Troubled Waters, Idled Minds

Chapter 17: Harry

What happened to Callie had been the talk of the school for a week. It has yet to die down and I could see how Callie was uncomfortable with the sympathetic glances and consoling words people were sending her.

One good thing that came out of this mess was Callie stopped being awkward around me. It was almost as if we went back to before.

Almost.

I was still going on eggshells and although she was not squeamish with my touches as before, I feel that she was still holding back from me.

Callie has always been clingy with me.

I loved it when she would initiate a hug, or an affectionate smack on my arm.

Even as I started dating other girls, when we were together, she’d treat me the same. I never changed my actions towards her. I know it won’t help me get over my feelings for her but I just couldn’t help the need to always be close to her as much as I could.

After finally having a small taste of her, I don’t think it was possible for me to pull back. And I have decided to push my boundaries. I’m not about to back down on that. I will give this a try, I’d give my best, and even if it doesn’t work out, there was no way in hell I’d let her go.

I just couldn’t.

I’ll have her in any way I could. Any way she’d allow me to.

“I could go to my class alone, Harry,” Callie told me for the third time, sounding exasperated. I suppressed a laugh. She gave up on tugging her backpack from my shoulder as I walked her to her first period. “I’m not disabled and feel fine. Besides, aren’t you supposed to be with Hannah?”

I hadn’t spoken to Hannah since last week, when I told her I’d call her for updates about Callie’s condition.

Since then, I’d only messaged her, making up excuse after excuse why I couldn’t meet up with her. She must have already known what was up and that I was avoiding her but I didn’t wanna just ghost her heartlessly. I had to talk to her soon, and by soon I meant today.

I only had one focus and that was Callie. I couldn’t keep up the charade anymore and if Hannah still wanted to be my friend, then I’d treat her as well as I did before. I can still walk her to class from time to time, it wasn’t like I didn’t enjoy her silent company. I liked how she was mostly quiet and kept to herself, and how her voice sounded.

Maybe that was what drew her to me in the first place.

She reminded me of Callie’s singing voice.

No one could compare to Callie but Hannah came close and she wasn’t even in the glee club as Callie was. I asked her about it one day and her excuse was that she had a stage fright. Yeah, I believed that. The girl was extremely shy. It took a while before she felt okay with being seen with me. I could only imagine her trying to contain her previous meal in an attempt not to vomit when faced with a huge audience.

Everyone just assumed that we were dating but I never confirmed it. Neither did I deny the presumption and it wasn’t like I was misleading anyone because nobody really thought of asking. Callie was among them.

I couldn’t blame her, though, I had become notorious for going out with different girls in short intervals. But even as I was the reason why, it still pained me to know that she thought of me that way.

The look on my face must have indicated my worries because Callie stopped me with a hand on my chest.

“What’s the matter?”

Her perfect arched brows were drawn together, creating a crease on her forehead. I smoothed it out with my thumb.

“Nothing to worry your pretty little head with, sweetheart.”

Callie was having none of my s**t. “You’re lying.”

Her frown reappeared, making me frown in return. Her eyes held a speculation, the gears in her beautiful mind were working. I should come clean and tell her Hannah and I were never truly involved in a romantic relationship but I got lost in her eyes like I always do, falling deep into her soul where they lead to.

“You’ve broken up,” she said in a whisper.

Again, I felt the need to tell her the truth but before I could, someone slid smoothly between us, his back to me and one arm stretched out resting on the wall where Callie was leaning.

“Hey, Calliope,” the asshole said in a low voice. I cringed because of two things. First, because of his attempt to sound suave only, it came out nasally and out of pitch. The other reason was because he just sabotaged Callie’s name.

He was appealing to a sort of familiarity that hadn’t even been established between them by calling her in her full name, oblivious to the fact that nobody ever called Callie that way - nobody in our family, not even her close friends - well, except the few times her mom did right before she delivered a hefty amount of nagging.

I had to give it to him for his effort, no matter how it failed in so many ways than one.

Who is this guy?

“Hey… Randall.” I’ve known her well enough to be certain what face went with that uncomfortable reply. I noticed her push away from the wall, creating a distance between her and Johnny Bravo over here.

Seriously, had he ever heard of leg day? If he did, he must have skipped it plenty of times if not altogether. It was a wonder how the dude’s chicken legs could support his muscled upper body.

“How are you doing? I heard about what happened with…” He pointed with a shaky finger on his forehead.

Oh, here we go.

I moved to the side just in time to catch Callie’s panicked look.

“Do you - Can I walk you to class?”

Callie’s eyes bulged from their sockets.

That’s it.

I stepped in and pulled Callie to my side and saw Johnny’s face for the first time. I don’t recognize the guy but Callie knew him so I might have seen him once or twice but he was just not memorable.

He looked at me with surprise like he didn’t expect me to be there. “Harry. What’s up, man?”

So he knew me. Then again, it comes with being the student council president and an athlete. I nodded my head at him and looked down at Callie. My girl looked so small in my arm. I wish I could keep her there and shield her from everyone else.