Black Hole

Through the Storm

“Is that a hickey on your neck, Alan?” Carmen asked during lunch the next day.

Alan’s hand shot up to his neck and I cleared my throat.

“You sly dog! Who did you hook up with last night after dropping Jay off?” Leo asked.

“Uh…just some really hot chick who only wanted me cause of my Ferrari.” He said, glancing at me.

I grinned. “She sounds easy,”

“Not as easy as I wanted her to be,”

“I’m sure she wanted to be easy too,” I replied, waving my hand.

“What’s that on your finger, Jay?” Kendra Carter called from down the table. For a moment I had forgotten about the ring.

“Oh nothing,” Leo answered. “Just my family’s ring is all.”

“What?” Carmen practically shrieked.

“I gave it to her last night with our parents,” Leo continued. “It was a really special moment. Right, babe?”

“Uh, yeah. Really special.” I plastered the fake smile on my face. Alan sighed heavily and threw a French fry in his mouth and stayed silent as everyone gushed over the ring and how cute they thought Leo and I were.

I tried to convince myself that just because I accepted the ring that didn’t mean I was giving up. But as the days went by and the compliments on the ring continued, I feared that maybe I had given up.

^^^

My face hurt from constantly having to fake smile. Someone who now refused to smile was Carmen. After seeing the ring, she entered into a mood that she still had not come out of a week later. What did she think? That Leo actually loved her or something? That they would live happily ever after?

No, they wouldn’t. Because Leo would never let me go. Carmen and I were trapped. She was trapped being the other woman I was going to be the trapped wife. I would give anything to switch places with her. She could get out whenever she wanted, she just chose not to.

“You can’t keep avoiding me Leo!” Carmen whispered angrily.

I was on my way to the restroom during class when I heard her. I quickly clung to the wall and slowly looked around the corner. There was Carmen and Leo.

“I’m not avoiding you, Carmen, I’ve just been busy.” He scratched his head. He was totally lying.

“Yeah, too busy giving Jay your mom’s ring!” She spat.

“Carmen, you do realize Jay is my girlfriend, right? You realize I’m going to spend the rest of my life with her?”

“But what about us?” She asked.

“I told you when we started this it can’t be serious. Jay is where my heart is.”

I rolled my eyes. Yeah right.

“That’s bullshit!” Carmen exclaimed. “You told me you loved me!”

“I was drunk!” He said, throwing his hands up.

“Well I wasn’t drunk when I said it,” She responded, looking hurt. “I do love you.”

“I’m sorry Carmen, but I love Jay.”

“Then why do you cheat on her and treat her like crap? Why are you sleeping with me?”

Leo sighed. “I don’t know. That’s a good question. If I love Jay then I shouldn’t cheat on her. Which is why I’m not going to do it anymore. This is over.”

“What?!”

“Jay has always been faithful to me, no matter what. Tons of guys, including my best friend are pining after her and she still never sleeps with anyone else. I owe it to her to do the same. Sorry, Carmen.”

“No you’re not, but you will be.” Carmen stalked away from Leo in my direction. I was frozen in my spot. When she turned the corner and saw me, her eyes were filled with tears.

“Hey.” I said casually as though I hadn’t heard the whole conversation.

“I gotta go.” She whispered before running off.

I sighed and hurried back to class before Leo saw me too. Again I couldn’t concentrate in class. It was miraculous I still had all A’s. Was Leo really going to stop cheating? Even if he did, would that really change how I felt about him and our relationship?

^^^

It’s raining. I’m not really a fan of rain. It frizzes up my hair and who in the world likes the feeling of wet jeans clinging to their already damp legs? Not me.

I was driving home after school in the awful rain when I saw someone walking alone. It was a guy who had no coat or umbrella. What the hell is wrong with him? As I passed by him, I realize I knew him. It’s Callan.

I hit the breaks and rolled down the window. “Callan!” I called. He looked over at me.

“Jay? Oh hey.,” He said, squinting through the rain. 

“Get in.” I said. “I’ll give you a ride home.”

“No, it’s fine, I’ll wal-“

“Get in, Callan!” I demanded. He listened and hurried in the car. I reached in the back and grabbed a jacket that used to belong to my dad before he gave it to me. I handed it to Callan.

“Here. Put this on. Where is your coat?” I asked.

“Someone took it,” He said, not looking at me.

I sighed. “Leo. He’s such an ass. I’m really sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” He assured me. We didn’t say anything for a few moments. I could see Callan eyeing my ring.

“That’s a nice ring,”

“Thanks,” I said quietly.

“Um, how are things with you and Leo? Good I’m assuming?”

“I could tell you that we’re insanely happy together. That life without Leo is unimaginable. That I love him more than life itself and the thought of our future together excites me. Or that he’s my reason for waking up in the morning and that our love is unstoppable. But those would all be lies. I’m trapped.”

I couldn’t believe I had actually told him that. I hadn’t meant to at all. It just came out.

“That’s too bad to hear.” Callan said.

“Don’t tell me you’re among the group of people rooting for West Evergreen's most beloved couple.” I laughed.

“No, it’s just sad because you deserve all of that. You deserve someone who makes you feel all of that. You should be everything to someone. More than just a trophy. You deserve someone you can breathe with. You deserve that unstoppable love.”

“Wow…Callan. That’s sweet of you to say.”

“It’s the truth.” He shrugged. Again we said nothing.

Never Gonna Leave This Bed by Maroon 5 was playing on the radio. It’s one of my favorite songs. Callan was nodding his head to the slow rhythm of the song.

“Great song.” He said smiling.

“I love this song! It’s definitely one of my favorites!” I said excitedly.

“I’m learning to play this on the guitar.” He said.

“You play guitar? That’s amazing!” 

“Thanks.” Callan said grinning. He’s so cute!

I pulled into his driveway. “Thanks so much for the ride.” He said.

“Any time.” I smiled. He paused like he wanted to say something else, but then he opened the door and got out. He waved before starting to walk to his door. He stopped suddenly and took a deep breath and then walked back to my car.

“Would you like to come inside? I could get you a snack and you could warm up.”

I didn’t even have to think about it. “Yeah I’d love to.” After shifting into park, I followed Callan into his house. It was smaller than his old one, but I didn’t mind one bit. In fact, I loved it. It felt cozy, unlike my cold mansion.

“How about some Rice Krispy Treats? You still love those right?” He asked grinning.

I smiled. “Um, of course!” He came back from the kitchen with a plate of them.

“My mom made these. They’re even better than the originals.”

“I’ll be the judge of that.” I said taking one. “Oh my god, these are amazing!”

“Told ya. Hey I’m going to get out of these wet clothes. Give me a minute.” Callan said heading to his room.

I ate one more rice Krispy before the phone rang. I was shocked. We didn’t have a landline at home. 

“Um, Callan?” I called.

“Could you answer that?” He called back.

“Mewes Residence.” I said, answering the phone in my best secretary voice.

“You have a call from Washington County Prison, will you accept this call?” A woman asked.

“Oh, um. I’m sorry, can you hold?” I asked. I walked to Callan’s room without really thinking and pushed open the door.

“Callan, a woman was wondering if you would-“ I stopped when I saw him standing there shirtless. I quickly looked down. “Sorry, you have a call from the County Prison?”

“Yes.” He said quickly.

“Yes.” I repeated before handing the phone to him. “Should I go?”

He shook his head before answering the phone. “Hey, Dad.” He said, smiling. I had no idea his dad was in prison.

“Sorry about that. My friend Jay answered the phone. Yes, that Jay.” He attempted to whisper, but I still heard him. He told his dad about me! I tried not to ogle Callan, but it was hard when he was standing there shirtless, with his cute smile.

“Yeah, of course. If they let you call back later, definitely do. Mom would love to hear from you, she’s missed the last few days…yeah I will. I will! Right now?” He covered the mouthpiece. “My dad says hi.” He looked highly embarrassed.

“Oh, tell him I said hi back.” I smiled.

“She says hi back…yes, she is. She really is.” He looked at me and smiled. “Uh huh…alright. I love you too, Dad. Bye.” He hung up and I was still smiling.

“Sorry about that.” He apologized.

“Don’t be.” I said. “I just didn’t know…”

“Yeah most people don’t. Do you want to know how he ended up there?”

“I do, but I didn’t want to ask.” I said honestly.

“Well near the end of eighth grade, he got laid off. Mom didn’t have a job then so we pretty much had no money. We were going to lose the house. Dad got caught up with some shady business. He got involved with some bad guys. He did some illegal stuff to get the money we needed. When things go bad, he told mom to turn him in.”

“Why?” I asked.

“Well, first so she wouldn’t be seen as an accomplice, and second there was a reward for turning him in, so she did it. Dad got ten years, with a chance to get out early for good behavior, and we got enough money to tide us over until Mom got a proper job. We moved here and the rest of the money is in my college fund.”

“Wow.” I whispered. “Your parents must really love each other and you to do that.”

“Yeah. Most people would think I’m unlucky because of my situation, but I don’t have it so bad. My parents would do anything for me and they love each other more than anything. And although I don’t come from a rich family, I have enough money for college.”

I couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks for sharing that with me.” I said, squeezing his hand.

“Thanks for being so easy to open up to.” He said, returning my smile. I hugged him tightly. At first he seemed shocked, but then he hugged me back just as tightly. I don’t think I had ever felt so safe in my life.

Although I didn’t want to, I finally pulled out of the hug. Callan was still shirtless.

“Um, maybe I should put a shirt on. Hey do you want to get out of your wet clothes? I have no pants for you, but you could borrow one of my shirts.’

“I have some spare leggings, so yeah, a shirt would be great.” 

He gestured to his dresser. “Take your pick.”

I searched through carefully, making sure I didn’t mess his organization up. “This one.” I said, picking out a blue flannel shirt. One of my personal favorites.

“Alright, I’ll go in the closet and finish changing. You change here.” He went into his walk in closet and closed the door.

“If it makes you feel any better, my dad isn’t around either.” I said loudly so he could hear.

“I didn’t know your parents separated.” Callan replied.

“You weren’t supposed to. Mother doesn’t want people to know, so we keep it quiet. But yeah, Dad left.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. He left her not me. And I don’t blame him. The woman is intolerable at best. She pushed him away.” I explained.

“So your parents are just keeping up appearances?”

“Basically. Most of the year, we can claim Dad’s away doing business. Around Thanksgiving he comes back for the holidays, so people don’t get suspicious. I miss him a lot.”

“Why didn’t you go live with him?” Callan asked.

“It would be quite strange if he brought his daughter along on his business trips.” I answered.

“Yeah I guess.”

“I’ve never told anyone.” I said as I finished getting dressed. “Not even my friends know. It’s kinda hard keeping this secret on my own.” I opened the closet door to let Callan know he could come out. He walked to me and wrapped me in a hug. We pulled away a little. We were literally inches apart. 

He was staring at me so intensely with desire. At that moment I knew he had feelings for me. And we were about to kiss.