WRONG NUMBER / CH

chptr 48

a/n: u ask i supply

Half an hour later he was waiting for Leia at The Coffee Table, a café just a few blocks away from his apartment. He flinched every time the door swung open with a little ring, fearing it would be her. Because the moment she arrived would be the beginning of their downfall, and he never, ever wanted that to happen.

But of course, at the same time, he strangely looked forward to telling her. There was a fifty percent chance of forgiveness, and he wanted those odds to win over. He wrung his hands nervously as his eyes flitted to the door over and over again.

He was examining the menu (he thought about ordering those chocolate croissants) when another ring was heard, and before he could see if it was her, there was a voice that said, "Calum."

He stood up unconsciously, and felt a grin already on his face. No matter how down he was, she always picked him up. And that was one of the many reasons why he loved her.

For some reason she half-jogged her way towards him and nearly tripped, only to be caught by Calum's arms. She giggled softly and mumbled an apology, which made Calum giggle, and soon they were standing in an awkward-looking hug just smiling at each other before they realized people were beginning to stare. Taking their seats he watched her, and a sudden pang hit his chest: this may be the last time.

They made obligatory small talk about what to order, and how was the traffic getting there, and how the weather's nice today, isn't it? It was all just stalling tactics for him. He wanted more time to talk about unimportant things. With her.

But it was running out.

When they were served their brunch, she began to eat quietly. Calum eyed her nervously, picking at his food cautiously. He was waiting for her to start the conversation again, to tell her about Anna. So he could finally tell her, and be free.

"Remember when I told you I haven't spoken to my sister in months?"

Calum stopped mid-bite.

"Well, I kinda ran into her the other day."

For some reason, Calum found that fact funny- just casually running into the person you've been desperately trying to reach for the past few months. Like hey there, did you know I've spent the last five months desperately texting you in hope you'd reply? Well it was nice to see you again, have a good day. He didn't laugh, but it was amusing to him. Ah, the way the universe works, he thought. It tickles.

He snapped out of his own thoughts when he saw she was staring at him, waiting for his reply. He cleared his throat and assumed a concerned face. "What...what happened?"

And so she told him everything, from the moment she saw Anna walking down the street and how she chased her own sister down, finally catching up to her and sitting down in a nearby café and demanding answers from her.

"So, I was at the bookstore, because, you know, I was looking for a book about growing cacti-"

"Right."

"-and I caught a glimpse of someone outside, but she was wearing these big sunnies and she had a bob cut; it was really cute but I never pegged her to be the type of person to get that short a haircut. I mean, that was before, but I guess she really changed. Or maybe because short hair is really in nowadays-"

"Leia. You're getting off topic."

"Shit. Sorry." She took a sip of her tea. "I'm just a little jittery still. I don't know how to explain everything."

But Calum slid his hands over to hers and gave her a warm, encouraging smile, and suddenly everything was right again in Leia's mind. She cleared her throat and began her story anew.

"So we had coffee. And I asked her why she left." Suddenly she looked unsure of herself. She bit her lip (that drove Calum insane) and looked down. "Well, she told me about Dad. How she couldn't take his shit anymore, about how he cheats on mom repeatedly, how he hit her." She gulped. "But I already knew those things.

I got really mad at her for leaving me, even though I understand why she did. But why couldn't she have told me? Why didn't she take me with her? She was all I had left, and she abandoned me. So I started telling her these things, and I got really irrational in that café with her, and all she did was stare at me."

Her breath hitched slightly and she sighed to relieve the lump in her throat. Sadly, Calum got up and slid into the seat next to her, wrapped one arm around her and pulled her to him. Leia exhaled a little laugh, already feeling better. He always made her feel better, no matter what. One of the many things she loved about him.

"So, yeah. After my little breakdown I ran out of the café but she chased me out and she said sorry. We hugged. She apologized for everything, and I knew she was being sincere. So I forgave her. Of course I did. She's my sister." She sighed again, but it was more of a relieved sigh. She looked up to Calum with a small smile on her face. "Plus, she bought me cake."

Something wasn't adding up. "So...that's it? All those months of waiting on her, resolved in one day?"

"Not really. I think I'll have to deal with abandonment issues for the rest of my life." She gave a little laugh, but both of them knew there was a serious undertone to it.

Calum watched her as she began to eat again, drinking in the sight of her greedily. Because he knew once his secret was out, there would be no more moments like this, no stolen shots to store in his memory. He wanted to keep this moment a little longer. "What happened afterwards? You didn't just part ways, did you?"

"No. We went back to the café. We had five months worth of catching up to do." She smiled, looking like her usual, cheerful self again. She closed her eyes and leaned against Calum. "Wow. It just hit me again."

"What just?"

"How much I missed my sister."

Calum smiled, but for some reason he felt sad. There was a burning sensation in his chest as he watched her. Playing with her hair, he told her, "I'm sure she missed you, too."

There was silence again, which made Calum's mind whir with thoughts. This was the moment. He should tell her now. Ask her about the texts, and tell her everything from beginning to end. It was supposed to be the moment he finds his bravery to tell her the secret that's been haunting him ever since.

And he was about to ask her. He opened his mouth and took a breath but suddenly she turned to him with a fork raised, saying, "You should try this, Calum. It's yummy."

Her saying the word yummy was so very Leia that all traces of courage faltered in him. Defeated, he opened his mouth and allowed her to feed him. Then she grinned-holy hell that smile I can never let myself forget that smile god damn she's the most fucking beautiful person I've ever seen-and just like that, he let his cowardice get the best of him again.

He wanted just a little bit more. But then again, he was always going to want just a little bit more.