✦ ✧ ✩ Curtain Call ✦ ✧ ✩ - Charlie Gillespie

Chapter 42

[A week later - Eri's POV]

"Hey mom" I said letting her grab me as I drop my bags on the floor "I'm so happy to see you"

"Are you now?" She replied, looking to the side and putting her hands on her hips.

"Of course I am mom, please let's not fight" We both tried to hide the fact that we were heartbroken because that's just how we did things in our family.

She grabbed my bags with a sigh and led me to her car that was parked outside the airports' door.

"Ahhh I missed my baby" I said, stroking the wheel taking a big breath of the fresh air surrounding me.

"She is my baby now" She said, looking at me from the passengers seat.

"Oh come on mom, she will always be mine" I said wiggling my eyebrows turning to her and then put the stereo on to find that my old CD with mostly country Taylor Swift still was inside "Yes honey, I'm back". 

While 'Should've said no' played in the background I started the car and my mom opened her eyes widely as I started to speed. We got to my old house in 20 minutes.

"You can't do THAT in the big city" I said, putting my bags out of the trunk.

"Or anywhere for that matter" my mom replied, exaggeratedly stomping her feet as if she was trying to feel the ground under her feet again.

"Eri" she said turning serious "I don't think you're prepared to see him. It's something else."

"It's ok mom. I had a week. I pictured every scenario"

"No, I don't think you pictured this one" She said, again taking my bags out of my hands and smiling a little, "Come in. He'll be here in 10 minutes."

"What do you mean?" I asked, as a million questions popped in my head "Isn't he supposed to be-?"

My mom just kept walking on the little tire marks on the dirt that our car left towards the door of my house. My home looked like out of an old southern movie, it was stuck in time, and so was my family. It was a big country house that could fit all of them inside it, and oftentimes it did. My mom has two sisters and my dad 3 brothers, and with that came a lot of cousins and nieces. I was an only child, but I was always surrounded by people.

My dad's the oldest of his family and everyone looked up to him once his father died, he was like the leader of our little clan.

She opened the door, and I was greeted by the most delicious smell coming from the stove and heard little paws clicking while coming down the stairs.

"Hey handsooome" I said, crouching down to pet the little dog that jumped on me in my best baby voice "Where did he come from?" I asked, finally turning to my mom that looked down at me again with her hands on her hips.

"Marley popped this one out last year and your dad insisted on keeping it"

"What is she called?"

"Marley." my mother sentenced rolling her eyes again "He wouldn't bother in remembering another name" she continued, making her way to the kitchen. I found myself smiling at the image of him saying that.

"Figures" I replied "So mom, what did you mean by...?"

"You'll see" she replied, stirring a big pot "Now go wander around, I don't want you bothering us while we cook. Make yourself useful or I don't know, go look at the animals"

I rolled my eyes at her and made my way out of the house again. The wind blew again in my face and for a moment I couldn't remember why I left all of this behind at the tender age of 17.

It's not like we had a farm or did that for a living, my mom just liked to have chickens around because her family was, and then we were gifted a pig by one of my uncles that just couldn't take care of it when her 5th was born. So those and two horses we took care of for were "our animals". I was yet to meet the pig and the little girl in me was stoked.

I was making my way to the where the chickens and the pig where when I heard my dad's truck pull up at my house door. In the distance the two horses were being mounted by two men I couldn't recognize because the sun hit directly on my eyes.

[Charlie's POV]

I woke up the morning happier than ever. I was really excited to take Eri on that hike.

"Good morning Owen" I said handing him a cup of coffee.

"Hey don't you look happy"

"I am. I'm really excited about today"

"What's today?"

"The hike man. I mean, I just want to be alone with Eri again."

"Oh wow, should we be offended?"

"No I'm sorry" I replied, smiling at him that was playfully pouting "Hanging with you guys and around set it's cool and all, but we didn't have anytime to be alone this week after that movie night"

"I'm really happy for you guys" He said, smiling and patting my arm.

"I'm really happy too. We're doing amazing. I really think she could be"

"The one?" He said, laughing at me. I just rolled my eyes at him and chuckled a little. He was not entirely wrong.

 I rapidly grabbed my things and made my way to the door. "Ok, I'll go pick her up"

I drove to the girl's apartment where I was received by a very groggy Maeve that opened her eyes widely when she saw me standing in the door, looked down at her feet and back up at me again.

"Charlie, come in" She said in a blue tone.

"Is everything ok?" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows.

"Yeah yeah but" She said and stopped for a second "I really can't believe I'm always in this situation goddammit. Eri's not here Charlie, she went back home."

"Home as in she is back in New York?" I said, taking my phone out to text her.

"No no, home as in nowhere to be found, no reception, call me on the landline, I have pigs and chickens in my backyard home"

"What are you talking about?" I asked, standing and making my way to the balcony to cool down.

"She went back to her family. Her plane left last night"

"Why wouldn't she tell me?" I said, grabbing on to the balcony's railing.

"I honestly don't know Charlie. I'm sorry" She replied, putting her hand on my shoulder and then letting out a hard sigh "I'm just going to switch things up and tell you I guess." I turned to her with furrowed eyebrows, and she closed her eyes still looking up front, after taking in a big breath she opened her mouth. I could tell she was heavyhearted.

"Her dad is really sick, and they don't think he'll make it through past this winter. She asked Kenny to work at home, and she'll come back every two weeks"