Fading (A Calum Hood Fan Fiction; Sequel to Pretending)

Chapter 35: Her

When I was a little kid, I have always loved going out to play in the rain. Even until now, I still do, though. Maybe it's just that when I was that tiny kid who wears my brother's old clothes and rocking my classic page boy haircut, I always make sure that when it rains, especially during summer days, I must go out and enjoy the calmness and extreme happiness that the rain gives me. I can still remember, I was four when it rained really hard during a summer day. It was totally unexpected; in fact I didn't even think even just a single damn bit that it would rain that day because it was a hot summer day during that time. My brother Riley and I were trying on our costumes for our cousin's birthday the next day, and we're kind of having fun wearing it so we played around the house with it. Riley dressed up as Peter Pan, and I don't know why my dad picked Captain Hook to be my costume. Being that little kid who's into stuff that my brother likes too, I didn't even say no to my father's choices. I tried on my Captain Hook costume, even the wig and all that, with the complete gear that goes with the fake hook. It was that time when Riley and I were having a sword fight upstairs in our room when the rain started falling really hard. The look of excitement both crossed our faces, and Riley quickly ran out of our room, then ran out of the house almost naked. And me, being that kid who really loves the rain, I began running down the stairs too with pure and genuine excitement evident on my face. The rain was really hard that day, and I wouldn't want anything or anyone to stop me from going to it.

But when I reached our front door, I suddenly stopped on my tracks and started contemplating about things. I have a huge wig on and my complete costume. I know I wouldn't want it to get soaked in the rain, even though my legs and feet are entirely excited to make its way outside in the rain. I quickly but carefully took the costume and even the wig off of me, but I keep having a hard time since it's really hard to put it up too. I can hear Riley's giggles from outside, and that's making everything even more exciting for me. Taking off the fake hook was the hardest for me, I suppose, and I know I would take a lot of time in taking off the boots too.

The feeling of excitement was still running through my veins when I finally got into the part when I have to take off the other pair of the boots I was wearing. I know and I'm completely aware that the rain is slowly starting to be over but I didn't want to process it inside my head. I threw my entire costume side and started running to our front door, but then again, I stopped on my tracks when Riley entered the door with a satisfied look plastered on his face. Confusion ran all over my system, thinking why did Riley got back inside that quick.

"Why are you here already?" I asked, unconsciously doing my bad habit of biting my nails.

"The rain's over." He flashed a smile, and I don't even know how to react onto that. "And the water's kind of freezing, I don't understand. Why are you naked?"

Without any hesitations, I ignored Riley and ran outside our door to check if the rain's really over. I looked up into the sky to see it being still somehow surrounded with dark clouds but there aren't any rain falling from it. I don't even know how, or why, maybe because I was four that time, but I had that one of my childish breakdowns on our porch and started crying like a baby. When I was that young, I always just used to cry to get whatever I want then in an instance, I would get it. I cried so hard and so loud, thinking maybe if I cried hard enough, it would rain again. I thought maybe that time, I would still get what I want. I cried and kept kicking whatever my short legs would reach, but nothing would ever seem to happen except for our front door opening and my mum coming out from it.

"Kristen, oh my god!" My mum ran towards me, thinking maybe something bad happened to me but in reality, I was just crying because I missed one of my favorite things in the world. "What happened to you, why are you-oh god. Are you hurt?"

"The rain, momma." I cried.

My mum looked calm when those words came out of my mouth, and behind her worried face, I know she wanted to laugh at me. "Why? What did the rain did to you?"