They hadn’t seen the sun for two days. With the blackout shades drawn, they had drowned in darkness all weekend. Weed, sex, and food. They had overindulged, ignoring everything and everyone except one another. Charlie felt like she was floating as they stood in front of the hotel. Demi’s brow knitted as he responded to messages he had ignored for days. Charlie didn’t care to power her phone back on yet. She wouldn’t until she was in her car and out of his space.
“So, now what?” she asked.
That question jarred him, pulling his eyes up and to her instantly. He stuck his phone in his pocket.
“I mean, now that this is a thing. What happens next? Is it a thing?” she wondered.
“It’s a big thing,” he said.
Her car putted up to the curb and Demi frowned. It was old and the exhaust could be smelled from a block away. The loud tick of the engine told Demi it was something wrong under the hood, but he didn’t want to embarrass her.
The valet hopped out of the driver’s side and Demi walked Charlie around the car, tipping the valet guy.
“I got it, man,” he said. “I’ma get with you, a’ight. I got to catch up on what I missed so I might be busy, but that don’t mean I’m absent. I’m coming back to you, just wait to hear from me.”
She was so hung up on his every word that she felt queasy a little. She could feel him finessing the common sense right out of her.
“You trust me?” he asked.
“I don’t know you, babe. It bothers me that I’m in love with a stranger,” she answered honestly. “It scares me.”
“I don’t want you to do nothing you don’t want to. I don’t want your fear, Bird. I can’t do nothing with that,” he replied. There was still a space between them, and Charlie knew it was intentional. She looked down at the inches between them. It felt like a canyon.
“You want to touch me, don’t you?” he asked.
“I’m trying hard not to,” she replied.
“Say, man,” he said, a little lost for words.
“Say, man,” she replied, just as lost.
“I’d like to head out without feeling the need to take another shower if that’s okay with you,” he said.
She scoffed.
“I’m in love with you,” she said.
“You sure about that?” he asked.
Shock took over her face. “What’s so unlovable about you? I know what I feel.”
“If you’re sure, then a nigga got to give that vibe back. That’s the expectation. That’s what you want to hear?” he asked.
“I don’t want to hear anything you don’t want to say,” Charlie replied. “If it’s not real, don’t give it to me. I only want what’s true,” she said.
“Then you got it, Bird. What’s true,” he answered. “A nigga in love with you.”
He said it so naturally that her eyes widened some before a huge smile melted over her face. “You love me, Demi?” she teased.
“Yeah, here you go,” Demi grimaced. “Gone with your bullshit, man.” He scratched his temple, unable to contain the stubborn smile that pulled at the corner of his mouth. Demi always led with his head. He was always calculating, always logical. With Charlie, he was leading with straight emotion. It didn’t even make sense the way he was taken with this girl. “Get ya ass in the car, Bird.”
Charlie obliged but didn’t turn her feet inside. She smiled up at Demi.
“I never want to shorten it, okay?” Charlie said, grabbing at his hand and forcing him to bend over to be closer to her face. She kissed him. He didn’t like it, but she didn’t care.
“Whatever you want, Bird,” he agreed. He feared she would talk him into anything her heart desired because he couldn’t see himself telling her no to anything.
“I’m serious, Demi. Like, don’t ever say ‘love you’ to me. If it gets to the point where we’re so lazy that we have to shorten it to “love you” we can just end it because that’s not enough. “I want to know your roots, Demi, not just the flowers. So, when life gets cold, our love won’t die,” Charlie said.
