Pitbabe S2, Chapter 32 pg 7
Pitbabe S2, Chapter 32 pg 7
“Have you put on lotion yet?” Charlie, fresh from his shower, asked me as I sprawled on the bed. I shook my head instead of answering, then flipped onto my back, splaying out like a starfish. “Why not?”
“Too lazy.”
“You’ll complain about itching and scratch until you get scars again,” Charlie grumbled half-heartedly. He walked over to the vanity, grabbed a bottle of lotion, and came back to loom over me with a weary expression. “Are you going to put it on yourself, or should I do it for you?”
The first answer that pops into my head is, Rub it on for me, but my conscience kicks in harder and pushes for the opposite response, backed by the reasoning that Charlie is exhausted today. I shouldn’t make him do anything more for me. Otherwise, I’d be a pretty lousy (soon-to-be) boyfriend.
“I’ll do it myself,” I say confidently, sitting up and reaching for the lotion bottle in Charlie’s hand. But I grab nothing but air because that pretty-faced jerk pulls his hand back, like he’s deliberately teasing me. “What… give it here.”
“I’ll rub it on for you.”
“What!” I protest lightly. “Then why’d you ask?”
“I thought you’d say, Rub it on for me.”
Charlie sees right through me, so he looks a tiny bit disappointed that I chose to do it myself, even though I was just trying to be considerate and not burden someone who’s tired.
“Aren’t you exhausted?” I ask as I extend my right arm for Charlie to gently apply the lotion. The fresh, green, floral scent is so relaxing. How does Charlie do it? How does he make me feel so at ease and guilty at the same time?
“Hm?”
“You said you were busy all day, and you looked wiped out when you got back.”
“Oh… just normal tired,” Charlie replies casually. “After eating and showering, I feel better. Super relaxed… other arm, please.”
I extend my other arm for him to continue applying the lotion. His eyes are focused on my arm, while mine are locked on him. No matter how much time passes, the same old questions that were in my head from the very first days still swirl around, never going anywhere.
Why would someone like him love someone like me?
The more I see his kindness and how he treats me, the harder it is to imagine what kind of good deeds I must’ve done to deserve someone this amazing. Or maybe from now on, I need to start doing more good just to make it seem a bit more reasonable that I have him by my side.
“Why’re you staring?” Charlie looks up, meeting my eyes, a slight smirk tugging at his lips, like he knows exactly how good he looks when he does that. “Like me that much?”
“You’re alright, I guess.”
“Babe, you should’ve said, I don’t just like you, I love you,” he teases.
“No need to write my lines for me.”
Charlie chuckles softly, nodding for me to lift my leg onto his lap for the next part of his service.
“But you take such good care of me,” I say. “I’ve never had anyone sit there rubbing cream on me like this my whole life.”
“I’ve been doing this for you for ages. Still not used to it?”
“I’m used to it, but it still feels sweet.”
“Because I love you,” Charlie says slowly. His large hand glides over my calf until the cream absorbs, then he squeezes more into his palm and starts spreading it on my thigh. “If you’re gonna pick a boyfriend, you gotta go for someone who takes care of you like this. Anything less won’t do anymore.”
“Dean’s lucky I found him. Otherwise, he’d be single for life.”
“Nah… there are plenty better than me,” Charlie said.
“You talk like you’ve never been outside, Charlie,” I squinted at the starry-eyed kid, barely believing he thought guys like him were as easy to find as condoms in a convenience store. “You’re a rare catch. It took blood, sweat, and tears to win you over.”
“Don’t exaggerate. I’m the one who nearly bled out chasing you.”
“Hmm… fair enough, I won’t argue,” I teased, scratching his chin playfully. But the little pup wasn’t in the mood. Charlie flinched, swatting my leg with a loud smack to make me stop. “What’s with the shy act? Weren’t you the one who fell first?”
“Of course,” he shot back. “As if Babe’s ever fallen for anyone first.”
“Well, at least I thought I liked you first.”
“Thought being the key word.”
“Yeah… so why’d you fall for me first then?”
Charlie shook his head with a small smile, refocusing on rubbing cream onto my other leg. His hands spread the smooth lotion evenly, kneading rhythmically as if giving a massage. I felt so relaxed, like I was in a high-end spa, ready to drift off if I leaned back. But then, out of nowhere, Charlie said something odd.
“Does you think I’m stupid?”
“Huh?” I frowned at the question. It came out of left field and felt utterly absurd to me. “If you’re stupid, who’s left to be smart, Charlie?”
“I don’t know,” he said, his tone off—strange enough to make me uneasy. “Sometimes I don’t really understand things.”
“Is something up?” I asked directly. “Did something happen at the lab today… or did someone say something?”
“Nothing,” he replied.
“Then why ask that?”
“Because I want to know if you think I’m stupid.”
It was like my body shut down for a moment. The world didn’t just stop—it spun backward, leaving me unable to feel my own existence.
“To fool me this much… is it because I’m stupid?”
He looked up, locking eyes with me, his own red and brimming with tears. It was as if he’d been holding back for so long but finally broke. Clear tears spilled from those beautiful eyes that had gazed at me since day one. With a soft blink, a tear splashed onto my leg. The moment it touched my skin, it felt like acid, burning down to the bone.
“What are you talking about?”
I wasn’t pretending.
I thought I knew what he was talking about, but I asked anyway, hoping it wasn’t what I feared.
“Does you really want me to say it?”
I don’t know.
I’m not even sure I can handle it.
“If I say it, after this… please be able to take it.”
My body, which had frozen, was now trembling uncontrollably. Charlie had never scared me like this before. The look in his eyes was coated with utter disappointment and heartbreak, as if his world had collapsed right in front of him. And I knew how excruciating that pain was, because my own world was on the verge of crumbling too.
He… was my entire world.
“I’m… sorry,” my voice dried up in an instant, my throat tight as if blocked by a massive stone. I tried to look at Charlie, tried to reach out to him, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get there. “Charlie… I’m sorry.”
Charlie let go of my leg, stood up from the bed, and turned his back to me. That gesture shattered my heart, because it wasn’t just that he didn’t want to touch me—he didn’t even want to look at me.
“Deceiving me, playing with my feelings—that was already too much,” Charlie said, his voice trembling. He covered his face with his hands, crying, his broad shoulders shaking pitifully. I wanted to walk over and hug him, but that was only in my mind. Right now, even breathing normally was a struggle. “But to go and work with the person I hate the most?”
“No, Charlie, listen to me…”
“How could you, Babe?”
He turned around.
But when I saw those eyes, I wished none of this was real.
“Lying to me… how could you do this to me?”
Comments
Post a Comment