~Charle's POV~
I pulled up to Emily's house, the engine of my beat-up Honda rumbling to a stop in the driveway. The afternoon sun beat down on the suburban street, casting long shadows from the palm trees lining the block. It was one of those urban neighborhoods where the houses were close enough to hear your neighbors arguing, but everyone pretended they had privacy.
My heart was pounding, not just from the drive, but from the knot in my stomach. Emily and I had been together for three years, ever since college, but the last fight had been brutal. Some bullshit about me working too much and her feeling neglected. I needed to fix it, to see her face and talk it out before it turned into something we couldn't come back from.
I grabbed the bouquet of roses from the passenger seat... red
