"Charlie, would you like a cupcake?" Elsa, a girl from the cliffhangers asked Peter's 19 year old daughter, Charlie
"Yes please Elsa! Thanks! Did you make them yourself?" Charlie asked as while she took a bright orange iced vanilla cupcake with sparkly silver balls on top. "I'm off home now girls.
Sophie's here tonight. Elsa you should try one of your cupcakes!" Charlie gingerly started off some icing and warmly smiled at Elsa.
"Charlie… Cupcakes are one of my biggest fear foods!"
"I know hun… one of mine too. I especially hated making them because I always used to binge."
Elsa smiled a little before hugging Charlie. After she gingerly selected a blue and pink iced vanilla cupcake with shiny silver balls. "You can do this Else." Charlie said encouragingly. Meanwhile Elsa cautiously ate the buttercream before unwrapping the cake, eating is slowly, tearing a small bit off at a time.
"Well done Else! I'm so proud of you!" Charlie congratulated Elsa for her achievement, also proud of her own. After hugging Elsa she said a last goodbye
to the cliffhanger girls she headed back home where her Peter, Sophie and Matthew live.
Flopping on the couch the second Charlie arrived home, Matthew looked worried. "Babes? You alright?" He asked and sat with her gently massaging her back."
Charlie sighed "I guess. I'm not sure…"
Matthew hugged her and then continued massaging her back. "What would you like for tea?"
"uh... Spag bol... I guess"
"Well then my beautiful angel, homemade spag bol will be coming right up." Matthew smirked kissing Charlie on the cheek before heading into the kitchen to cook their evening meal.
After they had eaten Matthew offered to clear up and Charlie went back into the living room to speak to her father, Peter. "Hey Charl!" Peter smiled at her while tucking into the left over spag bol. "Matthew sure can cook!"
"Yeah he can..." Charlie sighed wishing she could explain everything to her dad. "Elsa ate a cupcake today"
"You're really helping her... You know that Charl. I'm proud of you."
"Uh.. I guess... Thanks dad."
"Are you ok?"
"Yeah... fine..."
"You're not Charl... I can see it"
"Sorry dad... I'm just struggling..."
"Care to explain?"
"No... you wouldn't understand... I'll talk to Soph tomorrow..."
"Ok Charl. Just to give you the heads up we have a new admit tomorrow. Josh Mitchell, He'll be in the cliffhangers, after seeing what you've done for Elsa and what Sophie did for you and Juliette I feel he would benefit greatly from being in your group."
-"So Josh, am I going to find anything?" Sophie asked while searching Josh for any prohibited substances.
"Oh.. uh no. I don't use." Josh replied confidently although he was slightly anxious the laxatives could be found and confiscated.
"Laxatives."she sighed while lifting them out of a secret compartment in his bag. "And what are these for?"
"YOU CAN'T HAVE THEM!" Josh screamed and stormed out of Sophies office.
In the meantime Charlie was taking her lunch break when she saw someone she didn't recognise storm out the building where sophie and peter's offices were situated. She came over to him and calmed him down before speaking to him for a bit about her and sophie's experiences with eating disorders. She showed him they were there to help. After talking to him she took him up to receive his physical by the doctor.
After sorting out the new admit Charlie had some time on her hands, entering Sophies office she sighed. "Soph can we talk?"
"Sure Charl. sit down." Sophie replied and smiled gently before taking a sip of her water.
"I'm really struggling right now... with recovery..."
"In what way?"
"Just... the eating disorder keeps on screaming at me. I found it so hard eating Matthews spag bol last night. It was screaming at me so much."
"I'm glad you told me. I've been wondering whether to intervene for a while actually. Would you mind if I took you to the doctor to get weighed again."
"Ugh fine..."
"I won't if you don't want me to."
"No it's fine.."
Sophie and Charlie both said their goodbyes to the cliffhangers at around 6pm as another councillor was on duty for the night. Before leaving Charlie hugged Elsa tight and told her quietly about her own struggles. Elsa smiled and softly whispered the words stay strong before returning the hug.
At the doctor Charlie was sitting nervously waiting to be called in. Tapping her feet she was worried. She knew she'd lost a bit of weight and she didn't want to have to go through all that gaining fiasco again. Soon her name was called and flashed up on the screen. She squeezed Sophies hand nervously and hugged her then made her way to the doctors room. The doctor greeted her and told her to sit down. Before weighing Charlie they talked a bit about her current diet and Charlie tried to be truthful but at some times said she was eating more than what she really was.
"49kg" The doctor finally said. You've lost quite a bit. Back in the anorexic weight range. Where would you like to go from here? Would you like to see a dietitian or do you think where your still quite involved in Mt Horizon you will be able to get yourself back up?
"I'll pick myself back... Sophie was just a bit concerned about my weight after I told her I'd been struggling."
"Ok well I'll see you in two weeks for another weigh in and we'll see where it goes from there."
Charlie agreed and left the doctor. While in the car home she talked to Sophie some more so she could have a bit of guidance from someone who had been through it and come out the other side.
After arriving back to Peter's home all Charlie wanted to do was sleep. She felt so exhausted. Eating disorders…. It really had exhausted her this time. Funnily enough she had never noticed it before she started to recover. Maybe that could be because of all the caffeine she was ingesting.
"How was the doctor?" Matthew asked laying next to her and cuddling her after returning from a strenuous day at the crag.
"Oh Sophie told you then?" She replied and snuggled into him feeling cold. Matthews warmth was one of the most comforting things in the world. Like a soft blanket. Keeping her safe and warm.
"I'm back into the anorexic weight zone…" she finally said before snuggling up into him some more.
"That doesn't sound at all good baby girl."
"I know… but I've been feeling so sick lately. It's been making it so much harder to eat. Like if I feel sick then I'm clearly eating too much although the truth of the matter is I'm barely eating at all."
Matthew cuddled her once more. Tight, Holding her close for a couple of minutes before whispering in her ear and going to have a shower.
"How is she?" Sophie asked after Matthew had finished his shower and was now downstairs preparing a very healthy salmon and quinoa dish for everyone.
"Tired. Utterly exhausted by the seems of things."
"Probably the weight loss. I know I was always exhausted at a low weight and for a while after getting up to a healthy weight. It really does damage your body. I didn't even get as low as Charlie…"
Matthew sighed and continued preparing the meal. He worried about Charlie. He had experienced just how deadly eating disorders were twice in his life. Once when his aunt died of Bulimia and another when his sister died of EDNOS. Both were at perfectly healthy weights when they died and Charlie… Well she wasn't. It was a huge cause for concern. The one he loved. He was meant to be with forever could just drop dead at any moment.
"Matt she'll be ok." Sophie could see his worry and tried to reassure him as best she could.