(S4 broke my brain so here is Callum finding the letter and running off to find Rayla. Warning: Curse words. Help me I'm crying- AnGsT. Word count: 784)
I love you.
I love you so, so much.
-Rayla
Callum nearly dropped the letter as he read the last line. Ezran shook his head as he stroked his brother's back. Callum struggled to contain the tears that had begun streaming down his face. No. He couldn't believe it... she was gone. She had left in the middle of the night. He lifted his arm to wipe his face. As he did, not only sadness, but slight anger bubbled inside him. They had had something so special. The first human-elf couple. Callum breathed shakily. She had just... left. To find a dead guy! Callum just couldn't believe it... Why?
Callum sat on his bed, sobbing his heart out. Why couldn't she just get it through her head?! She pushed him off the Storm Spire! He's. Dead. Callum didn't know why this had to happen. It seemed all girls his age only wanted to break his heart. Claudia did, Rayla did. Everybody just wants to see him cry. Yet, he fell for it every fucking time! He sobbed uncontrollably into his elbow.
Soren knocked on the door. "Hey! Step-prince." His voice was in a joking tone. He stopped knocking for a moment. Callum heard him back up a bit, then ask, "Are you okay?" After he got no response, Soren opened the door. He looked around. "Where's-" he began. Ezran motioned for him to stop his sentence. Right. There. Soren didn't understand, of course. "Where's Rayla?" Ezran facepalmed. Callum began to sob even harder, if that was possible.
Soren raised his eyebrows. "Oh..." He had never thought Callum would get a girlfriend, which was why his relationship with Rayla was a bit of a shock. But this... this further proved his theory that elves were heartless. That Amaya’s lectures were true. That elves...
Were monsters.
Callum buried his face in his scarf. Realizing now how much it smelled like her, he tore it off and chucked it across the floor. Soren sat down on the other side of the bed. Just where Rayla always had. Callum found that every little thing reminded him of her. He sniffled and sobbed, hiccuping as he tried to choke down his tears. Bait croaked sympathetically. Callum tried to pat him on his head, but he couldn't move. He seemed to be frozen with shock. If only he could stand. Maybe then he could- wait. He could follow her! Realizing the time he was wasting, he stood so fast he knocked Ezran over.
"Can't I... Can't I follow her?" he nearly shouted with hope. "Callum, you've gone insane," asserted Soren. "You don't just 'follow'," he began, putting finger quotes around the word. "someone who just broke your heart." Callum glared at him. "Have you ever had a girlfriend?" Soren flushed slightly. "No," he mumbled. "That's what I thought!"
Callum immediately began to pack his bags. He crammed shirts and pants in the small backpack at light speed. He shoved a map, well, three maps, into the side pocket. The only thought in his mind: Rayla.
[]<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>[]
Rayla flawlessly jumped from tree to tree. She had her regrets, but there was no going back now. She was actually approaching the Cursed Caldera. She did not look forward to seeing the sunforge guy again. Maybe she'd see Allen. Maybe Lujanne. There was only a few people she knew she might never, ever, see again. But she couldn't think about them. Couldn't think about Callum.
Rayla saw the town far in the distance. She stopped to rest in a nearby cave. Boy, that cave really brought back memories. Memories of the egg. Memories of Ezran. Memories of Callum. She cursed herself for always stopping in places that would make her think of him.
Hunger began to gnaw on Rayla's stomach. She knew where to find moonberries. She had before, not three months ago. She laid her bags out and ran out the mouth of the cave.
[]<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>[]
Callum strolled through the Royal Forest. It seemed empty without Ezran, Bait, and Rayla by his side. Mainly without Rayla. He tried not to cry thinking of her. He decided maybe running would take his mind off her. And he would reach her faster. As fast as his awkward human legs would take him, he ran to the east, hoping that was the way she went.
After a few moments, Callum came across a puddle. To his delight, whoever had walked through it before had left obvious footprints. He studied them. He'd know that footprint anywhere. She had walked here. He smiled to himself. He stood, brushing the dust off of his knees. "I'm going to find you," he promised her from miles away. "I swear."
