Chapter 29

Caleb got up early the next morning and headed downstairs. He was desperately looking for Olivia while sitting at the table.

“Where is Livy, Mom... Dad?” He asked, concerned.

Ella replied, “She’s already gone.”

‘So, she is avoiding me,’ Caleb thought. He had expected her to act this way, but he also knew Olivia would change her mind. After all, they both lived in the same place.

“Is everything between you two fine?” His father asked, raising his eyes from the newspaper he was reading.

He considered telling them the real reason at first, then changed his mind. He didn’t want to give Olivia any more reasons to dislike him. “Everything is OK, Dad. However, I believe I better leave right now. Otherwise, I will be late.”

Caleb was looking for Olivia when he arrived at school, but he couldn’t find her, so he reluctantly proceeded to his class, only to find her already seated behind Mason and Sia. Because the seat next to her was empty, he took a chance and sat next to her.

“Hey guys, hey Olivia.” He smiled as he greeted them, still wary of Olivia’s reaction.

“Holla,” Olivia said, astonished that Olivia returned his greeting.

“You left early; we could have come together.” Instead, there was a slight hope that Olivia might have forgotten their fight.

“Why, so you could keep track of my every step and report it to your parents.” Then, in a hushed whisper, she clenched her teeth.

“Olivia listens...” But she interrupted him.

“Look, Caleb, I don’t want to cause any scene here, so just leave me alone.”

He wanted to talk to Olivia the entire lesson, but he restrained himself. She was furious, and he could see it. He considered chatting to her at lunch, but it was tough with Zack, Stella, Mason, and Sia at the table. As a result, the only thing he could do was drag Olivia into the trap with him.

He sent a text to Olivia through Mason’s phone, requesting her to meet him on the rooftop after lunch, and then deletes the message. Olivia arrived on the rooftop after a 5-minute delay, clearly surprised to find Caleb there instead of Mason.

“What are you doing here? Where is Mason?” She asked him.

“Listen, Livy.”

“It’s Olivia for you.” She pointed.

“Okay, Olivia, it is. Olivia, I am sorry. I shouldn’t have told my parents about your nightmares, but I was just trying to help...” Olivia, however, interrupted him once more.

“Tell me something, Caleb. What made you reconsider becoming friends with me?”

“What...” He was dumbfounded.

“Either you are really dumb, or you are an excellent actor. So answer the damn question.”

“I honestly have no idea. You have always confused me with your behaviour. You can be a quiet, broken girl one minute and an outgoing, eccentric person the next. I have no idea who you truly are. Every single day, I find out something new about you. I don't know your story. What has shaped you into the person you are today? But one thing I do know is that I was completely mistaken about you. I should have known better than to make assumptions about you. I should have been more open with you, especially after everything you have been through.”

Caleb didn't realize it when he came so close to her with both her hands in his palm. He was caressing her palms without her knowledge.

“I was right. I was so damn right. I am just a pity party for you. The person you were trying to figure out.”

“God! No, Livy, you have got it all wrong.”

“No. In fact, this is the first thing I have got all correct in all these months. Every time you struck the right chord to bring me back to the days I was trying to forget, I never blamed you once. On the contrary, I forgave you every single time, as you didn't know about it. I know it when a person is trying not to hate me because I have lived around that feeling. The moment I stepped into your house, I knew that I was unwanted, and I was fine with it because I know I had to deal with you for only one more year. Then you went ahead and accused me of being a gold digger, which I am not. I have enough money to last me a few years. But I only use it when absolutely necessary because I want Cammy to have everything. Yes, Madison and Aaron can afford it, but I want to be part of his life in any way...”

“Olivia...”

“I am not done talking, Caleb. I am going to clear everything up for you. Where was I.... being a gold digger... so news flash, I am no gold digger. And honestly, I never wanted to come and stay with your parents. I was content with living on my own, but the police were sure that I couldn't have survived alone with my mental state and, of course, me being underage. So, that's why I am here. Every single time, you make sure to show me just how unwanted I am here. You called me desperate because I asked for a hug, and you called me a doper because seeing my parents die as a result of drugs made me want to commit suicide in the same way. News flash: Caleb, I am not some project that can be studied and fixed. I am a human being with feelings. You wanted to know about James, didn't you? I would have told you if you came to me first and directly asked me about it. I might have declined initially, but with time, yes, I would have. I told you about Cameron, didn't I? You are the only person who knows about him. Not even Mason and Sia were aware of it. Your intention was not wrong, but you should have confronted me with it instead of going behind my back. Telling your parents about my nightmares was the last straw.”

“Olivia, I am sorry.” He choked.

“I am tired. I'm fed up with everything. Caleb, just leave me alone. If you can't, I know exactly how to make myself invisible. I hate to be in a place where I am not wanted.” With that, Olivia left.

Caleb was flabbergasted. Come to think about it, he has hurt her a lot. Caleb would have done anything Olivia asked him to do if he could, but he couldn't abandon her. He didn't want to lose her, so he rushed downstairs to catch up with her, only to have both of them fall while he was on top of her.

“You could have just shoved me off the roof if you wanted to kill me.” Then, with a chuckle, she said.

“It isn't funny. In fact, I would have come down to catch you if you had fallen from the roof.” He expressed himself.

“My hero.” She sarcastically exclaimed, attempting to get him to get up and go to class, but he wouldn't budge.

“People are noticing Caleb. Get up.” She told him.

“I don't care. I am not getting up until your brains understand my words. But, I am never leaving you alone. You are someone I can never lose. So, whether or not you like it, you are stuck with me.”

“You will when I will tell you that I have cut myself to escape from pain.” Caleb's breath came to a halt for the first time.

“This simply serves to persuade me to spend more time with you.” He told her.

“You just want to help me, Caleb. Drop your act. I am broken beyond repair.” She told him.

“Olivia, this is where you are mistaken. Broken or not, you are always going to my friend.” He got up and extended his hand to her, but she declined and stood up. Caleb, however, being Caleb, grabbed her hand and yanked her up, forcing her to slam into him. He kissed her on the cheeks while grabbing her waist.

“This kiss is my assurance to you that I will never leave you. The harder you push, the more I will be on your side. Even if you don’t push me, I will still be there for you.” He then walked away.

When his lips landed on Olivia’s cheeks, she was in a daze. She was overwhelmed with such tender behaviour of his. Out of her four other buddies, Caleb was the only one who wanted to be glued to her side on his terms. Yes, people were looking, but she didn’t care.

Caleb’s comments, however, would not break her. Maybe in the future, but not for a while at least.