," I reply.
"What are you my mother? Of course I'm going Zayn! I didn't ask for your permission, I was just letting you know where I'm going to be. If you're so concerned, come with me. We can work on our newfound friendship."
"Charlotte, I am not going to go to that party and neither are you. There are bad people in this town that'll be there and you're not going to get anywhere near them," I retort.
"I don't need your permission. I'm a big girl and I can handle myself," Charlotte says as she walks toward the door. "I'm leaving right now for the day and I'm going to that party tonight. I'll be back whenever," she says bluntly before slamming the door in my face.
-:-:-
With the holiday season coming up, I think I'll have more time to write. Be prepared for more updates :)
Xx - moronicmalik
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Confidence Game
Fanfictioncon·fi·dence game noun a swindle in which the victim is persuaded to trust the swindler in some way. When Charlotte Voss is kicked out of university for committing a crime, she transfers to Kingston College in hopes of a fresh start. Once there, she...
