Charlotte's Web

Chapter 21 – Truth Be Told

Note to readers: I'm starting to feel like I'm in a funk with this series. I think Ch 22 is starting to get me back in the groove. Stick with me and provide any ideas, hopes, and feedback – the April/Charlotte convo came from a request! I know a bunch of you would like to see Jo get pregnant…I'm considering that, but haven't decided yet.

On their way out of the restaurant and while Charlotte was saying goodbye to Zola and Bailey, Alex and Jo quickly made a plan about how they were going to talk with Charlotte about Amelia's conversation with Derek. In the car on the way home, Jo began the conversation as she reminded Charlotte about the cell phone rule.

"Spider, let's put the phone away and engage here," Jo stated.

Charlotte complied but acted distracted, "Oh, right. Yeah. Sorry." Charlotte put her phone on silent and placed it in her purse, then gazed out the window.

Jo continued, "So how was your night last night?"

Smiling broadly, Charlotte reported, "Great. The kids were a blast and really cooperative. They went to bed easily. It was a breeze."

"Nice," Jo said in a measured pace. Jo let silence linger and Charlotte returned to looking out the window.

Alex asked, "So, Spider, I know the ring is on your finger. I knew beforehand that Matt was going to give it to you, but I haven't heard the story."

"Story?" Charlotte inquired.

"You know, tell us about when he gave you the ring. Let's hear the dirt, the story," Alex encouraged.

"Oh," Charlotte said. "Well, Dad, that was kind of a couple thing, you know? Too weird to discuss with my parents."

"Just give us a little taste – just a tidbit." Jo encouraged.

"He was pretty adorable," Charlotte described. "He told me he had a surprise for me and asked if I wanted it then or later. I chose right then and there. He told me I was amazing, beautiful, funny. Stuff like that. Then he asked if I'd accept the ring."

"That sounds really sweet," Jo exclaimed.

Alex commented, "Sounds like good chick talk – chicks like all that, right?"

"Yep," Jo said.

"Where's your other ring – the one Kepner gave you?" Alex asked.

Charlotte was authentically unsure. In all her excitement, she hadn't realized Matt slipped it off her finger last night. She shared, "That's a really good question, Dad. Crud, I have absolutely no idea. Can I text Dr. Grey and ask her to keep an eye out for it? Maybe I left it in the bathroom or something."

"Yeah, I guess," Alex allowed. "But just that one text not conversations with everyone under the sun."

Charlotte texted Meredith. Meredith texted back that she'd look around and let Charlotte know. Relieved to no longer be in conversation with her parents, Charlotte leaned her head against the window and closed her eyes.

"Spider, where were you when he gave you the ring?" Alex asked.

Charlotte, pretending to be asleep, didn't respond. Alex called her a little louder, "Hey, Charlotte!" Then Alex turned to Jo, "What's up with her? Why isn't she answering?"

Jo turned around, "She's asleep." Jo winked at Alex to signal that she wasn't convinced.

Alex decided to push a little. He asked Jo, "So what was up with the conversation between Amelia and Derek?" In his heart, Alex wanted to give Charlotte a chance to fess up that Matt had been over. Jo chose not to respond, so the question hung in the air.

He pulled in to the driveway and said loudly, "Charlotte, we're home. Wake up."

Charlotte smiled and pretended to be waking up, saying, "Oh, thanks, Dad. Man, I didn't sleep well last night, I think I'm going to go nap."

"How about you stop in the living room first and we'll sit down and talk," Alex suggested in a tone that indicated it wasn't really a suggestion.

"I'm pretty tired, can't we catch up when I wake up?" Charlotte attempted as they approached the door.

Alex frowned and responded, "Ah…no. Living Room. Now."

Charlotte sat down in the Living Room and stretched, trying not to indicate that her mind was fearfully going a million miles an hour. Obviously, Alex was fried about something.

Jo and Alex sat down next to each other and looked at Charlotte without saying a word. Charlotte looked to her left and to her right, widened her eyes and then looked at her parents, "What's going on? This all feels weird."

Alex asked, "Charlotte, is there anything you want to tell me?"

"What do you mean?" Charlotte inquired as she lowered her brow.

"Just what I said, is there anything you want to tell me? Tell us?" Alex repeated.

Jo added, "Anything we should know?"

"Ummm," Charlotte paused, genuinely confused, "Like what? Like about the time I cheated on a test in 5th grade? Or the time Mom – first Mom – punished me for cussing and then cussed at me as she was lecturing me? I truly, honestly don't get what you guys are asking."

"The car, Charlotte Sofia. The car that Amelia saw, it was Sheryl's, wasn't it? Did Matt come over to Mer's last night?" Alex asked as he bore his eyes into hers.

Charlotte looked like it was no big deal and like she was confused, "Yeah, for a while. He helped me with homework after the kids went to bed. I asked Dr. Shepherd beforehand, and he said it was ok. You can ask him, Dad. Seriously."

"You asked Derek?" Jo asked in disbelief.

"Yeah," Charlotte confirmed, "Since I was staying at their house that seemed to make sense."

Alex nodded slowly, "I'm missing something here, Charlotte. Since you were at Mer's, you thought our rules at home didn't apply?"

"Huh? Honestly, Dad, I didn't think it though that far. I see what you're saying – I was alone with Matt and that is not something you allow. I'm really, truly sorry I didn't ask you also," Charlotte explained.

"How long were the two of you alone?" Alex asked.

Charlotte looked up as she thought and tried to figure out the honest answer, "Let's see. He left around 11:30. I don't know exactly what time he came over. The kids went to bed around 8, so he was probably over for about 3 hours."

"Three hours is a long time. What did you guys do all that time? I don't even want to imagine what could happen in three hours," Alex declared with mounting anger.

Charlotte answered slowly, thinking Alex had lost his mind. "We worked on homework, Dad. Nasty, rotten, horrible Chem. I've got it in my back pack if you want to see it – my most recent notes have his examples and my work on them, let me show you."

"I don't want to see them, Charlotte. The notes or homework aren't the point," Alex stated.

"Then what is? Dad, I'm not getting what's going on here. Honestly, I'm not getting why you're so extreme right now." Charlotte became increasingly intense and defensive as she spoke.

Jo responded when she heard Alex take in a huge breath and saw him clench his fist, "Charlotte, the issue is that we have rules. The rules have been clear and in place for a long time. They aren't vague. We expect you to respect them and follow them. The issue is that you and Matt were alone for 3 hours. What's the rule here at home?"

"That you or Dad need to be home if Matt's here," Charlotte answered with calm resignation.

"Right," Jo confirmed, "So you were fully and completely aware you were ignoring our rules last night."

"Like I already said to Dad, I didn't think it though that far. I thought asking Dr. Shepherd was ok because it was his house, just like I follow Sheryl's rules at Matt's house. Sheryl has some rules that we don't have, but I respect and follow them when I'm there," Charlotte explained.

Jo looked seriously at Charlotte and asserted, "Look, kiddo, I basically raised myself. I can see through just about anything. If you don't want to talk openly about this, just tell me, but whatever you do, don't lie."

"I'm not lying," Charlotte yelled. Then she lowered her voice and pled, "I'm being honest – I told you that I asked Dr. Shepherd and that, yes, Matt came over. How is that lying? I feel like you guys think you know something that didn't even happen. What's your concern? I will honestly answer you." Charlotte's face was turning red and her eyes were becoming glossy, but she was determined not to cry or yell.

Alex took in a few more deep breaths, "No messing around here, Charlotte. What should we know about last night?"

Charlotte looked Alex right in the eye, trying to convince him she wasn't hiding anything (even though she wasn't about to tell him about making out and undressing), "Dad, Matt came over, he helped me with my Chem. Did we kiss? Yes, we did. I won't lie. We did not have sex, we did not throw a party, we did not go wild, ok? We did homework and hung out." Charlotte's words had become more clipped the longer she felt as though her parents assumed she was guilty until proven innocent.

"Spider, where were you when he gave you the ring?" Alex asked.

"At Dr. Shepherd and Dr. Grey's house. Why? He gave it to me last night," Charlotte answered honestly.

"What happened next?" Jo asked.

"After he gave me the ring? I got a little teary and we kissed. We made out, ok? Geesh." Charlotte folded her arms and raised her voice, insisting, "I've already told you we didn't have sex, what else can I say to convince you I'm not some horrible, problematic, slutty kid? I honestly thought asking Dr. Shepherd was ok because…"

"Stop. I'm not buying it. That is the lamest excuse you've ever created," Alex yelled.

Charlotte pursed her lips, tightened her jaw, and narrowed her eyes as she looked at Alex. She blinked for a solid five seconds and then opened her eyes and looked at Jo. Charlotte pled, her voice shaking and not matching her strong non-verbals, "Mom, can I please finish what I was trying to explain?"

"Yes," Jo said, her face as serious as a heart attack.

Charlotte continued to look directly at Jo, feeling that Alex was a lost cause at this point, "I asked for permission ahead of time. Dr. Shepherd had no problem with it. If I'd been trying to be sneaky, I wouldn't have asked. I was trying to be honest and open. I don't understand why you're both so incredibly angry with me." Charlotte concluded with 3 audible deep breaths, trying desperately not to cry. The sounds of the accompanying sighs quivered.

Alex yelled, "Go to your room. I need to calm down, and I need to talk to your mom."

Charlotte yelled back, "What did I do?! I don't get why you're so angry, Dad. Would you please explain it to me?!"

Alex said sharply, "Go to your room. Shut the door and don't come out of your room until one of us comes to get you, got it?" Charlotte silently got up, grabbed her backpack and purse, and headed toward the stairs at a normal pace.

Out of anger, Alex bellowed, "I asked if you understood, Charlotte Sofia."

Charlotte stopped, turned so she was facing Alex, and responded with a quivering voice, "Yes. I understand." Then she turned toward the stairs and headed upstairs.

"Good," Alex yelled. "Then get your ass up there. I don't want to see you, hear you, talk to you or interact with you."

Jo said softly so Charlotte couldn't hear, "Alex, that crossed the line."

Alex ran his hands in his hair and closed his eyes, "Yeah, I know. Damn."

Jo suggested that Alex go for a run before the two of them discussed how they wanted to handle the situation. He bounded up the stairs to change. Charlotte held her breath waiting for him to storm into her room and breathed a sigh of relief when she heard him go back down the stairs and out the door.

Jo sent a text to Meredith that read, Interesting talk with Char. Ends up BF was over. Did you know?

Meredith had her hands full of Play Dough when the text came through and asked Derek to take a look at it. He responded to it, typing, Derek knew and said OK. C asked. He didn't want Charlotte to get in trouble, so he didn't admit she'd asked if a "friend" could come over. He was frustrated with her that she'd been vague when she asked, but some of the blame for the miscommunication was in his court as far as he was concerned. Poor kid, he thought to himself. He planned to talk to her about the situation next time he saw her.

Meredith laughed as she looked at Derek, whose face radiated disappointment, "You're answering my texts without my input now?"

Derek smiled and joined Zola and Mer at the table and said, "Sorry. It was Jo. She wanted to know if you knew that Charlotte's boyfriend came over last night. Charlotte asked me and I said it was ok, so I let Jo know that." Turning toward Zola, Derek said, "So what are we making? A brain? A liver? A heart?"

Zola said, "We're making a shoe." Derek nodded slowly and began his masterpiece.

Meredith said with a sly tone, "So you said that it was ok for a 17 year old to have her boyfriend over when nobody else was here?"

"Yeah," Derek admitted. "Good thing Zola's not a teenager yet, I guess."

"Derek," Meredith continued, "Don't you remember being an 18 year old boy? Looking back, would you have left you with a teenage girl alone?"

With a flirty smile, Derek admitted, "I would've been more worried when I was 22. At 18, I was still a band nerd with bad hair and pimples all over my face. I'm not sure any girl would've given me a second look then."

Zola interrupted, "Daddy, let's make worms." She began rolling her play dough. Derek joined in as did Meredith.

Meredith offered, "When he gave her permission to go to Homecoming, Alex told Charlotte that the dance was the first thing off the table if she did anything out of line. I hope he doesn't enforce that over this – sounds possibly sneaky, but more like a misunderstanding."

Back at the Karev's, Jo's phone rang and she answered.

"Jo," the sweet voice said, "Sheryl Bauer. How are you?"

"Hi, Sheryl," Jo responded, "Ummm…we're dealing with some sticky situations over here that involve Charlotte and Matt. Do you have a minute?"

"Sure," Sheryl said sweetly. "Just don't let me forget that I'm calling about Wednesday. We need to figure out what time works best. I'm really looking forward to having you, Charlotte, and Alex over."

"Yeah, I'm not sure what we're going to do about that – it seems that our kids were together last night without any adults present," Jo explained. "Charlotte babysat for some friends of ours last night. We found out this morning that Charlotte invited Matt over once the kids were asleep."

"Ok," Sheryl said slowly. "As in, Charlotte and Matt were alone together? Is that what I'm hearing?"

Jo confirmed, "Yes, for about 3 hours."

"Well, I'm sure this is all some sort of misunderstanding. We both have great kids, Jo," Sheryl tried to rationalize.

"Apparently, our friend gave his permission, but our kids still ignored our rules. I thought you should know. If you knew something like this about Charlotte, I'd want you to let me know," Jo shared. "Alex and I sat down with Charlotte, but we haven't decided what to do yet. Technically, Charlotte knew that any issues would result in her attendance at homecoming being cancelled. I haven't had a chance to figure all this out with Alex yet."

"Oh my," Sheryl said with resignation. "I know for certain Matt was out last night. All he said was that he was going over to a friend's house. I'll talk with him and get back to you. Can we synchronize with each other about homecoming before we enforce anything with the kids? It would probably be best if you, Alex, and I had the same consequence on that."

"That's a great idea," Jo affirmed. "Let's be in touch."

Alex came in the door breathing heavily. "Who was that?" he asked as Jo finished her call.

"I just talked to Sheryl. We agreed to connect with each other before either us lays down the law with the kids," Jo explained.

Alex nodded and growled, "Good idea. The more I think about it, the more I want to throttle Matt. I know what 18 year old boys have on their minds and I don't want anyone picturing my daughter as part of it. And even after 5 miles, I still want to throttle Charlotte."

"Then stay away from her. She can stay in her room and stew," Jo offered. Alex nodded and went upstairs to shower.

As Alex approached his bedroom, Charlotte came out of the hall bath. When she saw him, she anxiously explained, "I'm headed right back to my room. I just needed to use the bathroom." Alex put up his hand and continued on to his room.

Charlotte checked her phone as she collapsed onto her bed. Matt had texted while she was in the other room. His text read, Guess Mom and Jo talked. Jo told her I was over last night. What's going on?

Charlotte wrote back, Long story, can you talk? Her phone was on silent so she watched for the screen to light up. If Alex or Jo heard the phone ring, they'd realize they hadn't confiscated it yet.

Matt called and Charlotte explained the breakfast and the fight she'd just had with her parents. She let Matt know what she'd told them, then suggested they get off the phone so they weren't overheard. Charlotte added, "I'm guessing my phone will be taken away any minute, so watch for my prepaid number instead, ok?" Last time Alex took her phone away, Matt bought her a prepaid phone so they could remain in touch. When Charlotte hung up, she cleared the call from her recent call list and deleted all the recent texts she'd exchanged with Matt.

Alex knocked on the door and asked if he could come in. Charlotte put her phone in her backpack as if she hadn't been using it and agreed. Alex stepped into the room a few steps and said, "Listen, I'm not talking about all this right now and, believe me, you don't want me to. Give me your phone, iPod, and the keys to your car." He walked over to her computer and removed the internet cable, then put his hand out and looked at the ceiling while he waited.

Charlotte gathered everything and handed the items to him. "Dad," she said softly, "I really didn't…"

Alex interrupted, "Charlotte. I clearly said I was not talking about this right now."

Bursting into tears, Charlotte exclaimed with full force drama, "Why won't you even hear me out? I'm not sure you've ever even loved me. You just took custody of me because you felt guilty."

Alex rolled his eyes, took a deep breath, and walked out the door. While heading downstairs, he tried to check the texts and calls, "Dammit," he grumbled when he saw there were no records for the day.