Lock Up ⏐Charles Leclerc

Chapter 4

We'll get to see a bit more of Valentine in this chapter 🤍

Enjoy!

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Most of the time, I blame my impulsiveness on my mom. She used to tell me stories of her during the early days and most of them were actions that were very unlike her (according to some people), but if you really knew her, you wouldn't be surprised. One of the craziest things she's done was arrive at a red carpet on a Harley Davidson wearing a custom Versace dress. It ended up on the front page of almost every news outlet the next day and when she was asked why she chose that mode of transportation, her answer was not what people expected.

"I was late to the red carpet and needed to avoid the L.A. traffic."

I've had my fair share of shocking experiences and I think this could be one of them. As I waited to see if Charles would pick up on my offer, I began brewing another cup of tea for him. When I asked him from the balcony, I didn't bother waiting for an answer and just tilted my head before going back to the kitchen.

I opened my bottle of loose Hibiscus tea and began steeping it, leaning on the countertop as I waited. A soft knock sounded from the front door and I smiled lightly to myself before walking to open it.

Charles stood on my doorstep, right hand kept inside the pocket of his joggers while his left hand held a small pot. I squinted my eyes to see a baby cactus sitting inside the pot and looked up at him in amusement. He shifted on his feet and tugged on the beanie he was wearing, removing it and running a hand through his hair.

"Hi." He said, lifting the cactus towards me.

"What's this for?" I asked as I accepted it, resisting the urge to touch it despite knowing that the thorns would hurt. It was one of the cutest things I've ever seen.

Charles shrugged his shoulders. "My mom told me that I should bring a gift to someone's house the first time I come over."

"First time?"

"I didn't—uhm—" He stuttered but stopped short when he saw I was trying hard not to laugh in front of him. "You're messing with me." He smiled and I couldn't help it anymore.

"Absolutely." I said and stepped aside to let him in. As I closed the door, Charles' eyes moved around my house. He took off his shoes and placed them by the door, leaving him in just a pair of black socks that had the number 16 on the sides. He followed me to the kitchen and it was just the right time for me to remove the tea leaves. Placing the cactus first by one of the windows to make sure it gets enough sun, I took out the strainer and grabbed a teaspoon. "Honey?" I asked.

"Yes, please." I reached for the honey I kept in a jar and opened it, ready to scoop. "Three teaspoons." I stopped midway and glanced at him before doing as he said. I could feel his eyes on me as I stirred the honey and passed it onto him.

Silence wrapped around us again but oddly enough, it was far from the awkward one we had yesterday. I glanced at him and saw that his attention was somewhere else despite his gaze that was trained on my kitchen tiles. Charles' eyes were clouded with a heavy emotion and the frown on his lips was evident. Looking at him made me feel like what he was carrying on his shoulders was being duplicated onto mine, and I didn't like it one bit.

It was a few minutes later when I cleared my throat and his head snapped up to look at me. He hadn't taken a sip of the tea yet, instead just swirling it around the cup.

"Sorry." He apologized, setting the cup down on the counter. "Things are just a little bit complicated for me right now."

I nodded in understanding, knowing that he wasn't in the mood to share. I was the same, choosing to battle my problems by myself. Sometimes it works but in the long run, it's not the best coping mechanism out there. You'd just end up bottling all of those feelings and delaying the day that you would one day explode. I beckoned for Charles to follow me as I went up to my art room.