Prevail - [Charles Leclerc]

Six

Charles had dropped Sara off at home before he continued for a little errand. They hadn't spoken much in the car, but Sara seemed to have enjoyed the lunch, perhaps more than she wanted to admit. The girls exchanged numbers, and Carlos and Charles were both satisfied to see they got along. Charles decided to take away some dinner for the two of them, secretly hoping it would continue the conversations that were slowly coming. He took some pasta meals from Il Fornaio, adding a bottle of red wine to the order. Charles arrived home a little after seven, and he threw the door of his car close behind him. The front door of the house was opened for him already, and he realized he was actually exhausted when the warmth of the mansion hit his face. Charles took his jacket off, turning to Lando who stood near the end of the stairs. "Where's Sara?" He asked.

"Watching some TV upstairs, sir," Lando replied, to which he nodded. "Ask Gisele to bring some plates, glasses, and cutlery, please," Charles requested, and Lando left to find the maid. He went upstairs meanwhile, finding Sara in the room with the largest TV in the mansion. She was curled up in the corner of the sofa, a blanket pulled over her, while her eyes were focused on the screen. Charles put the bag with their food down on the table, the bottle of red wine next to it. "What are you watching?" Charles asked. "Chicago PD," Sara hummed. "For the plot and the agents," she added, a small grin curving her lips when a short-haired, tall actor showed up on the screen. Charles shook his head with a chuckle. "Did you bring food?" Sara asked, sitting up. "I did," Charles confirmed. "I hope you like lasagna," he added. Gisele came in meanwhile, placing the plates on the table. She left with a quiet smile after Charles thanked her.

"We're having dinner together?" Sara asked when he sat down. He raised an eyebrow at her, not even bothering to answer the question. Charles poured the wine into their glasses and placed one next to her plate. Sara reached for her lasagna, scooping it onto her plate and taking it onto her lap. "Is this series any good?" Charles asked then, meaning what she was watching. "I like it, it's good," Sara replied, leaning back against the sofa again. She took a fork full of lasagna and blew some cool air onto it before tasting it. Charles sat back as well, and the silence took over, the sounds of the TV filling the room again. Sara glanced over at him, he rested his left leg on his right knee, a few buttons of his white button-up were undone, the smooth skin of his muscled chest a little bit visible. He wore a simple chain necklace around his neck, a couple of rings around his fingers that were loosely curled around the stem of the glass. Sara was trying to be subtle, however, Charles noticed her eyes were on him, eying the veins that moved up his arm, the sleeves of his shirt rolled up to his elbows.

Their eyes met, and her eyebrows simply rose as if she was asking why are you looking at me? Sara put her plate on the table and took her glass of wine. "It seemed like you enjoyed the lunch with Carlos and Isa today," he started. "It was okay," Sara said, clicking on the next episode to start while refilling her glass. "It's okay to admit you had fun, Sara," Charles said, his arm resting around the back of the couch while he looked over at her. "Hmm," she hummed, propping her feet up on the edge of the table. Charles took the remote and paused the episode, making her sigh. "What do you want, Leclerc?" she turned her head while leaning it on the cushions. "We have an event at the club tomorrow night, a lot of my partners and friends will be there. We're going too," Charles explained, holding her gaze. "And...?" Sara asked, sensing there was more. "Everybody there knows that we're engaged. We need to act like a couple," Charles continued. "That's not any different from what we're doing for the rest of our lives, right?" Sara let out a huff of air.

Charles' jaw slacked at her comment, but he chose to ignore it. "Look, it's not like we have to be all over each other..." "Can you continue the episode, please?" Sara asked sharply, making it clear she didn't want to talk about it. "No," Charles said. A moment of silent passed as they stubbornly looked at each other. "We're going to watch a movie together. Like couples do," Charles stated. "So, come sit here, instead of as far away from me as you can," he added. "I was here first, you know," Sara said, meaning here, in front of the TV. "And you're in my house, now shut up," Charles replied, going back to Netflix's home page to select a movie. Sara gnawed at her bottom lip, deciding to down her glass of wine and refill it once more, sitting down right next to him. The two looked at each other again for a second, and Charles started a movie he randomly picked. He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, and relaxed while leaning back into the sofa. He swung his arm around the back, causing her to lean slightly into his chest. Sara pulled her legs up again, focusing her eyes on the screen.