A Thousand Spotlights

303 Words

I wish I was in love

Charlotte snorted in response and frowned, "Well that's just rude. I wasn't prissy, I just had an attitude problem. Which I still do when you're being an ass." She pressed her lips together to keep from smiling too much. Something about him always made her want to smile and it drove her crazy because he was constantly picking on her. So badly she wanted to move closer to him and curl into his side as they talked, but she remained sitting in the same spot, firmly.

The fact that he had several tattoos and scars on his body made her curious as to what they all looked like. Obviously she didn't expect him to strip right then and there, but it had definitely interested her to know. She rolled her eyes, "Of course you'd have drunken tattoos." Charlotte made a point not to mention the scars because she didn't like thinking about him getting shot or stabbed. She hardly liked to think about him bleeding from his head when he'd saved her.

She sucked in her lower lip and nodded, she was running out too, but she also wasn't quite ready to go back to her room. Charlotte turned to look at him as he sat back down, "Do you feel like you know me better now? Has to help with the job, right?" Because if he knew her then he could consider the way that she thought and he'd know her reactions a little better. He was still relatively a mystery to her, but she couldn't press for serious topics and she wasn't sure she wanted to see him talk about anything that would be hard for him.

But I don't wanna cause any pain

220 Words

I wish I was in love

Charlotte pursed her lips and tapped her finger to the lower one, pretending to think about what her words meant. "I'm thinking it means that you're an ass," She flashed him a wide, innocent grin and laughed. She shook her head and chewed on her lower lip. He made it so easy to like him.

In response to her question, she wondered what he meant by guessing. She'd given him some sort of information about her, what was there left to know? She felt his eyes on her and she looked down to avoid the next response he gave. He was right, she wanted to ask many many more questions. But there was one hanging between them and the main reason why she was even there. She wanted to ask him if she could stay with him in his room, but it wasn't fair of her to ask.

"I don't want to go back to my room," Charlotte said quietly, her fingers fidgeting with each other and shaking slightly. She couldn't even think about sleeping in her room by herself, she just wanted to be comfortable and feel safe. The safest she felt was with him.

But I don't wanna cause any pain

327 Words

I wish I was in love

The simplicity of his answer was a little jarring. He had been drinking, yes, but she still didn't think that it would deter him from making the 'logical' choice and telling her to suck it up. Her eyes followed him again, the way she found that they did more often than she'd like. She was trying so hard to know him just from the way he held himself and the way his mannerisms stemmed from his reaction to things. He didn't seem put off by the idea, nor did he seem to even care that she'd brought it up. Of course he would know that she wanted to stay with him, she wasn't very subtle and she was on his bed already.

He swayed and her eyebrows pulled together in concern, she hadn't seen him drink before, but he'd carried her to this room when she was drunk. Her whole body was vibrating, like it was willing her to get up and go over to him, but she knew that it wasn't her place. They were hardly even friends, she couldn't worry about him that way. And yet, sitting in his bed, being given the answer that she'd hoped for, she still wanted something more. Admitting it out loud wouldn't happen, but she wanted so badly for him to just lay with her until she fell asleep, stroking her hair or her cheek. She just wanted him close.

"You don't have to go to the window, I can...I can move. Or leave..." The more she thought on it, the more she knew that she really should leave. "I really shouldn't have come here to begin with, I don't want to get you in any trouble." But the nightmare was starting to resurface in her mind and she was so reluctant to move.

But I don't wanna cause any pain

243 Words

I wish I was in love

She didn't really believe that she wasn't going to get him into trouble. She knew that he was just trying to make her feel better and she appreciated it, but it still made her wonder if it was a good idea. He was a far better person than she'd given him credit for in the beginning. Obviously she hadn't known him very well then, but he'd always just been trying to look out for her, even if it meant for him to be a little distant. Charlotte was glad that he wasn't as distant anymore in the way he spoke to her.

Charlotte scooted back on the bed, laying her head on the pillows and curling up on her side to look at him. Her teeth sank into her lip and she could feel tears prickling at his offer for her to come to his room whenever the nightmares came up. It was really kind of sad that he treated her better than her own family could. Her fingers curled into the pillow case and she nodded, "Okay. If you're sure."

She was already sinking into the bed, her body relaxing and she wondered what it was about being around him that made her feel so at ease. "Can...would you...come sit with me? Until I fall asleep?"

But I don't wanna cause any pain

262 Words

I wish I was in love

Charlotte was surprised that he did what she asked without a word or hesitation. She decided it was better for her not to comment on that though especially because she didn't want him to move away. She kept the distance that was there prominent, but she took comfort in the fact that she could feel the warmth from him even between the distance. Really, she just wanted to curl up closer to him and place his hand in her hair so that she could fall asleep faster, but that was taking it much too far. They were just friends and even then, she'd hardly be able to call them that.

Her eyes closed and she breathed in his familiar scent that was now almost overwhelming from both him and his pillows. Her lips quirked at the sides and she nodded, although she knew he wouldn't be able to see her, "Perfect. Thanks." She wanted to elaborate and thank him again for everything he was doing for her, but it was a heavy topic and he'd already given her so much. Char didn't think it was fair of her to ask for anything else from him.

Out of nowhere she laughed and buried her face in his pillow for a moment to stifle it, "If I snore or drool, there will be no picking on me about it ever, okay?" She could at least ask him that much, right?

But I don't wanna cause any pain

146 Words

I wish I was in love

The pat on her head made her smile wider and she was thankful for the dark, "Of course you won't. Rude," She grumbled and laughed again, her eyes remaining closed. Part of her wished that he could just talk to her all night because she was starting to appreciate the sound of his voice.

When he spoke again, she nodded and was already half asleep. Charlotte was afraid of waking up the next morning and realizing that this was also just another dream, but she was glad that she could live it for a little while. She began drifting off and by the time she was asleep, she'd moved closer to him, as if drawn in by the warmth of his body.

But I don't wanna cause any pain

277 Words

I wish I was in love

Charlotte was awake before she actually wanted to open her eyes. She'd slept so well the second time around that she was reluctant to move and disrupt the comfort she felt. Breathing in, she could smell that she wasn't in her room which was a relief because it meant that Hunter had let her stay like she thought. And while she was relieved that she was in his bed, surrounded by his smell, she was a little disappointed to find that he wasn't there. She could tell because it wasn't nearly as warm. Burying her face in the blankets, she let out a soft sigh and decided it was probably time to get up.

Her initial reaction to waking up and sitting up was to pull her hair to the side and wrap it in a ponytail. She smoothed it down and rubbed the sleep from her eyes before she heard mumbling in the bathroom. When she looked over in the direction, she saw him with his head in his hands and he didn't seem to look very good. Charlotte slung her legs over the side and smoothed her clothes down before getting up and walking quietly towards the bathroom. She leaned against the doorframe, her eyebrows pulled together in concern.

More than anything, she wanted to kneel down in front of him and run her fingers through his hair. She wanted to take care of him if he wasn't feeling well, but she remained frozen at the doorway instead. "Are you okay?"

But I don't wanna cause any pain