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by camsnewton

by camsnewton

+CALISTA OMIATA
THE PRESENT TIME

"CALLOUSNESS"

i ran my hands down my satin dress, smoothing any cheeky creases that had managed to evade my previous pat downs, and put in my golden hoop earrings. one of my best friends named winona was arranging a gathering for our friendship group; something small and intimate for the ten or so of us. on one hand, i hadn't seen any of my friends, barring grayson, in quite some time. though on the other hand, he would be there.

"okay, i need to hang up now — i'm going to get in the elevator soon," i told winnie who'd called two minutes ago, begging for me to get to hers early so that we could travel to the restaurant together. winona was one of those girls who loved to do things in pairs: 'come on sweets, let's go to the bathroom', 'ugh, if we're going to that party let's meet up before and go together' and 'i'm going on a date later on but can you drop me off, cal? i don't want to go on my own!'

she chuckled on the other side of the line before replying, "you're just trying to get rid of me, i bet you haven't even left your apartment yet." i slid my feet into my christian louboutin heels which i'd regretted buying: they certainly looked amazing but i've always been more of a sneakers girl and my feet definitely thank me for it.

"yes actually, i am. i need to do the finishing touches on my makeup and find a suitable handbag to take to dinner. all while trotting around in these devil heels," i exclaimed, rifling through my bag collection to find something match my cream coloured dress.

"whatever dq," she chirped annoyingly, knowing how agitated she makes me when she refers to me as a 'drama queen', "just get here already," she added before hanging up abruptly. i rolled my eyes at her snappiness before pulling out a gold clutch which would compliment my attire beautifully.

i applied a thick coat of lip gloss which made my lips look like wet glass, and teased my hair a little. part of me wanted to look good as i anticipated grayson's presence at dinner and i wanted to show him that i could still look gorgeous and be happy without him. i could feel the guilt bubbling away inside of my body as i checked my appearance and realised how appealing i would look to him; assuming of course that he does look at me.
__________

"you look... like something," winnie gasped, her hand cupping her mouth in awe of my outfit, "so pretty."

"thanks," i blushed.

we stood outside in the harsh, stinging cold momentarily, waiting on the arrival of our taxi driver. i'd briefly spoken to winona last week once evan had proposed to inform her of the news and her response was one i thought needed to be revisited. a gust of wind hit us abruptly, even with my beige, patent puffer coat adorning my frame i felt as though i could feel the strong rush of freezing air penetrate through and leave a layer of ice my skin.

"so," i began hesitantly with folded arms, due to the atmosphere of course, however shortly after i realised how defensive my posture looked and unravelled them, "are you genuinely happy for me?"

"duh?" she responded, yet, what should have been a statement sounded frighteningly like a question. a soft whistle left her lips while she tapped her stiletto against the asphalt pavement as her impatience grew. " god knows where the bloody driver is" she mumbled in discontent, leaning against the metal gate which closed off her mansion from the rest of the road.

"do you think he's a good guy?" i asked, ignoring her inquiries about our taxi and honing in on my fiancé.

"evan?" she scoffed, "or course i think he's a good guy; he's great in fact!" she exclaimed sending me a wide smile. it was an authentic grin but a sparkle of sadness hid, nestled in her eyes. suddenly, the satisfying sound of rubber tyres colliding against the concrete road could be heard as the taxi lights shone and blinked, indicating for us to get inside.

"i just always held a flame for you and gray, that's all," winona shrugged as we both slid into the vehicle.
__________

we ascended the stone slabs leading to the restaurant doors and entered. instantaneously, a man greeted us and asked for our reservation name. 'winona peters,' she answered, flashing her pearly whites at the handsome staff member. it was only then i remembered how challenging it can get to be out of with winnie in places where men are at hand. she had a pretty serious boyfriend, yet, a lingering eye for other companions.

"you're so loose," i nudged her once the man was out of earshot, ahead of us and showing the way to our table.

"what?" she squinted playfully, "being polite isn't a crime, is it?"

before i could answer our friends were in sight, embracing us with warm smiles and delighted facial features, however, jordan looked displeased. "see what i have to deal with? it's no wonder i stare at other men with happier looking faces!" she rolled her eyes. i cocked my head to the side which translated as: 'are you serious? he'll hear us!' but luckily for her, he didn't.

grayson didn't look up from his phone, he seemed to be furiously typing away — probably texting our mutual friend harry, who couldn't make tonight's arrangements, all about what a raging bitch i am for turning up here after our war of words. his hostility didn't throw me off from greeting everybody else, though. i discarded his pettiness and winnie and i took the last vacant spaces at the table which seated ten.

"now that everyone's here," ethan, grayson's twin brother, began, "we can order some appetisers."

i couldn't stop looking at gray, wondering why he refused to make any sort of attempt to acknowledge my presence at the table. he was treating me as though i were a ghost, or some unimportant factor in his life — and it hurt.

"are you going to ignore me all evening by any chance?" i spoke up rather bravely. he inhaled a large volume of breath tilting his head back indicating that he resented partaking in conversation with me. he exhaled, a slight cockiness about his manner and made eye contact with me for the first time tonight. i could see malice in his features, malice and hatred which complimented his reply.

"as far as i see it, there isn't even anything to ignore. you..." he sighed, raising his hands into the air as he appeared to be searching for the right words to finish his callous sentence, "you are nothing to me."

after a few seconds he felt the burning desire to share his thoughts once more: "absolutely nothing," he brutally reiterated.