Getting Closer

Chapter Two - Charlie

"Our little hero has arrived!" my girlfriend shouts as we enter the store. My face burns as I hate being the center of attention. My dad looks up from the counter and questions me silently. Kate runs up to him and puts her hand on her forehead. "Oh how mighty he is!" she gasps as she mocks me.

My dad laughs as I put lunch on the counter. "Kate, you do have to stop that. You're scaring the customers away."

"Are you kidding?" she asks. "I'm reeling them in! They come from near and far to gape at our little hero!"

"I'm only doing my duty," I kid. I leave those two and go into the back room to breathe. Those two won't leave me alone after I helped that girl two days prior. I sit on a stool and let out some air as I know that school starts soon and I won't be able to help my dad that much. It pains me to see him struggle so much but I know he's trying to make it seem as though he's doing alright.

"Charlie! Come on back; we're done messing with ya!" I do eventually go back into the front and the two stare at me. Kate puts her arm around my torso after I stand next to her. I watch my dad closely as he opens the paper bag and gets out the sandwich I got for him. He tries to hide the fact that he's shaking again but I can see him as clear as day. Kate squeezes my waist and I look down on her. She then puts her hand in my back pocket.

"We're gonna go up to my room for a bit, okay?" I say quickly. My dad raises one eyebrow but he doesn't say anything. Kate takes my hand and drags me upstairs to my bedroom. All the while I'm caught up in this feeling like she knows my house better than I do. When we get to my room, she lets go of my hand when and she stands in the middle. "Is there something wrong?" I ask as I step closer.

"Nothing's wrong." She puts her red hair into a ponytail and smiles. "Only that you can't read my signals."

"I don't understand."

"Of course you don't." She sits on my bed and pats next to her. "I think we need to talk." I close my door but I have no idea why. I sit next to her and she grabs my hands. "Charlie. I want to have sex." My eyes grow wide but I don't say anything. We've only been dating about three months... or did I miss something? Kate clears her throat and clarifies, "I want to be sexually active with you. I want you to touch me." I'm still speechless and I just stare at her. I never thought about being physical with her, at least not yet. "Are you going to say anything?" Oh my god. What do I say? I can't just flat out say no.

"Uh..." Geez Charlie. That's even worse than saying no. Just tell her how you feel. I swallow and say, "I'm uncomfortable with that." She just stares but doesn't move making me once again, uncomfortable.

"Oh. Okay."

"I don't mean to make things... well you know awkward."

She looks down. "It's alright if you're not ready. I just want to keep this relationship open. And I wanted to tell you where my mind is at." I nod because that's the only thing coming to mind for me to do. We sit there awkwardly on my bed until she looks to me again and says, "We will take it slow, until we're both ready."

"Yeah." Why did I just say that? Could I make things even more weird? Kate turns my head so we're making eye contact. She leans in slowly and just for a moment I thought she was going to tear off my clothes, but instead kisses me gently on my lips. After we separate, I hold her hand and say, "I've never been comfortable with... you know... sex." Kate laughs and kisses me again.

"Charlie, just be quiet," she laughs. She puts her forehead to mine and we sit there for a moment like that. "Thank you for being honest." Kate suddenly falls back and lays on my bed while putting her legs on my body. "So," she says while looking up at the ceiling, "are you ready to go back to school?"