"Okay, my beautiful girl," Charlie grins, spinning me around until my skirt billows in the air.

"Tonight we are going on a hot date."

"—a hot date?" I glance sceptically at his goofy grin.

"Well... Knox, Pitts, Meeks, and Todd are coming— so scratch the hot part."

My expression remains just as confused as it were before.

"Charlie," I breath, eager to figure out what he's referring to.

He pulls out a pamphlet from the back pocket of his slacks.

I reach for it, but he pulls it away all too quickly, before I even have the chance to retrieve it.

"Ah ah ah," he tsk's, his tongue making that unholy sound, as he dangles the paper just out of my reach.

"Give me a kiss first."

I roll my eyes exaggeratedly, but his expression never falters.

"Fine, then you miss out on all of this—" Charlie pauses briefly, pointing towards his figure.

"—tonight."

"Oh, how ever will I manage?" I say sarcastically— feigning worry.

I reach up upon my tip-toes, placing a gentle, chaste kiss onto Charlie's ever-so-soft lips.

Of course, his free hand snakes around my back, entangles itself in my hair, and deepens the kiss.

After a moment or two of passion, we both pull away breathlessly, resting our foreheads against each others.

"Better?" I ask, already knowing his response.

"Much."

Charlie brings the pamphlet back down to eye-level. I glance at the folded paper.

The black bold letters read:

"Shakespeare? This is your idea of a hot date?" I tease, quoting him from earlier.

"Not quite— but you know that," he wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. You'd think after so long of being with Charlie, I'd become immune to his suggestive ways. But his charm never fails to leave me feeling both breathless and craving more.

"But it is Neil's."

Neil's?

This conversation was just getting weirder and weirder.

"Look at the cast list." Charlie points to the bottom left of the colourful pamphlet— where, sure enough— 'Neil Perry' was written in bold ink.

"Neil's in a play?" I question aloud— more so to myself than to Charlie.

"I know, I was surprised to."

But I'm not surprised.

Or am I?

Maybe I am surprised— but for an entirely different reason than Charlie.

My mind swirls with a million questions.

What about his father? What about the threats of him leaving Welton? Leaving us....

Don't get me wrong, I was happy for Neil— but what would his father say?

"You alright?" Charlie asks, concern flooding his golden orbs.

"Y-yeah. I'm fine," I lie, attempting to hide my growing anxiety.

"Violet," he sighs, gently running his fingers through my hair.

"Tell me what's wrong," his voice is gentle, but I sense this was more of a demand and less of a request.

The one downside to truly loving someone and being loved in return, was lying became damn near impossible.

"It's just— it's Neil."

"Neil?" He asks bemused.

"He ugh- his father isn't overly... supportive."

"When is he ever?" Charlie teases, although there's sympathy laced in his words.

"I'm serious, Charlie! He told me his father threatened to take him out of Welton," I whisper the last part— although I'm not sure why— only Charlie and I stood in the small room.

I guess it was so terrifying a thought, I didn't want to risk jinxing it by saying it aloud. Like repeating a curse or something.

Charlie's brows knit closely together, his eyes squinting, as though he is studying my features for a sign of deceit.

"Charlie," I sigh— "I'm serious."

"Then why is he in the play?" He asks, once again searching my face for deception, only this time genuine concern floods his features.

"I- I don't know," I respond truthfully.

That's precisely what I'd like to find out...

"Maybe he just wants to stick it to his father," Charlie offers upon my silence.

Perhaps— but it seems far deeper than that. Neil has been acting... strange these past few days. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but he lost his spark— his energy. It's like his aura was dark and bleak, as opposed to his usual blindingly bright optimism.

I was worried for him.

"I think I'll just go ask him," I say more so to myself than to Charlie— though he understood.

~

I approach the door with the small letters '' and '' written across a tiny inscription over the wooden frame. I felt a tug at the ends of my mouth, before smiling.

I knocked thrice below the letters.

"Come in," a soft voice spoke from the other side of the door.

Todd.

"Hey, Todd," I begin, walking into the shared dorm and taking a seat on the spare— and empty—bed.

"Guess Neil's not here," I say aloud— stating the obvious.

"— And to think you came to visit me," Todd teases, a grin playing at his lips.

I love the playful side of Todd— although he seems oblivious to Neil's troubles— maybe that's for the best.

I rake my mind for a clever comeback, but I was far too worried about Neil.

"Next time, I promise. But it's sort of— important." I settle on withholding as much info as possible, in the event it's nothing serious.

And anyways, I couldn't bring myself to tell him the truth— Neil told his father about his theatre passions, who threatened to ship him off the the farthest boarding school, and is now rebelling against his father despite said threats, and— to top it all off— is now, quite possibly, missing.

Besides, I may be overreacting— or at least I hope.

"Is something wrong?" Todd could read my expressions like a book— and he read many of those too. Needless to say, he knew when I was lying.

"Yes," I breath.

"Well— maybe not. Honestly, I don't know."

"Just tell me what's going on."

I pause for a moment, debating whether I should worry Todd with my paranoid ways. Ultimately, I decide it best to tell him. Charlie was the furthest thing from a worrier. So in his mind, Neil was off somewhere prepping lines and finishing up his costume.

I needed someone to vent with.

Maybe I knew I better. Maybe I truly was too paranoid for my own good. But if the tables were turned, Neil would scour the ends of the earth in search of me.

So, I tell him.

I tell him everything— his father's threats, the play, to his tearful plea for happiness the other night.

Todd appears baffled as he tries to take everything in. But above all, he looks heartbroken.

"What do we do now?"

"Find him," I settle on the solution after a minute or two of letting Todd's words trail off into the thick, tense air around us.

Todd picks up his coat, and without missing a beat, he was at the door in a mere second.

"Let's go."

: more of a filler chapter, but hope you enjoy!!! Stay safe ❤️❤️