WRONG NUMBER / CH

chptr 11

It was officially two months and two days when Calum realized that this wasn't some kind of one-sided friendship anymore.

It was a one-sided love.

How easy it was for him to completely fall for this girl even if he didn't know her that well. But every single day he thought about her-What is she doing right now? Is she watching TV? Is she laughing or crying or

"Heard you fell down two flights of stairs," Michael said one morning, smirking at Calum, who was walking while staring at his phone.

He immediately felt blood rising to his cheeks, remembering the reason of his accident. "Shut up," he retorted, because he didn't know what else to say.

Michael saw that his phone's wallpaper was, of course, the infamous picture of Leia. He snorted in triumph. "Dude, you are completely fuckin' whipped on this girl!" He put a hand to his heart and wiped away a fake tear. "My baby's growing up so fast."

Calum shoved him in response, not in the mood for Michael being a dick.

from: leia :~)
so uh

from: leia :~)
mom talked to me today

Calum stopped in his tracks. He motioned for Michael to stop, and promptly took a seat in a nearby bench. Confused, Michael followed.

from: leia :~)
theyre finalizing the divorce and

from: leia :~)
mom's asking for full custody

from: leia :~)
over me and warren

Warren? She has a brother? A little brother, he inferred.

from: leia :~)
dad didnt think it was fair so he flipped out

from: leia :~)
and now mom's crying as usual

from: leia :~)
im so glad warren's at nanna's for the month :(

Oh, Leia. How Calum's heart broke over her. He read her texts solemnly.

from: leia :~)
so im just here in my room and i dont know what the hell to do

from: leia :~)
i dont know how to comfort mom

from: leia :~)
u were always better at emotions and stuff

from: leia :~)
god i need u anna

If only Calum could drop everything to be with Leia, he'd do it in a heartbeat. But he didn't know how, or where to begin looking for her. After all, all he had was a face and a name. He couldn't exactly report that to the police. He sighed, feeling the weight on his shoulders crush him.

All throughout Calum's one-sided conversation, Michael was peering over his shoulder, reading her texts as well. Damn, that's sad, he thought. He gave Calum a good, hard stare, and saw that he looked like his best friend was suffering and he didn't know what to do.

Perhaps that was what's happening right now.

"Hey, mate, we better go," he told Calum softly, all traces of being an asshole gone. He didn't want to upset his best friend further.

from: leia :~)
i dont think i can do this by myself

Calum stared sadly at his phone. "Yeah," he mumbled, getting on his feet and shaking away every depressed thought clouding in his mind. He reminded himself that these feelings, these emotions weren't meant for him. They were meant for somebody else, and he shouldn't have them.

But Calum didn't mind. If Anna wasn't going to share her feelings, then he would. She needed that, at least: somebody that would know what she was going through right now.

Even if that somebody was a complete stranger like him.

They were silent the whole walk back to Calum's apartment. Michael kept thinking of the sadness in Calum's eyes, and how he thought this Leia thing was just a joke, a source of amusement for Calum. But he was definitely wrong. Now it was obvious to him that she was so much more to Calum.

"Cal." Michael stopped and looked Calum straight in the eyes. "If you ever need any help looking for this girl, remember we got your back. Even if it means going on a year-long road trip and knocking on every damn door in the country." He flashed the dark-haired boy a smile.

Calum felt a bit better, knowing that Michael had finally realized he was serious about Leia. He returned his grin. "Thanks, Mikey."

from: leia :~)
but i feel so fucking alone

I wish you had friends like mine, Leia. But, more importantly, Calum wished he was friends with Leia, too.