On the way home, Charli made up her mind not to tell Shelby, or
anyone, about her and Oz. She walked into her house, dropping her keys on
the table beside the door. She looked around at everything, neat and in
its place, as it always was.
She laughed as she thought of Oz's furniture-less apartment, at how different it was from her home. Charli lived in the house she had once shared with her mother, before she died. Of course, her father lived there too, if you could call him one. If he wasn't away on business (which he was, most of the time), he was criticizing Charli for anything from her lousy job (which earned her more money than him job earned him) to her hair, to her wardrobe. Nothing could please the man. Not since Charli's mother passed.
She skipped happily up the stairs, thinking of her new love. She dropped off to sleep in a chair by the big bay window in her room, not bothering to change her clothes.
The phone rang, waking Nikki up. She looked at the clock. "Eight-thirty. Who calls people that early?" she asked herself, reaching for the phone.
"Hello?" she asked sleepily into the receiver.
"Hey, it's Shelby," said the voice on the other end.
"Oh, hey." Charli began to wake up. "What's up?"
"I wanted to apologize. for the way I acted last night," Shelby said. "It's ok. I'm sorry I jumped all over you, too." "So where did you go last night, anyway?" Shelby asked curiously. Charli silently cursed. "Oh, I just walked a little," she finally replied, telling herself that her answer was not a lie. at least not a big one. "Oh," Shelby replied. "Did you find Oz?" Charli panicked. She was a terrible liar. "Uh, listen, Shell, there's someone on the other line, I'll talk to you later!" she said hurriedly, hanging up the phone before Shelby had a chance to answer. "I'm so dead," she moaned, standing up and tossing the phone onto her bed. The phone rang again, causing her to jump. She grabbed for the phone, praying that it wouldn't be Shelby on the line. "Hello?" she asked timidly. "Uh. Hi," came, not Shelby's voice, but to Charli's happy surprise, Oz's. "Hi!" she said, stepping backward to sit on the bed. She missed, landed on the floor, and dropped the phone. On the line, Oz heard a crash, and then Charli's distant voice calling for him to not hang up. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" she called, finally untangling her legs and reaching the phone. "Are you still there?" "Yeah. Everything ok?" he asked. "Yeah, I just. fell off the bed." She meant to lie. She really did. "Oh, did I wake you up?" he asked, kicking himself. "No! I was just on the phone with. my publicist." She couldn't make herself bring up Shelby. "Oh," he said. "You have a publicist?" He was very confused. "Don't you?" she asked in an embarrassed half-laugh. He didn't answer. "So I didn't know you ever got up this early." "I don't," he groaned. "But my band is moving toward this new sound where we suck, so. practice." "Are you going to be gone all day?" "Yeah, but I was thinking that maybe after I could come by and we can do the dinner thing. I can bring something, and maybe a movie?" "You get the movie, I'll do the dinner thing," Charli offered, smiling excitedly to herself. "You're smiling," he said, now smiling as well. "How do you know?" she asked playfully. "You weren't smiling when you answered the phone, you sounded. not smiley. But now you're happy. That makes me happy." Charli's smile widened. "I'm glad. So when will I see you?" she asked. "Might be a little on the later side. Nine? I'll call you during a break, if you want." "Ok, sounds great. I'll see you later," she said, hanging up the phone.
Charli decided to drive to the edge of town where a small market was set up during the week. She wanted the first time she cooked for Oz to be perfect. She spent the morning in the sun, picking out the very best fruits and vegetables. She decided to make steak. She was good at steak. Guys loved steak. And so did she. She got home with a large basket full of fresh food, and began to prepare the marinade for the steak. She used her own special recipe to make the steak delicious. She put dough in her bread maker, hoping it would be ready in time for Oz. Upon finishing, she ran upstairs to shower. She took her time, letting the warm water run down her body. She looked forward to a fantastic evening as she blow-dried her hair. "What to wear. what to wear." she repeated to herself, rummaging through her closet. She had never really thought so much about it before. She settled on a pair of comfortable, baby pink cargo pants and a brown top with a wide right shoulder and attached scarf. She walked around the house in her bathrobe, her hair in curlers. She needlessly cleaned the house, as if habitually. It was always spotless, but she straightened the couch pillows and set out nice "coffee table books" anyway. At six-thirty, Oz called to say he would be there around nine, which was perfect since Charli hadn't started the rest of dinner. She quickly prepared the most beautiful salad in history, creating layers of colorful, exotic vegetables. She even made her own ranch dressing. She iced a bottle of red wine, took out the bread to cool, and planned to bake potatoes in her microwave. Charli couldn't decide where they should eat. Inside or outside? Dining room or living room? She settled on a nice medium, the atrium, which, while completely walled in to keep out bugs and weather, was made mostly of windows for a lovely view of the great outdoors. She set the table very carefully, not wanting a thing out of place. As a last-minute touch, she placed a home-made flower arrangement at the center of the table. Eight came and Charli ran upstairs to get ready. She rubbed lotion on her arms and legs, leaving the faint scent of chocolate on her soft skin. She dressed and took the curlers out of her hair. She decided to leave it down, letting the curls fall loosely over her shoulders and down her back. She even put on a little more makeup than was normal - nothing outrageous; she simply added a few highlights here and there. Eight-thirty chimed on her grandfather clock, and she quickly ran back downstairs to light the grill outside. She was watching the steak when Oz arrived on her doorstep. After ringing the doorbell several times with no answer, he began to worry. He tried the door. It opened silently. He walked slowly into the house, afraid Charli would be in some kind of trouble. He saw her, standing outside in front of the lighted grill. Her warm breath created smoke in the air. She hopped on her bare feet, rubbing her arms for warmth, occasionally poking at whatever was on the grill. He sighed. Just before crossing the threshold of her house and entering into his first date with Charli, he whispered, "Remember to breathe." He set the movie down on her coffee table and walked outside to join her. She looked up from the grill and a huge smile crossed her face. "Hi!" she said, allowing him to scoop her up in his arms and kiss her. He set her down, still holding her close. "How was your day?" "It's weird, actually, cause. you know when you have something to look forward to at the end of the day, so it seems to go by a little faster. but at the same time, a lot slower, because you want to be somewhere else?" "I think I know what you mean," she said, nuzzling his neck. The steak was done. Charli brought it inside and began setting her delicious meal on the table. Oz looked on in awe. "You cooked all this?" he asked. "Surprised?" she winked. "Well it's just. you don't seem like the cooking type. I know you did Thanksgiving, but that's Thanksgiving. everyone cooks on Thanksgiving." "I do pretty well on special occasions," she said, passing him the salad. "This is almost too pretty to eat," he said staring at it. "I'm really sorry about calling you so early, but I didn't know if I'd get another chance," he said. "I didn't mean to wake you up." "Oh, you didn't! I was already on the phone." she trailed off. "So when did Shelby become your publicist?" She could tell he wasn't mad. "When I decided that we should talk about Shelby in person," she said, opening the end for the unavoidable Shelby talk. "Did you tell her that we." "Even if I had tried, I wouldn't have known what to say. I mean, we're not exactly a couple, but. We're not really dating. This isn't normal. I feel like we already dated, and this is like stage two or something. Do you feel like that?" "Kind of. In all the time that I've known you, I've never really known you. But I know you too well to just be dating you." "I'm glad that makes sense to you, too. Out loud it sounds kind of nuts." "So we'll call it a between stage. Exclusive, even," he concluded. "Agreed," Charli said. "So how do we tell Shelby?" "I. don't know. But we have to tell her something." "Well I have to. I think she might understand it better coming from me. I mean... well, you know what I mean." "As long as you don't mind telling her," he agreed. "Not at all." She took a bite of steak. "Until I tell her, I think we should keep it on the quiet side."
She laughed as she thought of Oz's furniture-less apartment, at how different it was from her home. Charli lived in the house she had once shared with her mother, before she died. Of course, her father lived there too, if you could call him one. If he wasn't away on business (which he was, most of the time), he was criticizing Charli for anything from her lousy job (which earned her more money than him job earned him) to her hair, to her wardrobe. Nothing could please the man. Not since Charli's mother passed.
She skipped happily up the stairs, thinking of her new love. She dropped off to sleep in a chair by the big bay window in her room, not bothering to change her clothes.
The phone rang, waking Nikki up. She looked at the clock. "Eight-thirty. Who calls people that early?" she asked herself, reaching for the phone.
"Hello?" she asked sleepily into the receiver.
"Hey, it's Shelby," said the voice on the other end.
"Oh, hey." Charli began to wake up. "What's up?"
"I wanted to apologize. for the way I acted last night," Shelby said. "It's ok. I'm sorry I jumped all over you, too." "So where did you go last night, anyway?" Shelby asked curiously. Charli silently cursed. "Oh, I just walked a little," she finally replied, telling herself that her answer was not a lie. at least not a big one. "Oh," Shelby replied. "Did you find Oz?" Charli panicked. She was a terrible liar. "Uh, listen, Shell, there's someone on the other line, I'll talk to you later!" she said hurriedly, hanging up the phone before Shelby had a chance to answer. "I'm so dead," she moaned, standing up and tossing the phone onto her bed. The phone rang again, causing her to jump. She grabbed for the phone, praying that it wouldn't be Shelby on the line. "Hello?" she asked timidly. "Uh. Hi," came, not Shelby's voice, but to Charli's happy surprise, Oz's. "Hi!" she said, stepping backward to sit on the bed. She missed, landed on the floor, and dropped the phone. On the line, Oz heard a crash, and then Charli's distant voice calling for him to not hang up. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" she called, finally untangling her legs and reaching the phone. "Are you still there?" "Yeah. Everything ok?" he asked. "Yeah, I just. fell off the bed." She meant to lie. She really did. "Oh, did I wake you up?" he asked, kicking himself. "No! I was just on the phone with. my publicist." She couldn't make herself bring up Shelby. "Oh," he said. "You have a publicist?" He was very confused. "Don't you?" she asked in an embarrassed half-laugh. He didn't answer. "So I didn't know you ever got up this early." "I don't," he groaned. "But my band is moving toward this new sound where we suck, so. practice." "Are you going to be gone all day?" "Yeah, but I was thinking that maybe after I could come by and we can do the dinner thing. I can bring something, and maybe a movie?" "You get the movie, I'll do the dinner thing," Charli offered, smiling excitedly to herself. "You're smiling," he said, now smiling as well. "How do you know?" she asked playfully. "You weren't smiling when you answered the phone, you sounded. not smiley. But now you're happy. That makes me happy." Charli's smile widened. "I'm glad. So when will I see you?" she asked. "Might be a little on the later side. Nine? I'll call you during a break, if you want." "Ok, sounds great. I'll see you later," she said, hanging up the phone.
Charli decided to drive to the edge of town where a small market was set up during the week. She wanted the first time she cooked for Oz to be perfect. She spent the morning in the sun, picking out the very best fruits and vegetables. She decided to make steak. She was good at steak. Guys loved steak. And so did she. She got home with a large basket full of fresh food, and began to prepare the marinade for the steak. She used her own special recipe to make the steak delicious. She put dough in her bread maker, hoping it would be ready in time for Oz. Upon finishing, she ran upstairs to shower. She took her time, letting the warm water run down her body. She looked forward to a fantastic evening as she blow-dried her hair. "What to wear. what to wear." she repeated to herself, rummaging through her closet. She had never really thought so much about it before. She settled on a pair of comfortable, baby pink cargo pants and a brown top with a wide right shoulder and attached scarf. She walked around the house in her bathrobe, her hair in curlers. She needlessly cleaned the house, as if habitually. It was always spotless, but she straightened the couch pillows and set out nice "coffee table books" anyway. At six-thirty, Oz called to say he would be there around nine, which was perfect since Charli hadn't started the rest of dinner. She quickly prepared the most beautiful salad in history, creating layers of colorful, exotic vegetables. She even made her own ranch dressing. She iced a bottle of red wine, took out the bread to cool, and planned to bake potatoes in her microwave. Charli couldn't decide where they should eat. Inside or outside? Dining room or living room? She settled on a nice medium, the atrium, which, while completely walled in to keep out bugs and weather, was made mostly of windows for a lovely view of the great outdoors. She set the table very carefully, not wanting a thing out of place. As a last-minute touch, she placed a home-made flower arrangement at the center of the table. Eight came and Charli ran upstairs to get ready. She rubbed lotion on her arms and legs, leaving the faint scent of chocolate on her soft skin. She dressed and took the curlers out of her hair. She decided to leave it down, letting the curls fall loosely over her shoulders and down her back. She even put on a little more makeup than was normal - nothing outrageous; she simply added a few highlights here and there. Eight-thirty chimed on her grandfather clock, and she quickly ran back downstairs to light the grill outside. She was watching the steak when Oz arrived on her doorstep. After ringing the doorbell several times with no answer, he began to worry. He tried the door. It opened silently. He walked slowly into the house, afraid Charli would be in some kind of trouble. He saw her, standing outside in front of the lighted grill. Her warm breath created smoke in the air. She hopped on her bare feet, rubbing her arms for warmth, occasionally poking at whatever was on the grill. He sighed. Just before crossing the threshold of her house and entering into his first date with Charli, he whispered, "Remember to breathe." He set the movie down on her coffee table and walked outside to join her. She looked up from the grill and a huge smile crossed her face. "Hi!" she said, allowing him to scoop her up in his arms and kiss her. He set her down, still holding her close. "How was your day?" "It's weird, actually, cause. you know when you have something to look forward to at the end of the day, so it seems to go by a little faster. but at the same time, a lot slower, because you want to be somewhere else?" "I think I know what you mean," she said, nuzzling his neck. The steak was done. Charli brought it inside and began setting her delicious meal on the table. Oz looked on in awe. "You cooked all this?" he asked. "Surprised?" she winked. "Well it's just. you don't seem like the cooking type. I know you did Thanksgiving, but that's Thanksgiving. everyone cooks on Thanksgiving." "I do pretty well on special occasions," she said, passing him the salad. "This is almost too pretty to eat," he said staring at it. "I'm really sorry about calling you so early, but I didn't know if I'd get another chance," he said. "I didn't mean to wake you up." "Oh, you didn't! I was already on the phone." she trailed off. "So when did Shelby become your publicist?" She could tell he wasn't mad. "When I decided that we should talk about Shelby in person," she said, opening the end for the unavoidable Shelby talk. "Did you tell her that we." "Even if I had tried, I wouldn't have known what to say. I mean, we're not exactly a couple, but. We're not really dating. This isn't normal. I feel like we already dated, and this is like stage two or something. Do you feel like that?" "Kind of. In all the time that I've known you, I've never really known you. But I know you too well to just be dating you." "I'm glad that makes sense to you, too. Out loud it sounds kind of nuts." "So we'll call it a between stage. Exclusive, even," he concluded. "Agreed," Charli said. "So how do we tell Shelby?" "I. don't know. But we have to tell her something." "Well I have to. I think she might understand it better coming from me. I mean... well, you know what I mean." "As long as you don't mind telling her," he agreed. "Not at all." She took a bite of steak. "Until I tell her, I think we should keep it on the quiet side."
