The Hardest Path

It was only when Liam got into the shopping district that a cold weight settled in the pit of his stomach. When he returned home, his lovely sister would not hesitate to put several large bruises on various areas of his body, that much was certain. Though she'd die before letting anyone else lay a hand on him, the lovely Rhiana was most likely her older brother's greatest disciplinarian. In an effort to placate her, and hopefully put a stop to any punishment, Liam pulled his car to the curb in front of a friendly-looking little chocolate shop. He hadn't been here before, which seemed a grave oversight once he stepped inside. Cozy was the first word that came to his mind as he looked around, noting that the shop was rather small, with strings of what appeared to be white Christmas lights looped upon each wall. Just below each loop of lights hung a poster, some of bands he'd never heard of, others of movies he'd never seen. It struck Liam then, that he was overworked and needed to get out more. His thoughts returned to his no doubt very angry sister. It was doubtful that Liam would even be able to go to the bathroom by himself for the next week, let alone go out.

Deciding to enjoy his freedom while he could, the tall man approached the long glass display case, leaning carefully against it. A woman immediately rushed over, smiling in a way that showed off a perfect dimple in each rosy cheek. Charmed, Liam smiled back at her, his blue eyes raising to lock onto the most amazing pair of seafoam green eyes he'd ever seen, framed by long black eyelashes. "Can I help you, sir?" Snapping out of his daze, Liam felt an unfamiliar flush touch his cheeks as he realized he'd been staring at the poor woman.

"Ah...I...I wanted to get a box of truffles for my sister. A rather large box, if you have one." As she nodded, she said something about putting together an assortment. Honestly, Liam barely heard her, too caught up in the sway of her shoulder-length hair, so black it shone almost blue in the sunlight streaming in through the shop's front window. Leaning over the counter in a manner his mother would have called most undignified, Liam continued to watch the woman, noting that she was just a slip of a girl, really, at least a foot shorter than him.

When she came back to him, bearing a box full of a variety of truffles, Liam swallowed hard as he reached for his wallet. He knew what he wanted to ask, and had no idea why such a simple question seemed to be stuck to the back of his throat. After clearing his throat so many times that the object of his interest asked him if he needed a cough drop, Liam finally managed to push the unwilling question out. "I was wondering if you had a name. What am I saying, of course you have a name. I wanted to ask what it is. Ah, uhm. What is your name?"

More embarassed than he could ever remember being, he slapped his money down on the counter, hoping to put the entire encounter behind him as soon as he left the shop. To his pleased surprise, as the shop girl picked up his money and began making change, she laughed quietly and smiled up at him. "Charity. My name is Charity." Once again, he found himself smiling back, and introduced himself as Liam Kagailas, waiting for the light of recognition to dawn in her eyes, inevitably followed by her distancing herself from him in a sick sort of awe. Charity continued to smile as she pushed his box across the counter to him, reaching beside the register to grab a pen and paper. He waited patiently as she scribbled something down and tore the paper away, offering it to him. Upon it was her name and telephone number, which he readily pocketed.

Liam had opened his mouth to say something else when his cell rang, startling him. Dreading it, he pulled his phone from his pocket and looked at it. Rhiana. He thought about not answering, but as the ringing went on and on, he sighed and flipped the phone open, holding it to his ear just in time to hear a stream of swearing. Grimacing as he waited for his sister to calm a bit, Liam gave Charity an apologetic smile, mouthing the word 'sister'. She nodded in understanding and turned to serve another customer. Only half focused on Rhiana's angry shouting, he managed to catch her shrieking, "Get your ass home now! Right now!"

"I will," he replied automatically.

"Call me!" Charity mouthed at the same time.

"I definitely will," Liam murmured with a grin as he left the shop.




A/N:Whoo, Liam! You're such a studmuffin. Or not, you dorkfish. Anyway, no one worry! This is all just set-up for the main story. It's not even about Liam. Or Charity. Bear with me, and the het-ness of it all. I promise you much juicy slash in the future. Do review!