The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden(28)

The flash hit my eyes and I kept blinking, wishing she’d stop taking pictures that would forever mark this God damn day.

“Make a wish, sweetie,” she said and the camera flashed again, lighting up the face of the people that surrounded the table.

I stared at the pink frosting, the “Happy Birthday Callie” Make a wish?

A red balloon floated over the table, slowly, up and down, up and down.

“Make a wish, Callie,” my mom repeated as the balloon moved over her shoulder.

Everyone was watching me, like they could see that I wasn’t whole anymore.

Make a wish? Make a wish?

The balloon popped.

There are no such things as wishes.

My roommate, Violet, enters the room as I finish writing the last line. She’s tall, with black curly hair streaked with red. Her nose is pierced and she has a tattoo of a star on the back of her neck. She has a pair of plaid pants on, a torn black t-shirt, and combat boots.

“Have you seen my leather jacket?” she asks as she shuts the door and tosses a bag onto her unmade bed.

I close my journal and slide the pen into the spiral. “I haven’t.”

She sighs as she collects her books from the desk in front of the window. “I think I might have lost it at the club. Fuck.”

“I’ll keep an eye out for it.” I tuck the journal underneath the pillow and get up from the bed.

She opens the drawer of the desk and glances over her shoulder at me as I slip my shoes on. “Are you heading out?”

I nod, easing my arm through the sleeve of a grey hoodie. “I am.”

I hear a bottle of pills rattle as she shuts the drawer and holds up a red scarf. “I might have someone over tonight. I’ll put this on the doorknob if I do.”

Again? What does this girl do? “Alright.” My fingers wrap around the doorknob. “I’ll make sure to check first.”

“You better,” she says, her hand hovering near the drawer. “Otherwise you’re going to see something you don’t want to.”

Sighing, I walk out the door, wishing I had my own dorm room.
***
“I think I just got myself in over my head,” I tell Seth as he lets me in his room. “Like really bad.”

Seth pauses the television screen, sits down on the bed, and pats the spot beside him. “Come sit down and spill your problem.”

I let my bag fall to the floor and sink down onto the bed. “Kayden asked me to go to a club with him and Luke tonight, and I accidentally said yes.”

“How do you accidentally say yes to something like that?”

I huff out a breath of frustration. “He kept smiling at me and getting me all flustered and I couldn’t think straight.”

Seth grins and a giggle escapes his lips. “Oh my God, you have a crush on him.”

I shake my head, getting flustered just by the thought. “No, I don’t.”

The mattress concaves beneath me as he bounces up and down like a little kid with too much sugar in their system. “Yes, you do. You have your very first crush, Callie. How exciting!”

Still shaking my head, I sit up and smooth my hair away from my forehead. “I don’t have a crush on him. Is he good looking? Of course. And he’s known that since we were in third grade.” I pause, getting agitated. “And I’ve had crushes before, just not for a very long time.”

“You so have a crush on him.” He picks up the remote and turns off the television. “This will be good, and then we can cross number five off on the list.”

“I’m not dancing,” I argue, cringing. “Dancing equals touching and getting close to people. I just can’t do it.”

“Yes, you can. You’ve done it with me like a hundred times,” he encourages. “I mean, think about when we first met. You would barely talk to me and you always looked like you were going to stab me with a pencil or something. Now look at you. You’re sitting on my bed in my room, just you and I. You’ve come so far my little Callie Girl.”

“But you’re you.” I sigh, discouraged. “I trust you.”

“Yeah, but I had to earn it.”

“I know and I’m so sorry for making you do that. I’m surprised you stuck around like you did.”

He hops off the bed and opens the top dresser drawer. “Whatever. You were so worth it.”

I swing my feet over the edge of the bed. “You seem really happy today.”