stuck with u - calum hood

one - drive straight home, alright?

Apparently, Clementine Miller and Calum Hood now live together. 

They're stuck together for this year-end trip: A Miller-Hood Crossover Winter Vacation. Their parents thought it would be a fantastic opportunity for these two families to mingle. Well, mingle they sure did, except the two teenagers onboard.

Clem and Cal shared a few classes in school, but they never really spoke to each other. Or looked at each other. Or interacted with each other. 

They were two separate worlds, one being made up of rock music and soccer, the other made up of Ariana Grande and theatre.

Now, forced to live in door-to-door bedrooms, every small-talk gives a hint: they just don't click. This time, they're forced to come with their parents to a dingy pub.

"DON'T STOP! BELIEVIN'!" their fathers sing into their karaoke mics, "HOLD ON TO THATfee-e-e-lin,"

Clementine rests her cheek on the palm of her hand, watching these two men soar their voices through the speakers, while her and Calum's mother cheer in front of the stage, clapping and swaying to the beat.

Her eyes shift to Calum himself, who has resorted to playing a game of Go Fish with a young boy and three elders, all whom he'd just met. Calum has his eyes trained on his deck of cards, eyebrows furrowed, tongue poking out on the corner of his mouth.

Clementine would like to join them, but she doesn't know how to play Go Fish, and currently it looks like they're in a very intense showdown. She's already bored with her phone with no bars and her glass of juice is empty.

To her surprise, Mrs. Hood approaches her lonesome self with her signature sweet smile.

"Love," she takes a seat on the stool beside her. "Why are you sitting here all by yourself?" 

Clementine smiles. "I guess I'm just bored, Mrs. Hood."

"Ah, you teenagers don't enjoy karaoke as much as we do," she laughs, shortly followed by a loud YES! sounding exactly like her son. Turning around, she raises an eyebrow.

"Did Calum leave you here?" Joy asks, arms crossed at her son pumping fists in the air in front of his scowling opponents. 

"No, I insisted that he can go--" Clementine's explanation is cut short.

"Calum!" Joy calls, pausing his little victory dance. "Come here, son."

Frowning, he leaves the table, not before the young boy sticks his tongue out at him, and Calum sticks his tongue out as well, just more aggressively. Then Calum turns his head to see his mother putting her hand on Clementine's shoulder. 

She gives him a look that says I didn't mean for this to happen.

"Calum, how could you leave Clementine all by herself?" says Joy, frowning. Then she leans in to whisper, "You're supposed to talk to her!"

"Mum, she doesn't really mind..." Calum trails off, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. His eyes land on Clementine for a second, then they shift to the floor.

Joy narrows her eyes at her son. "But I  mind." Joy states.

If there were a vibe-o-meter hanging above their heads, Calum and Clementine would hit zero. The tension and awkwardness has reached their epitome. If being forced to live with each other wasn't awful enough, developing a friendship that wasn't even initiated by themselves was a whole new level. The two could never gravitate towards each other, they only cancel each other out.

After a moment's pause, Joy says, "It's getting late isn't it?"

"What?" both Clem and Cal say simultaneously, puzzled.

"You should be getting home." the older woman nods.

A grin floods Calum's face as he places his hands on his hips. "About time," he cheers.

"Calum, would you mind driving both Clementine and yourself home?"

The moment is shattered when Calum's grin drops. Both of the teenagers are equally shocked, not wanting to endure an awkward trip home.

"What about you a-and everyone else?" asks Calum.

"Oh son, look at them, they're having so much fun." she motions to the rest of the parents, still on the stage and singing an awful rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody.

"We will not let you go!"

"LET HIM GOOO,"

Grimacing, Clementine and Calum nod in full understanding. "They're having the time of their lives," Clem remarks.

Joy laughs in delight and picks something out from her pocket. She tosses the car keys to Calum, who catches them with a swift clutch.

"Drive straight home, alright?"

"Yes ma'am."

-

As expected, the car ride is blanketed in uncomfortable silence. The road ahead is dark, illuminated by streetlights dimmer than a glow stick, and a flurry of snow drizzles down the entirety of Mount Furcsa. Not one radio station is available to ease their silence, only static and the sound of rubber tires gliding on asphalt. 

They're not gonna talk. Goodness, anything but that.

Clementine figures if they're not speaking, then looking at each other isn't a thing to do as well. She rests her head on the window, eyes searching for a focal point other than the dark, which pretty much surrounds her. Except Calum. 

No, she can't look at him. She can't stare at him; that would be so, so awkward.

At this moment she realizes just how painfully awkward their relationship is. Then she realizes again; their relationship is, well, non-existent. They're not friends, their parents are. So maybe they're acquaintances. Yeah, strictly that, she thinks.

"Something wrong?" asks Calum with his eyes on the road.

Yes, strictly acquaintances with no bond whatsoever, she thinks... while staring at Calum's jawline the whole time.

"Nothing." she sputters, "Sorry."

Clementine shifts her gaze to her shoes. They're barely visible, engulfed by the dark just like everything else. This must be the darkest night she's ever seen in her life.

Then Calum clears his throat. Oh no, please don't start small talk, Clementine pleads silently.

"So," Calum starts, followed by a pause as long as a Spotify advertisement. "how are you liking things so far?"

Things are terrible. "Things are great." Clementine answers, "The view on this mountain is just, remarkable." she gestures at the pitch black window.

"Yeah, sure is a sight." Calum nods, eyes on the road. 

You're supposed to laugh at that, I was being sarcastic, Clementine thinks while nodding along.

This chick is sooo awkward, Calum thinks.

And that marks the end of their small talk. Clementine is back to staring at her feet, and Calum redirects his focus back on the road. 

The way home is an easy feat; just drive straight ahead, no left or right turns. Then, like magic, their destination should be right in front of their eyes. 

But it just happens so that Calum takes a left turn, and Clementine's drifting to sleep.

And he drives straight ahead in oblivion.

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♪ uh oh uh oh uh oh oh no no no ♪