UNREQUITED
Summary: When Emily Hargreaves meets Wyatt and Chris Halliwell, she has no idea how complicated her life is about to become. Set in the changed future. It's about life, love and all of that…
Disclaimer: The characters in Charmed do not belong to me. No infringement is intended, no profit is made. The characters of Emily and Chloe do belong to me though, but they can be borrowed as long as I'm asked first.
Notes: Hi! Sorry this update is a day later than promised. Hope it's worth the wait! As ever, thanks for all the reviews :-)
Re: Trina-k – 'How are you going to get them together?' – Wait and see! 'And demons? will there be demons?' – off and on yes, but there'll be no big bad as such. This story is more about the relationships between the various characters, so the magic/demons are only in the background.
Re: Victorious Light – as I said last chapter, Oakenvale is a made-up place. However, it is very loosely based on a small town that I visited whilst I was on holiday once. (Hope, just outside of Vancouver in Canada if you're interested!).
Re: IcantthinkofaFnick – I know you wanted Wyatt/Emily, so no worries. Sorry, but I guess given all the speculation, some readers were going to be disappointed whichever way I jumped. I hope the Wyatt/Chloe relationship makes up for it. In the next chapter though - this one is Chris and Emily again!
Anyhow, back to the picnic…
Chapter 10
As they emerged from the trees and out into the bright sunlight, the path split off in two directions - one part led down to the large picnic area on the water's edge, while the other headed off around the lake.
"Not that way," Emily said, when Chris immediately took the trail down towards the shore.
"It's much prettier round the other side," she explained off his enquiring look. "Most people are too lazy to walk there though. They park their cars and head for the nearest place to sit down and relax."
Chris nodded as they set off down the shady path that circumvented the oval-shaped lake. "Good things come to those who wait," he remarked sagely.
'God, I hope so,' Emily thought to herself, shooting him a resigned, sidelong glance as they walked along, side by side. Out loud, she agreed with him. "So they say, yeah – it's certainly true of this place."
As they continued to wander down the gravel path, talking idly of everything and nothing, a bolt of guilt suddenly struck Emily. She had come close to turning this tour into a date by suggesting this picnic, she realised, although she doubted Chris saw it that way. Bianca, on the other hand, was an entirely different matter.
"Bianca won't mind about this, will she?" she blurted out awkwardly, needing to be sure.
Chris shook his head with a smile. "You worry too much about stuff like that, Emily," he told her. "Bianca knows we're just friends, and she also knows I would never do anything to deliberately hurt her. If I thought she'd have a problem with it, then I wouldn't be here, okay?"
"Okay," Emily agreed in a whisper, dropping her gaze to her feet.
Who was she kidding? It didn't matter how long she waited – Chris was never going to look at her as anything other than a friend. She just had to learn to accept that somehow, because his friendship was something she was beginning to value as much as she would have done his love.
"You're very trusting of each other," she said to cover up her emotional confusion.
Chris let out a short laugh. "Well, I kind of have to be – otherwise I'd go crazy. Men come on to Bianca all the time – she's got that killer combination, you see – striking looks, a brain to go with them and money. I never did understand why she chose me."
"Probably because a lot of men are only after the first and last of those three things," Emily told him.
"And you think I'm not?"
"I think that money doesn't mean all that much to you," Emily said slowly. "And while I'm sure you notice the fact that she's got a great body – I mean, you're a man, after all…"
"And we're all obsessed with sex, right?" Chris cut in with amusement.
"Well duh!" Emily said teasingly with an exaggerated roll of her eyes.
Chris chuckled good-naturedly. "Well thanks; it's nice to know that the fairer sex know exactly how we think!"
Emily giggled at his jest. "Anyway, as I was saying – you don't care about her money, and while you think she's hot, you'd be bored if she was just an airhead."
"I'd have to agree with that, yeah."
"Sounds like a killer combination to me," Emily said, echoing his earlier comment.
Chris grinned at her and then hefted the picnic basket in his arms. "Are we nearly there?" he asked plaintively. "This is getting kind of heavy. What did your friend put in here? A seven course banquet?"
Emily laughed. "I wouldn't put it past her," she told him. "And, don't worry; it's only a few minutes more walk."
Sure enough, five minutes later, they reached a fork in the path and Emily led Chris down through the trees to a small, secluded spot near the water's edge. Several large willow trees provided some much needed shade over to one side, but the rest of the open space was bathed in golden sunlight. It was quiet, save for the chirping of the birds and the gentle lapping of the water against the smooth silver-grey rocks, which lined the shore.
"Wow!" Chris said, drinking in the delightful surroundings and gazing out over the blue-green surface of the lake in wonder. "It's beautiful."
"Yeah, I know," Emily agreed, as she shook out the blanket she'd brought with her from the car and laid it out flat on the lush grass. "It's my favourite spot in Oakenvale. I used to come here all the time. It's a great place if you want somewhere to sit and think about things."
"Ahh – you mean like the Bridge."
"The Bridge?" Emily enquired.
"The Golden Gate Bridge," Chris said, looking over his shoulder at her. "That's my sitting and thinking place."
Emily frowned. "Isn't that kind of noisy with all the traffic?"
Chris walked over to join her. "Not if you go right to the top," he said, sitting down next to her on the blanket.
"How do you…?" Emily started to ask, and then realised. "Oh right - you orb - of course."
"That must be a pretty spectacular view," she commented as an after-thought.
Chris nodded. "Yeah, it is. I'll take you up there sometime if you like."
"Oh – oh no way, José," Emily replied with a shudder. "Not unless I'm wearing a safety-harness you're not."
Chris laughed. "I wouldn't let you fall," he assured her.
'Too late, I already have,' Emily thought to herself, and then immediately tried to push that distracting thought aside. It was no use dwelling on things. Rather than agonising of the fact that it wasn't what she secretly hoped for, she should simply be trying to enjoy this time with him for what it was instead. Was just friendship really so bad?
"You hungry?" she asked, pulling the picnic basket towards her and removing the cover.
Chris nodded eagerly. "Am I ever," he replied fervently.
"Okay then, so what do we have?" Emily said, reaching into the basket and pulling out several of the plastic containers neatly stashed inside.
She popped open the largest of the white opaque boxes to find it full to the brim with freshly prepared salad; another container held some homemade coleslaw and another two servings of juicy king prawns. Inside two foil-wrapped bundles, they discovered several pieces of cold, roasted chicken, and two generous slices of vegetable quiche.
"Your friend sure knows how to put together the perfect picnic hamper," Chris commented, as Emily delved into the basket once again and pulled out a loaf of crusty bread, a tub of soft cream cheese, and a range of small plastic pots, each containing a different salad dressing. Plates, napkins, cutlery and a large knife quickly followed - and finally, two glasses and a bottle of lemon soda.
"I hope that's it," Chris said with a laugh, surveying the veritable feast laid out before them.
Emily grinned. "For the first course, yeah," she said. "You better leave some room for dessert though – Hailey's chocolate brownies are to die for."
A companionable silence reigned as they tucked into their meal with relish, however as Emily cut herself another slice of bread and liberally spread it with the cream cheese, she felt Chris's eyes upon her.
"What?" she asked, lifting her blue eyes to meet his steady gaze.
His lips curled up into a slow smile, the expression warming her from the inside out. "Anybody would think we hadn't eaten anything for weeks," he said laughingly.
"I didn't have much breakfast," Emily defended.
"Oh, I wasn't criticizing," Chris rushed to assure her. "I think it's great that you enjoy your food. Women who just pick at their meals annoy the hell out of me. It took me ages to break Bianca of the habit."
"Well – you might think it's a good thing, but I'm not sure my waistline would agree with you," Emily said, patting her slightly rounded belly for emphasis.
Chris shook his head with a sigh. "Emily, you look good, okay? You're not even remotely overweight. Take it from me - healthy curves like yours are much more attractive than the emaciated look that most female TV stars seem to be sporting nowadays. And I'm pretty sure the majority of men would agree with me too."
Emily blushed at the absently given compliment, but grinned at the earnest lecture on healthy eating as well. "Okay, point taken – you can get off your soap-box now," she teased.
Chris grinned back at her. "Sorry," he said. "It's an issue that cuts pretty close to home for me, I guess. One of my cousins took her dieting a bit too far a few years back - all because some kid at school made a smart-ass comment about her non-existent weight problem."
Emily nodded in understanding. "She's alright now though?" she asked.
"Oh yeah sure, she's fine. Don't get me wrong, it's not as if she developed anorexia or anything, she just went a bit over the top, that's all."
"Well," Emily said, pulling out the last of the containers from the picnic basket. "I was always taught that a little bit of what you fancy does you good. So, on that note, I think I might just sample one of these chocolate brownies.
"You want one too?" she asked, offering him the box.
"Oh I think I could be persuaded," Chris said, reaching in and taking a square.
Getting to his feet, he wandered down the water's edge, munching on the rich cake. "Is the water okay to swim in?" he asked, after a few moments of silent contemplation.
"Yeah," Emily told him, licking the last of the melted chocolate brownie from her fingers. "Dumping garbage and the like is strictly forbidden here, and everyone respects that rule. If they don't, they end up with a hefty fine to pay."
Chris nodded. "So how about it?" he asked, looking questionably over his shoulder at her.
Emily glanced down at her sundress. "I don't have my swimming things," she said.
Chris grinned cheekily at her in response but chose not to say anything.
Emily shot him a steady look, knowing full well that he wasn't even remotely serious about the idea. This was a guy, who was effortlessly faithful to his girlfriend - probably because the majority of women would struggle to compete with Bianca's flawless beauty and sophistication, of course - but still.
"Dream on, buster," she told him sardonically. "Your girlfriend might not be the jealous type, but skinny-dipping would definitely be over-stepping the mark."
Chris laughed. "Yeah, I know," he said gravely. "I was only joking around. We could easily go and get your bathing costume if you want though – your apartment is just an orb away."
Emily considered it – a swim did sound rather appealing, come to think of it. It was the perfect weather for it, after all. Living in San Francisco now, she wouldn't get the chance to indulge in the previously frequent summer pastime much anymore either.
"Okay," she agreed, rising to her feet and picking up her bag.
Chris hopped off the rock that he'd been standing on and moved over to join her. Emily cast a quick glance at the remains of their picnic. "You think it's all right to leave this?" she asked.
Chris nodded. "We'll be no more than a minute – maybe even less than that."
"Okay," Emily said, taking his offered hand.
Moments later, she was back in her San Francisco apartment. Leaving Chris waiting in the lounge, she went through into the bedroom and quickly retrieved one of her bikinis from a drawer. After slipping her swimwear on under her dress, she went back into the living room, grabbing a couple of towels from the linen closet on the way. The whole process took less than a minute as Chris had predicted.
"Ready?" he asked, holding out his hand towards her as she rejoined him.
"Yes, but don't you need to…," Emily broke off and waved her hand towards the ceiling to illustrate her point.
"Been there, done that," Chris told her with a grin, and then orbed them back to the lake.
"Weird!" Emily said, shaking her head as she tried to get her brain around the distances involved in their back and forth State hop.
"Whitelighters need to be able to get to their charges at a moment's notice - wherever they are in the world," Chris explained, as he tugged his t-shirt off over his head and tossed it to one side. "Orbing enables them to do that."
"So you and Wyatt have charges then?" Emily asked curiously, bending down to unbuckle her sandals.
"Not as such," Chris replied, sitting on the grass beside her as he unlaced his pumps, "At least not in the sense that true whitelighters do anyway. We weren't called for duty on our deaths, you see - we're only whitelighters by virtue of our parentage. We do our bit, sure, but it's not a full-time thing and the Elders rarely assign us any specific charges."
Finally plucking up the nerve, Emily stood up, unzipped her dress and shyly stepped out of it. Because she felt distinctly self-conscious exposing so much bare flesh in front of Chris, the bikini she'd chosen was one of her most modest. She knew her attitude was just plain crazy - considering that she used to swim in public at the lake all the time - but she couldn't help the way she felt.
Her companion appeared to have no such qualms however, as he stripped to reveal a pair of loose black swimming shorts. Probably because he wasn't struggling to suppress an underlying attraction to his swim buddy like she was, Emily thought ruefully to herself as she tried not to ogle the smooth contours of muscle that dissected his lightly tanned shoulders and back.
To distract herself, she pulled out her suntan lotion from her bag, and began to apply it liberally to her arms, legs and exposed torso. Being fair-skinned, she was liable to burn if she wasn't careful, so she took her time and made sure not to miss anywhere.
"Won't the water just wash it off?" Chris asked.
Emily shook her head. "No – it's the water-resistant stuff," she said. "I need it or I'll end up looking like a boiled lobster tomorrow."
Chris smiled at the analogy. "Do you want me to put some on your back for you?" he offered, holding his hand out for the lotion.
Trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach, Emily reluctantly gave the bottle to him, knowing she didn't have much choice in the matter.
Oblivious to her plight, Chris knelt down behind her and squeezed a generous dollop of lotion into the palm of his hand. He made quick work of the task, completing it in less than a minute, but the tingling touch of his warm hands against her bare skin set Emily's heart to racing nevertheless.
'Oh, so not good,' she silently chastised herself, 'Get a grip, Em!'
Emily was so focused on combating her inner emotional turmoil that she failed to notice that Chris had surreptitiously set the bottle of suntan lotion to one side. So, when he unexpectedly wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, she jumped out of her skin and gasped aloud.
As their bodies dissolved into twinkling blue lights, his intention suddenly became clear and Emily found herself experiencing a rather unique dunking as a result. In contrast to the heat of the afternoon sun, the water was cold and goose bumps broke out over her flesh, causing her to squeal in reaction. She resurfaced coughing and spluttering, much to her companion's obvious amusement.
"Ha! Gotcha!" he crowed in delight, grinning widely at her, his green eyes sparkling with mischief.
Emily laughed at his boyish posturing, despite her shock. "That's cheating!" she accused, splashing him with water in retaliation.
Chris chuckled. "Sorry," he apologised, "But you were off with the fairies somewhere, and I just couldn't resist."
Emily blushed and quickly immersed herself in the water again to hide her flushed cheeks. She was just grateful that Chris didn't have a clue about the direction her thoughts had been taking. It was beginning to be a real problem and she was worried that her growing feelings for him would soon start to become obvious. She could imagine the humiliation of the classic 'I like you, but only as a friend' speech even now.
Needing to put some distance between the two of them for a while, she swam out towards the centre of the lake, her arms cutting through the water like propeller blades. About eighty or so metres from the shore, she turned over onto her back and began to swim in a wide circle, using the least amount of effort necessary to keep herself afloat. Her agitation gradually faded away, and a feeling of calm descended over her as she absently mused over the shapes of fluffy white clouds in the sky.
Now that her emotions were back under control, she realised that she might have been a little rude and so she raised her head, looking about for Chris. Following her example, he had also swum a way out from the shore. He was simply floating flat on his back however, barely even moving, and Emily frowned, wondering how he was managing to stop himself from sinking like a stone to the bottom of the lake.
Her curiosity getting the better of her, she swam over to join him. "Hey!"
Chris turned his head to look at her. "Hey!" he responded quietly.
"How are you doing that?" she asked.
"What this?" he said. He made a slight downward gesture with his hands, and seemingly raised his body out of the water a little way.
"Yeah that."
"Telekinesis and Physics."
"Huh?"
Chris righted himself and began to tread water. "I was pushing the water away from me," he explained. "And Newton's Third Law of Motion says that…"
"For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction," Emily quoted. "Okay, so that's clever."
"Well, I try my best," Chris said, preening slightly. "Why don't you give it a go?" he suggested.
"Yeah right!" Emily let out a short, ironic laugh. "With my control, it'd be a disaster."
"Maybe so, but it'd also be kind of amusing."
"Didn't your mother ever teach you not to make fun of other people's misfortune?"
Chris chuckled. "Yeah, and she also taught me that you never know what you're capable of unless you try."
"Reverse psychology – very nice. All right – bring on the ritual humiliation."
"Okay, just lie back and relax," Chris said, after they'd swum a little closer to the shore so that they were no longer out of their depth. As Emily lay back in the water, he reached out to support her, one hand under her shoulder blades and the other arm crooked under her knees.
"Now try to feel the water underneath you. Imagine it's a blanket or something. Got it?"
"I think so," Emily murmured, closing her eyes to aid in her efforts.
"All right – just push it down and hold it there."
Emily did as he told her, surprised at how easy it was. Chris took his arms away and she was keeping herself afloat purely with her telekinesis power. However, as she'd predicted, her control soon began to slip and she sank lower in the water as a result.
Gathering her reserves of strength, she pushed the water away from her again, unfortunately with a little bit too much force. Capsizing like a boat, she went under, inadvertently swallowing a huge mouthful of lake water in the process. Rising to the surface, she was overcome by a violent coughing fit as her body attempted to expel the excess liquid from her lungs.
"Whoa! Are you okay?" Chris asked, grabbing her hand and arm to hold her up as she coughed and spluttered uncontrollably.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," she said, holding onto his shoulder as she breathed in deeply and refilled her lungs with oxygen.
"Time to head back to shore?" Chris suggested when she eventually raised her gaze to his face.
Emily laughed ruefully. "That might be a good idea."
The two of them swam back over to the picnic spot and emerged, dripping, from the water. Emily wrapped herself in one of the towels and passed the other one to Chris, who took it from her gratefully and quickly dried himself off.
After that, he wandered down to the water's edge and idly began to skim stones across the lake's surface. Still wrapped in her towel, Emily sat down and watched him quietly for a while, then cast it aside and lay back on the grass, closing her eyes with a sigh...
"Emily? Emily – wake up!"
Emily jumped, suddenly coming awake, not even realising she'd fallen asleep. Opening her eyes, she saw Chris squatting down beside her, fully dressed again.
"How long have I been asleep?" she asked groggily, sitting up.
"Not long," Chris told her, "Ten, fifteen minutes at most. Look, I'm sorry, but I've have to go. Bianca's calling for me and she sounds kind of upset. Her Dad must have been a bigger jerk than usual today."
"Oh, oh right, okay. I'll …" Emily stopped as Chris's attention turned elsewhere, his green eyes shadowing with concern.
"I'm sorry, but I really have to go," he repeated. "Thanks, it was fun."
With that rather abrupt farewell, he vanished in a plume of blue lights, leaving Emily feeling inexplicably abandoned. Hugging her legs to her chest, she sank her face into her knees, blinking back the tears that pricked at the back of her eyelids. She sat there like that for a few moments, and then lifted her head and wiped away the few salty droplets that had escaped to run down her cheeks.
Rising resolutely to her feet, she got dressed and gathered up the discarded picnic things. Then, tucking the damp towels into the top of the basket, she headed off down the path towards the parking lot. A confusion of conflicting thoughts whirled around inside her head as she walked.
How on earth did she get herself into this mess? It wasn't as if Chris had ever done anything to encourage her misplaced affections. He was warm, friendly and gently teasing towards her, but he was like that with everyone. So why was she so upset by his brusque departure?
Because it only emphasised the strength of his loyalty to his girlfriend. Bianca demanded his attention and a relaxing afternoon with 'just a friend' immediately slid to the bottom of the list of his priorities. Not that she could actually reproach him for that attitude – it was only right and proper, after all.
Why did it hurt so much then? Emily wanted to scream with frustration. How could she have let her heart rule her head in this way? Here she was, stuck in a Catch-22 situation – she couldn't turn off her emotions and yet she couldn't act on them either. In addition, the more time she spent in his company, the stronger her feelings for him got.
What the hell was she going to do?
To be continued…
P.S. Sorry about the Physics lesson, but I like to make my stories educational! LOL!