No Other Heart

The night has opened my eyes

Charlie opened the door, his son ran through, he bent down and gave him a long hug. Charlie ruffled his sons hair. They pulled away from each other and moved out of the door way.

"Why didn't you tell me your neighbor was cute, Charlie?" Nicole, Charlie's ex-wife says to him before handing him Henry's things. Charlie looked at her confused. He didn't have a neighbor. "What's wrong, Charlie?" Nicole mimicked his expression.

"I don't have a neighbor,Nicole." He laughed lightly and shook his head.

"Well you do. She just left. I literally saw her Charlie." Nicole argued.

"Yeah,so did I. She was leaving her house when we were walking up. She waved at me." Henry said peeking his head around the corner of the kitchen with a star struck look on his face.

Charlie shook his head, "What?" He said loudly.

"Wow Charlie, you didn't even realize you have a gorgeous next door neighbor." Carter said, Nicole's boyfriend who Charlie didn't like very much, not because he was with Nicole, he was just annoying. Carter wrapped his arm around Nicole's shoulders. "Not as gorgeous of my Nicole of course."

Charlie turned around and rolled his eyes 'my Nicole, really' he set Henry's things down in his bedroom and walked back out.

"We'll, anyways. Carter and I are going to Cassie's for lunch. Have a good day Henry," Henry made a noise acknowledgment. "Bye Charlie."

"Yeah, bye man." Carter said. Charlie rolled his eye and closed the door.

                               ———

Charlie felt bad for not realizing he had a neighbor. Charlie convinced Henry to help him make chocolate chip cookies. Once they were cooled down enough he put them on a plate and wrote a note.

Hello, neighborhood I didn't realize I had.
My names Charlie Barber and I thought I would be neighborly and make you some cookies.

Charlie looked over the note deciding if he should put it with the plate or not. "No, no one's gonna take a plate of cookies left at thier doorstep randomly." He said to himself.

He grapped a piece of tape and taped the note to the plate. "Honey, I'm gonna go leave these out for our new neighbors okay, I'll just be a minute."

Charlie walked outside and to your door. He saw your door mat and laughed. "Come in if you want." Then under that, very tiny "no one said you had too". He bent down to place the cookies hearing his knees pop Jesus I'm getting old.

"Hi," Charlie heard a voice, it's was soft and sweet but full of confusion. His head turned. He saw a woman, obviously in her twenties. Her eyes wide. And for some reason her had in her purse. Is that her! Is that who Nicole was talking about! Well I'll have to admit Nicole was right.

______

Coming home to a abnormally large man leaving a plate at your doorstep obviously will send any woman into panic mode. You reached into your purse, found your pepper spray and held it in your hand. Just in case.

As you walked closer. You noticed it was a plate of cookies. "Hi?" You asked. The man looked your direction. He was hot,but he was still a strange man at your door. You asked him many questions but maybe he didn't hear you since he was just staring at you. Okay. This is weird. If he comes closer. Use the pepper spray.

You waved your free hand getting his attention. The man shook his head. "Ohh hmmp, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. I'm your next door neighbor and I didn't realize anyone lived here so I thought I would be neighborly." He smiled.

You tilted your head slightly. "I thought a mom and son lived in there. I see them like every few weeks and barely just said hi this morning." You stepped back.

The man quickly realized you were uncomfortable, " No, No, No that's my son and my ex wife, she drops him off every few week, I'm probably scaring you and that understandable, I just felt really bad about not realizing I had a neighbor so I made you some cookies. I planned on leaving them at your door then going back and making my son Dinner." He said very quickly while talking with his hands.

You dropped your pepper spray and took your hand out of your bag. "I'm sorry too. I could have introduced myself, it's not your fault." You watched him let out a deep breath and you laughed lightly.

You walked closer ,put your hand out, and introduced yourself. He shook your hand, "Charlie Barber."

HUGE FUCKING HANDS OH MY GOD. You laughed nervously, looked up at him, god he's handsome. "Okay, now so I know I can trust these," you moved around him bent down and picked up the cookies. "You have to eat one of these." Charlie looked at you confused. "So I know you didn't poison them." Charlie laughed, removed the plastic wrap and grapped the cookie at the very top. "Not that one," Charlie looked at you confused. "Everyone knows that if someone poisoned something and the person is making them try it their grab the thing closest to them." Charlie laughed you words didn't make any sense but he understood, and grapped a different cookie. "Sorry, I just have to be sure." You smiled up at him.

Charlie shook his head, "Hm, it's okay, it's cute." Charlie watched you blush and your smile twitch.

"Thank you," you laughed. "For the cookies but I'm pretty sure you have a kid to feed right?"

Charlie remember he left Henry by himself. "Right, It was nice meeting you, Have a great day." He quickly walked back to his apartment hearing you say goodbye to him sweetly.

_____

Charlie shut and hit his head against the door. "You should have asked for her number, dad." Henry's voice made him turn around. "Also, I'm hungry."

"Okay Hungry, what do you want for dinner?" He changed the subject.

"I don't know, that's your job. And you should have asked for her number." Henry said again. Charlie shook his head.

"I just found out she lives next door, that would be too soon." He ruffled Henry's head. Henry grabbed his hand and pulled it off of him.

"I don't care if it's too fast, you need a girlfriend. Even mom thinks so. She says your lonely and she feels bad for you." Charlie looked at his son, shocked. Seriously? What the f-
"Dad!" Charlie focused back on Henry. "Food!"

"Right." Charlie made himself and his son food, the entire time he thought about ways he would talk to you more. Says he could earn a friendship with you so Nicole could stop feeling "sorry for him".

Charlie knew whatever he did he wouldn't let the two of you be strangers.