Charlie Ferris, Various #2, Prompt #93 (Memories)
Title: Ladyfriend
Prompt Set: Various #2
Prompt: #93 Memories
Rating/Warnings: PG (Misogyny)
Author's Notes: I uncovered a part of Charlie's life he hadn't bothered to tell me about before, so I think most of my 100 will center around this. Enjoy, please.
When Charlie Ferris jogged up the steps out of the metro, finally heading home after a long day of school and work, his phone in his pocket started vibrating, letting him know that he had missed a call while in the subway. He checked his voicemail.
"Hey, Charlie, it's Bryce. I'm coming back home this weekend for Dave's show, we should hook up and hang out. Dave said you guys had a falling out, so if you don't want to hang out at the show.... whatever. Give me a call, but if I don't hear from you, I'll call you when I get back to D.C. Oh, and I'm bringing my girl... I met this really incredible girl, I want her to meet my friends. Anyway, I was just walking to class, and here I am, so I'll call you this weekend. Just wanted to give you a heads up. Clear some time for me, bro. Later."
Charlie frowned at his phone, then deleted the message and dropped it back in his pocket. It wasn't that he didn't like Bryce or didn't want to see him, Bryce was his best friend in the world. It was just obnoxiously typical of him to be enamoured again. Bryce fell in love easily, every girl he met was the sun in his sky. He had had his heart broken almost as many times as Charlie had broken girls' hearts. Charlie was tired of meeting all these girls who he knew would, down the road, trample the heart of his best friend. One of these girls, Charlie knew, would be the one who finally managed to once and for all suck out Bryce's joie de vivre and leave him an empty shell.
This was how girls appeared to Charlie. Vampiric creatures that wanted nothing more than sex, money, and the happiness of his best friends. This was why he treated them with the lack of regard he sincerely believed they deserved. It had been a messy cycle since Charlie's first girlfriend, first ex, became Bryce's first heartbreaker. Maggie had been the girl. Charlie had dated her on a whim, she had come onto him. He was in high school and hadn't know much about girls. But he remembered knowing enough that when she started trying to squeeze some sort of commitment out of him, it was time to sever relations. This had somehow pushed her towards Bryce in an ugly turn of events that Charlie had regretted from that day on. Typically not one for emotions, he couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty for Bryce's first broken heart as he had encouraged Bryce to date Maggie. He had noticed her demanding and self centered nature but, apparantly, didn't expect Bryce to succumb to it.
Bryce never blamed Charlie for the heartbreak. Charlie knew when to speak and, more importantly, when not to speak. Bryce had no idea that Charlie knew how domineering, controlling, and capricious Maggie was. If he would have given it a moment's thought, Charlie could have easily forseen Maggie's inevitable path of isolating Bryce from his friends and then, when he had nothing else in the world to make him happy besides Maggie, leaving him. And, inspite of his close friendship with Bryce, Charlie had never confessed to this sin. Somethings, he felt, were better not mentioned.
After that first heartbreak, Bryce would continue to cycle through excessively dramatic (in Charlie's opinion) relationships. He would spend his moments on top of the world, then months locked in the darkness of his room when girls would leave him for other guys, pick him apart, berate him in public, or simply cheat on him. Bryce was a great guy, a real stand up character, working hard at school up at CUNY, studying sociology. He had a great future ahead of him, with great visions to change the world. Maybe that's why he keeps finding girls who need help? Charlie thought. He'd be better off taking care of himself, no girl is going to do that for him. Charlie often wished that he could explain to Bryce that women were only meant for short, sex-filled relationships, nothing more. Unfortunately, Bryce thought Charlie's idea of dating was just as crazy as Charlie thought Bryce's was.
As he approached his apartment, Charlie stopped at the front door of the building and considered his voicemail a moment more, then pulled out his phone. He pulled up Bryce's number.
"Hey, Bryce, got the call," Charlie explained in his typical monotone after the message started recording. "Looking forward to hooking up with you this weekend. Don't worry about Dave... if you want, I'll go to the show, but we should try and find some time to catch up so you can tell me about how great Manhatten is. One of these days I'll make it up there, I swear. Keep a spot on your floor clean for me. Anyway, yeah, call me and let me know what your plans are. If you don't want to stay with your folks, I got a couch for you, as always. Give me a call, dude. See ya."
With that, he ended the call and dropped his phone back in his pocket, then unlocked the front door to his apartment and went upstairs.
Prompt Set: Various #2
Prompt: #93 Memories
Rating/Warnings: PG (Misogyny)
Author's Notes: I uncovered a part of Charlie's life he hadn't bothered to tell me about before, so I think most of my 100 will center around this. Enjoy, please.
When Charlie Ferris jogged up the steps out of the metro, finally heading home after a long day of school and work, his phone in his pocket started vibrating, letting him know that he had missed a call while in the subway. He checked his voicemail.
"Hey, Charlie, it's Bryce. I'm coming back home this weekend for Dave's show, we should hook up and hang out. Dave said you guys had a falling out, so if you don't want to hang out at the show.... whatever. Give me a call, but if I don't hear from you, I'll call you when I get back to D.C. Oh, and I'm bringing my girl... I met this really incredible girl, I want her to meet my friends. Anyway, I was just walking to class, and here I am, so I'll call you this weekend. Just wanted to give you a heads up. Clear some time for me, bro. Later."
Charlie frowned at his phone, then deleted the message and dropped it back in his pocket. It wasn't that he didn't like Bryce or didn't want to see him, Bryce was his best friend in the world. It was just obnoxiously typical of him to be enamoured again. Bryce fell in love easily, every girl he met was the sun in his sky. He had had his heart broken almost as many times as Charlie had broken girls' hearts. Charlie was tired of meeting all these girls who he knew would, down the road, trample the heart of his best friend. One of these girls, Charlie knew, would be the one who finally managed to once and for all suck out Bryce's joie de vivre and leave him an empty shell.
This was how girls appeared to Charlie. Vampiric creatures that wanted nothing more than sex, money, and the happiness of his best friends. This was why he treated them with the lack of regard he sincerely believed they deserved. It had been a messy cycle since Charlie's first girlfriend, first ex, became Bryce's first heartbreaker. Maggie had been the girl. Charlie had dated her on a whim, she had come onto him. He was in high school and hadn't know much about girls. But he remembered knowing enough that when she started trying to squeeze some sort of commitment out of him, it was time to sever relations. This had somehow pushed her towards Bryce in an ugly turn of events that Charlie had regretted from that day on. Typically not one for emotions, he couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty for Bryce's first broken heart as he had encouraged Bryce to date Maggie. He had noticed her demanding and self centered nature but, apparantly, didn't expect Bryce to succumb to it.
Bryce never blamed Charlie for the heartbreak. Charlie knew when to speak and, more importantly, when not to speak. Bryce had no idea that Charlie knew how domineering, controlling, and capricious Maggie was. If he would have given it a moment's thought, Charlie could have easily forseen Maggie's inevitable path of isolating Bryce from his friends and then, when he had nothing else in the world to make him happy besides Maggie, leaving him. And, inspite of his close friendship with Bryce, Charlie had never confessed to this sin. Somethings, he felt, were better not mentioned.
After that first heartbreak, Bryce would continue to cycle through excessively dramatic (in Charlie's opinion) relationships. He would spend his moments on top of the world, then months locked in the darkness of his room when girls would leave him for other guys, pick him apart, berate him in public, or simply cheat on him. Bryce was a great guy, a real stand up character, working hard at school up at CUNY, studying sociology. He had a great future ahead of him, with great visions to change the world. Maybe that's why he keeps finding girls who need help? Charlie thought. He'd be better off taking care of himself, no girl is going to do that for him. Charlie often wished that he could explain to Bryce that women were only meant for short, sex-filled relationships, nothing more. Unfortunately, Bryce thought Charlie's idea of dating was just as crazy as Charlie thought Bryce's was.
As he approached his apartment, Charlie stopped at the front door of the building and considered his voicemail a moment more, then pulled out his phone. He pulled up Bryce's number.
"Hey, Bryce, got the call," Charlie explained in his typical monotone after the message started recording. "Looking forward to hooking up with you this weekend. Don't worry about Dave... if you want, I'll go to the show, but we should try and find some time to catch up so you can tell me about how great Manhatten is. One of these days I'll make it up there, I swear. Keep a spot on your floor clean for me. Anyway, yeah, call me and let me know what your plans are. If you don't want to stay with your folks, I got a couch for you, as always. Give me a call, dude. See ya."
With that, he ended the call and dropped his phone back in his pocket, then unlocked the front door to his apartment and went upstairs.