WRONG NUMBER / CH

chptr 22

from: leia :~)
moving in! :D

"If I told you guys I'm skipping school today, would you get mad?" Calum asked the moment they met Ashton in his car with Michael in the passenger seat. His eyes were set on the messages on his screen.

from: leia :~)
unpacking things finally!

"I'm coming with you if you do," Michael stated, not even moving to get out of Ashton's car.

"Wait, where are you going?" Luke asked, always the responsible one.

Calum grinned manically and turned to Ashton instead of answering. "Ash, you up for it?"

The curly-haired boy flashed a dimpled smile. "Well, I have a trig test today, so hell yeah." He started the ignition and turned on the radio, tilting his head to beckon Calum and Luke to hop on.

Calum wasted no time. Luke sighed in defeat and followed, seeing as he didn't have much choice. Besides, he could use a break. They all did.

Soon they were all cruising the road, enjoying truancy like normal teenage boys. Green Day was blaring on the radio, the sky was bluer than ever, the wind breezing through their hairs, and the day was only beginning. After they went to a McDonald's drive through, Ashton turned to Calum and asked where he planned on going.

"KFC," Calum replied simply.

"But we just-" Ashton started indignantly, but he spotted Calum's phone and the sly grin on his best friend's face and understood.

The excitement was running through Calum's veins like adrenaline. He would actually pass by Leia's house-and maybe, if he was lucky, get a glimpse of her. Thinking about it made him dizzy from the overwhelming sensation of seeing someone you care about in person. The other boys were ecstatic to see the famous Leia as well, mainly because she had managed to change Calum with a few heartbreaking text messages.

"I can see it," Luke whispered excitedly. He practically stood since the top was down. He squinted against the sunlight, but he could definitely spot the blue tiled roof a mile away.

"Wait, are we gonna stop?" Michael questioned, craning his neck to get a better view.

Calum decided that meeting Leia on her first day here wouldn't be a good idea. "No," he answered firmly. Still, he wanted to get a sneak peek of things. "Just...slow down."

Ashton did as he was told. He didn't slow down enough to be obvious, but it was slow enough to get a good view of the house for about ten seconds. There was a moving truck near their sidewalk and boxes littering the front yard. They heard a female voice from inside, but it was an older woman's. Her mother. The door opened. Calum's heart stopped.

Warren came racing outside, retrieving a small box from their car.

It felt surreal to Calum, watching a kid he'd only known from pictures actually existing in front of him, talking and laughing and breathing just a few meters away. Their car was almost completely at the other side of their house, already losing sight. But just before they were completely out of earshot, Calum heard a girl's laughter.

Definitely her.

It was like falling in love all over again, but also like the first time. It was hearing the laughter you want to hear for the rest of your life. And even though it only lasted two seconds because Ashton drove off, he knew he was going to remember that sound for the rest of his life.

Its melody made his chest ache.

"We didn't get to see her," Michael complained with a pout. He started convincing Ashton to turn around so they could try again.

"No, that's okay," Calum decided. He cradled his phone in his hands, staring down at it. He balled one fist as his face broke out into yet another smile. He felt jittery and nervous but at the same time he'd never felt so alive. He wanted to start running and do backflips and awesome air kicks and everything his body allowed him to do because that two-second laughter was like one breath of fresh oxygen for his brain.

It was almost as if he was meant to hear it so he could realize how serious the situation was.

"I feel like a stalker," he announced.

"When you think about it, we kinda are," Luke conceded, nodding.

Calum knew it was true, but he didn't regret it even one bit. It was all worth it.

She was all worth it.