Charlie smiled at the others words and hummed before she settles a bit. "It was nice meeting you too." She says kindly, her eyes soft. She liked being out for once. Usually she was holed up in her house doing exercise or watching tv in her room because she didn't have any friends. Friends… is that what they were? Did she have friends?
"So, are we going to sit in here a bit longer or head home? Because don't we have homework?" Marcus wondered aloud, looking around the group.
Danielle dropped the cookie she'd just grabbed and threw her head back, making a rather dramatic sound as if she was dying, while Neil started packing up their treats. Riverpaw leaned slightly towards Charlie, tilting her head a bit. "Um, hey, y-you said your dad is away, right?" She quietly asked.
Charlie paused at the mention of going home… home. Right. The silent and cold mansion that she and her various animals shared. She grabbed another water bottle from her bag and took a swig, before straightening in her chair and snickers softly at Danielle's reaction. She startles a little bit before nodding slowly. "Yeah. My dad had to extend his trip. He won't be back for another week. Why?" She asks curiously. She wondered vaguely if she wanted to invite them. She decided she did, after all it was lonely and she wouldn't mind the company. Although, she hoped they wouldn't see her as some rich brat if she took them to her place. "Would you like to come and visit my house?" She asks curiously, a small smile on her lips.
"Oh, that'd be nice!" Riverpaw smiled. "Um, but I was kind of hoping you'd want to come to my house again. I-it's just that, I- my animals liked your company a-and…so did I." She shrugged slightly, fiddling with her hands.
She smiles a little bit before humming with thought, "If you wanted, I wouldn't mind. But if you guys wanted to come to my place for a study session or just to hang out, my dad is gone for a good two weeks and I could use the company." She chuckles softly, "So it's up to you guys."
Riverpaw smiled and was about to respond when Danielle leaned over and raised her hand. "Oo, I wanna hang at the rich girl's house! Can we go?" She asked, looking with excited eyes at Riverpaw, who gently pushed her back and laughed lightly.
"Ah, no, Angie wants us to be home when she gets there." Marcus said, trying to keep the bunny in check, as usual. "Riverpaw can go, though, since her sister won't be off of work for a while."
She chuckles quietly before nodding. "Well. You guys are still invited. But if it's just gonna be us, River, we can head over to your place so we can hang out with the animals!" She smiles warmly, her eyes bright. She bit her lip in though before taking another swig of her water. "But it's really up to you guys." She laughs quietly.
Riverpaw let out a tiny breath; she was kind of hoping they could go back to her place since she wasn't completely sure about going to Charlie's so soon. "My house it is." She smiled.
"I guess we'll see you later, then, River." Danielle said, rubbing the wolf's head as she, Marcus, and Neil stood. "And you too, Charlie?"
Charlie's smile only seemed to grow. "I can give you a ride if you want, River." She says kindly, rather happy that she got to spend time with River, she was so sweet. Charlie almost seemed startled when Danielle asked if she would see them later. It was a rare encounter for her to be asked to hang out again later on. "Sure! I'd love to." She chuckles quietly, rubbing the back of her head. She hums as she gathers her things and stands, offering her hand to River.
"Cool." Danielle waited as Riverpaw smiled and took Charlie's hand, pulling herself up and then letting Danielle hug her. "Text us when you get home?"
"Of course." Riverpaw waved as the three left the bakery. The door's chime drew Eleena from the kitchen, so Riverpaw went over to the front counter to hug her and say goodbye, then returned to Charlie. "O-okay, I'm ready when you are."
She nods and smiles a little bit before guiding Danielle out of the shop. She hummed quietly as they walked, her eyes soft. "River, tis may come off as strange and a little sudden, but thank you for inviting me, and introducing me to your friends. It means a lot to me, whether you believe it or not." She chuckles quietly and glances at the other. "So… thank you for being kind."
Riverpaw couldn't stop the small smile on her face if she wanted to. Her tail started wagging, so she put her hands back to still it. "Thanks. I-I'm just happy to have another friend." She said, even though she didn't think she deserved to be thanked for something that should be common courtesy. She could understand why people would be intimidated by someone like Charlie, with her stature and general demeanor, but why wouldn't they at least give her a chance to be liked? It seemed like another thing they had in common was their struggle at making friends, though for different reasons. Whatever; Riverpaw and her friends liked her, and Charlie was now on the small list of people she'd defend with her life if she had to.
She giggled to herself as she went and opened the door, waiting for the girl.
Charlie seemed to be in a very happy and warm mood, her eyes bright and a beautiful smile on her lips. She noticed River's tail wagging but decided not to mention it, not wanting to embarrass her. She chuckles softly, her eyes softening. "I'm really glad to have a friend too. It's nice to have friends." She chuckles and rubs the back of her head. Friends had always been such a rare thing for her. The fact that River saw her as a friend made her so happy. Unbelievably happy really. Charlie was so intimidating, so scary that people usually veered away from her. It mad her irritable and lonely. She hated being lonely. That's all she's been though. Charlie walks after the other and smiles a little bit. She exits the bakery waving to Eleena and turning her full attention to River.
(Hey, I saw your post! I'm glad you're doing okay and welcome back!)
"So, my house?" Riverpaw said excitedly, starting down the street. Her house was about three blocks away, and she wondered aloud if Charlie would want to help her walk the dogs once their homework was done. "Like Marcus said, my sister won't be done with work for a few hours. She might stop by during her break, though, so maybe you can meet her."
Charlie only seemed to smile more, nodding and clasping her hands together. "That sounds wonderful." She loved the animals and she loved spending time with Riverpaw. She laughs into her hand, glad to see River so excited and happy. Charlie would definitely love to help walk the dogs, it's no question she adores the cute and fuzzy friends. Charlie was genuinely interested in meeting Rivers sister, it would definitely be nice to meet the girl that river spoke so fondly about.
Riverpaw led the way to her neighborhood, pulling out her phone to text her sister and let her know that Charlie was coming over again. She soon zoned out to the sounds around her, becoming vaguely aware of her own heartbeat.
Charlie walked beside her, feeling her phone buzz. She glances down and her mood dampened her father. Texting her once again, giving her a half-assed excuse of why he needed to stay for a while longer. At this point he would be gone for a month. She put her phone away and walked silently beside River, gazing up at the sky.
Riverpaw thought she felt a shift in the energy beside her, so she glanced over to see Charlie pocketing her phone. She wasn't going to pry, but she silently wondered what Charlie was looking at. "Hey," she decided to say as they passed the playground down the street from her neighborhood, "how long do you think you'll stay over?"
Charlie seemed to be sad, her eyes at the verge of watering. However when River glanced at her she forced it down. She turns her attention to River and smiled a little. "Uh, just for a little. I don't want to intrude." She chuckles softly, rubbing at the back of her head. She wasn't sure what to do anymore. This wasn't the first and it wouldn't be the last time her dad had to run off for some sort of meeting. The longest he's been gone was a few months. This was the norm. She wasn't sure why she was so hurt by it at this point.
"Come on; you've gotta know that I won't mind, right?" She assured, gently gripping Charlie's sleeve and giving a small smile. "It'd be okay if you stayed a while, a-as long my sister is okay with it."
Charlie smiled a little bit, it was so kind of Riverpaw to offer her a place to stay. She shook her head. "It's alright, dear." She sighed quietly and gently takes her hand. "Thank you. It means a lot to me." She says gently.
Riverpaw's cheeks turned pink as she looked away and gently swung their hands back and forth. Soon, they were at the end of her street, and she pulled her house key out. "Do you have anything you wanna leave down here?" She asked, opening up the front door.
Charlie smiled, this was nice. And Rivers hand was warm, comforting. She ached to stay here. She glanced at her backpack, "Probably just this." She says simply. Her eyes were brighter now and she seemed to be in a better mood. She glances down at River. "Thank you for inviting me to hang out today, and letting me hang out at your place. It means a lot."
Riverpaw motioned for Charlie to follow her in. "Y-you don't have to keep thanking me." She giggled, turning the foyer and living room lights on. Brightheart, the one-eyed, ginger and white cat she'd told Charlie about before, lifted her head from the sunlit spot on the floor she was resting in. "Hey, girl." Riverpaw greeted, and the cat responded with a meow before staring at the newcomer.
She chuckles quietly, "No. But I want to." She smiled a little bit. "You've been kind to me." She turned her attention to the cat in front of her. She offered her hand to the cat, her eyes gentle as she kneeled in front of the ginger.