"They what?" Joe asks loudly, jumping to his feet in surprise. "What do you mean?"
"They kicked me out," Caspar says on the other end of the line. "My step father came to the school just as I was packing up my car to go home and he made me sit with him in a meeting with the headmaster and - what? No! I'm talking to - yes, I'm talking to him! No, I won't - oh my god, leave me alo-"
The last bit of Caspar's hurried words are obviously not for him, Joe knows. But all he hears is yelling now; he hears Caspar's raised voice and another, deeper voice shouting from farther away from the phone. Out of nowhere, there's a crackling and a fuck load of noise on Caspar's end of the phone and a pained cry and suddenly the line goes dead.
"Caspar? Hello?" Joe asks weakly into the receiver even though he knows he won't get an answer.
He pulls the phone away from his ear and watches the screen dim. Not knowing what else to do, he calls back, silently praying for an answer. The line rings and rings and rings.
And goes to voicemail.
Cursing internally, Joe ends the call and tries a second time, only to hear the voicemail once again.
Something is wrong.
He sends a text.
Call me back.
Joe sits gingerly on the edge of his bed, staring at the phone in his hand, willing it to buzz with the alert that Caspar is calling or texting.
Nothing happens.
Nothing at all.
A minute later, his phone glows with a new text message.
Call you later. I'm okay.
The hand that had encased Joe's heart in a vicious fist slowly releases its hold and the panic and terror subsides.
How late is later? When will he know what's going on? He doesn't want to wait, he needs to know what happened. He needs to know that Caspar isn't being beaten or something, despite the 'I'm okay' part of his text message. What the hell is he supposed to do while he waits?
Joe curls up on top of his bed, phone securely in hand, and stares at the screen. He doesn't know how long he has to wait, but he knows unpacking won't help and he has no other distractions to occupy his time.
So he lies there.
And he waits.
Joe wakes a couple of hours later to the buzzing of his phone.
There's a text from Caspar.
What's your address?
Extremely confused, Joe types out his address on the keypad and asks why Caspar even needs it.
I'll be there soon is the only reply he receives.
Joe rushes downstairs, eager for news and eager for Caspar's arrival. What the hell is going on?
"What-" his dad asks as Joe rushes past.
"Caspar's coming over. Something's wrong. He called earlier and there was a lot of yelling and then nothing. I fell asleep and now he says he's coming over. I don't know why," Joe states, cutting off his dad's inevitable questions. "I just know he is."
Graham snaps his jaw closed and Joe stands at the front window, peeking through the blinds every few seconds. He eyes the curb, willing Caspar's car to appear, and the wait seems almost endless.
Fifteen minutes later, Joe throws open the door and Caspar's rushing into his arms, looking completely disheveled and distraught.
"What the hell happened?" Joe asks, pulling Caspar inside.
