A Thousand Spotlights

291 Words

I wish I was in love

At Hunter's protests, she erupted into giggles. Her hand tightened around his and she ran her thumb against the side of his hand. She reveled in the comfort of it for just a moment longer before she dropped it.

When he held the door open for her, she gave him a grin and jabbed him in the side with her elbow before she walked in. Her eyes traveled around the room as people were packing up the tables and clearing the linens and dishes. The cake was cut and there were a couple of pieces still plated on the table. One of the wait staff noticed her looking at it and his eyes widened, "I'm sorry, Miss Spencer, we're working on getting the cake situated and in the kitchen."

She held her hand up, "Oh no, it's okay. You can take it, I'm just claiming the last few pieces. If anyone in the kitchen wants a slice, you all can feel free to help yourselves. Would you mind clearing out the room? I just...I need a little time before you finish up." Charlotte grinned and the man smiled back, giving her a quick nod before he grabbed the rest of the cake and made his way into the kitchen with it. The rest of the staff followed suit and her posture relaxed. She continued to look around at the large space in front of her, still half-decorated with the music still filling the room. Charlotte twirled in the open space and turned back towards Hunter, "See, this music isn't so bad. It's much better than T-Swift."

But I don't wanna cause any pain

230 Words

I wish I was in love

Charlotte watched him curiously as his eyes darted around the room. She knew that he still had a job to do, even if he wasn't being quite as uptight as he'd been when they first met. After a moment, she also realized that there were still people he worked with lingering around. They all scattered in different directions around the same time that the wait staff emptied from the room and she breathed it in. It had been nice outside, sitting in the gardens with Hunter, but she felt more comfortable in her house where she didn't feel the cold chill in her bones.

When her eyes landed back on him, she narrowed her eyes back at him before rolling them, "Without a doubt. It's not as obnoxious and sickeningly poppy. Not really my style." She gave a firm nod and continued swaying to the tunes that surrounded them. Her eyes remained on his and she took a few steps closer to him as well. It was awful to admit, but she felt like she was being pulled towards him. As if they were magnetic. Charlotte didn't quite feel right so far away from him anymore. "Let me guess, you're more of a metal head, right?"

But I don't wanna cause any pain

210 Words

I wish I was in love

His response to her assumption made her grin wider before it fell into a grimace, "Well shoot, now I can't give you too hard of a time for that. The Beatles are timeless." Even if they were older and classic, she figured she would cut him some slack this time around.

Charlotte paused before she got to close and she wrapped her arms around her torso. Her eyes moved from his around the room and she tilted her head to the side, "It's kind of sad isn't it? Everything looks perfect when it starts out, only to be trashed and torn down hours later in much less time." She'd always hated the end of parties before her parents' death. She came down after a sort of happy high and it turned into a crash after the festivities were over.

She was beginning to feel that way with her friendship with Hunter. When they had moments like this, she felt better, like she was almost whole again. And then something happened where they had to pull back and she crashed into that same solemn, isolated mind frame.

But I don't wanna cause any pain

254 Words

I wish I was in love

The way they both hovered along this invisible line that wasn't allowed to be crossed was stressful. She wanted to get closer, but couldn't risk having him pull away. It would make sense, she would understand, but it wouldn't take the sting out of the rejection. There was enough rejection coming from her older brother, she couldn't stomach it from him too. It was just safer to maintain on the opposite end of the invisible line.

Charlotte had her own struggles nagging her mind, from the parallels she drew from her words to her relationship with her brother to the magnetic pull she felt towards Hunter. She had to find something to talk about as some kind of distraction. His response was harder to hear because she agreed. She wondered why William had been such a perfect brother to her before if one tragic event could completely destroy them. Instead of voicing her own thoughts, she just nodded and bit down on her lip.

The song shifted to one of her favorites and she closed her eyes, a smile creeping across her lips, "This is me and Will's song. He'd have it played at every birthday and we'd dance in the middle of the floor with everyone surrounding us." Charlotte missed the way things had been before and she found herself wondering what Hunter would have thought of her then.

But I don't wanna cause any pain

182 Words

I wish I was in love

Charlotte began fidgeting as he spoke to the rest of his security team. She didn't quite know what else to do, but she focused on the music and it put her at ease while she waited.

To be honest, she hadn't expected his offer, to step in for Will was sort of huge and it also terrified her a little. He was offering to cross the invisible line which was honestly all she wanted, but she had to hesitate before she could say yes. Her lips pressed together and she looked at him to gauge whether he was serious. Instead of making it as big as it was, she decided it was best to play it off. "Are you sure you can stomach dancing to my music?"

Charlotte grinned at him and took his hand, the other resting on his shoulder, "There will be no judgment about how good I am at dancing, okay? I had to learn."

But I don't wanna cause any pain

218 Words

I wish I was in love

Her eyes narrowed at him and she rolled them dramatically when he agreed. Her heart started beating rapidly against her chest when he put his hand on the small of her back, bringing them closer than she'd have ever thought they'd get. The hug was one thing, brief and not quite as intimate as this was. The song wasn't long, by any means, but it was the longest that she'd be so close to him.

The joke he made about his dancing in the military made her snort and she frowned, "If that's the case, I'm entirely disappointed that you turned into such a bore by the time we met." Charlotte gave him a wide, innocent smile and squeezed his shoulder. She was starting to love his sense of humor, she realized. That he was bantering with her, it was all she'd hoped for but never expected to happen.

She was okay with the swaying, it was easy and didn't take much thought. Her nerves already had her on edge, she was pretty sure if they were actually dancing she'd have stepped on him several times. Her whole body felt like it was vibrating.

But I don't wanna cause any pain