I am currently "quarantined" because of COVID-19, so here is a new chapter before the end of March! As was pointed out to me, even quarantine has a silver lining. Everyone, stay safe, practice social distancing, and WASH YOUR HANDS! I hope you enjoy the chapter. :)
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"Don't ask me anything about what we reviewed in class," Rayla announced as she practically marched down the steps of the history building. "I'm not sure I understood a single word Professor Dupuy said to us." She grinned sheepishly at Callum. "I hope your notes are thorough, because I'm definitely going to need them for our test next week."
Callum rolled his eyes but laughed as he followed her out. "Yes, Rayla, I will let you use my notes, and yes, I will help you study." He winked at her. "I know that's what you're really asking."
"Aw, you know me so well," she teased. "But seriously - thank you."
"Uh huh. You're welcome." Callum realized as he spoke that Rayla was walking towards the bus stop - or, more importantly, he noticed that she was walking away from him - and he grabbed her arm to stop her. "You don't need to take the bus," he explained when she glanced back at him in confusion. "I went ahead and drove to this class because I need to leave your tryouts early to watch Ezran. Since I have my car, it means I can drive you there."
"Ah," Rayla said slowly as he let go of her arm, a smile widening on her face. "Smart prince. I knew I kept you around for some reason."
"Entertainment value."
The two walked to his car, which Callum had made sure to back into a parking spot for ease of exiting. He didn't want to make Rayla late. He knew how important this was for her.
"So," he said as he turned the key in the ignition, the car sputtering to a start. Rayla buckled in next him. "Do you feel prepared for your tryout?"
"Before I answer that," Rayla began, adjusting her seatbelt so it wasn't pressed so high on her neck, "there's something I need to get off my chest." She muttered something in a language that Callum didn't recognize - that said, her tone of exasperation was universal. "It is just so weird that you drive on the right side of the road! I mean, I've taken buses for the most part since I got here - I should probably make the school pay for a rental car - but I still always feel like someone is going to ram into me."
Callum snorted, unsure of what he'd been expecting her to say but knowing that it hadn't been that. "Of all the things you've complained about so far, I'm not sure if that's the most or least valid."
"Shut up. I didn't tell you because I wanted your criticism. Like I said - I just wanted to get it off my chest!"
Callum laughed at the emphasis she put on her words from earlier as he pulled out of the parking lot, having to first wait for several cars to pass before he could make a left turn across the road. "Anyways. My initial question?"
"Oh, right." Rayla shrugged. "I mean, I guess I am. I've been preparing for what - a week and a half? For most people that probably wouldn't have been enough time, but I think it was for me." She pulled a hair tie out of her booksack, somehow not spilling the athletic clothes haphazardly stuffed inside all over the floor of his car. She ran her hand through her hair to smooth it before pulling it up into a tight topknot. "I'm fast, I'm strong, and I understand the game. I don't know what else I could have done."
"Not to flex on your own abilities or anything."
"Nah, of course not." She finished tying up her hair before sending him an amused smile. "But physically I am completely capable of playing. Simple as that. And since I'm about average height for a guy in his late teens..." She paused. "Well, my height combined with my speed means I have little trouble catching the ball. I just outrun the corner defending me." Then she sighed, and Callum noticed doubt flicker in her eyes. "I just have to hope that this coach isn't quite so... xenophobic. Or sexist."
Callum stopped at a red light, seizing the moment to take his eyes off the road and turn to face Rayla. "You are going to be amazing. I don't know the slightest thing about football, yes, but I'm going to cheer you on from the sidelines no matter what. You will be the best player on that field - understand me?"
Rayla didn't answer immediately, but the doubt in her eyes faded and was replaced by gratitude. "Thanks, Callum."
The loud honk behind them let him know that the light had turned green, and he pulled his gaze off of his friend - with much effort - and refocused it on the road as he continued driving. "If you get my sketchbook out of my bag, there should be a folded paper sticking out the top." He found himself grinning. "Since I don't have actual pom poms, this was the second best thing I could whip up."
The drawing included a sketch of Rayla putting her hair up in a manner similar to what she'd done only seconds ago, as well as a colored picture of himself cheering her on with silver and gold pom poms.
There was rustling as Rayla reached down to grab his bag out of the back of his car, carefully taking the sketchbook out and removing the paper he'd stuck in at the top. As tempted as Callum was to turn and watch her reaction, he did value their lives and the condition of his car more. But only slightly. Nonetheless, he kept his eyes on the road.
"You look pretty good in a cheerleading uniform," Rayla said after a pause. The teasing lilt in her voice caused her accent to thicken on the vowels. "Though it's a shame you didn't go the extra mile and give yourself a miniskirt. Would've been pretty hot."
Callum rolled his eyes, pretending his face hadn't gone red at the thought. "In your dreams."
"Ha. You wish. More like in my nightmares." There was a brief silence, and though Callum couldn't see her face, he could feel Rayla's expression softening. "Thank you, Callum. You didn't have to do this."
"Of course I didn't have to." He flicked on his right turn signal, the football field now only a few streets over. "But I wanted to."
Rayla huffed, an amusing sound that was just short of a laugh. "I can't believe you're literally the nicest person in the world. How on Earth did you become friends with me, of all people?"
"Because you're amazing," he said instantly, as if it was obvious. Which... it was. At least to him. "I should be asking why you became friends with me."
Rayla snickered. "Wow. We're really debating about whether or not we deserve each other's friendship. What a pair of losers we are."
Callum pulled into the football field's parking lot, taking his car out of drive before turning it off and removing the key from the ignition. "Well, if it's any consolation, I'd much rather be a loser with you than by myself."
Rayla grinned. "I'm sure you'll be ecstatic to know that the feeling is mutual."
They continued their lighthearted banter as Rayla gathered her things before they got out of his car. They probably wouldn't have stopped, either, had it not been for Claudia's sudden appearance that startled them both when they made it onto the field.
"Aw, did you come to cheer on Rayla, too?" Claudia cooed, placing her hands over her heart. "Callum, that is so sweet."
"He even gave these amazing drawings to me!" Rayla said eagerly, showing the artwork to the girl. "Isn't it awesome?"
Claudia sent Callum a wicked grin after glancing at the sketches, a knowing glint sparkling in her green eyes. He felt slightly unnerved. "Yes... Yes it is."
Correction: more than slightly.
Callum didn't understand why she was looking at him like that. Part of him did not want to know. Well - he could always ask her about it later. Probably whenever they moved to the sidelines.
"Rayla!" Soren ran up to the three, already halfway dressed in his football uniform. "Perfect timing. We're starting drills in about ten minutes." He pointed to an exit of the field behind him on his left. "Locker rooms are in there, if you plan on changing."
Rayla shouldered her bag. Callum noticed her grip tighten on the strap. Last-minute anxiety, presumably. "Yep." She gave her friends a final, nervous grin. "Wish me luck!"
"Good luck," Callum replied immediately, with as reassuring a smile as he could muster. "You'll be great! Remember - I'll be cheering you on."
Rayla grinned at him then began making her way towards the locker room.
"Break a leg!" Claudia called after her. "Non-literally!" Her comments earned her a lighthearted elbow in the stomach from Soren, who then instructed the duo to sit on the sidelines before he, too, had to return to practice.
"So..." Claudia after they'd moved off the field, pulling Callum down onto the bleacher next to her. "You've been hanging out with Rayla a lot these past few weeks, haven't you?"
Huh. It really hadn't been much more than a month since Rayla had arrived at the school. It felt like he'd known her for years already - in the best possible way, of course. "I mean... I guess so?" He wasn't sure how to answer her question. Rayla was just... always around. And when she wasn't around, either she'd text him or he'd text her - usually the former, admittedly, because Callum was the worst about staying in contact with people - and they'd meet up a few minutes later.
Claudia smirked at him. "Uh huh." She leaned back in her seat and gave him a knowing look. "Is there anything going on between the two of you that I should know about?"
Callum frowned. "We've helped each other out with homework a few times, if that's what you mean." Every Wednesday, for that matter. "If you're asking about something else, then... No?" They'd also been each other's company to lunch and brunch and whatever numerous times, but that was pretty common knowledge on campus. The not-so-subtle glares and stares still sent their way were annoying.
Claudia groaned, rolling her eyes. "Dear God, you are so oblivious."
"I'm - what?"
"Oh, never mind." She reached her arms above her head and stretched, shifting her shoulders as her back cracked. "Anyways. How long were you planning to stay for this?"
Callum shrugged as he pulled out his sketchbook, flipping it open to a clean page. "Maybe an hour or two. I have to go to my house to watch Ezran this afternoon."
"Aw, you're going to abandon me with all these jocks?" Claudia complained. She shook her head in mock-disappointment. "And yet you call yourself my friend."
"Hey, you'll still have Rayla for company."
"Please. You know she'd prefer your company over mine."
Callum froze with his charcoal halfway to his sketchbook, Claudia's words hitting him with the weight of a sledgehammer. "I - no," he managed to get out in a weak protest. "I don't think that Rayla's the type to play favorites."
Claudia snickered. "Uh huh. Whatever you say, prince."
Callum flushed at her use of Rayla's nickname. "Okay, just because -"
"Ah ah ah, you don't need to feed any stupid excuses to me." Claudia winked at him. "I've got a pretty good idea as to what's brewing between the two of you."
Callum decided that this line of conversation was no longer one he was interested in continuing, and thus he did not reply. But before he could decide what to sketch, Claudia had scooted over closer to him.
"I'm sorry to interrupt you again," she began, "but I was wondering if you had any new sketches that I'm allowed to see? It's been a while since we've had a chance to do this!"
It had been a tradition, essentially, since they were little, that Callum would allow Claudia to see select sketches from his book. This tradition had died off a little over the course of the past year, as their college-high school divide had made it much harder for them to meet up consistently. Now, of course, they didn't have that problem.
"Hmm," he mumbled, absentmindedly flipping through his more recent drawings. He hadn't sketched anything with Claudia in mind as of late.
Weird.
"I don't think there's anything," he finally said, giving his friend an apologetic frown. "I'm sorry."
"No need to apologize, silly." She glanced at his open book, though she respected his artistic privacy and didn't stare. "I'm noticing a lot of pictures of Rayla in there. Found a muse, have you?"
Callum's face reddened for the second time in the past few minutes. "No, Rayla is just... new. And nice to sketch. That's all."
It wasn't a lie. It just wasn't the full truth, either.
"Did I hear my name?"
Callum snapped his book shut as Rayla walked towards himself and Claudia, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.
Rayla gasped in mock-offense, placing her hand over her heart. "How come Claudia gets to see your sketches and I don't? I thought we were besties!"
Claudia grinned. "It's my blessing and his curse that we've known each other since we were teeny tiny."
Rayla laughed. "Oh, I see. Of course."
Callum noticed that Rayla had changed into clothing more appropriate for a sports tryout. Her hair was still tied up, and she now wore a deep green exercise tank that he actually recognized to be from Target, paired with purple leggings.
He wasn't sure why he was taking such a detailed note of her appearance. It wasn't like he hadn't seen her dressed for a workout before.
"Don't worry. I'm sure Callum will show you his art someday," Claudia said, pushing her hair back over her shoulder to stop it from falling in front of her face. "Recently, Soren and I have been trying to convince him to participate in one of the school's art showcases. There's one in November that his work could easily be featured in if he would just submit something!"
Rayla's eyes brightened, and she beamed at him. "Oh, Callum, that's awesome!"
"I haven't agreed yet," he pointed out, rolling his charcoal between his thumb and middle finger out of habit. "And they're both assuming that I'll be accepted into the exhibition, no problem. But the school can be pretty elitist about who gets to participate, and since I'm only an art minor -"
"So what?" Claudia demanded. "You're a damn good artist, Callum! If they don't accept your piece, just tell Harrow! He can straighten everything out."
Callum winced at the thought. He didn't like using his dad's position to benefit himself. Someone else, maybe. Even an entire class. But it felt like cheating if it was only for himself.
Rayla must have noticed the doubt flickering in his eyes, because she gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll get in on your own merit. I doubt Claudia and Soren would have suggested you enter if they didn't believe it, too."
Callum felt his body relax at her words - he hadn't realized he'd been holding himself so stiffly. Before he could thank her for the encouragement, however, a boy he didn't recognize came over to inform Rayla that warm-ups were about to begin. Rayla nodded and waved goodbye before following the boy to where the team and the coach were waiting.
Claudia seemed to sense that Callum didn't want to continue conversing - she'd always had an uncanny sense for what went unspoken - and instead pulled out her phone to scroll through Instagram.
Callum returned his attention to his sketchbook, though he found himself still unsure of what to draw. Admittedly, he wanted to sketch the football players as they practiced their drills. Or at least one player in particular.
How embarrassing.
He contented himself with sketching the stadium itself. Although it was the middle of the day, there were still several interesting angles of light breaking through the arched seating that were good for him to practice. He had mentioned before to Soren the parallels between this stadium and the Roman Colosseum, which Soren had - almost surprisingly - been intrigued by. They'd ended up talking about Ancient Rome for nearly an hour before they'd both had to leave for class.
Huh. That could actually make for an interesting piece.
The stadium and the Colosseum, that was. Not their conversation.
It would be a... mashup, of sorts. A little difficult to put together, but Callum didn't mind a challenge. Especially when it involved classical architecture.
He began developing his idea, trying to be forgiving with himself, as he ended up having to start over a few times because he didn't like the angle he'd chosen. He pulled up a picture of the Colosseum on his phone, too, though he doubted he'd get that far in the picture during the few hours he'd be here at the tryouts.
He did glance up at the ongoing practice, every now and then. Claudia had switched from Instagram to Tumblr, sometimes showing him a funny post or video, which was admittedly a good way for him to take a break from drawing and instead stretch his hand to prevent it from cramping.
Tryouts seemed to be going well. At least, as far as Callum could tell. Which wasn't saying much. They ran forward, they pushed some stuff, they threw and caught footballs - seemed... successful, he guessed?
It was difficult to differentiate Rayla from the other players once they were all adorned in helmets, shoulder pads, and jerseys, but presumably the person who stopped periodically between events to wave or give a thumbs up in his general direction was her. He knew it wasn't Soren only because Soren was helping direct the tryouts with his coach.
Soren had actually explained to him the other day that these tryouts were unusual, because the team was typically complete as could be by the end of the summer. Unfortunately, Soren had admitted, when both the first- and second-string wide receivers were out for the season with injuries and seven other players had transferred, they'd had no choice but to open tryouts and additional signings to attempt to fill in the holes of the team.
Callum had done a lot of nodding and only a little bit of understanding in that particular conversation.
"Ooh, Callum!" Claudia exclaimed, startling him and nearly causing him to jerk his charcoal across his sketchbook. "Rayla's up!"
Callum blinked, bringing his attention to the field. Sure enough, Rayla was standing out near the middle, with another player in front of her. Soren was further back behind the both of them.
"They're about to run a play with man-to-man coverage from the looks of it," Claudia explained, for which Callum was grateful. "Essentially, they're testing her ability to break away from the corner to catch the ball. Or they could be testing her ability to catch the ball while someone is all up in her face and probably trash-talking, too, because college students are immature like that."
"Rayla, all I want you to do is catch the ball and run for the end zone," someone, probably the coach, called out to her. "There's no pressure to be perfect on the first try."
Callum could picture the competitive glint in Rayla's eyes, though he was too far away to see it. She'd do it perfectly on her first try, no doubt.
Soren shouted something, then the ball was thrown - snapped? - to him. Rayla started running, shifting side to side before racing to the defender's right and easily surpassing him.
Wow. She really was insanely fast.
Soren threw the football in a neat arc that almost seemed to float down before landing in Rayla's arms. She hadn't even turned around to catch it, instead simply glancing behind her. From there, she was gone - down the field and into the end zone.
"Whoo! Go Rayla!" Claudia cheered, jumping to her feet and clapping.
Callum, who was less predisposed to screaming in excitement, instead did his best to make eye contact with their friend and give her a thumbs up.
He wasn't sure if she noticed. Hopefully she had.
The coach seemed simultaneously stunned and impressed by Rayla's abilities, at least as far as Callum could tell from where he was sitting.
He found his attention returning to his sketch as other players began taking their turns to run and catch the ball. The only thing he vaguely noticed was that none seemed to be as good as Rayla, though maybe he was just biased.
Crap. He'd done the shading on that entrance all wrong. The light was breaking at the wrong angle.
Ugh. The labors of being an artist.
He really didn't want to start over again, though. He could just shade everything from that angle. No one else would have to know about his mistake.
But he would know. And therein lay the problem.
"Hello? Earth to Callum?"
He jumped at the voice, instinctively covering his sketchbook to hide it from prying eyes. He turned to his left, expecting to see Claudia, only to find that Rayla had replaced her sitting next to him.
She laughed at his startled reaction. "My bad. Didn't mean to scare you."
"You're fine," Callum replied, putting away his sketchbook. Then he frowned. "Wait, are your tryouts done already?" If they were, they had not lasted nearly as long as he'd expected.
"Nah," Rayla said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "We're taking a water break. Ten minutes." She tapped her watch, which Callum hadn't noticed she was wearing. It looked... kind of like an off-brand FitBit. "Honestly, I thought you'd be gone by now."
He froze. "Wait, what time is it?"
"A little after three."
Callum cursed, jumping to his feet and making sure his phone was still tucked into his pocket. "Yeah, I probably should have left ten minutes ago."
Rayla chuckled as she, too, stood up. "You don't need to hang around on my account. I'll text you if anything exciting happens."
Callum hesitated. He didn't want to leave. He needed to, sure, but he was sorely tempted to accept the lecture he'd inevitably get from his dad and just stay. "I -"
"Hey, Rayla!"
Great. Of course he'd be interrupted by Felix.
Callum really had no idea why he disliked Felix. The only conclusion he'd come to so far was bad vibes, which unfortunately was a conclusion that lacked concrete evidence. Ms. Patricia, his English teacher, would have been sorely disappointed.
"I wanted to tell you before I forgot," Felix said, stopping in front of Rayla and pushing his curls out of his face in a way that left a bad taste in Callum's mouth. "I'm having a costume party at my house in two weeks. It's like the day before the first game of the season. You know. If you want to come."
Rayla shrugged. "We'll have to see." She then looped her arm through Callum's, pulling him close to her side. "First condition: are Callum and Claudia invited?"
"Of course," Felix replied without missing a beat. "What's your second condition?"
Rayla shrugged again. "Haven't thought of it yet. I'll text you when I do."
Felix laughed. "Gotcha. Hope to see you guys there!"
Rayla released Callum's arm as Felix left. "Sorry about that. I just didn't want you and Claudia to be left out."
Callum opened his mouth to thank her and to insist that her actions weren't really necessary because he didn't care if he was invited or not, but Rayla placed her finger on his lips to silence him.
"Hush and get going! I don't want Professor Harrow to have my head for making you late!"
Callum hesitated again, but finally relented, knowing full well that he couldn't win against her. He said a quick goodbye before heading back to his car, his lips still tingling from where her finger had been. As he drove away, his mind fixated on a single thought.
Damn. Now I have to go to a party.
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There's a lot going on right now because of COVID-19, and I hope by the end of the month I'll know more about when school will start again, what's going on with AP exams, etc. Thank you all for your patience, and thank you so much for reading!
