Just the Beginning [Complete ✓]

Chapter 13

Adrian and I catch the bus together, but for the most part, he's quiet. There's an occasional exchange of words but I end up staring out of the window for the majority of the ride. It's full. The bus, that is. All I want is to get off. 

"Why don't we ever take one of the cars?" I ask, turning back to Adrian who frowns. He looks at me as if I've lost my mind. I choose to ignore the look. "It's always the bus," I state as if he doesn't already know that. "Which is always full." 

Our stop comes up, putting the conversation to a pause. The moment I'm off, he turns to me and shakes his head. "Your father would have me fired if I used the car. I'd be killed if I so much as touched it."

My forehead creases. "You drove it the other day"

"You were there," he reminds.

"Exactly. And I'm here now too," I inform. He stops just before the gate, brows furrowing and eyes cast nowhere in particular as he takes in the information he's just been given. It's pretty clear that the idea never occurred to him. 

"Alright," he says aloud. "We'll see."

We make our way up the driveway when there's a hoot behind us. Turning around, I freeze. There in all his glory is Sawyer in his car. The window is rolled down and while I don't move from my spot, Adrian makes his way over. I'm not close enough to hear the conversation, but then Adrian turns to me and he's already got this pleading look that lets me know I may just end up regretting something. 

"He wants to know if he could come inside," Adrian says, relaying the message.

And then they're looking over at me expectantly. Sawyer's gaze is intense. I so badly want to say no; I want to say no and go inside and pretend the question wasn't asked. Though the longer he stares, the more I feel myself giving in. Right until I'm looking away and I nod. "Yeah, sure." 

I don't wait for them as I make my way inside.

Sawyer gets to the door first after parking his car. Brushing past him, I step inside and make my way to the kitchen where Carmela is seated at the kitchen island.

"Afternoon."

She whips her head around to look at me, her lips pulling into a little 'o'. "Good afternoon," she greets. "I apologise, I didn't realize the time." She scurries to a stand, grabbing some of the items on the sink and turning the oven as she passes. She's pulling out a tray when Adrian and Sawyer walk in.

"Afternoon, Carmela," he greets surprisingly cheerily compared to the way he was not so long ago. Which is odd. I can't recall if I've done something or not, but it sure feels like it. 

Carmela turns around and completely stops in her tracks.

"Afternoon," Sawyer greets seemingly tense. 

"Hello, Sawyer."

I feel like I missed something. There's a tension in the air and no other words are exchanged aside from Adrian excusing them and disappearing out of the kitchen, Sawyer hot on his tracks. 

"Do you know him?"

With a firm nod of her head, she exhales softly. "He and Adrian have been friends since Adrian started there," she explains, though there's something off about her tone. Her forehead creases in a way that hints there's more to the topic than she's actually saying. When she looks up, I tilt my head in question which she seems to understand. With another exhale, she says, "He got into a lot of trouble last year and I wasn't too keen that Adrian hang around him. I didn't want him to get into trouble, you know?" Her voice quakes near the end. Distracting herself, she puts the trays into the oven. 

I figure she won't say more this time unless I actually ask. So I do. "And you told him this?"

"Have you ever seen Adrian upset?"

My answer is an immediate no, without having to think about it. Adrian and upset just never seemed to go together; it was like forcing an antonym and a synonym in a sentence side by side. It was like trying to picture a bunny frowning. Impossible. 

"He was really upset?"

Rather than responding, she offers a nod of her head and honestly, I have no idea what to do or what to say. I try offering some assistance, but she assures me that it's alright and ushers me out of the kitchen, handing me my bag on the way.

When I walk into my room, I pull to a stop in the doorway.

"What the hell are you doing?" I demand, dumping my bag without a thought and immediately pulling at Sawyer's arm. His eyes meet mine and a chill runs through my spine, though I don't stop, because why was he in my room? What was he doing in here without my permission?

"I thought this was the bathroom—"

"Bull," I interrupt. With as much force as I can muster up, I push him out the door. He barely stumbles, but seeming to catch on, he steps outside himself, leaning against the door frame with a quizzical expression and he's got his arms crossed expectantly. "You've been here before."

"Look—"

"Stay out of my room," I hiss. "Unless you actually have permission from me." With that, I shut the door, pressing myself against it and fisting at the material of my skirt and I'm actually shaking. Casting my eyes across the room, I ensure that nothing has been touched and then, fuck—

I hurry over to my bed and pull out the box. Opening it, a breath of relief escapes me when I see the picture still there and yeah, I still can't seem to get over it. I can't wrap my head around how similar they look and yet how different they are.

You know, I was waiting for you. I needed permission before I could come in. No, if I were a vampire I'd be a little hotter, don't you think? Cal—

Abruptly, I put a stop to the memory; to the reminder of that day and after a few failed attempts, I manage to place the lid of the box back on and tuck it away safely. I think about him less these days, but no matter how much less that is, I still think about him. I still think it's not real and that one day, he's going to pull up in the driveway and grin at me with that child-like smile that he had and he'd tell me how much he missed me and everything would be okay.

Everything would be okay—

Everything will be okay, Cally.