Chasing Charli (2 page)

He tilts his head in my direction and a small smile tugs at his lips when he notices me staring at him.

“You’re in apartment 6a and I’ll be in apartment 7a, so I’m literally right above you.”

I just nod, this was so much to take in. Plus I couldn’t stop feeling nervous knowing it was just the two of us for a while. Back home he would do his job, act all professional in front of my mum, even if we watched a movie together because I didn’t want to go out and party with the rest of the over privileged New York society.

I know it seems slightly stupid that a 24 year old girl is still living with her mum but they were hardly ever home, so essentially it felt like my own place anyway. My mum liked having me close because she could still push me to be her little clone. It was a losing battle trying to get her to be proud of me so eventually I gave up on the idea. The first major step I took was quitting law school and going into writing, maybe do something in journalism; honestly I didn’t even know at this point.

That was the beauty of being 24; I shouldn’t have to have absolutely everything figured out. I was slowly starting to stickup for myself, become more of the person I actually wanted to be and not be this prissy, depressing mini version of my mum.

We walk from the elevator towards my apartment, holding the only things I had taken with me which was pretty much just clothes.

“The key should be in the envelope” Jax says.

I give the envelope a little shake and the key slips out onto my palm, then unlock the door and take a step in followed by Jax, the driver, and my stuff.

“Your first day in class was supposed to be tomorrow, but I get it if you want to take the day off and sleep, or unpack or something.”

I look at my watch and just nod. Surprisingly I wasn’t tired at all, and I doubt I’d get to sleep with all the new information floating in my head.

They put my stuff down by the front door and take a step back outside. I could faintly hear them have a brief conversation, Jax wishing him a safe drive back and a good luck in return.

Once Jax finishes talking to the driver he comes back in as I’m having a quick look around.

“Are you going to be okay now?” he asks as he crosses his arms in front of him and supports himself against the doorframe. My eyes drop down to his arms, watching the small movement of his muscles.

“Yeah, I think I might still go tomorrow. You can sleep the whole day if you want, you look beat.”

“Nah I’m fine” he tries to say through a yawn which just makes me laugh.

“I’ll message you before I leave and when I get there okay?”

He looks as though he’s going to argue but then simply nods and makes his way to the front door.

He steps through but sticks his head back in and taps the locks on the inside with his finger, “Lock up behind me” he grins.

“Good night Jackson” I say rolling my eyes as he steps back out and closes the door behind him. It’s pretty stupid that we have separate apartments, waste of money if you ask me but I guess my mum doesn’t trust us to live in the same apartment; maybe because of that one time I fell asleep against Jax while we watched a movie. He played with my hair gently and didn’t even move me off him when his leg went dead.

I think that was the moment I fell for him that first tiny bit.

Sometimes I wonder whether my mums too naïve to think that if we really wanted to I could easily just march on up to Jax’s apartment right now and do whatever I wanted; she lived in her own little world most of the time.

I wasn’t really tired after my quick nap in the car so I pull all the paperwork out from the envelope and look around at the apartment. It was fairly big for one person, a nice modern apartment, fully furnished thanks to my mum.

I look out the window in the living room and see the fire escape stairs which lead either up to the roof or down to the street; not very secure if you ask me. I pull the window open and climb out into the fresh night air, still holding all the paperwork. I quietly climb up the stairs towards the roof, past Jackson’s apartment and a few others above his. I hop off the ledge and onto the roof which actually has a pretty decent view.

The area looks like it’s used frequently by the building occupants, with a couch against the wall of the entrance door and some fairy lights hanging around the edges of the roof ledge and the wall by the door.

There was also what looked like a garden against one side with a wooden frame around it, also covered in fairy lights. It was quite pretty actually and peacefully quiet compared to the hustle and bustle of New York City.

I make myself comfortable on the couch and take a deep breath knowing I had a lot to read through, which meant a lot to remember.

I sigh and start to read, making 2 piles on either side of me of paperwork. One pile I had to destroy once I remembered the details and another pile of stuff that was harmless, like my class schedules and a map of how to get there.

I was now officially Charli Valentine, a college transfer from the city. My parents travelled a lot which is why I lived in the apartment alone – Which I wasn’t allowed to bring people to anyway. I roll my eyes - how fun. At least I had Jax around to keep me sane.

I had to try and stay under the radar. No pictures of me were to be posted online and I wasn’t allowed to use any social media like Facebook as my old self because they could easily track me; no loss there.

Once I read through all the documents, I pick up the pile that needs to be destroyed and put them in the metal bin that’s next to the couch, and then pull out my lighter.

I don’t know why I had a lighter to be honest, it’s not like I smoked. This one belonged to my dad so I guess I kept it on me as a reminder of him since I never saw him, or maybe just because it was a cool lighter I don’t know. It was one of those cool zippo lighters, and it had a tiny engraving of a sparrow on it.

I flick it open and slide my finger across, igniting the flame. I watch it flicker for several seconds and then finally pick up the folded piece of paper that had my apartment details and codes; I’d saved them in my phone since my memory was shit which probably wasn’t the smartest idea.

I hold the paper to the flame and watch as it slowly ignites, then drop the burning paper into the bin with the rest of the paperwork, watching as the flames slowly grow destroying any evidence.

I lean back on the couch and watch the flames as minutes turn into hours and surely but eventually the flames slowly start to die out.

I should probably get back inside, maybe unpack or have a nap if I was seriously thinking about going to class tomorrow; or today I should say.

I check to make sure the fire is completely out and then climb over the ledge back onto the fire escape stairway and climb down to the 6
th
level, back to my apartment.

I slide through my open window and start to pull the window down pausing momentarily as I watch the morning light briefly pop up over the horizon. I freeze for a second when I see someone out on the street, surely they wouldn’t have found me already?

I squint trying to see with the faint light of the rising sun and relax when I notice its Jax.

He’s out jogging down the street at 6 in the fucking morning; who am I to judge though, I was up on a roof setting fires. I watch him for several moments too long, noting that he’s wearing grey track pants and a plain black t-shirt. The shirt hugging him tightly across his broad chest and showing just how toned he actually is. His hair is messier than usual and looks like he’d been running his hands through it nervously. Every time he did that, I wanted to reach out and run my fingers through his dark hair myself. Jesus I had to get my shit together; staying here was going to be a lot harder than I thought with Jax.

I shake my head at my stupidity and close my window, hopefully unnoticed.

Charli

I woke suddenly to the alarm on my phone and I stretch out and sigh before I drag myself out of bed. I look around in the kitchen for the coffee to wake me up which sure enough, my mum had bought a fancy coffee machine. I switch it on and wait for it to heat up while I push the mug under the nozzle, and wait patiently for my coffee. Instant coffee would have sufficed, but I guess my mother always liked to go overboard.

I quickly look over my schedule again and see that I have a free period first thing which works out nicely I guess; don’t have to rush around. My mum couldn’t understand why I was bothering to sign up since it was almost summer break but I really didn’t want to sit around in the apartment like a prisoner. I want to do normal things, and meet some people hopefully that don’t resemble any of the stereotypes that my mum would want me around.

Once I finish my coffee, I brush my teeth and get dressed in some casual faded skinny jeans, tight sweater, and some maroon converse sneakers. I can’t stop grinning at my feet since I know my mum would have gone nuts at these shoes; take that prissy Charli.

Since I don’t have any books for class yet I don’t have much to carry with me. To be honest, I doubt any of the teachers will be happy about my arrival so late in the year. Hopefully I won’t be here that long to have to worry about school after the break is over, I just wanted to get out and meet new people that know nothing bout me.

I throw my bag over my shoulder and make my way out of the apartment, locking up behind me securely.

I check my phone maps briefly so I know where to go and then start to make my way to campus, knowing I was going to be in for a long day.

Jackson

I don’t have the easiest job in the world, that’s for sure, but working with Charli was certainly a perk. At first I thought she’d just be some spoilt brat acting out against her parents that needed babysitting, but once I started getting targeted by her spit fire attitude, I knew she was something different.

She was definitely beautiful, but not someone who realised it and used it to her advantage. I could see deep down she wasn’t the fancy little girl her mum made her out to be. The amount of times she complained about the clothes she wore or the way she had to act in front of her mum, was a giant indication that she wasn’t the typical stepford wife her mum wanted her to be. She was so far from the cookie-cutter, compliant type that it was almost painful to watch. You could see the eccentric, crazy side of her itching to break out and away from the extravagant lunches and highly polished families she had to associate with daily.

I tried to keep our relationship professional at first but the more time I spent with her the easier it was to be around each other as we grew closer, maybe a little too close though for her mum’s liking. I swear I fell for her a tiny bit more every time I caught her doing something her mum would hate; skinny dipping with her friends, getting a tattoo, just tiny things that I know helped her feel more like herself.

For the first year it was me chasing her all over the city. She thought she’d gotten away from me a few times, but I was always right behind her in the shadows. She hated having a guard so on occasion I let her think she’d outrun me. After a while we found a common enemy; her mum, so we bonded over our mutual hatred – immature I know.

I sigh as I run my hands through my hair out of habit, already messy anyway since I never bothered to style it. I was following her to campus, even though she asked me not to, I just couldn’t help myself. I would say it’s because it’s my job but honestly, it’s a little more than that now.

Knowing her she wouldn’t keep me updated through-out the day either. That was just her though, getting too lost in her own bubble of blissful happiness. She always put up a strong front, but I felt like I knew her better than anyone. Deep down you could see the fear in her eyes and after the whole incident that brought us to this new town, she was jumpy and a little anxious at times. It pissed me off to extremes knowing that the few times I wasn’t there they let her slip past and get herself into this crazy mess.

I know her well though; know how her body reacts in certain situations. My favourite moments are when she catches me shirtless, she bites her bottom lip and her legs automatically clench together. Great, now I’m grinning like an idiot walking down the street. I need to think of something other than Charli, otherwise I’ll be walking around sporting a giant hard on as well, not very professional if you ask me.

I walk cautiously behind her like a shadow, always watching her from a distance. I watch the way her long dark hair blows out around her when the wind picks up, or the way she randomly smiles at nothing, making me fucking curious as to what she’s thinking about. She looks really comfortable today, more herself than I’ve ever seen her.

This all started off purely as a job that was supposed to last a few months, but the closer I got to Charli, the longer I wanted to stay, the stronger my need to keep her safe became. I know I sound like a fucking pansy but shit, if you had someone like Charli in your life I’m sure you’d be going just as crazy as I was.

When her mum offered me a longer contract I all but jumped stupidly at the opportunity. I knew it was wrong how I felt about her; it was far from platonic and professional. What made it worse at times was the way I’d catch her watching me, like she’s devouring me in her mind, now that definitely drove me fucking nuts.

I watch as she walks onto campus and has practically every guy craning their necks just watching her pass by. I crack my knuckles on each hand and sigh at how weirdly annoyed I am about that. I know she’s beautiful, I see how pretty much every guy’s undressing her with their eyes and that makes me want to throw her over my shoulder caveman style and take her home, claiming her as mine; it was wrong of me on so many levels.

Every time I thought crazy shit like that, I’d try to remember the very stern warning her mum gave me when I signed the contract. Apparently it was one of her fears of hiring someone so close to Charli’s age, but had to admit she saw how much Charli’s safety meant to me. She saw that it was more than just a job to me and knew it was the right thing in hiring me on a longer more permanent basis, especially after this crazy shit she got herself into.

Once I see Charli get into the building I sigh and start to make my way back to the apartment. She’s capable enough to handle herself most of the time, but like the messy situation that dragged us here – not that I was complaining being so far away from her mum, she didn’t think things through sometimes and made stupid decisions.

I stop off at the store and load up on groceries for both our apartments. The check-out clerk was all but batting her eyelashes at me and smiling sweetly, but I paid no attention. I should have gotten her number, taken her out for a drink, but I was never truly in it whole heartedly. I’ve been with a few girls since I’ve had this job, but never for the long-haul. I wasn’t an asshole or anything, they knew what they were getting into, just a one night thing or an occasional hook-up and they were fine with it. I figured it was just easier in my line of work. There were a few I truly liked, but they were more concerned with the fact my job was to follow around another girl for the whole day and had up and left.

I haul all the groceries back to our apartment and unload half of them in my kitchen, before making my way down to her apartment. I unlock her door with my spare key and kick the door open slightly as I pick up the bags of food, then make my way in and put them down on the counter.

I take a quick look around her apartment, noticing that she’s already left clothes lying across the top of the couch and her drawing books are scattered across the coffee table. I know she’s a talented drawer from the few pieces she actually let me see, but for some reason never let anyone look in her books. I trace my finger lightly over the cover and before I can be tempted to invade her privacy, I pull my hand back and go back in the kitchen.

I unpack the groceries as best I can in the limited cupboards and decide to unpack a few of the boxes her mum had shipped out before we got here. I make sure to only open the ones that weren’t too personal, like kitchen appliances and dishes; awkward as shit if she came home to find me rummaging through her underwear.

After a few hours pass, I realise I might have been coming off as a little creepy just hanging out in her apartment. It already smells like her coconut lotion and her favourite shampoo, and I guess I just felt comfortable here. I get up off the kitchen floor and close the cupboard I just filled with plates, pulling my phone out of my back pocket and no surprise; no updates from Charli. I type out a quick message just to make sure she’s fine.

Me: What happened to messaging me to let me know you were safe, you okay?

I receive a reply almost instantly, which makes me smile like an idiot. God I’d have kicked my own fucking ass if I could for being such a pansy.

Charli: No, I’m in a ditch dying somewhere. Come help me please Jax!

Me: Classes that bad already?

Charli: I guess, just bored out of my mind. Teachers already hate me

Me: Who could possibly in their right mind hate you?

Charli: The people are really nice here though which is good.

I had to roll my eyes at that. Of course they were nice, I’ve seen this all before. Guys either wanted to get in her pants and the girls wanted to keep her close because of the attention they got in return from guys; or maybe I was just being too protective. Charli was too trusting and too honest. I’ve seen her cry on so many occasions and I’d wanted beat the shit out of everyone who ever hurt her. Of course she just played it off and acted cool, like nothing was ever going to break her – tough little cookie.

Luckily on her mums request she’d started training with me the basics and I had to admit, I definitely loved those training sessions. She would always turn up wearing some tight sports top that usually left her flat stomach out and some shorts or yoga pants that hugged her in all the right places, emphasizing all her sexy curves. She had amazing long toned legs that looked like they went for days and when she was all sweaty underneath me after we wrestled, I couldn’t help but let my thoughts get dirty.

I’d always manage to pin her down underneath me, she was yet to beat me and I sure as hell was never complaining about all the practices.

Me: I’m sure they are super nice. You wanna train a bit tonight?

Charli: Are you saying I’m getting fat?

Me: I’m saying you haven’t managed to get on top of me yet

Shit that didn’t sound right, I shake my head and groan. Sometimes I said shit without thinking and one day it was going to either make her see just how I felt about her, or get me fired.

Charli: I bet you’d love that wouldn’t you Jax

Did she seriously just say that? I read her last message again and don’t bother replying, what would I have said if I did? Yes, I’d definitely love that.

After contemplating whether or not to follow her home from campus, I decide on unpacking my gym equipment and setting out the mats on one side of my living room. My hard on was my main deciding factor on staying in my apartment. My mind was just conjuring up nice images of a sweaty Charli, straddling me on the mats, which then kept leading to us getting naked. I had to get my shit together before she got here so I flick the TV on to a random station and start setting up the punching bag and the floor mats.

I was almost done re-arranging the living room when I hear her soft voice come from the window by the fire escape stairs.

“Sharks huh?” she says, her eyebrow quirked up slightly. Not sure what she’s referring to I quickly look down to make sure I still wasn’t walking around with an obvious boner and then follow her gaze to the TV. I smile when I realise she’s mentioning the random documentary playing in the background.

“You know, I do have a front door Charli.”

I watch her climb through the window. Her long legs stretch out as she ducks and slides in through the opening, landing softly on the hard wood floor with a satisfied grin on her face. My eyes wander down her body, taking in her appearance. I’m momentarily speechless as I take in her short tight fitting top that’s hugging her tits just nicely and some shorts that make her ass look pretty fucking perfect.

I look back up to her face and catch her doing exactly the same thing, her eyes wandering down my body. I know she’s physically attracted to me, just by the way I see her watch me sometimes. She smiles slightly when she realises she’s been busted and I can’t help but grin back at her.

I quickly look down at myself and don’t think too much about it. I’m just wearing some grey track pants and a plain black shirt, white socks and my hair is messy like always. I haven’t shaved in days which is different to my usual clean cut appearance in front of her mum; not sure if Charli’s a fan of the stubble yet, not that it should fucking matter anyway. I shrug and run my hand through my hair under her scrutiny. I can see she’s blushing so I know she’s thinking something pretty dirty for her to get that embarrassed; makes me grin devilishly at her.

“Okay let’s get started then” I say, trying to break this weird vibe. She nods in agreement and slides off her shoes, before sitting down on the mat to stretch. I realise this is the first time we’ve sort of hung out together without any distractions, without her mum hovering around us making sure we weren’t sneaking in kisses like teenagers when she’s not looking.