AN: I meant to post this yesterday but I worked a 12 hour shift, I was exhausted. So here it is today! Enjoy!
Charlie covers her ears when three year old Danny lets out an ear piercing scream. She's in the kitchen with her dad working on homework while he cooks, Danny is in the living room with their mom. Ben looks towards the living room as they hear Rachel trying to soothe him but it's not working. Ben is just about to go check on them when Rachel calls out for him. Charlie follows her dad wordlessly.
"It's gone Ben, his soulmark is gone!" Rachel is holding Danny, his shirt discarded on the couch as she runs her hand over his back. Ben steps closer and upon seeing his son's back, clear of the metallic green scrawl that read Connor, he sucks in a breath. With a shaky hand Ben runs his fingers down Danny's back where the name had been just minutes ago.
Charlie looks down at her own arm, tracing the familiar silver Sebastian that's been a part of her since the day she was born. She doesn't know exactly what it means that Danny's soulmark is gone but she has a pretty good guess. The need to talk to Bass, or better yet see Bass hits her hard as she watches her parents try to comfort Danny.
"Mom? Dad?" Both her parents turn to her, looking lost in a way she's never seen them before. Not even when Bass' family died two years prior.
"Charlie go finish your homework. We'll explain everything to you in a while." For the next two hours Ben and Rachel take turns trying to soothe Danny until he eventually exhausts himself and falls into a fitful sleep.
Then they sit Charlie down and confirm what she already guessed, Danny's soulmate has died. That's the only way a soulmark disappears. Charlie doesn't cry, she quietly asks to call Bass, needing to at least speak to him. Rachel makes the excuse that she left her phone upstairs and calls Bass once she's out of earshot.
"Hey Rach."
"Danny's soulmate died, his mark is gone. Charlie is quietly freaking out and needs to speak to you. We'll call you back in a few minutes." She hangs up before he can say anything but she gave him his warning. A few minutes later Charlie has the phone pressed to her ear as she leaves her parents in kitchen, seeking privacy in living room.
"Charlotte."
"Sebastian, Danny's soulmark is gone."
"Oh sweetheart, I'm sorry. What can I do?"
"I just needed to know that you're not gone."
"I'm not going anywhere Charlotte, except to see you. I'll be there in fifteen minutes. Want me to bring anything?"
"Just you, and strawberry ice cream for Danny."
"Strawberry for Danny and chocolate mint cookie for you."
"I don't need ice cream, just you."
Bass choses to ignore that, she's getting ice cream. "See you fifteen." He's already in his car and pulling out of the driveway when he ends the call. He stops at the corner store closest to their house to grab the ice cream and a few minutes later he's parking in front of the house. He doesn't make it up the porch stairs before Charlie opens the door and throws her arms around his waist. She's not crying but her whole body is shaking as she clings to him. Bass drops the bag of ice cream in favor of lifting Charlie into his arms. As soon as she has her face buried in his shoulder the tears start to fall.
"Shh, I'm here. I've got you." Bass tries to calm her but she just keeps crying, every few minutes she tries to talk but soon dissolves back in wordless crying. He sits on the porch steps for nearly an hour until she's able to calm down and talk to him.
"Danny wouldn't stop crying, even after he fell asleep he just kept sniffling and whining."
"I'm so sorry Danny has to go through this, and I'm sorry it scared you. I'm right here though, and I'm not going anywhere."
"Promise you won't ever leave me?"
Bass is struck with impulse to promise her just that but he doesn't ever want to lie to Charlie. "Charlotte I'm going to be with you for as long as I can but everyone dies, even me. I can promise to never stop loving you, and to do everything that I can to stay with you as long as possible."
"But I don't ever want to feel the way Danny does now."
"I wish I could guarantee you would never feel that kind of pain in your life, but that's not how life works."
"Can we change the way life works?" Bass feels his heart break and pulls Charlie tighter against his chest, his only goal to offer her whatever comfort he can. "I'm scared that you're going to leave and never come back to me."
"I will always come back to you." They sit in silence for a while longer before they go inside, Bass snagging the bag of melted ice cream on his way in. They don't talk about Danny or anything else they did outside, they just spend the evening together. When its beginning to darken outside Bass pulls Ben aside.
"She's still a little scared and clingy, I was thinking maybe she could spend the night at my place. I already texted Miles and he's cool with her coming over tonight."
"To be honest Bass, I think it's a great idea. It will give her a little break from Danny and give her the comfort that she needs from you. Rachel is staying home with him tomorrow."
"Tomorrow is Thursday, I'll take her to school like normal but let me know how Danny is doing. If he's still really upset, we'll just keep her another night. I can swing by after work and pick up her up."
"If he's still really upset I'll have the babysitter bring Charlie home to get some extra clothes and then she can take Charlie to your place. She can wait there for you with her. If that's okay with you?"
"If you trust this girl with both your kids and in your house, then so do I. Just tell her where the emergency key is." They talk for a few more minutes before Charlie finds them, smiling for the first time since Danny started crying when Bass tells her she is spending the night at his house.
"Will Uncle Miles be home?"
"He's working tonight so you won't see him until tomorrow. We'll make him get up and have breakfast with us."
"Waffles?"
"Of course! What else would we eat for breakfast?"
"Plain or fruity Bass, not chocolate chip." Ben interjects as they start going up the stairs.
"No chocolate chip." Bass agrees, sending Charlie a sly wink. She bites her lip to keep from giggling. They never use chocolate chips only chocolate chunks, which Bass tells Charlie aren't the same thing so when Ben or Rachel ask if she had chocolate chip waffles Charlie can honestly say no. They've been doing it for years now, Charlie is an old pro.
They pack Charlie's little blue (she never quite let go of that favorite color) suitcase and are in Bass' car within fifteen minutes, stopping of course to replace the ice cream that melted all over the porch. They talk a little on the way but they lost the need to fill the silence with each other when Charlie was like three, which is amazing considering she's only seven now. When they get to the house that Bass shares with Miles she quietly puts her suitcase in her room and joins him in the living room. Bass tries to draw her out, get her talking but all she wants is to be close to him.
Eventually he gets her to at least agree to order some pizza, pepperoni with extra cheese, half sausage for him and half pineapple for her. They argue about dessert, Charlie sighting a need for a giant brownie while Bass mentions that they have ice cream in the freezer. Charlie of course wins, after the day she's had she could ask him for just about anything and if he can give it her, he will. Dinner is late (for a school night) and a quiet affair, Bass stops trying get her to talk. He knows that when she needs him, she'll come to him.
"Go to sleep." Bass whispers after tucking Charlie in, pressing a kiss to her forehead. She yawns as she burrows deeper into the blankets.
"I love you Sebastian." The words are barely a whisper and just before she falls asleep Bass returns the sentiment, watching as a ghost of a smile flickers across her face before she succumbs to sleep.
The next morning she is less than happy when Bass wakes her up to get ready for school. "Come on sleeping beauty, if you hurry you can help me make breakfast."
"No breakfast, just sleep."
"You're seven, aren't you still supposed to like school?"
"I'm tired."
"I know but you gotta go to school. You're probably going to come back after school and spend the night again."
"Again?" Charlie perks up at that, her blue eyes peeking at him from under a tangle of honey curls.
"Yes again but only if you get your lazy bones out of bed and get ready for school." He's barely finished speaking when she jumps out of her bed and flies to where her suitcase is. Bass walks out with a grin on his face. He knows she's still worried about Danny and in a way she's grieving the loss of the boy who would have been her brother-in-law but it's nice to see her smile and show her resilience.
He's just finished mixing the waffle batter when Charlie comes bouncing into the kitchen, blonde curls in desperate need of a comb. She climbs up onto the chair he's set up at counter for her and grabs the bag of chocolate chunks, popping a few pieces in her mouth. They work together silently, Charlie adding the chocolate when its time and Bass cooking the waffles. Bass sends her to wake Miles as the last batch cooks, laughing when he hears first Miles' grumbling at being woken up and then Charlie's shrieking laughter most likely caused by Miles tickling her.
She comes racing back into the kitchen with Miles stumbling in after her. They sit at the breakfast bar that separates the kitchen and the dining room, Charlie in the middle. It's a familiar routine for the three of them, it's what they always do when Charlie spends the night. After breakfast Bass wrestles a comb through Charlie's hair, he tries for a braid but only ends up tangling it again so instead he pulls it back into a ponytail. They leave Miles to go back to sleep and Bass drops her off at school before he goes to work.
Later that day Bass gets home to see Miles' car still in the driveway and another car in front of the house that he doesn't recognize but assumes is the new babysitter. He wonders why Miles is still home as he opens the front door only to have Charlie shove him back out and shut the door firmly.
"Woah! Where's the fire?"
"There's no fire." She frowns up at him, tugging him back towards his car.
"I know, its just an expression that means why are you in such a hurry."
"Then why don't you just say why are you in such a hurry?"
"Charlotte, why are you in such a hurry to get me away from my own house?"
"Uncle Miles met Nora." Bass stops dead in tracks, pulling Charlie to a stop as well. He looks at the front door and starts walking back but Charlie yanks hard on his arm to get his attention. "Let's go."
"No way, I'm going back to meet his soulmate."
"Not yet."
"Why not?"
"They need time."
"They've had all afternoon."
"They need more time." Charlie looks up at him, her blue eyes very serious. "Danny didn't get time with Connor and I've had my whole life with you, give Miles time with Nora." Sometimes even though she's still a child, Charlie is the wisest person he's ever met. Bass nods and lets her drag him back to his car.
"Alright Charlotte, we'll go get dinner but then we're coming home. Also you have some explaining to do." They go to an Italian restaurant close to home because Charlie wants spaghetti. She eats slowly, insisting on getting gelato when they finish dinner even after Bass reminds her that they still have ice cream and half a giant brownie at home.
While they eat Bass gets the whole Nora story out of Charlie. One month ago Ben and Rachel hired her to pick up Charlie from school and Danny from preschool in the afternoons and stay with them until one of their parents got home from work. Apparently all three of them (Ben, Rachel and Charlie) thought she was Miles' soulmate but they weren't sure and didn't want to offend her by asking if she has a soulmark (it's a touchy subject for a lot of people). Rachel had been planning on introducing Miles and Nora but she wanted it to be special and she's been scheming since.
Nearly three hours later they get home, both cars still in exactly the same places as when they left. "Have they had enough time?" He asks and Charlie nods happily as she climbs out of the car. As they walk up the stone path leading to the door she slips her tiny hand into his much larger one.
"Honey, I'm home!" Bass calls out as they step inside. He frowns down at Charlie when she pinches his wrist.
"Be nice." She whispers with narrowed eyes. Bass flashes her his 'lady killer' smile (Miles' words), watching as her blue eyes widen and her cheeks go pink before she looks down. He doesn't normally have to charm Charlie but he feels like tonight he's going to be doing it a lot. He can't possibly let Miles finally meeting his soulmate pass without giving him a hard time, especially after all the shit Miles has given him about Charlie over the past seven years. Tonight is about payback... and getting to know the woman that Miles will be spending the rest of his life with. They go into the living room to find Miles and Nora sitting closely together on the couch, eyes locked.
"Earth to Miles!" Bass says in an exaggerated loud voice, waving his arms in the air. Two sets of brown eyes snap in his direction, Miles sighs because he knows what's coming and Nora blushes at getting caught being so lost in Miles.
"Sebastian!" Charlie scolds him, yanking on his jeans since his hand is out of reach. For the first time in her life, Bass ignores Charlie. He walks further into the room, making a bee line straight to Nora. He sits on the arm of the couch and grins down at the new couple.
"Hi. I'm Bass, Miles' best friend and you're Nora, his seventeen year old soulmate." Bass looks to Miles now. "So Miles, are you gonna wait til she's legal legal or just go for it now since she's soulmate legal?"
"God you're a dick." Miles mutters, mindful of Charlie.
"Two words brother, child bride." Nora's eyes widen as she looks between them.
"Excuse me?"
"Oh I'm sorry, allow me to explain. I'm Charlie's soulmate and your guy here, on the day she was born kept making child bride cracks at my expense. For the last seven years I've had to deal with his jokes and trash talk because there's a significant age gap. Now I get a little payback, because even though you're soulmate legal you're still a damn minor."
"Sebastian William Monroe!" Bass snaps his eyes back to the doorway, where Charlie is still standing with her arms crossed, a scowl on her face and one foot tapping impatiently against the floor. She's never looked more like Rachel. Bass flashes her another heart melting smile but it seems to have lost its effectiveness on her. "You're being mean. I told you to be nice."
"I'm just giving Miles a hard time Charlotte, I'm not really being mean."
"It sounds mean. Be. Nice." Nora watches the exchange in amusement. She's heard about Charlie's soulmate situation but seeing the way they interact with each other is kind of adorable.
"Trouble with the little Misses?" Miles mocks and Bass turns a sharp grin to his friend.
"Sebastian." Charlie warns again.
"Why isn't Miles being told to be nice?"
"He's not being mean."
"He's always mean."
"Not to me."
"I'm never mean to you either sweetheart."
Nora watches Charlie soften. "No you aren't but be nicer to them. They aren't like us."
"No one is like you two kid." Miles says with a grin.
Charlie ignores her uncle and stays focused on her soulmate. "Nora is my friend."
Bass lets out a dramatic sigh but he stands up and goes back to Charlie, kneeling at eye level with her. "I'll be nice to your friend."
"And Uncle Miles?"
"I'll be as nice to him as he is to me." Charlie levels him with a stern look before breaking out into a smile. She shakes her head, clearly exasperated with Bass.
Nora leans closer to Miles. "Are they always like that?"
"Yes, it's weird."
"It's adorable."
"And?" Miles prompts.
Nora rolls her eyes. "Okay it's a little weird but mostly adorable."
The four of them spend another hour together, with Miles extracting a promise from Nora as she leaves to come by again the next day. A promise she happily makes.
AN: Big, huge, enormous THANK YOU to everyone that sent me such lovely reviews! It's very much appreciated!
