tidal wave | rafe cameron

ten

"callie, you gotta get over this sarah thing," pope says.

"seriously, you've been sulking for a week. either do something, or we'll do something for you," jj agrees.

"okay, i don't even wanna know what that means," i say, taking my hand out of my hands.

"talk to john b, talk to sarah. we're throwing a kegger," jj grins.

"maybe talk to john b, you know i wouldn't mind if sarah stayed gone," kie chimes in.

i force a laugh and tell them that i'll talk to them. but really, i won't. not until tonight, that is. i need at least a few beers before my nerves will be calmed enough.

as kie and i get ready for the party, my phone buzzes against my vanity.  it's a text from rafe.  the first one i had gotten in weeks.

hey pretty

i hear there's a kegger?

i smile to myself and try to remind myself not to get too excited.  continuing talking to rafe was a bad idea for more reasons than i could count.

yeah

a dry response.  i hope he doesn't take it personally.

as i blend the highlight on my nose, kie stands behind me.

"hello?" i turn around and laugh.

"can i pick your outfit?" she asks, giving me puppy dog eyes.

"girl, you don't even have to ask," i reply before turning back to my mirror.

she smiles and begins looking through my closet.  she pulls hangers, examines every folded shirt in every drawer, and digs through my dirty hamper, clearly looking for something.

"where's the top?" she asks breathlessly.

i didn't even have to ask what top she was talking about.  it was my black corset top that i got at urban a few months back.  i had only worn it once, when her and i went to dinner a while ago.  she hasn't stopped talking about how good i looked since.

"it's hanging up somewhere.  it's probably hidden."

she nods and continues searching my closet before ripping the hanger off of the rack triumphantly.

"this! you have to wear this," she holds it up to my body.

"i will, i will," i laugh.

i did as she said, getting dressed into the top and a pair of black jean shorts.  we arrived at the beach just before sunset, where we found the boys already drinking.  john b locked eyes with me but dropped them quickly before i could say anything.

jj engulfs kie and i into a big hug.  he holds us tight and tells us we look good, to which kie lightly smacks his chest before going to talk to pope.

"have you talked to john b yet?" jj whispers.

i shake my head.

"callie," he groans dramatically.

"jj," i mock him in the same tone.

"just get me a drink. i'll do it eventually," i shrug.

as people started to arrive and the drinks started flowing, i began to realize how much i missed little things like this. we throw parties like this all the time, and yet, i had been missing them more than anything over the last few weeks.

i felt my phone buzz in my pocket. another text from rafe.

i wanna talk to you

meet me somewhere?

it was probably best that rafe wanted to talk somewhere other than the middle of this party. being seen with him wouldn't look great. especially considering the fact that i had been trying to prove that him and i weren't a thing.

do you remember the spot?

i stared at my screen and prayed that he remembered the spot. our spot. a secluded part of the beach shaded by lush trees. the first time we went there, he had disappeared from our families beach day after ward had yelled at him, and i had wandered off looking for shells. we were young, just two young kids who had no idea what the future held.

how could i forget?

i smile at his message.

i'll be there at 9

i put my phone back into my pocket and make a mental note to watch the time. i would be seeing rafe in a half hour. i'd be lying if i said i hadn't been thinking about him this week.

as i walk around, i find sarah by herself. as much as my nerves tell me not to, i have to talk to her.

"sarah," i call, getting her attention. she looks at me and says nothing.

"can we talk?" i ask.

"what is there to talk about?" she replies.

"maybe the fact that i don't want to lose you as a friend?"

her expression softens, though i can tell she doesn't want me to notice.

"me neither," she sighs.

"i'm sorry," was all i could say. i had spent all this time thinking about this moment, and yet, i couldn't say anything more than a basic ass apology.

"callie," she trails off, "i'm sorry too."

"i was mad that you lied. which is so stupid, i've been lying for weeks. i just want you to know, i think you're good for him," she adds.

"what?"

"rafe. i don't know what's really going on. but whatever it is, i think you might be doing something good to him."

her lips turn up just slightly. i knew how sarah was when it came to friends. get close, push them away, move on. i was so glad she hadn't chosen to do that with me.

"i'm sorry for exposing the john b thing, seriously," i say.

"i'm sorry for not telling you," she laughs a little.

"was it his idea?" i smile too.

"yes," she exclaims, a glimmer of excitement returning to her eyes as she realizes that her and i would never change.

"he was so serious about keeping it a secret," she adds.

"so what will you guys do now?"

"topper found out. kelce overheard our conversation and snitched like, immediately. so i guess, we're gonna see how things go," she shrugs.

as she says that, john b walks past and we both motion for him to come over. sarah grabs onto his arm and smiles. she looks happier than i had ever seen her with topper.

"so when were you gonna tell me about this?" i tease.

he shrugs a little, "i was just waiting for jj to say something to you."

"you told jj and not me?" i put my hands to my heart dramatically.

they look between each other and laugh. "we've said too much. gotta go!" sarah grins before sticking her tongue out at me.

and then they disappeared into the crowd of teenagers.  happier together than i had ever thought.  i was glad things were settled between us.  it was like a weight was lifted off of my shoulders.  no more stressing, no more lying, no more secrets.

and yet, i was secretly going to talk to rafe.  yikes.