not yet//a chardre story

the car -- leo

the dim streets of outer Warsaw were quiet. our show had gone really well; the sold-out crowd was fun to perform for and everyone had screamed their hearts out. the afterparty was fun too, but around 1:30 AM, when Charlie had enough beer for three people and i was trying immensely to keep my eyes open, it was time to go. so with half of Charlie's drunk, stumbling weight in my arms and the car out front ready to take us back to our little 'rent-a-cottage', we left our parents and siblings to their partying and music. our driver waited for us out front in the seven-seater car my parents had rented for the Poland tour, and as he saw us walking (and tripping) towards the car, he started to wave. he'd been helping us out with rides to and from shows for a while, but i couldn't remember his name for the life of me that night. i could already see all the speakers and microphones from the stage piled into shotgun and the middle row, which meant Charlie and i would have to take the back like always, which we didn't mind. our driver greeted us with a smile and unlocked the car for us. as i helped Charlie into the very back row, and vaulted myself across his lap into the other seat, the engine revved and the car backed out onto the paved road. my eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness of the backseat, but even the bleariness of my eyes could see the GPS had an estimate of 49 minutes. i knew that picking a house this far out from any of our shows wouldn't be smart, but we'd be in Poland for two more weeks and we didn't want any fans figuring out where we were staying. the car backed out and started down the road. the auditorium was on the edge of downtown Warsaw, so once you pulled out of the lot, the city seemed barren, especially at 1:30 AM. i opened my phone and yawned. immediately, two hours' worth of notifications came through. i hated turning my phone off for shows, because it meant i'd have to sort through all my texts and tweets later, in the early hours of the morning, but i'd rather have done that than have it go off during a song. i saw Charlie's phone also light up, but when i looked over, his eyelids drooped and his neck relaxed. the backseat was small; his head immediately touched onto my shoulder and i felt his weight relax onto me. i leaned my head against his as my phone's light shut off and my eyes closed too. we must've stayed like that for a while, since the next time i looked at the GPS, it read 24 minutes. by the time i sat up, Charlie was still asleep, and i had an idea. i hated to admit it, but i was insanely in love with him. i knew he was straight (or, well, i knew he incessantly claimed so) so i obviously had no shot, but the way his watch settled on his wrist, the sparkly blue shade of his eyes, and the way he sang, as if his vocal chords were coated in caramel, they were just perfect. so as he slept, i quietly slipped my hand into his, making it look like he'd grabbed mine as a reflex. about five minutes later, 19 minutes from the house, i felt him stir. he sat up, his hand still clutching at mine. he rubbed his eyes and asked where we were. i explained the situation; he gave me a look, glanced at our hands, and looked at me again. i didn't say anything, and sat back to look out the window. i could see him do the same with my peripheral vision, but he didn't do anything in terms of moving our hands. that is, until two seconds later, when i felt our fingers lace together as he gently forced mine apart to intertwine with his. i smiled to myself; it felt like i was wanted by the guy i loved, which was special. i could tell the nap had sobered Charlie up a little bit; he sat upright and as i watched him text his mom, he texted with perfect grammar, like always. i could tell it was difficult for him to type with one hand, though, since he still had his hand clasped around mine. i felt happy; he made me feel so safe and warm inside. he sent another text to his mom, and set his phone down in his lap. it was quiet at that point, until i felt him squeeze my hand once. i ignored it at first, but turned to him when i felt it again, and harder. his icy eyes stared into my dull brown ones. and before i knew what was happening, i felt his cold fingers on my chin. he pulled me closer to him, and one of his fingers pulled my bottom lip down and open. i felt euphoric chills shoot through my body as his soft lips made contact with mine; it was like two puzzle pieces fit together after an eternity of not being matched in their box. we made out in perfect sync; i kissed his top lip while he was at my bottom. i lost track of time by then; it was like i was floating through space. time passed, and i was startled but pleased when i felt him trying to bring his tongue in. i let him; it made me shudder and shiver in what could only be described as pure, unfiltered joy. we went for what seemed like hours, but was probably not very long, because we pulled up to the house and felt the car turn off. we gently pulled away, untangled our fingers, and grabbed all our stuff (phones, jackets, etc) and got out of the car. we wished our driver a good night, thanked him for the ride, and went inside. i had the key, so i unlocked the top lock and then the bottom. i heard the car's tires crunch in the loose gravel of the driveway, eventually turning around and heading back the way we came. i opened the door to a breeze of an air conditioned house, and felt my entire body seize up with joy when i looked at Charlie with a guilty smile as we walked in.