Page 36 of The Charm Offensive
He doesn’t let himself think about what it means, or why he feels this way. He imagines Dev beside him—Dev’s hand instead of his own—and that’s all it takes to send him over the edge. He shoves his mouth into the crook of his left elbow, so he doesn’t make a sound.
An hour later, after he’s showered, he enjoys the first night of good sleep he’s had in days.
Dev
He shouldn’t have pushed.
Dev paces at the foot of his bed.Why does he always have to push?
Things have been good. He’s gotten Charlie to open upjust enough—enough for the occasional flash of sarcasm and gentle teasing; enough for compound-complex sentences; enough to start taking his antidepressants every morning in front of Dev; enough for smiling (sometimes) and laughing (like, twice). Just enough for Dev to feel a little wild with wanting more, so that when Charlie came into his bedroom in gray sweatpants, complimenting his script, Dev pushed. And Dev spooked him.
Dev grabs another handful of white cheddar popcorn and resumes his anxious pacing. Of course Charlie freaked out when Dev pushed him on his feelings about the women. Charlie has probably spent his entire life thinking he doesn’t deserve love, to the point that he’s taken it off the table completely. Dev thinks Charlie’s probably never let himself fall in love, out of fear of rejection, so how could he recognize the feelings he has now for Daphne?
Maybe Dev should go into his room. Check on him. Talk to him.
Next door, he hears Charlie go into the bathroom and turn on the shower.
Or… yeah, Dev should probably just go to sleep instead.
He doesn’t sleep, though, and when he goes into the kitchen the next morning feeling half-dead, Jules is already there with a bag of breakfast sandwiches from crafty. Charlie is shoving a load of clothes into the washing machine.
“The assistants can do your laundry for you,” Dev says as he comes up behind him.
Charlie nearly jumps out of his skin. “It’s fine. I… I can—” He cuts off and doesn’t bother trying to resuscitate the sentence.
Jules hands Charlie his breakfast. “Charlie, you look like you’re auditioning to be the thirteenth Cylon onBattlestar Galactica,” she teases.
Charlie blinks. “Sorry.”
Apparently Dev pushed so hard he shoved Charlie all the way back to night-one awkwardness.
Jules and Dev try to draw him out of his shell on the drive to set, but he refuses to be baited, even when Dev loudly declaresWestworldthe greatest science-fiction show of all time. At set, when Dev reaches to adjust Charlie’s crown, Charlie pulls away so violently, he trips backward over an equipment crate. He’s jittery with the women, too, confusing the Laurens and overtly rolling his eyes when Megan pulls him aside to tell him Daphne isn’t here for the right reasons.
“What the hell is wrong with your boy?” Jules asks as they watch Charlie literally duck out of an oncoming kiss from Delilah.
“I have no idea.”
Jules puts her hands on her hips and cocks her head up at him.
“Okay, well, maybe Charlie came into my room late last night.…”
“Oh, hedid, did he?”
“What?”
“What?”
“Charlie came into my room, and we talked about his connections with the women.”
“Oh.”
“What did you think I meant?”
She assumes a casual position. “That. Obviously.”
“I was trying to help him realize his feelings for Daphne, and—”
Jules cackles. “Wait. You’re serious? You actually think Charlie has feelings forDaphne?”
