✦ ✧ ✩ Curtain Call ✦ ✧ ✩ - Charlie Gillespie

Chapter 54

"Ok ok" my mom said, standing up from the bed to help my dad do the same, "We all need to shower if we want to make it on time, I know Maeve knows this but tell the boys not to hog the hot water."

"I will don't worry" I said, walking out of the room still in my mom's dress, "Please give Charlie his clothes!"

When I went down I saw Mr. Dougherty's car parking in the front of the house. Maeve and Owen got out of it and waved goodbye as he turned his car around.

"You made that poor old man drive us here just because I was being fair and" she stopped herself when she saw me in my mom's dress.

"Oh Eri you look so beautiful" she said, taking her hands up to her mouth. She had the pictures hanging in my house memorized, and she always said I looked like my mom in that particular picture.

I just twirled around in the dress one more time.

I haven't felt this happy in my house in what it felt like such a long time.

There standing in my mom's dress, surrounded by everyone I loved most, I was overwhelmed with memories of me just being unapologetically me, before I suddenly wasn't three years ago. It was bittersweet, a scary feeling, in the most comforting way.

I felt like myself again. Like I could see myself the way everyone actually saw me. The way my mom used to see me. The way my dad always saw me. Before I lost what made me, me.

Charlie came into the room and a clump of clothes fell from the top of the stairs on his head. The image snapped me out of my own thoughts I was so submerged into before. He grabbed the pair of pants and put them up after throwing the shirt and vest over his shoulders.

"I don't want to be rude, but I can't picture your dad in this" he said, looking down at the bell bottom pants he was supposed to wear.

"Oh I rocked those pants back then son" my dad said, walking out in his outfit, that was a lot less tamed from what we imagined. His shirt was the most hideous pastel yellow and had a confusing 70s pattern. His pants flared out at the bottom and were just in between orange and terracotta.

And he might've been a fit man in his prime but a mix of my mom's cooking, his age and enthusiasm with beer made the shirt a little too tight in the gut.

We couldn't exactly see what kind of shoes he was wearing but both Maeve's and I's jaws dropped when the fact that they had a bit of a heel was revealed when he started walking.

Owen and Charlie whistled and hollered at him as he modeled his outfit down the stairs, and I joined in when I saw him smiling and strutting proudly.

"This truly is going to be something" Maeve sentenced, just before we all made our way to get ready for the night.

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After a chaotic afternoon of getting ready we arrived at the school and made our way into the basketball court where the event was being held in.

When we got in we gave the admission money to a lady who asked for our names and explained the rules to me and the boys, who never participated before.

"Here how it goes, If you stop dancing or moving, you lose. One of you is playing, the other one is just a partner, you are not playing in teams. That means that the partner can leave the court, and he can stay in place of the player if they need to leave. You can also dance with whomever you like as long as you keep moving. There's a 10-minute break every hour and a half, got it?" she said, handing us our pin with our respective positions on as we all nodded in agreement.

I put Charlie's pin on and then mine and walked into position in the court, followed by Maeve and Owen who positioned themselves close to us.

"You are so losing" Owen teased Charlie, who gave him a quick slap on his arm.

"Focus" I said, putting his hand on my hip "We need to be strategic about it, not move that much, so we don't get tired"

"Ok" he simply replied, raising one of his eyebrows, grabbing my hand, "This competitive side of you is kinda hot" he said, making me throw my head back laughing as he wiggled his eyebrows at me.

The music started playing and with that we started dancing. The first hour and a half went by pretty easily, and we got to rest for 10 minutes, that went by just as fast. As we were called back into the court they announced we were dancing to live performances by some of the town's artists.

We started dancing and shivers went down my spine when I heard the voice of the girl playing in the improvised stage they put in the corner of the room.

"Are you ok?" Charlie asked, trying to read my face "You look flustered"

"I kinda am" I said, as we kept dancing, "I just realized there's something about me I didn't tell you"

"Is it bad?"

"Oh no not at all. I don't even think its surprising I just-" I noticed the music stopped playing.

"Thank you very much!" she said as we all clapped. I heard her heels clicking towards me.

"Erato Beauregard" she said, putting her hand in my lower back but quickly taking it off when she took a look at Charlie, "I heard you were here and brought a boy with you but I didn't want to believe it" she said, giving me a soft kiss on the cheek that made my eyes open wide, "I guess I just keep losing. Hope this one's better" she finished, winking at me. As she walked away I could feel myself blushing.

"Is that another ex I need to worry about?" he asked, tilting his head as we watched her leave. I found myself shocked at his question, scared that he was still bothered by Matthew, but I tried to brush it off, mostly because talking about that not so pleasant ex was not in my plans for the evening.

"God no, she was too good for me" I replied, putting my arms around his neck, "And you don't need to worry about anything, ok? I'm really happy with you"

"Great" he uttered firmly "Because I'm really happy with you too. So, what else about you is this town hiding from me?" he continued, twirling me around.

"There's not a lot more. I didn't play any sports, I ran book club, and there's a hideous picture of my senior class in the hallway Maeve will insist on showing you. Oh! and my proudest moment, the one time I was voted best mate." I stopped myself for a second as his eyes scanned mine, like he knew there was more to that. I took a big breath and continued talking "My last year dad got really sick, and I really got into school activities, so I didn't have to be at home, and therefore made a lot of friends. I always regretted it. When he got better I left for LA after finishing senior year earlier." He listened to me silently nodding his head.

"I'm really sorry that happened to you" he said, smiling down at me.

"Come on I know you're thinking it" I said, smiling back, "I'm one to escape"

"I didn't want to say it. I don't even think that's-"

"Since I met you, I don't feel like escaping anymore" I said, grabbing the back of his neck, suddenly forgetting we were in the middle of the court.

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I wanted to say I'm really sorry about not  being good at replying to comments, you guys are always so sweet, and I honestly feel like writing a letter every time, and then I just can't even put an emoji or something.

Also: Bi Rights.