Liam's POV
"Why did you text me?" Liam asks Keagan once he sees her again.
"It's a long story and I would rather not."
"Well, you need to, because it was completely out of the blue."
"Okay, let's just say I realized I was being a dick."
"Yeah, something's up because you would never do that."
"I am capable of surprises."
"Not when it comes to this."
"What does that mean?"
"You just don't accept your faults. You have always been like that."
"Why can't you accept that maybe I've changed?"
"I didn't know the word change was even in your vocabulary."
"I didn't come here to fight."
"Then let's not fight."
"Okay, so catch me up on everything."
"There's not much to tell."
"There has to be something. Especially since I'm hearing stuff."
"What stuff?"
"Just some stuff about you and... a futball captain." Liam let out a groan. Great, now there is a rumor going around.
"Nothing is going on. He's just a friend."
"Are you sure he knows that?"
"Yes! Just because I'm hanging out with a new person doesn't mean anything."
"Okay, if you say so. Speaking of friends, how's Evan? I haven't heard from him in a while."
"Last time I heard from him, Thomson was punching him."
"What? Thomson? Your sweet older brother?"
"He's not sweet. Yeah, that's the Thomson I'm talking about, considering he's the only one I know."
"What the fuck?" She turns to face Liam.
"It's kinda a long story."
"Well, tell me."
"He said something mean about me being fatherless and Thomson got mad."
"That was rather short. Okay, we can fix this." She jumps up, grabbing Liam's arm forcing him to her car outside.
"What are you doing?"
"Fixing your mess. Evan is your best friend. You love him more than anything. You guys are going to grow some balls and figure your shit out." She starts to drive towards Evan's house.
Once they get there, Liam hangs back as Keagan knocks on the door. After a few awkward moments, Evan answers the door. At first, confusion surfaces on his face, but then he sees Liam and gets mad.
"What the fuck are you doing at my house?"
"Don't yell at him!" Keagan warns him.
"I don't want him here. Go away." He tries to slam the door shut, but Keagan holds her hand out, making it stay open.
"Stop being an arsehole. You are going to listen to him and talk. He is your best friend."
"Not anymore."
"Yes, he is. Now move aside, we have a conversation to have." Evan reluctantly backs away from the door, letting them both in. Liam feels so out of place and unwelcomed. They take a seat on the couch, making sure to not sit anywhere near each other.
"Okay, now talk." Keagan looks at them both, waiting for one to talk. After the awkward silence starts to choke them all, she kicks Evan with a force. She nods, saying that he needs to talk.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said what I did."
"Thank you. I'm sorry for letting my brother punch you."
"That shite hurts. I know I messed up, but I didn't deserve that."
"I definitely could have stopped him, but I was shocked. I hope you don't hate me."
"I don't. I went too far, it's my fault. I understand why you didn't stop him." Keagan, watching the entire interaction, has a huge grin appear on her face.
"It's about time." She walks over and puts her arms around both of them, forcing them into a hug. Liam and Evan both have a look of disgust on their faces.
"Alright, that's enough of that." Liam says as he pushes Keagan away.
"Hey," Keagan punches Liam in the arm, "tell us about your secret boyfriend."
"He's not my boyfriend. He's just my friend."
"Sure he is. So, when was the last time you hung out with him?"
"Eh... yesterday." Liam says, suspicious of where Keagan is going with this.
"And what did you do?"
"I just watched his futball practice, then he gave me a ride home."
"Holy shite! You definitely have a boyfriend. Why would you go to his futball practice otherwise?" Evan suddenly blurted out, showing nearly as much excitement as Keagan.
"He's not my boyfriend. I don't see him that way. He just asked me to come watch."
"Mhm, yeah, sure." Keagan teasingly nodded. "So, what's his name?"
"Alban."
"Damn, he's hot. It's a shame that he's gay." Keagan said as she casually sat down.
"You don't even know that he's gay!" Liam yelled in a whining voice, getting frustrated.
"Yeah, he is." Evan and Keagan said in unison.
"How would either of you know that?"
"Dude, I'm on the futball team. Alban does nothing but talk about you." Evan says as he takes a seat next to Keagan.
"I should really stop telling you guys things. You always blow it out of proportion."
"Nah, you're just being dramatic." Keagan brushes off Liam's remark.
For the next couple of hours, the three friends catch up on the things that have happened since Calvin came back. At one point, Evan left the room and came back with a bottle of an alcoholic drink. "I feel like we all need this right now." Evan says as he grabs three glasses and sits back down.
"Um, I don't drink." Liam said, knowing that he'd be in a load of shite if Thomson found out and he might as well be dead if his mam finds out.
"Oh, come on, Liam. Lighten up. Nobody will know. I'll give you a ride home." Keagan said, as she reassuringly patted Liam on the back.
"You're not driving me anywhere if you're drinking."
"Then you can just call someone to come get you." Giving in, Liam rolled his eyes and picked up a glass, holding it out for Evan to fill up.
Keagan and Evan drank one after another most of the night. Liam had a couple of drinks and felt slightly buzzed. Keagan was walking around the living room, well, trying to, as she made a very slurred speech. It was something about how Calvin didn't appreciate her and he owes her a favor. Liam didn't catch most of it and ignored what he did, thinking it was just a bunch of drunken talk that meant nothing.
By 2am, Keagan had passed out on the bathroom floor and Evan had long since fallen asleep on the couch. The only one left awake was a slightly buzzed and nauseous Liam. "Holy shite, they're both absolutely blootered." Liam whispered to himself as he looked at the mess they had created. He slowly stood up, not wanting to wake Evan, and grabbed his phone. He quickly went through his contacts and found Thomson. "Please answer. Please answer," he whispered as he reluctantly pressed his name and waited for him to pick up. The phone rang for a little while and, right as Liam was about to give up, Thomson finally answered the phone.
"Who the hell calls a man at 2 in the fucking morning?" Asked a voice that Liam knew didn't belong to Thomson.
"Uh... Calvin? Where is Thomson?"
"He's sleeping, which is what I would like to be doing, but his phone just kept ringing."
"Well, go back to sleep then."
"Wait, why were you calling? Surely you didn't call at 2am for no reason. Or are you just missing your big brother?" Calvin asked, teasing Liam about how protective his brother is.
"No, I need a ride home. My friends can't really manage driving me home right now."
"Alright."
"Wait, what does alright mean? Calvin, don't you dare come pick me up. You don't even have a car."
"Yeah, but your brother does."
"Calvin—" Liam is cut off by the sound of Calvin hanging up. "Damn it, Calvin." Liam angrily shoved his phone into his pocket and went out to the front porch.
Calvin's POV
Calvin quietly dug through the pockets of Tommy's jeans that Tommy had thrown on the floor before going to bed. Finding the keys to Tommy's car, he made his way out of the room, being careful to not wake Tommy.
Once in the driveway, Calvin took a second to remind himself what he was doing, having not driven for nearly a year. He slowly backed out of the driveway and made his way to Liam. Calvin didn't realize he had no idea where Liam was until after he was already driving. He decided to go to Evan's house first because it was closer than Keagan's. He really hoped Liam wasn't at Alban's. Luckily, his first guess was right.
A few minutes later, he pulled up to Evan's house, finding Liam waiting on the front porch. Liam rolled his eyes and made his way to the car. A strong smell hit Calvin the second the car door opened. "Were you drinking?"
"Yeah, so what?"
"Are you drunk?"
"Why, so you can take advantage of me?"
"Woah, holy shite. No, I'm not going to do that. Despite what you think, I'm not a horrible person. I was just wanting to make sure you were alright."
"No, I'm not drunk. Evan and Keagan on the other hand, are both passed out right now from how drunk they are." Liam stared out the window, not wanting to tell Calvin anything else. Calvin drove back to the house in silence.
Once they got to the house, Calvin turned off the car, then looked at Liam. "Does Tommy know you drink?"
"He caught me once and yelled at me for a while. He said he was disappointed in the person I was becoming and that I was throwing my life away. I hadn't drank since then, but tonight was just too tempting." Calvin gave him an understanding nod and Liam got out of the car, making his way towards the front door. Calvin followed closely behind him.
Once inside, Liam immediately started up the stairs, stumbling a little as he tried to get his bearings. "Not drunk, huh?" Calvin teased as he followed Liam up the stairs, keeping his arms out to catch Liam if he tripped.
"I'm fine," Liam turned towards his room once he was at the top of the stairs. "I'm just a little buzzed." Calvin didn't say anything, but continued to follow Liam. "Seriously, Calvin, you can go now. I'm fine." Liam tiredly sat on the edge of his bed, looking back up at Calvin, when he realized he was leaving the room.
"I'm not going anywhere until I know for sure that you're fine. If something happens on my watch, Tommy will kill me, mostly for not telling him to go get you."
"You cannot tell Tommy about this." Liam says, panic filling his eyes. "Please." He begged in a much calmer voice.
"I'm not going to say anything." Calvin put a reassuring hand under Liam's chin. "I promise. Just go to bed so that I don't have it in my conscience that you might be throwing up or passed out on the floor." He gently pulled his hand away. Liam nodded, giving Calvin the slightest hint of a smile for the first time. Calvin noticed and something about it made his heart flutter.
Once he was sure Liam was going to be fine, he made his way back to Tommy's room. He quietly closed the door and put the keys back where he found them. Double checking that Tommy was still asleep, he crawled into the sleeping bag on the floor, since Tommy decided it was weird having Calvin in the same bed every night.
The next morning, Calvin woke up to a bunch of yelling coming from outside the room. Suddenly, Tommy burst into the room, slamming the door behind him. He glanced down at Calvin, having just realized he was awake. "Where'd you go on your little adventure last night?" Tommy asked.
"Huh? I didn't go anywhere."
"You weren't in your sleeping bag and I heard a car in the driveway." Suddenly, there was the sound of a fist banging on the door.
"Thomson! Open the door!" Liam yelled.
"No!" Tommy yelled through the door, then looked back at Calvin.
"What's happening?" Calvin asked as he rubbed his eyes and sat up.
"You tell me. Where did you go last night?"
"I just went downstairs to unlock the door. Liam had forgotten his key. Keagan had just brought him home. That's why you heard a car." Calvin quickly made up.
"Oh, really? You were gone for nearly an hour, Calvin!" Tommy said, getting down to Calvin's level. Once again, there was banging on the door.
"Thomson!" Liam yelled again. Annoyed, Tommy stood back up and opened the door. Liam came into the room and Tommy quickly shut the door again.
"You," he pointed at Liam, "sit." He pointed at a spot on the floor beside Calvin. Liam gave Calvin a worried glance as he obeyed. Tommy got back to Calvin's, and now Liam's, level. "Tell me exactly what happened."
"Nothing happened, Tommy!" Calvin insisted.
"What time did you get home?" Tommy asked Liam.
"Uh... probably around 2:40."
"Alright. What time did you leave this room?" He now asked Calvin.
"Probably a little after 2."
"So, what were you doing for 40 minutes? If you were just unlocking the door, it should have only taken you a couple of minutes."
"How do you even know that I left?"
"Despite what you might think, you're not quiet."
"Tommy," Liam butted in. "Nothing happened. I swear, nothing happened. You don't always need to be so overprotective. You aren't my father. I know you think it's your job to step up and take care of this family, but it's not. Mam is completely capable of taking care of you and me, but she doesn't need to because you're 18 years old and I'm 17. You've been trying to act in dad's place for so long, it's time to stop." Liam put his hand on his brother's shoulder. Tommy just stared at him, almost in tears.
"You're still my little brother." Was all Tommy could manage. Feeling that he was interrupting something, Calvin slowly started to get up.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Tommy turns towards Calvin angrily.
"Just giving you all privacy."
"Sit your arse down." Tommy looks between them both, clearly angry.
"Thomson, you need to calm down." Liam looks annoyed and mad.
"Don't tell me what I need to do. Tell me what the fuck happened last night?"
"Nothing happened"
"I don't believe that."
"Calvin didn't do anything. Alright?"
"If Calvin didn't do anything then what happened? Where was he for 40 minutes?"
"I asked him to pick me up from Evan's house. I meant to ask you, but you were asleep, so he answered the phone."
"Alright, but it was nearly 3 when he finally came back to my room, which means you were home for 20 minutes before he came to my room. A lot can happen in 20 minutes." Thomson angrily looked back and forth between the two. Calvin and Liam both looked guilty, but not for the reasons Thomson was thinking of. "I know something happened," Thomson persisted.
"Nothing happened," Calvin finally spoke up. "I gave him a ride home, then we talked, that's all."
"That's a load of shite and you know it! The hell do you two have to talk about? You do nothing but bicker. You can't carry on a conversation for nearly 20 minutes!"
"Can you please just drop it, Thomson?" Liam begged. Thomson looked between the two of them again, then stormed out of the room without saying anything. They could hear him stomping down the stairs. Already sensing what was going to happen, Calvin got up and started gathering his things. "What are you doing?" Liam asked as he stood up, watching as Calvin frantically moved around the room.
"He's going to make me leave. I know he is."
"He's just a little peeved right now. He'll calm down. He's not going to kick you out."
"I might as well be ready for him to."
"Thanks for not telling him. I know how close you two are. It was probably really difficult to not tell him the truth."
"It was the truth. I gave you a ride home, then we talked for a little while."
"That's only part of the truth. It's not the whole truth."
"Whatever. Why don't you go check on your alcoholic friends or something?"
"Why can't you be nice for more than a few minutes? Are you really that scared of letting people in? God, you're so infuriating!" Liam storms out of the room and Calvin doesn't even attempt to stop him.
"Maybe me leaving would be best. Nobody wants me around anyway," Calvin says to himself as he finishes packing his bag. He leaves Tommy's room and goes downstairs. Without saying a word, he goes out the front door and just starts walking. He knows that he pushes everyone away, but it would be nice to have someone understand him for once.
Calvin continues to walk, having nowhere in particular to go. He's managed to find his way to a side of town that he doesn't recognize. There are dozens of buildings, each is roughly 6 stories tall. Each door has different numbers on them, marking the addresses of each different flat. He continues to walk, looking at the buildings. They're clearly cookie cutter buildings, but he can tell the old from the new and the cheaper flats from the expensive. The further he walks, the older and more rundown the flats appear. Calvin steadily walks. Every once in a while, he glances down one of the dark alleyways. Suddenly, a familiar car drives past him. It slows to a stop a few feet behind him and the driver's window rolls down. "What are you doing on this side of town, my sweet boy?" A smile spread across Calvin's face as he walked towards the car.
"Aunt Isla?"
"Well, who else would it be?"
"What are you doing over here?"
"The flat that I share with my wife is over here." Calvin nods, assuming that she means one of the nice ones back in the direction he had come from.
"I'd love to see the new place." Calvin says as he makes his way to the other side of the car and gets in. The smile on Isla's face had faded somewhat.
"You never answered my question. Why are you over here?"
"Long story." Calvin told her as she began to drive away. She turned down a nearby street, which led to flats even worse than the ones Calvin was walking past. They pulled up in front of a building that Calvin assumed was once like the rest of them. All except for the first level was completely gone. A few layers of brick were still built up around what would have been the floor of the second level. Calvin gave his aunt a confused look, but followed as she got out of the car and went into the practically destroyed building.
Inside the building, the first thing Calvin noticed were some stairs. They went up to what should've been the opening to the next level, but we're cut off by a boarded up entry. As Isla took out her key and turned to one of the doors, Calvin noticed that the flat across the hall had its door standing wide open and a hole in the adjacent wall. Calvin followed his aunt into her flat.
Once she had closed the door, Calvin began to look around. Isla's flat was the nicest part of the entire building. It was still kinda run down, but the decorations made it seem like it wasn't quite that bad. There were two windows, not huge but large enough to let in the light. They were covered by thin magenta curtains. The living room had a beige couch and a glass coffee table sitting on top of a rainbow rug. There was a decent sized TV hanging on the wall. On either side of the TV were pictures of people Calvin recognized. There was one of his mam, one of him, one of Magnus, one of Finn, and one of his grandparents. On the wall behind the couch hung a photo of Isla and a woman Calvin was yet to meet. Looking at the doors that led out of the living room, he could see that there was one bedroom, one bathroom, and a small linen closet.
Calvin made his way into the kitchen, where Isla was patiently waiting. There was a small fridge and a gas stove with an oven. The kitchen wasn't very big, but it seemed perfect for two people. There was a small table in the corner, under a window with magenta curtains. The table had two chairs, one of which had a woman sitting in it. Isla stood at the counter, waiting for Calvin to say something. Finally, he looked at her. "What the hell happened?" Isla gave him a weak smile as she walked towards him.
"A lot, my boy, a lot." She put her arm around his shoulder and guided him over to the table in the corner. "Calvin, this is my wife." Isla looked at the woman and smiled. The woman gave her a smile in return.
"Hello, I'm Cameron." Cameron put her hand out for Calvin to shake, which he did. "Have a seat, laddie." Cameron gestured at the chair across from her.
"I'm going to explain to you how we ended up here. Alright?" Calvin nodded, feeling like he'd completely lost his voice. "Okay. As you know, before you went to America, I was with a man. He was great and all, but I just wasn't happy. We broke up not long after you left. One night, I went out for some drinks with my friends, one of which was Cameron. We'd already known each other for years, but had always kept things platonic. That night we talked a lot. I mean, the rest of our friends had left to go home, and we were just talking. One thing led to another, and I realized that I was completely in love with her. It didn't take long for us to start dating. That wasn't the difficult part. The difficult part was when we wanted to get married. We were so happy and excited to tell the family. I was so certain they'd be supportive. Your mother went above my expectations, but nobody else really agreed with it. As you know, I was in college and very much reliant on my sister. I had a job already, but it couldn't pay for much. The only problem was that my sister was reliant on her husband, your father. He doesn't approve of my lifestyle and he ended up cutting off your mother, which cut me off in the process. We didn't have the money for a large wedding, so we just went to the courthouse and got married. Even with our joined payments, we couldn't keep up with it all. So, we had to downsize. It's not permanent, but it's our life for the time being. I just want you to know that when I said you couldn't stay with us, it wasn't because I didn't want you to. It was because I know you deserve so much better. I'm not abandoning you, though. I will always be here for you. I would happily let you stay on the couch for a few nights, if you needed to, but we can't afford to support you in the long run." With tears in his eyes, Calvin jumped up and slung his arms around his aunt.