Coming Home [Completed]

Ch. 22: If You're Over Me

Charlie's silent treatment became untenable after only a few days and, by the next Monday, he was back to talking to his friends, albeit he was slightly withdrawn. His breakup with Lucas had caught him off guard and threw him more than he'd have expected it to. For whatever it was, his five months dating Lucas represented the most stable relationship he'd ever had.

Okay, it was out of two and the other was historically unstable, but still. There was a monumentality that was felt when their relationship disintegrated that threw Charlie like a riptide and he wasn't sure how to respond so he just didn't.

He kept his distance from Theo, not wanting to have to deal with yet another painful conversation with someone he cared about. Charlie's coldness was reflected on the ice when his and Theo's usual chemistry evaporated during their first few games. Passes would be missed, going completely behind one of them; or they wouldn't see each other when the other was wide open in front of the net.

The team felt it and the coach felt the need to talk to Charlie about it. He'd never seen a grown man look more awkward than when this guy tepidly brought up his previous romantic history with his teammate Theo and how that shouldn't affect their play. He also threatened to demote Charlie to the second line if things didn't change.

This would have been a major blow to Charlie's ego, but he knew it'd be the right hockey move. Theo was a better player than him no doubt and he needed to be on the top line. More than that, though, Charlie sinking to the second line would mean that his and Theo's chemistry was irreparably damaged.

Thankfully for Charlie, this potential calamity was put off at least temporarily by the upcoming winter break, which meant that there would be a two-week reprieve from actual games. Somehow, he'd have to get his shit together in the meantime and not just on the ice.

For Charlie, though, it seemed like events conspired against him on this. He'd come to this realization the night before the last day of school before winter break, with Theo leaving the next day to fly off to France and reunite with his childhood crush. To Charlie, this felt like a betrayal, even if he had no logical right to feel that way.

When all else failed, Charlie facetime'd Julia. It was almost midnight, but Julia answered almost right away. She was in bed and Charlie could see the top tufts of Tate's hair as the boy cuddled up to his girlfriend in their Manhattan apartment. They were so in love and happy and rich it was sickening, though that last part was mostly on Tate's account.

Julia let out a shriek when she was Charlie's shaven head, then once she gathered herself, she remarked, "I saw your post on Insta but I didn't believe it was real!"

"They say never take your mental health out on your hair and yet... I've done it again," Charlie responded, trying to make a joke out of the situation.

"Was Theo really the one to do the deed?"

"Yep, actually, that's kinda related to what I want to talk to you about..."

"Oh, no," Julia's face fell. "You're not back together, are you? I heard Lucas dumped you." Charlie could hear Tate's stifled laughter in the background and saw Julia elbow him into submission.

"Gee, thanks for that, and no we're not and your response to that idea is a little concerning."

"Charlie, I know you'll always have a thing for him, but it's just not right for either of you."

"Well, I don't know what to do then, because this situation is untenable. I can't even talk to him for fear of what I'll say and there's no way we can last past going off to college. I mean, we're probably going to be on different sides of the country."