Charlie's Confession is good For the Soul

Henry entered his apartment after a long but fruitful day. He had finally managed to get the department audits done correctly and after placing them on his boss' desk, he beat a hasty retreat home. He hoped that Charlie was there. They needed to talk and NOW. As he toed off his shoes and laid his jacket across a chair, he heard her voice from the kitchen.

"Henry, is that you? I'm so glad you're home. I….."

Whatever Charlie had been about to say died in the air as she looked at Henry. HER Henry, she had thought at one time; now she knew better. Henry's face was a mass of mixed emotions. She saw the anger around his nose and mouth, mixed with hurt. She saw pain and sorrow in his wide, romantic eyes. Eyes that looked at HER with pain and sorrow; eyes that looked angry at HER. Charlie stiffened her spine and matched his angry look. This was Betty's fault, not hers, she thought.

"Charlie, we need to talk." Henry said "we need to talk about a lot."

"You're right Henry, we do." Charlie responded, "Like about how you went out and got yourself beat up for someone who's only supposed to be a FRIEND!!!" Charlie finished on a scream.

"Charlie, look this is a very confusing time for me right now. Things are…." Henry started to say.

"Things are ruined!! Everything's ruined because of Betty!" Charlie yelled.

"That's not true!" Henry yelled back, "Things are different than they used to be with us but you can't just blame Betty…." Charlie cut him off.

"I can when it's her name you say when you're dreaming and when you told her after you defended her honor that YOU LOVED HER!!" Charlie cried as she ran out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Henry gasped in his empty living room as the pieces fell into place finally in his mind.

Henry remembered falling from the log. He heard Nick Pepper yelling in triumph as he jumped from the log and jabbed the weapon into Henry's face. He could hear Betty screaming "Stop" and "Stop Him" as someone finally pulled Nick off him. He felt Betty kneel down next to him on the mat. Felt her gently push his glasses into place as he looked at her with his one good eye.

"Did I win?" Henry asked.

Betty was looking down at him with fear worried that he had been seriously hurt. But looking up at her, he realized that she was looking at him with something else in her dark, beautiful eyes.

Love

Betty loved him!

Even though she hadn't said the words, he could feel them radiating from her whole body. From her eyes, that searched his face making sure he was ok; to her hands, soft and warm, that touched him with such tenderness. She was looking at him expectantly, so he said the only thing he could before the darkness closed over him:

"I Love You!"

Henry stood at his living room window, staring at the beauty of the city. From where he stood, he could see the parade of cars whizzing by, taking people to theaters or dinners. He could see the park, where parents played with their children and couples fell in love underneath the growing twilight and starry skies. He could see the twinkle of lights in the distance, windows glowing with families inside being together and loving one another. Henry knew what he wanted now. He wanted Betty. He wanted to be with her so badly his heart felt like it would burst.

But Betty wasn't home yet. She wouldn't be until tonight. Charlie was here now; he would have to finish things with her tonight. Overcome with emotions, some for the woman whose heart he was surely breaking in the next room and some for the woman who had slowly and softly stolen his heart flying back to him tonight, Henry stared out the window at his beautiful city and did the one thing he hadn't done since he was little.

He took off his glasses and he cried.