are you ready to go?" Charlie knocked, opening my office door further and peeking in.
One problem down, but how would Leo react? I had never depended on anyone but him, and he'd always made it clear he liked it that way. His smile faded as he looked at Charlie, then at me, then back at Charlie before his smiled resurfaced, but not the one I knew to be genuine.
My blood ran cold, sending shivers up and down my body. Guilt washed over me. I had managed to piss him off before we had the chance to make up.
"You must be the man of the hour, Charlie, right? Leonardo Cordell." He spoke energetically, gesturing to himself with his left hand and coming from behind my desk holding his right out to shake.
"Yes, it's nice to finally meet you, Mr. Cordell. Sorry if I'm interrupting," Charlie shook Leo's hand after coming into the room.
"Call me Leo, I'm not some old, ruthless dictator. Jerrie has told me a lot about you, happy to have you working with us," Leo lied, grabbing my shoulder, and squeezing it like a stress toy.
In an effort not to wince, I forced myself to smile.
"Likewise, I've heard a lot about you too," I could hear the smile in Charlie's voice, but I wouldn't make eye contact or look at him at all.
"Good things I hope," Leo laughed but I knew he wasn't joking.
"Of course, of course. Well, I was checking to see if Jerrie still wanted a lift home, but since you're here..." Charlie trailed off, looking in my direction but I quickly looked at my phone, pretending to check the time or a notification.
"Depends, where do you live man?" Leo answered him, removing his grip from my shoulders to cross his arms inquisitively.
"A few miles west, off Elm Street," He informed.
"Near the hospital, right?" Charlie nodded, "Yeah... Jerrie lives six blocks from there," he chuckled, a silent warning shot from deep within his, chest low and rumbling like thunder.
It was most likely meant for me, but I felt the need to protect Charlie, who didn't know what he was facing. I exhaled distressingly, configuring my thoughts like lines of code, trying to find one containing fear, so I could promptly delete it.
"She's all yours!" he excitedly patted Charlie's shoulder.
I lifted my head slowly, not wanting to appear as shocked as I was. Leo directed his smile at me, and I was more surprised to find his genuine one.
It didn't put my mind at ease.
"Why didn't you start working for me sooner! I live another twenty minutes in the opposite direction, you would have saved me a lot of gas!" he joked.
"Well I'm new to the neighborhood, so I wouldn't have been much help before," Charlie chortled along.
"None of this would be a problem if someone would learn to drive," Leo pretended to whisper to Charlie, raising an eyebrow to me at the end.
I stood there for a moment frozen before it registered- Leo was giving me the cue to speak.
"Hey, I heard that," I chimed in with a gentle smile.
We all laughed as the surrounding air staled.
"Well you two get going, I'll lock up your office Jer," Leo handed me my purse and briefcase.
I took them without hesitation thanking him, for not making a scene rather than my things. There was no mistaking, Leo had his faults, being spoiled and bratty, but he never faltered in keeping up appearances. Maybe he could smell staleness rising like southerners could smell a summer rainstorm. After all, he had grown up in it.
Cool air hit my face and I exhaled, trying to keep my hands from shaking. Charlie and I had walked to his car in silence- or I was too spaced out to notice him talking. Nevertheless, he opened the door for me as always, which produced a burning sensation on the back of my head, probably paranoia intruding my thoughts, telling me Leo was watching this from my office. I refused to check and politely thanked Charlie.
Awkward had passed us by long ago and I wondered if my cover had been blown so soon. It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to decode the tension we'd left in the room. The moments went on and I thought about the insanity of how years of secrets could be ruined in two days. For so long two and two equaled four, it was simple addition until the sudden appearance of a variable turned it into algebra. It was an equation I wasn't used to, but it didn't mean it couldn't be solved. The key was to try.
"Wow, I didn't know you lived so close to me," I broke the silence, finally looking at Charlie. "Now I know the secret to your punctuality."
"What utter nonsense, I'm a very timely person actually!"
"Oh sure, everyone says that until GPS malfunctions and tells them to turn on an off-ramp," I giggled.
"Hey, I'm not the one who was stumbling out of their apartment this morning, remember."
I laughed but it was stiff, I'd almost forgotten the way I so clumsily exposed my secrets. I tried not to let the sadness cover my face, but I could tell Charlie began to recall it as well as his face twisted up into one of questioning. He opened his mouth with a sharp inhale, and I braced myself for the dreaded questions.
"So," He started, "Why don't you drive?"
"Oh," I said pleasantly surprised, "It's a boring story really, my parents died in an accident, so I never wanted to learn."
The car slowed to a halt at a red light and Charlie turned his face to me. The lowering sun turned his brown eyes into a glowing amber, accentuating his wide-eyed expression.
"A boring story, seriously? I can't wait to read your good ones, then" he scoffed.
"Sorry," I laughed, "It's been a long time, so I'm pretty numb to the subject".
He hummed with understanding, "Do you have any siblings, aunts, uncles..."
"No, just me... and my grandmother, but she' lives in a nursing home near the beach."
"You know what, you're right, this is no Greek tragedy," he quipped, "wait, you're not being haunted by your father's ghost in any way are you?"
I smiled at the Shakespeare reference, "I don't think so".
"Yeah, then it's a yawner."
My laughter died down and it left us in another silent spell, but more comfortable than the last.
"Oh Right!" Charlie exclaimed, breaking through the block of silence like an Ax, just about cutting my air supply. "Big Carly!"
"Who?" I asked still clutching the fabric of my pants and trying to slow my heart rate.
"Big Carly's Burgers, you've never been there?" I shook my head. "It's this cool looking retro diner I pass every day. On Saturdays, it's packed and there's always a line out the door. The thought of going in there has been looming in my mind since I moved to the neighborhood. Would you mind going with me?"
"Oh um, I don't eat diner-type food..."
"Alright, you won't have to order anything, I hate going to restaurants alone, you know?"
I did know. Nothing in the world seems as lonely as eating alone in public. And I'd had years of experience in the matter.
"Sure," I smiled.
"Whoo! Big Carly, here we come!"
As Charlie promised, the restaurant was wonderfully nostalgic. I was sure many movies had to have had a scene or two filmed there. It was a wonder I'd never heard of it. Then again, I didn't get out much. A cheerful statue of someone who was surely Big Carly, stood at the entrance with a welcome sign, and crossing her threshold transported us back into a simpler time. We reached the colorful neon order counter and Charlie exasperatedly looked over the plentiful menu, his mouth watering as he read the descriptions aloud. I scanned the walls, seeing the celebrity faces standing next to Big Carly over the years. Something about it was strangely familiar, and warm.
"And you sweetheart?" The middle-aged waitress alerted