Fall With Me (UIC 2022)

5 - Reunion

Long after Caleb fell asleep, Sawyer lay awake, staring over his bare shoulder at the wall as anxious thoughts rattled around in her head.

Home.

Sawyer took a deep, shuddering breath, fingers flexing on Caleb's rock-hard bicep. Frustrated and exhausted, she rolled out of bed, grabbed her underwear and shirt, and glanced down at Caleb. The werewolf slept on, a contented smile on his face.

I wish I felt as confident as you are, she thought sadly as she made her way over to the couch. Perhaps a change of scenery (however small) would calm her down.

As she sat on the dilapidated couch, a dark shadow on the floor caught her eye. Sawyer reached down and drew her purse towards her by the straps. The motion caused her cell phone to slide free and she picked it up.

The screen lit up as Sawyer touched it, showing the time and a stock photo of daffodils. She stared blearily at the screen, running her thumbs up and down the sides of the phone. The motion somehow unlocked the cheap device; a green phone icon loomed large in the upper left-hand corner, drawing her attention like a beacon.

Nearly drunk with fatigue, Sawyer's finger hovered over the icon. Should I ...? Before she could talk herself out of it, she opened the app and scrolled through her contacts. There weren't many: the bar, Harvey's personal number, a couple of restaurants, and her parents. Next to "Mom" and "Dad" were little asterisks, reminding her that she'd blocked their numbers.

This wasn't her original cell phone—Sawyer had left that in her room back home—but she'd memorized her parents' numbers and called them once a year to assure them she was still alive. Then she promptly blocked their numbers until the next time.

Home.

Selecting her mother's number, she unblocked it and called. Clutching at her shirt, Sawyer rocked back and forth on the couch as it rang, and rang ... and ...

"Sawyer?" It was her mom, voice rough with sleep.

Immediately, Sawyer began to silently cry, tears spilling down her cheeks.

"Sawyer? Baby, are you there?"

"I'm here, Mom," she choked out.

In the background, Sawyer could hear her father asking who it was at this hour. Mom hushed him and swiftly asked, "Are you all right? Are you hurt?"

Gulping, Sawyer nodded. "I'm fine, Mom."

Her mother's sigh of relief was audible, but her tone was still frantic. "Did something happen? Do you need us?"

Sawyer caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Caleb sat down next to her in his boxer shorts and put an arm around her shoulder. "I—I—I want to come home, Mommy."

This caused her mother to promptly burst into tears. Immediately, Sawyer was awash with guilt. Her fingers ached as they gripped her shirt. Quietly asking Mom for the phone, her father said, "What's your address?"

"1016 Bernard Street—Harvey's Bar. I—I live above it."

"Give us a few minutes to get dressed. We'll be there as soon as possible."

Sawyer sagged against Caleb; he kissed the top of her head and rubbed her back. "N-no," she stammered. They were going to come out in the middle of the night to get her? After all she'd put them through? "You don't have to come now. Caleb—Caleb's with me."

"Caleb?" Her father sounded surprised. "Can I talk to him, kiddo?"

Nodding, she passed the phone to Caleb. "My dad," she mouthed, using the opportunity to wipe her eyes with her T-shirt.