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[color=darkgray][indent][indent]The breakup with Joanna had certainly taken its toll on Charlotte Diedrikson. The hyper personality that characterized her was all but gone, replaced by a quiet, morose shadow of who she used to be. Her week had been spent going through the motions as best as she could given her new living situation: shuffling between practice, her classes, more practice, and back to the bedroom she now shared with Kieran. Any mention of Joey could send her to tears.

And that Friday night was no different. After finishing with her usual routine, the girl made a quick stop for some Japanese takeout. At about half past eight, Lottie sat in the middle of Kieran’s bed, hair up in the laziest of buns and wearing nothing but a pair of pajamas already stained with soy sauce. Her brown eyes were glued to her laptop screen, watching old episodes of My Super Sweet Sixteen while taking mindless bites of the half-eaten chicken yakisoba container in her lap. From the outside looking in, she was certain she looked pathetic. [i]She[/i] certainly felt that way. But what else was she supposed to do other than stay home and wait for the pain to ease up? Stuffing her face with noodles certainly sounded better than having to put up a facade in front of people.

Kieran, meanwhile, was doing his best to try and play the good boyfriend for his new roommate. Suffice to say it was a bit of a transition, and after hanging with Dee for most of Monday afternoon, coming back to Mac, Lottie and a giant suitcase was a major surprise. Still, he was willing to be supportive even after that suitcase moved into his room, and Lottie took up permanent residence there. He was the modern man who was willing to just lay in bed and cuddle to try and make Lottie’s pain go away. He was willing to watch whatever she wanted.

However, as he walked back into the room, microwaved chicken shawarma in hand, looking at his girlfriend staring at a bunch of spoiled 16-year-olds that wouldn’t know a hard day’s work if it bit them in the arse, he got worried. [color=87b5eb]“Hey Ace,”[/color] he offered as he moved to sit down next to Lottie on the bed. [color=87b5eb]“Gotta… gotta another batch of kids expecting cakes in the shape of Ariana Grande at their birthday, huh? That...that’s the plan for tonight?”[/color]

[color=magenta]“Yeah,”[/color] came Lottie’s unenthusiastic reply, not tearing her eyes away from the screen where Katie was testing out the endurance of a Hummer by running over every curve or median possible. [color=magenta]“Why?”[/color]

[color=87b5eb]“Nah, nah, it’s fine,”[/color] Kieran lied. [color=87b5eb]“Can’t wait to see how Kayleigh recovers from her Ferrari arriving in the wrong color.”[/color] As he continued to sidle next to Charlotte, he continued to think about just exactly how to start broaching the subject he was worried about. [color=87b5eb]“I’m surprised you don’t have these all memorized by now. How many episodes did they do?”[/color]

[color=magenta]“Her name’s Katie, not Kayleigh. And I honestly have no idea…”[/color]the girl answered again, planning to drown out the sound of his voice when the smell of whatever he was holding finally reached her nose. [color=magenta]“What is [i]that[/i]?”[/color] she asked him, her face scrunched up in dislike as she pointed to the food item with her chin. 

[color=87b5eb]“It’s a shawarma wrap,”[/color] the boy answered. [color=87b5eb]“It’s from Fattoush, that Mediterreanean place a couple streets over. It’s really good. Think it’s the garlic sauce they put in it.”[/color] It was clear from Lottie’s face that she wasn’t asking so she could figure out where he got it. That was an… interesting source of friction between the two. There was never really a discussion on favored foods outside of clubs and occasional dinner dates. [color=87b5eb]“I’m guessing you don’t want a bite.”[/color] Not that Kieran was going to ask for any of the Japanese food. Too much sugar in the teriyaki sauce for him.

[color=magenta]“No, thank you. I’m good,”[/color] she answered simply, shooting the offending dish one last glare before turning back to her show.

The silence afterwards was awkward. It felt weird to have the woman known for her prowess on the courts and her confidence in all things social be so curt and withdrawn. Kieran felt weird. This position was foreign ground to him. He felt like he was supposed to do something now. There wasn’t going to be another time. [color=87b5eb]“So...um… how are you? I feel like we haven’t really talked about things much lately,”[/color]

The sudden change of topic finally caught Charlotte’s attention enough to warrant her pausing the episode and turning to Kieran. [color=magenta]“There’s not really much to talk about, though, is there?”[/color] she replied in a nonchalant tone, but with eyes that betrayed just how sad she was about the whole thing. [color=magenta]“I broke up with my girlfriend of two years and I’ve been feeling like crap about it ever since, even though I know it was the right decision. What else is there left to be said?”[/color]

Kieran was in uncharted waters here and he had no idea if his boat was taking on water or not. There was a chance to turn back, but there was no way for him to see that. Just too foolish to figure it out. So he pressed on. [color=87b5eb]“I mean, that’s just it, eh? You ended the relationship. You’re telling yourself that was the move to make. And yet you’ve been holed up in here watching useless brats complain about stuff that don’t matter a spit in the real world. That tells me that there’s more to the feeling crap than just the end of that relationship. So, I’m here to listen. Do ya need to get something off your chest, or… I dunno?”[/color] 

Charlotte was silent for a few seconds, deciding whether to continue to lie and pretend it was nothing or collapse into his arms like a crying mess. But in the end, she decided to take the middle ground. Letting out a deep sigh, the young woman carefully placed her food on the nearby desk, shifted around in bed to find the perfect position to lay her head on his lap. [color=magenta]“I guess the only thing that’s really bothering me is that I have no idea why we even fought in the first place…”[/color] the blonde admitted. [color=magenta]“I tried asking her what was wrong and all I got was her pushing me away. I thought our relationship was better than that, you know? That if something was bothering her she could tell me.”[/color]

If Kieran were a more perceptive person, he might have figured out that the conversation that led to the break up might have something to do with him and the proposition Lottie made at the party. But he was not that perceptive when it came to interpersonal relationships. Only hockey. [color=87b5eb]“Well, I can’t pretend I had the understanding of how Joey works that you do. So, I don’t know what was going through her head when she did that. But if she was reacting like that, then you know you did the right thing for you.”[/color] He started stroking the blond hair that rested on his lap, shawarma now discarded to the floor beside the bed. [color=87b5eb]“If she actually wanted the relationship to work, she would, you know, realize that you gotta be open about this sort of stuff if anything is gonna last. Least that’s what my mom says.”[/color]

[color=magenta]“I know, that’s what I keep telling myself too. But it’s so [i]hard[/i]...”[/color] Lottie admitted, tears finally welling up in her eyes and rolling down her cheeks. [color=magenta]“It was two years of living together, having each other’s backs and just loving one another without any real commitment holding us back. I wish she had just told me what made her change her mind so I could fix it.”[/color]

[color=87b5eb]“Sometimes you can’t force people to tell ya anything,”[/color] Kiki admitted, both to Lottie and to himself. [color=87b5eb]“I can’t fathom why she would want to throw your relationship away so easily. But, I’m gonna bet you two things. One, she’s just as miserable as you are from the sounds of it, and two, she doesn’t have one of the best pillows in the world to comfort her the way you do, Munchkin.”[/color]

That brought a smile and a watery chuckle out of Charlotte. [color=magenta]“That’s very true!”[/color] she told him, wiping away her tears, taking up a seating position and bringing Kieran in for a tight hug. He was the perfect life-size teddy bear to bring her the comfort she so desperately needed. [color=magenta]“Thank you so much, Kiki. I’m really, [i]really[/i] happy you’re here for me.”[/color]

Kieran smiled, seeing and feeling a bit of the old Diedrikson flame begin to come back to life. He was more than happy to return the hug and wrap Lottie up. [color=87b5eb]“Anytime, Lottie. Anytime.”[/color] He rested his head on hers as he continued to hold her close. He definitely had the ability to make her feel that she had that waiting for her when needed.[/indent][/indent][/color]