Jodie was beginning to genuinely infuriate Mia. Her lack of common sense was irritating, but in actuality her stupidity was borderline dangerous. The red head genuinely couldn't understand why Jodie was still allowed to work with children, nor could she comprehend why Marjorie protected her so vehemently. Mia had a plan and now, she needed to wait until the right time.
To take her mind off Roger and his games, Mia spent as much time as she could simply observing Charlotte. She knew that Charlotte saw herself as weak and spineless and for some reason, that hurt Mia's heart. The brunette was strong in way so many people were not - she was kind no matter what, even when her own soul was dying. Mia was sure she was watching Charlotte suffer in silence and she wanted nothing more than to comfort the brunette. Did a world exist where a woman like Charlotte could find solace within Mia's arms? Mia wanted that world to exist.
"But it doesn't. You don't deserve her. You can't have her. She could never, ever love someone like you."
Not long after Mia had started, she'd immediately tested the waters with Charlotte in an attempt to ascertain exactly what she was dealing with. When Charlotte had called the office and asked Mia to witness her administering an inhaler, the red head had attended immediately. She could have just done as expected and left, but when she noticed a discrepancy between the register and the label, she had an idea. She'd smirked at Charlotte and firmly told her that the little girl couldn't have the inhaler, making sure to say "sorry sweetheart" as sweetly as possible. As she'd looked into Charlottes eyes, she'd thought "challenge me Charlotte. I know you won't let this happen. Stand up to me." Mia knew that she was being antagonistic but she didn't want to hurt Charlotte, she wanted to help her. The brunette had snapped back at her and immediately gone ahead, ignoring Mia entirely. As the red head had walked away, she'd remarked "who knew Charlotte had a backbone?" Silently, she'd added "because I always did."
Now she was covering at Marjorie's nursery, Mia saw Charlotte almost every day. When she saw Charlotte looking a little down, sometimes she'd give her a compliment. Mia felt surprised with herself, all she wanted was to see Charlotte smile. At the end of each day, Mia found herself wandering down to the rooms to keep an eye on Charlotte, she'd heard the way some of the parents spoke to her and she didn't like it. One evening, as she heard one of the Dads berating Charlotte for telling his ex wife all about his late pickups, Mia saw red. How dare he speak to Charlotte that way, she'd done nothing wrong and she didn't deserve to be treated so poorly. She'd seen the surprise in Charlotte eyes as she'd placed herself in front of the Dad, before ripping into him about his gambling habits and calling him feckless. Mia could have said much, much more but she restrained herself, there was a little girl present after-all. Protecting Charlotte had made Mia feel like she was finally home and fulfilling a destiny she'd never known was hers.
"I was made to love you. My arms will protect you and I'll never let you down. I know you feel it too."
"She's still a bad person" Charlotte had muttered to herself as Mia walked away. The red head had told her that she didn't want others to think she had a nice side. More importantly, she'd said "I'd only do that for you." As much as Charlotte would never admit it, the attention she'd received from Mia had made her stomach flutter and her heart race. It was making Charlotte feel special, which was something she'd not felt in years.
When Carly had initially told her about Mia, the brunette had wondered what on earth Reece had ever seen in her. Then, she'd met her and as well as she'd hidden it, she'd been left slightly breathless. Mia was the most beautiful woman she'd ever seen, everything about her was perfect. That evening, Charlotte had sat at home, alone and missing her daughters. They were with their Dad and she was still getting used to coparenting as a separated couple, it was a huge adjustment. She'd imagined Mia, sitting beside her and smiling, opening her arms to embrace Charlotte warmly. She'd immediately shook that thought from her head, Mia's shell may have been pretty but her heart really wasn't. As she'd fallen asleep later that evening however, all Charlotte could think of was those diamond like eyes. How could someone with an evil heart have such beautiful eyes?
In the end, it became like a dance and others had definitely noticed. Carly saw exactly how Mia looked at Charlotte, but she found Charlottes response slightly more difficult to read. When Mia had come into the room and asked Jodie to go to her office, she'd looked the brunette up and down before saying "you look nice today Charlotte." Truthfully, Carly thought the way Mia's eyes had traced over Charlottes body was almost gentle, it wasn't objectifying, it was so much more than that. There was no time to focus on that however, Jodie being called to the office was a far more pressing matter - what did Mia have planned?
When Jodie was suspended, everyone knew she hadn't done what she'd been accused of. Everyone knew immediately that Mia was behind the luxury bag order, but nobody could prove it. Nobody understood that Mia's intention was to keep the children safe, however mad her methods were. She knew that the other staff would fight for Jodie, but when Charlotte entered the office and attempted to flirt with Mia, the red head was caught slightly off guard. It was clear that Charlotte was nervous so Mia made sure to look into her eyes as deeply as possible, daring her to take it further. Mia so desperately wanted to go to the bar with the brunette - she so desperately wanted the possibility to be real. Deep down, the reality that Charlotte was simply trying to trick her was making her feel just a little bit hurt, but she did feel proud that once again the brunettes backbone was starting to kick in. It didn't escape Mia's notice that Charlotte had switched her wedding ring, causing her to wonder if the brunette had felt a sense of relief when she'd done so. To Mia, it was clear as day that Charlotte was married, yes, but she clearly no longer had a husband and quite obviously, she was struggling. Every day, she silently willed Charlottes friends to notice, to help her, to do something - but nobody did, too wrapped up in their own selfish minds. It wasn't Mia's place to speak for Charlotte, so she kept her mouth shut as her mind screamed at the people who claimed to care for the beautiful brunette.
When Charlotte asked Mia to sign a blank accident form, she didn't even question it. Although Mia had no idea, she'd just signed away her loneliness. One signature was about to spark a chain reaction and cause long kept secrets to be revealed. The seemingly never ending loop that had destroyed Mia's life so far was about to be broken.
Mia and Charlotte were about to save each other's lives. They just didn't know it yet.
*
Sweetheart, I promise I'll be your shield
Please hold on, soon hearts will be healed
Sweetheart, I see the tears that you hide
The battle you're fighting, the pain inside
*
Mia, love is a refuge, a place to belong
My arms are waiting, you don't have to be strong
Mia, I need you and I see your true light
It's time to let go, you can give up the fight
*
A love that burns so brightly, like the stars up above
All that I need, is all that you are, this will never be transactional love
❤️
YOU ARE READING
THE LAST LEAVES OF AUTUMN - (TNN - PROM NIGHT- AUTUMN/REECE/MIA)
Fanfiction**WORK IN PROGRESS** What really happened before, during and after prom night? How did Roger's treatment and manipulations affect Autumn, Reece and Mia?
