[Story] Delta – S01 E17

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 17

♦ Charlie ♦

What the hell was Jay doing here?

As I saw him move rapidly down the stairs, my legs moved on their own accord, rushing towards the steps in an effort to catch up with him. If I could grab him – just for a moment – the things I would say to him – oh, I would kill him. But even as I reached where Astrid was standing, leaning over the banister, I knew I was too late.

I had been expecting him to come. So why was this coming as such a shock to me?

There had been nothing for me to do on the second floor but wander around and watch card games until someone began to get suspicious and tried to get me kicked out for cheating. I figured it was time to clear out. I had had a feeling that there was no reason why we came here, other than for Astrid to see Jay, of course. I didn’t know how I knew that…just the look on her face. Whether it had been a planned meeting or not was an uncertain matter, but I had been sure I would see him.

And yet the sight of him as I began to walk back to where Pierre said to meet him was an intense shock to the nervous system…not to mention brought several swear words that I hadn’t used in a while to mind.

What was he doing here? Did he really come here, risking everything, just to see Astrid? And why were we doing nothing about it? I had known, Astrid had known – why had we done nothing, planned nothing? I cursed myself for my stupidity. I should have told her what I knew; maybe that would’ve stopped her.

Who was I kidding? If I had done anything to hurt Jay, she would never forgive me. I wanted to kill him, wanted to make him feel the same pain Astrid felt when he left her. I wanted him to know how much he had hurt her. And this same desire made my feet begin to run as I saw him on the stairways, pumped with the desire to hurt him.

My feet slowed as my mind realized that Jay was already gone. Astrid was practically falling off the banister in an effort to see him, and although a curtain of dark hair shielded her face, I knew that she would be shocked straight through. And as I approached her carefully, as I took her shoulders and turned her towards me, I saw I was right.