Happy Merry Everything (Charlie Barber)

Happy Birthday Charlie

She said she would call you back. That was 30 minutes ago. Although being more than fashionably late was well in character, it didn't help the way your insides were aflutter in anticipation. The increased anxiety of it all made it so you couldn't stand still and at the rate you were pacing, you risked wearing a hole in the office carpet within the hour. The lunch on your desk was losing warmth, but you couldn't bring yourself to eat, going as far to convince yourself that your hot sandwich was better cold anyway.

It shouldn't have been this agonizing. For all intents and purposes, you were a person with near unlimited patience. You sheepishly glanced at the time again, striving to shake free from the firm hold of the situation. In the grand scheme of things, was thirty five minutes really that long a time to wait?

You jumped as your phone vibrated in your hand. "Finally." You swiped to answer and noticed one crucial difference from the previous conversation: you were about to FaceTime.

Ill-prepared and antsy, you hurried to position yourself near the window, all the while hoping the natural light and overhead fluorescence wouldn't muck up your background.

"Hey!" you exclaimed. You used your image on the screen to fix a piece of your hair. "I wasn't sure if you were gonna call back."

"Hello? Can you see me? Fuck, it's bright."
"Oh, sorry."
"Not on your end, over here. Jesus. Hang on."

You fussed with the blinds, shutting out some of the city's mid-afternoon glow streaming in through the window. You couldn't see much, just flashes of pavement, grass, and shoes while she and the camera jostled about.

"Okay. Yeah. This is much better," she said, satisfied.

"So..." you started, backing yourself up in an attempt to frame yourself more. You were keen to remain hopeful.

"Bitch, you weren't kidding," Jules said, lowering her sunglasses and offering you a sly grin. You couldn't help the laugh that slipped out as you watched her whip her head back to check for potential eavesdroppers. "Okay, we're good, but yeah, you weren't kidding one bit. She's something else."

You shrugged. "She can be a bit overzealous."

Even as you stood there staring back at one another through tiny screens, it was surreal seeing Jules in California. The two of you had orchestrated the entire thing at your desks the same afternoon you spoke with Nicole. At the time, neither of you dared to believe she would be on board with the idea: Henry traveling alone with someone she didn't know. However, color you astounded when in the middle of your conversation it was Henry himself who became your saving grace. You could hear him in the background asking about you, you assumed because you were on speakerphone. Once it was confirmed, he was practically begging Nicole to FaceTime. She disconnected the call to do just that, leaving you and Jules to exchange dumbfounded glances. She had been there beside you, obscenities and moral support at the ready. Your defenses were up, too; you were fully prepared to go to battle with her over this surprise for Charlie, but Henry's request was the treaty of peace that unified you both.

The call had connected and his face lit up when he saw you, his joy for Jules' presence leaving you both nonplussed. In the past, Henry and Jules met a handful of times. Their interactions mostly consisted of Henry wanting all of the toys and gadgets on Jules' desk and Jules making Henry laugh. It was a goodhearted friendship in the making.

"Jules, I...I finally got to tell my friend Axel the joke you told me. About my middle name," Henry said, practically stealing the phone from Nicole. You covered your mouth so she couldn't see you smirking as Henry found a comfortable place to sit. "I kept forgetting until we played yesterday and then I remembered."