Fic: All the While it Was You - Part Two (Charlie/Claire)
Title: All the While it Was You - Part Two
Rating: PG-13
Summary: This girl was...something else. He wasn’t sure he’d ever met anyone like her before.
Disclaimer: I do not own Lost. At all. I wish but alas...
Author's Note: This is AU based on Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop by Landon Pigg. Claire is a barista at a coffee shop and Charlie is a musician who plays there. This is a Charlie/Claire story, but it's gonna take a bit to get there, so bear with me. There are also some other pairings sprinkled through here as well.
Previous Parts: Part One
Charlie nervously strummed his guitar. He always got anxious before his sets. His hands started to shake and his leg began to beat against the chair he was sitting on. He never drew much of a crowd, he was mostly ignored in fact, but he knew Shannon worked on Thursdays. He wasn’t sure if she even listened, but some day she might. And he didn’t want to be terrible and make an ass of himself if today happened to be that day.
He closed his eyes and heard his brother’s voice in his head, for the millionth time since he had decided to go solo. “If you’re sure you can manage, baby brother, go right ahead.” He was so damn condescending. He didn’t think Charlie could do anything, and he probably never had. He did everything but physically push Charlie into the background. It figured that, even now, as he was on his own and finally reasonably proud of what he was doing, all he could hear was his brother’s voice in his head, telling him he was going to fail.
He looked to his guitar case across the room. He could almost see what was stuffed inside one of the lining pockets - as if he had x-ray vision. He twitched, involuntarily. He always kept an emergency stash with him. He didn’t really want it, but something inside of him told him he needed it. Just in case. Just in case it was all too much. It wasn’t, not yet. He looked away as fast as possible, hand still tapping against his guitar and foot still beating against the leg of his chair. He almost toppled straight out of it, though, when there came a knock at the door.
Hurley stuck his head inside. “You’re on, dude,” he said.
Charlie nodded quickly, hopping off the chair with his guitar in his hands. “Okay, just give me a minute,” he replied. He was nowhere near composed. Thinking about Liam, about the damn drugs…he was so wound up it would be a miracle if he even sounded passable today. But he took a deep breath and walked out the door anyway. He didn’t really have much of a choice.
“Hey, there you are!”
It was Claire. He didn’t know why but he was surprised. “You came?” he asked as she walked over to him, a smile on her face. She had said it was her day off from work, so she had obviously come to see him. He had never had anyone come to see him play before.
“Of course I came,” she replied, surprised by his surprise. “Your friend Hurley said I could sit with him and his girlfriend.” She pointed across the room to Hurley and Libby. Charlie shook his head.
“Well, thanks, thanks for coming,” he replied, even though he was even more self-conscious now. It was nice to know someone besides his friends would actually be listening today, but it was equally terrifying. “I’ll try not to be too terrible.”
She chuckled and shook her head. “You don’t have to do that self-effacing musician thing,” she told him. “I’m sure you’ll be great.”
“Well, at least one of us is,” he replied.
She leaned forward and whispered, “You’re doing it again.”
He had to laugh. This girl was…something else. He wasn’t sure he’d ever met anyone like her before. Self-confidence had never been his strong suit, especially when it came to his music. Liam held most of the blame, he knew that. Charlie had broken up the band, sick of his brother’s bullshit, and Liam had turned on him, calling him ungrateful and telling him he’d never make it on his own, that he needed him to get anywhere.
And as much as he hated his brother for that, and as much as he knew he was wrong, his words still stuck in his head, on repeat. They were all he could think about sometimes, and especially before playing. He wasn’t modest; he was just constantly terrified that today would be the day he would prove his brother right.
“It’s a habit, I guess,” he said, shrugging.
“You should work on that,” she replied. “Hurley says you’ve got a lot of talent.”
“He’s my best friend, he’s supposed to say that.”
“Okay.” Claire set her hands on her hips and looked him directly in the eyes. “So, who’s saying you aren’t then?” He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. It was such a long story and not one that you blurt out to a relative stranger who spilled coffee all over you once.
“It’s…” he finally said, but his sentence died there. He ran his hand through is hair and sighed. “It’s a long story.”
Claire looked away then. “I’m being invasive, aren’t I?” she asked, backing up a few steps. Charlie wanted to reassure her, but he was back to not being able to string two words together. “I’m sorry, we just met, I promise I didn’t mean to dig into your life like that.”
“No, really it’s-”
“Would Charlie Pace come to the stage, please?” he heard, turning to see an irritated looking barista shielding her eyes from the spotlight meant for him. He cursed.
“I’m sorry,” Claire said, backing away and gesturing to the stage. “Sorry, Cassidy, that was my fault,” she assured as the annoyed woman left the stage and passed Charlie.
He really didn’t have any choice, then, but to leave his conversation with Claire where it laid. He hefted his guitar and headed for the stage, looking apologetically to Claire as she walked to Hurley and Libby’s table. She was facing him, with a smile, and she mouthed ‘you’ll be great’ to him from across the room. And somehow, someway, that silent assurance drowned out all of Liam’s hurtful, angry words without even really trying.
And when his set ended, he received the most enthusiastic applause he had ever had since he’d playing there. He turned to see Hurley and Libby clapping like they always did, and next to them was Claire. She smiled and mouthed ‘I told you so’.
“Charlie, that was fantastic!” Libby said, hugging him as he came up.
“Seriously awesome, dude,” Hurley agreed, slapping him on the shoulder and rattling him a bit.
“Thanks guys,” Charlie said, setting down his guitar case. “So, how’re you all getting along?” As far as he knew, this was the first time all of them had met.
“Pretty good,” Libby replied. “Did you really meet because she dumped coffee all over you?” Claire smiled and giggled and Charlie had to smile too. As far as first meetings go, there’s sure did make for a good story.
“I ran into her,” Charlie insisted.
“No, no, I ran into you,” she replied.
“I should have looked where I was going.”
“So should I.”
Hurley and Libby looked back and forth between them, obviously quite amused.
“So that’s a yes then?” Libby asked.
“Pretty much,” Charlie replied. Claire nodded.
“So how long have you been in the US, Claire?” Libby asked.
“Um, a few months,” she replied. “I just got this job, so I’m hoping to be able on live on my own soon. For now, I’m staying with my brother and his girlfriend. Oh! We’re having a party this weekend, you all should come!”
“That’d be great!” Libby agreed, enthusiastically. But then, what didn’t Libby do enthusiastically? Her and Claire were probably a perfect match, come to think of it. They were probably to of the most upbeat people he’d ever met.
Claire looked to Hurley. “I go where she goes,” he replied, gesturing to Libby and wrapping his arm around her. She smiled and chuckled. Claire turned to Charlie then, and, really, what was he supposed to say? He always felt awkward at parties, especially where he didn’t know 99% of the people, but he guessed, worse come to worst he could always make himself the third wheel and hang around Hurley and Libby all night.
“Sure,” he answered. “Why not?”
“Great!” Claire reached for her purse and started to rummage around. She pulled out a pen and grabbed one of the napkins off of the table. “Here’s my address,” she said. “The party is tomorrow.” She handed the napkin to Libby just as her phone started to ring. “Oh, hold on a second.”
She stood up and walked a few paces away. “Hello?” Hurley and Libby started to go on about the party, but for whatever reason, Charlie wasn’t listening to them. He was listening to Claire. “Thomas, we’ve talked about this, I’m not coming back. Of course it’s fair! Well, if it matters so much to you, why don’t you come here? Oh my God, Thomas, why do I have to be the one to compromise for you?!” A sudden curt sigh came from Claire and she whispered, “Bastard.”
Then she came back to the table. Hurley and Libby didn’t notice she was trying to shake off the phone call and couldn’t tell her enthusiastic smile had turned fake. “Sorry, that was my boyfriend calling to check in on me,” she told them.
“Aw, that’s nice of him,” Libby said. Claire nodded, awkwardly and Charlie couldn’t help but look down. Libby was sweet, but she missed body language sometimes. And Hurley just didn’t look. So even if he hadn’t been listening, Charlie was sure he would have been the only one to notice that something was wrong.
“Yeah,” she replied, picking her bag up off of the floor. “I have to go, but I’ll see you guys tomorrow, okay?”
“We’ll be there,” Libby answered.
“Later dude.”
“Bye Claire,” Charlie said, sympathetically. Claire smiled at him, almost as if she knew that he had picked up on something the other hadn’t, then waved goodbye to all of them.
He reached across the table and picked up the napkin Claire had written her address on. He pulled a Sharpie out of his sweatshirt pocket and copied it onto his hand. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe he might have a good time after all. In the short time they had known each other, Claire hadn’t steered him wrong yet.
Part Three
Rating: PG-13
Summary: This girl was...something else. He wasn’t sure he’d ever met anyone like her before.
Disclaimer: I do not own Lost. At all. I wish but alas...
Author's Note: This is AU based on Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop by Landon Pigg. Claire is a barista at a coffee shop and Charlie is a musician who plays there. This is a Charlie/Claire story, but it's gonna take a bit to get there, so bear with me. There are also some other pairings sprinkled through here as well.
Previous Parts: Part One
Charlie nervously strummed his guitar. He always got anxious before his sets. His hands started to shake and his leg began to beat against the chair he was sitting on. He never drew much of a crowd, he was mostly ignored in fact, but he knew Shannon worked on Thursdays. He wasn’t sure if she even listened, but some day she might. And he didn’t want to be terrible and make an ass of himself if today happened to be that day.
He closed his eyes and heard his brother’s voice in his head, for the millionth time since he had decided to go solo. “If you’re sure you can manage, baby brother, go right ahead.” He was so damn condescending. He didn’t think Charlie could do anything, and he probably never had. He did everything but physically push Charlie into the background. It figured that, even now, as he was on his own and finally reasonably proud of what he was doing, all he could hear was his brother’s voice in his head, telling him he was going to fail.
He looked to his guitar case across the room. He could almost see what was stuffed inside one of the lining pockets - as if he had x-ray vision. He twitched, involuntarily. He always kept an emergency stash with him. He didn’t really want it, but something inside of him told him he needed it. Just in case. Just in case it was all too much. It wasn’t, not yet. He looked away as fast as possible, hand still tapping against his guitar and foot still beating against the leg of his chair. He almost toppled straight out of it, though, when there came a knock at the door.
Hurley stuck his head inside. “You’re on, dude,” he said.
Charlie nodded quickly, hopping off the chair with his guitar in his hands. “Okay, just give me a minute,” he replied. He was nowhere near composed. Thinking about Liam, about the damn drugs…he was so wound up it would be a miracle if he even sounded passable today. But he took a deep breath and walked out the door anyway. He didn’t really have much of a choice.
“Hey, there you are!”
It was Claire. He didn’t know why but he was surprised. “You came?” he asked as she walked over to him, a smile on her face. She had said it was her day off from work, so she had obviously come to see him. He had never had anyone come to see him play before.
“Of course I came,” she replied, surprised by his surprise. “Your friend Hurley said I could sit with him and his girlfriend.” She pointed across the room to Hurley and Libby. Charlie shook his head.
“Well, thanks, thanks for coming,” he replied, even though he was even more self-conscious now. It was nice to know someone besides his friends would actually be listening today, but it was equally terrifying. “I’ll try not to be too terrible.”
She chuckled and shook her head. “You don’t have to do that self-effacing musician thing,” she told him. “I’m sure you’ll be great.”
“Well, at least one of us is,” he replied.
She leaned forward and whispered, “You’re doing it again.”
He had to laugh. This girl was…something else. He wasn’t sure he’d ever met anyone like her before. Self-confidence had never been his strong suit, especially when it came to his music. Liam held most of the blame, he knew that. Charlie had broken up the band, sick of his brother’s bullshit, and Liam had turned on him, calling him ungrateful and telling him he’d never make it on his own, that he needed him to get anywhere.
And as much as he hated his brother for that, and as much as he knew he was wrong, his words still stuck in his head, on repeat. They were all he could think about sometimes, and especially before playing. He wasn’t modest; he was just constantly terrified that today would be the day he would prove his brother right.
“It’s a habit, I guess,” he said, shrugging.
“You should work on that,” she replied. “Hurley says you’ve got a lot of talent.”
“He’s my best friend, he’s supposed to say that.”
“Okay.” Claire set her hands on her hips and looked him directly in the eyes. “So, who’s saying you aren’t then?” He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. It was such a long story and not one that you blurt out to a relative stranger who spilled coffee all over you once.
“It’s…” he finally said, but his sentence died there. He ran his hand through is hair and sighed. “It’s a long story.”
Claire looked away then. “I’m being invasive, aren’t I?” she asked, backing up a few steps. Charlie wanted to reassure her, but he was back to not being able to string two words together. “I’m sorry, we just met, I promise I didn’t mean to dig into your life like that.”
“No, really it’s-”
“Would Charlie Pace come to the stage, please?” he heard, turning to see an irritated looking barista shielding her eyes from the spotlight meant for him. He cursed.
“I’m sorry,” Claire said, backing away and gesturing to the stage. “Sorry, Cassidy, that was my fault,” she assured as the annoyed woman left the stage and passed Charlie.
He really didn’t have any choice, then, but to leave his conversation with Claire where it laid. He hefted his guitar and headed for the stage, looking apologetically to Claire as she walked to Hurley and Libby’s table. She was facing him, with a smile, and she mouthed ‘you’ll be great’ to him from across the room. And somehow, someway, that silent assurance drowned out all of Liam’s hurtful, angry words without even really trying.
And when his set ended, he received the most enthusiastic applause he had ever had since he’d playing there. He turned to see Hurley and Libby clapping like they always did, and next to them was Claire. She smiled and mouthed ‘I told you so’.
“Charlie, that was fantastic!” Libby said, hugging him as he came up.
“Seriously awesome, dude,” Hurley agreed, slapping him on the shoulder and rattling him a bit.
“Thanks guys,” Charlie said, setting down his guitar case. “So, how’re you all getting along?” As far as he knew, this was the first time all of them had met.
“Pretty good,” Libby replied. “Did you really meet because she dumped coffee all over you?” Claire smiled and giggled and Charlie had to smile too. As far as first meetings go, there’s sure did make for a good story.
“I ran into her,” Charlie insisted.
“No, no, I ran into you,” she replied.
“I should have looked where I was going.”
“So should I.”
Hurley and Libby looked back and forth between them, obviously quite amused.
“So that’s a yes then?” Libby asked.
“Pretty much,” Charlie replied. Claire nodded.
“So how long have you been in the US, Claire?” Libby asked.
“Um, a few months,” she replied. “I just got this job, so I’m hoping to be able on live on my own soon. For now, I’m staying with my brother and his girlfriend. Oh! We’re having a party this weekend, you all should come!”
“That’d be great!” Libby agreed, enthusiastically. But then, what didn’t Libby do enthusiastically? Her and Claire were probably a perfect match, come to think of it. They were probably to of the most upbeat people he’d ever met.
Claire looked to Hurley. “I go where she goes,” he replied, gesturing to Libby and wrapping his arm around her. She smiled and chuckled. Claire turned to Charlie then, and, really, what was he supposed to say? He always felt awkward at parties, especially where he didn’t know 99% of the people, but he guessed, worse come to worst he could always make himself the third wheel and hang around Hurley and Libby all night.
“Sure,” he answered. “Why not?”
“Great!” Claire reached for her purse and started to rummage around. She pulled out a pen and grabbed one of the napkins off of the table. “Here’s my address,” she said. “The party is tomorrow.” She handed the napkin to Libby just as her phone started to ring. “Oh, hold on a second.”
She stood up and walked a few paces away. “Hello?” Hurley and Libby started to go on about the party, but for whatever reason, Charlie wasn’t listening to them. He was listening to Claire. “Thomas, we’ve talked about this, I’m not coming back. Of course it’s fair! Well, if it matters so much to you, why don’t you come here? Oh my God, Thomas, why do I have to be the one to compromise for you?!” A sudden curt sigh came from Claire and she whispered, “Bastard.”
Then she came back to the table. Hurley and Libby didn’t notice she was trying to shake off the phone call and couldn’t tell her enthusiastic smile had turned fake. “Sorry, that was my boyfriend calling to check in on me,” she told them.
“Aw, that’s nice of him,” Libby said. Claire nodded, awkwardly and Charlie couldn’t help but look down. Libby was sweet, but she missed body language sometimes. And Hurley just didn’t look. So even if he hadn’t been listening, Charlie was sure he would have been the only one to notice that something was wrong.
“Yeah,” she replied, picking her bag up off of the floor. “I have to go, but I’ll see you guys tomorrow, okay?”
“We’ll be there,” Libby answered.
“Later dude.”
“Bye Claire,” Charlie said, sympathetically. Claire smiled at him, almost as if she knew that he had picked up on something the other hadn’t, then waved goodbye to all of them.
He reached across the table and picked up the napkin Claire had written her address on. He pulled a Sharpie out of his sweatshirt pocket and copied it onto his hand. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe he might have a good time after all. In the short time they had known each other, Claire hadn’t steered him wrong yet.
Part Three