bad for you

NINE.

CHAPTER NINE.
"WE AIN'T IN A HURRY, RUSHING INTO LOVE"
My Favourite Part - Mac Miller feat. Ariana Grande

It was silent in the car for about an hour. No talking, no music; the only sound came from the outside world, and maybe a few scoffs from Ariana. She wasn't angry— she just wanted to know what was going on. Calum had told her absolutely nothing and he'd been acting weird all day. She deserved an explanation.

"How long until we get there?" Ariana asked, not really sure where they were going but becoming impatient nonetheless. Calum checked the watch on his wrist, then the speedometer, and shrugged.

"I don't know. Half an hour, maybe?"

Groaning, Ariana leaned back in her seat.

Ariana felt safe with Calum — there was no one else in the world that she felt more secure with. But when Calum didn't tell her something, Ariana felt like he didn't trust her, and she couldn't be comfortable without trust.

"Can I ask you something?" Ariana said, looking over at Calum. He nodded, flipping his signal light on before changing lanes. "Will you at least tell me why you can't tell me?"

"It's not about not telling you," Calum answered, glancing over at the girl. "It's about not needing to."

She frowned, crossing her arms. "That doesn't make me feel any better."

"It's not supposed to."

The vehicle pulled up to a large gate about forty or so minutes later, and Calum typed something into his phone. Moments after, the gate opened and he drove through. Ariana sat up in her seat, taking in the surroundings.

They were driving through a gated community. Many of the houses had a well kept yard with nice vehicles and beautiful patio furniture. Calum turned a corner and pulled into the driveway of a much messier property. Toys were sprayed across the lawn, the grass was yellow and unkempt, and the house itself was falling to shambles.

"So where are we?" Ariana asked, expecting no answer and getting exactly that. climbing out of the truck, Calum nodded his head toward the house, and Ariana followed. He clasped her hands in his, pulling her up to the front door, where he knocked twice. Then he squeezed her hand tighter, glancing down at the girl.

"You're gonna have to just trust me on this. Okay princess?"

Ariana didn't have time to respond. The front door opened and in its place stood a young woman, not much older than Ariana and not much bigger, either. She had a statue of maybe 5'1" and was skinnier than Ariana had ever seen. Her long curly brown locks were messily thrown up in a bun; she wore a pair of worn out overalls that had holes all over and patches sewn in with a pair of tattered converse. She had multiple tattoos, many of which were on her arms and hands. She looked tired, her eyes dropping in and bags formed underneath. At Calum and Ariana's presence, though it took her a while to process, the girl let out a gasp.

"Oh my god," the girl spoke, her voice shaky as she put a hand over her mouth. Tears brimmed her eyes as she stared at Calum. "Cal?"

"Sorry for dropping by unannounced," Calum said non-empathetically, his arms crossed over his chest. "I was in the area. Figured a visit was due."

"Calum..." the girl whispered, taking a step down. For the first time in a while, Calum cracked a smile. He engulfed the smaller girl in a hug.

After a minute, Calum pulled away and looked back at his girlfriend. "This is Astrid. My sister."

Widening her eyes, Ariana held her breath. Calum had never talked about his family, so seeing such a close relative of his in the flesh was astonishing. Now that it was pointed out, Ariana could definitely see the resemblances.