the other side of us | ✓

2.8 | big wide city

2 Years Ago

Charlotte had forgotten how much she disliked working for other people.

In the years that she'd been working, the times that she'd most enjoyed herself had been when she'd been her own manager, and it wasn't that she didn't like her current manager.

It was that she wasn't in control and it drove her nuts.

Charlotte had asked for the day off, but her request had been denied. She and Patrick had planned to drive over to New Jersey to see a concert, but that plan had been ruined when the shift announcements had come out.

She'd insisted that he go to the concert without her and had reluctantly shown up for work that day, expecting to be bored since her partner in crime was gone.

The coffee shop was as busy as it usually was on a Thursday, and Charlotte busied herself wiping down the counter while her coworker, Stacee, refilled the machines. The bell above the door went off and she looked up with a smile on her face and felt the expression freeze.

A woman had just walked in, dragging her children with her. The kids were cute. Girls, with wispy strawberry blonde curls pulled back into ponytails and matching jackets. Twins.

The kids weren't what had caught Charlotte's attention, it was the woman who'd accompanied them into the shop. Because she knew the woman but hadn't expected to ever see her again.

Charlotte had planned to go to a concert, maybe have a few drinks, and hang out with a good friend. Seeing her mother for the first time in over five years had definitely not be on Charlotte's plan for the day.

Eileen Evans – now Scott, because of the remarriage – stood in front of Charlotte and didn't blink when she saw her. Her hair was shorter than it had been when she'd left, and there was a significant amount of gray peeking through now. She stepped forward and offered a smile.

"Charlotte, how have you been?"

Charlotte's mouth was dry as she tried to respond. "I-Mom?"

Eileen cast a look at the children next to her and lowered her voice. "Do you have a moment?"

Stacee was still refilling the espresso machine, so Charlotte shook her head.

"I'm working."

"Maybe I can come back? It's important."

"I don't know –"

"What's going on Char?" Stacee asked, looking between Eileen and Charlotte. "You need a break?"

Charlotte was at a loss. "No, it's fine –"

"Please."

Her mother looked at her with wide eyes, and Charlotte could see the sincerity in them.

"Twenty minutes," Charlotte told Stacee, slipping her apron over her head and ducking out from behind the counter.

*

Eileen held both of her children's hands as she and Charlotte walked to the park at the end of the street.

The pair sat on a bench, and Charlotte shivered in the crisp autumn air while the twins ran towards the swing set. There was a gap between them, and Charlotte moved closer to the edge of the bench to increase it.

"What do you want?" Charlotte asked, not looking at the woman next to you.

"Lottie –"

"Don't call me that."

Eileen blanched and tried again.

"I wanted to see you."

"How did you find me?"