Apex | Charles Leclerc

Chapter 24

Charles stood up and took his airpods from his bag, passing it to me along with his phone that was already open, his Spotify account ready for me to go through. I picked a random song which turned out to be Italian and placed one airpod in my ear as he sat back down. Before beginning, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, trying to calm myself. The images quickly swam to the surface and I fought with every fiber of my being that I would not let it get to me.

My eyes opened when I felt something nudge my foot and I looked down to see one of Charles' ankles hooked around mine. His face was neutral, as if he wasn't doing anything under the table, and I'm grateful that he chose not to make a big deal out of it. It was a small gesture, but enough to push me to talk.

He listened intently the entire time, not uttering a single word. During the parts of the story where I found my family inside the house, I had to take a few minutes to myself and this was when Charles would hook his ankle around mine. When he'd see that I was okay again, he'd pull it back. I wasn't use to someone just sitting there and hearing me, with the exception of my professional life. My parents always but in with their own comments while Gabby and my sister would make sounds of exclamations equivalent to their reactions.

His silence helped because I was able to go through the story uninterrupted. I gave him the rundown, not including the personal breakdowns and how I scrubbed the blood off of my skin so hard that scratches appeared on my skin. He didn't need to know about that.

"How do you want me?" Were the first words he said when I finished.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you need me to be the comforting type or the won't talk about it type?" He asked and I didn't even realize I was holding my breath until I sighed in relief. No one's ever asked me that. They just assumed that I needed them to be there for me, be my shoulder to lean on, and tell me that everything was okay. Deep inside, I wanted to go back to being normal without the looks of pity being sent my way.

"The latter." I said and he nodded his head, eyes analyzing me as if he was absorbing everything I just told him. "What are you thinking right now?"

"I don't think my thoughts would change anything."

"They won't but I still want to hear them." I said and he looked at me with an amused look in his eyes. Charles stood up and moved his chair so that he sitting right across from me, no table in between us. Before I could even comprehend what he was doing, his hands gripped the sides of my chair and pulled me closer to him, his legs wide open and caging me in. He didn't remove his arms when there was only a few inches between us which left me caged inside his arms as well.

Charles' green eyes roamed every inch of my face momentarily distracting me before I felt one of his fingers draw small circles on the side of my thigh. "Don't let this get to your head." He said and I merely inclined my head to the side before he spoke up again. "But you're very brave, Nadia." My lips opened to make a comment about how he used my real name but he shook his head at me. "There are people out there who would not have survived what you went through. I know I wouldn't, yet here you are, still standing. I made a promise to you that I would protect your secret and I'm not the type of person who breaks the promises he makes. My word is as good as gold."

Something clicked inside of me. I don't know why his words have such an effect on me when I've mastered filtering the words I hear and are directed at me. I'm scared that in the future, Charles will have this kind of hold on me that I won't be able to let go of yet I also find myself seeking for the escape he so openly offers.

The next thing I know, my lips are crashing against his, both of my hands cupping his cheeks as his moved to hold me steady by the waist. The angle of me standing up was too high with him sitting down on the chair so one of his hands moved to my right thigh and moved it over to the outside of his leg, the other following soon after.