I'll Meet You There

Chapter thirteen

The next morning was Issacs birthday party. Calum showed up, anxious and tired as fuck, but at least he showed up.

"DAD!!!" Issac ran across the room and slammed himself into cals legs. A few people looked, some cooed and some glared.

"H-hey dude..." Issac reached for the present that cal had in his hands. It was a brown paper bag with a few things in it. It looked like garbage but Issac didn't seem to mind one bit. "I know they're not the cutest....but they were all mine when I was little...."

Issac took the bag and looked inside and his eyes lit up with curiosity. There were three little stuffed animals inside all of which had been calums when he was issacs age. One was a scruffy stuffed fox, one was a bear who was wearing a funny little vest and the third was a silly looking cat with two heads (that one had been cals favorite)

Issac picked up the fox and looked at calum. "Do you like them?" Issac nodded and rushed off to play but as soon as he was gone he was back and pulling Calum to his small little room and he sat him down on the floor to play.

The only issue Calum could see was that his old "friends" were all sitting next to him on the floor. He hadn't spoken to them in years and he hadn't seen Ashton since their fight in the bar all those years ago.

Issac demanded them all to begin playing and thus they started their little game but soon it had turned into a tickle fight between Luke, Issac and Michael. Ashton and cal watched and glared at each other but silently decided that they weren't gonna fight and ruin issacs special day.

"DADA STOP!" Calum froze. He wasn't doing any- oh....

Issac had been speaking to Luke....he just called Luke dada. Great...just when Calum was starting to feel like he had an impact on the kid it suddenly felt like he was second place. Or maybe even 5th place behind hazel, Luke, Ashton, and Michael...

"He...he calls you dada?" Cal asked Luke.

"He always has." Luke shrugged and kept playing.

"I'm....gonna go get some water....I'll see you downstairs okay Issac..." Calum hardly waited for issacs answer before getting up and walking downstairs and looking for hazel in the sea of people. He spotted her and rushed over.

"Why does Issac call Luke dada?"

She shrugged. "He just always has. It's fine tho. Cupcake?" She held up a cupcake and cal declined it.

"I think....I'm gonna go....tell issac I said happy birthday...."

"We haven't had cake yet..." hazel frowned. Cal started towards the front door. "You're seriously gonna leave him on his birthday..."

"I'm just gonna end up getting mad and ruining the party with my mood okay!" Mood swings were a part of detoxing from heroin unfortunately...cal wanted to get better. He had used his last three shots the night before and was prepared never to buy one again. It's easier said than done though.

"Please don't leave....." Issac slid down the stairs in his butt and yelled "CAKE!?" The second he hit the floor. Hazel picked him up and whispered, "I think we should have cake tomorrow....daddy is tired so he's heading out a little early..."

"But..." Issac frowned and wiped his eyes. Calum looked down and then back up.

"It's okay bud...go enjoy your cake and I'll see you later."

"Dad goin again...." he sniffled and made grabby hands at cal who shook his head a little.

"Not forever..."

Hazel chimed in, "might as well...." things just couldn't go okay these days could they...

"I hope you like your presents dude..." and cal turned away and walked out the front door. He didn't wanna ruin issacs party and that's why he left...things were better when he wasn't there. Everything was always better if calum hood wasn't there. So he had gotten used to removing himself from places that would be better without him. It was a way of life for now.

Everyone else left and soon it was just issac and hazel sitting alone on the couch eating cupcakes together.

"I don't like this birftay mama..."

"I know-" There was a knock on the door. When hazel opened it it was Calum. He had been sitting just outside the door on the front porch.

"I'm so so sorry....to both you and Issac. I overreacted and it just came out in a bad way, I have no excuse I'm sorry..."

She sighed. "It doesn't matter...we're fine. You can come in and help eat cake if you want..." she didn't sound like herself...cal looked over at Issac who was licking frosting off the top of every single cupcake and then putting the naked cupcakes back onto the plate. "I...I shouldn't have asked sorry..." she went to close the door but Calum stopped it with his hands.

They looked at each other for a brief second before Calum smashed his lips into hers. Hazel pulled away quickly tho. "Stop..."

Calum frowned. "Sorry..?"

"It's just....it doesn't feel right..." she looked down. "We shouldn't keep doing this to Issac...it's awfully confusing...either be his dad or don't but stop coming around and then taking off..."

"You want me to leave and never come back don't ya...?"

"I want you to make up your mind. Are you staying or are you leaving? We can't keep going back and forth like this." She looked over at Issac who was playing with some new toys on the couch

"I'm here." Cal our hand on her shoulder and she lashed her head on it.

"To stay?"

"That's the plan..."

Never again was he gonna leave. Never. Nothing could make him want to. Nothing.

They ended up hugging for what seemed like ages. Cal held on tightly and this time he KNEW he wasn't gonna let go again. Ever again