A Surprise ⇢ Callum Ilott

THIRTYTWO

The eyes of Catherine were focussed on the TV, a new detective show was on. She was glad the kids were asleep, they were staying over for the night as well. Catherine loved having children around her, but it was exhausting to have three of them around at the same time. They were like small bombs of energy.

The bell of the porch rang. Catherine looked at the hallway; who could stop by at 22:30? She got up from the couch and walked towards the device.

"Yes?" Catherine said when she pressed on the button.

It couldn't be her best friend, Kat was in Iceland for work. It couldn't be het family, they wouldn't be here in the late evening. Perhaps it was George, but nah... Catherine didn't see a reason why he would visit her a day before they were supposed to meet up.

"Hey, it's Callum. Err... Can we talk?" The deep voice of Callum filled the hallway.

Catherine's eyes rounded and panic flowed through her body. "Uhm, yes, I will open the door," she said and opened the porch door. She opened the door to her flat.

"Yes, thanks," Callum said and entered the apartment building.

What was he doing here? Catherine ran both her hands through her hair and walked around in the hallway. So many scenarios were going through her mind. She looked in the mirror and made sure she looked fine.

The door carefully got pushed open, and Callum appeared in the door opening. "Hey," he said.

Catherine's eyes shot up, and she pressed a smile on her face. "Hi, come on in," she said. "I have children sleeping in my bedroom, so we have to be quiet," she warned him.

He nodded. "Of course," he smiled and took off his coat and shoes.

"It's cold outside, isn't it?" Catherine walked to the living room. She took a deep breath and bit on the inside of her cheek. What the hell happened? "I just made some tea, do you fancy a cup?" Why did he look so good?

Callum followed her and ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah, the weather is getting darker and darker," he said. "I would love to have a cup of tea, thank you."

"You can have a seat on the couch, make yourself comfortable, please," she said and got Callum a cup of tea. "And don't mind the mess. I know if I tide it up, it will look the same tomorrow."

"It's fine, don't worry."

A small smile curved on her lips and she walked back to the couch, giving Callum his cup of tea. Catherine sat down next to him, and she took a small sip from her own cup of tea.

"Thank you," he said. "So, erm, what you did for my little sister this afternoon... She cannot stop talking about it," Callum said and softly smirked afterwards.

"No problem," Catherine replied. "I remember when I was little, and I would lose my parents...most terrifying moments of my life. Your sister acted so calm, of course, she was in a panic, but it was different."

"Saskia can act pretty chill, but I know she is losing her shit on the inside," Callum said. "Who were those children? I know someone is Thomas..."

Catherine nodded. "Nephews and niece. Thomas is the oldest, Finn the middle one, and Lydia is the little girl. We have a little sleepover party, well, they're asleep, I'm partying," she snorted.

"So you're not the cool aunt who has no rules on bedtimes?" Callum cheekily rose his eyebrows.

"Oh, shut it," Catherine playfully shot to him. "I'm the coolest aunt in the world, come on." Callum's laugh filled the room. "I didn't set a rule on the bedtime, but they wanted to go to bed at 21:30. I mean, sure. But we spend the afternoon at the playground, they were knackered. I hope they won't wake up at six tomorrow."