pretty || malum (discontinued)

four

a/n:

chapter dedication to calumcuddler because shes one of my favorite wattpad authors and i cried when i saw she was reading this

-emma

-୨୧ ୨୧ ୨୧-

calum was anxious.

even when a car honk was heard outside his house, calum made no effort to leave his humble abode, caught up in the events that had occured only minutes ago. he didn't approve of himself constantly resenting the idea of revealing his true identity. it's always been a subconscious gesture to defend himself, and he hated himself immensely for it.

michael wouldn't judge you. calum's internal promoter assured him. he's the guy you've known for years, the guy you've had a crush on for years. he'd have to find out your secret eventually, and maybe, just maybe, he'd actually like it. you'd never know if you were to keep your true self hidden for eternity, in hopes that your adoration to look pretty is just a passing phase.

just imagine how accomplished you'd feel after wearing a blouse and panties shielded by a skirt in michael's presence. the choice to reveal yourself could benefit you, or it could be your worst nightmare, but at least you could realize that you don't have to be afraid anymore. it's simply a fight or flight mechanism; either you grow some balls and face the situation, or you run from it and never look back.

calum shut his eyes before exhaling shakily. everything his conscience was telling him was right, so unbelievably right, and he knew it. he was just so scared; he was scared of possibly being judged negatively and laughed at, scared of the kind of emotional and physical pain people may put him through.

you don't have to be afraid anymore.

his phone emitted a pretty sound for the second time that night, but this time, calum didn't rush to retrieve the device. he stood there, as still as a rock, tense and unmoving. he was such a useless failure; he felt like crying at the realization.

"calum, honey? michael's here," his mother announced, her face unseen due to the closed door that separated them. calum felt himself tense even more, if that was remotely possible.

"th-thanks, mum," calum replied softly. his head was spinning and he hadn't even arrived at the party yet, hadn't even consumed any alcohol or drugs.

"are you okay, sweetie?" joy sounded concerned, calum's quietness being unusual to her. calum was relatively close with his mum and dad, and he felt lucky to have such caring parents in which put his needs before their own.

"i'm- i'm fine. don't worry about it," calum responded louder this time. he finally made a move toward his phone, reaching for its placement on the bed and unlocking the screen to expose a text message.

from mikey 🙈💖:

come out come out wherever you are, i wanna see how cute you look ;)

at that, calum's smile reached his eyes. he stole a glance in the mirror and seemed to smile wider at the oversized costume adorning his body. before he could think twice, he slipped his phone into one of the pockets on his onesie and dashed out of his room, the advice his conscience gave him about not having to be fearful about wearing pretty things forgotten in the midst of excitement.

♡

as soon as the pair entered the living room of the frat house, calum was already overwhelmed. it felt like 90 degress in the room and he was wearing a onesie, which probably wasn't the smartest costume idea to wear in a room full of people, but it was already too late to change.