Worlds Away. // cth

- One -

Her voice wavers as he packs the last of his belongings into the back of his black SUV, begging him not to leave. He stops, turning to face the short girl he promised to stay beside forever - since they were just kids - , her cheeks stained with dry and fresh tears.

"You know I can't stay here with you. You know I cant take you with me either." he sighs, wrapping his arms around her small frame and bringing her into a tight embrace.

"I just don't want to be stuck on the other side of the world from you for eight and a half months." she expresses, voice muffled by the material of his shirt.

After a few moments the pair move away from each other, their hearts still clearly bound although physically they are not. He brushes the hair from her face behind her ear and presses a soft kiss to her forehead, lingeringly a little longer than necessary and stepping away from the girl, getting into the SUV before he has a chance to change his mind.

"Us against the world, right Cal?" she speaks, her voice soft and fragile; threatening to break any moment.

He starts the car and looks at her from out of the open drivers side window, swallowing thickly as he does his absolute best to stay strong for her. He opens his mouth to speak, his eyes never once leaving hers to be sure she knew he was honest.

"Us against the world, Ali."

____________________

"Cal it's been three days, I thought you'd forgotten about me."

Although he couldn't see her face, he could hear the pout in her voice which caused a soft pout of his own. He knew she wasn't serious because even she knew the possibility of him forgetting her for even a moment was in fact not a possibility at all.

"Oh of course, because you're so easy to forget." he chuckles, flipping off his band mates who were giving him suggestive gestures, knowing exactly who he was speaking to.

Calum gets up and leaves the room, moving to another area of the house as Alison speaks about how different home is without him.

He swallows as he feels his throat close slightly, squeezing his eyes shut to avoid the tears spilling over onto his cheeks.

"Calum? Calum?!" Ali urges, beginning to worry of a dropped phone line before he finally answers.

"Huh? Sorry, I was just-" "Zoning out. I know, that's a total Calum move." she laughs and he feels his heart ache at the sound. "Yeah, that."

They've never been away from each other this long, and they definitely haven't ever been in different timezones. He was struggling without his best friend, his better half as he liked to refer to her as.

After a few dropped calls and voiced profanities due to frustration, Ali and Calum decided to call it a night and agreed to speak as soon as Calum had another free moment that didn't interfere too much with the time differences. So for now, Calum laid on his bed while the digital clock beside him read 1:47am. He was so distracted by the glaring green numbers that he didn't hear someone step into the threshold of his room.

"One of these days Calum, you'll go crazy from keeping this a secret. In fact, I think it's already starting." Michael states, sitting on the bed next to Calum's dazed figure. He turns to look at the tatted boy beside him, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion.

"Secret? I don't have any secrets Michael." Calum rolls his eyes, turning on his side to face away from him. Michael just sighs and makes his way out of the room, mumbling a small "Whatever." as he leaves.

Calum laid awake for another couple of hours, his mind running away from him with thoughts of what Ali must be doing right now considering it was around midday in her part of the world. He thought of her sitting under the old Oak tree in her back yard, reading the same damn book she had refused to put down the week before his leaving. She'd be sat in the cast shade of the branches above her figure, small flecks of light dotting her fair skin. Her emerald eyes seemingly grazing each inked word yet her mind taking in every ounce of description; painting a picture in her mind.

Then he imagined her dog Cosmo, the large German Shepard laid asleep beside her with his head rested on her lap. Her mother glancing at the pair through the bay window in the kitchen as she prepared lunch and her father watching the afternoon news that he was sure to see again when six o'clock rolled around.

He missed her. Without a doubt in his, or any others mind; he missed her. He loved her, and he knew it.

And Ali, just as Calum had imagined, was sitting beneath the old Oak tree, her back pressed against the rough bark of the trunk. Although, she was not reading, her mother was not in the kitchen preparing lunch nor was her father on the couch watching the afternoon news. Rather, she was sat alone. The entire perimeter of her house her own as her mother was most probably out with another man while her father got stoned outside of his favourite bar.

She missed Calum. She missed his comfort and his voice and the way he would run his fingers through her hair to coax her into a deep sleep. She missed his annoyance when he couldn't play the chords right or when his lyrics didn't quite sound as though they flowed. She missed late night movies and when he'd fall asleep half way through the second one, although he had promised that "this time will be different." It never bothered her though, she enjoyed when he would stir in his slumber and pull her closer, causing her to shut off the T.V and fall asleep, her head rested on his chest.

She missed him. Without a doubt in her, or any others mind; she missed him. She loved him, and she knew it.