Callum & Harper (7 page)

I don’t have the heart to tell him that I don’t actually drink coffee. I’m a tea kinda’ girl but at the risk of ruining a lovely breakfast I say, “sugar and cream, please.” I can drink it, I just don’t like it all that much.

We sit in companionable silence sipping our coffee, well, he was sipping, I was gulping to get rid of it, and eating our bagels.

“
Your hair looks fabulous, by the way,” he teases.

A deep flush creeps up my neck and settles smack dab on my heated cheeks. I quickly stand and cross the room to the glass above the soundboard, smoothing out my crazy locks, attempting to tame them into a somewhat normal style.

“
I didn’t say I didn’t like, Harper. Sit down,” he laughed. I sit but smooth my hands down the part and twisted the length around my hand. “Seriously Harper, it’s sexy as hell. Stop messing.”

I blush yet again. I didn’t know what it was with this boy. He said flirtatious things with such confidence I questioned whether or not it affected him as his words implied.

“
So, I thought we could head to the university in a few minutes. My appointment’s at nine fifteen,” he said, shifting uncomfortably in his chair.
Oh God, he’s going to bow out.
“Did you...Did you still want to come with me?”

“
Uh, only if you want me to,” I answered, suddenly interested in how well the cut on my knee was scabbing up. He didn’t answer right away so I glanced up.

Callum furrowed his eyebrows. “Why wouldn’t I want you to come? I invited you, didn’t I?”

“
Yeah, it’s just, sometimes people change their minds,” I answered, shrugging my shoulders.

“
Well, not this person. So, get dressed already. You’re gonna’ make me late,” he playfully snapped.

I hopped up and grabbed my belongings. I decided it was probably a good idea to shower again as the summer heat would dry my hair quickly and I could tame the dried creases from the night before.
    When I was dressed, my wet hair combed out, I decided to put a little bit of what was left over from my makeup stash. It wasn’t much and had dwindled considerably but it was all I had to work with so I ended up improvising a lot. Like, I didn’t have eye liner so I took an old wine cork from my old foster parent’s house, wasn’t hard as they peppered their flooring like confetti. I would take a lighter and burn the ends. I’d use the burnt charcoal to line my eyes and it worked perfectly, giving them a nice, smoky effect. Also, I had this reddish liquid eye shadow, which looked hideous on the eyes but worked nicely as blush. I topped it all off with mascara and some lip gloss.
    I study myself in the mirror.
Not bad, Bailey. You may impress him after all.
I shook my head as if to clear the stupid idea.
I hauled butt down the hall to an awaiting Callum, complete with both our bags, packed and ready. I didn’t even want to think about the fact that he had to touch my underwear, how embarrassing. I met him and he immediately took my hand, leading me down the hall.
    “What about your motorcycle?” I asked.
    He looked at me and smiled. “You look amazing, by the way.” I blushed, again.
See! Oh hush, Harper!
“I’m leaving my bike here because, well, unfortunately I have no idea where we’ll be staying tonight and would rather leave it locked up here. We can take the subway.”
    Sure enough, the five minute walk in the sun to the tunnels dried my hair into its natural waves and by the time we crossed the turn styles it was full and met my elbows again. We squeezed through the crowd and stood side by side awaiting the subway, pushing through the doors quickly as it pulled into the station. Callum and I were forced to sit in between two men so I squeezed as closely to him as possible to avoid touching the guy next to me. I noticed that he kept eyeing me strangely so I snuggled even closer to Callum. Callum swept the hair from the right side of my face and grinned.
    “You okay?”
    “Mmm, hmm. So, what is this meeting all about, anyway?” I said, trying to distract us both.
    “My advisor has some stuff for me to go over and sign. It should only take a few minutes.”
    “Cool,” I said, but I was having a hard time concentrating because the creepy guy next to me pushed his thigh into mine. I looked up at him and shook my head but he just smiled. I turned my attention back to Callum. “Why do you want me to go with you so badly?”
    “Because, I think the reason you, and I quote, ‘
can’t
go to college’, is because you’re intimidated and unsure what to do. I just want you to talk with Sylvia and maybe, just maybe, she can enlighten you and I’m hoping you’ll change your mind.”
Creepy guy decided that his right hand should be resting on his thigh where his pinkie just happened to find its way to my leg. He started making lazy circles with it across my jeans.   

“
Stop it,” I ordered him, slightly over confident since I had enormous Callum sitting next to me.

“
Stop what?” Callum asked, confused.

“
Oh nothing. Hey, can we stand? I don’t feel like sitting anymore.”

“
Uh, sure,” he said, standing up and taking my hand. No sooner had I stood than two women holding groceries took our seats. There was really no place else to stand because the car was crowded and we’re forced to hold the ceiling hand rails next to Creepy. The car shifts back and forth, causing the occupant behind me to accidentally fall into me. My nose pressed firmly against Callum’s chest and I got a hefty dose of fresh laundry.

“
Sorry,” the patron offered.

“
No biggie,” I said, non-chalantly checking my bag for missing items and finding everything in its place. I looked into Callum’s eyes and see that they’re twinkling with mischief. “What?”

“
Oh nothing. I just like this.”

“
What?”

“
Standing close to you like this.”

“
Oh,” I brilliantly said, no doubt turning bright red.
This is, like, a new record for me
.
Pathetic
, I laughed at myself. “I can’t say that I am
that
adverse to it. Your shirt smells amazing.”

Callum’s eyes squint, revealing a wicked grin. The inside of his left arm rubs against my cheek and sends a spark through my skin, heating up my stomach. My own arm felt too heavy to hold up anymore. He leaned his body closer to mine and the crowd around us turned invisible, leaving us alone with our cumbersome breaths, our chests heaving heavily with anticipation and a promise of things to come. He brushed the hair on my left shoulder back before sinking his face against the crook of my neck and breathing in deeply.

    “
Have I told you how amazing I find the way you smell? You make me dazed. I feel punch drunk around you.”

The breath I didn’t know I was holding rushed out all at once. I sucked in an even deeper breath when he kissed the little bit of collarbone exposed by my t-shirt so lightly I could barely feel it. It was a chaste kiss but felt so intimate my eyes rolled to the back of my head. I closed my lids to prevent myself from passing out right there and when I opened them, Callum’s face was but a few inches from mine. I could feel his warm breath against my cheek, his lips a provocative invitation. I could only stare as his radiant green eyes searched my face.

    “
Harper,” he whispered but before he can finish we’re both slammed into the direction we’re travelling as the car comes to a screeching halt.
    We can only stand, gaping at the other at the lost moment but something escaped his eyes, making me feel uncomfortable. I thought I read regret in them but what kind, I wasn’t sure. Regret he couldn’t continue? Regret that he stepped over a line?
    “Sorry,” he said, “that got out of hand. I shouldn’t have done that.”
    “It’s alright,” I offered, hoping the supreme disappointment I was truly feeling wasn’t coming through.

The doors to the car slid open and people started spilling out. Callum took my hand and guided me out to avoid getting trampled. We walked in silence until we reached the doors to NYU’s administration building. Callum grabbed the handle to the large wooden doors but stopped before walking in.

    “
Come here,” he said, dragging me to the side.
    “But you’ll be late,” I said, trying to avoid eye contact so the tears welling up wouldn’t spill over and embarrass the hell out of me.

That’s the kind of humiliation I just didn't want to have to endure. I’d endured all kinds my entire life but this one I at least had control over. I’d be damned if I shed a tear over a boy who owed me nothing because that was beyond pathetic and I was tired of being pathetic. In fact, it was me who owed him and I realized that just because he wasn’t interested in me the way I was interested in him, it wasn’t his fault.

Callum stared up at the large clock on the building’s forefront, noticing the time, and rushed through the doors, dragging me along with him, his previous speech forgotten. We turned a corner and approached a set of double doors. He pressed his hand to the knob but sighed before turning. A young student with insane green spiked hair and a studded collar manned a sort of desk at the front of the room.

“
May I help you?” She asked cheerily, wearing a massive smile, negating every assumption I instantly made of her.

“
Yes,” Callum said. “I have an appointment with Sylvia Lengrand at nine-fifteen.”

“
Of course, if you’ll take a seat,” she said, gesturing to a line of simple upholstered chairs. “I’ll see if she’s ready for you.”

The girl stood, revealing a cute little pixie figure. She was wearing a short black skirt, fishnets, and combat boots that met her shins. She had a black camisole under a shredded t-shirt and piercings in every part of her body imaginable but she was obviously a sweet girl. She was just another walking example of why you should never judge a book by its cover. I can’t stand ‘cover judgers’.

   
She returned with a petite brunette with brown eyes.
    “You must be Callum,” she said with a bright smile, shaking his hand before turning to the girl. “Thank you, Bridget.”
    “No probs, Syl,” she answered. “Can I offer you two anything to drink?” She asked us before sitting down.
    “I’m okay,” I said.
    “Me too,” Callum offered.
    “Okay, if you need anything, just ask,” she said before taking her seat again.
    “And who’s this?” Sylvia Lengrand asked.
    “Oh, I’m sorry, that’s so rude of me. Sylvia, meet Harper Bailey,” he said, bringing his hand to my lower back. Heat pooled into the skin where his hand rested and I wished I could glue it there, permanently. I took her hand and smiled. “Harper was accepted here and I’m trying to convince her to attend.”
    “Oh, that’s wonderful! I’m glad you came, then. I’m just the person to talk you into it,” she winked, pulling my hand toward her. “Alright, this way, love birds,” she said, walking toward the back.
    “Love birds?” We said in unison.
    She stopped and gawked at us. “I’m so sorry. Did I assume incorrectly? You just seem so comfortable with the other. I apologize. I’m always making a fool of myself with you young folks.”
    “Oh, it’s okay. I was just curious as to what gave us away,” Callum said, poking me in the ribs with his elbow.
Oh good gracious, I think I’m in like with Callum Tate.
Sylvia smiled and opened her office door.
    “Take a seat,” she said.
We sat side by side and Callum playfully dragged my chair closer to his, with me in it, as if I weighed nothing, his muscles bunched as he pulled and I had to fight myself to prevent a bite to his forearm.
Get a hold of yourself, Harper.
   
“Alright, let me just gather a few files,” she said, diving into a file cabinet, her back toward us.
    I stare at Callum and he sticks his tongue out at me which makes me burst out laughing. Sylvia turned around. “What?” She asked.
    “Oh, I was just teasing her,” Callum admitted, but his cheeks pink, revealing an even more adorable him, as if that’s possible.
Sylvia returned to her files only to pull out a stack and sits at her desk. She stares at the stack while music pumps through a speaker above. I bit my bottom lip and sarcastically bumped my head to the cheesy ballad. Callum grinned and slid an air guitar he supposedly kept strapped to his back into his hands. Totally immersed in our pretend jam, we finally emerged when Sylvia yelled Callum’s name.

“
Sorry,” we said in unison.

“
That’s okay, you were obviously in your own little world but as adorable as the two of you are, I need Mister Tate to sign a few forms for me.” She slid the papers over to him. “I’ve marked all the spots you need to sign for me, Callum.” She handed him a pen and turned her body towards me. Callum smirked at me and dove in. “Now,” Sylvia said, turning slightly towards me, “did you have any questions about NYU, Harper?”

“
Uh, not really. Callum dragged me here against my will. He’s actually holding me hostage.”

“
I am not!” He exclaimed before realizing I was joking and rolled his eyes.

Sylvia smiled. “Listen, Harper. Obviously you have reservations about attending school here but that’s why I’m here. I can smooth out all your worries, all you have to do is talk.”