Coming Home [Completed]

Ch. 12: It's Nice to Have a Friend

Charlie couldn't hide the dumb smile on his face for the rest of the lunch period. He felt extremely self-satisfied after his conversation with Theo. He was glad they cleared the air first and foremost, but a large part of him was also quite smug about the fact that their conversation made clear that he still weighed heavily on Theo's mind. He felt a guilty thrill at that fact.

That feeling returned a few days later when Theo asked Charlie to meet him on Saturday at the coffee shop by Brewer Books. He was a bit reluctant to go, but Lucas actually encouraged him to when he mentioned it.

Theo was waiting for Charlie when the latter entered the shop. Charlie ordered his iced coffee and then went to join Theo, who had picked out a semi-isolated table in a corner for them. The two made idle small talk about nothing in particular, but Theo kept looking towards the door, giving the impression that he was either uninterested by the conversation or waiting for someone else. This slightly disheartened Charlie, who had concocted an elaborate fantasy in his mind of how this would go. Reality certainly wasn't adhering to his plan.

Charlie was alerted to something more interesting than their conversation happening when Theo's eyes lit up, followed by the sound of a door closing behind new customers. Charlie turned around to see what Theo saw and found Eva and Patrick, who looked just as surprised to see him as he was to see them.

Eva looked ready to bolt, but Theo jumped out of his chair and raced over the couple, moving between them and the exit. After an extended and fairly animated conversation, which Charlie was out of earshot for, Eva and Patrick got in line to order and Theo returned to the table with Charlie, who just now noticed that he had chosen a four-person table instead of a two-person one.

"Sorry about that. And, also about this whole ruse. It's more for Eva than you or Patrick, but I figured if I was deceiving one of you I might as well deceive all of you."

"Can't argue with that logic," Charlie retorted, dryly.

"I really just want you guys to talk things out like you and I did."

Charlie made a sound, which Theo could not read, but did not give a direct response. They say in awkward silence as they watched the couple order their drinks. It was only then that Charlie realized how fully ludicrous his fantasies about today had been.

He'd imagined that Theo had arranged this rendezvous for a confession of love and to supplicate for a reunion. He had fantasized more than he'd like to admit about politely declining such entreaties, telling Theo that he was very happy with Lucas, almost as a gloat. Now, he couldn't believe he'd immersed himself so fully in such a ridiculous fantasy.

When Eva and Patrick made their way to the table, they sat down, but Eva did so with visible begrudgement.

"I just want to say I'm sorry, again, for being a bit underhanded," Theo started, "but it was really the only way that I could get you all in a room together. You guys used to be best friends and you aren't now and I can't help but feel responsible, even if all of you would swear up and down that's not true."

"Charlie is responsible for his actions, Theo, not you," Eva stated, plainly.

"Eva, you and Charlie both told me once that you considered each other your best friends. Do you really want to just walk away from that?"

"Charlie," Eva turned from Theo to him, "you made your choice. You chose Scott and them over us."

"That's not fair," Charlie protested.

"Isn't it?" Patrick chimed in, "dude, you were more concerned about what people like that thought about you than your friends."

"That's...it's just not that simple," Charlie said, but was at a loss for how to explain his sentiment further.