noted → calum hood | #Wattys2015

eleven

Melanie hesitantly opened the door to the pizza parlor. Taking a deep breath, she scanned the crowd for anyone familiar.

It seemed ridiculous for her to be this nervous. It was just her, a few friends, and Calum, right? What was there to be so nervous about?

Well to start, Ashton could egg on the idea of Calum and Melanie dating, or she'll probably screw up somehow and Calum will want nothing to do with her.

But yeah, nothing to worry about.

Calum may have only been part of her life for a short while, but God, did he mean a lot. The little notes he left for her every day were one of the only reasons she looked forward to school. Heck, a few times he had even given the guys notes to give to her outside of their shared class. And meeting Calum proper for the first time with an actual face-to-fave conversation? Well, that was simply a thought too complex to grasp.

This day could possibly make it or break it for the both of them, and they both had a mutual thought that they should break it one way or another.

"Mel!" A particular highlighter-haired boy called her name from the left side of the restaurant. She studied the booth carefully: Michael and Ashton were side-by-side, Aries sat next to Ashton facing opposite of a lonely Luke. Calum was- nowhere to be seen. This was great; with the worry of Calum lifted from her shoulders, Melanie strode to the table and slid in next to Luke. "Calum's grabbing the food, he'll be back any minute."

Melanie nodded at Michael as a group of butterflies started flying around in her stomach. "Cool."

"How was that AP test?" Ashton inquired.

"Probably failed it, to be honest." Melanie sighed and began to draw mindless shapes onto the cold table with the pads of her fingers.

"Are you excited to finally meet Calum?"

"We've met before, Ash."

"Not proper, no," he sipped from the straw in the glass of cola placed at the front of him. "From what I've been told, you guys haven't ever talked, and actually avoid each other at all costs."

"Your point being?"

Ashton shrugged. "He seems excited to meet you, is all. I would hope that the feeling was mutual, because I'd like to think we're all ready to witness such a touching moment."

Melanie rolled her eyes, to which Ashton gave a smirk.

"Alright, I've got the- oh." Melanie broke the scowl she was giving Ashton to lock her gaze with Calum's.

"Well, this is sweet." Ashton's thick voice rang through the tension in the air, and Michael smacked his shoulder as he mumbled a quick "shut up!".

"Did I take your spot?" Asked Melanie with wide eyes.

Calum just shook his head as he placed the pizza on the table. "Oh, no. You're fine." He sat next to her, that being the only spot empty.

The table erupted with small talk, but Melanie and Calum soon retreated to their ways of silence. It was a good ten minutes before either of them spoke another word to each other, and surprisingly it was Calum who stepped up. "This is ridiculous."

"What?" Melanie asked, glancing his way.

"We still aren't talking. I don't know about you, but I didn't prepare any notes to give you instead because I actually want to get to know you."

Melanie nodded. "Well, we could move to that table near the window, just you and I?" Her voice was in the brink of shaking from nerves. "Only if you want though, I was only suggesting because without everyone else it may take some pressure off-"

Calum cut off her ramble. "Yeah." He stood and allowed her to get out before following her.

Melanie sat across from him and smiled. "So this is finally happening?"

"I suppose so," he returned her smile with one just as bright. "If I have to be honest, I was actually really nervous you weren't gonna show up, or that you'd hate me."

Melanie shook her head. "Of course not! I was actually worried about the same thing."

"We're such a mess."

"Yeah, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. At least we don't have the whole awkward-skinny-love thing going on like Luke and Aries."

Calum stifled a laugh. "True," (but oh, how little did Melanie know!) "You know, you're a million times better in person. Nicer, prettier, funnier, I don't know, I'm just really glad we can finally meet."

"Technically we've met before-"

Calum groaned. "I don't care about technicalities, Mel. What I care about is that I'm able to talk to you without wanting to run away and hide because I'm so nervous that you won't like me."

"I can easily say the same."

Calum inhaled deeply, followed by a loud huff of air. "I want to get to know you. Like, actually know you, not the silly things we always talk about in out notes."

Melanie raised an eyebrow. For such a complex girl, she wasn't an enigma to understand. "Like what, then?"

"I don't know, likes, dislikes? Reason you kept writing me in the first place?"

Melanie took a moment to ponder the questions. "Well, I like when people actually take an interest in me. It doesn't have to be romantic or friendly by any means, but just that when I put forth effort with them, then they'll return it. I don't like putting so much effort into things just for it not to work out, you know?" Calum nodded in reassurance, urging her to continue talking. "Which is why I guess I wrote back to you. You put forth the effort towards me, and I returned it because I would want someone to do the same. It just so happened that by doing so, it created something between us."

Melanie never failed to amaze Calum with her intelligence. Sure she may not have understood certain aspects of her math class from last semester right away, and even failed her AP test, but he just found her so... great, for lack of a better word to describe his thoughts, which were in fact, an enigma (at least when it came to Melanie). "What about you? Why did you keep writing me?"

Calum sighed in content. "I suppose there's just something about you, Mel."