The Romantics - Charlie Dalton

Chapter Seven - Decisions

I. Am. So. Busy!
So, as always, here is my apology for my awful posting schedule. I believe I'll be able to pump out more when summer hits. I'm planning for a big trip, trying to keep up with missing classes from competitions, and collecting myself for gigs and rehearsals every week! Sorry I lose track of writing... it really does bring me joy, but its priority drops during this insane time of year for me.

Hope you enjoy this chapter! Thank you so much for the support. Every view pushes me to continue.

-Caroline

~~~

"I think he doesn't know what love is," Meeks revealed.

Charlie looked up attentively and with heartbroken eyes.

"-But, I think he wants to learn it from her."

~~~

Two arduous, complicated weeks passed since that revelation for Charlie. He juggled around the idea of love and loss, of contact and conflict. He understood himself a little better now - knowing that he desires Y/N for more than her presence, but for the way she taught him about himself, the potential she had to make him feel the joy of romance, to savor life.

Unfortunately, he also noticed how she avoided his glance, walked straight past him, and left study hall at 8:00 everyday with a kiss on the cheek from Gordon. Sometimes he'd follow her with a small note in his hand. He never gave it to Y/N, but he would return to the study hall without her and without the note. It was interesting...

Though Charlie wanted to repair the damage, he found giving up was, in comparison to communicating to her, a much more convenient option. This, however, did not stop his heart from gravitating toward her whenever he saw her.

Charlie made the mistake of taking up an opportunity to date a different girl. A pretty but confrontational girl named Maria simply stopped him on his way out to the lake one day and he felt inclined to distract himself. She asked an innocent question about some location in the school, but the way she blushed at his smile reminded him of Y/N... he needed to fill that void. He figured that essentially, he isn't right for Y/N yet; he needed to define his sense of love likes Meeks suggested and maybe later, if she agreed, they could try again. For now, he felt that Y/N moved on entirely. She had Gordon Abner.

However, Charlie believed Gordon Abner was a two-faced image. He had a hunch that Gordon manipulated his past girlfriend several times into doing - who knows what - and consequently he'd seen that girl lose friends, connections. It's been a while since he'd seen her smile in the halls at all.

Charlie believed that as time passed, he may see Gordon treat Y/N this same way - manipulating her, vilifying her, maybe even humiliating her.

Of course, that could just be his jealously talking.

He knew he would have to speak up if he witnessed it, yet that would also require he gains the confidence of speaking to her which has steadily decreased since he last saw her frown at his words.

For now, Charlie found it was more reasonable to ignore his feelings for her at least while she was pursuing Gordon. She seemed to have had enough of me, he thought.

So, Charlie agreed to let Maria take him on a date but it wasn't without bickering. She insisted they go out but would only agree if Charlie asked her in a very specific way - she desired the traditional roles during a heterosexual dating relationship where the male takes charge in all aspects to win the affection of the female. Charlie was all for being a classic gentleman when the time called for it, but, on the other hand, he also cherished the power of a woman. To him, every woman held power in her mind, body, and soul that should not be silenced. Charlie was easily wooed by a woman who recognized such power. He figured his desire for Maria to take charge wasn't because he was seeking a deeper attraction to her, but instead, he identified he had no power in himself. She wanted this date exceedingly more than he did.