A/N: I'm already back with more Chenry! As you can tell by the description, this story is set farther in the future and has a few flashbacks to their time in Dystopia (I just love the amount of potential there is for what the characters get up to in Dystopia and how things can change based on their newer grittier setting!). These chapters will be longer than Stay With Me's chapters, the chapters in this having at least 3k words. My update schedule now will be Monday's and Fridays, but I may change that as this isn't as written out as Stay With Me was (Stay With Me was on chapter six I believe when I first posted it, this story is currently at chapter five) and this will likely be longer. That being said, I want to thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy my latest piece of work!

(Warning: violence and death)

The streets of Dystopia were always a jungle that only the smartest could survive, especially at night. The young Dystopian man was born and raised on these streets and born into a never-ending cycle of toxicity and addiction. His mother had him young, she was only 15. His father was one of his grandmother's many boyfriends who saw her young daughter and decided he wanted her instead. This obviously wasn't the fault of the 15 year old girl, but his grandmother blamed her anyway and forced her to have him. That trauma had her rely on drugs, which was easy because his grandmother was on drugs. And now, here he was, 16 and dealing drugs.

He looked around nervously to make sure that no one was watching him as he stalked along the sidewalk. Music blared from karaoke bars, women giggled drunkenly with their friends, and men argued over gambling games. Dystopia was always active. He found the alleyway he was meant to do the deal and slipped into it. This was it, he was going to make big bank once he made this deal. He licked his lips nervously and looked around the dark alleyway.

"Hey," a deep voice called out and caused the boy to jump in a mix of fear and surprise. He turned towards it and saw a tall figure in the black hoodie he was supposed to give the drugs to. He let out a relieved sigh and reached into his bag to pull out a large brick of cocaine. The man took the brick and sniffed it, then nodded once and handed him a briefcase. Before the boy could take it, he heard a different voice.

"Not so fast!" He turned quickly and was met with a hard punch to the face. The other man grabbed his gun and started to fire as he started to run, but somehow the bullets bounced off and hit the pavement. He turned to run fully but was met with a fist as well then a swift snap of his neck. His body fell to the floor and the boy let out a shaky gasp as he saw him. He watched as the man who killed him reached down and grabbed the briefcase, opening it and whistling.

"Looks like an even 50k, bro."

"Noice, dude," the other said as he picked up the cocaine and sniffed it, "Smells like some good quality shit here. How'd you get this?" he asked as he grabbed the boy by his hoodie and yanked him up. The boy whimpered pitifully.

"I-I got it f-from Big D! I just sell whatever he smuggles!" he confessed. He was scared. This was a dangerous life he lived and he knew he could get killed at any moment. Maybe this was that moment. The men shared a look before the one holding him looked at him again.

"Big D huh? Interesting…how old are you?"

"S-sixteen!"

"A fucking kid…" The man dropped him back on the ground and kicked at him, "I'm gonna be nice and let you go home to mommy." The boy nodded rapidly and quickly got up, starting to run down the opposite end of the alley before stopping. He hesitated then turned towards them.

"The…the uh…"

"What?!" the other man roared and the boy wanted to run again.

"The…coke…" he squeaked out. Big D would kill him when he found out he not only lost the money but the coke as well.

"Is this little punk for real?" one of them muttered and the man who let him go chuckled darkly.

"I tried to help him, dude."

"You did, bro."

The man sauntered up to the boy, bouncing the brick in his hand idly, "Big D will kill you if you lose this, won't he?"

"Y-yeah…"

"Hm…then I'll just kill you first."

"No-" Bang! The boy's body hit the ground with a thud and blood began to pool around his head. The man stared down at the body of the dead sixteen year old. So young. A part of him felt bad about doing that, but then he told himself he'd be dead anyway and he just ended his eventual misery early. That's what he had to tell himself to keep himself from going insane with guilt.

"Let's get back home and see how good that coke really is, Hen," the other man said as he nudged his lifelong friend with the briefcase. He nodded and turned to walk with him.

"Right behind you, Jasp."

November was always a month that Charlotte struggled with, especially after she left Dystopia and began attending Stanford. She enjoyed seeing the leaves on the trees change color and the chill in the air start to roll in, allowing her to break out her favorite sweaters and boots. But it also meant that the holiday season was about to start - well, the season was starting, Thanksgiving was next week - and it was then that she missed her family and friends in Swellview the most. She could easily go back whenever she wanted to as Swellview was only a few hours away in a car, but she couldn't, and she hadn't in a long time.

She graduated from Stanford that past May, having double majored in quantum physics and astronomy - a stark change from her original intentions to study criminal justice then go to law school to become a lawyer, but criminal justice became tainted to her. When she originally arrived at Stanford, her intentions were to get her degree and maybe return to Swellview or go to New York, but she was never going to return to Dystopia. She was a planner, she enjoyed planning things out, but life forced her to roll with the punches. That was also what happened at college and now she was still in California with a diamond ring on her left ring finger and anxiety in her heart.

"Are you still not done packing? You said you wanted to hit the road by 10!" a voice said and pulled Charlotte out of her thoughts. She turned and smiled at the sight of Tatiana Stevens, one of her closest friends. When she arrived at Stanford, she made a goal to make more female friends, because having only two friends who were boys only brought her a lifetime of hell. Tatiana, Tati as everyone called her, was her roommate and the two clicked instantly. Tati was also an astronomy major and was a smart cookie, albeit a wild child who enjoyed partying and "getting lit" (Char quickly learned that meant getting high, drunk, or both). She was a gorgeous girl with soft light caramel skin, a full head of light brown loose curls that went down to her back, and chocolate brown eyes that seemed to invite any man in.

"I'm almost done," Charlotte responded and went over to her halfway packed suitcase, "Just got distracted by my thoughts."

"Girl," the other sighed in exasperation, "are you still overthinking this? See, I told you to go with Eddy instead of doing this." The shorter woman rolled her eyes as her friend started up on something she didn't care to hear about again.

"Tati, I told you-"

"-You can't go to Colombia because you're going back home to spend the holidays with family, I know!" the brunette finished with an eye roll as she helped her friend to fold her clothes, "I just don't get why! You have this sexy, delicious, gorgeous hunk of Latin man who wants to marry you and wants to take you to Colombia to meet the rest of his family but you'd rather go home to someplace no one's ever heard of!" Charlotte sighed and sat down on the bed. She heard all of that before and it was true. Eduardo Ariaz, Eddy as they all called him, was a gorgeous sociology major that Charlotte met during her freshman year while he was a sophomore. He was cute and charming, and he was clearly smitten with her instantly. She found him cute, she had perfect 20/20 vision of course, but she was scorned from things that happened in Dystopia so she refused to allow herself to get close to him. It took a lot of coaxing from Tati and Jasmine, another friend of hers, and Eddy asking her out ten times before she finally went on a date with him. Things hit off between them and after four years of dating, he proposed to her during her graduation party, and now she was going to marry him. And she was happy about it, she had to be happy.

"I have to go home, Tati. I haven't seen my mom in person in so long and I want to catch up with old friends too! This won't be the last time Eddy goes to Colombia anyway, I'll have more opportunities to go," Charlotte told her. When she started at Stanford, she went back home during winter break but the memories were just too much for her, so she stayed away after that. This would be her first time home in years and it made her incredibly anxious because she wondered if he'd be there too.

"Tati, get off her back, she wants to go home and we're supposed to support her," Jasmine said as she entered the room. She was younger than both of them, similar to Piper in that she started college young. Not as young as 14, but starting school at 16 based on her own intellect and majoring in chemical engineering with a minor in Russian language and literature was nothing to scoff at. She was also gorgeous with brown skin that matched Charlotte's, dimples that became more prominent whenever she smiled, round-framed glasses that couldn't hide her big beautiful brown eyes, and long braids that reached her lower back. She was also wise beyond her years, so she and Charlotte often were the voice of reason whenever Tatiana got up to something she shouldn't have despite the fact that she was only 20 while the others were 23.

"You're just saying that because you wanna meet Captain Man," Tatiana dismissed her with an eye roll and the younger girl beamed.

"True! I still can't believe you're from the same town as Captain Man, Char! And I finally get to go and meet him! I have so much stuff for him to sign," she gushed excitedly and Charlotte just laughed softly. She was going to bring her friends with her to meet her mom and old friends, and be her support in case anything happened. She hoped nothing would but she truly wasn't sure.

The girls finished packing up Charlotte's things and left the bedroom to take them out to the car. They shared an apartment that was near the university and their jobs. Charlotte worked as an assistant to her quantum physics professor and assisted with his research papers, having gotten rave recommendations from her professors and given a full time paying job. Jasmine had recently landed a job as a ceramics technology engineer, and Tatiana only got a degree to appease her parents and was hoping for a sugar daddy or a rich husband. They took out time for the holidays, Charlotte taking the most time as she planned on staying in Swellview until January. Jasmine would return to work after Christmas and Tati would just stay with her until they returned to Santa Clara. Charlotte was nervous about going home, but also excited to see her mother again and even getting to see Ray and Schwoz.

"So, is Swellview 420 friendly?" Tati asked as she got into the passenger seat. Charlotte climbed into the driver's seat and the youngest got into the back. The dark haired woman chuckled softly and put on her seatbelt.

"I'm not exactly sure, but I would just say don't be so open about it. The town is a little weird and the government is weirder. There are some laws that I barely understand," she chuckled as she started to drive. She was finally going to return home after three years, but first, she had to make a pit stop. After telling Eddy that she wasn't going to join him in Colombia, the two of them had a fight that reminded her of a fight she had once before.

"Babe, this isn't fair. I want you to meet my family and for them to see the beautiful woman I'm marrying!" Eddy complained as he sat shirtless on his bed. He looked up at his beautiful fiancé who stood by the window with her arms folded across her chest. She sighed and nodded in understanding.

"I understand honey, but I haven't been home in so long-"

"-So, go next year!" he cut her off as he stood up, "Or go when we return from Medellin, we'll be back after the new year."

"That's how long I want to stay in Swellview!" Charlotte argued and sighed, "My mom wrote me a whole letter saying how badly she missed me and wanted me back home for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Listen, I understand why you're upset, I would love to meet the rest of your family. But I've been a crappy daughter and I need to fix that." She walked up to him and moved her arms around his neck, pulling him down to kiss him softly, "Please understand, Eddy. Just this once." He sighed and wanted to argue more but he knew it was no use. When Charlotte Page set her mind on something, she was going to do it.

"Fine," he relented, "but if I go to Medellin and meet some fine girl there and she decides she wants me then…" He put his hands up and shrugged his shoulders as he backed away from her. She rolled her eyes and hit his chest gently.

"As if you'll meet someone finer than me!" she countered and he couldn't help but smile. The two laughed and shared a tight hug.

That was a few weeks ago and she had barely seen him since, and it kind of worried her. Eddy was a good guy but sometimes took things too personally and acted out when his feelings were hurt. He could be so childish sometimes. She pulled up to his house and took off her seatbelt, looking at her friends.

"Let me go say bye to him and I'll be right back."

"Alright, sis," Jasmine said as she looked at her phone.

"You better fuck him calm, we'll wait," Tati said with a cheeky smile that made Charlotte roll her eyes and laugh. She climbed out of the car and went up to the door, taking out the key that he gave her and unlocking it. She walked inside and closed the door behind her gently.

"Eddy?" she called out as she looked around the seemingly empty house. She made her way into the living room and looked around curiously then peeked inside the kitchen, seeing no sign of her fiancé. She was about to take out her phone and call him when she heard a noise upstairs. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and made her way up the creaky old stairs.

"Oi! Is someone there?!" she heard him call out and she chuckled.

"It's me, baby!" she called back as she reached the top of the stairs. She made her way to his bedroom and heard rushed movements and soft curses as she neared the door. She thought he was probably sleeping and she startled him until she heard something else.

A voice.

A woman's voice.

Charlotte felt her heart pounding against her chest as her stomach began to twist up in anxious knots. She quickly turned the knob and shoved the door open, gasping when she saw Eddy scrambling to pull a pair of sweatpants onto his naked body and a girl in his bed with the sheets over her chest. He looked up and his eyes stretched in surprise as he fell with only one leg in his sweats.

"Fuck, Char!" he gasped out as he hit the floor.

"Oh my God…" she breathed out as she backed away from the doorway. She felt her body shake as she took in the sight and processed what was happening. He was cheating on her. The man she had been with for four years and was going to marry was cheating on her. She felt sick to her stomach.

"B-baby, it's not what it looks like!" he tried to explain as he finally got his pants on, "I don't know this girl!" The girl in his bed gasped and threw a pillow at him.

"You said you loved me!" she whined in an obnoxiously high-pitched voice. Charlotte just shook her head and ran from the door. Eddy swore and quickly ran after his fiancé, chasing her down the stairs.

"Baby, baby, wait!" he pleaded and grabbed her arm when they reached the bottom of the stairs. She snatched her arm away from him and whipped around to look at him with tears running down her face.

"How could you?!" she cried out, "Four years, Eduardo! Four fucking years and you threw it all away because I want to go home?! Because I want to see my fucking mom?! I never knew you were so damn selfish!"

"That's not it! Let me just explain, Char," he begged her and reached for her again but she shoved his chest.

"No, screw you!" she spat and stormed out of the house, ignoring his pleas. She ran to the car and quickly got back into the driver's seat, sobbing as she slammed the door shut.

"What happened?!" a worried Jasmine asked.

"I-I caught him screwing someone else!" the heartbroken woman explained between her devastated sobs.

"Oh my God…"

"Bet, I'm beating his ass," Tati said simply as she opened her door.

"No! No, no, let's just go!" Charlotte cried and wiped her eyes to stop the flood of tears but they kept coming. She attempted to put the car into drive but her hands were so shaky and her vision was so blurred by her tears that she couldn't even see what she was doing.

"You're in no state to drive," Jasmine reasoned and got out of the car. Charlotte just slumped against the steering wheel as she wailed, her entire body shaking with her pained sobs. She could hear Jasmine coaxing her to get out of the car, Eddy calling her name and begging her to talk to him, and Tatiana cursing him out and threatening him with her taser. It was all too much, and she couldn't handle it at all. She finally got out of the car and got into the back per Jasmine's instructions, covering her ears to ignore Eddy's pleas. As the youngest demanded Tati get back in the car and put her taser away then started to drive off once she did, Charlotte put her knees up and laid her head against them, soaking her pants with her tears.

As anxious as she was about going home to Swellview, at that moment, it was the only thing she wanted to do.