Free Interrupted (The Progress Series) by Amy Queau Page B

also realized that although you may not deserve it, I deserve the opportunity to give it to you. So here goes…” She flashed a tight smile. “I learned two things in knowing you, Aaron. The first is that I am a waste of a human being; I’m fat, grotesque, and unworthy of happiness. The second was to never, ever trust anyone. And now, at the age of twenty-four, I can honestly tell you that I’ve spent the better part of a decade trying to unlearn those things. I’ve fought with myself, I’ve been challenged to my core, and I’ve tried to erase all the hateful words and appalling gestures you ever gave me. I had failed until now.
    “And I can say that now, since I’m sitting here telling you all of this, I will, from today, never think about you again. But you will likely think about me every day for the better part of your next decade, trying to justify your contribution to a 14-year-old girl’s depression, suicide attempts, and heartache. Congratulations, Aaron Paulson. You are an asshole.”
    Samuel’s mouth dropped open and he gawked, waiting for a response from the doctor.
    Aaron fiddled with the ring on his finger, cleaning his teeth with his tongue. A sour look appeared on his face as he nodded and walked away.
    Charlie took a deep breath in and she gestured to Sam to wheel her to the elevator.

Chapter Eleven
     
    “Kiss me,” she said as soon as the elevator doors closed.
    “What?” he asked, as though he was uneasy with the request.
    “I said, kiss me. This was a really big moment for me, and you’re ruining it by hesitating. I want a kiss. We can deal with the two of us later. Just kiss me,” she demanded again.
    His frown eased into a smile as he quickly leaned down to kiss her. With one hand behind her neck, he pulled her mouth to his. Charlie melted at the touch of his lips, the adrenaline slowing in her system. Fearing what might happen if she were to lose herself completely, she pulled away and smiled.
    “Thank you. Next time, don’t hesitate.”
    He let out a laugh as the doors opened.
    *
    “It’s been a big weekend for you,” Samuel said as Charlie was lighting her cigarette.
    “It has.” She paused, thinking of what the scene upstairs must have looked like to him. “I’m so sorry you had to see that up there. I mean, I don’t think I would have been able to go through with it if it wasn’t for you, but there’s just a lot of history there that might have been difficult for you to understand.”
    “Because of me? How did I help you get through it?” he asked.
    She shrugged. “You helped me in a way I don’t think I can ever put into words. Just by being there, you helped me.”
    He nodded, pretending he understood, then shook his head quickly. “What are we doing, Charlie? I mean, what is going on? I’m a little confused.”
    “Okay, so I haven’t done a ton of thinking about this yet. I was trying to get through one thing at a time, and honestly, the Percocet has been messing with my coherency. But I know we can figure out something.”
    He nodded.
    “Do you have any ideas?” she asked.
    “Well, I had one very flimsy idea, but I hadn’t decided if I wanted to tell you about it.”
    “Tell me.”
    “No.”
    “No?” she asked.
    “Nuh uh.”
    She laughed. “Tell me.”
    “Well, since I just escaped a very long, very shitty relationship, and you initially wanted to take things slow and are obviously going to need some time to heal…” He stopped, taking a deep breath in and exhaling again. “I thought maybe we could just choose a time frame, say two months, before we do anything physical. You know, like, physical .” The pain of that sentence alone left its remnants on his face.
    “Oh.”
    “Yeah, see? See why I didn’t want to mention it?”
    “No, but it is a good idea. I like it, it makes sense. But I also hate it.”
    “Yep.” He said, pulling his hand through his hair.
    “Okay. So, two months. Just friends.” She nodded. “I think I can handle