CHARLIE

“No need, Julius! We can handle it,” I refused with some reluctance. "Give me her pouch so that I can look for her keys and then drive her home," I added and the instant that I finished saying that, I found myself lying on the ground, right next to the swimming pool.

‘Oh, God! Did I just slip or something? What?’ My whole body had the feeling of being numbed.

‘No, I was not inebriated, and there was no way I could have been.’

These ideas rushed into my head as quickly as I felt Julius' hand, and I immediately realized that I needed to take Avery back to my house.

Because I was so lightheaded, I thought for a moment that I was having a hallucination. The first thing that happened was that I found myself on the floor, and the next thing I knew, I was on Julius' arm.

It took me a little time to figure out that he had lifted me up, and that it was indeed true that I had fallen close to the water.

"Are you kidding me?" I asked myself. How did it get to the point that every part of my body felt numb?

But then I was aware of how quickly my heart was thumping. It was so loud that I felt as if I may be jolted out of my body at any moment.

"This won’t do, Charlie. It’s unsafe,” Julius added in a solemn voice, "I'll drive both of you home, and that would be the last time I'll say that."

Julius was serious. He was like a rigorous instructor who gave me directions that were difficult to follow, but I wasn't afraid of him.

His words had such a seductive tone that I couldn't help but feel that it had caused me to flush.

Everything seemed to be out of focus. I felt like I had a snooze. I have no idea where I was or how I got there.

Just now, I saw brief glimpses of Julius' chest, the elevator, the parking lot, and his vehicle.

Later on, I had the impression that we had pulled over to the side of the road. I used a lot of effort to lift my head and turn it toward the window, but I was unsuccessful.

"Are we now in Avery’s place?" I managed to mumble the words. Julius, who was standing next to me, seemed to have heard me and responded.

“Yes. It's a good thing I have an excellent memory because I was able to recall how to drive all the way here.” He explained.

"Really? Why have you... I mean, when did you come…" I was about to ask him but he cut me off.

"I bet you really forgot about the big party that Avery threw in their house during our high school days. You seem to have a poor memory, Charlie,” He chuckled after uttering these words.

So that's how he was able to find out where Avery lived. However, he does have a point. Though it was really hazy, I was able to save the memory of the crazy party that he was referring about.

"Just relax. You need not be concerned about anything. We just dropped her off, she's home safely…” Those were the last things I heard before passing out and losing consciousness.

…..

The following morning, I awoke in one of the most infuriating ways possible: the light was shining through the window directly into my eyes, which caused my eyelids to fly open.

Because my head is hurting so much, I have no recollection of anything that happened after I fell asleep.

"What the bloody hell? Seriously?” I mumbled to myself as I inched my way slowly toward the bed and pushed myself to sit down.

At that point, my eyes were still closed, and the moment I opened them, the realization that I wasn't in my bed caused me to instantly regret doing so. There is no way that this was ever my room.

"No way!" I said due to disbelief. I began stroking my own body irrationally, as if I were a mad person, and then I hurriedly glanced beneath the heavy black blanket.

When I saw that someone had changed my clothes from last night, I let out a gasp. I found myself wearing an oversized white shirt and boxer shorts, definitely not my own clothes.

Someone had taken off the black dress I wore last night. And my mind started to have a race with thoughts like, ‘Who brought me here?’, ‘Is Avery safe?’, ‘What did I do?’ and most importantly, I uttered the last thought in my mind, "Who the hell had the guts to change my clothes?"

“Charlie! What have you done?” I carefully got out of bed and glanced about before deciding to find out what happened.

The room was rather spacious and seemed quite elegant. The bed that I stayed on was so large that it could have easily accommodated six people.

A flat-screen television with a broad screen was mounted on the wall, and there was also a large matte wardrobe and fashionable furnishings. I saw a door and reasoned that it must go to the restroom; so, I made a beeline for it.

However, just as I was about to open the door, I recognized a familiar voice coming from outside the room.

I couldn't wait to find out who it was, but I had to admit that I was already making some educated guesses. I simply was conscious of the fact that I was in denial.

“Damn it, Charlie!” I mumbled as I closed my eyes in disbelief.

CHARLIE

That morning, I thought I was going to lose my jaw when it almost dropped when Julius entered the room.

As he examined me from head to toe and asked, "Are you okay?" I had the sensation that my face was turning red. It was so embarrassing.

"Now you're awake, good morning. Are you feeling alright, Charlotte?" I struggled to even look at him during the party, and today would be no different.

‘It was so embarrassing, Charlotte Caivano!’ I scolded myself silently.

It was too humiliating to find myself wasted in his room. Unbelievable! This whole thing was a dream. Me? What would Julius feel and think about me? Was he disappointed or what?

‘Absolutely unbelievable! Yes, it was just a dream. A dream, Charlie!’

"You could look at him because you were just dreaming, Charlie! Come one!" I silently muttered to myself before he could say anything else.

I even hushed to myself as I inhaled deeply and looked him square in the eyes as I took a deep breath. I was anxious, but it didn't really matter because this was just a dream.

This whole thing was just a fantasy. I'm not sure what prompted me to approach him and place my hand on his chest, but I did so slowly after making my way toward him.

“Yes, self! This was nothing more than a dream, albeit a very pleasant one. What a nice…” I was about to caress him in his chest but he suddenly grabbed my hands.

He leaned closer to my face, and said, "Charlie? Are you sleepwalking? You are not dreaming. This is not a dream, Charlotte."

The instant that I caught a whiff of his freshly brushed teeth and felt his hand on mine, it became my turning point.

My pupils dilated, and I beseeched each and every god and goddess in the universe to tear a hole in the earth and simply take me away. ‘What s mess you are, Charlie!’

"Charlotte, I am real. I'm sorry, I know that the fact that I took you to my place has left you in a state of disbelief. But I didn't mean to hurt you in any way…" I was unable to hear the other words he had said, nor utter a word or move.

"I drove to your house last night, but..." He hesitated, uncertain whether to continue. As he released his grip on my hand, a strange sensation lingered.

"There was a 'For Sale' sign on your front yard. So I thought you had moved and I don’t know where to send you back," he said, and I continued to stare blankly at him. Still, I am speechless.

"I tried to wake you up last night, but you were too drunk. So, I thought it would be safer to bring you here," he explained.

"Don't worry, we took Avery home safely. I considered taking you to her place, but she was more intoxicated than you. I thought she had fallen asleep and you both wouldn't be able to take care of each other." I nodded in response and sat on the bed.

"Thank you, but what happened after that? Did we–" I was at a loss for the appropriate expression to use.

Just the thought that something might have taken place between Julius and I brought on a flush of feverish feeling throughout my body.

"I-I mean… Ah, was there something that took place… b-between us like–"

"No, we didn't. I mean –" The awkwardness that he felt was evident in his voice. After a moment of pause, he continued with a smile.

"There's absolutely nothing for you to be concerned about, Charlie. I went to another room to sleep. Although my home is large, I offered you the use of the bed in mine because I believe it to be the most comfortable of all the beds in this house.”

"O-Okay… B-But... how come my clothes… how did I change them?" I made an effort to look at him, but he seemed more interested in looking away than I was.

"I asked a housemaid to change your clothes, Charlie," He paused for a moment before drawing nearer to the enormous matte wardrobe.

"I didn't see anything. Don't think about it too much. You don’t have to feel embarrassed."

As he uttered those words, I felt an even deeper sense of shame.

Why did I imagine that Julius would do anything unkind? Was I trembling with fear or shyness? Perhaps I was lost in a delusion that I could captivate him. That we slept together and made passionate love. My imagination ran wild, and I blushed, feeling as if Julius could hear my thoughts.

Julius was standing in front of his enormous closet when he reached inside and took a fancy paper bag out.

"Here," he said, handing the bag to me. Before continuing, he paused for a moment so that we could look each other in the eye for a split second before demanding that I inspect the bag. “Open it!”

"Brand new clothes? Why? I mean what for?” I asked, puzzled.

"I bought them because you threw up on your dress last night so I asked the housemaid to wash it and it was still wet," he replied, flashing a reassuring smile.

"You didn't have to, but thank you," I said, returning his smile. "I really need to take a shower now."

"Sure, please feel free to use my bathroom to take a relaxing shower. I'll just wait for you in the basement for now.” Again, there was that very alluring quality to his tone of voice.

When Julius left the room, it gave me the biggest grin I could muster. I eagerly emptied the paper bag containing the new clothes onto his bed, where I then selected the item that I thought would look the best on me.

I chose a simple dress with a beautiful iridescent color, and after that I went to his bathroom, which smelled strongly of mint.

My body was gently massaged by the warm water from the shower as a plethora of random thoughts raced through my head at the same time. I found myself asking a lot of "what if" questions.

My voice could be heard reverberating throughout the roomy bathroom as I wished to myself that I could recall everything that had taken place.

What would happen if I turned down Avery's invitation to attend the party? What if I hadn't met Julius? What if we had made love last night? Would it be the best experience of my life?

“What if…”

Right after I got out of the shower, I fixed myself and have a bit of makeover. I couldn't wait to get downstairs.

Due to the fact that Julius’ home was so sizable, it took me a few minutes before I finally located him preparing food in the well-organized and spacious kitchen.

I stood in the threshold of the kitchen and observed him as he flipped some eggs and bacon in the pan.

“Wow!” I silently muttered.

Lost in a daydream, I tilted my head, admiring him. I envisioned him as my husband, experiencing these romantic moments every day.

CHARLIE

"Charlie, you’re done. Are you feeling all right now? Are you hungry?” The sound of Julius's voice brought me back to reality.

He was holding a plate in one hand and a pan in the other as he made his way towards the counter.

"Don't worry, I am almost done in cooking the breakfast,” He stated and I simply nodded.

It's not that I didn't want to talk to him; I just couldn't find the time. I was so embarrassed that I just knew without a doubt that I would stutter.

Because of this, I just took a deep breath and followed him into the dining room after clearing my throat.

After a while, Julius decided to ask me about my work while we were eating together, so in order to avoid any awkwardness, I simply answered every question he asked.

"Did you like the clothes that I bought?"

"Yes, and once more, thank you," I replied with sincerity. When I said that to him, he flashed a warm smile.

"You don’t have to mind about it, it’s nothing big. By the way, I was just wondering if you miss your work today," he said, and relief washed over me.

"No, it's my day off," I said. Thank God, or I'd be in trouble.

"You work at Aventagio Network, right?"

"Yes, as a journalist."

"A journalist. It sounds exciting while also challenging at the same time." When he said those words, he did not have a smile on his face, and I could sense the sincerity in his voice.

Throughout breakfast, we continued to discuss a variety of unrelated topics.

"Let me help you with that,” I insisted on assisting him with the dishes.

I didn't know if he was used to doing these things, and even though I knew he had a lot of maids, I didn't see even a single one of them around.

When I queried him earlier about the reason why I can’t see one, he simply responded by saying, "I just asked them to have a day off, so that I could have you all to myself. I mean… I wished to serve you on my own.” Those words alone made it abundantly clear.

“Okay, but let me clean the dishes as you already cooked for us earlier,” I stated and offered him a smile.

He muttered, "If you insist," as a response.

There was that adorable smile once more, and it caused my vivid imagination to leap into action. My imagination ran wild again.

Julius and I… as a happy family, a happy couple doing chores, living together, married with kids waiting in the playroom.

After I was done cleaning up the dishes, Julius offered to give me a ride home, I accepted his offer and immediately thought to myself that my imaginations will never be real.

I brought myself out of this daydreaming state and I focused on giving him directions to my apartment.

“Charlie, if I may, can I ask why you moved out of the house you used to own in Avery's neighborhood? I was about to drop you off there the other night…” out of nowhere, Julius asked.

I couldn't think of the right words to answer his inquiry. Because my mother had never really explained the reason why we moved out from our old house, the truthful response was, I also don't know.

"Would it be appropriate for me to respond to you by saying, I don't know?" The only thing he did was cast a fleeting glance in my direction before deftly navigating a turn at an intersection.

"But it’s fine, as it turned out all right!" I tried to sound optimistic. “Living on my own has not only been a lot of fun for me, but it has also been quite educational for me.”

"I see, but what about your mom?" He asked.

"She was staying in the 'Koala Hugs'. An orphanage in a distant area, where she works as well," I explained and after that I told him a bit more about myself, which was honestly unusual for me because I hardly ever felt comfortable around other people besides Avery.

Finally, we arrived at my apartment. I looked into Julius' eyes and thanked him sincerely. "Thank you for everything, Julius." I wanted him to understand my gratitude.

"Just stay safe," he said as I was about to leave, and I thanked him.

"Charlie!" He called my name again.

"Yes?" My stomach churned with anticipation.

"Can I have your number? Just to stay in touch and make sure you're safe always," he asked, and I blushed.

Was this his way of getting my number after dropping me off? Or was I mistaken?

I gave him my number, trying to hide my racing heart. Just as I thought he was done speaking, he said something that sent my heart soaring.

"Rest assured, this won’t be the last time, Charlie. When we both have some free time, let's meet again. Shall we?" His smile was captivating. It was probably the most handsome smile he wore since last night.

“Yes, sure!” I agreed, and as he drove away, I rushed into my apartment.

It was the first time I went home with such a big smile on my face and felt my heart beating faster than usual.

….

Someone’s Point of View

I was just standing here calmly waiting for her to arrive. A couple of hours later, while hiding in the bushes, I noticed her exit a luxurious automobile The car was surrounded by a large entourage.

The vehicle stopped directly in front of her apartment. She communicated with whoever was driving the car in a manner that could not be heard by the passersby.

I couldn't help but notice the unsettling smile plastered across her face, but I shrugged it off and made a phone call to the boss as soon as the car pulled away.

"Tell me some good news," he asked as soon as he picked up the phone.

"Yes, boss. She finally had arrived back to her flat. I suppose that she slept somewhere last night,” I explained.

“It's possible that she slept with the guy who send her home just now.”

“Alright, then. Keep watching and give me update," The boss ended the call as soon as I completed the task, he had given me.

After which, I gazed again at the house where the woman I was asked to watch out had entered.