Matters of the Heart and Mating

Who: Gabe and Charlotte
Where: Charlotte's house
When: Late morning

Sundays were meant to be lazy and Gabe wasn't in a hurry to get anywhere fast. His mother had gone to church, but listening to someone talk about the end of the world wasn't high on Gabe's list of fun things to do. He had enough to stress about without adding that to the mix. Instead, he headed over to Charlotte's house, hoping that maybe they could hang out for a bit, and maybe talk about ghosts. After spending the evening with Lauren, he was eager to learn more about them, and Charlotte seemed to be the most informed person he knew. Knocking on the door, he waited for someone to answer, hearing the footsteps inside before anyone even made it near the door.

Charlotte had gone to an early morning service with her mom, and after coming home, her mom had turned around and gone straight back to church. Charlotte was debating what to do with her day when she heard someone at the door. She headed downstairs to answer, pleasantly surprised to see Gabe. "Hi, Gabe!" she greeted. "What's up? Do you want to come in?" She'd been meaning to talk to him for a few days anyway.

"I was hoping you'd offer," Gabe smiled, stepping inside as he began to unbutton his jacket. "Just thought I'd drop by. I didn't catch you at a bad time, did I?" It didn't seem so, but he could never tell. A brief look around gave him the impression that no one else was home, though he did hear little tiny foot steps and heart beats. It took him a moment to realize that was probably her pets. Eventually he'd learn how to better separate them.

"No, it's fine." Charlotte said, shutting the door behind him. "I'm kind of stuck at home right now anyway." Though she did want to go check on Kaysen later, this afternoon hopefully. "How are you doing?"

"Pretty good," Gabe smiled, trying to think of the last time he'd really had a chance to catch up with Charlotte. "I got a car for my birthday. And Claire got me a guitar. And I talked to this guy that's like me, and he was really helpful."

Charlotte grinned and took a look out the window to see his car. "Nice! Congrats. And happy birthday! I'm sorry I wasn't here that day." She'd heard it had been Gabe's birthday after, and had felt pretty bad. "I owe you a present." she informed him. She paused and tilted her head to the side. "What do you mean like you?"

"Thanks," he grinned. "And don't worry about it. It's not like I had some big celebration. You don't have to get me anything." That had never been his intention for mentioning it. He'd gotten more than he'd ever expected already. "I mean he's a cursed werewolf, and has been for a long time. He put me in touch with someone that can build a cage for me. I'm meeting him tomorrow."

"That's great!" Charlotte said, eyes lighting up. And would be so much better than Charlotte and her mom helping him with a cage. "I actually wanted to talk to you about some were stuff. Do you want to go in the kitchen and sit down?"

"Sure," Gabe said, following her that direction. "And yeah, it's pretty damn awesome. I wasn't really looking forward to figuring out the cage part, so it was nice to talk to someone that has actually done it before. I also had all these little questions-- like, I knew biting someone was bad, but could I even kiss them? I didn't know if it was transferred through saliva or what, but he said it's almost magical and has to be a bite." He couldn't even begin to express how much of a relief that was, even if he hadn't exactly been kissing anyone lately.

Charlotte smiled a bit, having had no idea that Gabe had been worried about that. She was glad he'd found another cursed were. She lead the way into the kitchen and sat down. "That's really great, Gabe." she said. "I'm glad you have someone to talk to about that stuff. That kind of makes what I had to tell you seem a lot less important."

"It was kind of weird," Gabe admitted. "He left this package on my doorstep. He'd tracked me down, then I had to track him down. We've only talked on the phone, but-- yeah, it's great." He really appreciated Oz's help, even if he didn't necessarily like what he heard in the process. "What did you have to tell me?" he asked, taking a seat at the kitchen table.

"Ransom's a werewolf." Charlotte said with a sheepish smile. "He told me I could tell you. And you could talk to him anytime you wanted." It didn't really matter now, but... well, the more weres he knew the better, right? "He was born though, not bitten."

"Oh!" Gabe said, blinking in surprise. That wasn't what he was expecting at all, but it wasn't a bad thing either. It could prove helpful in the future, should he need to know another werewolf. "Thanks. Tell him thank you. I mean, I've still got a lot of questions, so it's always good to know now. So-- so that's cool," Gabe smiled. "You're dating a werewolf."

"Well... I'm good with animals." Charlotte replied, meaning it as a joke, and worrying about it as soon as it was out of her mouth. She made those kinds of jokes with Ransom all the time, but Gabe was new to the werewolf world. "Um, not that they are. I didn't mean it like that."

If anyone else might have said something like that, Gabe might have been taken aback. But it was Charlotte. It never crossed his mind that she meant it badly, so he smiled at her apology. "It's okay," he said. "I didn't think you did. And I guess I'd rather be referenced to a wolf than a monster." As much as he was still trying to forgive Kavin, that still stuck in his mind.

"I tease Ransom a lot." Charlotte said. "But... it's less sensitive with him. I really didn't mean it." God, she felt stupid. Quick, new subject! "Hey, do you know a guy named Madock?"

"Really, it's okay," Gabe said. "It felt more like teasing in fondness, which is always acceptable." At least from his close friends. There were others who would not have received such an accepting response. "Madock... I've heard the name. And I feel like I should. He's new this year, right?"

Charlotte nodded. "His sister is on the dance team, but I've never met either of them. He's dating Jessalyn and Ransom wants to make sure he's a good guy. I figured if anyone I knew knew who he was, it'd be you."

"I'll check him out," Gabe smiled. He liked being in he middle of things, knowing everyone and everything that was going on around him. It was just something that came to him naturally. "Who's his sister?" he asked. "I know a couple of the girls on the dance team."

It took Charlotte a moment to remember her name. "Breezy." she remembered. "I remember her from the bonfire, but I didn't meet her." She'd been kind of loud. And drunk. Charlotte had been happy hogging Ransom's time.

Now Gabe was smirking, his memories of Breezy that night perfectly clear, even after the bit he'd had to drink. He'd thoroughly enjoyed himself, and her brother's van, which he now imagined must have been Madock's. "I know her," he grinned. "I was her date. Or something like that."

...Of course he was. Why was this not surprising Charlotte at all? That face worried her a bit, and after a second she realized why. Something she'd also been meaning to talk to Gabe about, and really, really, really did not want to. "Well at least it'll be easy for you to figure out Madock's story."

"Shouldn't be to hard," Gabe said. "Guy has a pimp van, though. Jessalyn should... watch herself." He was going to say something else, but this was Charlotte and it seemed completely inappropriate. He always ended up watching his language around her without even thinking, and going on about the Burrow's sexual adventures in the van just wasn't going to happen. "I'll talk to Breezy sometime this week. I've been meaning to call her up anyways."

Be wary of the van then. Got it. It'd be interesting seeing if she could tell Ransom that without turning ten kinds of red. Then again, judging by their last date, she could talk about that kind of stuff if she waited for... uh, the right moment. Gabe. Focus on Gabe. "...For another date?" she asked. Please say no, I don't want to have this conversation.

"Maybe," Gabe said with a casual shrug. He didn't know how he felt about dating anyone at the moment, but... Breezy gave good head. And she was fun to hang around with. He didn't see the harm in it, so long as he was interested enough to get it up. That had never been a problem though. "Why do you ask?"

"There's something we should probably talk about." Charlotte said. "Before you read it on your own. But it's kind of a... uh... uncomfortable conversation." To say the least.

His smile faded slightly as he tried to figure out what Charlotte was getting at, able to sense her discomfort without really knowing how. Maybe it was in how she approached the subject. "What kind of uncomfortable conversation?" he asked, mind twisting several different ways, none of which sounded all that fun.

"It's about..." Aw, crap. "Mating." she answered. "Which is probably the last thing you want to talk about with me, and normally I would spare you and ask Ransom to do it, but... well once I tell you I hope you'll understand why there was no way on earth I was going to bring it up with him."

"Mating?" Gabe asked, his eyes practically bugging out of his head. Charlotte usually didn't bring up subjects that made him blush, but with her, this definitely did. "You mean there's... there's something I need to know about--" Gabe paused and licked his lip, really hoping he was hearing her right. "--about having sex, now that I'm a werewolf?" That was all he could guess, since Ransom had been mentioned and he couldn't imagine why Charlotte would need to tell him anything about sex in any other situation.

Well, that meant he hadn't stumbled across that in any of the books yet. Not that Charlotte thought he'd have been in such a good mood if he had. Gabe had... a reputation. Charlotte was willing to wager that at least half of it was just high school gossip, but she knew from the Chrissy fiasco that he wasn't exactly celibate. "Yes." she answered. "And I'm so sorry for not telling you sooner."

Gabe was quiet, his eyes still wide as his hand raised to his mouth. Being bitten by a werewolf had impacted him in a number of ways, but this was something he hadn't fathomed it effecting. Of course there would be complications because that just seemed to be the way things went, but that didn't mean he was happy about them... whatever they were. "Okay, so... what is it you need to tell me... about mating?" Which really sounded like animal sex rather than people sex, so he wondered whyfor the choice of words, unless Charlotte was more comfortable with it than, say, fucking.

"Remember how I told you that you would share certain things with wolves? Like, pack mentality? Well there's something... bigger." Part of her wished she would have waited to let his cursed were friend tell him, but he needed to hear it from a friend. "Wolves mate for life."

What did that mean? Wolves mate for life? Gabe didn't know enough about animal mating habits to really get what she was saying, at least not at first. "You mean they're monogamous?" he asked, raising a brow. "I know I've got a bit of a rep, but it's always been one girl at a time. That shouldn't be a problem."

Aw crap. This was going to be worse than she thought. Charlotte shifted uncomfortably and shook her head. "That's not it. It's a lot more... permanent than that. When two wolves mate, that's it. No other mating or partners, its the two of them for the rest of their lives, until one of them dies."

"Fuck," Gabe muttered, running his fingers through his hair. There was a part of him that had the sick thought that that shouldn't be a problem, since two-thirds of the girls he'd had sex with had already died. Which brought him to another question that absolutely scared the ever-loving shit out of him. "So, am I, like, bound to a girl I might have slept with before I got bitten?" he asked as the blood drained from his face.

"No, no." Charlotte answered quickly, pretty sure he was thinking about Chrissy. "It doesn't work that way. You weren't a were then, but you are now." Which meant that Gabe was likely to be celibate for a while, and she wasn't sure how he was going to deal with that.

Okay, so he didn't have to worry about being bound to the psycho-whore with the gun. That was a blessing, he supposed, which let him continue thinking about the situation without having a panic attack right then and there. "And by mating, you mean sex specifically or... all sexual activities?" He was pretty sure his head was going to explode, having this conversation with Charlotte, but now he couldn't go without getting the answers.

"Sex. Intercourse." God, shoot me now. "Other stuff should be safe." And there was no way she could ask Ransom to back her up on that. Whether or not Gabe was angry with her for not telling him sooner, she hoped he could at least understand that.

Gabe's fingers hooked behind his neck, his elbows turning in as if guarding his face. His eyes shut and he took a couple of deep breaths, but that didn't stop his heart from pounding. "Okay," he said, opening his eyes, but not at all okay with this. When he said 'okay', what he really meant was that he understood. "So basically... what you're saying is... the next person I have sex with, I might as well be marrying, because they're the only person I'm going to want for the rest of my life? What happens if they cheat on me? Or get tired of me? I mean, life is a long time and..." And as optimistic as he liked to be about love, he'd seen first hand that nothing lasted forever.

"That's why you're going to want to be very careful about who you pick, and make sure you guys are in love, and that she knows what the score is." Charlotte said, as gently as possible. "Because unless she's a werewolf too..." God, she didn't have the heart to say that. "I think if she dies you can find a new mate, but I'm not certain on that. The next person is the only person you're ever going to want."

He didn't know what to say, didn't know how to get rid of the sick feeling in his gut. On the bright side, he was lucky; he hadn't slept with anyone since he'd been bitten. It certainly made dating a lot more serious than he preferred it. How was he supposed to explain that to someone? How were they supposed to accept that kind of loyalty? That wasn't what high school seniors were looking for. Plus, it wasn't what he was looking for. Love? It was great, but it couldn't be depended on. Even now, he thought about the only girl he wanted and how much it hurt not to be with her, and that was without crazy werewolf instincts binding him to her for life. "I'm never getting laid again," Gabe said softly.

Crap. Charlotte was severely mentally flailing, and for a moment she was tempted to call Ransom. "Yes you are." she said. "Probably not right away, but... you'll find someone. When you're ready for that kind of commitment."

"But what about them?" he pointed out. "My mom left my dad because he thought she was crazy. I'm a werewolf, Charlotte. At least my mom was human. Do you know the divorce rate in this country? I could be ready for that kind of commitment, but what about them?" While he had faith in himself and his ability to hold a relationship together, he didn't like the idea of his body clinging to someone that didn't want him, even after she'd left.

Charlotte shifted uncomfortably again as she tried to figure out how she needed to tackle this. "If you're in a loving relationship with somebody, they'd know you were a werewolf. It won't matter." she said. "...I'm human, and I'm dating a werewolf."

"That's different," he sighed. "Ransom won't turn into a monster and kill people if you forget to lock him up." While he wouldn't say he was jealous of the born werewolves, he did acknowledge they got the better end of the deal. At least there were perks to what they were. "You know, the guy I talked to? He said I should invest in tranquilizers. Make sure my friends and family have them on hand in case something happens. What's to stop someone from getting sick of me eventually? I mean, you always want love to be forever, but if it's not, what am I supposed to do?"

"I... don't know." Charlotte had to admit, and she absolutely hated herself for it. "But no one you'd be in that serious a relationship with would do that. The people that care about you aren't going to decide they're sick of you. It's just not going to happen."

Gabe wanted to believe it. He really did. However, people had been deserting him his whole life, in one way or another. Even his father had gotten tired of him eventually, which was the whole reason he'd ended up in Marquette in the first place. "It happens," he said sadly, trying to figure out how to accept this without it tearing him apart. "I guess, I just... never let things get that far, right? Not until I'm sure, and they're sure, and..." How could anyone be that sure?

"Maybe you could talk to the guy you met about it." Charlotte offered, feeling pretty low. "Or I could ask Ransom to talk to you about it." And at this point she actually would, she felt bad enough. She felt ill-equipped for this. She was certainly not the person to be talking about love.

"I could talk to him, yeah," Gabe nodded, remembering that Oz had a wife. Now he had questions about how that worked, how he could trust that she would be there for him, since he could do nothing but want her in return. Remembering Charlotte, he gave her a little smile, feeling bad that he'd brought the mood down. "Sorry," he said. "I'm not-- I'm... I don't think this is something you and Ransom need to worry about. I mean, I'm not saying to jump in bed with him or anything, but... if you were to... to go that direction... you'd make things work." It was just something he saw in Charlotte, a wholesome nature that he couldn't shake that told him she wouldn't desert the guy if that's what it came to. Gabe just didn't see him attracting someone like Charlotte to himself.

Charlotte's face went a little pink, but she was trying her best to ignore it. I am not thinking about mating with Ransom. I'm not. "What are you sorry for?" she asked. "I'm sorry. I wanted to give you time to get used to everything else before I dropped this one on you, and I didn't want you to find out alone by reading one of those books. But I know I'm not the best person to talk to about this sort of thing."

"I'd rather hear from you than read it in a book," he agreed, glad that hadn't been the case. At least here, Charlotte was able to keep him somewhat calm, to answer his questions, and be reassuring, even if he didn't know if he believed her. "And it's something I should know. Just in case. Cause I can be stupid about that sort of thing, as I'm sure you've guessed."

"I wouldn't have said stupid." Charlotte offered lamely, along with a small smile. "You're just... a guy. With guy brain and guy instincts that are designed to get you in trouble in human society. Worse when multiplied by high school."

"Are you saying all high school guys think about is sex?" he asked, a little smirk forming on his face. "Cause I'm willing to wager I've had a few decent thoughts in there. Occasionally." And he wondered if she realized her boyfriend was also a high school boy with the same instincts as his own, werewolf or not.

"Not all." Charlotte answered, starting to smirk back. "Just every few seconds. There's spare time in there." She was definitely teasing at this point, and she knew it wasn't that bad. But anything to lighten the mood at this point.

"Just enough time to get some homework done. Answer a few test questions," Gabe smiled. Joking always helped his mood, made it feel no so heavy when he was sure he was going to suffocate. "So... can I ask you something personal?" he said, leaning his elbow against the table, his head in his hand. "I know you haven't been dating Ransom all that long, but... how do you know where to draw the line?" It might've been a good question for Oz, but since he was married, it seemed like something he wasn't worrying about anymore.

Charlotte nodded, slightly dreading the question, but feeling like she owed it to him. There was no hope for her color though, which was quite thoroughly pink. "We haven't really... done a lot." she answered, struggling for the right words. "It's new to both of us so we're kind of taking it slow. Usually..." Wow the ceiling was absolutely fascinating. So was the wall, and the floor, and absolutely anything but Gabe's face. She rubbed the side of her neck that was still faintly marked unconsciously. "Usually we stop things just before I would stop caring about going too far."

"I just didn't know if there's something else I should avoid, since there's a lot you can do that's not-- um. yeah," Gabe said, deciding that talk along those lines really might be better for Oz, even if Charlotte was the closer friend. He was a bit worried that her head might explode, since he was sure he'd never seen her this red before. That was probably because he avoided these subject with her like the plague. "I guess there's something mystical about it. Like the bite."

"Gabe, I know I'm new to this stuff, but I do know that there's a lot of other stuff you can do without actually having sex." Yay, she'd managed not to use the word intercourse this time. Progress. "And I'm pretty sure that the other stuff is safe, otherwise..." Otherwise she was pretty sure Ransom would have said something by now, and holy crap, was she not going down that road right now! Charlotte made a face and propped her chin on her hand, her elbow on the table. "Um. Yeah."

"Just... making sure," Gabe said with a little laugh. "I'm really not the sex fiend I'm sure you think I am." It was just the image he portrayed. And encouraged. And, sure, he fooled around with a lot of girls, but there were guys that did a lot worse and weren't known for it. Gabe was just enough of a flirt that people suspected more went on than actually did.

"I didn't call you a sex fiend." Charlotte said, smirking grudgingly at him. "I'm guessing it's not as bad as you let everyone believe it is - and if I'm wrong, I'm not entirely sure I want to be corrected - but, still." she said. Crap. "...What were we talking about? I've completely lost the topic."

"That's the point," he grinned. "Once you get talking about sex, everything before that gets all fuzzy because it's such a good conversation topic." Now he was definitely teasing, though he also believed that to be the truth. Innocent or not, it seemed to capture everyone's attention long enough to make them forget about the prior topic.

Charlotte scowled for a moment. "If I ever have sex the first person I'm telling is you, so you can want to crawl under a table and die." she informed him. "You are enjoying this far too much."

Gabe laughed, red faced as he sat back in his chair and grinned at her, unable to imagine that actually happening. Her telling him, that was. The crawling under the table might be accurate if she did. "I try so hard not to corrupt you, and then you got and tell me these things. You've gotta let me have a little fun."

"You asked!" Charlotte pointed out, both kind of flustered and kind of amused. "I'm letting you have your fun, I'm just saying! Someday, I will get even. Maybe." Hopefully.

"I'm sure you will," Gabe grinned. "And it'll be so plain on your face, you won't even have to tell me." He knew the look, and it was even worse when love was involved. He couldn't see Charlotte having one without the other.

"I'll call you in the middle of the night then!" Charlotte said. Okay, false threat, but it'd be tempting. "I'll overload you with information you don't want, and it'll serve you right." No, it would probably kill her, but she could pretend.

"I hope that if you're laying in bed with a guy, you don't even think about picking up the phone, let alone calling me," Gabe snickered. "That'll not only give me some kind of an aneurysm, it'll also kill your guy's ego. Always wait till morning to brag. Never right after."

"Oh gee, I'm glad I consulted the expert." Charlotte replied, putting her hand over her red face. "You suck." she said. "Weren't we talking about you? I'm pretty sure we were talking about you."

"You wanna talk about me?" Gabe asked, raising a brow. He had to admit, he was enjoying this. He knew it was wrong, but she didn't seem too off-put and it was helping his mood. "Somehow I think that's much more dangerous territory. Besides, we're a couple years too late for that kind of call."

"Oh my God!" Charlotte blurted out, making another face. "You are going to pay for this. I don't know how, but you totally are. If I have to get freaking Kaysen to help I will." Kaysen was always eager to be an accessory, right? "You are not cute. You're not."

"Oh, now that's not funny," Gabe said, half serious, though he couldn't stop grinning. "Kaysen can be vicious. Or, she was the last time I talked to her." Which had been a while, but when conversations went that poorly Gabe didn't try to repeat them. "Maybe she's the one you should call! Girls can talk about that sort of thing, right?"

Charlotte was trying not to grin. "She'd set you on fire." she confirmed. "You are so mean. If it ever happens it's far, far off anyway, so let's just change the subject here. Brat."

"I'm sure she would," Gabe laughed. He could easily imagine Kaysen going to such extremes, especially for a friend. "You'd be surprised how it can sneak up on you, when you love someone," he said with a little smirk. "But okay, what should we talk about?"

Charlotte was not thinking about that. Was not thinking about that. She refused. But what he said did get her thinking, and she tilted her head to the side. "Have you ever been in love?"

That was a question only girls asked him, never guys. He never had to worry about Kyle sneaking that in on him. Which was probably good, considering what might have followed. Maybe someday he'd tell him. "Yes, but don't tell anyone," Gabe said with a little smile. "You?"

Charlotte rolled her eyes. "Your reputation is safe with me." she said. "And I haven't even been with Ransom for two weeks, give me a little time." She wasn't even sure if she'd know if she loved him, she didn't really know how it worked. "Who?" she asked him.

It wasn't his reputation he was worried about. It was his heart. He didn't like admitting he'd been in love. There was nothing else that made him feel quite so vulnerable. "Her name was Cynthia. We met when I was twelve. My parents had just divorced, and hers were too, and we became best friends. We didn't-- there was never anything official said, but we got together just before my freshmen year." And, God, did he miss her.

Leaning against her hand again, Charlotte smiled softly as he answered. She couldn't help but be a little surprised, she wouldn't have really expected that from Gabe, though she'd feel bad admitting it. "So what happened?" she asked.

"Um," Gabe swallowed, frustrated with the emotions swelling inside of him. There was a reason he didn't talk about Cyn. It was just so hard. "She died. Was killed almost three years ago. November thirteenth." It had been a Friday. He's never been overly superstitious, but that day unnerved him now. It felt cursed, no matter what month it fell under.

Charlotte's face fell, and she felt a bit like she had kicked a puppy. "Gabe, I'm so sorry." she said. That wasn't very far away, either. "Do you... wanna talk about it?"

He shrugged a little and took a deep breath. Sometimes talking helped, sometimes it made it worse. He felt like everything had been harder lately, what with Chrissy's death and his own issues, and that seemed to make him more emotional than ever. "You didn't know," he said, trying to smile for her. "I can talk about her, but I really... I really don't mention her to many people. Claire knows, and my mom, of course, but..." He took a shakey breath, then continued. "I never told her I loved her. I didn't know. We were just... just kids, I guess."

"Maybe she knew anyway." Charlotte offered quietly. "Or does now. Death isn't the end." As was now well known to be fact instead of theory. "Just because you were kids doesn't make it any less special."

"I know," Gabe said, smiling slightly. "Sometimes I still dream of her. Or hear her in my head. I like to think of her as a guardian angel. She's usually the voice that tells me when I'm being an idiot," he laughed softly.

Charlotte smiled at him and nodded. "There you go then. She knows." she decided, like it was really that easy. It wasn't, and she knew that from personal experience with her dad, even if that was a totally different kind of love.

"I like to think so," Gabe smiled back. "She was kinda my first everything, you know? Made me think about things differently after she was gone. What I should've said when I had the chance, or should've done differently. I really-- I really try and live like there's no tomorrow, because you really don't know." He paused, biting his lip, then gave a little laugh. "Didn't really figure that out right away, though. Instead, I just kinda lashed out at everyone."

"You're allowed." she replied, smiling softly. Everyone dealt in their own way. "It sounds like she was good for you, even if you didn't get to have her that long. I'm sure she'd be happy just for that."

"Thanks," Gabe said softly. He did think Cynthia was good for him, both in life and in memory. "She keeps me honest," he said with a little laugh. Like he actually tried not to sleep with girls unless they really meant something to him. Jules had been an exception, an opportunity he couldn't pass up, that he now knew was too good to be true. There was a reason to stay away from things like that, but he supposed he had to screw up once to learn his lesson.

Charlotte had to wonder how he had reacted to the ghosts, and if he had been just as worried about who was one and who wasn't as she had, but she wasn't about to ask. If the idea hadn't entered his head on its own, she was not going to put it there. She knew what emotional torture that was. "So how did you know it was love? Or didn't you until after?"

"That's been a more... recent realization," Gabe said, sliding back in his chair, deciding he needed a glass of water. "Can I get a drink?" he asked as he helped himself, remembering where things were from the Halloween party. "I think it's that feeling that you would do anything for a person. That you want to be with them despite their faults, and you don't expect them to change. That just being around them makes you happy. I know everyone has a different definition, but I think that's what it is for me. If I'm describing it right."

"Of course, sorry." Charlotte said, knowing she should have offered way before now. She was an easily distracted hostess, apparently. Gabe's answer was a little unsettling, like a checklist of things she felt for Ransom, and she determinedly tried to ignore it all. "Have you ever felt that way about anyone else?"

"It's okay," Gabe said, content to help himself to some water. It was a nice distraction and it made him feel better. However, it didn't help him avoid her question. "I have," he said reluctantly. "But I don't believe they return the sentiment."

...Aw, hell. Charlotte mentally half-swore. She should not have asked that. She knew about Claire. I'm an idiot. "I'm sorry." she said, shaking her head. "I ask way too many questions. Just... I... I'm sorry."

"Not your fault," Gabe said with a sad smile. "Kyle warned me. I know better. And it really means this whole mating thing's not a concern at the moment." Because, really, did he have to worry about sleeping with anyone right now? He could barely work up the interest to ask another girl out.

Well, that was one way of looking at it. Charlotte just returned his expression and tried to figure out what the heck to say. "Well, Claire's a sweet girl, but she doesn't have any taste." she offered. "There's someone better for you out there."

"Maybe," Gabe smiled, appreciating her optimism. "I have to admit, I'd be happier if I could find a girl that actually returned my feelings. She doesn't believe in love, and she's dating someone else." Which meant that even if Joshua wasn't in the way, it might still be a one sided relationship in that regard.

"She doesn't?" Charlotte asked, unable to help her surprise. She couldn't imagine not believing in love. She might not recognize it, or worry that she wouldn't, but she knew it existed. She hoped that might change for Claire someday, because it seemed sad to think that it wouldn't, but she didn't think it would help Gabe any by expressing her thoughts. "You'll find someone. If I had a lot of girl-friends I'd hook you up, but I don't. And I probably wouldn't know how to hook someone up anyway."

"No," he said a bit sadly. "I think her parents kind of ruined that for her. She's just really jaded." It was something he'd come to accept, and something he hoped to change, but he knew he couldn't keep his fingers crossed. It was hard to encourage her when it came to love when he had little drive to help her in her current relationship. If he was with her, then... well... things would be different. "All you'd have to do is introduce us," Gabe said with a little smile. "If there's chemistry, usually I can handle it from there. But thanks. I appreciate it."

"Yeah, I'm sure if anyone, you could." Charlotte agreed, smirking faintly. She had no doubts there whatsoever. "Maybe we can find you a girl werewolf." she said, chuckling softly. "That'd make one problem easier."

Gabe grinned, taking that as a complement. He could be charming when he wanted to be and he damn well knew it! "Know any werewolf girls then?" Gabe laughed. "Not that that's a requirement, but you're right, it'd give me one less thing to worry about."

"Just-" Charlotte had started to answer, and realized the only girl werewolf she knew was Jessalyn, and she wasn't about to out her secret. "Well, Ransom has a huge family, but I don't know how old any of his sisters are. And that might be a little weird anyway."

"Don't worry about it," Gabe smiled. "Your boy doesn't need me chasing after his sisters, and I'm not in a hurry to make my life more difficult than it already is. I just need to make an effort to meet new people-- which reminds me! What do you know about ghosts?" he asked. It was part of the reason he'd dropped by and he'd gone and forgotten!

Ghosts. Charlotte frowned and tried to sort the information in her head for priority. "I did a lot of research on Halloween night, and... well, subsequently ending up getting myself grounded for the first time ever the next day... I'd never read much about them before they started appearing though, so I don't know how much of it is accurate and what's just... loonies. Like what kind of stuff?"

"You got yourself grounded?" Gabe said, shocked that Charlotte could even manage to do such a thing. He shouldn't be, but he just couldn't imagine her getting into trouble. That was something that would take some work on his part to change. "Anything, I guess. I met a ghost last night, and she was really sweet, and I just felt like I should do some reading."

Charlotte gave a sheepish smile and nodded. "My mom took away my car." she said. "But she let me go out yesterday. I don't think she really knows how to ground me, but I'm not complaining. I kinda took off for a day on a fourteen plus hour road trip and didn't tell her until I was already gone. Just me and one of the dogs." God, she could still hear her mom yelling at her for that. "Well... from what I gather, ghosts are usually people who died before their time - sudden deaths or violent deaths, accidents, murders... people with unfinished business... that kind of thing."

"I can't believe you skipped school to take a road trip!" Gabe grinned, temporarily distracted from their conversation about ghosts to think of how many different things Charlotte did to get herself in trouble in one day. "Your mom must've freaked! Did you go anywhere interesting?" He wondered where he would go if he could do the same. Now that he had a car, it was something to think on. "Your mom really doesn't know how to ground you if all she did was take away your car. I'd have been denied all social activities for a week, no wheels, no visitors."

Charlotte smiled back, but it had a sad quality to it she still couldn't quite fight off. "Not really. I went to Auburn Hills, where I lived before, in the LP. Um... I went to see if my dad was a ghost." she explained. "He wasn't. But I didn't get back until three AM and my mom was furious. So she took my keys and said I was stuck at home, but yesterday she let me go out with Ransom."

"Oh... I'm sorry," Gabe said, his expression mirroring hers. That wasn't the kind of road trip he wanted to take. He'd thought about it, lost sleep over it, but couldn't bring himself to drive to New Jersey just to find out his first love was really dead. Or worse, what if she wasn't? He knew if she wasn't it would break his heart. It was part selfishness that kept him away. "Well, at least you got some time with your boy toy," he smiled. "She can't be too mad at you."

Charlotte smiled awkwardly and nodded. "I went to Lullaby's grave too, but she wasn't there. I didn't look anywhere else for her, I figured if she came back we would hear about it. It's better everyone rests in peace probably, anyway." At his comments, she blushed and smiled a bit. "Yeah, I guess. The day before he came over here, so if nothing else she was allowing visitors."

The mention of Lullaby caught him off guard and Gabe faintly remembered that they had been friends. He hadn't known Charlotte then. Hadn't even been aware of her really. But he'd seen them around, remembered her at Lullaby's funeral. Words caught in his throat and again Gabe wished that there didn't have to be secrets among friends. "Maybe," Gabe said, attempting to conceal his discomfort. He'd never lied to Charlotte and he didn't want to start. "So, wait, you're seeing the boy on an everyday basis?" Gabe asked with a little smirk.

Gabe had seemed a little odd at the mention of Lullaby, but Charlotte didn't think much of it. It wasn't a happy subject. Her attention lingered on the teasing instead, and she initially sputtered for a response. "Not... every day..." she said, lamely. Yeah, not very convincing.

The teasing was easier for Gabe to handle and he went that direction rather than risk getting himself in trouble. Maybe he'd tell Charlotte about Lullaby, but he needed to think about it. He didn't want to stir things up again. "But two nights in a row," he smiled. "And I bet you want to see him tonight. Might as well get him a room over here."

Ah screw it, if he was going to tease her she might as well go along with it and try to shock him. "He can just use mine." she said, easily enough. "He's snuggly. I wouldn't mind sharing my bed." Which... yeah, a little too true there.

"You--! I--! Okay, you win," Gabe laughed, the hint of a blush creeping up his cheeks. He really couldn't believe Charlotte had just said that! "Snuggle with your boy, but I don't wanna hear about anything else you do in your bed."

Charlotte grinned triumphantly, even if her cheeks were a little pink. Success! "See what happens when you tease me? You may end up with a lot more information than you actually want." she said, laughing. "...For the record, he's never seen my room. Just so we're clear on that."

"Yeah, yeah," Gabe grinned. "I just tend to place you along the same lines as my baby sister-- as few details as necessary, unless I need to know to help out." He was getting better about it, sure, but imagining Charlotte in any kind of sexual relationship was still difficult and a touch disturbing. "For the record, a bedroom isn't necessary to get into trouble."

Charlotte smirked a bit as she leaned against her hand again. "For the record, I'm well aware." Couches were great for trouble. Though she was pretty sure her kind of trouble was light years more tame than Gabe's kind of trouble.

Gabe snickered, smirking. "Greaaaat. Just what I needed to hear. I'm sure you'll be making use of that information well before I will." Which didn't bother him so much when he was just kidding with Charlotte. Sure, it was nice fooling around with a girl, but when he had his eye on someone that made it difficult to summon false interest in someone else.

Charlotte could have gone on and embarrassed-slash-teased him more, but she would have been embarrassing herself just as much. She'd done enough. "You never know." is all she said on it. "I'll be on the look out for a girl werewolf for you."

"Thanks," Gabe said, smiling now. "Maybe I'll take an interest in her if you find her. You never know." Some things would be easier, sure, but he couldn't promise he'd love someone. If he'd had control over his heart, he'd never have put it in this position in the first place.