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She holds the business card flat in her palm, reading it over one more time to make sure she definitely has the right address before rapping on the door. A woman with curly blonde hair and grey eyes opens the door with a big smile already painted across her face.
“You must be Charlotte. Please, come in.” The woman steps to the side to let Charlotte pass, and she does, giving a tiny smile. She doesn’t recall telling this woman her name. In fact, she doesn’t remember speaking to her at all.
They make their way to a small room decorated heavily with tapestries and various potted plants and crystals. The woman gestures to a plush-looking chair near the fireplace, and Charlotte sits cautiously. The blonde sits across from her, sinking back into her chair.
“I am Arabella, and I am delighted to meet with you today. I can tell you’re here for something very important, yes?” Charlotte nods swiftly, tapping her fingers together as she leans forward in her chair.
“Yes, it’s... it’s my husband. He... he’s been so very distant lately, and I suspect it has something to do with... someone else, and I’m scared it’s because he doesn’t...” She takes a deep breath. “I heard you make love potions. And… and I want him to love me again.”
Arabella’s eyes light up with joy and a bit of mischief. “Indeed I do. And for your circumstances, my dear, I think I can offer you a very special one.” She stands and makes her way to a long table on the side of the room. Charlotte watches intently as this strange woman picks up assorted bottles and inspects them closely, shaking a few of them until they bubble or fizz. Eventually, she waves Charlotte over. She obliges, shuffling across the floor with her hands clasped at her chest.
“Now this, my dear, is a love potion and a truth serum. You see, it targets the heart and implores it to tell the truth about the love that the drinker feels towards you. If there is no love, there will be no reaction. If there is love, they will tell you the extent of it. If there once was love but it is no longer... well, I’m afraid I haven’t seen that happen.” Arabella hands a small bottle of light blue liquid to Charlotte. “Put that in any hot drink, give it to your husband, and await the results. They should be almost immediate.”
Charlotte grips the bottle in her hand. “Thank you. Oh, thank you.”
“No problem, darling. Good luck.”
With that, Charlotte makes her way home.
——
Charlotte has a plan. Sam likes coffee after work, and he’s supposed to come home late this afternoon. Hopefully, if all of this goes well, he’ll stay home and things will be better. She brews a pot of coffee and sets out two mugs, making sure to place a few drops of the blue liquid into one of them.
He arrives home about an hour later, throwing his keys on the table and kicking his boots off behind the door. Charlotte rushes to greet him.
“Hi Sam, how was your day?”
“Was fine, I s’pose. Dealt with this punk-ass teen, but decided not to throw him behind bars. Just rough him up a bit, let him know who’s boss.” Charlotte nods along, trying very hard not to betray her discomfort. She really doesn’t like when Sam talks about his violent work escapades.
“I, uh, I made some coffee for you!” She starts walking to the dining room, looking over her shoulder periodically to make sure he’s following. He is, but slowly, almost distractedly.
She sets his cup at one spot and takes hers to another, adjacent from his. She rests her forearms on the table and wraps her hands around her drink, enjoying the scalding hot temperature. She looks at him expectantly. Sam sits down begrudgingly and takes a drink, almost immediately leaning back in his chair and pulling out his phone. Her face falls, but only briefly.
“So, how is it?” She forces a smile.
“‘S fine.”
She looks down at the table and frowns. They sit in that silence for a couple minutes.
“Is- is it too hot? I can-“
“I said it’s fine, Char. Listen, I’m headin’ out tonight.” He slides his phone back into his pocket and takes another sip before standing and heading up to their shared bedroom.
Charlotte sits in stunned silence.
——
About thirty minutes later, Sam has left and she’s still sitting at the dining room table, feeling the warmth drain from her cup as she takes sip after sip, trying to stop her thoughts.
Her phone pings.
‘mind if i come over?’
She smiles sadly to herself. She wonders for a second why he wants to but pushes the thought away as quickly as it arrived. She knows the answer.
‘sure, any time works’
A minute later, she gets another message.
‘be there in 10. :)’
She stays sitting at the table and swirls her coffee around in her mug. Maybe this night won’t be so terrible after all.
——
Sam didn’t lock the door when he left, so Ted is able to let himself in when Charlotte calls for him to do so. He comes into the dining room and gently places a hand on her upper back. She smiles and gives a quiet greeting, and he sits in the same spot that Sam had taken up not two hours prior.
“How we doin’ tonight, Charlotte?”
“Oh, I’m alright. Sam came home, but just for a bit. I expected him to stay, if I’m honest.” She looks into her mug again, the coffee separating from the cream and creating a film over the top. It’s then that Ted notices the mug that’s sitting in front of him. He smiles a little and picks it up.
“He didn’t even finish this?” She shakes her head. “Well, I can’t sit and let a cup of Charlotte coffee go to waste. You make it the best out of everyone, you know.” Her eyes go wide and before she can say anything, he’s downed the contents of the mug.
‘It can’t be that bad,’ she reasons. ‘I wouldn’t expect him to have a reaction. If Sam didn’t, surely Ted won’t.’ She smiles and finishes her drink, too, and takes them both to the kitchen sink.
“Hey, Charlotte?” She glances back in his direction as she washes one of the cups. There’s something in his eyes that wasn’t there before. Or, at least, not to this extent. Something… pleasant.
“Hm?” she says, turning back to her dishes and trying not to think too hard about this. He comes up behind her a few seconds later and places his hands on the small of her back. She lets out a yelp in surprise and drops the cup into the sink.
“I just… I care about you a lot, and I hope you know that. I think you deserve a lot better than what you have. He’s no good to you, Charlotte, and… well, I’ll just say it. I think I love you.”
Her entire body goes warm and her expression is blank. After a few seconds she turns her head to look at him, and he looks almost concerned. He puts two fingertips under her chin and she blinks before meeting his eyes.
“Yeah. Yeah, I- I love you, Charlotte. I could say it a thousand times. You-“ he takes her hands in his. “You deserve to hear it.”
“Ted, I…” The warmth of his hands distracts her from whatever she was about to say. There’s care there, and passion. She grips tightly as though this is the one thing tying her to the earth.
“Thank you.”