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chapter twenty • change

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"Let's go," I said putting on my jacket. After tossing Calum the car keys, we starting heading out.

My sweaty fingers clenched onto Calum's hand as we neared the restaraunt we were meeting my parents at.

"Are you nervous?" Calum asked with a soft tone. 'No shit.' I thought in response to Calum's question. He glanced over at me before looking back at the road, "You know, you lived with them only a couple months ago, and you'll only be with them for less than two hours. It'll be okay."

I inhaled deeply, shifting in my seat to face Calum. "It won't be okay," I said honestly, maybe a little pessimitically. "You don't know what they're like."

We arrived at the restaraunt about ten minutes later. Calum held my hand tightly as we reached the table trying to assure me it'd be okay. But I knew it wouldn't be, I knew it.

"Hello," My dad said as we sat down.

I nodded avoiding eye contact. I played with the hem of the table cloth, and counted the paintings in the store. Anything to avoid eye contact.

"I missed you!" My mom said grabbing my hand.

"Okay." I replied dryly.

I had to admit they did look different, my dad shaved and cut his hair and wore nice clothes for once. My mom had a new hairstyle and was wearing a dress, she seemed to be attempting to carry herself with some type of class. They didn't look terrible, they looked nice, elegant almost. If I hadn't known them they'd probably make a great first impression. But I knew them and I knew them too well to ever see them as anything more than low class trash.

"Who's this?" My dad asked eyeing Calum.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Calum beat me to it. "I'm your daughter's boyfriend, Sir." Calum said grinning widely.

My dad didn't return the smile. Instead he steadily tapping his fingers on the table. "Uhh..." He said leaning back a little, "Boyfriend?"

Calum and I exchanged quick glances before nodding simultaneously.

"And why wasn't I informed?"

"Because," I mumbled nervously, "It's sort of a recent thing. And confusing."

My dad simply nodded, swallowing harshly.

We were in silence for a while, the only thing keeping me relatively calm was Calum rubbing small circles into my hand and his occasional side glances and soft smiles that made me less anxious.

"What's your name, hun?" My mom asked after that long period of silence.

"Calum." Cal smiled, and my mom returned it.

"And, you guys know eachother how?"

"We live in the same apartment complex, and we go to same University." I said sitting up in my chair.

"Oh! What are you studying?" My mom asked in a voice way higher and way lovelier than her real tone.

Calum looked over at me, in a way that made it seem as if he was almost afraid to say it. It came to my realization that I had no idea what Calum was studying, or what he wanted to be, he had never talked about it. "Um, music." Calum said, "I'm basically studying to be a musician. Like how to work in a studio and how to properly make music."

It wasn't a shock to me, Calum loves music and he's good at it. It made sense to me. But not to my father, as he quickly snorted in a mocking tone showing his derision.

"Music, really?" My dad asked as he raised his eyebrow. Calum's smile slowly faded, as he nodded slowly. "You're never gonna make it."

"Dad." I said in a rough voice signaling him to stop. "Calum actually has a lovely voice and he plays the bass. He also writes incredible songs. He'll make it."

My dad snorted once more.

"Uhh," My mom said eyeing my dad carefully, "So..."

It became pretty awkward. We stayed silent for what seemed an eternity. My dad was constantly glaring at Calum, Calum has his eyes fixed on a glass of water to avoid making eye contact with my dad. The tension was unbearable.

"Well, thank you, see you guys later..." I said attempting to break away. Calum and I had payed for both of our meals, because Mom and Dad didn't have money on them. It was bullshit how they basically forced me to go out with them and then made me pay aswell. I wanted to get as far away from them as possible. But I admit, I had expected everything to go worse.

My mom pulled me into a hug, I stood there awkwardly, slightly hugging back. "I love you." She said for the first time in years.

"Okay." I responded.

In a few seconds we were inside of Calum's car driving back home. I threw my head back in the chair letting out a deep breath.

"That was...awkward." Calum said mainting his eyes on the road. "But I guess it went better than expected."

"True." I agreed closing eyes, relieved that I was finally out. "Thank you for coming with me."

"Of course." Calum said with a smile, "Your mom seemed nice though. You said she was awful."

"She is awful." I said looking at him. "She was awful back then and she's awful now. All that you saw at the restaraunt, a façade, all the smiles, showing interest, acting all 'good stable parent' fake, fabricated, false."

Calum shrugged, "Maybe... She changed? It could be a possibilty."

"People's personalities don't change so drastically, Cal. Good people always remain mainly good, bad people always remain mainly bad." I argued.

"No, people do change. They do." Calum said as if he was one hundred percent positive of this. And almost under his breath, most likely something I wasn't supposed to here, he mumbled, "I am proof."

But before I had the time to question his whispered statement, ringing filled the car as the name 'Mikey' popped up on my phone screen.

"We need to talk."

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author's note

holy shit i apologise

i've been terrible on writing + updating the chapters but school sucks !!

but i'm trying to write i just dont have time

n certain people in my life have been being lil shits n its hard to deal okay but i promise i'll improve this story

((nExT chApTER IS SOMETHING BIG))

love u all lots <3<3

-possibly probably sofi