"Vic, you ok?" I'm still in the same spot where I thought he was. My pulse is racing and I feel like I can't breathe. Charlie steps in front of me, lifting my chin up with his hand. "Vic, what's wrong?" He looks so worried. I wanna tell him everything is ok but I can't. He places one hand on my neck, one around my waist and pulls me closer. I cling onto him as if my life depends on it. I've seriously gone crazy. I'm almost 6.000 miles ways from him and he has no idea where I am. He literally can't be here. It must have been someone that just looks like him. I slowly start to calm down. The feeling of fear being replaced by embarrassment. "Sorry... I..." My voice breaks. "It's ok. You don't need to say anything right now. We'll talk about it when you're ready." Charlie slowly lets go of me. He takes my hand into his and together we walk back over to the bar. The rest of the night goes by pretty smoothly. Some really talented people get up on stage and the crowd seems to love them as much as I do. Charlie doesn't leave my side for a second, I guess he's worried I'm gonna go all panic mode again and I can't blame him. He must really think I'm insane sometimes.
It's 3am when we get back to Charlie's place. I must say, sleeping in the back of your club has one major plus point, you can just crash right after doors close. However, I'm still too upset about tonight to go to sleep anyways so I did not mind the drive at all. Jenny goes straight to bed. This time she is truly shattered and not just leaving to give us some time together. I stand in the middle of the room, unsure what to do. Easiest would probably be to follow Jenny to bed but I also feel like I owe Charlie an explanation. I can't keep acting the way I do without him at least knowing the reason for it. "Charlie..." I start, looking down at my hands. He comes over to me, stopping only one step away from me. "I think I owe you an explanation." I sit down on the couch and gesture for him to sit down next to me. He sits down. "You don't owe me anything but if you wanna talk I'm here for you, you know that right?" I nod my head slightly, still not able to look up at him. "Tonight... I thought I saw someone..." Just like last night he doesn't say a thing, patiently waiting for me to continue. It's as if he knows if he interrupts me I'm not gonna say anything anymore.
After a few moments I take a deep breath and brace myself for what I'm about to say. "I thought I saw Max." I look up for just a second and I can see anger forming in Charlie's face. I can tell he wants to say something but he stops himself. "I know it's insane because how could he have possibly been there. He has no idea where I am. And even if he did... I'm not important enough for him to come here... just... seeing him... or at least thinking I did... it caught me off guard." A single tear is falling down my face. "He promised to make my life a living hell... what if he actually comes here?" Charlie catches his breath. "He said what?" I just nod, not saying anything. "Vic, I swear, if he ever comes here I'll kick his ass." He doesn't know him like I do. More tears start falling down my face. I can't believe I'm crying... again. For the past three nights all I did was cry. I can't believe Charlie is actually still here, willing to keep up with all my drama. I laugh a little. "What's funny?" I look up at him again and he seems genuinely confused. "You wanted to keep me out of your mess and now look at me... I'm the one who's dragging you into a mess and I didn't even warn you." He closes the gap between us so quickly I need to catch my breath for a second. He kisses me so fiercely, for a second I forget everything around us. "Vic, I told, you are not a mess. I have no idea what that asshole did to you but judging your reaction today it was a lot. Things like that don't just disappear. It'll take time but you got this... we got this."
A big yawn steals itself from my mouth. We both laugh a little. "I guess it's time to sleep." We get up from the couch and walk over to our rooms. Placing a soft kiss on my forehead Charlie takes a step towards his room, his fingers slowly letting go of my hand. Just before our hands are completely apart I take a step towards him, my eyes locked onto the ground. "Do you mind..." I mumble. Without saying anything he opens his door and pulls me along. Once we're inside I realize I'm still wearing my dress. He takes off his shirt and pants and just throws them in the corner. I roll my eyes and smile about it at the same time. Then he walks over to his closet, grabs a new shirt and throws it over to me. He jumps into bed, rolling away from me so I can change. I take off my dress and put on his shirt, then I climb into his bed. He lays down on his back and I rest my head on his chest. He wraps one arm around me, his other hand playing with my hair. A small smile forms on my face. "I could really get used to this" I whisper against his chest. "Me too, Vic... me too." We both drift off into sleep.