The Average Man

How the times have changed, and I'm not talking about the twenties, folks.

Just this past week I've found myself looking for my Charlie doll at every turn, always wondering where she was at and wanting to know what she was up to. It don't seem five minutes since it was the other way around.

I remember when she used to come looking for me, turning up at my Emporium dying to see the old shadowman. Now it was always me who was looking for her. At least I had a lucky day when her momma wasn't around. She'd already gone to the studio that morning thinking that her little girl was gonna be alone in her room all day. With me around, my Charlie doll hardly had a minute to herself.

I decided I was gonna sneak in and try and surprise her this time, even though I was turning up on her doorstep every day now and she was probably expecting me anyways. I opened the door a jar just so that my shadow could swiftly glide his way inside and case the joint. She wasn't in the livingroom, this was my cue to make a quiet entrance.

Unlike my front gate, this hotel room door opened without a sound. Not a single squeak and I wouldn't expect it from a classy business like this. I crept around the corner, letting my shadow lead as he wasn't nearly as conspicuous. It wasn't long before I knew where she was, and no prizes for guessing she was in her room. Ain't just that it makes sense that she'd be chilling in there, but there was another clue that gave the game away.

I could hear music playing from one of the rooms, the muffled sound humming through the closed bedroom door. It had a beat to it, but it was pretty relaxing kinda stuff. I think I'd heard her play this kinda tune on her phone before. What'd she say it was called? Chill out?

'…#That night I laid my eyes on you, felt everything around me move#…'

I could make out some of the words as I sneaked up against the wall. 'Pretty apt lyrics' I thought to myself as I managed to pry the door open a jar, just enough to let my shadow make a fast move and get his ass inside. I waited behind the door, waiting for him to slither on out and let me know what she was up to.

"Oh? What are you doing here?"

Awh, crap. Don't tell me she spotted him.

"Michael? Is that you?" She spotted him alright.

I guess the game was up. I threw out my hand and casually tossed the door open. I took only two steps before folding my arms and leaning against the frame, now in full view for those sapphire eyes to admire. "I can see I'm gonna have to up my game." I raised the rim of my hat, allowing my own eyes to get a good look of the dish lying across the sun-soaked bed with the golden light glittering all over her snowy skin. "It's gettin' harder to fool you, girl."

I saw those pink cheeks tighten with a smug smile, which I gotta say was a little unlike her. I know she ain't usually the smug type.

"I was expecting you." My Charlie doll lifted her chest off the sheets and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. I watched those C-cups bounce around a little as she picked herself up. I couldn't help it, how could a gentleman like myself not notice?

"I figure you're always expecting me by now." I pushed my shoulder off the doorframe, eager to take a seat beside my favourite little femme fatale. I'd already notice when I walked in that she'd been reading her magic book again. (You know I was paying attention to other things besides her breasts, alright? I ain't no pervert or nothing). "So what have you been up to this mornin'?"

"Looking for a spell for Cameron."

"Cameron?" That froggy Tiana's granddaughter? "You're not tellin' me she knows?"

My doll nodded. "She knows. And she wants me to help Queen Tiana be reunited with King Naveen in the next life." At least that's all the royal broad was asking for. "Have you ever heard of Mortè Legamè?" My doll quizzed my knowledge.

Okay, I'd actually heard of that one, but I really didn't know much about it 'cause it wasn't voodoo. "Uh, nope." I lied, wanting her to tell me more.

"It's a spell, for fusing two souls." She clarified. "And I'm going to ask Suenamoon to perform the spell on Tiana when she gets here."

I couldn't help but wonder why she was going through all this effort. "Can't cha do it yourself?"

"No." My Charlie doll looked away for a second or two. "And there's only three Gods in existence that can. Suenamoon is one of them."

"Shame the Loa couldn't give her a hand. I'm sure they'd appreciate another soul working for them." I wasn't being serious, but somehow Charlie didn't appreciate my humour.

"No-one wants to be in debt to the Loa, Michael." Awh, crap. She lost her smile.

"I know." I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly. "I was just joshin'." Yeah, that was a bad move. "But anyways, you don't need to be worryin' about that. You're gonna pull that spell off and hit the nail on the head next time, right?"

She nodded sweetly as an innocent smile started to grow back where it belonged. "And this time I won't be needed this to help me." Charlie swayed her hand and closed the weighty cover on her book.

Wait a sec, was she ditching her grimoire? "Sweetheart? What are ya talkin' about?"

She reached for my hands and looked at me with a twinkle in her eyes from the sunlight. "Thanks to you, I know now that I don't need my book and I don't need to make my magic any stronger." She glanced out of the window for a curious moment. "I need to make myself stronger."

This was news to me. Here I thought she was gonna have to spend any free time she had reading her magic book and studying like a teenager in college. That's what she'd done the whole time up to now. But now she was telling me that she had a change of plan?

"It's not my magic. It's me." My Charlie doll kept on taking as she stared out into the city with her face still glowing in the morning sun. "I need to make myself more confident. And I need to stop worrying about what might happen if things go wrong. That's why I failed last time, because I doubted myself."

You know, she was actually making a lot of sense. Only problem was I didn't know if this was good news or bad news. Sure, I knew that the better she got the harder it was gonna be for me to stop her when the time came. But I kinda wanted to see her get just a little better before that time. I liked watching her improve, she was almost as good as me now.

"So, what?" I wanted to clear all this up. "You gonna just stick to instinct from now on?"

"In a nutshell."

'Nutcase' was more like it. This was a pretty brave move and it was either gonna backfire horribly, or be the smartest decision this doll had ever made.

It ain't often that I find myself speechless since I'm a pretty shrewd man and I'm good at knowing just what to say at just the right time. But I didn't know if I wanted to give her some support or kindly warn her to back off. I gladly welcomed a change of topic when my Charlie asked me about something a little easier to think about.

"So why did you come to visit me today?" My doll cut herself off from her city-staring and looked back at me.

That was a good question, and I thought I would have an easier time replying this time. But I didn't wanna make a wrong move and cause her to shy away like she used to in the past.

"I've been thinking." I started to put it the way I thought it would sound best. "I'm gettin' pretty tired of just hanging around the hotel or crashing at my place every time I want to spend some time with ya." What can I say? I wanted to get outta this old place, I wanted to go explore with her, I wanted to do something with her beside my job. "How about we take a day off from this soul-savin' business? Huh?"

It would tear her away from her studies and make me happy at the same time. Two for the price of one.

I saw Charlie's smile shrink and her eyes widen as she blinked like she was astonished. "Are you asking me on a date?"

Geez, I hadn't thought of putting it like that. But heck, to tell you the truth I liked the sound of it. "Alright, you can call it a date if you want." I played along.

I thought she would start smiling at me again, but instead she gave me quite a confused little frown. "This is all happening in a very bizarre order."

I didn't follow. "What d'ya mean?"

"Well, isn't the usual routine for a relationship supposed to be date first and then sex?" She let loose a blushy snicker at the naughtiness of the idea. "We've done it the other way around."

I couldn't help but flash a sly grin. I got a pretty strong feeling of self-satisfaction since I was reminded that I took my Charlie doll to bed before I took her out.

"Well, I'm not exactly your average man." I slid an arm under her knees and placed the other behind her back. I lifted her up off the mattress, listening to her delightful little squeals and giggles. "I mean, c'mon Charlie doll." I dropped her down on the bed, crawling over her body ready to flirt my stuff. "Can an average man do this?" I smothered her neck with kisses, breathing in the scent from her hair as an additional bonus. I expected those bursts of laughter to be accompanied by little squeals of protest. Any second now I was waiting to hear that shy little 'stop it, stop it' whispering in my ear. But instead she just laid there and let it happen. Letting me in and embracing all I had to give. This was new to me, let me tell ya. New and very much welcomed.

As satisfying as this little shenanigan was, I couldn't stay stuck on her body all day, (even though I gladly would've, believe me). I indulged for a few moments before giving it a rest and taking the time to leer into her eyes like I always love to. "So how about it, Charlie doll." I gave her a seductive smirk. "Think you can tear yourself away from your spells for one day?"

She stared back at my lustful leer for the first time with confidence. "I think I can manage that." No wonder she was smirking right back. Right after those words left her lips she lifted her hand and set free a little blue spark. I felt my hat, slide down all by itself and cover up my eyes.

I just laid there as my grin turned into a chuckle. What was this? Her attempt at a pathetic little joke? No, this was just her way of poking some fun back at me. I love it when she didn't behave herself, even if they were just subtle moments of playful mischief I loved it all the same.

Even though I was tempted to join in and maybe get a little sexy with her, I felt my Charlie doll shuffle around under my body like she was trying to sit back up. I guess the fun was just gonna have to be brief for today, but that didn't mean that I wasn't satisfied with the little taste I had.

I pushed myself off her curvy body, giving her a hand too as I pulled her up off her pillow. And of course, restoring my vision by pulling my hat back to a more comfortable position.

"If we may." Charlie tried to make a suggestion as she sat up on the bed. "I'd prefer it if we could go out in the evening when it's getting dark. That way I'm less likely to be spotted by anyone who might report my sighting to the media. Goodness knows I'm not one to seek out the spotlight, unlike my mother. The narcissist that she is."

Myself, I loved being the centre of attention. But I knew how my doll rolled. "Yeah, I get what cha sayin'." I shrugged. "You got anywhere in mind?"

Charlie started staring out of the window again like the city was more beautiful to look at than the handsome gent sat on her bed. "I'd like to go somewhere modern." She proposed. "Somewhere where there's music."

Hang on a sec. "That sounds like a club to me." I now got the impression she was hoping to take me out drinking or dancing or something. "Are you sure that's what you'd be lookin' for?"

"I'm fairly sure." She sure sounded sure. "For the moment at least. I'll take a look on my phone later and see if I can find somewhere appropriate."

"Hey listen." I had to express a little concern here. "I was thinkin' that maybe you'd suggest going somewhere remote where you'd feel safe. Somewhere where there was fresh air, you know?" I wanted to know what made her wanna take a leap like this. "So what's got you jumpin' in at the deep end all of a sudden?"

Her answer was short and sweet, just like her. "Confidence, Michael Facilier. Confidence." My Charlie doll shuffled to the side of the bed and slid her tush off the edge. Now she was on her feet she could turn herself around to face me without the sun in her eyes. Pity, she was kinda pretty in the sunlight. "If I can go out and actually enjoy myself for once in my life then it would help me towards mastering that spell."

Sunlight or no sunlight, I couldn't take my eyes off her. She wanted to test her confidence, and I wanted to have some fun. Looks like we might both be satisfied by the end of the night. And look at it this way: If she faltered, it would jeopardise her spell and make my job easier. If she survived without slipping up, then I'd enjoy my evening.

I loved her idea, and I couldn't wait to make it happen. "Sounds like a good plan, sweetheart." I beamed her a gentleman smile as I looked her up and down one last time.

Seemed like I had a pleasant few days lined up for me, and I still wasn't finished with this one. Charlie's mom was out for the day and my doll had decided not to spend the day studying. Looks like I had her all to myself for the rest of the day.