Cryptic (A Calum Hood Fanfiction)

Chapter #24

Annabel's POV:

"That's what I was going to tell you in the meeting room before Mr. Dannings interrupted us," I say. "You're the only person in my life who hasn't left or given up on me, but now they're taking you away from me and I don't know when or if I'm going to see you again...," I trail off.

"When, not if," Calum corrects me. "I made a promise to you, Annabel," he starts, entwining our hands and looking me dead in the eyes. "And I never break my promises," he finishes, bringing my two hands up to his lips and kissing them delicately.

"What's Darren like?" I wonder, nervous to meet my new roommate.

"Darren is a great guy and he'll take great care of you, but tonight isn't about Darren; it's about you and I and the fact that it's our last night together," Calum replies. "For now," he adds, giving my hands a reassuring squeeze and scooting closer next to me. "I won't be like the others either; I won't leave you and I won't give up on you because I'm in love with Annabel. I've been in love with you since our first night together here and I'll love you until I cannot love any longer; through your stubbornness, imperfections, and all." I rest my head upon Calum's chest as he engulfs me in a hug and inhale his familiar scent, unsure when I will encounter it again.

"I-I-I love you, too," I reciprocate; the words feel foreign rolling off my tongue. "I'm in love with you, Calum...?" I whisper as if it's a question instead of a statement. "From the moment I met you at Java I knew you were good-looking and after seeing you again at Luke's, something about you intrigued me and I think that's when I started to fall for you," I share, unsure of how I feel about sharing my feelings quite yet, but I want to continue; I feel a need to.

"What intrigued you?" Calum inquires.

"I can't describe it in a phrase, but there's one word that sticks out in particular," I answer.

"What word?" He inquires further.

"Cryptic," I reply.

"You're somewhat cryptic in your own way, too," Calum counters.

"I'm going to take that as a compliment," I laugh, nudging Calum.

"What do you want to do tonight? I want tonight to be all about you and I realize it's been a hectic day so if you just want to go to sleep or rest, that's okay," he offers.

"Why don't we watch a movie? I'm not too tired quite yet," I suggest.

"I have a movie," Calum jumps up, disappearing into the living room before returning with his hands behind his back. He sits back down onto the bed and lays a few movies down for me to see. "I brought a few so you'd have options," he explains.

"Calum, these are all horror movies," I shake my head, laughing at his boyish-like choices.

"So...?" He cocks an eyebrow.

"I think I have enough horror in my life right now to last me an eternity; I don't need to be worrying about monsters under my bed," I joke. "Where'd you get those?" I ask.

"The drawer below the television stand has a stash I found when we first moved in," he answers and now it is my turn to jump up and disappear into the living room. I fish through the stash of movies and decide on a romantic, a classic, and a comedy for Calum to choose from.

"These three movies," I announce, sprawling them across the bed. "Are ten times better than any one of those silly horror movies you picked," I boast.

"The Notebook, Clueless, and White Chicks," Calum reads the titles of each movie.

"Which one shall we watch first?" I grin.

"I'll make a deal," he starts. "If I watch your ridiculous movies, you have to watch the three movies that I picked out," he offers.