Raincoats | The Umbrella Academy

Phantasm

To be fair, things weren't quite that simple to Charlotte. Things had never really been simple to begin with. Every chapter of her life was marked with confusing events and to be honest, it was hard for her to keep up with everything. It felt like just last week that she had run into Denis- her roommate so to speak, but in convoluted actuality, it had been years. 

Their apartment was the top floor of an older complex, that was made mostly of cracked, moldy bricks, some of which were missing from the structure completely. Charlotte always preferred climbing up the fire escape, mostly just to avoid people, but as she neared the middle of the alley besides the apartment complex, she spotted a familiar face.

She slowed as she reached Denis, opting to stand next to him and face the strange man across from him. "What's this?" She asked, voice slight with amusement.

 Denis huffed in annoyance and his friend frantically shoved something into the pocket of his expensive looking fur coat. 

"Just a little one-on-one time with a friend," the stranger answered, itching indiscreetly at his arm. The man's eye liner was smudged half way down his face and his hair was mused. 

"Ah," Charlotte nodded, knowing full well what was actually going on between the two. It wasn't the first time and wouldn't be the last. She flashed a toothy grin at her roommate, which anyone but him would have thought was genuine, before reaching into his shirt pocket for a cigarette and heading to the fire escape without another word. Her and Denis typically had a friendly way of being annoying with one another. She felt as if he deserved it, considering all the things he had put her through. Things had been tense lately, as if he was waiting for her to snap. She was surprised that she hadn't.

Flinging herself around the creaking metal staircase, Charlotte looked down into the alley before ducking through their window. The stranger was taking a small baggie of something from Denis and he was folding a few bills to fit into his wallet.

The apartment was just as cold as outside, but less damp. A piece of newspaper that she had taped to the window had peeled away from the glass at a corner and flapped uselessly as she shut it. Sitting on the musty smelling carpet, she unlaced her boots, which were regrettably not waterproof, but they also weren't hers so she couldn't complain. Just as she was starting to take off her soaked sweater, Denis came through the front door.

"You don't always have to ruin my sales, you know. I'm trying to fucking put food on the table," he growled, throwing his jacket on the kitchen counter. "You almost scared that dude off, he thought you were a cop."

Charlotte furrowed her light eyebrows. "I literally look like I could still sell girl scout cookies."

"Whatever," he grunted, taking the last beer from the fridge.

Standing up, Charlotte pulled her sweater off and straightened the t-shirt she wore underneath it. "Don't bother with the food thing. You're shit at it, anyway." There was an argument boiling under the surface, she could feel it. He always stoked the fire..

The crisp sound of a can being opened hung between them as Denis took a long gulp of beer, glaring at her. He swallowed and wiped the excess from around his mouth. "You should be more grateful, you know. The only reason you're alive right now is because of me."

Immediately, Charlotte began to flicker weakly, just enough to see the wall behind where her body was. "Oh, I'm sorry that I'm still a little pissed off at you for keeping me sixteen for decades. I'll get right on thanking you for that." When she was angry was the only time she could unconsciously use her power without using a lot of energy, but she didn't exactly know why.

Slamming the can onto the counter to get her attention, Denis scowled. He ran a hand through his thick hair, making it look messier than it already was. "Drop it already. It's not a big deal, you're just overacting." He knew he had made a mistake as soon as he had spoken.