Chapter 3: Chapter 3
At the sound of his anxious questions, the girl turned her head towards him, allowing Morgan to finally take in her appearance, lit only by the light of the full moon above them. She was young, no doubt, not more than eighteen. Her pale skin was covered in small dark freckles, especially on her cheekbones. Her eyes were large and brown, as clear and expressive as a doe's. The long dark hair, almost black, was plastered to her shoulders and parts of her face, completely soaked, as well as the shirt and pants she wore, which seemed to be made of cotton, judging by the way they were glued to her thin body.
Clearing her throat, Morgan looked away from the curves that were now highlighted by her wet pajamas and walked toward the fountain, dipping her feet in the water to get close enough to help her...
“Hang on!” the girl exclaimed, making him stop. "Your shoes…" she stammered, as a dark pink tinged her freckle-covered cheeks, looking embarrassed at the confused look he gave her. "They're going to get wet."
"Oh..." running his eyes over his own body, from his legs submerged in ankle-deep water to his sodden suit, he couldn't contain the laugh that escaped his throat.
"Oh, damn..." The girl cast a quick glance toward where her white shirt was plastered to her chest, before pulling her attention away from him again, but not before Morgan could see that her blush had intensified.
“This is not important.“ still with a smile on his face, Morgan moved even closer to her, touching her shoulder “Are you okay? Would you like me to call an ambulance?”
“ What? Why?” She raises an eyebrow, as if he's just asked something incomprehensible. “It's only the first floor.”
“ Only?” he repeated, disgusted and confused as to why that girl's disregard for her own well-being was bothering him so deeply. "I think the doctors will disagree with you." Why did you do it anyway?
“Well…” lips and brows furrowed, the girl looked away toward the moon, looking more embarrassed than ever, “I was trying to stop Waffles from jumping off the balcony again. The fracture in his leg is still not fully healed after the last time...”
“Wait…” he cut her off, more confused than he'd ever felt in his entire life. “Waffles?”
"Yeah..." Slowly, she removed the hands that until then had been clasped at her chest, extending them to him until she revealed a tiny white rabbit with orange spots, which was also completely soaked, although it looked safe and sound, aside from the white bandage wrapped around one of its front paws “ That's Waffles. The vet said he wouldn't be able to run very fast while he was injured, but today he decided to prove otherwise.”
“ I see ... “ he let out another breathless laugh, incredulous with the fact that that girl had not hesitated to jump after that bunny just to prevent him from getting hurt even more “ Well, now that I've met Waffles, I think that it's only fair that I introduce myself too, no?” Her smile grew even bigger, even though he didn't know exactly why; maybe it was the fact that there was something profoundly adorable about the set of those huge eyes and unexpected explanations “ My name is Morgan Sullivan. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss...”
“Charlie.” She gave him a shy smile. “Charlie Foster… I mean… Manson.”
“Wait, Manson? You're...?”
"What was that noise?" the furious exclamation interrupted the conversation between the two, bringing their attention to where Anthony and Samantha were now approaching the fountain, being followed by the curious gazes of some guests, who were now crowded at the entrance of the hall where Morgan had left a few minutes ago “Charlotte! I should have known it was you! What a hell! Can't you go five minutes without doing shit...?” possessed, Anthony approached Charlie with bloodshot eyes, seeming oblivious to everything else.
And just the simple scene of him approaching the girl was enough to make Morgan even more angry.
'What do you think you're doing, acting like that, Anthony?” he snarled, putting himself between the man and Charlie, causing Manson to flinch immediately, startled to realize he was there, too. "Charlie could be hurt."
“Charlie?” Samantha repeated the nickname, disdain seeping into her tone “I don’t knew you two already knew each other.” the blue eyes of Mrs. Manson turned to Charlie, glaring at her.
However, to Morgan's surprise, the girl didn't seem to be intimidated at all. Instead, Charlie lifted his chin and glared at Samantha with equal contempt and haughtiness.
“We met today. He was offering me help, before you arrived to make a fuss. By the way..." Speaking only to Morgan now, Charlie held out his hand. "I think I'll take you up on your offer, Mr. Sullivan.”
"I am at your complete disposal, Ms. Manson…” Once again, Morgan found himself laughing heartily at the situation they both found themselves in, exchanging pleasantries as if they weren't completely drenched in the cold night air.
“Mr. Sullivan, I ask that you forgive my daughter's behavior..." Anthony hurried to stand beside her as Morgan put her hand around Charlie's and prepared to pull her up. “She having taken etiquette lessons her entire life, but never really learned how to act like a lady. But I promise I'll give her a proper punishment for getting him wet and making that ridiculous scene...”
“Oh, damn it!” at the sound of Charlie's wailing as she tried to balance on her right foot and immediately began to slide, Morgan suddenly found himself taking her in his arms, careful to hold her under the knees, well away from the wound.
"Wha... What are you doing?" she stammered, now red up to her neck, staring at him in disbelief.
“You're hurt. I cannot allow you to walk. “ he said that half-truth with ease, leaving out the fact that he had surprised even himself with that attitude “We need to get you to the doctor.”
“Oh, it's not necessary. “ Samantha mocked, earning a cross look from Charlie “It's not the first or the last time that our little Charlotte got hurt doing something inappropriate. You know, Mr. Sullivan, she likes to live free and dirty, like the pet in her hands. I guarantee she will be fine...”
"I'm glad you have such confidence in your daughter's immunity, Mrs. Manson. “ Morgan interrupted her, dry “ But I really think the most responsible thing would be to take her to a doctor.”
“ Stepdaughter.” it was all that Samantha made a point of answering, sourly “I'm not old enough to be anyone's mother, as you can clearly see.”
"Actually, you don't have to worry about this girl's nonsense, Mr. Sullivan.” Anthony agreed with his wife, looking nervous that the fury on Morgan's face was provoked by his ruined clothes “Let me show you where she can dry and change …”.
“Anthony, I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation. Your daughter could be hurt!” Morgan repeated, growing more and more mad at how trivial they were treating Charlie's pain. "We should…"
“Morgan…I mean, Mr. Sullivan…” Charlie called after him, her cheeks that lovely shade of pink again, “I appreciate your concern. But really, I'm fine. I just need to get to my room and bandage it up. As much as I hate to agree with Chuck's Bride…” she mumbled, looking lost in thought, “This really isn't anything serious. A few days in bed and I'll be as good as new. Believe me, I've been there.”
"Chuck’s Bride...?" he couldn't resist asking, a laugh barely catching in his throat, which made Charlie's blush deepen. “Listen, I'll believe you, but only if you promise never to jump from anywhere else in your life, not even off a sheet of paper.”
“Well, that you have to combine with the Waffles.” she snorted, with a pout that inexplicably made Morgan feel soft inside, as if her heart had become a cushion.
"I'll do it then." As soon as we get to her room.” he smiled, leading the two out of the fountain “ Show me the way...”
“Huh, Mr. Sullivan..." Anthony stammered uncertainly. "I can show you the way to the room where you can change, if you put Charlotte down...”
“ I don't think you heard well because of the distance, Anthony ... Your daughter is hurt ...!” he repeated each word slowly, in a tone much more threatening than informative “She needs help to get to her room, already. that you don't want to take her to the hospital. And with all due respect, I don't believe you or your wife are capable of doing that. “ Adjusting Charlie’s position in her arms to make her more comfortable and at the same time prove her point, Morgan began to walk away quickly, not even caring that Anthony and Samantha were no longer able to hear. him, when he commented, "I can sort out those wet clothes when I'm sure you're okay."
"Look, really, I can walk…" Charlie tried to protest again, and he had to contain a victorious smile as he felt her hands tighten on his shoulders, contradicting her words.
"Only concern yourself with guiding me to your room, Ms. Manson. Is there an entrance we can use that doesn't go through the Guest Room?”
“Right there.” She pointed to one of the side doors of the mansion, a few meters from where they were “Just go in through the kitchen, take two right turns in the hallway and then go up the stairs. It will take us straight to my bedroom hallway. I think it will be easy to recognize.” she opened a small smile that was both embarrassed and mocking “The corridor ends on the same balcony where you had the pleasure of meeting me.”
"Does all that familiarity mean you jump out of there often?" He raised an eyebrow, which only made her laugh even harder.
“No, I developed this habit less than two weeks ago, after my high school friends gave me Waffles.” Charlie told him, making a little buggy around the little guy's ears with the tips of his fingers.
“ School...?” Morgan muttered inaudibly to himself as that word brought a crucial question to his mind, one that made his stomach clench uncomfortably. "How old are you, Charlie?"
"Well…" she just mumbled for a few seconds, annoyed, before finally whispering, almost as if she didn't want him to hear her "Seventeen."
“I understand.” Pushing back the sudden, embarrassing wave of disappointment that washed over him, Morgan quickly composed himself; what was wrong with him that day to be reacting that way? Of course, he couldn't look at her that way. Even though she was a year older, not only did 14 years separate them, but she was also his partner's daughter; just the idea of even considering looking at her as anything more than a little sister or even a daughter was complete nonsense “Well, young lady, just make sure you don't reckless like that again.”
“Not talk like that.” she chided him, her freckled cheeks puffing out.
“Like what?” He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing at her expression.
"As if I were a child! I'm not!” He got the impression that she would have put her foot down if she could, which just made the scene all the more adorable and fun.