Explosions

Charlie woke up early the next morning in J.J.’s arms. She smiled and stood up to make her way to the bathroom. They had eaten their Chinese together in bed, and then they walked around the house reminiscing about their time together.

They’d had sex a few more times as the night wore on, sometimes rougher than the time before, and sometimes a little more passionate. She had absorbed every ounce of him, knowing very well she might never see his rippling abs or back muscles ever again.

He thought the same. He touched her everywhere, each time a little more powerful than the last. They never once mentioned the breakup, though if his mind was anything like hers, the thought was there.

Charlie came out of the bathroom, and J.J. was sitting up on the edge of the bed. She smiled at him and straddled his lap. He ran his hands down her back and around her butt. She put her hands on his chin and kissed his nose. She kissed him up his cheekbone and put her lips against his ear.

“I think we’ve got time for one last go-around before my last day at work,” she whispered.

She nibbled on his earlobe, and he moaned. She giggled as he flipped her over smoothly onto the bed. He pinned her wrists to the bed, and this time, he put his lips to her ear.

“How about we do it and get ready for work at the same time?” he said.

She raised her eyebrows. He picked himself up, and she followed him to the shower.

---

J.J. watched Charlie shove the last bag into her car, and she turned to him and smiled. His arms were crossed and his expression solid, but he was breaking inside. She saw it in his eyes. She approached him and pulled his arms down to his sides. He took a deep breath and touched her face lightly.

“Last night was amazing,” he said.

“I know,” she chuckled, her cheeks growing warm. “Perfect end to an otherwise imperfect last year, huh?”

He nodded and looked down at his feet. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek, and he took her hand.

“Is this really it?” he said.

“Yes,” Charlie replied. “But J.J., you’re going to find someone that makes you happier than I ever did. She’s going to make you laugh and cry and feel motivated to push yourself.”

“Seems unlikely, but I’ll try,” said J.J.

“Promise me,” she said.

He nodded and said, “Okay.”

“I know you’re going to be okay,” Charlie said.

“Are you?” he asked.

“Yes, I think I’ll be fine. If not, I know where to find you.”

Charlie winked at him, and he shook his head. She touched his cheek and rubbed her thumb lightly against his cheekbone. He leaned into her touch, and she felt his face heating up slowly. He looked away from her.

“Good luck in Boston, Charlie,” he said. “I know it’s everything you’ve ever wanted. I’m just sad I can’t be there to share it with you.”

She sighed. Her efforts couldn’t bring him out of his sinking spirit. She nodded and glanced down at the ground.

“I guess this is good-bye,” she said.

“Yeah,” said J.J.

Charlie stood there, staring at him and waiting for him to look at her. He didn’t for a long time, so she wrapped her arms around him. She put her cheek to his chest, hearing his steady heartbeat changing pace. He slowly enveloped her in his massive arms. His breathing was shaky, and when she looked up, his eyes were red and puffy. She kissed his chest and tried to hold her own tears back.

She pulled away after awhile, and she straightened out her jacket. He put his hands on top of his head and watched as she got into her car. He stood there while she pulled out of the driveway and drove away from his house – their house – for the last time.

J.J. sat down on his front step and put his face in his hands.

---

Charlie was sending the last of her files to her boss when there was a soft knock on her office door. She looked up to see Brian Cushing standing there. She smiled and invited him to sit down. He sat and waited patiently for her to finish up.

“What’s up, Brian?” she said finally, putting her hands on her desk.

“J.J. told us you’re leaving,” said Brian.

“Yes, today’s my last day here, and I’m leaving for Boston tomorrow,” Charlie confirmed.

Brian shrugged and played with the paperweight on her desk.

“Is something wrong, Bri?” she asked.

“All the guys are pretty sad, Charlie,” he said. “You were so good to all of us.”

Charlie put her hand on Brian’s to stop him from rolling the paperweight around. He looked her in the eyes.

“J.J.’s been devastated since you guys broke up,” he said.

“I know,” said Charlie. “I have been, too. He and I just grew apart, okay? Doesn’t mean I don’t still love all my boys.” She took the paperweight from his hand and said, “You didn’t come here to ask me to get back together with him, did you?”

Brian shrugged and said, “I don’t know what I was expecting.”

“J.J. and I ended on good terms, despite almost a year of rockiness,” she replied. “I will always love him, but we’re different people now.”

“Yeah, but you don’t have to move to Boston just because you broke up,” he said.

“What? Brian, that’s not what’s happening here.”

“Then…why are you moving to Boston?”

“I got a job with the Boston Celtics,” said Charlie. “If anything, we broke up because I got the job.”

“What are you talking about?” Brian asked.

“I applied for this job with the Celtics because my mother put in a good word for me,” she explained. “I got it, and when J.J. decided he wasn’t going to be able to trust me with a long distance relationship, we ended it. I don’t blame him. After everything we went through, he’s absolutely got the right to feel like that.”

“I didn’t know you got a new job,” said Brian.

“I wouldn’t expect you to know,” said Charlie. “I didn’t announce it, and I doubt J.J. did either.”

“Well, if I was you, I would expect to tell this story a lot today,” he said, standing up.

“Why?”

“All the guys are coming to see you. Jadey’s wrecked.”

Charlie chuckled, “Thanks for the warning.”

Brian came around to the other side of her desk, and she stood up. He put his arms around her, and she did the same. He squeezed her tightly, and she laughed as he picked her up off the ground. He set her down gently.

“I’ll miss you, Charlie,” he said.

“I’ll miss you too, Cush,” she said, punching his arm lightly.

She watched him leave her office, and she chuckled to herself as she began pulling everything out of her desk. She organized it into piles of things she could take with her and things she’d need to give to George before the end of the day. She began doing the same with the filing cabinet behind her desk as well. After an hour, there was another knock on her door. She looked up to see Jadeveon leaning against the doorway, his dreads pulled back behind him.

“Ma’am,” he said.

“Jadey, how’s it going?” she asked, standing up.

Jadeveon shrugged and said, “Got something for you to see.”

“Oh, okay,” she said. “Where is it?”

“You gotta follow me,” he replied.

She smiled and said, “Okay, but I’ve got a lot to do still.”

“It won’t take long,” he said.

She followed him out the door as he began walking down the hall. He walked with his hands in his pockets, and she studied him out of the corner of her eye. He was five years younger than her, but she felt like a child next to him.

“You’ve been so good to all of us, Charlie,” said Jadeveon. “I’m gonna miss those little lemon cookies you made sometimes.”

“Well, I’m going to miss having you around,” said Charlie. “You gotta promise me you’ll stay healthy this year. Maybe you didn’t stay healthy because you ate too many of my lemon cookies.”

She poked his side, and he smiled at her.

“Gotta stay in the game,” he said. “Understood, ma’am.”

They stopped outside a conference room, and he pushed the door open. Inside, she saw the entire 53-man roster for the Texans and Coach O’Brien standing around the room. She covered her mouth and inhaled sharply.

“Surprise!” they all shouted.

Her throat closed up and tears welled up in her eyes. She felt her cheeks growing hot as Jadeveon put his arm around her shoulders. She let a few tears fall onto her cheeks, but she quickly wiped them away.

“You guys…” she said, her voice cracking.

Charlie glanced over and noticed a table full of sub sandwiches and a large cake.

“We thought we’d finally pay you back for all the times you brought the team lunch,” said Coach. “It’s not much, but we wanted to do something for you.”

“Come look at the cake,” said DeAndre, grabbing her hand and pulling her toward the table.

She laughed and followed him over. The frosting was white with green accents, but in the center was a giant Boston Celtics logo. Surrounding it were the words Good luck, Charlie! She looked up at DeAndre, and he grinned. She turned back to look at all the men staring at her, and she felt herself starting to cry again. They knew. DeAndre was the first to hug her as they all approached her for a giant Texans group hug.

Charlie took time to talk to each of the players, making sure she hugged all of them. They must have been in the room for almost two hours just talking to her. She was able to eat a sandwich and a piece of cake – they had saved her the very center with the leprechaun on it. In the middle of saying her good-byes to Whitney Mercilus, she looked up and locked eyes with J.J. He smiled at her and nodded once. She mouthed a quick ‘thank you’, and he looked away.

Charlie said her good-bye to Coach O’Brien last, as a few others began exiting the room. He cleared his throat.

“Miss Elliott, it’s not going to be the same around here without you,” he said.

“Coach, are you ever going to call me Charlie?” she laughed.

“Probably not,” he said. “Look, I want you to know that you’ve done more for this organization than anyone I’ve known to do for any organization. The Celtics are going to be lucky to have you.”

“Thank you, Coach,” Charlie said. “That means a lot.”

“You’ve always got a sideline view here if you ever come visit us again,” said Coach. “I’ll make sure of it.”

She grinned and said, “And if you ever need tickets to a Celtics game, I’ll try my damned hardest to get them. No promises though.”

He laughed and pulled her in for a hug. She sighed as he pulled away from her, and he nodded.

“I know, we’ve kept you too long,” he said. “Gotta run these assholes around anyway.”

“Thank you, Coach,” she said. “For all of this and everything you’ve done here.”

“Don’t thank me ‘til we get to the playoffs,” Coach replied.

She nodded and thanked everyone again. Jadeveon tried another group hug, but Coach broke it up quickly. She blew a few kisses to them. As she walked back down the hall, she heard shouts of good-bye still coming from the room. She took a few deep breaths and wiped away the tears forming in her eyes again.