Amnesia

Chapter 4

(Calum's POV)

As soon as the meeting ended, I raced back to the tour bus, where there was wifi.

And no, it was not to go on twitter or instagram.

It was to FaceTime Rachel.

But she didn't pick up.

Oh, no.

I immediately start to expect the worst.

Did she just say she's trying to stop cutting to make me feel better? What if something happened to her?? Does she not have my contact anymore, because I blew her off during the meeting? Does she not like me anymore?

"What happened?" Michael asks.

"What do you mean?" I reply, absentmindedly.

"I mean," he says, "that you're pacing around the room and mumbling weird words and phrases."

"I'm fine." I protest. But I'm not. I'm so worried, I'm shaking. I can barely sit still.

"Okay..." He answers, shaking his head and walking away.

•••

30 minutes later

•••

It's been thirty minutes, and I've called her five times.

She hasn't picked up, not even once.

I try to call, just once more.

I have a sliver of hope, but it's a sliver...

And who am I greeted with, the beautiful familiar face of Rachel.

"RACHEL!!" I yell into the screen phone.

"Oh, hey Calum!" she answers. "I see you've been missing me." she says with a smirk. "I was just about to call you. No, but seriously," she says this time with a more serious face, "is something wrong?"

"No, I just..." I let out a relieved gasp. "I thought you were...never mind."

"You thought I was gone." she says, brows furrowed.

"I'm sorry..." I mumble, head down.

"Look, Calum...you can't be so overprotective of me. I mean, I get it, I do. I know I've had a rocky past, and you're just looking out for me, but I can do this by myself."

"Okay..." I say. "But then why weren't you accepting my calls?"

"I just came back from swim practice, silly." She says.

"But your hair isn't wet!" I insist.

"Oh-um-I..." she tries to say. "Fine, you caught me. I went to the mall." she says, and laughs weakly.

"I don't exactly believe you..." I say, squinting my eyes.

"Look, I got new earrings!" she says, and tugs on her earlobes. But that was a mistake on her part.

I saw. I saw everything. I saw the old scars, and the new scars. I saw the fresh blood dripping down her wrists.

My eyes widen. "Rach-Rachel-I-ohh.."

As she realizes what I saw, she doesn't let me say anything else, and hangs up right away.