“And you hated finance?”

He’s eyeing Charlotte dubiously as if this concept is just a little too hard for him to grasp. She smiles back feebly. He’s good looking, almost ridiculously so, with coffee colored eyes, wavy dark hair and even though she’s wearing four inch heels he’s still a good head taller than her. His suit is impeccably cut, his shoulders broad, his waist thin and Charlotte is well aware that she’s the envy of every woman in the room.

Charlotte’s dateless weekends had been the running joke at Sunday brunch for the last month and a half and Fee had finally gone and done something about it, much to Charlotte’s horror. She’d protested vehemently of course, told Felicity that she’d heard enough dating horror stories from Fee and her friends to make her swear off dating New York men all together. She said she was really just trying to concentrate on getting her career back in order. She said she was too busy.

But the truth is Charlotte just isn’t ready yet.

As much as she wants to be over Justin, as much as she’s tried to convince herself that there is nothing she needs to get over, there is still a little broken part of her that won’t let it go. It had ended easily enough, slipped into nothingness almost as easily as it had slipped into being, no decision made.

It had just happened.

But she feels the jagged edges of it inside her. She hadn’t even realized how involved she was until he’d denied her that last time and stepping out of his office she had this disorienting sense of weightlessness. She’d at first credited it to losing the stress of keeping their secret but as time had gone by she’s come to realize she didn’t feel weightless so much as empty.

“Yeah it just… wasn’t for me,” Charlotte says, shaking her head as she reaches for the straw in her drink, swirling the green liquid awkwardly.

“It’s a tough field,” he concedes and his dark eyes are understanding and empathetic. “I know when I started out I was tempted to call it quits on more than one occasion.”

“You’ve done well though,” Charlotte offers, nodding at him and he smiles that smile that should make her stomach tremble.

“Decently enough,” he replies modestly. “Although I must admit I think your job is harder than mine at this point.” His eyes fall on Charlotte’s cell phone that sits at her elbow.

Charlotte laughs. “You may just be right.” Charlotte eyes it as well. “But it’s been nearly… a half hour now since she’s called.”

As if on cue, Charlotte’s phone lights up, wiggling its way across the table and her date bursts out laughing shaking his head. Charlotte feels herself blush, her hand covering the phone as her lips pull in a tight smile. She picks it up, giving him an apologetic look.

“I’m really sorry.”

He laughs, leaning back in his chair and nodding at her. “Not a problem.”

Charlotte shakes her head, flicking the phone open without even checking the ID, preparing herself for another one of Amelia’s probing questions but what she is not prepared for is the blast of sound that comes through the ear piece. She jerks in surprise, thoroughly confused for a moment, pulling the phone away from her ear and it’s a number she doesn’t recognize.

“CHARLIE???”

Her stomach drops to her toes her jaw going slightly slack. “J-Justin?”

“HEEEEEEEEEEY GIRL!” he yells and she hears the sound of clinking glass along with a myriad of sound.

“Um…hey…” Charlotte says, her eyes falling on the man across from her who’s brow has furrowed. “I’m… I’m kind of busy right now-”

“I jus’ wan’ed to apol’gize,” he slurs, his voice nearly drowned out by the music and Charlotte squints pressing her phone harder to her ear in an effort to hear him better. “I w..” a smattering of static breaks up his speech, “…asshole.”

“I’m sorry,” Charlotte says, standing from her seat and her date starts to rise from his. She holds out a hand shaking her head and motioning towards the bathrooms. “You broke up on me.” She gives him another apologetic smile before hurrying away from the table.

“I said I was an asshole ear’ier,” Justin repeats and she sighs, stepping into the hallway that leads to the bathrooms, leaning against the wall.

“It’s alright,” Charlotte replies tiredly and she hears the clanking of a glass through the line.

“NO!” Justin exclaims petulantly and she winces pulling the phone from her ear. “No i’snot a’right. I shou’n’t be mean t’you like tha’.”

“You’re right you shouldn’t,” Charlotte concedes and then shakes her head with a sigh. “But you’re forgiven okay?” She smiles, picturing him in her head, drunk and sagging against a table. She shakes her head. “I gotta go now. You have fun.”

There’s a pause and she wonders if he heard her. “Are you on your date?”

His voice is harsh and accusatory and she’s somewhat startled by it.

“Um… yes…” she says slowly, peering around the corner to peek at him, still sitting at the table by himself.

“Wha’s his name?”

“I doubt you know him,” Charlotte deflects quickly, leaning back against the wall. She forces some pep into her voice. “Look, go find Trace and have him buy you a drink from me okay? I’ll talk to you later.”

“Trace lef’,” Justin replies and Charlotte’s brows furrow.

“What?” she asks, concern curling in her chest and she tries to shove it down and away. This is not her problem.

“I said Trace LEFT,” Justin yells and she winces.

“Yeah I heard you,” Charlotte replies shortly, sighing as she brings a hand up to her forehead. “Why did he leave?”

“Dunno,” Justin slurs and Charlotte sighs, rubbing her temple. “Hey you wanna come ou’ here? I’ll buy you a drink!”

Charlotte laughs despite herself. “No… no thanks. I’m kinda tied up here.”

“Oh righ’,” Justin snorts. “Your date.”

“Do you want me to call Trace?” Charlotte offers, biting her lip and peering out into the dining room once again, finding her date leaning back in his chair, checking his watch.

“Nah,” Justin says with a sigh and she hears the clinking of ice against glass and a thump against the phone receiver, which she assumes is his glass on his way to his mouth.  “’m fine.”

“You sure?” Charlotte asks again, chewing her bottom lip. “How are you getting home?” There’s a pause in which all she can hear is laughter and music in the background. “Justin?”

“Huh?” he questions and she sighs, feeling that tug inside her and she tries to force it down. This is not her problem.

“How are you getting home?” Charlotte questions, louder this time and blushes when a lady rounds the corner, eyeing her wearily before slipping into the bathroom.

“Oh I’ll fi’ure somethin’ ou’,” Justin replies and then yawns loudly into the phone.

“Are you sure?” she asks emphatically, doing a poor job of pushing down her guilt.

“Yeah,” he says with a sigh. “Hey don’ fuck tha’ guy okay?”

Charlotte lets out a bark of laughter that she has to stifle with her hand. “I… I will do my very best not to.”

“S’r’sly,” he slurs and she can just see the pout on his lips. “Don’”

“I won’t,” Charlotte replies softly, her fingers curling tighter around the phone as her insides squeeze the breath from her lungs.

“Good,” he says, heaving a sigh of relief and Charlotte closes her eyes resting her head back against the wall, hating herself just a little more. “I guess I’ll le’ you go.”

“Yeah,” she replies softly, tipping her head forward again and doing her very best to force away the grief that’s pulling at her.

“Bye ‘harlie.”

“Bye,” she replies quietly and holds the phone to her ear until the line goes dead, leaning her head back against the wall and closing her eyes with a sigh.

She jumps when the sound of a toilet flushing echoes and the lady that had passed her earlier slips out and they share an awkward smile as she passes back into the dining room. Charlotte eyes her phone in her hand, wondering if she should call Trace anyway. No, she shakes her head, no this isn’t her problem. If Justin had wanted her to help he would have said so.

She hurries back into the dining room sidestepping tables and giving her date a tight smile as she lowers herself into her seat once more. He animates immediately, his eyes going from dull with boredom to sparked with something else. Excitement? Attraction? Charlotte can’t quite tell but it makes her blush.

“Everything okay?” he asks and she nods, setting her phone back on the table.

“Yeah, my boss’s… uh… fiancé this time,” she says stumbling over the words as her jaw clenches.

He raises his eyebrows. “Wow, the fiancé too?” He chuckles and Charlotte gives him a tight smile. “No wonder it was so hard to get a date with you. They’re working you to the bone!” He gives her a teasing grin and she blushes.

“I don’t usually do much with Justin,” Charlotte says her fingers tracing along the table cloth. “It’s just his bachelor party tonight and…” she trails biting her lip, wondering if she should have told him that.

“And he’s hammered?” he supplies for her and she chuckles, bringing her drink to her lips so she doesn’t have to answer and she knows the burn in her throat isn’t the alcohol.

“Would you mind if I made just… one more phone call,” she asks, setting her drink down and giving him the doe eyed look Felicity had been forcing her to practice.

He looks at her as if contemplating and then smiles. “Just one.”

Charlotte heaves a sigh of relief and smiles widely at him before scrolling quickly through her phone. She finds Trace’s number and dials, chewing on her bottom lip slowly as it rings and rings. She huffs a sigh when it goes to voicemail and clicks end, looking at the phone before setting it down on the table. Maybe she could just pop over to where the boys were partying… no. No she was not getting involved in this. Justin will be fine.

She shakes her head turning her attention back to her date who smiles at her. “I’m sorry… What were we talking about?”

“Finance,” he says with a grin and Charlotte smiles but it feels hard on her lips.

“Right… finance.”