Gavin Lucas (viciouscircle) wrote in shadows_rpg, @ 2018-03-28 05:17:00 |
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Entry tags: | #october 2017, charlie, charlie x gavin, gavin |
Who: Charlie and Gavin
What: Socially stunted date plans
Where: Phone at their respective houses
When: Evening, Wednesday
Warnings: Socially stunted idiot
The week Gavin had been having had only solidified his idea that Charlie was better off far away from him. He couldn't really tell her about the debacle with Aaron because he had a feeling she'd be happy for him too. She didn't know him, she had no idea what a mess this all was and women were generally fucking weird about babies. He hadn't been to church nor had he called her after their date and he was really beginning to feel like the world's biggest douchebag which wouldn't be a problem if he was as set on pushing her away as he should have been.
Unfortunately there was that nagging little want inside him. He felt good when he was near her, like a weight lifted off his shoulders and for a short time that pit in his chest got sealed up, letting him breathe. It was definitely hard to push Charlie away when she made him feel like that. Guilt helped, calling her now would be weird after all this time but he still found himself picking up the phone and finding her name in the contacts.
Charlie had, of course, noticed that Gavin hadn't been to church. She had also noticed, of course, that he hadn't called or texted her either. Their date had gone pretty well, or so she thought, but it was difficult not to think maybe she had screwed up somewhere and just hadn't realized it. It was extremely difficult not to replay Drew's long list of her faults in her head, and she wondered if Gavin had caught onto them as well and was stepping back before things got serious. Or even casual. Charlie had thought about stopping by the bar a few times after school, but ultimately she'd resisted and just driven home, not wanting to put Gavin in an awkward spot of having to entertain her at his place of business if the spark just wasn't there.
After a while she stopped thinking about it so much and instead focused on work and getting the rest of her house put together. When she finished grading papers and getting lesson plans together at night, she worked for a few hours on various projects around the house, finding it pretty satisfying to be doing everything on her own, rather than having to hire people.
Charlie was on her knees in her guest bathroom, re-tiling the floor when her phone began to buzz. She almost ignored it, but given the time of day, Charlie pulled off her gloves to pick up her phone from the sink just to make sure it wasn't her mother. When she saw Gavin's name, Charlie hesitated before finally answering the call. "Hey, Gavin," she greeted, lifting a hand to brush some damp hair away from her forehead.
"Hey Charlie," Gavin replied in same, trying and failing to get a read on her voice. Now that he had her on the phone he honestly didn't know what to say to her, other than try to get her to talk so he could listen to her voice and try to relax a little. "How've you been?" he said, even if it wasn't a question he wanted turned back on him. Hopefully she'd had a fun and eventful week and would be happy to tell him all about it. He doubted it, they hadn't talked much for a while and she might have written him off by now. Which was good for her but not so much for him.
It was such a simple question, with a simple answer I've been fine. You?, but at the moment it felt much more complicated to her. "I've been good," Charlie said after a moment. "Working on the house a bit." And not at all obsessing over the reason why Gavin hadn't called her before tonight. The phone call was something of a surprise, though. Gavin wasn't much of a talker when they were face to face, so she found it odd that he would call her now instead of just shooting her an easy text. It occurred to her rather belatedly that maybe something was wrong. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, yeah," Gavin murmured reassuringly as he rubbed at his temple. "It's been a, uh, weird week... Sorry I haven't, sorry I've been a stranger." He was quickly realizing this phone call had been a bad idea. Poor Charlie, she really did not need to get involved with a Lucas and all the shitty problems that came with his family. Unfortunately for Charlie he was just feeling selfish enough to ignore that. "I wanted to call, I had a good time."
It didn't take a rocket scientist to recognize that something was wrong. Sure, Gavin was awkward on the phone, but he was awkward face to face. Mostly when he tried to talk. It was clearly something he wasn't comfortable doing most of the time, but that never bothered Charlie. Lord knew she blabbered on enough for the both of them when they were spending time together. Still, she was realizing that was why he called her. "It's okay, Gavin," she said, reaching out to the sink basin to use it as leverage as she got up from her place on the floor. "I had a good time too, but I'm sorry if I sort of pushed you into it. I think I've just been out of the dating game for so long I forgot how it's supposed to be done."
"Nah you didn't do anything wrong," Gavin was quick to tell her. "You didn't push... or... I don't know if there are rules, I never really did this whole thing." He cleared his throat and leaned back on the couch, ruffling Max's fur gently for something to calm him down a little. God he was bad at this. "So I'm thinking, maybe if I uh, take Friday night off, we could meet for dinner again. If you want." Maybe that's what she meant about how it was done, he was supposed to ask her and not the other way around, he was supposed to show he wanted to meet her and not just go along with it. He could try that on for size and if she was smart she'd feel flattered but decline the offer.
Charlie didn't really know how this was supposed to work anymore. She had met Drew in college, and she had never really had to navigate the dating scene. Gavin had gotten a girl pregnant when he was a teenager, and the two were technically still married. Charlie was realizing now that they were both a bit out of their depth when it came to... whatever this was, and somehow that made her relax as she listened to Gavin talk about taking her to dinner. On a Friday night. The bar's busy night. Was he really willing to blow off those responsibilities to take her out? Charlie caught sight of herself in the oval shaped bathroom mirror and she cringed at the sight of some dirt smudged on her nose and cheek. At least this wasn't a Facetime chat. "I think that sounds great," Charlie said, aware that she had spent an entire week doubting her own appeal and just like that, Gavin asks her to dinner again and she forgets all about it. "But you choose where we go."
He had hoped she'd have her own ideas about where he should take her. Even if it was an expensive place for him to make it up to her - or something. It occurred to him then that it didn't sound like Charlie at all to do that, even if she probably should. "Oh," he muttered. "Yeah... yeah I can do that." He could ask someone. He had no idea who he'd ask though, it was none of his family's business that he was taking an old friend out on a date. Were they even old friends? An old crush was more applicable perhaps. "I'll let you know so you don't... uhm. So you'll know what to wear." He shook his head and grimaced at how utterly shit he was at this and when he opened his eyes again, the dogs were looking at him with what almost looked like pity. Like they knew. He shook his head at them again as if to tell them to shut it. "Seven?"
Charlie was not really the fancy dinner type, and she certainly wouldn't chose an expensive restaurant to 'punish' Gavin for not calling. Those places could feel intimidating, sometimes, especially on a date. Besides, it was hard for her to imagine Gavin in a fancy place, only because Charlie had a feeling he would be very uncomfortable there. She chuckled softly and looked down at her worn jeans and flannel shirt she had been wearing to work in the bathroom. It might feel nice to dress up a little. "That sounds great," she said, because it did. Charlie hesitated for a brief moment before speaking again. "Do you want to talk about it? Your weird week?"
"Nah," Gavin murmured, even though a small part of him did want to talk about it. He just knew without a doubt that Charlie wouldn't understand what the big deal was or why Aaron becoming a father was such a colossal mistake. "It's just family stuff, a bit of friction." He smiled faintly and sank back in the couch. "I'd love to not talk about it over that dinner too." He was already trying to remember all the restaurants in town and which ones were nice without being overbearing. There were some good ones at the pier and an ocean view was... romantic. Maybe too romantic. It made him almost wish he had one of those life coaches, even if the mere idea of them usually made him roll his eyes.
Charlie could understand family friction, and the desire to want to talk about while not wanting to talk about it. She wasn't going to push him to do so either. Sometimes escapism was the best form of therapy and she didn't mind if Gavin wanted Charlie to be that escapism. She smiled a bit and nodded. "We can definitely not talk about it over dinner. But should you ever want to talk about it, over dinner or anywhere else, my ears are always open." He probably already knew that, and Charlie didn't expect him to take her up on the offer, but it felt right to put it out there anyway. "So are you going to pick me up on Friday?"
"Yeah," Gavin murmured, relieved she didn't push for details. "Friday at seven." He was already looking forward to it which was saying a lot. Charlie had made it onto that very short list of things and people that actually brightened his days some. Caden was probably going to be a little shit about him taking the night off but Gavin didn't care. He'd sweet talk Miles into working, he deserved a damn night off.
"I'll be ready," Charlie said, thankful that the football game was an away game. She generally felt obligated to attend when they were home games - school spirit, and all that. But she would much rather spend the evening with Gavin, and so she wasn't terribly upset with herself when she felt that spark of optimism light in her chest again. Her lips twitched again. "I'm going to let you go before you change your mind," she teased. "Just call or send me a text when you pick a place, okay?"
Gavin wrinkled his nose as he sort of grimace-grinned, almost telling her he wasn't going to change his mind but recognizing she was teasing. It was a very well deserved tease though and he knew it. He was a mess. "I'll let you know. No worries, it won't be anywhere too crazy so you don't have to run out and get a new dress or anything." As if she would... He just barely managed to smother a groan at himself , shaking his head at the dogs who were looking at him like they knew he was making an ass of himself; sympathetic but judging. Obviously they weren't but it sure felt like it in the moment.
"I'm not worried," Charlie assured him, the smile evident in her tone. "I've got plenty of dresses in my closet I never get to wear if the occasion suddenly calls for one. I'm usually pretty prepared for just about anything... it's one of the side effects of being a teacher. I'll see you on Friday, okay?" She wasn't trying to rush him off the phone. In fact, Charlie would have been perfectly content with talking to him for awhile longer, but she knew it probably wasn't a comfortable thing for him, communicating for very long in any capacity.
"Yeah," Gavin said softly and smiled as well. He found he was already looking forward to seeing what she'd be wearing as he could only imagine all her dresses were pretty and looked amazing on her. "You take care now," he added before ending the call and letting out a huff of air. Now he needed to look into places to go since he couldn't very well ask anyone he knew. The Boathouse was the likeliest candidate though he knew it was a pretty romantic place and maybe that wasn't a good idea. Now he was also worrying he'd ended the phone call too abruptly. Was everyone this anxious about women or was it just him? He groaned and ruffled Max's fur gently to distract himself. The dogs usually managed to calm him down.
It didn't bother Charlie that Gavin had hung up so abruptly. It was amusing because it seemed to be like him to want to avoid those awkward goodbyes on the phone - and face to face. In a much better mood than she had been earlier, Charlie set the phone back on her sink counter and sighed as she looked down at the mess beneath her feet. It was coming along, but she wanted to get the flooring done and looking nice. Maybe it would be an excuse to invite him in Friday after dinner, to show him what she'd managed to do in her house on her own. Who knows what that might lead to, but Charlie was eager to find out. Determined now, Charlie sunk back onto her knees to get to work.