noted → calum hood | #Wattys2015

forty seven

Calum wasn't at school Monday. Luke insisted he didn't know why and Ashton hadn't spoken to him in several days, but Michael was a bit off.

It was as if he knew something they didn't; Luke was aware of what Michael had done, however. Michael had never even mentioned doing anything, but Luke wasn't stupid. The almost-balding boy was meddling onto business that wasn't his own once again; but unlike every other time Michael pushed his boundaries with the "couple", invading Melanie and Calum's privacy didn't end up well for the pair.

Calum attended school Tuesday, but Melanie wouldn't have known if it weren't for the substitute calling attendance. She wasn't upset that she hasn't gotten her daily kiss on the head and good morning from the boy; she only figured that he had written her a note instead. Disheartened, Melanie's hand was only met with stale gum rather than a folded piece of notebook paper under her spot at the table she and Luke shared.

Calum had left the room before Melanie was able to speak with him. Something was wrong; she denied her gut feeling as best she found herself capable of, because if  Michael had opened his mouth, oh my God- she was going to be sick.

That's what stuck in Melanie's head for the remainder of the school day. She had found herself drawing on her worksheets rather than actually doing any problems because in all honesty, she found that she had too much on her mind at the moment.

Two detentions for not being focused and a long-awaited dismissal bell later, Melanie found herself walking down an empty hallway toward the opposite end of the school to place her binder back into her locker.

She didn't get that far, though; for a frustrated Calum was unable to open his own locker, rattling the handle with a loud groan. "Need help?" Melanie smiles as she stands next to him.

He doesn't look at her.

Melanie sighs and leans against the wall next to Calum to get a better view of his face. "Are we still on for the movies with Ash and Alexis?"

Calum gives up on opening the locker, figuring he could deal with walking home with the extra weight of two extra textbooks on his back. He closes his eyes, resting his head on the locker as he tries to calm himself down. "I don't think we're on at all."

Melanie frowns. "What do you mean?"

"I don't think it's that hard of a concept to grasp, Melanie." He stands back straight and adjusts his backpack so it rests on his right shoulder. "Last time I checked, I was the oblivious one here."

Melanie opens her mouth, just to close it again, dumbfounded. "I..." She cocks her head to the side. "I don't understand."

"Yeah, well I don't understand why I let you play me the way you did." He shakes his head with a huff. "Good to know that we're finally on the same page, though."

Melanie feels her stomach drop to the floor with a realization for the reasoning behind Calum's statement. "Cal-"

"Don't call me that." He snaps. Standing his ground with her was proving to be difficult, but it needed to be done, nonetheless. "I'd like to believe that you only thought that you had a spark with Michael because he let you confine in him at the party, but I understand if you just used me to get to him; it wouldn't be the first time something like that has happened."

Calum's eyes are dull, lifeless even. He's so obviously broken and Melanie feels absolutely horrendous for knowing she's the reason. "I wasn't using you."

Calum ignores her, continuing on with his rant. "We've been through a lot, you know? I've put everything I could into being the best I could for you because the tiff we had over Mackenzie made me realize just how much I needed you in my life. I feel so stupid! You led me to believe that we were actually dating, Mel."

Melanie shakes her head. "Hey, no, don't blame me for that. You and I both said everything between us was purely platonic."

Calum scoffs. "Nothing we did was platonic! Friends don't kiss each other at every opportunity, they don't go on dates-" his voice cracks and becomes slightly higher; Melanie can tell he may be on the brink of breaking down in the middle of the hall- "They don't fall in love with each other!"

He runs his hands through his hair. Melanie hadn't ever seen Calum in such a state. "You love me?" She doesn't know whether to feel flattered or like she deserves a punch in the face.

Calum leans into the set of lockers, inhaling deeply and exhaling loudly. "Yeah, I do. And I hate myself for it because I knoe you don't feel the same way. Heck, you don't even like me!"

"Calum, I-"

He stares at the ground, knowing that if he looks at her he'd become an even bigger mess. "Just, stop. Stop right there because I know you don't love me and I don't need another reminder."

So Melanie does just that. She's silent, waiting for Calum to speak- given if he decides to; he needs a moment to regain his composure. Telling Melanie her loved her hadn't been part of the plan for sticking up for himself. "I think it's best if we go back to that break you asked for when I got with Mackenzie."

Melanie feels her head beginning to hurt. "What? Why?" The stress of the matter is overbearing.

Calum is monotone; the light that was behind his eyes had burnt out and the happiness that seemed to be permanently stuck on his face was missing. "This isn't fun," He shrugs. "Who knows, maybe leading me on was fun to you, but I'm just beyond done with you."

Melanie wants nothing more than to hold Calum and apologize, but she can't.

Yeah, she feels terrible, but she won't apologize for a confusion he had a large part in causing (even though he hadn't done anything wrong).

"It's funny, in a way;" Cal frowns. "I remember Michael and Ashton telling me that you would constantly whine and get upset over me, be it when I started dating someone else or leading you on," he makes eye contact with her for the first time that day. "I don't think I ever expected the tables to turn."

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an: do you think calum handled this the right way?

what about michael? do you support him telling cal? was it his place to say anything?

how about mel still being too stubborn to admit she's wrong?

feedback and questions are always welcome, and much appreciated!