Broken Descent (Bruno Mars)

Day 5: Fault

Because of the time change, Bruno, Phil, and Charlotte arrived back in L.A at about midnight. Bruno put the blue bird and dirty clothes in the laundry room.

In the bathroom, she had already turned on the faucet and undressed. Bruno watched her get in, so proud of her independence. He helped her wash her hair, letting the shampoo settle in since it had been a while.

Wrapping her in a towel, Bruno kissed her head. He grabbed her clothes off the floor and took them to the laundry room too. When he got to her room, she sat on her bed wearing a fresh pair of pajamas, brushing her hair. He smiled slightly at how cute she was.

"Do you need help?" He asked, sitting in front of her.

Charlotte set the brush down, shaking her head.

"You can sleep with me, if you want?"

Charlotte shook her head again and laid down. Bruno kissed her forehead gently. She gave Roberto a squeeze. The singing didn't cheer her up so Bruno started to sing. She turned her body around, turning her back to him. Bruno pouted and rubbed her back.

The next morning, Charlotte was still in bed very late. He watched her from the door. He watched her until she woke up. She noticed him pretty quickly.

"Good morning," Bruno said cheerfully. "Time for breakfast."

Charlotte grabbed his hand.

On the kitchen table were two plates of eggs and toast. Five minutes into Bruno eating, Charlotte hadn't touched her food; she hadn't even picked up her fork.

"You have to eat something, sweetheart. I know you're hungry," he said sweetly, rubbing her back.

She burst into tears. Bruno put down his fork and opened up his arms. She stood up on her chair and Bruno pulled her into him. Loud cries entered his ears.

"I know," Bruno whispered. "I know."

Charlotte pulled herself away from him. She was shaking.

"Deep breaths."

It took her a long time to relax. Bruno smiled when she stopped crying.

"How about we try something smaller?" He asked, pulling a box of Lucky Charms from the pantry.

Charlotte nodded. Bruno finished his plate of eggs and then ate Charlotte's too while she ate her cereal. Bruno was grateful that she was eating something, even though she didn't finish the whole bowl.

"Good job," Bruno said, kissing the side of her face.

Charlotte didn't want lunch. She watched him all afternoon, playing piano in the family room. He was unsure about what to do career-wise. Between already being behind with the new music and what had happened with Charlotte, finishing the other half of the album wasn't on his radar. Phil came by in the afternoon to play music with him.

"How's the best god daughter in the world?" Phil smiled.

Charlotte didn't respond, and Phil wanted to bring it up with Bruno later in another room.

"She's still not talking?"

"Nope. Hasn't said a thing."

"Maybe you should take her to a doctor or something."

"She'll," Bruno said hesitantly. "She'll be okay. She needs just a little more time."

Before Bruno served dinner that night, Charlotte wandered into the kitchen after staying in her room for most of the afternoon. Bruno refused to entertain the thought of taking her to a doctor. He knew her better than any doctor anyway; he knew she'd come around. He knew that taking her to a stranger to talk about what had happened would only make matters worse.