a/n: my mom flipped becuase she thought i spelled jorja wrong. it was funny.
I was extremely tired, yet I couldn't sleep. The primary shock of learning about Caleigh's past had worn off, leaving me feeling terrible. I couldn't imagine what I'd do if I found out that someone had gone behind my back to find out about my past.
That wasn't the reason you looked at her file, I kept telling myself. But nothing I said was convincing enough to keep me from feeling like a slime ball. I felt I needed to redeem myself. I wanted to earn Caleigh's trust. First, I needed to find out how I could accomplish my goal. So I turned to the only reliable source I could think of, her application.
Ok, Sidle, how would someone earn your trust? I asked myself as I flipped through the pages in the file folder. I found what I was looking for on the first page that contained all of Caleigh's basic information. I remembered how the first night interning she had asked me about college. Well, if she was interested about where you went to college it might be a good topic to talk about with her. I scanned the page looking for the name of the school she attended. Once I found it, I committed it to memory so that I could bring it up that night. Having accomplished this, my conscience was relieved of guilt and I could finally sleep.
I was worked on a cold case file while Caleigh observed, giving minimal input. I was waiting for the opportune moment to start up a conversation. Finally it arrived. "So Caleigh, do you like Jorja Fox?" She looked up from her notes to give me a strange look.
"What?" Caleigh asked.
"Do you like Jorja Fox?" I repeated
"Sara, I have no idea what you're talking about," Caleigh replied, frustrated.
"Don't you go to Jorja Fox University?" I asked.
"It's George Fox University, not Jorja Fox," Caleigh replied.
"Oh." I decided that that was enough of a conversation for the night and apparently Caleigh agreed with me, because we didn't talk to each other for the rest of the shift.
Brooke and Caleigh were the only ones who rode home with me. Lucy went somewhere with Greg. I wasn't very surprised since there were various rumors going around that they were seeing each other. I just wasn't sure if it was best for Greg to be dating an intern.
Once I was home I fixed some food and idly messed with my computer. I was just about to go to sleep when I heard shouting coming from the girls' apartment.
"What you think is not important, Caleigh!" Brooke yelled.
"That's obviously not true. You seem to think that my opinion is extremely important when it's the same as yours!" Caleigh said.
"That's because my opinion is the only one that matters!" stubbornly replied Brooke.
"Shut up, Brooke, your voice is annoying me!" Caleigh said.
"You want to know the real reason why I think your opinion is not important, Caleigh? It's because you're a no-good orphan! Your parents didn't care about you, heck they care more about your dead brother than you! How long has it been since their last letter? Three, no, four years, and to top it off you spent six years of your life with people who didn't care for you. Six years, Caleigh. Then you found the perfect place, didn't you. Finally, you found someone who cared," Brooke cruelly spoke.
"Shut up, Brooke!" Caleigh was now very upset.
Brooke snidely continued, "If the Thompsons hadn't taken you in, where would you be? Face it, Kirkland, they're your crutch. If they were taken out of the equation, then you'd be nowhere, nobody. And do you think that calling them your aunt and uncle helps? They aren't your family. Your family doesn't care. They live less than four hours away from where you go to college and yet they don't visit. They don't even love you enough to write you."
"If you don't shut up I swear I'll-"
"You'll what? Have your dead brother haunt me? I'm too old to believe in fairy tales. You're too old to make them up. But that's what you're doing -- living in a fantasy. Just remember this, Caleigh Kirkland, fairy tales aren't true." Brooke finished.
I heard the door of their apartment slam. I peaked out of my door to see Caleigh running past. Quickly, I grabbed my keys and followed after her, still in shock from what I had overheard.