Walls||CTH AU||

4 Years Later

Bailey strolled along the streets of suburban Sydney, reminiscing about her teenage years. The 21 year old hadn't really missed living there, but she had certainly missed the tall lanky nerdy boys she called friends. While she was in Adelaide, contact was supposed to be kept, but like many friendships, they drifted apart when she moved.

She turned the corner onto the familiar street where Calum and Luke lived, smiling as she found that nothing had changed. Children played on the streets, the leaves in the trees rustled in the slight breeze and dogs barked at passing cars. While she was taking in her surroundings, she wasn't paying attention to where she was walking and walked straight into someone.

"I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying a-" Bailey apologised quickly, pausing as she took in the man in front of her's appearance. He hasn't changed since the last time she had seen him: he had the same thick brown hair, same beautiful brown eyes and the same radiant smile that lit up her darkest days.

"Is that you, Tattoos?"

"Hello Buttercup, long time no see eh?" 

"Oh my god, what's it been, 4 years now?" Bailey asked, grinning up at Calum who had somehow grown even taller.

"4 years. Man it doesn't seem like that long." Calum said, scratching the back of his neck.

"You haven't changed a bit." Bailey told him, looking him up and down. "Just a few more tattoos I see."

"You've definitely changed. Is that your natural hair?"

"Yeah. My hair was really damaged from the amount of dye I had to use to keep it black so I decided to grow it out to my boring natural brown again." Bailey explained. "Lord, it's been a while."

"We need to properly catch up." Calum stated. "Are you free for a coffee?"

"Right now?"

"Whenever." Calum shrugged.

"Now's good. I'm not exactly doing much."

"Let's a go."
--------------------------------------------

"So what are you doing back in Sydney?" Calum asked Bailey as they say across from each other in a booth at the local coffee shop, cupping steaming cups of coffee.

"I came to visit Mum. I didn't particularly want to but Aunty Jac said it would "give me some closure". I was surprised but it worked. She's got a new kid who she seems to adore which is such a good thing and I'm happy for her and now I can move on with my life without her."

Calum smiled, taking a sip of his coffee.

"So you're better now?"

"I guess you could say that. I'm never going to be 100% over it, but I knew that from the start. I'm always going to have it at the back of my mind, it's just learning to keep it there and not dwell on what happened. I'm happy and I suppose that's the main thing." Bailey replied before taking a sip of her coffee. "What about you? How have you been?"

"I've been good. I'm at Uni, studying Musical Theory. Luke's on the same course and Michael's got himself an apprenticeship with a electrician."

"I asked about you, not the other two."

Calum laughed, shaking his head fondly.

"You're still exactly the same, sassy as fuck." He said. "I've been great, like I said. My dad and I haven't talked, but my mum and I have been getting to know each other better again and rebuilding our relationship. I'm loving Uni, but it can be really stressful. I decided to spend my weekend visiting Liz with Luke instead of studying which was one of my better ideas."

"Well, if you hadn't, you wouldn't have met me again." Bailey joked. "And that would have been a real shame."

"It would have been." Calum replied, completely seriously. The two sat in silence for a bit, taking a sip of their coffees as they thought of something to say. Both had so much they wanted to ask that they didn't now where to start.

"So, what are you doing with your life?" Calum asked.

"I completely skipped Uni, I didn't see the point. I scraped a pass in all my exams but it wasn't good enough to do anything with them. However, my Aunty took me on in her tattoo parlour and I'm working towards getting my tattoo license. I'm almost done now." Bailey replied. "I even got another tattoo for free from her."

"Just the one?"

"Yeah, I figured I had enough but I thought one more can't hurt. Do you want to see it?" Bailey replied.

"Sure."

Bailey pushed down the shoulder of her tshirt, revealing her shoulder and turned around. On her left shoulder blade was a tattoo of a tree swing. Calum gasped when he saw it, wanting to burst into tears at the sight of it.

"Is that our-?" Bailey nodded, smiling at Calum's reaction. She knew he would love it, as it was off their special place when they were younger. Calum wiped his eyes before tears could fall and took another sip of coffee, emptying his cup.

"Had any boyfriends?" He asked. Bailey shifted awkwardly, finally hearing the question she knew would come up.

"No." She replied. "Have you?"

"Had any boyfriends? No, can't say I have. Though Michael and Luke have been dating for 4 years now." Calum responded sarcastically at first, leaning back in his chair.

"Seriously? When I first met them I would never have put them together but now I think about it, the signs were always there."

"I've missed you guys." Bailey continued with a sigh. "Mostly you." She added quietly. Calum looked up from his coffee cup and they met her gaze.

"I've missed you too Buttercup." Calum mumbled, reaching across the table to hold her hand. "After we lost contact, I thought I'd never see you again but I secretly hoped I would. I still love you Bailey."

Bailey swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat and blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall. Calum interlocked their fingers and smiled over at her. Bailey she missed that smile, and his eyes which seemed to stare straight into her soul and maker her heart melt.

"I love you too Calum." She whispered while her heart pounded. Calum squeezed her hand tightly and she felt the same safety she used when he was around and she relaxed completely.

Calum had been there for her when she needed him the most, and now all she wanted was him by her side for the rest of her life.

😭😭 Its over. Walls is complete. It's been a emotional roller coaster but I'm glad Bailey got her happy ending. I hope you've all enjoyed the book.