"Char, you'll never believe what happened," Henry said with a laugh as he left the tube and entered the Man's Nest. The Danger Force kids and a pouty Ray were behind him, the oldest man running over to stand in front of his former sidekick.

"Shut up, dude!" Ray said with a petulant whine. The blond just walked past him and approached Charlotte as she sat by the tablets, typing whatever she was typing into it. She didn't even bother to look up at him but he didn't notice just yet.

"So, they're fighting Frankini, right? The kids have him cornered but of course, Ray needs to be the center of attention so he jumps in and Frankini tickles him, and Ray pisses his pants," he said. Charlotte stayed silent as he and the kids laughed at Ray's expense. Once she noticed the time, she stood up and looked past Henry to look at Ray.

"I'm heading home," she said simply before walking away. The blond raised an eyebrow at that and looked at Ray who was just as confused. He turned his attention to Charlotte again and followed her to the tube.

"Uh…see you tomorrow?" She looked at him and hesitated before exhaling softly and waving.

"Bye."

Henry stood there completely dumbfounded as she disappeared when the tube went down in a quick blur. That was odd. They had been on really good terms recently but suddenly she was acting as if he had the bubonic plague. He wondered what the hell happened in the time they were gone for her to be so different. Unfortunately, he wasn't the only one to notice her weird shift in behavior.

"Dude, did you wazz in her coffee or something?" Ray asked. Henry shrugged and turned to look at him.

"No idea what that was about. But the only one who wazzed around here was you," he said, prompting everyone but Ray to burst into laughter. As the older man whined and demanded everyone stop laughing at him, Henry turned towards the tube again and looked at it curiously. What was up with Charlotte?

A few days later, a still sullen Charlotte was in Piper's room, needing an escape from the heat and also in need of some advice. She knew it may not have been a good idea to come to Henry's sister, but she felt like she really couldn't talk to her mother about it and she didn't want to bother Jasmine with more problems about her relationship with Henry. Besides, she knew her answer would just be to ignore Camille and get back together with him. She was still team "Chenry" as she always said. But she didn't need a "Chenry" supporter or a mother who was always on her side, she needed someone who was objective and blunt. And that would always be Piper Hart.

"Whew! It is hotter than Jasper after the gym out there," Piper said as she entered the room with two glasses of lemonade. Charlotte chuckled softly and nodded in agreement as she took her lemonade. The blonde sat next to her and took a sip of her drink with a pleased sigh. "I love summer because I can wear cute clothes but the heat and the bugs are hell."

"Tell me about it," the older woman said with a small chuckle. She looked down at her drink and idly traced her finger around the rim. Piper noticed and watched her curiously for a few seconds before speaking up.

"Okay, what's up with you?" she inquired. The dark-haired woman looked up at her and bit down on her lip.

"Oh. Can you tell something is wrong?"

"Duh," she said with an eye roll. "Plus Hen has been complaining to me and Jasp that you've been acting super weird at work and you won't respond to his texts or calls. Did he fuck one of your friends again or something?" Charlotte rolled her eyes and laughed softly as she shook her head.

"No…no, he didn't do anything wrong. I did…" She stood up and folded her arms as she walked over to the window. She pulled the curtain aside and looked out of it somberly, watching as Henry and Jasper spoke idly on the sidewalk. She missed him. It had only been a few days of barely talking to him and she already missed him more than she thought she would. Naturally, it was his friendship she missed and nothing more than that. But she missed him nonetheless. The younger Hart watched her curiously and twirled her hair around her finger idly.

"What did you do?" she asked. The elder inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly as she turned to look at her friend again. She leaned against the window and nervously played with the hem of her tank top.

"Tell me…is Henry still in love with me?"

"Duh, is water wet? Are boys stupid? Am I gorgeous? Of course, he's still in love with you!" she answered with an eye roll. Charlotte groaned loudly and leaned her head back.

"No! I thought he was over me since he's with Camille, you know? I was gone for half a year! He didn't get over me in that time?"

"You two didn't speak for four years, did you get over him in that time?" At that, Charlotte could only close her eyes and feel her body deflate a little. Damn, now she was kind of regretting coming to someone who was so damn honest.

"Camille told me to stop talking to Henry," she said. The blonde guffawed and raised an eyebrow as she looked at her.

"And you were insane enough to actually do it?! I would've told her to kiss my ass!" she exclaimed.

"She said I destroyed him," she explained as she opened her eyes. "And I think I did. I mean, I focused so much on how I was feeling and how hurt I was that I never thought about him. He was a mess…how could I have been so selfish?" Her voice started to waver and she bit down on her bottom lip to calm herself down. Piper frowned as she watched her.

"Char, you both were a mess and you were both trying to understand your feelings. He used drugs to mask them while you just felt them and expressed them. You weren't selfish, you were just…human." The older woman nodded slowly as she let the words simmer. Just human. She was being human but for some reason, that was hard for her to accept and admit. She had spent her entire life being the Smart One, the one who always thought ahead and was critical about things. But when emotions came into it, she wasn't the Smart One anymore. She was human. And she hated it.

"I'm not used to this," she breathed out as she sat next to the young blonde. "I'm not used to thinking with my emotions instead of my brain." The blonde gave her a sympathetic smile and rubbed her hand gently.

"Love turns us into different people. If you told me when I was ten that the guy that I hate and didn't even want in my house would be the one guy I can trust enough to be vulnerable with and that I'd fall in love with him, I would've called you insane," Piper said with a laugh. Charlotte laughed as well and nodded in understanding.

The girls spoke casually as they enjoyed their lemonade. Charlotte missed this too, she missed having the freedom to just sit around and beat the heat with a cool drink while talking about everything with a friend she could truly trust. She unloaded everything onto Piper, from how hard it was to not talk to Henry to her neverending hunt for a good apartment in Swellview. Piper told her how well she and Jasper were doing and about her job as an intern for a stylist. She had finally found her calling and since she didn't need to work for Ray anymore, she was free to do what she pleased and she decided to get into fashion. It was both because she had access to many influencers thanks to her huge social media following and because she had become genuinely interested in the industry. It was nice to just be able to talk.

Soon, the sun began to go down and the heat slowly dissipated. Charlotte finally decided to go home, having hidden out from the heat long enough, and poured her heart out to Piper. She stood up and they left her bedroom, heading downstairs when the older woman paused as the front door opened and someone entered. The worst person to see at the moment entered. The blonde paused as well and glanced at her best friend before looking at the other with a terse smile.

"Hey, Hen…" she greeted. Henry nodded in response though his eyes were trained on Charlotte as he closed the door behind himself. He came over to grab the karaoke machine from his dad so he and Camille could have some fun that night, but his plans were now going to change.

"Hey," he said absentmindedly. Charlotte exhaled and looked at Piper.

"See you later," she said before walking down the rest of the stairs. She attempted to walk past Henry but the blond just grabbed her by one of the belt loops on her shorts and yanked her along as he went upstairs.

"Hey! What the hell!" she exclaimed as she clumsily followed him as best she could as she was tugged upstairs. He said nothing as he pulled her along to his old bedroom and pushed the door open, entering and yanking her in before slamming the door shut.

Charlotte nearly fell but quickly caught herself with an annoyed huff. She was about to rant about him manhandling her and how much she hated it but then she noticed that the room was bare. She looked around in awe at the plain walls and the lack of furniture, and while she knew that his room was huge, it was even more clear now how massive it was. He was so damn lucky, he always had one of the coolest rooms in all of Swellview. Henry watched her with folded arms, taking in her features. Damn was she beautiful. It made her weird behavior even more frustrating.

"We stripped it down completely since I moved into my old place. All my posters, furniture, wall art, and even the soda machine are in my place now. You should stop by to check it out," he offered. She looked at him briefly before folding her arms and looking away silently. He frowned at that.

"What the hell is your problem, Char? I thought we were good! Did I do something wrong again?" he asked. She looked at him. At least she could answer him with one of the allowable words Camille gave her.

"No."

"Then what the fuck?! One day we're cool, the next you won't even look at me!" he exclaimed. He was clearly frustrated and Charlotte couldn't blame him at all. "I can't do this back and forth shit anymore, Char! I thought we were gonna be friends again?"

"We are!" she said before sighing heavily and closing her eyes, leaning her head back in her own frustration.

"What kind of friends barely talk? What kind of friends barely look at each other?" he asked. She was growing more and more irritated but didn't know whether it was towards him, Camille, or her own damn self for agreeing to do this stupid shit. It was really Bianca all over again.

"Char!" Henry nearly shouted in exasperation.

"Ask your girlfriend!" she nearly shouted as well as her eyes snapped open. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he stared at her.

"What the hell does Camille have to do with anything?" he asked. Fuck. She really did it now. Did she risk ruining their relationship by telling him what Camille told her? Or just let their own friendships fizzle and die so he could be happy with someone who really cared for him?

You destroyed him. Charlotte kept replaying those words in her head nonstop since Camille said them. She wasn't good for him, they were toxic to each other, and they made each other into the worst version of themselves. If they weren't friends anymore, she could be the Smart One again. She could operate based on her brain and not her feelings, she could be her old self again. And Henry would be happy, and God damn it, that's all she ever wanted. For Henry Hart to be happy. She drew in a shaky breath and avoided his eyes as she let it out slowly.

"Nothing. I'm jusy being stupid," she mumbled. She attempted to open the door but he just slammed it shut again and stood much too close to her for comfort, his hand pressed stubbornly against the door so she couldn't open it.

"What did she say to you?" he asked, his voice more gentle now. She could feel his eyes baring down at her and staring into her soul, but she refused to look because she knew that his gaze would cause her to break down. She had to keep telling herself that this was good for both of them. Taking a deep breath, she looked at him but made sure not to make eye contact.

"She just told me the truth. We can't be friends, Henry. I'm sorry. I just…" Her mouth hung open as she struggled to find the right words. Her mouth went dry and her heart ached in her chest. Why did it feel like they were breaking up all over again? "I'm just hurting you more by being around you."

That hit him hard. What the fuck was she talking about? How could she being around him hurt him? She didn't know what she was talking about, she didn't know that she lit up his entire world just by being near him. His eyes stung with tears that began to well up and his heart pained in his chest. Why couldn't they be friends? That was the closest he could be with her and he loved it, but now it was all going away? He opened his mouth to try and question her but all he could do was stammer incoherently before closing his mouth again. What the hell could he say? He dropped his hand from the door and stared at her in a mix of heartbreak and confusion, silently pleading for an explanation.

Instead, she opened the door and slipped out as fast as she could. Henry wanted to chase her but he was paralyzed in place, only able to replay her words in his head over and over again. Hurting him by being around him? She made him happy, happier than she apparently ever knew. He sighed heavily and slumped against the door, running his hand over his short hair. There was no use in sulking in his old room now. Since he couldn't talk to Charlotte, he'd talk to apparently the other party in this mess.

Camille.

He didn't seem to have much luck with picking girls who didn't fuck up his life one way or another. He stormed out of his room and downstairs, rushing out of the house to his car. Camille would definitely be at his place by now waiting for him to arrive with a karaoke machine and for them to live in bliss, but she wasn't going to get that. Oh no, he was heated now. He barely stopped for red lights and ignored the angry horns blowing as he sped to his place.

Once he reached, he nearly forgot to turn off his car as he climbed out and stormed inside. He entered his apartment and was met with the sight of Camille already on his couch, having let herself in with the key he gave her. She looked up from her magazine and smiled at him, something he used to find so charming and captivating but now all he could see was the tears in Charlotte's eyes. And he could only feel the ache in his chest.

"What the hell did you say to Charlotte?" he said sharply. He clearly caught her off guard as she blinked twice before scoffing. She stood and folded her arms, one hip sticking out as she eyed her boyfriend.

"Hey to you too."

"What did you say to her? What did you do?" he questioned. She frowned and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. It seemed like even when she managed to deal with Charlotte and get her out of their hair, she was still ever-present and problematic in their lives.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Henry," she said with a sigh.

"She's been acting weird with me for days and barely fucking talked to me until I finally cornered her today, and all she said was to ask you. So here I am, asking you," he answered. The gig was up and she might as well have come clean. But she wasn't going to be the bad guy in this situation. She was just doing what was best for him.

"She's toxic for you, Henry. She's been fucking horrible to you and she's made you miserable but for some godforsaken reason, you're still obsessed with her! So much so that you didn't fucking tell me that you were working for her!" she said. He scoffed and tried to find something to say but she definitely had him there. He didn't tell her about Charlotte and he told himself it was to spare her from being jealous, but was that true?

"You would've gone off on some jealous tangent if I told you!" he said defensively. At that, she couldn't help but laugh bitterly and rest her hands on her hips.

"And why would I have, hm? Because you were texting her behind my back?!"

"What are you talking about?!"

"I saw the fucking texts, Henry!" she shouted. "You were texting her since fucking March! You were texting her behind my fucking back because you're still in love with her and that's why despite me being the world's most perfect fucking girlfriend, you won't say you love me!" She was breathing heavily at this point, finally getting everything off of her chest. She had been holding it in for such a long time, it was almost a relief to finally say it out loud. Almost, until Henry rolled his eyes and turned away from her as if she was saying something completely asinine.

"That's what this is about?" he asked in exasperation. He looked at her again with an incredulous expression. "You told Charlotte not to talk to me because I won't say I love you? I love ya, I love ya, I fucking love ya! Are you happy?!"

"Don't patronize me, Henry!" Camille snapped. "You know it's fucking true! You're in love with her still despite her constantly fucking dogging you!" The blond shook his head and walked past her.

"We're just friends, Cam."

"A friend you're infatuated with," she shot back. "How the fuck can I compete with someone who still has your heart despite spitting on it and stomping on it?"

"Camille."

"You deserve better!" she continued. "You deserve fucking better and here I am! I'm better, I'm giving you all of me! I do chores for you, I keep my body right, I blow you anytime you want! And guess what? I didn't spend six months fucking another guy!" Henry turned around quickly and stalked up to her, his usually warm brown eyes now sharp with anger.

"Stop it." The warning was low and serious but Camille was too heated to stop.

"Is that what you want, Hen?" Camille said with a sneer. "Should I go on a rendezvous with another guy to make you love me? Or maybe I should get engaged and not tell you until the last possible minute. Maybe that'll get you to love me."

Henry's eyes narrowed slightly as he glared at her, her words cutting him deep. He inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly to try and calm himself down. She was right about a lot of things, she was right that Charlotte hurt him, she was right that they were a little toxic, but she was especially right that he didn't love her. And he never would.

"You should leave," he said as calmly as he could. She stood strong though and didn't budge.

"Henry Hart, I am the best fucking thing to ever happen to you. With Charlotte not in your life, you thrived so much! Look at you! You're sober, you're working a good job, you're living on your own! You did all of this with me by your side, you can't throw that away, right? Henry, she doesn't care about you. I love you, love me too, let yourself be happy." She realized she was practically begging but she didn't care at this point. She needed him, she needed to be with him, she needed to be with someone. And her someone was Henry Hart. Right?

He didn't think so.

"Get your things and go, Camille," he said. She let out a shaky breath before chuckling in disbelief.

"So you're picking a bitch who did all that shit to you?"

"Guess fucking so," he said with a frown. "Even if she doesn't love me, even if she hurts me, I'd still rather she be by my side as much as she can instead of you. You're not my mother, you don't get to choose who can and cannot speak to me. Especially my fucking friends."

"She's not your friend!" Camille rolled her eyes and blinked a few times to fight back her tears. She wasn't going to cry, she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. Her mother always told her to walk away from a man with her head held high and her dignity intact. She wouldn't let Henry take that from her.

"Fine," she breathed out. "But when she stomps on your heart again and turns you into a miserable shell of a human being, don't come looking for me."

"Don't worry about that," he said coldly. She frowned and shook her head slowly before storming towards the back to get her things. She was just going to pack up her stuff and go, she wasn't going to let Henry break her down. She would be better off without him.

Henry exhaled a breath he wasn't aware that he was holding in and plopped down on the couch. He held his head in his hands and closed his eyes, shaking his head a little. He sure knew how to pick them…

A/N: Thanks for reading! So, I'm seeing the next chapter as being the final one and possibly an epilogue afterward. This may change as I get to writing it but the end is definitely near. Thank you all for sticking through all the delays and following this story. I truly appreciate it!