Charbeck! Charbeck! I'm back with the second to last update of Keeper Week! I'm sorry I didn't update earlier, but it's kind of hard to write when your sister is slamming cabinets and the refrigerator door, demanding food. Thanks for the support, guys!
That's weird, thought Cupid. I've never hit the wrong person like that before.
I was walking home from Finn's house, after an emergency Keeper meeting. All around me, the world seemed to have gone still, with every living creature having scurried for cover as soon as the rain started. Alone, I would have loved to walk through the rain, skipping along and humming to myself. But with a backpack stuffed with important homework and books that I could not afford to ruin, it sucked all the pleasure out of it.
Sadly, I was forced onto the sidewalk with only an umbrella to keep me dry. This didn't turn out to be very useful due to the wind. So instead of being carefree and happy, I was frustrated, trying to keep it from flipping inside out. No singing in the rain for me.
As I continued walking, the gust grew stronger, shooting the raindrops into my eyes. This made it even harder to see and, as a result, I ended up bumping my hip into a trashcan. That was going to leave a bruise. I grunted, rubbing my side, which hurt from the collision.
It couldn't have gotten worse, or at least that's what I had thought. Until the wind yanked at the umbrella, surprising me enough so that I lost my grip and it flew out of my hand. With a groan, I ran back after it. When I bent down to pick it up from the floor, tucked under a park bench, I realized that I had now been torn by the sharp edge of the seat.
Of course, I thought to myself, begrudgingly. Way to put a damper on my day, huh? Or rather, giving the circumstances, I should say rain on my parade.
Now annoyed, and getting more drenched by the second, I stumbled along the sidewalk. Yet by then, I had only been slightly determined to venture on. How Florida received the nickname Sunshine State was beyond me.
I gave a small shiver, suddenly, as the water made the damp cloth stick to my skin. Slowly, the cold made my arms turn to gooseflesh and whatever was left of my good attitude drain away with the down pour.
"Hey, there, Charlie. Fond of getting soaked or are you just looking for a sappy chick flick moment?" I heard from the street beside me. Hoping it wasn't the person I thought it was, I dared to sneak a peek at my ridiculer.
"Not in the mood, Maybeck." I snapped, still marching along. In my frame of mind, he was probably just about the last person I would want to see at that moment.
"I'm just messing with you, Blondie. Hop in. I'll give you a lift."
I turned to him and shot him a sarcastic smile, "Thanks, but I think I'll turn down that offer. I'd rather walk through the rain than spend five minutes in a car with you."
"Ouch." He said simply, yet not without his ever-present smirk. "No need to get all offensive."
"Oh, you think that's offensive. Wait til you hear what else I have ready for you." I retorted.
He pulled over and stopped the car, before getting out, walking over to the passenger side and opening the door. "Come on. You'll get sick out here."
I hesitated, still thinking, before giving in and jumping into his car. When he closed the door behind me and came around, sitting back into the driver's seat, I couldn't help but notice the small grin of satisfaction that played across his face. I laughed to myself, shaking my head.
Chilled to the bone from the rain, I was so grateful when he turned on the heater that I almost kissed him. But then I remembered it was Maybeck and thought about how gross even the idea was.
"Oh, jeez. I'm sorry." I said, realizing that I was dripping all over his nice car seat. Turning around, even with the struggle because of the seatbelt, I used the sleeve of my shirt to wipe off the drops of water.
"Char. Charlie!" He laughed, "Don't worry about it. It's fine."
I sighed, "Sorry."
"Quit apologizing. Do you always have to be so high-strung?" He chuckled.
I laughed incredulously, "High-strung? Me? You're totally kidding me, right?"
"Sure," He said, raising an eyebrow as he made a left into the main street.
"Jerk."
I admit to exaggerating about how annoying he could be. Sometimes, he can be a nuisance, sure. But most of the time, it's just nice to have some playful banter with the big idiot.
We sat in perfect silence for a moment, before he told me I could turn on the radio if I wanted to. "Just anything but One Direction. Please."
I giggled, fiddling through the stations, "Sexist much? Why is it that just because I'm a girl, I have to be obsessed with One Direction?"
He arched an eyebrow, still watching the road. "Are you?"
I bit my lip, giving him my best 'caught-me' look, "Maybe a little." Finally, I settled on a station that was playing Kiss You Inside Out by Hedley.
Maybeck glanced at me for a second, then returned to driving. "What?" I asked, amused by the look he gave.
"Nothing, I just always took you as a more mainstream girl."
I rolled my eyes, having heard this speech from a lot of people already. "You mean the blonde cheerleader with the perky side-ponytail all the time, wearing her invisible tiara to school every day. Sorry to disappoint, but that's not me."
Not just surprised or taken aback, he seemed entirely baffled by what I had said. "Charlie, that's not what I meant."
"Really?" I asked, bitterness dripping over my voice, sopping the single-worded question.
"No, I'm serious. You're really cool and that's not my image of you at all."
At this point, my anger was almost completely replaced with curiosity. I've never straightforwardly gotten an honest opinion from one of the Keepers before. "Then what is your image of me, might I ask?"
A corner of his mouth curved up in a lopsided smirk. "I think you're smart, but not scary smart like Philby or Willa. You're athletic and that's pretty cool. You're sweet and sour, kind with a reasonable of sass." I laughed at this, hanging my head in mock-shame. "You're beautiful inside and out. I think you're one of the most incredible girls I've ever met."
I couldn't stop the smile that formed on my lips, the sudden fluttering of butterflies in my stomach making me giddy. Never had I heard anyone describe me in such a way. I shook my head, "You don't mean that."
"Wanna bet?" He argued with the faintest bit of significance in his voice.
Faint, I hid my grin, staring down at my hands. "Just make a left at this streetlight." I instructed him. "This is where I get off." I muttered, as he pulled over at the corner.
I stepped out of the car, with an abnormal reluctance to leave. "See you later." He said, though I could have sworn I hear something along the line of disappointment in his voice.
"Bye, thanks for the lift." I told him before closing the door behind me.
Up above, the grey clouds had yet to give way to the sun. Rain continued to pour down, plastering my blonde waves to my skin. The wind was still strong, pushing against me so that there was a slim struggle picking up my legs. Every tree, full, tall and green, seemed to shake, rustling their branches together in fright.
As I made my way down the sidewalk to my house, I felt half my mind urging me to look back at him, to give him a smile, to do something besides walk down the path that suddenly felt so long.
Behind me, the sound of a car door opening and being slammed closed shook me still. "Charlene!" He shouted from behind me. Turning around, I watched him jog up to my exact spot. He was getting wet, but I could tell he didn't care in the least.
For a split second, our eyes met, and we both stopped, trying to make sense of the moment. Then, before I knew what was happening, his lips were on mine, his hands cupping my face.
A shiver ran up my spine as I wrapped my arms around his neck, closing my eyes, and kissed him back. And this time, I knew it wasn't because I was cold.
His body was warm against mine, and the kiss was so passionate, so welcoming. My mind cleared completely. No thinking, just feeling.
Feeling myself grow light-headed. Feeling a chill as his hands moved down to my waist. Feeling empty, like I was just a shell and all that was inside me was my dancing heart. Feeling the world turn to white as it became just the two of us.
Somewhere far off, the sound of thunder brought me back to reality. We pulled apart, but the kiss lasted on my lips, the moment forever etched in my mind in vivid, bursting colors. It had been something so divine, so beautiful. And I knew it wasn't over.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed lightning in the distance and knew that someone up in the sky had been waiting forever for this moment. And that was what I felt. Electricity.
"Looks like I got my sappy chick flick moment after all." I stated, with an iridescent smile gracing my face.
He just grinned back, without a word. There were two short seconds where he took my hand in his, before he walked back to his car, got in, and drove away. But there was something in his manner, in the added grace in his step, that told me that he felt the exact same thing.
Even as the dark clouds still surrounded me, I knew the sun hidden behind them was shining. Countering the silence, the heavy drops of rain crashed against the pavement in a harmony so off, it just seemed so perfect. I giggled to myself, twirling in the puddles of water on the ground as my heart elated.
There was something there…
"May I have this dance?" Asked the boy of my dreams, standing before me with his right hand extended. Without a word and only a smile, I took his hand and he led me out onto the dance floor.
The lavender skirt of my dress flowed down gently and swayed with my stride, complimenting the laced ivory bodice flawlessly. Even then, after having been together for over a year, he had my heart flutter.
As the slow song continued, I laid my head on his shoulder –thankfully being able to reach in my heels- and let the music take me back to the first time we kissed, to that magical moment.
To the side, I noticed the couples several months our senior watching us. Amanda held Finn's hand, and when she caught my eye, I saw her flash me a smile and give his hand a small squeeze. Meanwhile, he stared at us with a smirk of approval. Willa was beaming, Philby's arm wrapped around her waist, as he grinned at us as well. Jess, who had found her own partner for the night, gave us what resembled a joyful laugh.
Even though it was just a Disney celebration, something about the night felt so special. Maybe it was just having him with me, pretending there was nothing in the world that could bother us. The music was so soft and melodious, I felt like a princess in my own fairytale.
"Char," He started, bringing me out of my thoughts. "Do you ever feel like we were a mistake?"
I tense when he says this, afraid of what he would say next. To my surprise, he holds me closer and dares his lips to brush against my cheek. It means I shouldn't be scared, it means it was only a question.
"If we were, we're the most perfect mistake ever made." I say in a whisper.
Now, I stare upward, counting the stars that illuminated the endless sky and knew that someone up in the sky had been waiting forever for this moment.
Hope y'all liked it! It was a mix of them being sort of the sassy and rude to each other and them being romantic cuz that's how I picture them as a couple. The part at the beginning of the story in italics is the prompt I found online that inspired the story. PLEASE REVIEW and REQUEST!
