He Was There

10 Little By Little

**Zak's pov**

I get back to the house to find Charlotte sitting on the couch, with her knees to her chest, watching TV. Hold on? Is she not drunk? I go over to her then sit next to her. Maybe the plan worked after all. She saw she was missing out and snapped into reality. The guys had no idea of my project, except Jay. I thought if she could hear my pain and believe she'll be kicked out, she would turn it around. The guys thought I just wanted to get out. It made me so upset knowing they want me to give up on her. They don't know how I feel about this woman. I would never give up on someone I love and who is struggling. "How are you doing, baby?" I ask as I put my arm around her.

"Fine." She sighs as she continued to stare at the tv. "Did you have any liquor?" I ask her softly. "No." She sighs, upset.  "Good, good." I kiss her cheek then smile at her. "Where did you go?" she asks me softly, trying not to step over boundaries. I think she realizes she can't get mad at me for doing that because of her choices. "Dave and Busters," I answer. "Fun." she nods. "Yeah, I guess. It would have been more fun if you were there." I scoot closer to her. She looked over at me, shocked. Her blue eyes were starring into mine, confused. "Really?"
"Yes, love." 
"Then why didn't you take me?"
"Because of your head and the alcohol that is there. Didn't want that temptation for you." I explain myself calmly.
"Alright. Zak?" She says as she looks at the floor. I could tell she wanted to say something important to me, but she was nervous. I wrap my arms around her then kiss the top of her head. "Yes, love?" I try my best to make her feel comfortable.

"I'm sorry for becoming a depressed drunk. I'm sorry for becoming a bum and putting you through hell. I never meant to become like this. I honestly never thought I'd be at rock bottom, but here I am. I want you to know I want my old life back. I'm going to stop drinking, get a job, stop moping around, and become a better girlfriend to you. You've done so much for me, and I have repaid you by becoming a drunk. I am so sorry, Zak." She tells me as tears stream down those beautiful cheeks. I bring her in for a hug as I rub her back. She leaned closer, crying into my shirt. "Honey, listen to me. I completely understand why you did it. It is not easy losing a child. You just went the wrong route of handling your pain. I can help you; first, you have to be willing to receive help. As the old saying goes, you can lead a horse to water but can't force it to drink. Which means you first have to want to help yourself. I love that you have finally realized that you have a problem. It made me so happy walking through that door to see you sober." I tell her as I continue to hold her in my arms while She continued to cry into my chest. She pulls back to look at me with those big baby blue eyes. I wipe away her tears with my thumbs.

"I love you Charlotte, we will get through this, We are in this together," I say from the bottom of my heart.

"I love you too, Zak. I'm sorry..." She starts once more before I cut her off. "No, no, I know you feel bad. From this moment on, it is all going to change. Now, you have to promise me you are going to put foot effort to change. I don't want you to break this promise, do you hear me? I don't want to be lied to with empty promises. This is your chance to prove yourself."

She looked down at her hands. "I promise." She finally says after a short, thoughtful pause.

"Please Don't let me down, Charlotte." I take her hands in mine. She looked up at me as tears formed in her eyes once more.

"I won't, that's the last thing I want to do." She whimpers. I know she meant it, I can see it in her eyes she wants to change.

"So, let's come up with a plan of action." I smile softly to her. "Alright." She wipes away her tears.

*One week later *

I drive over to Aaron's place, parking my car in his driveway. "Zak, what if they don't want to see me?" Charlotte asks as her voice shakes. I could tell this was bothering her. "Baby, you're family. They aren't going to cast you out." I try to reassure her.