“What’s so funny?” He asked me.
“Everything, Callum. It’s all so incredibly surreal and this is incredibly awkward but I’m going to ask anyway.”
“Okay, shoot,” he said, still laughing.
“Can I sleep up there with you? Right next to you, that is? And before you turn me down...” I started but he interrupted me.
“Come here,” he said.
I climb up to his side of the pallet and get underneath my blanket again, the very thin blanket that still separated our skin.
“I’ve never slept with anyone before,” I stupidly say.
This makes him laugh and suddenly I’m extraordinarily grateful that it was dark because I’m sure my face lit up like a Christmas tree.
“Neither have I.”
“I meant that I’ve never literally gone to sleep with someone.” I paused. “Actually, I’ve never slept with anyone before, either,” I admitted, staring up at an invisible ceiling.
I heard him turn toward me. “Neither have I,” he admitted.
“Seriously?”
“Really,” he said, “and this is incredibly embarrassing to admit to anyone, especially a hottie, but I figure, what the hell, I’m lying next to you shirtless and that’s about as intimate as one can get with a stranger, I think. Or, you know what I mean.
“Anyway, I’ve never done anything because I just feel like it’s the one part of myself that I still have control over. I have nothing to give anyone, really. It’s the one gift I can give that has any kind of value. It makes me feel worthy.”
I couldn’t believe what I’d just heard. I mean, I struggled a little after the hottie part, of course, because Callum had this school boy effect on me and all. He thinks I’m pretty, I stupidly and giddily admitted to myself. I stayed quiet for a moment just absorbing what he’d said before answering. “I think that is just about the sexiest thing I think has ever come out of a man’s mouth,” I blurted.
“Are you sure?” He asked. “Because you’ve never seen me spit to hit a mark.”
“See, now you just killed it.”
Callum snorted. “I think you’re the only person on this planet that seems to agree with me on that particular subject,” he joked.
“Not at all, dork. I can think of a million girl’s names right here and now that would be right there with you.”
“But not you?” He boldly asked.
“Callum Tate! I’m riding the v-train with you, aren’t I? Got the ticket and everything. Gotta’ admit, it’s the slowest and most boring train ride ever but, sheesh, I know the destination will be worth it. Give me a little credit, will ya’?”
“Alright, alright,” he laughed. “I’m sorry. It’s just, we’re sort of a unique pair, the two of us.”
“I know,” I said. “You just gained a heck of a lot of respect from me. You know that?”
“Same here, Harper Bailey. You’re an enigma.”
“In more ways than one,” I said.
“So, do you want to do it?” He asked.
“Callum!” I screamed, laughing. My face turned another shade of red. Like I said, thank God for the dark.
He laughed. “I’m joking! I’m joking!” He said, laying flat, tucking his hands behind his head.
I turned to face him and felt his breath move my hair. Callum surprised me by reaching out and tucking it behind my ear but doesn’t return the hand behind his head like it was before. Instead, he laid his left hand on my own and we drift off to sleep, each lulled by the warmth of a sincere body.
The next morning, I woke groggily to quiet and pitch black but Callum’s hand wasn’t on my own. I instinctively reached out but it continued on to the end of the pallet. He’s gone. I sat up, wondering why Callum would have left for his advisor meeting without me. Deciding to stand, I stretched and lifted myself up to search for the light switch, fumbling along the wall for the raised plastic rectangle. In my haste to find the switch, I forgot to feel around at my feet and ran into something hard, falling to my knees.
“Crap!” I said, my hand going to my right knee. My fingers come back warm and wet. Bleeding, great. I hobbled toward the door but before I could reach it, it opened, revealing a casually dressed Callum. I take note that t-shirts and jeans should be his clothing of choice, regardless the occasion. I’d marry that t-shirt and jeans, I thought to myself. Wait a minute. Where did that come from? He strode in and flipped on the light. I squinted my eyes at the sudden brightness.
“Sorry, I didn’t wake you, did I?” He asked, then noticed me bleeding. “Oh, crap!” He set down the cups of coffee and bag he was carrying on the table with our clothing and knelt at my level. “You okay? Here.” He grabbed his bath towel and pressed it lightly against the small laceration.
“It’s really not that bad,” I offered, slightly embarrassed but growing fascinated by the masculine hand still at my knee. Callum surprises me by taking my hand but before I can read too much into it, he replaces his hand with mine.
“Keep pressure on it,” he said, before standing and spinning toward, what I assumed, was our cooling breakfast.
He reached for the bag and pulled out two bagels and cream cheese.
“I hope you like bagels,” he smirked.
“I like them. You did good, Callum.”
“How do you take your coffee?” He asked.
I don’t have the heart to tell him that I don’t actually drink coffee. I’m a tea kinda’ girl but at the risk of ruining a lovely breakfast I say, “sugar and cream, please.” I can drink it, I just don’t like it all that much.
We sit in companionable silence sipping our coffee, well, he was sipping, I was gulping to get rid of it, and eating our bagels.
“Your hair looks fabulous, by the way,” he teases.
A deep flush creeps up my neck and settles smack dab on my heated cheeks. I quickly stand and cross the room to the glass above the soundboard, smoothing out my crazy locks, attempting to tame them into a somewhat normal style.
“I didn’t say I didn’t like, Harper. Sit down,” he laughed. I sit but smooth my hands down the part and twisted the length around my hand. “Seriously Harper, it’s sexy as hell. Stop messing.”
I blush yet again. I didn’t know what it was with this boy. He said flirtatious things with such confidence I questioned whether or not it affected him as his words implied.
“So, I thought we could head to the university in a few minutes. My appointment’s at nine fifteen,” he said, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. Oh God, he’s going to bow out. “Did you...Did you still want to come with me?”
“Uh, only if you want me to,” I answered, suddenly interested in how well the cut on my knee was scabbing up. He didn’t answer right away so I glanced up.
Callum furrowed his eyebrows. “Why wouldn’t I want you to come? I invited you, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, it’s just, sometimes people change their minds,” I answered, shrugging my shoulders.
“Well, not this person. So, get dressed already. You’re gonna’ make me late,” he playfully snapped.
I hopped up and grabbed my belongings. I decided it was probably a good idea to shower again as the summer heat would dry my hair quickly and I could tame the dried creases from the night before.
When I was dressed, my wet hair combed out, I decided to put a little bit of what was left over from my makeup stash. It wasn’t much and had dwindled considerably but it was all I had to work with so I ended up improvising a lot. Like, I didn’t have eye liner so I took an old wine cork from my old foster parent’s house, wasn’t hard as they peppered their flooring like confetti. I would take a lighter and burn the ends. I’d use the burnt charcoal to line my eyes and it worked perfectly, giving them a nice, smoky effect. Also, I had this reddish liquid eye shadow, which looked hideous on the eyes but worked nicely as blush. I topped it all off with mascara and some lip gloss.
I study myself in the mirror. Not bad, Bailey. You may impress him after all. I shook my head as if to clear the stupid idea. I hauled butt down the hall to an awaiting Callum, complete with both our bags, packed and ready. I didn’t even want to think about the fact that he had to touch my underwear, how embarrassing. I met him and he immediately took my hand, leading me down the hall.
“What about your motorcycle?” I asked.
He looked at me and smiled. “You look amazing, by the way.” I blushed, again. See! Oh hush, Harper! “I’m leaving my bike here because, well, unfortunately I have no idea where we’ll be staying tonight and would rather leave it locked up here. We can take the subway.”
Sure enough, the five minute walk in the sun to the tunnels dried my hair into its natural waves and by the time we crossed the turn styles it was full and met my elbows again. We squeezed through the crowd and stood side by side awaiting the subway, pushing through the doors quickly as it pulled into the station. Callum and I were forced to sit in between two men so I squeezed as closely to him as possible to avoid touching the guy next to me. I noticed that he kept eyeing me strangely so I snuggled even closer to Callum. Callum swept the hair from the right side of my face and grinned.
“You okay?”
“Mmm, hmm. So, what is this meeting all about, anyway?” I said, trying to distract us both.
“My advisor has some stuff for me to go over and sign. It should only take a few minutes.”
“Cool,” I said, but I was having a hard time concentrating because the creepy guy next to me pushed his thigh into mine. I looked up at him and shook my head but he just smiled. I turned my attention back to Callum. “Why do you want me to go with you so badly?”
“Because, I think the reason you, and I quote, ‘can’t go to college’, is because you’re intimidated and unsure what to do. I just want you to talk with Sylvia and maybe, just maybe, she can enlighten you and I’m hoping you’ll change your mind.”
Creepy guy decided that his right hand should be resting on his thigh where his pinkie just happened to find its way to my leg. He started making lazy circles with it across my jeans.
“Stop it,” I ordered him, slightly over confident since I had enormous Callum sitting next to me.
“Stop what?” Callum asked, confused.
“Oh nothing. Hey, can we stand? I don’t feel like sitting anymore.”
“Uh, sure,” he said, standing up and taking my hand. No sooner had I stood than two women holding groceries took our seats. There was really no place else to stand because the car was crowded and we’re forced to hold the ceiling hand rails next to Creepy. The car shifts back and forth, causing the occupant behind me to accidentally fall into me. My nose pressed firmly against Callum’s chest and I got a hefty dose of fresh laundry.
“Sorry,” the patron offered.
“No biggie,” I said, non-chalantly checking my bag for missing items and finding everything in its place. I looked into Callum’s eyes and see that they’re twinkling with mischief. “What?”