You can thank the girlies on my fb page for this: After the teaser posted for Ch. 23, there was a long discussion on Charlie and Sue, and even though I hadn't written a specific scene for what happened between them after that dinner, I did have it in my head, the way I tend to have background scenes in my head sometimes. Someone mentioned that they'd love to be a fly on the wall at the Swan household after Edward and Bella left, and well…here you go. You can all be flies on the wall! ;)
Betad by the lovely Michelle Renker Rhodes.
Most characters belong to S. Meyer.
Outtake: Oh, Charlie, Charlie, Charlie
Sue POV
Izzy's handsome boyfriend emerges from behind the door leading to the basement. His vividly green eyes look darker now than they did earlier; that perfectly square jaw is clenched, and his hands are fisted tightly at his sides.
For a split second, I find myself fearing for Charlie's life.
Not that my husband doesn't deserve a good beat-down right about now, but an actual physical fight, added to the fact that this extremely virile and ruggedly gorgeous young man is stealing away his baby…well, that might be a little too much for Charlie to forgive.
Besides, if anyone's going to be kicking Charlie's ass tonight, it's going to be me.
I smile at the man that my daughter is obviously crazy about – and who seems to be as mad about her in return.
"Everything okay?"
He nods his head tiredly. Poor guy probably had a long day, and Charlie's crappy performance of the night couldn't have helped.
"Everything's fine, Sue. Thank you."
I nod, tilting my head and watching as he rakes a hand through his copper-toned hair. It's an interesting color, it would blend so well with my Izzy's. They'd make dark haired babies with reddish highlights. Or reddish-haired babies with dark highlights, maybe those vivid green eyes too if we're lucky. Though Izzy's rich, brown eyes would be gorgeous as well.
"Alright, I better get back to Bella and Mel." He walks past me.
A little rough around the edges, but he's polite - and real. And despite Charlie's crap tonight, he apparently didn't put my husband through a wall, which is always good. It means he's strong-willed; probably a lot stronger-willed than he realizes.
Just what my Izzy needs.
I follow him to the door. "Alright, Edward. Have a good night. And take good care of that sweet little niece of yours. She's adorable," I chuckle. "And take care of my daughter."
He turns around, those green eyes intense and honest. "I will, Sue."
And I know he means it.
OOOOOOOOOO
As soon as the door is closed, I hear Charlie emerge from the basement. For ten seconds, I keep my back to him, counting backwards from ten with my hands still on the door. Then with a deep breath, I turn around. Avoiding his gaze, I walk past him towards our living room. His heavy, confused footsteps follow me.
"Oh, so now you're going to give me the silent treatment."
I rearrange the cushions and pillows on the couch, fluffing them up and punching them to get them back in shape – admittedly my fists are working a bit harder than necessary.
"Oh, I'm not giving you the silent treatment," I chuckle humorlessly, still not looking at him, "But unlike you, I like to measure my words before I do speak, so that I don't end up saying something completely stupid and make myself look like a total ass in the process."
He's silent. I smile wryly to myself. At least something finally shut him up.
"What do you want from me, Sue? He comes in here like a tough guy, all assertive about his relationship with Bella. No shame about the fact that he depends on her help, that she's the responsible one in the relationship! And did you see that cocky grin on his face when he said he didn't want to discuss the bid?"
"You said you didn't want to discuss the bid, Charlie!" I retort. "He simply agreed! And how would you have preferred he act towards our daughter? Would you have preferred that he be uncertain about his relationship with her? That he show doubt about depending on the strength of the woman you and I raised? Would you have preferred that he not appreciate the responsibility she displays when caring for his niece? As for the bid, you didn't want to discuss it, and now you're upset because he refused to kiss your ass about it?" I ask incredulously.
"I don't want him to kiss my ass!"
"Yes, you do!" I disagree, flinging the pillow in my hand onto the floor. "You want him to show you subservience as the alpha male in your daughter's life! Well, I'm sorry to have to be the one to break this to you, Charlie, but you're not the alpha in her life any longer, and you're going to have to accept that!"
My husband's nostrils flare. He narrows his eyes at me, and as angry as I am at him right now, I can't help but feel sorry for him because this is what's killing him: he's losing her as his baby, and he knows it. Because it's never been this way for Izzy. The way she looked at Edward tonight, the way they looked at each other…it was absolute love and devotion.
And I've never seen Izzy this way in my life. The only time her eyes have ever come close to gleaming that way has been when she's looked at her father. Charlie was always number one. Even with that other prick around, her father was always her hero.
And as Charlie stands there, his dark eyes full of confusion and anger and pain, I can't help but think about how strong he's always been. And now, he's going to have to be stronger than ever if he wants to get through this with Izzy still a part of our lives. It'll be hard for him, I know it will. But I know my husband; he can do it.
I've known Charlie for almost thirty years now. I knew him even before Renee, Izzy's birth mother, ever met him on that fateful short, summer vacation. We were high school friends - well, more like acquaintances because he never gave me more than a friendly smile while walking through the hallways. But, boy, did I live for those smiles. Then, he graduated two years before me, and I didn't see him anymore.
Until one day, in our late twenties, he moved into the apartment next door to me; my high school crush, Charlie Swan, and his little girl, the most beautiful little girl I'd ever seen with the big, brown eyes and the rich, brown curls and full lips. I fell in love with Izzy before I really fell in love with Charlie.
I'd heard the story through mutual acquaintances: he'd met someone and gotten married just two weeks later; he had a little girl less than a year later, and less than a year after that, the mom was gone, back to her sunny isle, leaving behind a heart-broken, beautiful man and an even more beautiful baby.
And he was struggling - financially and emotionally, and he was terrified because he had no idea how to take care of his child.
So I took care of them both. Izzy became my little girl even before Charlie became my man.
Therefore, I know that little girl just as well as he does.
"He doesn't respect," Charlie sneers. "At least with Eli, he knows how to show respect. He knows how to-"
"He knows how to kiss ass is what he knows Charlie!" I snap, hands on my hips. "It's what he's always done and what he still does. Come on, Baby!" I plead. "Open your eyes here! It's never been respect he's shown you or me, or Izzy! He weasels his way in, says and does what he has to in order to get what he wants!"
"You're being unfair. Just because he's easy-going and not challenging like this…Edward," he scowls.
"Eli never tried to challenge your place in Izzy's life because he knew he'd lose, Charlie!" I say, trying to make him see sense. "And he knew he'd piss you off in the process! Edward isn't trying to challenge you!" I insist. "He's earning his place on his own, and he's refusing to cower down to you! Damn it, Charlie, you should respect him for that instead of seeing it as a flaw! What is going on with you?"
Because at this point, I'm at a serious loss. My husband can be hardheaded, but not this hardheaded!
Charlie glares at me for a long while, and then drops heavily over the couch, mussing up the cushions I just fluffed, damn him.
He rests his elbows on his muscular knees and drops his head into his hands, pressing his fingers into his eyes.
After a few seconds, I carefully sit next to him, but I keep my hands on my lap even though they ache to reach out and comfort him because I can see how bewildered he is. But he was a real asshole tonight, and I'm still upset.
"You remember the day you walked out of your apartment, and I was just returning from the day-care with Bella, trying to balance her backpack and that project she'd made and get the door open all at the same time, and then I dropped the project-"
Is he trying to soften me up with this?
Well, it won't work.
"And Izzy started crying, and I picked it up and told her I'd help her put it together again. Yes, I remember."
He snorts, his head still in his hands. And then he scrubs them down his face and stares straight ahead.
"I was trying to balance so many things at once, and then you come along, and you made things so much easier, Sue, for both of us." He looks at me. "And I fell in love with you, Sue, I really did. You know I did,"
"But?" I prompt, because I know there's a "but" in there.
"But you can't tell me that it was easy for you," he insists. "Not only caring for someone else's kid, not only taking care of a man who had no idea what the hell was going on, but also the financial struggle as well because I had nothing to give you, not financially, and barely emotionally at that point."
"You were still in love with Renee."
He doesn't deny it because we both know it's true.
He sighs. "You carried all the weight for a while, Sue. It was all on you, and…"
"And…you don't want that for Izzy."
He shakes his head.
With a deep sigh, I do reach out and take his hand, resting it on my lap.
"Don't you think the struggle was worth it, Charlie?"
"Of course, I do, Honey," he assures me. "But that's not always the case. Edward's niece, Mel, she's a sweetie."
"She is," I grin genuinely for the first time since my Izzy left.
"And I do see how much Bella cares for her already. I see her doing anything for that kid, the way you would've done anything for Izzy."
"And you think Edward would take advantage of that?"
"I don't know," he admits. "Maybe not take advantage…but maybe Bella would take on more than she has to just for his niece's sake. Sue," he says softly, "you're comparing things to the way they worked out for us. We had a lot of issues, but we overcame them. What if they don't work out that way for them? What if the struggle isn't worth it? I worked so hard to make sure Bella never had to struggle again."
I draw in a deep breath, releasing it slowly and pushing back a stray lock of hair from my husband's forehead.
"Charlie, you have to trust that Izzy knows what she's doing. That we've raised her with enough sense. And what's wrong with a struggle?"
"I don't want that for her," he shakes his head vehemently.
"You'd rather she have an easy life like the one Eli was offering her, getting everything, even her career handed to her on a silver platter?"
"She's earned her parts on her own," Charlie scowls at the floor.
"I'm sure she's earned them," I say firmly. "My Izzy is extremely talented, but I'm also sure Eli and that dirt bag agent, Felix, she used to have worked their charm in there somehow, never quite letting our daughter take complete credit, not even in her own mind."
"And what's wrong with an easy life?" he persists. "There's no shame in it."
"No, there shouldn't be," I agree, "if you've earned it the way you have. Charlie, you're so scared to let Izzy struggle, when she's not scared of a fight herself! Let her earn what she has, what she wants, the way you and I did. Everyone has their own inner-demons to vanquish, Charlie, and sometimes we have to help others fight theirs…like I did with you and the ghost of Renee…
"I made life hard for you."
"You made life full for me; you and Izzy. You see yourself in Edward, and to you that's a detriment instead of a blessing, but Charlie, it's okay if Izzy has to help Edward with his demons; he'll be there to help her with hers. And isn't that what we want in the end, someone to be there, really be there for our daughter?"
He searches my eyes, his own full of a wonder that warms me. My silly husband.
"What did I ever do to deserve you?" he whispers, his rough fingers stroking my cheek.
"You earned my love, just as I earned your love and respect, and I'm not ashamed of that, and neither do I begrudge you for it. Yes, struggles are hard, but they're so much more bearable when you have the right person there struggling right along with you. And I think…I think Izzy's found the one that'll be by her side…for everything."
My husband fills his lungs so completely I'm worried they may burst before he finally releases the excess air. He stares straight ahead.
"Charlie, I understand your concern for their financial security. Yes, it's an important consideration, and Edward may not be in a position to offer her much materialistically right now, but what he can offer her is so much more important. Think about that, Baby. You've told me yourself that he's a hard worker. With enough of an effort on his part, and perhaps…with the right mentor…he can get somewhere."
He smirks at me knowingly, and then drops his head…and nods.
"And remember, Charlie, no matter what happens in her life, no matter what decisions she makes, Izzy is a grown woman now. You can't make her decisions for her anymore, not even for something as trivial as a holiday dinner."
"That was totally a misunderstanding," he says defensively. "That little girl's a sweetheart; I wasn't trying to hurt her."
"No, but you were trying to give her uncle a verbal jab, and in the process only ended up making yourself look heartless and foolish, which I know you aren't," I say softly. "And you upset Izzy. She won't be spending Thanksgiving with us this year."
He looks up at me angrily.
"Now don't look at me like that, Charlie," I warn. "Izzy is making her own family now. And if you want to be a part of that family, you're going to have to learn to let go. You're going to have to accept her choices, and you're going to have to allow the possibility that having Eli around as her business partner, even as your business partner, may be a real hazard now. She can't even stand hearing his name mentioned, Charlie. That right there should be enough of a clue for you that something there went very, very wrong."
He presses his lips together tightly, and I can see the effort, the struggle, but then his shoulders sag, and he nods again. "You're right. You're right. I've got to learn to trust her judgment. It's just…" he smiles sadly, "I still see her in pigtails, you know?"
I grin, flooded with memories of my little girl giggling and skipping around the playground, her dark brown pigtails bouncing all around her head.
"I do too, but maybe, if we play our cards right, we'll be able to see another version of her in pigtails someday soon, except this one will have lighter hair with reddish highlights and green eyes."
Charlie chuckles and throws his head back. "I should've known that's where your mind was going."
But then he sobers up, and his mustache twitches with a faint smile. "Not that that wouldn't be a beautiful child. That Mel is a beauty and really bright, and Edward…" he smirks, "he is a hard worker; I'll give him that. Seems those Cullens have good genes at least." He shrugs.
I punch him in his arm. "You're such an ass."
He laughs.
"So what did my future son-in-law," – he rolls his eyes at my description – "say to you downstairs anyway?"
He smirks. "It was basically a somewhat polite, thinly veiled fuck you, I'm not going anywhere – Sir."
I break out into fits of laughter. "Oh yeah, that's my future son-in-law alright!"
A/N: Thoughts?
Alright, I hope you guys enjoyed this quick look into Sue and Charlie's minds.
And now, really, see you next week!
Twitter: PattyRosa817
Link to 'Stories by PattyRose' is on my profile page.