Still You Want Me Ch. 02

I want thank LaRascasse for editing and kicking my butt for using past and present at the same time! And Oldnakeddad for taking the time to edit and help with the flow of the story. Every thing that works is because of them and everything that sucks because of me :)

(This is a work of fiction and all characters are over the age of 18.)

Enjoy the show! And don't forget to vote.

* * CHARLES * *

Sometimes, I hate driving in downtown Portland. The streets are always narrow and, this morning, there's a delivery truck parked in the road, making the odds of getting to work without being sideswiped, astronomically low. I consider it a miracle when I pull into the parking garage undamaged.

Colin is standing on the street, waiting for me, as I walk out of the parking garage. Maybe today's going to be a good day after all.

"Good morning, Charlie!"

Good morning indeed! Nothing's better than seeing his all-American smile and his big doe eyes first thing in the morning.

Colin has been calling me Charlie when it's just the two of us and Charles around everyone else. It feels like a secret, something only between us, almost intimate.

Gawd, I sound so lame! There's nothing to read into it, but I'm doing it anyway. It's wishful thinking

He has a boyish way of always having his hands in his pockets. His smile, thick chocolate hair, beautiful hazel eyes (and the thick lashes that frame them), and perfect nose (which isn't too masculine or feminine) fit his strong facial features.

Everything about him is perfect!

They don't require the marketing employees to wear a suit and tie, therefore most dress business casual. There are a few of us, including myself, that trend toward the more professional look, though.

Normally, I don't like business casual because I think it's lazy, but after seeing Colin dressed that way, I decide it's not all bad.

Today, he's wearing dark-blue, slim-fit jeans, light-brown leather shoes, a white collared shirt under a navy sweater, and a light-grey tweed blazer. Everything combined, along with his leather messenger bag, is almost too much. I have to make a conscience effort not to ogle him. What's infuriating is, he's not even trying. Everything he does is effortless.

"Good morning, Colin. How was your commute?" I jest.

This gets a laugh from him. His naturally infectious laugh is music to my ears and sends a shudder throughout my body.

Be still my heart.

I don't know exactly where he lives, but he's mentioned living nearby, only minutes away by foot.

"Foot traffic was terrible! I almost had a flat tire! I don't think people value personal space, they always walk too close."

He smiles with his eyes and, in order to avoid a puddle of water, brushes against my body.

"How about you? Is your stupid, expensive car still making the commute tolerable?" His smirk is almost cuter than his smile and his eyes are sparkling with mischief.

He steps away from me as the puddle is no longer a threat.

"Joke all you want to, but once you've experienced the joys of my custom, pearl-white Jaguar F-TYPE, you'll be begging me to drive you to work, and I'll decline, of course, because you're a jerk."

I look over and see him roll his eyes, but he's unable to hide his giant grin which stops my heart again.

Seriously, what's wrong with me?

"Do you have plans this weekend? A guy like you must have something set-up," he asks.

He bounces his bag to a more comfortable position on his shoulder, never removing his hands from his pocket.

"I don't know. I mean, yeah, I guess I have a date. It's nothing serious. I don't have anything else to do, you know?"

Ramble much, Charles?

I widen my eyes when I realize how stupid I sound. Suddenly feeling sheepish.

"Of course, it's nothing serious. You don't do serious, Charlie. You do Grindr!"

He bumps my shoulder and has a small side smile as he shakes his head in amusement. I entertain him in all of the wrong ways.

"What about you? Do you have any plans with a lady tonight?"

Please say no. Please say no.

"Actually, I do!"

He smiles so big I can count all of his teeth, he's so happy, My stomach drops at the thought of him on a date. I muster as much excitement as possible, but it's not much.

"Something serious?"

"I think so! I think it's fate! I simply started looking and boom, she appeared and she seems to be a good fit. I have a feeling we're going to be together for a long time."

He looks at me as his face fills with hesitation.

"There's one problem, though. I mean, it's not a problem, per se, but I don't know. Maybe I'm being too picky."

"Spit it out, man!"

The suspense is going to give me an ulcer. Do I want to hear about her? Whatever the issue is, I'm going to make it a big deal. He'll have to walk away. My new plan is to make a mountain out of a molehill!

"Well, I know this sounds stupid, but she's white. She doesn't have to be black, but I've always preferred a darker appearance. Everything else seems perfect, though. I don't know whether or not to settle or hold out longer?"

I can tell this is something he's been thinking about, a lot. I didn't expect Colin to have such a strong color preference. Especially, a preference that's not favorable toward my ethnicity. I know he's straight and I have no right to be crushed, but this white boy has hit an emotional wall. I'll try to make him think.

"Really? You're hung up on the color issue? I didn't expect that from you! Color should be the last thing you consider. If everything else works perfectly, and you feel a connection, you have to go for it. If it's love, you'll never notice color. Seriously, man!"

Also, gender shouldn't be in issue, either. Just food for thought.

"Woah!"

He gestures for me to calm down.

"That's a big reaction coming from someone who's paid thousands of dollars for a custom color."

Wait, I'm confused.

"What are you talking about?"

He looks at me like I'm an idiot.

"I found a car! I told you I've been looking for one and I found it. An old lady in Beaverton has a 1998 Subaru Outback, fully loaded, with only eighty thousand miles, for only two thousand dollars. It's been garaged most of its life and only occasionally driven. I wanted black or navy-blue or dark-green, but white won't be so bad. I'm going to pick her up tonight."

It takes me a second to realize what's happened. Then it hits me. I almost got a stomach ulcer over a twenty-year-old car!

"Ha!"

I can't compose myself. I'm laughing so hard.

"I'm lost. What's so funny?"

I start crying and I can't talk or breathe. A twenty-year-old car! After what feels like ages, I finally calm down, but I'm still holding back the giggles.

"Colin, I thought you were talking about a date! I thought you found a girl with whom you're having a good connection. Potentially could last a long time. She's perfect except for the fact she's white! Seriously, man, you should have disclosed what you were talking about, upfront!"

I playfully punch his shoulder, simply an excuse to touch him. Colin start laughing because the whole thing is freaking hilarious.

"You thought I was talking about a girl?"

I affirm with a nod.

"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!"

He's stops laughing, but he's still smiling while looking down at his feet.

Can I imagine you dating a girl? Yes. Do I want to imagine it? No.

We part ways on the fifth floor. It's a busy day for everyone in marketing. Somehow, all of the project deadlines are due today. I don't know if this has ever happened before, but the atmosphere on fifth floor is tense. We work through lunch and, by some miracle, we finish around five in the afternoon, but I stay a little later to tie up a few loose ends.

"Hold the elevator!"

I turn to see Colin grabbing his stuff from his desk and jogging toward the elevator, evidently not wanting to take the stairs today. The door is closing so I slide my hand out to keep it open.

"Hurry, I'm not going to wait all night. I have things to do!"

I like giving him a hard time and teasing him whenever I have the chance. I mean, I have things to do, but I'd wait all week if he wanted me to.

"Yeah, yeah. Grindr guy can wait thirty seconds!"

Or forever. Just say the word.

Colin was in a hurry to get to the elevator and hasn't put his jacket on, yet, so he tosses it over my shoulder.

"Hold that."

He tosses me his messenger bag.

"And that."

I watch him for a minute while he straightens his paperwork before placing it into the bag I'm holding. His jacket smells so good. It smells of him. It's close to my face and I want to bend my head down and rub my cheek with it, but that'd be super creepy, right?

"You know, I have things to do, too. I have to pick up my future wife!"

Colin's straightening his sweater as he looks at me, then starts laughing and teasing me about the mix up.

Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up.

"Seriously, Colin, how was I supposed to know? You talked about the car as if it's a real person. You're so weird sometimes."

He grabs his jacket from my shoulder and I'm sad to see it go.

"No, only you'd thought I was talking about a girl."

He puts his jacket on, grabs his bag from me, slings it over his shoulder, and quickly pulls his phone out.

"Shit! I forgot to call for an Uber. I'm supposed to meet Mrs. Granberg in Beaverton to pick up the car."

"You don't need to call an Uber. I can take you."

"No, it's okay. I know you have plans for tonight. I've already set you behind by asking to hold the elevator. A ride to Beaverton is too much."

He's downloading the Uber app.

"No, I'm serious! The night is young. I'll take you. Come on, Colin, let me take you."

Let me take you...to bed. Hmmm.

"What about Grindr Guy?"

"What about him? You don't think he wants to get together at six o'clock tonight, do you?"

I'll cancel on him. Just give me the word. I dare you. I'll do it!

"Okay. I mean, if you don't mind. I don't want you to feel obligated."

He looks skeptical, but hopeful.

"No, I don't feel obligated, but you'll owe me."

I can think of a few things.

"I'll tell you what, you can be the first person to meet Julie."

I throw him a questioning look. Julie? What did I miss? He rolls his eyes as if I'm a complete failure.

"My date tonight, the love of my life! My basic white girl, Julie? Seriously, Charlie, what's wrong with you today?"

He's only half joking.

I'm an idiot. I'm so wrapped up in him that everything feels threatening. I can't even take a joke. It's obviously I shouldn't cancel tonight, I'm wound up so tight, I really need Grindr Guy.

"I hate you."

I watch him laughing at me. He has no clue what he does to me. No clue at all! I might be an idiot, but so is he.

"Do you need to run home or can we leave straight from here?"

"No, we can leave straight from here."

We're walking through the near empty parking garage when Colin suddenly stops.

"Let me guess. That's your car."

He points over to a three-tone Toyota on blocks and without wheels. What's it doing in here?

"Heck, yes. I accept all colors. Unlike you, I'm not a racist."

I start singing.

"Red and yellow, black and white. They're all precious in my sight!"

Then I remember something he once said.

"What did you call me? Oh yeah, I'm an equal opportunity baby. I don't discriminate."

It's a pretty funny comment and we both laugh, but Colin starts losing his shit over it. He thinks it's the funniest thing ever and, by the time we actually get to my car, he has tears running down his face. My heart is doing weird flips as I see him in such a state of euphoria.

I made this happen.

"Ok, I can't. I'm so done! That was funny shit."

I try to pull myself together and start humming the tune to "Jesus Loves the Little Children" as Colin slides into the passenger seat. Then we both lose it, again. Every time we pull ourselves together, one of us starts laughing.

We sit in my car for five minutes before I can compose myself enough to leave the parking garage. I'll never be able to look at that broken down Toyota with a straight face again.

* * COLIN * *

I'm dead. I don't think I've laughed this hard in years. I'm not expecting Charlie to break out into a Sunday school song! I don't think we're ever going to leave this parking garage. My stomach is killing me! There's no doubt, in my mind, all of this laughing is the equivalent of one hundred crunches.

"So, what do you think of my stupid expensive car?"

Charlie has his sleeves rolled up below his elbow, his right hand is on the steering wheel, his left elbow is on the door panel, and his cheek is casually resting on his fist. He's the poster child for being the cool guy. His dark-blonde hair is disheveled after a long day at work and I can only imagine how many times he's run his fingers through it today.

I'm not romantically interested in Charles, but I'm not blind. He's a very attractive guy and it's no surprise why he's popular with all of the men. If I had an interest in flings, I'd definitely have a hard time saying no to him.

The interior of his car is beautiful, of course. After all, it's a rusty brown, black, and chrome Jaguar. The leather is soft like butter, but everything screams power and pleasure. It's everything you'd expect for ninety thousand dollars!

As far as I'm concerned, it's a complete waste of money. It's only a car. I've never seen the need for this kind of excess expenditure. I shrug my shoulders as we'll never agree on stuff like this.

"It's alright, I guess. It's very...you."

"What does that mean?"

His brows furrow as he glances toward me.

"It's your personality. Powerful and nice to look at, but also flashy, cocky, arrogant, and clearly over compensating for something."

I meet his eyes and smile. I'm not completely wrong.

"Aww, you think I'm nice to look at?"

He tilts his head and bats his eyes.

"You're so cute!" Charlie blows me a kiss.

"I also said you're cocky and arrogant."

I grab his kiss from the air, roll down the window, and throws it outside.

"Ouch!"

"I don't want to make Grindr Guy jealous!" I tease.

"He'll never know. It'll be only between you and me."

He winks.

"You can't handle me," I reply.

I pull my phone out so I can get the GPS ready for our trip.

"Ha! I think we both know I could teach you a thing or two. I could literally rock your world!"

I see a confident smile spread across his face.

"Overcompensating much?"

He gives me an 'in your dreams' laugh and I look up and playfully smile. When he's confident like this, it's hard not to flirt. Actually, he's always easy to flirt with.

"So, how's the sound system?"

I've been eyeing it since I got into the car. I love all things music (karaoke, dancing, and singing, all of it). It's one of the few things that totally relaxes me.

"It's really good. Do you want to play something?"

He reaches down and hands me the cord to connect my phone.

"Yes! I love a good sound system."

He doesn't miss the eagerness in my response and shoots me a look. I can see his mind is working.

"Okay, you have full control of the playlist, but you have to perform to the song that's playing."

Charles shifts in his seat so he's facing me a little more. I can handle this. I'd be a perfect victim for that show where they secretly film people singing to music while in their cars. I always get into music.

"Okay, but no judging."

"I'm absolutely not agreeing to that!"

Charlie grabs the steering wheel with both hands and shakes it with excitement.

"As a matter of fact, I'm going to judge the shit out of you!"

He's beaming, ready to rock and roll, so I connect my phone to the stereo.

"I'm feeling so much pressure, right now," I mumble.

"Why? I won't judge you...much."

"No. I mean, yeah, the pressure of being in control of the playlist is overwhelming. What if I pick a song and you hate it? We've never talked about music preferences. For all I know, we have completely different tastes in music. It'd make sense because we really have completely two different tastes in most things."

"You're overthinking, I like most music. Now, pick a song and get this show on the road. We don't have all night!"

He's still smiling, ready to watch me.

"Ok, umm, I have the song Folk-Hop Sound by Judah and the Lion. It's not my favorite song, but it'll sound good in here."

I get it ready and play it. Though it's not my favorite song by them, I do like it and playing it inside of a small car with a killer sound system brings it to a whole new level. I'm vibrating from the sound.

I use my phone as a microphone and start moving, shaking, and bouncing all over my seat. Charlie is watching me as I make a total fool of myself, but I honestly don't care. I love singing and dancing and it's always been a release for me. I turn to Charlie and start screaming the words toward him.

"Now shake it, shake it, do your job, shake it, now give yourself a high five!"

I'm rocking my shoulders back with my arms out in front of me. I love moving to the rhythm of music. It's so relaxing. The song ends and I'm ready for another.

"Ok, I did not expect that from you. Normally you're a little reserved, but turn on music and you turn into a completely different person."

Charlie starts chanting.

"Again! Encore! Encore!"

"Charlie, do you have a song request?"

Ugh, choosing is so much pressure. I start flipping through my song list as I feel very unprepared.

"Anything! Pick something, already. Maybe something faster?"

"Okay, I'm going to go old school."

I know what song I want to play, so I make a show of rolling my sleeves, indicating things are about to get serious in here. Charlie is watching me and smiling as he lifts his hands and leans back, pretending to give me room to do my thing.

*music starts*

I start rocking my hips and moving my shoulders to the sound as I move my arms in front of me. Charlie instantly recognizes the song (Gettin' Jiggy Wit It) and nods his head with approval. We look at each other then start singing together and I'm surprised he knows every word. Charlie is going hard, but I'm going harder. We finish the song and I'm impressed.

"We killed that song! We'd be great Karaoke partners, Charlie. We should try it sometime."

Then he says something I'm not expecting.

"Do you want to do a duet?"

I look at Charlie with my brow raised. This could be fun. I love duets.

"Definitely. Do you have anything in particular in mind?"

He shakes his head no.

"Have you ever watched Dirty Dancing?"

"Yeah, my sister went through a pretty serious phase, so the sound track was on repeat for months," he says.

"Perfect."

I get the song ready and I think he's expecting the song, The Time of My Life, but I have other plans. I start the song and he laughs, he definitely wasn't expecting it.

"Ready?"

He nods.

"Ok, sing it like you mean it. It's the only way to properly do a duet."

I've prepared the song, Love is Strange by Mickey and Sylvia, and we sing the first half of the song perfectly. During the music solo, I rock out with my air guitar while I turn to Charlie.

"Mickey or Sylvia?" I ask, but he looks confused.

"Pick which one you're going to be. Hurry!"

"Uh, Mickey!"

I finish my air solo and we start singing again. We both go hard for the next part. Charlie is nailing a perfectly cool Mickey and I embrace my overly flirty Sylvia as I make sure to run my hands all over Charlie in the most seductive way possible. I'm barely staying in character though. It's the most hilarious duet I've ever done.