Drawing Love

20 - Worse

Rose

"I can't believe you're in New York!" I squeaked into my phone.

"Calm down," Calum chuckled.

"No chance!" I said, "I'm coming to get you."

"Rose, babe, you don't have a car today, I'll get a cab," I could hear his smile and I was so ready to see it.

"Again, not a chance. I am walking to a street where there are cabs and racing to see my boyfriend," I said, pushing open the front door of my building.

"Rose," he started but I cut him off.

"I'd walk! Let me come and get you," I begged, "then we can go to lunch."

"Okay, but only because you mentioned food," he let me win.

"Yay!!" I squeaked again, "I'll see you soon!"

"I can't wait, text me when you're here," he said and then we ended the call.

I heralded a cab and got in with a happy and excited sigh, "JFK International, please."

"No problem, miss," my cabbie had a thick Brooklyn accent.

I looked out the window at the passing buildings as I contemplated how hard it had been to not say "I love you" over the phone. I smiled as I thought about how those would be the first words I would tell him. I planned it all out in my head: I was going to run into his arms, give him a kiss and then tell him I loved him.

Simple but effective, I thought to myself. I looked at the road signs to see how close we were.

*Ten minutes,* I texted Calum.

*And counting,* he responded about two or three minutes later.

*Seven minutes,* I said almost as soon as he texted back.

*Just text me when you're actually here! You keep making me think you're here!* he said more quickly this time.

*Five 😉,* I responded cheekily.

*You are impossible,* he texted back.

I laughed and waited until the cab entered the parking lot to text, *TWO SECONDS AWAY!!!* I laughed rather loudly at my own joke. I pressed the call button next to Calum's name so I could figure out where he was.

What happened next happened quickly. The cabbie looked back at me in his mirror as he pulled out of a row of cars like he had probably done a million and one times.

"Excited to see someo -" the nice cabbie's question was cut off as he saw exactly what I saw and tried to move, "SHIT!"

I watched, helplessly buckled in, as a large white van swerved, out of control, right for us. The vehicle was moving too fast and the last thing I saw was the nose of the van two inches from my face reflected back to me in the glass window...

- - -
(Overlapping Rose's POV)
Calum

I stood right next to the glass doors, looking out through the floor to ceiling window. I kept my hood up and my head down so nobody recognized me. There were these metal beams that looked like either support or dividers for the window. Either way I leaned against one and smiled stupidly at my phone.

*Five 😉* Rose texted me.

*You are impossible,* I informed her, chuckling.

Honestly, she couldn't get here fast enough. I could not wait even five minutes to hold her again. To kiss her again. To tell her I loved her. I got caught in a daze thinking about her and love and all that fuzzy, warm, feel good stuff so I was surprised when my phone buzzed again.