November 2010
Lunch with Charles had been going surprisingly well and you had actually started to have fun. He was kind and funny and it felt like you'd known him forever. Like one of those friendships where time meant nothing and you continued where you left off, each time you saw the other after a long while.
He definitely wasn't boyfriend material, and you were extremely glad you had both already, albeit awkwardly, clarified that your meeting today was not a date. You were just two acquaintances, catching up after a really, really long time. Charles needed a friend in Sydney and you were always open to having more of them. Now finding it funny that you had ever been nervous or dreaded meeting him.
"So, you really don't know anyone in Sydney? Besides those of us you found from school? No family or relatives?" you asked through a bite of cheesecake. As Charles was buying and it wasn't a date, you had been taking advantage of the situation and had slightly over indulged in a larger lunch than usual.
"Nah. Just Josh, and now you..."
You continued to chew on your mouthful, covering your mouth with your hand so you could speak through it. "I saw Josh in person, maybe a month ago. He lives, like a suburb over from me, so I've run into him a few times. Plus our mums are friends so that kind of helps I guess."
"Are your parents still here in Sydney?" Charles asked interested.
"Nah. They moved up the coast a few years ago. My Dad's retired so they bought a house near Byron. Dad wanted to get away from the 'rat race' as he calls it, but then again he always whinges about the yuppies that are taking over the town they're in. Meanwhile he was technically one too." you chuckled.
Charles smiled along with you before continuing to ask some follow up questions. "You had a brother too right?"
"Mmhmm," you replied through another bite of cheesecake. "You're good if you can remember that! "
"Well honestly, I saw him on your Facebook." Charles replied sheepishly. "I hope you don't think I'm some psycho stalker now..."
That comment made you choke as you remembered Jaz's words about the girl found in Kuring-gai and your own first impression of seeing him. Quickly you picked up your cup of water and took a sip, clearing your airway. "Okay. I'm not gunna lie, the thought crossed my mind that you could be a serial killer," Charles laughed loudly at that. "...But you seem legit..."
"Thanks," he added with a grin. "I also discovered you have a sister too."
"Well if you've been on Facebook, you can probably tell me how many cousins, uncles and aunts I have too... You know I'm going to have stall you back when I get home later now right?... So anything you wanna tell me now to save me the trouble, would be most appreciated..." you delivered cheekily.
Charles took another swig of his coffee before moving his hands to play with the serviette he'd placed under his plate to keep from blowing away. He fiddled with it nervously, folding the corners back and forth with his thumb and forefinger, making you regret the way you'd approached the topic. "Yeah... Well my parents, ah, they're, not in the picture... But I have a sister too..."
"And judging by the way you're pulling at that serviette, I'd say the two of you, don't, get along?" you asked more delicately.
"Not exactly." Charles nodded slowly. "She's, well we haven't spoken in a long time. We don't get along on a good day, but even if I wanted to speak with her, I can't. She was locked up for doing, some pretty dark things..."
Your eyes widened at his words and even though he was being vague, you felt the need to clarify. "Locked up? As in jail?"
"Yup." Charles added with a pop on the end of the word. "I don't like to talk about Amara much, but we were close once and she's my sister so, you know, family's family and all that."
You chewed your lip as you wondered what to say in response. It was clearly a sensitive topic and you regretted pushing as far as you had. "I'm, um sorry to hear that, and to bring it up... Must be hard..."
"Yeah. I mean, no, it's cool." Charles reassured you with a smile. "I miss how close we were, you couldn't split us up when we were younger, and I hope one day, we'll be reunited, but for now, it's safer for everyone if Amara's kept away from society you know?"
"Wow! I mean, I don't really understand, but I'm sorry you're going through something like that..." What else could you say? It sounded like his sister must have had some mental issues or something if she was being kept out of the general public like that.
He looked over to you and smiled. "Thanks. I appreciate it... You know, you haven't changed much. Still as kind as you were back in school..."
You blew a soft raspberry on that. "Kind? I was happy to see Daniel walk into that door back there... Speaking of which, I probably should be getting back." As you'd motioned to the general direction of your office building you caught a glimpse of the time, realising you only had five minutes left of your break.
Had it been an hour already?
Picking up your phone, you stood up and then gathered your handbag from where you'd placed it on the chair between you both. "I'll walk you back." Charles said as he stood up from his seat along with you.
"You don't have to. You should finish your coffee." you stated as you noticed his cup was still half full.
"Nah. Let's go."
As the two of you walled to the door and back into the street, Charles continued his train of thought from the table. "Do you remember, the first day we met?"
You shook your head and pursed your lips. "No," you replied. "I honestly don't remember you..."
Charles let out a loud laugh before continuing with his point. "No one in the class wanted to talk to me, cause I was the new kid. But you, you asked me if I wanted to play Lego with you, and you brought me over to play with you and your friends. There was, the girl, with the red hair and freckles, and Eric and, what was the other kids name? The boy you always played with?"
You thought for a minute before you realised who he probably meant. "You mean Greg?"
"Greg! The snotty kid with white blonde hair? He was your next door neighbour?" he asked.
"Yeah." Wow. Charles had a really good memory. "He was my first crush. From three years old," you chuckled. "I'm really, surprised you remember all this. And the Lego? I can't have been the first kid to talk to you?"
Charles nodded his head, over exaggerating his movements as you continued to walk the block to your building. "Yep. You sure were. That's why I was kind of pushy in getting you to meet up with me. Sorry about that..." he laughed lightly. "I just remembered you always being nice to me and I was hoping you'd be the same. And you are..."
"Well... You're ah, welcome..." you said with a smile. "And thanks for lunch. My shout next time!"
"You're on!... I don't suppose you'd be free again this week? Maybe a drink after work? You don't even have to shout this time!" he chuckled.
You thought for a moment, trying to decide on the spot if it was a good idea or not. It was a little soon to be meeting him again. That seemed more like a date scenario over friends meeting up for a drink and Charles surprised you when he seemed to pick up on the issue you were mentally struggling with. "I guess it's a little date like, huh? Maybe next week instead. Don't want to get you confused and think you're out of the friend zone now."
"Yeah..." you agreed with a quiet huff. "As long as you keep me in the friend zone, maybe, we could have a drink after work? I'm free Thursday. I like to take my time going home 'cause of the late night shopping crowd clogging up the train."
"I can do Thursday." Charles agreed happily. "I'll uh, see you here? You said you finish at five normally right?"
Man this guy had a great memory. "Uh. Yeah... See you here at five," you agreed through a hug that wasn't as awkward as the first.
*****
As the message came through, you giggled to yourself before Jaz yanked the phone out of your hand. "Tell Jaz I said hi," she read Charles' message out aloud with a deeply sarcastic voice. "Seriously hun. Are you sure you aren't dating the guy? You've known him for three weeks and you're always texting each other." She added in her regular skeptical voice.
Jaz was sitting on your desk once again, though luckily, all paperwork had been saved by her maroon high wasted pencil skirt today. You'd made sure to pick the papers up and move them from her favourite resting space as soon as you saw her walk towards you, ready and waiting for you to join her for smoko.
"I'm sure." you retorted with an eye roll. Your fingers clacking on the keyboard below you as you tried to finish what you were doing before you left with her for coffee and cake. One of your coworkers on the other side of the office was leaving on maternity leave today and while you knew diddly about them, you'd both take any opportunity to get a slice of a Woolies chocolate mud cake, with added whipped cream.
"Good. So I can say what I like about the creep!" Jaz added as she continued to watch your phone for his next text message.
You looked away from your screen for a split second to show her your own skepticism. "Hasn't stopped you before!" you scoffed. "You know, you should come with us. Get to know him. He's really not that bad. He's just, lonely I guess..."
"He has a right and a left hand. He should just beat one out, without the need to talk to you too. He has your picture from Facebook. That's all he needs."
"That's disgusting!" you spat back. "Even for you!... He's not interested in me like that... You have guy friends too. Why is me and Charles hanging out, any different to you and, what's his name? Or Stu or Ryan?"
"Okay. Your friend Ryan bats for the same side and as for Stu, I'm pretty sure he's taken..." At that moment your phone pinged again and Jaz immediately lost focus on your conversation to read the latest message that was presumably from Charles. "You should ask her to come with us?!" She read aloud again. "You two even think alike!... You know what, fine..."
You glanced back at Jaz to see her now typing something into your phone. "What're you doing?"
"Replying back to him... I, asked her..." You heard each and every click as her manicured nails tapped on the screen. "...and, she's coming! Smiley face... Urgh..."
You heard the swoosh sound of Jaz's message being sent and you reached your hand up to take it back. "Give me that!" you cried before pushing back in your chair away from your desk and keyboard. Changing your tone to a more happier one, all you needed to say was "Cake?" and Jaz's mood changed along with yours.
"Cake!" Jaz agreed. And she hopped off your desk, delicately as her skirt wouldn't allow a more enthusiastic decent. Now standing side by side, the two of you moved towards the direction of the tea room. "God. I really hope Nicole doesn't bring the baby in once it's born..."
"Would you keep your voice down!" you whispered, a little too aggressively. "You don't want her or any of the others to hear you say something so nasty."
You loved Jaz, you truely did. The two of you hung out outside of the office from time to time, though mostly for clubbing and Sunday Sesh purposes. But as much as you loved her, she was a bit much for most people to handle. She was sarcastic, obnoxious and would speak her mind, not caring who heard her. So why would you be friends such an outwardly antisocial, uncaring type? Because she would tell it to you straight. You knew where you stood with her and she would give you the clothes off her back if you needed it.
When you'd first met, a month after starting at the office, you'd had the unfortunate experience of being caught out on the first day of your period without any supplies. And Jaz, who didn't have anything on herself either, had gone down to the Coles express on the other side of the street, just to get you some. Your friendship blossomed from there and you ended up syncing in your cycles because of it. At least that's what she said.
"They know how I feel about babies," she snorted ever so sarcastically. "and you think the exact same as me. I've seen you. You bolt in the other direction whenever anyone brings their kids in."
"Doesn't mean I'm going to promote it to the whole office!" you argued as you looked to your phone screen again. Charles had responded to Jaz's message about coming out with you both tonight.
- Awesome! See you both @5 -
"Was that him?" Jaz side eyed you as you stepped into the tea room together.
"Yup." you replied, moving to that always faithful, always delicious mud cake. "He can't wait to meet you!"
With the noise of the room, it was hard to hear what she said in return. But it sounded a lot like a "can't fucking wait!" And it wasn't excitable. That same, sarcastic mood, continued right up until five o'clock when you both made your way down to the lobby.
Charles was already waiting for you, just as he had done the first day you'd met him. You greeted him with a hug as usual and while he raised his arms to offer Jaz one too, she kept her arms folded throughout the exchange. Merely grunting a simple "hello" in his direction.
It was a short fifteen minute walk to the pub you'd agreed to have a drink at that evening and the three of you set off together, seconds after joining him. You took your time, allowing Charles to get to know Jaz and visa versa, which meant that for you, the walk was agonising. But at least Charles was being a good sport about Jaz's constant probing.
"So, she tells me you moved here from the US?" Jaz jumped straight in on the questions. A stark difference from her hello. "Ohio was it?"
"Yeah," Charles replied much more politely than what Jaz deserved. "Got back about a month ago..."
Jaz clicked her tongue on his response. "You don't have much of an accent do you?"
"What accent should I have?" Charles asked unfazed by her question.
"I dunno, an American one?"
Jaz was right, his accent was barely there, sounding much closer to an Australian who had perhaps lived over in the States for the same short amount of time he'd been back. But she didn't need to point it out so rudely and you told her so. "Dude. Does it matter?" you scolded. "He's Aussie." You then addressed a question you hadn't asked him before. "Aren't you? I never thought about it before. Do you have an Australian passport or an American one?"
"Both actually. I can come and go as I please!" he claimed proudly.
"That's not the flex you think it is mate!" Jaz cut in. "... So why Sydney? What made you come back?"
Charles looked to you over Jaz, choosing to point his thumb at her instead. "Does she ever let up?!" he chuckled as you smiled back at him sheepishly, shrugging your shoulders for some extra emphasis. "I wanted a change. I have some fond memories of Sydney and seeing as I'm a writer and can work anywhere, I figured I'd take advantage of my global status and come back."
Jaz rolled her eyes as he used the word global but let him finish first before jumping in on the next question. "So what do you write?"
"Stories mostly."
"And you get paid?"
"Jaz! Seriously, lay off it! Give the guy a break from the twenty questions. At least, let's get a drink first before you drill him anymore."
But Charles put a hand on your shoulder as you continued walking down George Street. "I don't mind, really." he grinned at you. "I've got a tough shell..." He then looked back to Jaz and answered her last question. "I get paid, sometimes, but it's the joy I get out of creating something people enjoy and knowing they appreciate my craft."
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