Happy Valentine's Day!

Don't kill me!

CH 35

"If you're not back in five minutes I'm coming to get you." Punk was leaning against the wall next to the door as my hand shook slightly on the doorknob.

I forced a laugh, not that I was amused at all. I was actually happy for his protective words, swallowing hard as I finally opened the door, "I'll be fine." I told him, though I think I was more trying to convince myself than him.

"Charlie." He grabbed my arm as I took a step out of the door, forcing me to blink back at him, ignoring the rapid beating of my heart. "Be careful." His look was serious and I did nothing more than nod before I stepped out into the hallway, keycard in hand.

I think the further away from Punk's room that I got, the harder I began to shake and by the time I had stopped in front of Mike's door, I could barely manage to get the damn key into the slot, though after a minute of trembling hands, I managed it at last.

The light turned green and I heard the tumblers moving around before I took one last deep breath and opened the door.

Mike was lying in bed as if he'd been expecting me, his expression bored, border lining annoyance. Blue eyes lifted from the screen of his phone to my face and I felt as though I'd been frozen in mid-step. "Thought you'd have come back last night." He looked back at his phone.

I was thankful for that because it allowed me to keep walking in, heading towards my suit case as I swallowed, "I stayed with someone else." It was the truth, just not quite all of it, and he seemed to know that as his eyes looked back up at me and he finally set his phone down.

"AJ and Eve?" He asked, sitting up slowly.

I shook my head, shoving a few of my things into my luggage before kneeling down to zip it up.

"Beth?"

"No…" I chewed on my lip nervously as I set the suitcase up and pulled out the handle so that I could wheel it away as fast as my legs would carry me.

"You called him, didn't you?"

I froze, complexion paling slightly, "W-who?" the word was no more than air leaving my lips.

"Punk." His own voice was low and still.

I felt the remaining color drain from my face and my heart jumped up into my throat. My head moved up and then down in a minute nod.

"Slut."

My head snapped to stare at him and I felt my pulse quicken, "Don't call me that."

"Why not?" He swung his legs over the side of the bed, leaning back onto his arms behind him and looking at me as though the conversation we were having was completely casual. "You have a plane ride with him all alone, spend the day with him, hang all over him right in front of me and then spend the night with him after telling me that you're in love with him." He shrugged, "I'm just calling it how I see it, and how I see it is that you're a cheating whore."

I clenched my jaw together, my fear of the man before me turning quickly into a rage. "Don't fucking call me a whore." Now it was my turn to have a tone that was low and dangerous.

I watched his face twist upwards in a cruel sort of smile. "Have I hit a nerve… Charlotte?"

My nostrils flared involuntarily and I took a long, slow breath. "I'm leaving now." And I started towards the door, tugging my bag behind me until he grabbed my arm.

Panic flared through my brain, but I stood my ground, grinding my teeth. "What? So you'll play me and sleep with him, but not stay here and fuck around behind Punk's back? Am I not good enough for you or what?" His fingers gripped into my arm a little tighter.

"No, it just so happens, that he actually apologizes after he acts like the biggest dick on the planet." I snapped, staring up at him defiantly, "And I didn't have sex with him. I was too busy freaking the fuck out because my boyfriend kicked me out of his car and left me stranded in the middle of mother fucking Cleveland, Ohio of all places."

"Ex-boyfriend." Mike corrected me, his face stony.

"Fine by me." I said, pursing my lips together and turning to leave again.

I made it just outside the door when I was face to face with Punk. We both blinked at each other for a moment before he spoke.

"I was coming to get you." He said, wearing a look of mild concern.

I offered a tired smile, "No need, I handled it." I told him easily, grabbing my suitcase and rolling it behind me as I started down the hall towards his room.

He lingered in front of Mike's door for a moment before turning to follow me. "So, what do you mean by handled it?"

I let him walk in front of me to unlock the door of his room and waited until we were securely locked inside before I spoke. "I got angry instead of crying." I offered with a soft laugh, setting my suitcase down on the floor and walking to the bed. I sat down with a soft sigh, running my hands through my hair as though it would relieve the stress I had just been feeling.

Punk's tone of voice told me he had his eyebrows raised, more than likely in an expression of surprise. "Well… That's… Uh…"

"Unexpected?" I offered with a tired laugh, looking up to see that I was right about his surprised eyebrows.

"I was going to say great." A smirk sneaked its way across his lips.

"I'm sure you were." I scrunched my face up, ruffling my hair before standing. I stared at the suitcase on the floor before moving to unzip it and rummaging through it until finding my beloved copy of Jane Eyre. I felt a sigh escape my lips as I flipped open one of the pages and pulled out a familiar black card and a flat, dried up, red rose.

"You're one in a million, you stick out from the crowd and in a sea of ordinary people, you bring excitement into my life. Happy birthday, Charlie."

I heaved a sigh as I read the words, rolling my eyes and standing, only to be forced to remember that I still had a book in my hands. As the tattered novel fell to the floor, the twelve pressed white roses spilling out and onto the ground.