Haven't Had Enough → Chenry

? Chapter Twenty-Two

I pulled away and shook my head, wiping the tears from one side of my face and then the other. "No! No." I paused for a second. "Well, yes, but no. It's him, it's here, this place. It's everything."

"What do you mean?"

I felt my lips quiver and more tears rushed to my eyes. "I should've never come here, Ly."

With those words, my voice broke and I gave way to the soft sobs that still managed to rack my body. "I was so stupid to think I could have all of this. I came here and I convinced myself I could. I could be a writer, I could pick my own future... I could change Henry. But I was wrong. I shouldn't have let myself get attached. To any of it."

"Charlotte," Lyah cooed with a pout, "there's still a chance. There's still the Penbrooke. You could win, and—"

I smiled half-heartedly and shook my head. "We both know I didn't win that. Now it's just a matter of time."

Lyah regarded me silently for a minute before pursing her lips and raising her eyebrows in a show of sympathy. "I'll go and let you get ready for tonight, huh?"

I nodded, and with that, she got up to leave. She stopped at the door and looked back at me one final time before closing it behind her.

☽

     My reflection in Lyah's vanity mirror stared back at me, watching as I put my second earring into place. I stepped back to admire my handiwork, paying special attention to the sleek bun atop my head.

     "I'm ready," I whispered to myself. Even still, the words didn't feel totally right coming out of my mouth.

     I stepped out of the room, making a conscious effort to keep my balance in the ridiculously high pair of strappy heels that Lyah had insisted I borrow. As soon I rounded the corner of the hallway, Lyah looked up at me from where she sat on the couch. An ear-splitting grin immediately lit up her face and she wolf whistled, to which I rolled my eyes.

     "I look okay?" I asked, turning so she could see me from all angles. My heart surged a little with a newfound confidence. I had to hand it to my cousin – if she was particularly great at anything, it had to be making me feel better about myself.

     Lyah placed both of her hands over her heart and smiled. "Oh, you look perfect." She kissed the tips of her fingers in a voilà sort of motion. "Loverboy is seriously missing out."

     I felt my heart sink again at the mere notion of Henry being brought to my mind. "Yeah, well. He hasn't texted or called since I saw him last, so if he thinks he's missing out, it certainly doesn't show."

     "Well," Lyah began pointedly, "you haven't reached out to him either. So, really, you're tit for tat."

     When she saw how I reacted to her comment, she softened and let out a sigh. "Don't take it so hard, kid. You've had a good time here, right? And you gave it your all on that essay. At the end of the day, that's what matters, okay?"

     I nodded absently, fiddling with the black fabric of the hem of my dress. "Right."

     For a minute I stood there in the hallway in silence, fixated only on the place where the two ends of my wrap dress overlapped, following the ridges with the pad of my finger. I was stalling – trying to focus on anything other than what I was about to do.