Love Bites [on hold]

☆|seven

It was extremely infuriating when she woke up two days later to her mother's announcement that Charles was coming over for tea. Natalie swore and rolled over to the opposite side of the bed, turning away from the messenger.

"Come on, you lazy ass," Hannah complained and pulled the covers off her, then smacked her butt. "It's twelve at noon. Get up!"

"But I'm tired," She whined and buried her face in her pillow when Hannah walked over to the window and pulled the curtains to the sides, letting direct sunlight into the room.

"No, you're not. You're only saying that because he's coming over," She clarified and dragged her out of bed. She stumbled then gathered herself up, slipping into her Crocs and heading for the bathroom.

She walked over to the sink and picked up her brush from the holder on the shelf below the mirror that portrayed her ghost-like face. "I. Am. Not. A. Fucking. Morning. Person," She stressed as she applied toothpaste onto the brush and worked it over her teeth.

The last time she had seen Charles, he was in the arms of his love interest, bidding her a foreboding goodbye before he left her forever. She didn't need to imagine how disastrous their sitting today was going to be.

After spraying her face with cold water, she struggled to tame down her unkempt hair, but it didn't budge, so she had to tie it up into a messy bun. It didn't have the desirable effect, though, for the length of her hair led to thick stands falling out of the bun to cover the nape of her neck.

She applied a thin layer of moisturizer before heading back into her bedroom. Hannah was still there, but she was turned away from her as she busied herself making Natalie's bed.

"What's the theme?" She asked, leaning against the wall as she waited for her answer.

"There isn't." Her mother paused and turned to face her. "Unfortunately, you can wear whatever you want."

She grinned devilishly and went over to her dresser. She pulled out a pair of gray leggings and an oversized emoji sweater. She put them on and fixed her hair one more time as the doorbell rang.

"Frank is going to get it," Hannah comforted her when she stiffened in front of the mirror. "You can still work on your hair."

Natalie gave her a flat look. "I have already worked on my hair. There's nothing else I'm going to do."

Hannah shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest but didn't say anything. Natalie took that as her cue and she waved quickly at her before heading downstairs.

Her heart clenched with every single step she took towards her dreaded destination. Her father was waiting for her by the base of the steps, and he gave her a reassuring grin then pointed his head towards the door to the back lawn.

The sunlight scorched her skin once she stepped out, but ut wasn't as bad as the tightening in her chest. She walked down the few steps and found Charles sitting down on the swing bench-table towards the back. The butler was there, and he placed down a china tray that held two mugs of tea and a sweetener.

Sucking in a breath, she squared her shoulders and made her way to the bench. The butler mumbled a greeting before excusing himself to go back inside, leaving the two of them completely alone.

He looked up at her to find her already staring at him. "What are you waiting for?" He asked in a neutral voice. "Sit!"

It was like déja vu, flashed so quickly she almost lost her balance and crumpled to the ground. It had been years ago, but it felt like only yesterday.

Without another word, she obliged, moving to take a seat across from him on the table. It swung slightly from her weight, but soon came back to a halt. She grabbed the arm of the mug closer to her and took a sip. The liquid was thick and still blazing hot. It scorched the inside of her gum and burnt her throat when she swallowed it, but she barely registered the feeling under Charles's scrutinizing gaze.