Title: Accelerating Pulse
Author: Shades of Hades
Date: February, 2008
A/N: Took me a while to sit down and write this, because I'll be honest, I'm not sure where this thing is going. That and I've just been my normal distracted self. Sorry guys. Huh, also, this turned out shorter and crappier then I intended.

Chapter Three:

Charlie and I are asleep on the bed, curled around one another, when Tony comes back in the bedroom, clearing his throat. Charlie jumps slightly and silently pulls himself away from me, guilty look on his sleep stained features.

My mind is still trying to catch up to what's happening when Tony speaks, “I don't think it's a good idea for ya to stay here any longer. Someone's bound to be looking for you.” There's no anger in his voice, no disgust, and Charlie seems to sense this as well, his body relaxing a little.

“We know. It's only a matter of time until they realize we're here. They've probably already searched our apartments and figured out where we could be if not there.” Charlie is a little quicker than I am, something I've always been thankful for. He has the ability to think on his feet, silently and smoothly putting distance between the two of us, our closeness no longer bordering, hovering even, on obvious, but back down to the friends and partners level that I think we're both more comfortable with being this attraction between us is so new, yet to really be explored. Maybe Tony doesn't notice the awkwardness in our distance, or maybe he just doesn't care, I'm not too sure to be honest. Then again, Tony was never the one I had to worry about. He's an accepting man, no matter what the situation, never asking questions, but of course, Charlie and I were never something I thought Tony would be faced with either. Sofie, however was a different story. Because Sofie wasn't just a reliable friend, Sofie was my daughter, my own flesh and blood, and the only family I have. This thing with Charlie, what ever it was, it was important for Sofie not to know, because she was something I couldn't risk, and this was something I would give up long before her, even if I didn't want to. Though I undoubtedly liked the smooth way that Charlie operated, the way he could woo anything on two legs, and his handsome features, I couldn't help but doubt us, and how strong what we were to each other really was. I wasn't entirely sure yet that Charlie hadn't acted out of desperation, thinking those to be in his last moments, and I honestly couldn't say for sure that I hadn't reacted for the same reasons, seeing someone I had admired so much so close to death. I wasn't sure if this was worth giving up Sofie for yet, but I was pretty sure no matter what happened, that it would never be. Because I loved my little girl more than life itself.

“Do you think Sofie's safe?” I ask timidly as they both look at me, obviously waiting for me to answer, to agree that we need to get the hell out of this place, both visibly thrown by my question.

“I hadn't thought of that to be honest,” Charlie says as he raises from the bed, Tony helping him to his feet, still slightly unsteady from the gun shot wound currently seeping small traces of blood through his bandages. I look concerned at it, and he just flashes me one of his grins that normally has girls swooning at his feet, but just causes an unsettling feeling to rest at the bottom of my stomach, heavy and hard as a rock.

“When Sofie gets back, she's going to have to leave with us. She won't be safe here without us. It would be too easy for someone to get a hold of her, to use her against us,” Charlie is thinking hard, I can tell because he gets that small crease between his brows that arched as he stares at the thick blankets on the bed, leaning hard into Tony. I've sometimes found myself wondering if, when he's older that crease might take up permanent residence between Charlie's brows, but I'm sure if I told him, the vane man that he is, he would find someone to stop it, and I'm not sure I want him to.

“You know Sofie as well as I do, Charlie,” I finally answer, pulling myself out of my musings. “You guys were kids together for Christ sake. She's not going to leave that easy; she loves this city and nothing short of a gun pointed at her head's going to make her leave.”

“I know. But if she stays here, that gun's going to do more than point at her. I just don't know how to convince her to leave. Especially without that finance of hers.” I cringe at his words, thinking of the boy that wanted so desperately to wed my daughter, some well to do guy, a year or two older than Charlie, pretty much giving her the singing career that she's dreamed of, on a plate. It's no wonder she can't resist him, but I trust him about as far as I can throw him and I'll be damned if she thinks that's enough to keep her here, that he'll keep her safe.

“We just won't tell her that we're leaving for good. Act casual, get on the train, and never come back,” I say after a moment of rubbing at my forehead, fingers messaging my brows as I stare that the cheap wooden floor of Tony's bedroom.

“And where the hell are ya going to go? Ya really think you can just get on a train and it will all be over?” Tony, finally speaking up, let's Charlie settle back on to the corner of the bed as he stares at us, seemingly unbelieving.

“What else can we do Tony?” Charlie's starting to get angry, fingers flexing into fists. We're all frustrated, and I can't help but blame him for the whole situation despite myself, because if it wasn't for him, we would have never gone to do business with them, but of course, he would have never kissed me as well, but still, what the hell had he been thinking, getting in bed with the Mafia anyways? Sure they pay well, but look at what's happened and we didn't get a penny. Now we're even worst off and on the run; our lives and that of our friends' and families' in danger.

“We don't have anywhere to go. This is the only place both of us ever known, we don't have a car, what are we suppose to do? Hitch a ride out of town with some kind stranger? Tell them to never you mind the bullets, just don't look back?” He's cursing loudly and Tony's neighbor is banging on the wall, telling us quite clearly that our noise was unwelcome. Tony doesn't even try to settle him down, just let's himself work it out of his system until he looks exhausted and drained of everything both physically and mentally.

“Well what do you want us to do Charlie?” I snap back after he stops yelling, fingers digging into my eye as if the pain will make this bad nightmare disappear. I'm disappointed when it doesn't. “Do want to just sit here and wait for them to line us up again the wall and take us out? Sofie and Tony too? Because that's the reality. Us, here, with more bullet holes in us then the coroner will be able to count.”

“What the hell choice do we have, Jack?” He sounds so small that I can't bring myself to yell back, completely caught off guard by his meek voice, so unsure of himself for the second time that day and sounding more tired then I think he ever has in his life, I could hardly believe it as I pull him close to me, and letting his head fall against my shoulder, feeling the age difference between us so strongly.

“Stop yelling and listen to me, Jack,” Tony finally says, cutting through silence that had settle between us, “Take my car,” he tosses me a set of keys and I stumble for them. They hit the floor with a scratching noise before my fingers can wrap around them and Charlie gives a soft protesting noise as he has to move so that I can bed to get them. “Get Sofie, and get the hell outta here. Go find your wife and lay low there for as long as ya can.”

Charlie looks up at me at this, eye blood shot and eyebrows shooting up. Understandable, I suppose, since my wife is someone I never talk about, mainly because everyone but Tony is under the impression she's dead. I didn't tell them that, but people assume things in your silence, and I never sought to correct them, the subject to painful to bring up, especially with Sofie.

“But, what'll you do?” I ask Tony as I sit ram rod straight on the bed, staring at him with wide eyes and trying to ignore that questioning look in Charlie's.

“I'll throw them off the trail, even if it's only for a couple a hours, but every second counts. Let me change Charlie's bandages then get outta this city. Staying any longer isn't doing ya any favors.”

It's unspoken, but I know what Tony's saying, what he's implying and really, I can barely believe it. He's a close friend, sure, but there are very few people that would give their lives for the the sake of their friends and I'd never of pegged Tony as one of those people, as caring of a person as he is, but as Charlie stares up at him, eyes unbelievably wide, startled it seems, by his offer, there is so much passing between them as they glance at each other, leaving me feeling that I was viewing a private moment between them, that I wonder to myself how I could I have missed it after all this time of knowing them, of seeing them together. I wonder how I had been so blind, because the offer wasn't for meant for me, Tony made sure I knew, his eyes saying it all as he stared down at the handsome man on the bed next to me, that the sacrifice was meant for Charlie and Charlie alone, even if his words had been directed at me.

As Tony stared at him with adoration thick in his features, knowing full well he was marching happily, straight into hell for the man, I couldn't help but feel the cold stab of jealousy knowing that I wasn't the first man that Charlie had loved and that Tony probably held more of Charlie's firsts then I could ever hope to know.