Hello fellow Younger fanatics!! This chapter has a sick Charles and some good stuff for the Charli and Josh 'ship! Josh has always been one of my favorite characters, but I just could never get on board with him and Liza after seeing the amazing chemistry that is the Chariza relationship. So finding Josh a real love interest is something I wish they'd correct on the show. And that's how Charli was born, I wanted the sibling connection to Charles so eventually Josh and Charles could potentially be related. And who doesn't have family members that get in fist fights at the family reunion after too many beers and a heated potato sack race??? Just me?? Ohhh... anyway enjoy and feel free to comment I welcome constructive criticism!

Charles

It was freezing today but Charles was burning up. He holds the thermometer out and squints his eyes to read the small screen, 102.3...great the last thing he needed was to be out of commission due to the flu. There was too much work to be done, he had two meetings set up for today alone. The first was with the with the department head of English and Literature at Columbia University, Charles had started teaching Comparative Romanticism in Literature during the spring then after completing the maymester he was asked to teach an intensive summer course. He loved teaching and he found that he had a talent for it, the meeting today was to discuss joining the English department at Columbia on a full time basis. The second meeting he had set up was with the head coach for the baseball team, the Columbia Lions, Charles was and would forever be a Princeton Tiger but the idea of being an assistant pitchers coach excited Charles in a way he hadn't felt since he was in school himself. Everything was as near to perfect as could be, his girls were happy, healthy, and well adjusted Charlotte was home, and he had Liza. As usual just the thought of Liza brought a smile to his face, except he couldn't smile, because every muscle in his body was aching even his face muscles. He flopped backwards onto the bed and moaned in misery. He needed to call Pauline and ask her to get the girls from school, it wasn't her week with them but he did not want them to catch whatever the hell that had gotten ahold of him. Then he needed to reschedule his meetings, but try as he might he couldn't get himself up off the bed and before long he was snoring as sleep overtook him.

"Charles?" He heard Liza calling for him, but she was miles away. "Charles are you ok?"

She places her hand to his forehead and sighs when she feels how hot he is. He doesn't remember everything that happened after Liza found him dying on his bed, but he was able to piece together a fuzzy picture of it all.

First Liza chided him for not calling to tell her he was this sick, then she stripped him from his professors uniform. Which was just a pair of jeans, a button up shirt, and a sports coat with elbow patches. Charli had called him a walking cliche of every college professor in the history of college professors, but Charles had thought he looked pretty sharp and liked the way he looked. Liza had liked the way he looked too and they'd enjoy some adventurous role play that evening after everyone else had gone to bed. After Liza had Charles tucked into bed properly, she called Pauline about getting the girls and rescheduled his meetings. She then set about making him as comfortable as possible, fluffing his pillows, changing out cool damp towels, she also forced him to take some medicine and drink some water to avoid dehydration. He caught her wrist as she was changing the towel on his head and urged her to leave so she wouldn't get sick also. "Save yourself" He says maybe a little too dramatically, but she's not having it she shakes her head no and replies

"No way, nurse Liza would never abandon her patient." She takes his hand in hers and gently squeezes. "Besides you did the same for me last month when I had my wisdom teeth removed, we take care of each other." Charles smiles despite the aches and pains and squeezes her hand back. He doesn't know what he did so right to get a love so pure and perfect but he sure as shit wasn't going to let her go.

"Thank you Liza, I love you more than mere words can be expressed. I love you more than the moon loves the sun or dogs love chasing their cat tails." He wasn't sure if what he said was coherent but he was certain she knew what he was saying or at least trying to say.

Charli

"Chucky is sick, Liza is pretty sure it's just a bad bug but she's advising I stay away in case it's the flu. You don't mind if I crash here do you? Just for a night or two, I can't risk getting sick right now. The big interview with Alvin and Netflix is in two days."

Charli was having a much needed girls night with her bestie Taylor. Their conflicting careers often kept them apart, but when they were able to carve out some time to hang they'd always pick up as if no time had passed at all.

"mi casa es tu casa"

The two were sprawled out on an overstuffed couch gorging on popcorn and m and m's.

"But, like wouldn't you rather shack up with that hottie Josh. The one who made you cream yourself just from a kiss??" Taylor wags her eyebrows suggestively at Charli. Annoyed but mostly embarrassed Charli throws popcorn at her nosy friend and shakes her head.

"No not at all, I mean yeah I liked the kiss, it was...stirring to say the least-but I definitely did not-"

"Cum" Taylor cut her off and Charli winced at the vulgarity of her friend, who shrugged off her prudeness and egged her on. "Continue mother Mary"

"Nothing, it was a nice kiss and all, but it can't happen again period...never...nope." She was having a hard enough time convincing herself of that, and she knew her friend saw right through it. "It doesn't matter whether or not the kiss was earth shattering, we cannot be a couple. He use to date and was in love with Chuckys current lady love, and I'm not putting a potential wedge between my relationship with Charles for some-" Taylor cuts her off again,

"Hot piece of ass. But, and I say this with love girl, you need to get laid...bad. Do you even remember the last time you-" she makes a thrusting motion and Charli's cheeks grow crimson with embarrassment. "Oh stop being to modest, girl we ALL do it. Come on who gives a flying rats ass if he use to date that Liza chick. You are worth a thousand Lizas!"

"Liza's actually pretty great, i just couldn't date her ex. Like what would that be like? Thanksgiving dinner with Liza and Josh, they use to bone and were super in love but we're all just going to sit around and pretend like they've never seen each other naked? Plus there's the whole thing of me being Eskimo sisters with Charles' girlfriend. I know we have codependent tendencies sometimes but that just seems to weird. AND let's not forget that Charles and Josh are technically vagina brothers-"

"That's not what it's called" Taylor interjects.

"Doesn't matter what the technical term is, the fact remains they've been with the same girl, and if I sleep with Josh it'd almost be like I was sleeping with Chucky..." she makes a gagging sound and Taylor stares at her contemplating what she just heard.

"No, Josh and Liza would have to bone again now that she's been with Charles then when you sleep with Josh it would be like you'd slept with Charles. Or you could just sleep with Liza now, then it would be like you've slept with both Charles and Josh." She pauses and thinks about what she just said and nods. "Yeah I think my sex math is right. So to recap as long as Josh and Liza never have sex again you can sleep with Josh all you want and it not be like you've fucked your brother." She smiles proud of herself, she then tosses a kernel in the air and catches it in her mouth.

"It's all too messy for me, I'll just stick to the rivers and lakes that I'm used too."

"Love is messy girl. Sometimes you have to live with the fact that you're one step away from screwing your brother, and that's okay."

"Shut-up, you ain't right." hours later when they are both in sugar comas Charli is awakened by her bra buzzing. When did I stuff my phone in my boobs she thought sleep still dulling her senses. She squints her eyes trying to focus on the screen, oh shit! It's Josh. She hadn't seen him in a week not since kiss-gate and she was shocked at how much she'd missed him. She looks over to her sleeping friend and with her stomach in knots she answers her phone.

"Hey Charlie Brown." Instantly she turns into a giant puddle of pudding, as she struggles to find words to regurgitate.

"You too, Lucy goosey." WTF??? She sounded like someone who went to Brown and not Harvard. There was a long awkward pause and finally he puts her out of her misery by laughing softly and saying

"Glad things aren't weird or awkward between us at all, huh?"

"Being normal is something that comes naturally to me so, was there ever any doubt?" She adds her best fake laugh which was pointless because Josh knows her fake laugh.

"Of course." Silence... "Hey, but seriously Charli I'm sorry if I over stepped or was inappropriate in anyway. I sincerely thought there was a moment between us and that you would be an equal receptive partner." 'Wow so he had listened to my #metoo rant on Fox News yesterday.' Charli smiles and listens to Josh prove his 'wokeness' and clamber on about toxic masculinity. Sometime after he gripes about his 'white male privilege' she decides to put him out of his misery.

"Josh, it's okay...I uh-you did not commit an act of sexual misconduct...I was caught off guard yes, but...it was uh...welcome." She hears his sigh of relief and her heart swells with some unknown emotion and she continues. "It was super hot how Oliver was there drooling on my leg too." She offers her second best fake laugh and tries to pivot, "how's my puppy doing? I've missed him."

"He's good. He misses you too. He's been pulling himself up into a standing position and he'll be cursing before long. I'm telling ya he'll be walking before his first birthday."

"I never doubted that, he's a special puppy."

"We think so. Hey I know it's only been a week, and it's weird but I've missed your non stop chatter. So much so I've been getting my Charli fix from old YouTube news clips, I was thinking maybe the two us could-" Charli has to cut him off before he says it because she's not so sure she'd be able to say no if he asks.

"I can't-we can't...it's the whole Chucky of it all, you and Liza were in love and it's just not good for anyone really." She was blubbering but hoped he would be able to comprehend what she was saying so she did have to try and say it again.

"Right, I get what you're saying and honestly I agree." 'What?!? He's not going to fight for me? Does he not believe that our love could conquer all?...LOVE what the hell was she thinking? Damn Liza and all her stupid romance novels she leaves around Chucky's place.' Josh continued as Charli fought with herself. "It's such a bad idea. The two of us??" He asks incredulously. "What would the holidays look like? All of us there as one big happy family? Please? Charles and I could never be friends he's too vindictive and petty." 'Whoa Josh better slow his roll, that's my Chucky you're callously slamming' Charli opens her mouth to protest, but Josh isn't done painting his picture of a dysfunctional family. "And let's be real, I'm sure Liza will eventually tire of the old man and having me her vivacious young stud ex around might be too tempting for her to resist, so yeah it's better that we just stay casual friends. Stick to old pizza and cheap beer." Charli was gobsmacked, Josh was rejecting her and her family? And Liza would never tire of Charles they're in nerd love. No, Josh doesn't get to kiss her like that (which caused a sexual awakening) then be the one to reject her...nope, not today Satan.

"All valid points Joshua" He interjects throwing her off her game again.

"I know thank you." Charli breathes in and tries to regroup again.

"Solid argument but, honestly the biggest reason we can't be a thing is because you're still married dude. And I'm an officer of the court and it's my duty to up hold the law...so yeah it's your family baggage that's keeping this train from leaving the station...so yeah." She repeats lamely.

"Well you know Claire and I are getting a divorce after Oliver turns one in a few short months and I'm pretty sure the Oath you took when you passed the bar did not have a stipulation about dating a married man."

"You don't know what the Attorneys Oath covers." She squawked defensively.

"Ok, so we agree then after the divorce I can take you out on a real date, and Charli I fully intend to kiss you again-with your complete consent of course-and this time there will be no baby barrier between us. Just you and me flush against one another." Charli sat there unable to speak as she's imagining Josh kissing her again. Her mind goes dirty very quickly and she's glad they are talking on the phone so he can't she that she is blushing from head to toe. Just as abruptly as he set her mind reeling he cuts her off by quickly ending the conversation. "Good night Charli Brown, I'm glad you talked me into giving us a chance. Three months is going to be a long time to wait, but you know what you're doing. Bye" and then she was alone (except for the snoring popstar on the couch next to her) what the hell just happened? She just agreed to go on a date three months from now, and it was her idea? Suddenly she recognizes that Josh played her. He knew she was going to shut down the very possibility of them and he turned the table on the situation and she'd fallen for it way to easily. She smiles and shakes her head replaying their conversation in her head. She picks her phone back up and types up a quick text.

Well played counselor, but you made an error in giving me three months to find a way out.

Josh responded too quickly as if he'd been expecting her to figure him out.

Yeah, but you won't want to find a way to back out. If anything you'll find a loop hole and we won't have to wait three months.

Charli started to respond that he was being ridiculous now, but had to stop because in fact she'd already thought of three scenarios that would move the timeline up. Damn he knew her...when did that happen? Charli did not make a habit of letting people know her, yes she had countless acquaintances but few people who knew her well enough to play her like Josh had. She smiled and did the exact opposite of what she would normally do and sent Josh a kissey face emoji. There she thought let him figure that one out. Within a minute he responded with an eggplant emoji and she laughed out loud startling Taylor awake. She beamed excited to fill her friend in on all that had just happened.

Josh

Josh was rocking Oliver trying to get his little guy to sleep. He knew he was failing mostly because he was unfocused, his mind still buzzing from talking to Charli on the phone. Everything had gone exactly as he'd hoped. No that wasn't true, things had actually gone slightly better. Charli had caught him off guard with her flirty emoji. It may not seem like a big deal to most people, but Charlotte Brooks hated emoji's with a passion that was almost concerning. She knew how to keep him on his toes and the prospect of their potential relationship left him light headed with joy.

He feels his phone buzz in his pocket and he quickly reaches for it hopeful that it's another text from Charli. It's not from Charli, but Liza instead.

Soooo how'd it go??!?

Good...great actually. I threw in the part about you dumping Charles to get back together with me and I could hear the steam leave her ears. You were right about her overprotectiveness of her brother.

Yeah, well I'm becoming an expert on all things Brooks. Glad it worked out, see you Saturday at Maggie's for Lauren's birthday?

Yep, see you then

Josh looked down to the baby in his arms finally he was asleep. Tonight was shaping up pretty great, and because he knew nights like this wouldn't last forever he stayed there rocking Oliver gently as long as possible. His artist mind doing what it does best by dreaming up a future with Charli. A house full of little feet scampering loudly, fights about whose turn it is to do dishes, and fold laundry. He dreams of big Christmas's and his mom coming to stay with them during the winter. Summers in the Hamptons with Liza's and Charles. They'd share a life full of laughter, love, and family. All of this because once upon a time Josh mistakenly assumed Liza was 26. Life is weird and wonderful.