Crystal Clear

Crystal clear chapter four- pt 1

Chapter Four

Dear Dairy,

I am AN UTTER CLUTZ. I don't know if poeple use that word anymore.. but that's the best word for me. Arrrggggh. It's so not fair. Remember what they used to call me back in high school?' Callie Clutz'.

I'm scared to leave the house because I feel the cops may be on the lookout for me. After all, I almost killed Joshua. God!, I almonst killed him and I couldn't even stay to make sure he was ok. I ran. From my soulmate. Who needed me the most. Ryan is no help cos all he sees is the humor in the situation and Amanda nearly peed herself laughing. That was the most horrible moment of my life and all they can do is laugh? Well I'm never speaking to either one of them ever and I know I sound childish, but I don't care. Sparky is my only friend in the world and he can't respond when I talk to him. What do I do?

CALLIE.

I flipped my laptop shut and sighed miserably. I was on my belly on my bed, a nice and soft queen-size with its four columns from which hung baby blue lace curtains that matched the blue bedcovers and multicloured quilt. It had been a gift from my parents when I called them to tell them I would be moving in with Ryan. That and the lovely dresser with its heart shaped mirror and dual purpose drawers that stood at a corner of my room. The walls were plastered with posters of celebrities, from Angelina Jolie to Ryan Seacrest. Pale blue curtains hung from the two extra-large windows that were placed at opposite ends of the room. The floor was littered with various items of clothing which spilled from the tiny closest. There was never enough space for my clothes and my numerous pairs of shoes. Shoes were my fetish. I hated shopping for clothes because my weight fluctuated a lot and it was agony having to endure the stares of the sales girls at the clothing shops as I struggled into a skirt or a dress that seemed to fit just fine two weeks ago. But with shoes.... I never had to worry about that and I'd been told that I had gorgeous feet by a guy I'd dated a few years back. I could try on a size eight and Voila! perfection. So I splurged on shoes, the result being that I now owned several pairs that had never been worn because I did'nt have an outfit to go with it. Shopping for shoes was therapeutic because it made me feel beautiful and sexy.

I sighed again and got up from the bed. Too bad I was flat broke or right now I'd be sailing through shoe heaven. Life was so unfair. I moved to the dresser and opened the drawer that held my collection of CDs and picked one by Bruno Mars. I picked up my walkman lying on the table and played the CD. His song 'Just The Way You Are' began to fill my ears and I closed my eyes and listened to the beautiful lyrics. I loved this song because it was the song Joshua had been playing on the radio the day I'd heard his voice.

I slid my feet in my favourite slipons and padded out to find Ryan. I sang aloud with the song not caring if I was disturbing anyone. I found him in the den, sitting on the carpet surrounded by papers and electronic gadgets that I had no idea of their use. Having just finished 'Terminator, The Sarah Connor Chronicles', I was inclined to cast a juandiced eyes on these gadgets. Writers of that series were not very far from the truth in claiming that machines would soon turn mankind into slaves.

As I watched Ryan groaned in frustration and flung the paper he was holding away. It fluttered in the air for a few seconds then came to rest by my feet. I stooped and picked it up, glancing curiously at it, but all I could make out were mathematical formulas and weird drawings. Poor Ryan.

He looked up and saw me standing there on my pink shorts and white T-shirt and grinned.

"So you decided to come out of hiding after all"

" No thanks to you bestie" I replied and removed my earphones. I handed him his paper. " I'm not surprised you look frustrated, I'd be frustrated if I had to decipher that gibberish".

He made a face and ran a hand through his already rumpled hair. Like me, he was dressed in an old pair of shorts and a T-shirt with a picture of JLS. He looked tired, like he'd been working all night.

" Get any sleep or were you and Mandy getting it on?" I teased, coming closer and sitting on the floor beside him.

" You have a very dirty mind Callie, and you shoudn't call her Mandy. You know she hates it"

I made a face. "Well she's not here, is she?" I punched him on the arm, " not unless you are going to tell her."

"Perish the thought," Ryan shuddered in mock horror. "I have no wish to see my best friend incapacitated and in intensive care. Unlike some poeple whose names I will not mention." He shot me a sly look.

My mouth dropped open. No he did not just insinuate that I'd put Joshua in intensive care. The beast.

"I did not put Joshua in intensive care" I said, wagging my finger at him. " Lucille told me he didn't even need stitches and hardly spent more than a few minutes in the ER."

He shrugged. "Seriously though, I think you should go see him and apologise.... see if he needs any help with housekeeping, that sort if thing...it's the least you could do."

I gave his suggestion some thought, chewing my bottom lip as I did so. I sighed and leaned against Ryan, resting my head on his shoulders. He chuckled and put an arm around me. We stayed like that for a few minutes, the silence broken only by the sound of our breathing and the ticking of the grandfather clock in the hallway.

Finally I lifted my head and looked him in the eye. " I'll go then, but on one condition"

"Uh uh, Please don't let it involve me". Ryan drew back and held up his hands. "I've had enough of your schemes and plot. And for the record, I think it's a silly idea to think he is the one for you. I mean look at all that's happened since you went on this wild goose chase. Read the hand writing on the wall sweetie."

"But didn't you just say I should go talk to him?"

"Can I take it back?"

"NO!" I practically shouted. Ryan sighed and rubbed his eyes.

" Fine, what is the condition?" He asked, picking up one of his gadgets and fiddling with it.

"You get to come with me" I said coyly.

"Read my lips Callie." Ryan said, dropping the toy to look me straight in the eye. "No Fucking Way."

I let my lower lip tremble just a touch and my eyes acquired a pleading look. " Please Ryan, Please, please , please, with sugar on top?"

"Callie Henderson, save that look for some stupid unsuspecting idiot." Ryan said firmly, "I'm not going with you and that is the end of this discussion. Now get outta here so I can earn a living."

I got to my feet and peevishly kicked one of the pieces that looked like a PDA. "Fine, I'll leave, but if I go over to his place and he calls the cops to come arrest me, you will be the one who has to tell my mother." I turned and huffed out of the room. Best friends, why oh why did I not have a female bestie?

I'd threatened him with telling my mom the news because my mother, Cassandra Henderson, thought the sun rose and set on Ryan. She was estatic when I 'd brought him over for thanksgiving the first month we were dating. He'd charmed the socks off her feet. She'd already had the wedding dates and my dress picked out in her head, and when I told her a month later that we'd decided to remain best friends, she'd refused to speak to me for six months, only calling him when she absolutely needed to communicate with me. Eventually though, she came to accept the bitter truth, and had tried, unsucessfully to get us back together. Then Ryan met Amanda and Mom stopped talking to me again. However, she got her hopes back up when we moved in together. I'd told her not to hold her breath. She told me to get a life.