Forgetting Charlotte

David meet Skirt

Chapter nine:  David meet skirt, skirt meet David

            David had insisted on walking me back and I didn’t argue. I was drained from lunch and secretly hoped that David would let something slip about his best friend, but I knew how deep David’s loyalty ran, ever the faithful friend he kept the conversation fully on me the entire elevator ride from the ground floor to my magazine floor.  When we walked through the glass doors I saw Jolene’s head pop up from her cubicle.  Her eyes burned questions but I just shook my head in her direction and her long red hair sunk back into her cubicle.  I turned to shake David’s hand but he gently placed his palm on the small of my back and led me back over to my cubicle.

            “Charlie, I want you to know that even though,” David stopped mid-sentence and bit his lip in concentration before continuing.  “Um, well I just want you to know I am here to help. Do you have a doctor assigned yet? Do you know what it’s going to be? Do you feel sick?” He seemed to dump every word from his mouth at once. I threw myself down in my chair, giving myself another mental update that pregnancy also appeared to drain you of the ability to move.

            “Next week, I don’t think you can know this early, and yes, all the time.” Answering David’s questions in the same form he asked them.  “And thank you David, for everything.” I blushed at him, wondering if the unreadable look he gave me had to do with finding me in such a pathetic state just three weeks.  His thoughts seemed to be far away and I felt myself squirming at the thought that he was now judging me.  I was about to excuse myself to relieve my sudden overwhelming need to pee when the aroma of Chanel #5 filled the air around me.

            “Hello Charlotte how was lunch?” Alicia’s voice was pure honey. I looked up from my chair and saw her staring at David run his hand through his hair, her eyes taking in his tone physique and striking blue eyes in one gulp.  She looked down at my dumb expression and I swore I saw her mood darken for a moment before the smile crept back up as she made eye contact with David. She reached out her hand, and with a flick of her wrist she sang, “And who is this?”

David took Alicia’s hand and gave it a gentle shake as he sized her up discreetly.  I could see how Alicia’s statuesque body poured into a neat grey pencil skirt and flattering red blouse left David searching for his tongue. He recovered quickly and answered Alicia with a tooth filled crooked smile. “David, I’m Charlie’s …friend.” David’s title had changed with the abrupt exit of my fiancé, and I could tell that the task my ex had left him with toyed with his loyalties. I was grateful for David’s presence; even if was on my former fiancé’s demand.  Right now any tie to the love I lost was a tie I needed, I felt like my life was unraveling all at once and it was all I could do to hang on. I became ashamed of the desperate one my thoughts had taken and I began to shuffle the papers on my desk.

            “Fantastic to meet you David, will we be seeing you around often?” Alicia had taken her hand slowly back from David’s grip and it was now seductively resting on her hip.

            “No” I answered

            “Yes” David said at the same time as me. I looked up at him and gave him a quizzical look.

            “Oh?” Alicia looked from me to David and back to me as if she was trying to read something we weren’t saying.

            “I’ll be around to help Charlie, she hates to admit she needs it but I’m guessing she’ll change her mind soon. “ David flashed a smile and a wink at me.  Maybe David didn’t consider me such a burden after all. Or perhaps there was something he wasn’t telling me about my ex that drove him to compensate? I shook the nasty thought out of my mind.

            “Yes, Charlotte does seem to inspire loyalty.” I looked back up at Alicia and followed her line of sight past David. I could see Jolene’s fly away hairs popping out from a nearby cubical wall. A pair of emerald eyes popped up quickly, stared angrily at Alicia, and just as suddenly disappeared. “I look forward to seeing you again David.”  Alicia leaned into David and touched his shoulder lightly, lingering just long enough for me to catch David take in her scent.

            “Me to Alicia, great to meet you. ” David leaned over and brushed a kiss on my cheek “Bye Charlie, I’ll follow up on that thing we talked about, I’ll do my best.” David turned and walked towards the exit, stopping at the cubicle where I had last seen the angry emerald eyes, leaning in for a moment, and turned and walked out. I looked back at my desk and began to reorganize the papers I had shuffled. I leaned down to pick up a pencil I saw on the ground when I became aware that Alicia was still standing next to me.

            “Um Alicia, do you know where my black folder is, I had something in there that was kind of important.” I began frantically searching the papers I had just shuffled.

            “No, but Phillip would like to see us in his office in an hour regarding columns for the next print. “ She answered casually. I began to search my mind for the last location of my black binder, which currently contained my newest column idea, which in an hour would need to be presented to Phillip. “Oh and Charlotte, you know how you said you would pay me back for the shoes.”

            “Yeah?” My face became hot with embarrassment as I looked down at her current green expensive looking shoes and cringed at the thought of how replacing them would probably set me back a months rent.

            “Consider the debt paid.”  I looked up at her in amazement and saw her staring hungrily at the doors that David had just exited through.