Chris managed to get into the centre before rush hour really hit.
Clara was already waiting for him at the place where he'd dropped her off that morning, and she had several carrier bags on her – more than he cared to count.
"Had no trouble finding places you wanted to go to then?" He assumed once she'd got in to the front passenger side of his car.
She shook her head steadily. "All sorted now."
"Good." He looked her over, realising that since she'd been with him, she hadn't even so much as taken a shower. That on top of the fact that she'd endured a night or two in the teeming rain beforehand. "You can always freshen up once we get back. I can give you a towel that you can have as your own and while you're doing that, I don't mind going out to get us something."
She peered at him carefully. "Something like what?"
He shrugged, smoothly pulling away from where he'd stopped off to collect her. "Whatever you feel like."
She hadn't even thought about eating. She didn't even have anything whilst she was in the centre.
"There are lots of takeaways nearby," he went on, "take your pick."
She smiled softly. "I don't really know what I feel like."
"Ok then," Chris stopped at a red light, "you up for a Chinese?"
Clara nodded coyly.
He playfully smirked. "Then that's decided."
Once they got back to his place, she dropped all her carriers into her room and saw him come in to give her a towel he hardly ever used.
"You can have this one." He offered.
She thankfully took it from him before quickly pulling his debit card out from her back trouser pocket. "Here." She handed it to him. "Thought you might want this back."
He took it from her, knowing that he was right to trust her. "You want me to get something spicy or…not so spicy?"
She shrugged. "I'm easily pleased."
"Ok," he seemed a little more relaxed with her, "I shouldn't be too long. I can go to the place just down the road from here."
And with that, he was gone.
Chris never felt so sure about the way things were going with Clara.
Everything just seemed to be falling into place – almost as though it was an incomplete jigsaw but with all the right pieces going in where they should. And there was nothing that spelt other than perfection as their relationship at that point in time.
Sure, there were going to be a few little issues and some unanswered questions that he was yet to answer and vice versa, but it was just perfect – too perfect.
He pulled up outside the takeaway place, and knowing that they accepted cards, decided to use his.
He didn't like the cashier's concerned expression. Maybe he put his PIN in wrong. He didn't think that he did, but on the off chance it could well have happened. After all, he was certainly distracted enough to have let it happen.
"Sorry, my love. There seems to be a problem with your card."
He swallowed hard. "What sort of problem exactly?" As far as he was aware, Clara had been using it no problem – she'd been using it non-stop, or as good as, all day.
Maybe that was the problem.
Maybe she'd bled his account dry.
"It doesn't say, but I'm not reading anything from it."
Shakily, he managed to fish out his credit card, once he was given back his other one. He absolutely begrudged using it as he knew he had to pay off whatever he spent, but if it meant having to use it to keep both of them alive, it was certainly the better option than going without. "O-ok, I'll use this one instead."
Clara felt much better after taking a long, relaxing shower. She didn't realise how flat and lank her hair had gotten, and she was glad that she managed to go out and get something to sort that out.
She took in a very appetising scent once she opened the bathroom door, and she looked to see Chris sitting down yet in a bent over position. He looked as though he was in a thoughtful pose.
"You weren't gone long at all." She certainly felt hungrier after being near such a tempting aroma, and she came over to him, with the towel he gave to her covering her modesty.
He didn't even look round at her, preferring to keep his gaze firmly on the floor in front of him. "So you spent everything on my card then."
She was shocked at his tone of voice. He sounded almost cheated – like she'd taken him for one big merry ride. "You wanted me to use it."
"I didn't mean for you to blow all my money." He looked to her than time, his gaze becoming sharper and angrier. "How could you? I needed some of that."
She cast her gaze away guiltily. "Well, you didn't exactly tell me how much of it I could spend in the first place."
"That's besides the point," he retorted, "completely besides the point. It's pretty obvious it gets used for other stuff."
Clara shrugged.
"Clara, I have standing orders that come out from it. The rent for this place…that comes out of it as well."
"I'm sorry."
Chris swiftly got up from where he was sitting, placing his hands on his hips.
"Really, I'm so sorry. I just…I guess I didn't think."
"No, I don't think you did either." He couldn't be angry with her for much longer.
It was just as well that nothing was due to come out from the card, but he used it for withdrawals. "It's not the end of the world. We can get by."
"I've spent everything you had then."
"You haven't exactly done that." He noted softly. "I've still got the use of my credit card, and nothing else was due as of yet. I'll just have to pay everything off that I spend on my credit card, that's all, and that won't amount to very much."
"B-but your wages…what about that?" She was surprised at how well he took it. He was initially annoyed, but it was really the first blip in their relationship.
"That'll work out ok," he took her into an embrace, "they go into the debit account, but I get paid soon enough anyway. No major harm done."
Clara closed her eyes as she felt Chris stroke her down her back through the towel that was wrapped around her. "I didn't mean to do it…"
"I know you didn't, but you won't do it again 'cause I know there won't be a next time where you won't have anything to wear. I should've told you not to use it all I guess, but don't worry. It'll all get sorted, I promise."
She nodded dimly as she pulled herself away from him and he raked his fingertips through her damp hair.
"How do you feel now?" He was referring to her shower.
She smiled a little. "A lot better."
"I'm not surprised – after spending a night or two under a bus shelter." He found something paternal about stroking her through her wet hair. "Get yourself sorted, ok? I'll start dishing it all out once you've done that."
Once Clara had gotten herself sorted and they'd both eaten, they nestled up together on the sofa for some time. It was the first time they'd ever done anything particularly intimate together as a family.
She felt so relaxed being pressed up against Chris; she nestled her head against his broad chest, closing her eyes as he softly slid his fingertips through her shiny hair.
He was sure she was dozing off to his stroking, and he peered down at her, noticing she'd fallen asleep.
Smiling softly to himself, he scooped her up into his arms, feeling a little more relieved in the fact that she felt slightly heavier than before.
Of course, it was going to take more than a takeaway or two to bulk her out, but at least she felt a healthier weight for her size and age. He shivered at how painfully thin and weak she seemed the first time he saw her.
She buried her nose into his t-shirt, liking his musky scent. It was something she deemed familiar to him, and she didn't want to move away from it.
He carried her to her room, laying her down on the bed and carefully covering her up in the blankets.
He didn't want to leave her, deciding to sit beside her and sweep a few stray wisps of shiny dark hair away from her face. He'd gotten used to seeing her sleep, but he felt closer and closer to her as the days went on.
He knew full well that she was at the age where she should be left on her own to rest, but she'd been so long without him and so it didn't feel right to do so.
Clara stirred from within the blankets, her eyelids fluttering intermittently but without lifting themselves. She'd been on the move all day, and so she was probably well and truly exhausted from it all.
She edged further into Chris's touch, not wanting it to stop. He was being so careful with her, and it was touch she'd never experienced from anyone, not even her own mother.
He twirled the longer strands around his index finger, allowing them to coil as he unwound them again. He couldn't begin to imagine how awful he felt at not being a part of her life so much earlier on, and it was surely going to be something he would forever hold against himself for.
"I wish I was there for you so much earlier on," he softly whispered, gently sliding a curled wisp between his thumb and index finger, "but just 'cause I wasn't, doesn't mean I love you any less."
Clara didn't even stir – just simply remained quiet and motionless. She'd probably sank into an even deeper sleep within that time.
"I love you," he admitted slowly, feeling the unfamiliar words stick in his throat, "I really love you and I don't wanna lose you like I did before."
He never thought he felt as close to her as he did right then, but at the same time, he'd never felt so close to anyone to start with. So many strange feelings were overtaking him, yet once he admitted how paternally close he felt to her, the strangeness faded away.
He swept a hand over her forehead, planting a sugar-soft kiss there. "Sweet dreams, my love. I love you."