Something in the Way You Move [O'J]

Getting Ready (Part 1)

Danny's POV

I take Callie's hand carefully, still not sure if she trusts me or not. I lead her out of Jessie's flat and hail a cab. We sit in silence during the cab ride, and I notice Callie's studying the streets. Suddenly, she pushes herself flat against the seat, lowering her head so she can't be seen from the outside. She turns and whispers, "It's one of them...they followed me."

"Are you sure?" I ask her, gripping her hand and rubbing it with my thumb. "Did any of them have twin siblings, maybe?"

She sits in silence for a little bit before answering, "Yeah...yeah, I think one or two of them did have twin brothers...that lived in London." She relaxes and sits up just as we are pulling up in front of my flat. I pay the cabbie and lead her inside.

"Are you hungry?" I ask her, heading into the kitchen myself. She nods and follows me. "What would you like, then?"

"PB and J?" she says hesitantly. It occurs to me she's probably not used to getting asked what she would like. I nod and take out what she'll need for her sandwich. "Do you want to make it or want me?" I ask. I know some people are very picky about their sandwiches.

"I got it," she tells me. She sets off making her sandwich and I set off towards the door, as the door bell had just rung. I throw open the door and come face-to-face with Mark and Glen.

"Hey, why'd you run off last night? You've been acting weird lately," Mark states. Right the point.

I shrug. "Wasn't feeling too hot."

"But you weren't here when we came to see if you were okay," Glen says.

"Crashed at a friend's house, no big deal," I say indifferently.

"Who's house?"

Should've seen this coming. I sigh and mutter, "Jessie J's."

Mark and Glen exchange glances before Mark says, "So you fancy her, then?" I shrug again, but feel color rushing to my cheeks. Damn me, being so pale! "Oh yeah, you fancy her!"

"So what?" I snap. "So what if I fancy her? So what if I'm going---" I cut myself off before I get myself in trouble.

"Going? Where are you going?" Glen demands. Shit.

"With Jessie?" Mark adds.

I sigh and murmur, "I don't know yet. Told her I'd think of something."

"Well, let's go have a cuppa and talk about it," Mark says, heading into the kitchen.

"No, Mark, wait!" I grab his shoulder and twist him around. "Listen, there's a girl in there, she's about nine years old, she's scared of men. I think she's starting to trust me, though. Just don't make any sudden movements towards her and don't try to touch her." I nod towards my shoulder and continue, "Learned that the hard way. She accidentally dislocated my shoulder. Got to wear this sling for a week." They both give me suspicious looks. "Please, just let me go tell her that you're here before you just waltz in on her." I don't wait for an answer and hurry into the kitchen.

"Callie, two of my friends, Mark and Glen, are here. They won't hurt you, okay? Just try not to dislocate their shoulders; I don't know how to relocate them and I don't think Mandy would appreciate another call," I explain as she eats calmly.

"Oh, accidentally dislocate your shoulder one time and you think I'm going to do it to every guy I meet!" she says, playfully rolling her eyes. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. I've dealt with worse." I grin at her and beckon to Mark and Glen to come in. I introduce them to her, and her to them, before making a sandwich and tossing the stuff to the two of them. I notice Callie's eyeing them distrustfully, but she's not freaking out. We're making progress, then. Good.

"So, Callie," Mark asks after everyone finishes eating, "Where are you from?"

"South side of Dublin," she answers, and for the first time I notice the gentle lilt to her words that definitely confirms she's from Dublin.

"You been here long?" Glen asks.

"I don't know. Ten days, maybe."

"And Danny found you last night?"

"Yup."

"And he brought you in?"

"No, I'm just a figment of your imagination," she says sarcastically, tossing me an exasperated look. The two of them laugh, and I take the time to ask, "So do you guys have any ideas what to do tonight?"

"First date, yeah? Gotta make an impression," Mark says, nudging me with his elbow. "You could catch a movie and grab some dinner?"

"Nah, too cliché."

"Take her shopping?"

"How about no?"

"Go to the park and have a late-night picnic?"

"Getting better, any other ideas?"

"You could come up with some on your own, you know."

"Does she mind heights?" Callie suddenly asks, preventing our would-be argument from happening.

"No, why do you ask?" I answer.

"There's going to be fireworks tonight starting at ten or so. Take her on the London Eye and get the conductor guy to stop you at the top for a little while," she suggests.

"That's a great idea! But what do we do until ten?"

"Grab some dinner, have a little wine, socialize...take a walk in the park..."

"Alright, alright. How long are the fireworks going on for, do you know?"

"Why don't you read the paper?" She slides me a paper and points at an article. "But I think it's a half-hour or something like that."

"Well, then! Looks like I've got it all planned out!"

"And by that, you mean I did all the planning for you."

"Well, yeah...but I got the date, that I did!" Mark and Glen laugh in response, Callie, on the other hand, just rolls her eyes and grins. I read the article quickly and call the number I am supposed to in order to go on the London Eye during the fireworks. "We've got to be there around 9:45 to get on to stop at the top. They're only loading up half of it so everyone on it has decent seats for the fireworks and we'll be up there for the whole show." The three of them nod approvingly before Mark, Glen, and I head into my music room to try to write some songs for our next album. All I can think about, however, is my upcoming date with Jessie, and I can't focus on the songs.

"Oh, fuck it, then!" Mark yells suddenly.

"What?" I turn to look at him.

"You've been bloody sitting there for the past half hour with this dreamy fucking look on your face and you haven't listened to a damn word we've said!" he snaps, irritated.

"Oh, calm your ass, Mark. He's just excited for his date with Jessie," Glen says calmly. "Besides, Mark, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were jealous of her!"

Mark rolls his eyes, a surprisingly relaxed reaction to what Glen just said, and I say, "Sorry, mates. I'll try focusing, if you want me to."

"No promises, then, that you will?"

"Not a one."

Mark and Glen look at each other before Glen says, "Look, it's cool. Just go get ready for your date or whatever; we have plenty of time for writing other times. Don't make this a regular habit though, yeah? Try to stay focused for more than a few seconds at a time?"

"Yeah, sure." They thump me on the back as they leave the room, an unspoken "good luck" from each of them. I show them to the door and they leave my flat.