Between a Rock and a Hard Place // c.h.

31 - Betrayed

A month can come and go quite rapidly. After spending a week in California, myself and Cal had boarded a plane back to Sydney, Australia. I had went to my house while my parents were at work and packed all my necessary belongings to bring with us. I had filled one pathetic bag. We stayed in a hotel complex in the same neighborhood as Mali Koa and his parents. We spent a majority of our time with them, which I was perfectly fine with. I got along well with everyone in Calum's family, so spending time with them was anything but a problem. By the time the vacation came around, I was more than excited. I'd been living with Calum for months, but his everlasting energy about going to Hawaii made the adventure that much more exciting. The day of the vacation rolled around on a simple Saturday. Mine and Cal's bags were packed, and we met the other boys at the airport, as well as Abby, Mads, and someone new. When I saw her, I was sick to my stomach.

She stood next to Luke, holding on to his arm. Her skin was tan, her hair long and dark, her eyes the deepest, darkest color of brown I'd ever seen. Her nose, like Mads', was pierced. Her and my ex-friend were in the middle of a conversation, occasionally sneering and glaring at Abby or me. I didn't even know the girl, but I didn't trust her. And I definitely didn't like her with Luke. She seemed extremely possessive and slightly conceded. 'I don't even know her.' I reminded myself. I couldn't understand why I hated her, I just knew that I did. Still, I was a self-taught expert at faking a smile, so that's what I did.

"Hey Luke, who's this?" Cal asked his friend, clearly shocked Luke had brought a girl. Abby walked over to me, Mikey following her. They held hands lightly, their fingers never losing contact. She came up to me and squeezed my shoulder with her free hand.

"I'm Ari." The girl spoke. She flashed a bright smile, shaking Cal's hand for a little too long. "I'm Luke's girlfriend." She glared at me for a second, taking me aback. I grabbed Cal's free hand, interlacing my fingers with his. I didn't trust this girl around Calum. She didn't seem like the kind that could be trusted. I kissed his cheek gingerly, earning a grin from him.

"I'm Cara." I smiled, extending my free hand. She looked at it. I immediately put it to my side. This trip was going to be great with this girl and Mads. Ari threw her arms around Luke, kissing him squarely on the lips. He kissed back quickly, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. I looked away, a disgusted feeling taking over every aspect of excitement I had once felt. I turned to Abby, desperate to look anywhere else. She smiled at me knowingly. We walked away from the group momentarily. I needed a moment to talk to my friend, especially now. "What's her problem?" I asked, glancing back at the girl who was chatting up Calum and Michael as she hung on Luke. She made me feel sick in a way I couldn't describe.

"Mads has been talking shit on you for the last thirty minutes. She doesn't really like me either. All I know is her and Luke started dating a while ago, and now she's here." Abby said, her voice filled with the same indifference I felt for the dark girl. "It'll be ok. But let's get over there before that whore tries something." I glanced at Abby, who stared back unapologetically. She had always been blunt, I missed it. I grinned at her, and we returned to the group. Calum wrapped his strong arm around my shoulders as I approached him, protecting me, making me feel loved.

   "Are we ready to go?" Luke asked, surveying the group of us. The boys all nodded, as did us girls. And just like that we were boarding on a plane bound for one of the multiple Hawaiian islands. Calum told me about the plan throughout the flight, it was easy to see how excited he was for this opportunity, and I couldn't blame him.

   "So we booked a really secluded hotel. Like there'll still be lots to do, just away from people because of.. You know." He grinned, the spontaneity he felt growing more and more contagious as he talked. "And we're gonna be there for a while, so we're gonna go zip lining, snorkeling, water skiing, stuff like that! It'll be so great!" He beamed, exposing his brilliant white smile.

   I nodded, holding his hand in mine gently. "It sounds amazing, Cal." I kissed him on the cheek, my lips coming in contact with one of his dimples. The smile that played on his face spread to mine. Our flight was supposed to last anywhere between nine and ten hours, which meant we were gonna be on the plane for a while. It didn't bother me much, resting there with my head on Calum's shoulder as he drifted into a peaceful nap. I almost took one myself when I heard two voices behind me in the private plane. Mads and Ari had moved away from the guys, to the back of the plane.

"I don't even know how I feel about Ash to be honest. I think I care about him. But sometimes I really want to sleep with Cal just to wipe that smug confidence off of Cara's face." Mads' voice whispered. I shuddered as I realized the utter betrayal.

Ari's shrill voice responded, tempting me to react, though I forced myself to remain quiet and still. "Same. I mean, I don't care about Luke that much. Like he's not that important. And he's a virgin! Can you believe it?!" I clenched my hands into fists, imagining how satisfying it would be to punch one of the two in the face. "I mean, by the time I'm done with him he won't be. That purity ring he wears will be gone by the end of this vacation." Ari sounded cocky and evil. My entire body was rigid, anger seeping it's way into my every breath.

Eventually the conversation between the two became more dull. Still, I was plagued with unrest. I knew they couldn't be trusted, but I couldn't have guessed how horrible they actually were.

They were after Calum.