Forever and Always | Callum Airey

- Chapter 2 -

10th May 2020, 2:50pm

holaa, sorry my update is a little late but this is quite a ling chapter to make up for it :)   I'm really happy with the feedback i've been getting off friends or just a simple comment, you have no idea how much it means to me. enjoyyy...

I begin to open my eyes, adjusting them to the light. I look around me to see that we are in central London. We're here.

"Morning sleepy head" Eleanor says while not taking her eyes off the road.

"Morning, how long have I been asleep?" I question.

"Practically the whole way but we're basically here so it's perfect timing" Eleanor smiles as she pulls up outside an apartment complex.

Myself and Eleanor had been to look at what felt like 1,000 apartments but when we first saw this one it just felt right for some reason, like it was calling my name. Weird I know.

A few hours have now passed, myself and Eleanor had been taking stuff up to the apartment from the car and then the moving van that eventually found its way. We were unpacking a few boxes in each of our rooms when we heard a loud knock on the door.

"I'll get it" Eleanor shouted through.

I could only just hear the conversion but they were our new neighbours from across the hall who had come to welcome us into the building, how nice.

"Hannah come meet our new neighbours, they've come to introduce themselves" I hear Eleanor shout through the apartment.

"One sec" I shout back making sure I look presentable.

I walk out of my room to the door with my head down, my social anxiety is not the best. I Look up and I see him. He's outside my apartment door. Wait- he lives across the hall from me. How has this happened? He's stood next to a rather good looking boy with brown hair and a cute smile plastered upon his face.

"Hannah, hello?" I hear Eleanor mumble as she notices me drift off into my own little world.

I feel myself start to panic, my palms start getting sweaty and my knees feel weak.

"H-hey, long time no see huh" I nervously laugh noticing Cal is not even a little shocked. It's as if he didn't recognise me

"You know each other ?" His friend questions.

"erm ye ye, Harry meet Hannah vice versa" He says without eye contact.

"nice to meet you Hannah, how come you've never mentioned her?" Harry says to me then gradually turns his head to Cal.

"Didn't feel the need" Cal said confidently.

ow, now that really hurt.

"well we better go, a lot of unpacking to do. See you around" Eleanor awkwardly says towards the two boys.

We all say bye and then the door shuts. I slowly cover my face with my hands.

"what the fuck" I mumble into my hands.

I remove my hands from my face to be greeted with Eleanor. She's giving me a light smile as she was there when Cal left and stopped speaking to me. She understands the pain I went through trying to forget him. In many ways she took his spot. I talk to her about everything and anything. She's my rock.

"I'm so sorry, I've only ever seen like 2 pictures of him and I didn't-"

"It's fine" I but in. "I'm just shocked that happened like, he lives across the hall from us. I spent so much time trying to forget him only to be greeted with him in the place I was looking to start off fresh"

I sigh sitting down on the floor. Eleanor sits next to me.

"maybe you should talk to him, clear the air ya know? Anyway you still haven't told me what happened between you two" Eleanor questions wanting to know more.

This was the truth. I never told Eleanor what happened between us before he left, I'm pretty sure it's the reason why he stopped talking to me. When I said it to him I never thought he'd block me out of his life for good and completely disown me as a friend.

*

"Cal... I need to tell you something" I say looking straight into his eyes. I'm nervous. What if he doesn't feel the same?

"What is it? You're scaring me" Cal says edging closer to me on my bed while grabbing my hand fearing the fact that something awful may come out of mouth.

"This... it's so hard for me to tell you but I feel as if you should know, ya know? You leave tomorrow and-"

"Hannah just tell me" He lets out with a light smile.

"Okay. I love you."

"i love you too H-"

"No. Not like that. I really love you. More than a best friend."

Silence. Complete silence.

He looks... shocked? Angry? Sad? I didn't know what it was but it was definitely not the facial expression I was looking for. It looked as if he was trying to find the right words but just simply couldn't.

"How could you?" He lets out, in anger.

"Cal why are you angry with me"I say not fully understanding the need for anger in this situation.

"I leave tomorrow. Tomorrow Hannah. You have had our entire lives to tell me this and you choose now?"

"I..I...I'm sorry...I just"

"DON'T Hannah. Just don't bother. I don't love you and I never will. Goodbye" Callum says angrily walking out of my room and slamming the front door. What have I done?

*

"Holy shit" Eleanor quietly mumbles out of shock of me telling her what really went down between us. "All these years you've had me thinking that you did something bad to him but you told him you loved him and he lashed out on you? What the actual fuck?" She says getting a tiny bit angry with our now neighbour.

"Please don't bother getting angry, he just obviously just didn't feel the-" I got cut off my a ping in my pocket.

It' a message.

It's him.

It's Cal.