Page 47 of Charm Me Not

I stared at her, not quite sure what she was getting at.

“Typically meaning the difference between freed of slavery and that of nobility, yet many kings in many countries have been named Charles. So, tell me, Charles, are you a free man or a prince?” Malia’s eyes went dark, as if testing me to see if I would say the right answer.

What that was, I didn’t know. I was just as lost as I was the moment she started talking.

I forced a cheerful expression and tried to regain control. “It’s me, plain old Charlie Henrikson, here to deliver roses to all the beautiful ladies I come across today. Attempting to put a smile on people’s faces.”

I looked over at Ali, keeping the smile on my face, and spoke through the corner of my mouth, “I’m so confused.”

He just laughed and waved me off, silently telling me not to worry about it. Not that it helped, but I appreciated the backup.

Leaning over, I handed a rose to Aria, who took it and blushed like most of the other girls. Malia hadn’t blushed.

“Just the girls?” Ali challenged, raising an eyebrow.

I chuckled and plucked out one more rose. Instead of handing it, I tossed it to him, and he caught it mid-air, placing the stem between his teeth and letting out something that sounded like a mixture of a growl and a purr. Aria giggled.

Malia sat back down and took the flower out of Ali’s mouth, adding it to hers. “Girls only, you fool,” she said, leaning back against the wall and curling her legs under her. “He said beautiful ladies.”

The only one left standing was Una, who had been staring at me with a blank look on her face for the past few minutes.

I took a step toward her, turning my back to her friends. Tipping the last of the roses in her direction, I lowered my voice for her.

“Care for a rose?”

She glared at me, but I smirked at her. “Oh, that’s right. You already have one. The first one.” I added a wink at the end of my comment, referring to the rose I gave her the other night.

There was no connection from that rose to these. But I did enjoy giving her things that eventually put a smile on her face.

“But I can’t leave a gorgeous girl like you empty-handed, can I?” I whispered. She eyed me suspiciously, but still said nothing.

From deep within the bouquet of roses, I picked out the one flower that was different.

The moment I saw it in Miss Melody’s cart, I knew I had to have it. For Una.

“A special flower for a special girl,” I said under my breath, barely loud enough for her to hear.

She froze at the words and the sight of the stunning black dahlia in my hand. I tilted it in her direction, urging her to take it.

With a shaky hand, she accepted it. Then she glanced up, her gaze intense. Gone was the blank, deadpan look. Now, her eyes were full of confusion mixed with fear and wonder.

I gazed at her for longer than I should have, a smile growing on my lips.

“Hey, why did she get the black one?” Malia called out behind me.

“Because it’s black like my soul,” Una replied so quickly, I almost stumbled. Instantly, she threw her mask back on, her features hardening, her smile vanishing.

I stepped back, my hands gripping the crinkly paper of the bouquet. Whatever little bubble had been around Una and me a moment ago had popped, leaving me feeling exposed and a bit out of place.

Next to her, everything felt different. I was happy and calm. Being beside Una kind of made me forget about everything else. It was just the two of us.

“Sorry. Only one dahlia today,” I said with a shrug. While the charm came naturally, there was still some display attribute to it. An act, sometimes.

Before Malia could say anything else, Una sat down and looked away. I took that as my invitation to leave, giving them all a wave as I descended the opposite hallway toward my locker.

I handed out three more roses along the way before running into Navin.

When he saw me, he rolled his eyes and huffed out a laugh. “Of course it was you. Prince Charming to the rescue, making the girls of Fairy Tale High feel like royalty. Why even bother, man? You don’t have to go to such lengths to get the girl. You could sneeze and they’d line up with tissues.”

---