nice | drew starkey

4.1

"Where have you been?" Austin shouting woke me up. The lights were off and there was a heavyweight over my waist. I recognized this weight as Madison's leg. My face felt dry, and my eyes felt super puffy. And then it hit me, Drew was home. I groggily made my way into the living room praying that I didn't trip on anything on the floor.

"I was out," Drew stammered. My eyes narrowed at the bright light of the kitchen. I covered my eyes and shuffled in. "Charlie..." Drew started.

"No you don't get to talk until she asks you to speak," Austin interrupted, taking a step forward, and placed me behind him.

"Austin," I said, quietly. I didn't need everyone to know what was going on right now. He backed up but his glare didn't leave Drew.

"Where the fuck have you been?" I said calmly, which only made Drew even more terrified.

"I went to a bar," He said quietly while looking at his feet.

"Were you with her?" I took a step closer. He shrunk even more. His answer was a small nod. "What happened?" He mumbled something and turned his head away. "No. Look me in the eye and tell me what happened." I prayed he would say it was just drinks. My heart was collapsing, only a thread was holding me together. Drew's bright blue eyes looked at me, the tears threatening to fall made my stomach drop. Like this was some awful roller coaster. "What happened?" I repeated, my vision blurred from the tears that were forming.

He paused, his eyes filled with regret. "She kissed me," A single tear rolled down my cheek, my face stone cold. I just looked at him as my heart crumbled. It happened again. "But she kept getting me drinks. I only went because she kept texting me, and I met her out to talk to her about leaving me alone. We had a few drinks and she kissed me. But I pushed her off immediately and left. And I was drunk so I didn't wanna drive. And I felt so bad. I'm--" Drew rambled on and on.

"Stop," Austin commanded. His tone was disgusted. Tears were freely flowing down Drew's face. I didn't know what to do. Everything was fuzzy and I just needed to process what he had said. My feet carried me to my room and I could hear Austin yelling at Drew. My hands grabbed some of my clothes and shoes and I headed out into the kitchen. Rudy was standing in the living area. Their attention was on Drew until he looked up at me. His eyes were such a pretty blue, it made me sick to my stomach. I turned away and made my way out the door.

"Charlie," Drew called after me, but Austin and Rudy held him back. I closed the door and made my way down the hallway. I was glad no one else was awake. The sun was finally beginning to rise, and my broken heart led me to the light of the morning. I walked and I walked for at least an hour. Not thinking about where I was going. I think it was around 5 am by now, so most people were already home from the bars. As I wandered I realized that I had nowhere to go. I left my phone at the place in a hurry, well I wasn't really thinking when I left. Then, a familiar shoe store came into view, and relief coursed through my body. The store opened at 7, and there was a cafe open. I could sit there for a little bit until the store opened. Luckily I grabbed my wallet. I went into the cafe and was greeted by a young girl.

"What can I get you?" The employee asked, she looked like she was 18.

"Iced vanilla latte with a muffin," I replied, then I realized I probably looked like shit right about now. She had short brunette hair and big blue eyes, real pretty. I sat down at a table and waited patiently. I had nothing but time to kill. The girl walked over shyly and placed them in front of me. I thanked the girl, but she lingered a little longer.

"I don't want to be rude," She started, almost apologizing for speaking. "But you look like Charlie Smith."

"I hope I look like her because I am her," I chuckled as her eyes widened.

"It's great to meet you,"

"What's your name?" I asked, gestured to the seat across from me.

"Bethany," The young girl said as she sat down. "What was it like on set, if you don't mind me asking," She said hopefully.

"Really fun, the cast is so much fun to work with,"

"I bet," She replied dreamily. "I just watched Season 2, I loved it,"

"Thank you," I sipped my icy beverage. "You can ask more questions if you'd like," I smiled knowingly at the girl.

"Okay, what was it like working in South Carolina? Are you excited for season 3? What is it like being with Rudy Pankow every single day?" Bethany asked.

"I love South Carolina because it's where I'm from actually. I'm so excited for season 3. And incredible, Rudy is like a little brother to me, even though he's older. I just really enjoy working with him. The cast is full of great people,"

"Aww, that's awesome." Bethany cooed, she looked starstruck.

"What do you want to do?" I said, popping in a piece of my muffin. Thank god for this girl's conversation or I would be a mess.

"I want to work with disabled children and get them the care they need. And the correct loving support," Bethany explained passionately.

"That's incredible. I know you'll be doing amazing things," I was surprised by this young girl's maturity and the size of her heart. "You've got a golden heart," Bethany blushed and muttered a thank you.

"Oh, I have one more question," Bethany commented, seeing as I was almost done with my breakfast.

"Go ahead," I smiled softly and began to drink the last little bit of my drink.

"Are you and Drew dating?" The pain in my chest instantly returned. It felt like a knife had gone through my heart and twisted. Her blue eyes reminded me of the ones I had looked at not too long ago.

I forced a smile, praying that it looked natural. "Just friends, I need to go. Thank you for the conversation and great coffee." I rushed through that sentence and tried to run out the door. More people were beginning to mill around so I knew that some stores had to be open. I felt the tears well up. I ran into the store to see Anthony and Luca chatting behind the counter. Luca saw my face and immediately rushed over.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know where to go and I left my phone," I cried out, as he led me to the back room. He set me down and started making a pot of tea.

"What's wrong, baby girl?" Luca asked, his concern flashing in his eyes.

"My boyfriend cheated on me," I sobbed. I was glad for Luca's lack of knowledge of who I was. He saw me as a person and not an actress, which I deeply appreciated.

"No," Luca gasped and cradled my head into his chest. "Let it all out honey, you're in a safe place," The kind man handed me a cup of tea and I launched into the story. How Drew's childhood friend flirted with him, and how he went out to ask her to stop talking. Then to how they kissed.

"I'm sorry for dumping all this on you," I sniffled.

"Don't worry about it. The real ones gotta stick together." Luca smiled softly before sipping on his tea. "You know dear," He started hesitantly. "You won't want to hear this, and I would be the last person to condone cheating, but it sounds like he stopped her," He explained.

"I know, it's just he still did it. I -- it still hurt and I just couldn't be there with him anymore," I sighed.

"That's totally fair, but I think you guys should talk again because he was drunk and you were upset."

"You're right," I nodded, we went back to sipping our tea in silence.

"We have a couch in the breakroom, and I have a t-shirt you can change into once you finish your nap. Because, no offense, but you look like shit," Luca laughed and pushed me toward their break room.

"Thank you again," I laughed as I walked into the break room. The couch actually looked comfortable and there were already pillows and blankets on it. As soon as my head hit the pillow I was asleep.  

...

all of you guys hating on Luca and then changed ur minds has me cracking up. like damn. so funny though love it. is he okay now? also, what's going to happen now...

what would classify what drew did? was it cheating or did he do the right thing?