Charlie's Utopia

Second Chance, Final Chance

"How are you feeling now?" Marcus asked as he passed her some more water.

Charlie sighed and nodded her head, "I am fine. Thank you for the breakfast," She replied.

She was feeling much better after eating something. Her head was still throbbing, but it wasn't so bad. She is sure if she gets home and rests for a bit, the headache will vanish. After breakfast, Marcus told her that her dress was in the washer as she threw up all over it and that her other belongings were in the room. Charlie was waiting for her dress to be washed and dry so she could wear it and leave. It will e weird to wear that tight dress back home, but she didn't have any other option, it was either the dress or Marcus's shirt that she is wearing now.

"How long will it take for my dress to dry?" She asked him while sipping the cold water. Marcus glanced at her and licked his lower lip before he sighed, "Long enough for us to talk," He suggested softly while fidgeting his fingers – he was nervous.

Charlie looked down at the glass she held in her hands. She smashed her lips together as she recalled the way that woman called her his nanny. It wasn't the fact that she thought Charlie was Kathie's nanny – she was at one point and she doesn't mind getting mistaken over it, but it was the fact that Marcus never told Amelia about Charlie and his relationship. In her eyes, he was a widower who was still single. Charlie believed that they were way past that point, but she was wrong. Marcus was still stuck in the beginning and she had come too far.

"What is there to talk, Marcus?" She heaved a sigh and averted her eyes at him, "I meant what I said that night." She added softly – her eyes glossed.

Marcus painfully gulped and looked at her – his eyes were slightly red while they were misty, "I told her," He whispered. Charlie knitted her eyebrows, letting him continue. "I told Amelia about you," He added.

Charlie scoffed, "And you think that makes me feel better? You told her after I confronted you – tell me, Marcus – if it wasn't for our break up – would you have told her about me?" She asked him – squinted her eyes.

Marcus flared his nostrils, "Honestly? The way she took it, no – I would not have told anyone. And I know you must be thinking how coward do I have to be, but that's what I have become – I am too of a coward to accept the reality, Charlie." He answered her honestly.

Charlie slowly blinked, "What do you mean by the way she took it?" She couldn't help ut ask. His reply didn't sit well for her, but she needed to know what happened when he told Amelia that Charlie wasn't a nanny, but his girlfriend.

Marcus sighed, "She didn't take it well. And when I heard the way she disapproved of the reality of me and you – my heart sunk and I thought, this – this is exactly why I didn't want to tell people. The look on her face – this is what I was scared of. The thoughts that must have been in her head, those I was afraid of." He paused before he let out a soft and weak chuckle, "But that feeling – that sinking feeling only lasts a few seconds – that I didn't know would happen," He told her. "I thought it will remain with me. I thought it will haunt me for the rest of my life. I was overthinking. I was over-calculating. But that dreadful feeling – that burden – that guilty, didn't even last a minute." He added. "And after those seconds were over – when that awful feeling was lifted, I sat there – thinking, was this what I was so afraid of? For these mere seconds, I hurt Charlie. I tormented myself. I felt ridiculous," He said softly before he glanced away.

Charlie was silent. She didn't know how to react. She smashed her lips together and was about to reply when Marcus spoke, "I know it isn't easy to forgive me, and I will not push you to do it now – take your time. I just want you to know that I am sorry and I want to make things right for us. I know I have been making your feel left out, but just know that I love you – I love you so much that I am not terrified to show it to you. I promise I will be a better person. For you. For me. For us." He spoke slowly as he stared into my eyes.