Johnny Castle's Second Chance (COMPLETED)

Chapter 23

Char started to wake up near dawn, she felt warm and a strong arm wrapped around her, then she wondered how she got there. She certainly didn't remember going to bed. Johnny snored lightly beside her. Char sighed and relaxed once more. The heat coming from Johnny made her feel a little better. She rested there snuggled into him, her back to him.
An hour later Johnny woke, feeling her close to his chest. He remembered now that he'd put her there and that he'd stayed over. He laced his hand with hers when he found it. She squeezed his hand letting him know she was awake.
" How'd you sleep?" Johnny asked.
" Better than the other night, thank you for staying."
" You're welcome. I just, well, Char..." Johnny was at a loss for words trying to figure out how to articulate how he felt." Char, I felt something for you that first night that we met."
" I felt it too." She said, afraid to look at him, she stayed right where she was.
" You're grieving over that guy though. You need time."
" So what do we do?"
" Take our time. Do things together, but take it careful."
" What about the times that I don't want to be careful?"
" Well, then I'll have to be strong and be the careful one, like last night."
" You're in my bed..."
" Yeah, but neither of us are fully undressed. "
Char sighed," This feels good though."
He agreed." Yeah, it sure does." He let go of her hand only to slowly rub her arm sending tingles along her flesh. Char took the turn to face him. Resting her hand and arm on his ribs. He rubbed her arm in long soft strokes, but then let his hand wander up to her neck. He held her head carefully, as he watched her.
" I want to take my time with you." He said, but leaned in to kiss her. His lips were soft and tender, his fingers stroked the back of her neck. She couldn't help it, her body started to betray her. Shifting her one leg over him so that they were very close. Johnny was getting a hard-on that he couldn't help, but he slowed things down, though she started to grind on him a little, causing a heated friction. Both their breathing became a bit rough, but Johnny stopped and held her still.
" It's too soon for this." He warned.
" I just feel these things!" She searched his eyes trying to help him understand.
" I know. I feel it too. But it's too early for this just yet. We'll get there, but today isn't that day Honey. Don't be mistaken though. I want you. If you feel this..." He squeezed her hip pulling her against him." You know it's true... But in due time."
" All right, but, are you always so reasonable?"
" Not usually, but when it's important, yes." He traced her features with his fingers. " I have to get going. I gotta get a shower and get to work. I'll call you later to check up on you. Try and get some more sleep, it's still pretty early."
" I'll try. Johnny?"
" Yeah Char?"
"  I really did enjoy myself last night. With the dancing and everything."
" Good. I hoped it would cheer you up a little."
" It did a lot. You're something Johnny Castle." She smiled.
" So are you Honey. Oh, come here..." He pulled her into his arms and kissed her long and slow. Caressing her cheek slowly.
Char sighed. There was an ache building in her for him, though she wanted to respect the fact that he was right. It was too soon for them to get into it just yet. She would bide her time and wait for things to happen naturally. It was necessary for her to finish grieving over Mike. She fell back into the pillows and watched him as he dressed.
" Try and get a little more sleep all right?" He leaned over her after he dressed. I'll be thinking about you."
" I'll try."  Her eyes stayed on his.
" Good. What are you doing later?"
" I am going to Call home and see if there's any news. But if not I have no plans yet."
" All right. I'm going to call you later when I get done, I thought of a cool place I think you'd maybe like that I could take you."
" Where?"
" Nope, it's a surprise. I really do gotta go now though. I call you later. Bye Char."
" Bye Johnny."
Johnny closed the door behind himself and headed for the elevators. As the doors opened , out walked Ricco and Belinda a little worse for wear.
" Whoa! Well, well, well..." Ricco said softly so other people sleeping near by wouldn't hear him.
" It's not like that..."
Ricco shot Johnny a knowing look." You sure about that? This isn't your cabin you're coming from..."
" Listen, that sing set her off, she's missing her friend that passed away."
" So you have her some TLC?"
" She needed a friend Torres. I'm not tied down. We fell asleep watching TV after I got her to calm down. Not that I need to explain any of this to you."
" Johnny, she's really nice. We should all get together again." Belinda said.
" Yeah, another time Belinda, we will." Johnny said and stepped into
the elevator letting the doors close. Once he got downstairs to the main floor he hurried outside and trudged up the path to his cabin. The air was bitter cold and ice crusted the trees making the snow crunchy to walk on. He walked briskly and immediately lit a fire when he got in the door. He was glad that it heated up quickly. As soon as it was tolerable he took off his coat and shoes. He'd had plumbing installed and had a working toilet and shower stall. He even built a wall to separate the facilities and had an electric heater installed to prevent the pipes from freezing. The cabin was all his, and he liked that feeling of having his own place.
Johnny turned on the water and searched for his towel not remembering where he'd hung it last. Finding it on a hook on the wall by his bed, he took it and hung it in the small room. Then he showered quickly. Once he was dried off he hurried into his clothes and dried and styled his hair. All the while he thought of the feel of Char's lips and remembered her body so close to his, slowly his pants grew a bit uncomfortable. He sighed, he knew how to take his time, but she was going to make it difficult, he could tell all ready. Having a little time he decided to rub one out to relieve the tension. Taking care of his needs quickly. He thought of her and the scent of her perfume and how soft her hair was. Then the softness of her lips, and the way the sweater felt under his fingertips, the soft textures. It didn't take him long to get off. He cleaned himself back up and grabbed his coat again, ready to grab a quick bite before work for the day.
Char did sleep a bit longer. When she woke again it was later than she meant to sleep. She knew it didn't really matter though. So, she took her time, showered and dressed for the day. Knowing her mom would be up by now and die with breakfast she decided to call home and check in on things.
" Hello?" Mrs. Adams answered.
" Hi Mom!"
" Charlotte! How's my baby?"
" Mom, I'm...having some ups and downs. I love my suite though. I'll take pictures and send them down to you as soon as I get them developed."
" Did you start work?"
" No, not yet. We're going to hold off one more week. So I have time to get through Mike's funeral." Her voice caught in her throat a little.
" Honey, how are you doing? "
" Mom, I'm kind of messed up over Mike."
" I'm sorry Honey. I did hear about the funeral arrangements. The funeral is on Friday morning at 11. Are you going to come out for it?"
" Yeah, I'll come home Thursday night so I don't have to be driving in the middle of the night."
" come early enough for dinner and I'll feed you."
" All right. I will."
" Have you made any friends yet?"
" A couple. I met my 2 bosses and a couple girls that I really like so far."
" And that gentleman you spoke of?"
" Johnny Castle? Yes, I've seen him."
" And?"
" Things are complicated. We've talked some all ready. We like each other I think, but it's too soon for too much of anything. I'm not over Mike yet. In time I know the sadness will go. It's just so tragic! My God! I didn't mean to fall for him. And now he's gone!" Char broke down as over again. She sat at the desk, weeping into the phone.
" Oh Honey! I wish I could be there!  I'm so sorry Baby! You'll have closure when you come home and lay him to rest. Do you want Dad and I too go with you?"
" Sure!" She sobbed." That would be nice!" Sniffing, looking for a tissue, she found a box close by. Dabbing at her eyes.
" I'll call you when I get on the road on Thursday. And when I stop for gas. "
" All right. It's strange not having you here. I'll make your favorite dish for dinner Thursday."
" All right. That sounds good. I'm going to go Momma. Love you."
" Love you too Sweetie."
Char hung up, tears still rolled down her face. She walked over to find Mike's Flannel shirt and buried her face in it. Trying to calm down she just hugged it to herself for awhile. 
" God! I miss you!" She said out loud.
"Char..." It was a whisper...
She stopped dead.
" Char, Baby..." It was Mike's voice.
" Mike?" She whispered, eyes closed." I hear you."
" I'll always watch over you. But Honey, please let yourself move on to good things."
" But, how does the pain stop? I feel so bad for not knowing and not telling you until it was too late!"
" In time Char, it'll get easier. "
She felt a weird tingling warmth on her shoulders. She gasped but didn't move.
" I wasn't supposed to come, but I told them it was important that I check on you. They have me or last chance Baby."
" Is that you touching me?"
" You know it Doll. Please move on. Don't hold onto the past all right? Promise me." He whispered.
Nodding, but barely able to speak." I'll do my best.I'll try. I love you!!!"
" I will always love you Doll. I gotta go now. My time's up kid."
Slowly the warmth left her shoulders and she clutched the shirt for another hour. She lost all appetite and never went downstairs for lunch. She didn't even think about food. She washed up and applied a cold wash cloth to her face to try and help with the puffy eyes. Grief sucked, her heart and soul ached. Char felt exhausted and changed back,into her pajamas. Deciding against leaving her room for anything. At some point in the afternoon she had fallen asleep on the couch. Curled up into a little ball. When she woke it was dark out. Fumbling in the dark she flicked on the desk light then she turned on the floor lamps. The room was too quiet, she went to her record collection and dug through the pile to find something to listen to. Grabbing a book from her crate of bonds she curled up on the couch and decided to read. She didn't care about the time she did know that she just wanted to sleep but knew it was a bad idea so early in the night.
At 7 PM her phone rang startling her from her fictional world. She set the book down and hurried to stop the record. Then answered the phone.
" Hello?" She asked.
" Char, it's Johnny."
" Oh, hey." She just sounded quite somber.
" Hey, how are you?" He noticed her quiet tone.
" Ummm, I'm...not good today."
" Can I come up?" He was worried.
" Sure."
" All right. I'll be right up." He hung up and went to Char's room, knocking when he got there.
Char let him in. She looked awful. Her face was splotchy and she just looked tired as Hell.
" Hey, what's wrong?" He asked softly.
" Can I tell you something? Or ask you something I guess?"
" Of course." He laid his coat on the back of the couch."let's sit." He gestured to the couch.
" Are you religious? Or anything?"
" Not overly, but I'm pretty open minded. Why do you ask?"
She ran her fingers through her hair, a nervous habit she had." I had a moment today, a weird moment. Hard to explain exactly. I finally got the details of Mike's funeral. And I kind of lost my mind for a bit. But, Johnny, I had a weird moment, I think he visited me."
" What happened? Maybe you fell asleep? Had a dream?"
" I was wide awake. But suddenly this warmth came over me and I heard his voice, it was just slightly more than a whisper. And it felt like his hands were on my shoulders."
" What did he say?"
" He told me not to dwell on things and that he wants me to move on. That he's watching over me. I had to promise to at least try."
Johnny let out a long breath." Wow. I'm not sure what to say."
" I feel kind of crazy. But it was kind of comforting. I don't know, it was weird."
" He must've really cared a lot. Maybe he knows there's somebody else that can care about you as he did."
Char nodded." Mhmmm. I'm so damaged. " she hung her head." I'm becoming delusional."
" Stop. You're not. You're just, going through stuff. You gotta cope somehow, and maybe he really did visit, or your mind is just trying to help you out."
" I don't know. Maybe I'm just cracking up." She sounded so tired.
" Come here. You're just having a hard day." He held open his arm for her to snuggle into him. Pulling her close he just held her. Reaching for a blanket that was on the back of the couch he covered then both up." I'm sorry Char. I'm sorry for what has been dealt to you, but I'm here all right?"
" I appreciate you. More than you could know." She looked into his eyes and kissed his cheek.
" I think I'll keep that surprise place for another time. Let's stay right here. It'll still be there."
" All right." She agreed. Settling in up against him.
" I like your taste in music." He said.
" Thanks." Char closed her eyes, and curled her legs up onto the couch. Her head and arm rested on Johnny's chest. He kept his arm around her and stroked her arm lightly once in awhile. They sat, just listening to the music for a long while.  It grew late, and Johnny knew he should go.
" Hey, you going to be all right if I go?" He asked quietly.
" Yeah, sure. I'll just crawl into bed. I'm so tired anyway. I don't know why you even want to sit here with me, I've become quite boring sometimes."
" Stop. I just like your company. We don't always have to talk. There's just something about being in your presence that I like."
" You calm me down. Thank you for that."
" Sure."
Char sat up, and Johnny released her. She got up and walked aimlessly around a moment.
" I don't even know what else to do other than crawl into bed."
" That's all right, get some sleep. Maybe meet me for breakfast before I go to work?" He stood and walked over to her.
" All  right. What time?" She wrapped her arms around herself.
" How's 8?"
" That's good.I'll meet you in the main hall?"
" No, space different. You renember that room with the fire place that we went to?"
" Yeah."
" Meet me there. The view out them windows is beautiful in the morning light. You'll love it."
" Ok. I can do that."
Johnny reached for her, " Take care all right?" He hugged her tight. She felt warmth pouring off him. She wrapped her arms around him too.
" Yeah."
" Char, look at me, please." He said in an almost whisper.
She tilted her head up so her eyes met his." It'll get better Honey. It really will."
" Yeah. I guess."
"You're kind of stubborn , huh?" He smirked.
" Maybe a little."
" I''ll be here any time you need me."
" Thank you." Her hands rested on his chest. But then she reached up and kissed his cheek. Nuzzling him with her cheek against his.
" Of course. There's just  something about you girl. I can't explain." He closed his eyes , feeling her soft cheek glide against his. They stood there a few moments more, Johnny tried to keep control, but her being that close to him was starting to drive him a little crazy. He bent down and kissed her softly. A slow lingering kiss. She leaned on him and kissed him right back. When they stopped they still stood there holding eachother.
" I haven't felt this close to somebody in a long while." Johnny said as his forehead rested on hers.
" I like this." Char said.
" I do too."
I was late, Johnny decided it was time to go." Sleep well.All right?"
" I'm exhausted, that shouldn't be a problem."
They broke apart and Johnny hurried into his coat. Looking back one more time before he left. He went home to his cabin, The taste of her still on his lips. He smiled to himself, but worried about her. A couple times he almost went back up to her room. But knew what would happen if he went back. Determined to give her time to heal he started off Just thinking of things they could do together that wouldn't push things too far but would give them time to get to know each other better. Stoking the fire before bed he then buried himself under the covers. Somehow, it just felt empty now. The night before, holding her close, really affected him. Johnny went to sleep with Char on his mind.