Calum's POV
I get up 30 minutes before my alarm rings. And I can’t fall asleep. All I’m thinking is if it was a good idea to drive Addie to school. I mean, I have to pick up Marissa. She won’t be happy about this. I get up, and take my thoughts with me in the shower.
After I get dressed and ready, I go to my window and see Addie’s door open again. I smile. She really needs to start closing that thing.
I come downstairs. My mom made muffins last night, so I grab two, put on my shoes, my hoodie and put my backpack over one shoulder. I check my pockets for my car keys, phone and wallet. Everything there.
I walk to Addie’s door, and knock, before pushing it open.
“Addie” I call for her, announcing that I’m in her room.
“Hope this breaking and entering doesn’t become a habit” She says, putting some hair product in her wet hair.
“Again, it was opened” I say, and lean on the door frame “You really need to close and lock this door. Anyone can walk in” I smirk. She playfully rolls her eyes, and goes back in her bathroom.
When she finally comes out, her hair is loose, falling around her shoulders and chest. She puts books in her backpack, and goes out of her room. I wait.
When she comes back, she has her shoes on, and a light jacket.
“Kay, I’m ready” She says, and I step outside. She follows me and locks her door. We walk in silence to my car. She gets in the passenger seat, and I laugh to myself, thinking about the little scene Marissa will cause.
I turn on the engine and then turn to her.
“Oh, I almost forgot” I say and hand her a muffin. “I got you breakfast. My mom makes really nice muffins” She looks surprised, and takes the muffin covered in a paper towel.
“Thank you” she says, and takes a bite “This is a really nice muffin” She says, and I laugh.
I drive off. She smells really nice. My whole car smells of her scent – almonds and vanilla. Weird combination, but it smells really nice. I stop in front of Marissa’s house and it takes her a moment to understand where we are.
“I always pick her up at this time” I say, a little guilty for not telling her sooner.
“It’s okay” she says, biting in her muffin. I take out my phone and see that I actually am a few minutes late. And then I call her. It almost goes to voicemail, but she picks up on the last ring.
“Hey” She says.
“Hey, I’m in front of your house” I say. She is silent “Marissa?”
“yeah I’m here” she says “Um, I don’t feel really good, so I’m gonna stay home” she says. It’s really quiet.
“Do you want me to bring you something?” I ask. Not because I want to bring her anything, but just to see what she says.
“No, no I’m good. I’m just gonna sleep it off. Thank you, thought.” I can almost see the fake smile.
“Okay well…hope you get better” I say, and then we say our goodbyes.
I drive off.
“Is she not coming?” Addie asks.
“No” I shortly answer. I feel like she is lying to me. At least that’s what my gut feeling tells me.
She doesn’t press me.
“The weather sucks” She says. I am glad she changes the subject. I don’t know if she sensed that I didn’t want to talk about it or what, but I feel like I should thank her. But I don’t. That would be weird.
“Yeah. They said it was gonna rain all week” I reply.
“That blows. I wanted to go to the beach this week” She says and crosses her arms in front of her.
“You can still go to the beach. It’s nice to take a swim when it’s raining” I say and grin at her. She laughs and shrugs.
“Anyway” She says “Mikey was talking about skipping school after lunch. You in?”
I don’t know why this offends me. Mostly because Mikey didn’t ask me, she did, but also it’s because Mikey made plans with her.
“Who else is coming?” I ask. My mood changes and I really hope she doesn’t notice.
“Well, Luke if we convince him. I think we’re gonna go at Ash’s maybe? I don’t know” She answers.
“Ash has work” I say quickly. She looks at me weird. “But yeah, I don’t know. Maybe” I say. I really want to go, though.
“You have until lunch to make up your mind” She says as I park in front of school. We both get out. I am a little paranoid that Marissa’s friend will see me with Addie, because they will take it out on her. And then I’ll have a fight with Marissa which will take up too much time of my day. And Addie notices.
“No need to hide me” She says, walking a few steps ahead of me “I’ll be out of your way” she says. She sounds a bit mad at me. But before I can say anything, I see Luke. He doesn’t see me, and starts walking with Addie. I feel like an outsider again.

Addie’s POV

Yeah, I’m not gonna let him treat me like that.
Luke approaches me from my left.
“Morning.” He says. He is holding a science book in his hands.
“What’s up” I say, deleting Calum from my mind. Or trying to, at leas.t
“I am so tired, I am considering sleeping in the cleaning closet” He says.
“Perfect!” I say, and he looks at me like I’m crazy. I laugh “No, no! It’s just , me and Mikey were talking about skipping school after lunch. So like, you can come, and we’ll go somewhere and we’ll sleep because I did not sleep well last night!” I say. I, yet again, woke up in the middle of the night. I don’t remember my nightmares, just the feeling of running for my life or something.
After a moment Luke replies “Yeah okay. But where are we gonna go?”
“Dunno. I’m kinda new here, so you tell me” I say. He laughs and says that he’ll think of something. Then we separate for our classes.
They are slow and painful and I almost fall asleep in second period. Aggie looks at me weird, because I didn’t walk to school, and I don’t think she knows that Calum gave me a lift. Let’s just keep it that way.
Calum. Ughhhh! I feel so conflicted. One moment I feel like we are getting somewhere, that we are becoming friends, and the next I feel like I cannot even handle being around him because he irritates me. Can he make up his mind already.
And all this confliction leads to me feeling guilty about not telling him that I know for sure that Marissa and Stephen are hooking up, and that Marissa lied to him this morning. She wasn’t sick, she was staying over at Stephen’s and probably they’ll spend the whole day together doing ungodly things. It’s not my place to meddle.
The bell for lunch finally rings, and I meet Calum on the stairs. Thankfully, Luke is with him.
“You coming?” Luke asks him. They see me approach “We can go to my place. There’s no one there.”
Calum looks at me and he looks as if he is seriously thinking of saying no. And I think it’s because of me. Lol, ok I don’t care.
“Ready?” Mikey comes out of nowhere. We are blocking the stairs a bit. Oh well…
“Yeah” I say, and smile at him. Calum looks at us and then looks down, still contemplating.
“Cal, you coming?” Mikey asks him. He looks at me then at Mikey.
“I don’t think so” He finally says and starts walking downstair. Luke and Mikey exchange a look.
“Why? Come on” Mikey follows him.
“I don’t want to skip this year as much as I did last year” he says, not facing Mikey.
“We both know that’s not gonna happen. Come on, what’s the real reason?” He asks, and they are too far and speak in low voices, so I don’t know what they are saying. At one point I just hear Mikey say “Seee??? Come on”
“I swear if he ditches us for Marissa, I will stab him in his sleep” Luke says, in a low voice, so no one, but me, hears it.
“Give him a break” I say. Why on earth am I defending him? Luke gives me a strange look, as if asking the same question. “She’s sick, she’s not in school, and I think he doesn’t believe that she is really sick” I say. Luke’s eyes spark.
“Hey Cal” He says, and goes down a couple of steps. Calum turns to him. He glances at me, but I look away.
“Yeah?” He says, a little tired. There isn’t anyone around us anymore.
“Addie just told me that Marissa is sick.” Luke says. Mikey is looking at Calum, but Calum is looking at me.
“And?” He says, a bit annoyed.
“If you want, you can like bring her tea and then we can go to my place and we can sleep.” He says, and puts his hands in his pockets. Mikey nods as if agreeing with Luke. Calum looks at me, and then his shoulders drop.
“Fine” He says. Mikey looks pleased, and Luke taps him on the shoulders.
“Alright, let’s go before the principal catches us.
We go down the stairs and into the parking lot. We all get into his car. Mikey and Luke sit in the back, and I am forced to sit in the front with Calum. We stop by at a coffee shop and Calum get’s ginger tea, Marissa’s favorite apparently, and we drive to her house. He turns off the engine and goes out of the car.
“I’ll be back in a minute” he says. He has an unsure smile on his face. Like he doesn’t know if this is the right thing to do. I wonder if he somehow knew that she was at Stephen’s.
“Alright, imam sleep through them eating their faces” Mikey says, singing into his seat. Luke laughs and they start commenting on how gross they are when they make out, and I feel a bit uncomfortable.
Minutes pass, and Calum is still standing outside her door. And then he comes back. The tea still in his hand.
“Was she too sick to open the door?” Luke jokes, and Mikey laughs. I don’t. I know where she is. Why am I not saying anything.
“There was no one home” Calum says in a way that you say something when you end a discussion. Luke and Mikey exchange a look, and I don’t dare look at Calum. I feel even guiltier now.
“Maybe she is at the doctor?” Mikey says. I know he doesn’t believe that. He is just saying it to make Calum feel better. I don’t think it worked because his jaw clenched. He said nothing.
We drive to Luke’s house in silence. As predicted, no one was home, and we all went inside.
“Mom comes back from work at four” he says. We all go to Luke’s room because Luke and Mikey want to play on the PlayStation. I sit on Luke’s bed, my feet crossed. I look around his room. It’s very…boyish. The bed isn’t that big, and it’s in the middle. On the right of it, under the windows, there is a tv set and a PlayStation. A small desk is right next to the bed. On the left side of it, there is a small night stand and his wardrobe. There are posters of bands and there are pictures of him and friend and family on his walls.
Calum lies down next to me. The bed sinks where his weight is pressing on the mattress, and I fall into him a bit.
I talk with Luke and MIkey a little, before Luke is, as he said, dying of sleep deprivation, and decides to bring a mattress from the storage room, and put it on the ground. Him and Mikey cuddle up together. I just then realize that I have to lie with Calum on the same bed.
I turn the other way, and close my eyes, waiting to fall into dream world. But I don’t. I’m too aware of Calum’s steady breathing behind me, and, because the bed is small, and not built for two, I can feel the hot breath on the back of my neck. I find it surprisingly soothing, but still, my senses are exploding and I feel his presence even though we are not touching.
“You awake?” I hear his voice, barely a whisper. I say nothing not knowing if he is talking to me or Mikey or Luke. He let’s out a deep breath.
“Yeah” I say after a few moments. Mikey and Luke are already sleeping.
I turn to face Calum, and find his face incredibly close to mine. His breath smells like mints. I hope mine doesn’t smell bad.
He notices the close distance between us, so he backs his head a bit. I can still feel the hot of his breath on my cheek.
He looks at me, and then pass me, like is not looking at me, but through me.
“You okay?” I ask, not knowing what else to say. He shrugs. I think I know what’s up. “I’m sure she is okay” I say. Not a total lie.
“I know she lied to me” he says. He is whispering. It’s like he doesn’t want to admit this. I get it. I don’t say anything, and then he continues “She sounded weird on the phone, and then she wasn’t home…and Stephen wasn’t in school” I hold my breath. Ok, tell him. Now is the time.
“Do you think they are together?” I ask. That didn’t turn out the way I wanted.
“I think they skipped school together. I just don’t get why she lied…” He says. He is looking at my lips now. I’ve been biting my lower lip, I realize. I stop it, and his eyes look into mine.
“I have something to tell you” I say. “But not here” Ugh, I’m staling.
“Then where?” he says, propping himself on his elbow.
“Can we go downstairs?” I say. He nods, and we tip-toe to the door, and then we go in the living room.
We get to the living room sooner than I expected, and I haven’t prepared how I’m going to tell him. I feel horrible for not telling him earlier. Here it goes.
“She is with Stephen now.” I say. He looks at me.
“Yeah, I figured” He says, as if he is explaining it to me.
“No” I stop him before he can continue “I mean, I know for sure that she is with Stephen right now” I say. He looks at me, waiting for me to elaborate.
“What do you mean?” He asks.
“Yesterday, my sister was with them at Stephen’s, and it started raining. She planned on leaving with Marissa, but Marissa decided to stay the night, and Aggie had to walk home alone, in the rain, drunk. Marissa never came home. She’s not sick. She’s at Stephen’s” I finish.
Calum looks at his hands. He picks his nails before he says, “Why didn’t you tell me?” His voice is so low, I don’t know if I imagined that question.
“I am telling you now” I say, crossing my arms. I feel guilty enough, Calum. No need to add onto that.
“I’ve been feeling like shit all day because I didn’t know if she was lying to me or not” He says, and then looks at me. He really is hurt by this.
“Well, I’m telling you now” I say. I don’t know what else to say. He nods, and looks down again.
“I need so me air” he says, and starts to get up. Tell him about the fact that Marissa and Stephen fuck each other on a regular basis, Addie.
“Wait” I say, he stands looking at me. He looks so hurt and lost. I feel horrible telling him this. But I feel like I have to. “Talk to me” I say. Not what I wanted, but I don’t want to drop a bomb. I want to prepare him for it.
“Why?” he says. I think he is scared of what else I might know. “I don’t need your pity, Addie” he says.
“I’m not giving you my pity, I’m just telling you what I know.” I say, standing up. I felt small when he was the only one standing. He shakes his head, like I am the one at fault here. “I’m not trying to ruin your relationship, Calum-“ I say, but before I can finish my sentence he cuts me off.
“You are kinda doing that anyway” he says. Our eyes meet.
“Excuse me?” I say, slowly. Everything I say next, I need to measure and say with precision. “Last time I checked, you’re the one who wanted to give me a lift to school, and who brought me a muffin and who can’t seem to stay away from me!” I say. Okay, that was low, but I am angry with him. I just wanted to tell him that his girlfriend is cheating on him and he accuses me of ruining his relationship.
“So glad to know how you feel about this” He says. He doesn’t drop my gaze. Neither do I.
“You’re the one with the mixed feelings, Calum.” I say. Not entirely true. He scoffs. “ One day you want to be my friend and have that ‘Marissa has to deal with it’ attitude, the next you are scared to be seen with me in the same car on school grounds, as if Marissa’s pack going to attack.” I say. He stares at me. “I am not intimidated by Marissa or her pack, and I don’t care about them. You’re the one who does. You’re the one who is scared of her-“
“I’m not scared of her” He cuts me off.
“Really, Calum? Because I honestly doubt that” I say, immediately after him. He says nothing. He finally drops his gaze. Staring competition: won.
“What is going on down here? You guys are so loud” Mikey says. When did he come in the living room? His green hair is spiking everywhere. Bed hair. So cute.
“I was leaving” Calum says. I ignore Mikey.
“Of course you are. You always ignore your problems instead of dealing with them, right?” I scoff. Calum turns so fast that it takes me a second to realize that he is standing one centimeter awy from me, our noses almost touching. I don’t move.
“You’re my problem, Addie!” He says. And I think he is going to say something else, but he doesn’t. He glances at my lips, then at Michael behind me, who, without a doubt, is frozen and confused, and then he backs away. “I’m leaving.”
“Cal, mate…” Mikey says, following him, while glancing at me like wtf happened?!
They go outside, Mikey barely catching up to Cal, and the door closes. I want to scream. I want to go after Calum and scream in his face how pathetic he is being! And how blind he is being. But I don’t. I just sit on the couch again, and stare at the window. I can see Mikey and Calum outside. Their conversation is heated.
I go in Luke’s room and lie down on his bed. Luke is asleep on the floor.
The pillow smells of Calum, and I wonder when did I start recognizing Calum’s smell. I hear Michael come back, but not Calum. I hear him come in the room, but he sees me sleeping, and then he lets out a loud breath before he gets his bag and goes back outside.
After that, I hear a Calum’s car driving off. I lie awake until it’s time for school to end, then I wake Luke up and tell him that I have to go home. He nods, and says bye before getting up on his bed.
I go out and start walking home.

Notes

Hey guys. Time for a late night update, woo!
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