Page 35 of Daddy's Little Cupcake

Last time she took a couple deep breaths with Finn, it actually worked. She didn’t think it would, but she surprisingly felt calm after.

This time, though, it didn’t help much. Charlotte was still a ball of nerves. She just wanted to get this talk over with.

“Now, can you answer my two questions from before?” Finn asked.

Charlotte's mind went blank. She knew she was going to talk to him about something, but she couldn’t remember the two questions he had asked downstairs.

She took a step back and looked down at her feet. Charlotte didn’t want to make Finn even more mad for not remembering.

Charlotte had felt so overwhelmed with everything that she wasn’t really processing much. Her breathing started to pick up as her heart rate increased.

“Charlotte,” Finn said. “I need you to focus on my voice for me.”

She tried her hardest to focus on his voice, but it was so hard. Charlotte just wanted to hide away in a corner and be left alone.

Hands grabbed hers and softly rubbed the back of her hand. It brought a little comfort in this high stress time.

“Charlotte, everything’s gonna be okay. I bet it’s been pretty overwhelming,” Finn said. “I just want you to listen to my voice right now and try to calm down.”

She nodded her head. His level of voice brought a little calmness down on her.

“Can you tell me what’s wrong?” Finn asked.

Charlotte opened her mouth to speak but quickly shut it. Would he be mad at her?

Charlotte took the chance. “I-I d-don’t remember the two questions.”

“That’s okay. I can repeat them for you,” Finn replied. “The first one was why did you decide to bring in two cupcake boxes when there were people here to help?”

Charlotte thought about it for a second, not that she really needed the time because she knew the answer already.

“I wanted to be useful. It was only two boxes, and if my shoelace hadn’t come untied, I wouldn’t have fallen,” Charlotte mumbled toward the end.

“Next time, only carry one or don’t carry any at all. Those boxes are huge, and a little girl shouldn’t be carrying big things,” Finn said.

Charlotte knew he meant well. He just wanted to make sure she was safe. She did know that she shouldn’t have carried two boxes of cupcakes. She should’ve only carried one or none at all.

James would’ve said the same thing, and she knew it. It wouldn’t be the first time James would’ve told her something like that. He had to constantly remind her that she shouldn’t carry big things. Things that she couldn’t see around or things that she could easily trip with.

Yes, Charlotte and Amelia did pack the car, but they carried one box at a time, so it was easier to see when they walked.

“I should’ve come in and asked for help,” Charlotte said, not looking Finn in the eyes.

She didn’t want to see the disappointment swirling in his eyes. It wasn’t only that; his stare was intense, and she didn’t think she could handle it right now.

“That’s right. Next time, ask for help. There’s no shame in asking for help. I ask all the time for someone to help me,” Finn said.

“Otay,” Charlotte whispered.

She didn’t think she would forget this encounter the next time she had to deliver something. Hopefully she wouldn’t have to deliver anything again, but she knew she would. James asked her to deliver things all the time. All the time was exaggerating, but Charlotte felt like it was all the time.

“Now, onto the second question. Did you know your shoelace was untied?” Finn asked.

Charlotte wanted to take a step back because she knew the answer to the next question wasn’t going to make him happy.

She opened her mouth, ready to say a lie.

“And before you think about lying, just know it’s not good to lie. Lying gets you into trouble,” Finn said before she could say anything.

---