PARKER | Dark H.S. AU

xxxii. idk

Copyright © zylgnagnaba 2014

"So, it's settled then?"

"Yes, Charlie." The black man says, rolling his eyes to show feign annoyance.

"Oh my god! You don't know how much this means to me." Charlie gushes as she moves towards Steve. She even has to stand on her toes so she could hug the tall and buff man properly.

Seeing Charlie's struggle, Steve just bends down a little and reciprocates the hug from the cheerful blonde head.

"I'll have it brought to Eugene tomorrow." She starts again after she pulls away to look up at Steve. And then her sight gravitates to the spot where she parked Felicity earlier -- the fond look becomes one of little sorrow as the thought nags behind her head.

"It's okay, Charlie. I know Eugene will take care of her." His large hand lands on her small arm, hoping that Charlie finds the gesture somewhat comforting.

She only nods and pays the man a small smile while looking at her rubber shoes. The thought almost breaks her heart, though the feeling isn't nearly as painful when she lost Felicia days ago. But she knows she has to do this for the sake of her cherished friend...the one who has never been absent in her ups and downs since he appeared in her life more than two months ago.

That's the reason why it's easier for her to give up Felicity, which she had around for only a total of six days. She has to do this...and she picked just the right person for Felicity to make sure she will be handled with utter care. So that it'll also be easy for her to terrorize them if something happens to the baby pink scooter.

Eugene, Steve's eldest son and Charlie's classmate throughout their grade school years. It's a small world after all. And perhaps it's because of him that Charlie and his father became friends, aside from Charlie's bubbly personality.

A string of subjects about Obama's rule and latest gossips in Holliwood later, Charlie finally bids farewell to her old friend; promising she'd come by sooner the next time. Of course, she doesn't forget to insist him a free lunch.

Steve shakes her head as he holds on to the plastic box of baked mac in his hand, waving to Charlie as she scurries off to her scooter. Soon enough, the tall man returns to his post and hides the lunch under his podium.

-----

"...two, three, four." The blonde girl counts the remaining boxed food inside her basket that is placed on the seat of her scooter, muttering the words under her breath.

It has been a long day. She has driven from the hospital, to a salon, to a police headquarter and then lastly, to the pharmacy where she finds herself standing at the parking lot at the moment. She's been working hard as though she has an entire battalion to feed...but she ignores the sweat trickling down her temple, the harsh glare of sunlight that is now thankfully beginning to dip down the horizon, or even the task that's simply wearing her out after so many hours of driving and carrying the heavy basket around, persuading people to buy.

You'd think after she's deemed as the lead model of her agency, she'd stop her side job. She didn't. If anything, she became even more determined to sell her baked pastries, knowing that if people start to recognize her as the girl from one of her popular commercials, they'd buy or order more from her. She isn't disappointed.

Before, when she was the background Charlie, the nobody, it'd be already dark outside and she'd still have plenty of pastries to sell. So she just gave the remaining boxes to homeless people she sees by the sidewalk, rather than taking it home and wait for it to spoil.