Beauty and the Beast || cake a.u.

2 - Calum

Published 05/03/14
Edited 08/29/17

I pack my bag at the end of the day and fling it over my shoulder. Within seconds of me closing my locker, something hits me in the head and falls to the floor. As I bend down to pick up what I realize was a crumpled piece of paper, I'm pushed to the ground. Looking up, in front of me is the curly haired kid from this morning. I believe Luke called him Ashton.

Ashton has a smirk on his face as he says, "Thought you might want your map back," and leaves without another word. I watch him walk away, and then back at the paper. I pick it up and open the crumpled mess.

A small gasp escapes my mouth when a page soaked in white-out is revealed to me. All that's left on the page is the highlighted spot representing my locker, and bright red words written above it.

Don't mess with Hemmings.

+++

When I get home, I can hear my dad on the phone, deep in conversation. I close the door quietly, slipping off my shoes, and run up the stairs as quickly as possible. I put my bag down and grab my car keys, making my way back downstairs. I'm careful to make sure my parents don't know I'm home.

Returning my shoes to my feet, I run outside to my car, getting in the front seat and putting the keys in the ignition. I start the car and pull out of the driveway. I take the familiar roads to the house I spent almost every day of the past two months in.

I walk up the steps to the door, ring the doorbell and am quickly welcomed by the warm smile of Faith Black.

"Calum, come in! Vince is upstairs," she says before going back to her housework. She's recently unemployed and isn't used to being at home so often, so she does a lot of cleaning.

When I get upstairs and knock on Vince's bedroom door, I hear a bang from inside before a boy with long messy hair opens the door, only enough to figure out who just woke him. A smile appears on his face when we make eye contact and he shuts the door. There is some shuffling inside the room before the door opens again to reveal a fully-clothed Vince standing there to let me in.

"Cal, come on in! You haven't been replying to my texts mate, what gives? Thought you'd forgotten about me!" He pats me on the back and shuts the door behind us. I pull out my phone and hand it to him. He moves it in his hand, looking confused.

"My folks bought me a new phone so I couldn't contact you," I tell him. His eyes are torn from my phone, appearing more frazzled than before.

"Mom and Dad Hood don't like me? What'd I do wrong?" he asks me.

"Not just you. I'm not allowed to talk to Will, Joseph, Caroline, Lyal, anyone," I explain, "They think my grades are dropping because I'm more focused on you guys. That's why they moved me to Willis High in the first place, remember?"

Vince nods as if he briefly remembers this conversation happening before. We sit there in silence, his hands still wrapped around my phone, before I hear a small whisper escape his mouth.

"What was that?"

"Lyal," he says, louder this time. He turns to me, "Lyal isn't going to like this."

"What do you mean?" I ask him.

"Lyal didn't like that you switched, you know how he gets, he's going to think it's his fault,"

"It's not though," I say. Vince nods opening my phone and punching his number into the new system. We go through his phone, transferring everyone I may need from his contacts. When we've finished deciding who I'll actually bother to keep up with, we sit back and sigh in relief. I put my phone back in my pocket.

"Thanks Vince," I say, a smile spreading across my face. He simply nods. It's times like these when it's just him and I that make me feel comfortable. There is nobody for him to impress, no reason to be fake. I have the honour of experiencing the real, raw Vince.

"So, wanna go shoot some hoops?" Vince asks, turning his head towards me and smiling. I jump up and run down the stairs as fast as I can.

"Be careful boys! I just mopped the floors!" I hear Mrs. Black call from the kitchen.

+++

When I pull into my driveway that evening, I notice the absence of my dad's car in the driveway. I ignore it and make my way down the small path to our front door. Before I'm even close to the door, it is open, a small figure jumping at me from the opening to the house.

My mother throws her small arms around my neck and pulls me towards her in a tight hug. I wrap my arms around her torso and hug her bag hesitantly before pulling away.

"Mum, what are you doing out of bed?" I ask, seeing her puffy red eyes and tear stained cheeks. I frown at her appearance and bring her back inside, sitting her on the stairs. I kneel in front of her and look into her sad brown eyes. She grabs hold of my hands and looks down at them.

"I- I was wo-worried about my b-baby," she chokes back her cries, stuttering while she speaks. I nod in understanding, and she continues talking, "Your dad went out with Mali to find you," she tells me, more contained than a few seconds ago. She seems to be comforted by the fact I'm here now.

"I'm sorry, I should have told you I was out," she nods, agreeing with me silently, "but I think we should get you back into bed now mum," I tell her, standing up slowly and holding her hand to assist her up the stairs.

"Get some sleep Calum," she tells me, kissing my cheek and walking back into her room. I make my way to my own bedroom and take out my phone, texting Mali that I'm home now. She replies within seconds saying they're on their way home. Another message comes in containing a long scolding that I don't bother reading.

She's such a suck up, and she thinks my parents are saints. I wonder if she'd still think that if they made her pack up her life and move to a new school, cutting off her connection from everyone she used to know. Mum and Dad would never do that to her though.

I text Lyal before going to bed, telling him I miss him and that we should hang out soon. He's an insecure little baby, but I don't want him to beat himself up over something that has nothing to do with him. He's always been the most sensitive in the group, especially about dumb shit that doesn't concern him, but he's one of the best friends I have. I put my phone on my bedside table and drift off to sleep.

I can finally feel myself drifting off when my bedroom door slams open, banging against the wall. I jolt out of bed and directly onto the floor, landing on my elbow. I look over and see my dad standing in the door frame, fire fuming from his ears.

Shit...

+++

Thanks for reading.

Vote for who you believe was the Beauty and Beast of this chapter.

Emily