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A soft knock sounded on the other side of my door. I drowsily cracked an eye open to see what time it was. My pillows were still soaked through from all the crying I’d done last night. My eyes felt dry and puffy.

It was after eight in the morning. I was already late for school. The disappointments of yesterday came flooding back to me and I really didn’t want to be awake right now. Maybe I should just go back to bed. Missing a day of school wouldn’t hurt.

I was still contemplating this when another knock sounded against my door, a little louder this time. I’d completely forgotten that someone was out there. I groaned, pushing the covers off myself to go check my reflection before getting the door.

It was safe to say I looked as horrible as I felt. My hair was frizzy and stuck to my face, which was still damp with tears, and my eyes were puffy and red. I sniffed, as I tried to run my fingers through my curls.

I glanced at the door as another knock sounded. What if it was my parents? It was unlikely that they would be home, but even they had to come back sometime, right?

I couldn’t help the excitement that fluttered inside me as I ran towards the doors. Who cared what I looked like right now? Maybe if I didn’t answer fast enough, they’d just leave again. I couldn’t let that happen. I hadn’t seen them since in months and my brothers missed them so much too. I scrambled towards the door, almost tripping over the shoes I’d kicked off when I got home yesterday.

I threw the doors open and the glimmer of hope that was in me was quickly extinguished.

“Good morning, Mistress Callie.”

I bit my lip and stared at the ground, trying my best not to show my disappointment. It was one of our family helpers.

“Are you feeling well?” she asked worriedly. “Your face looks swollen.”

“I’m fine,” I sighed, leaning against the doorway. My headache just intensified. “Are my parents here?”

“But you don’t look very good-”

“Just answer the question. Are they here?”

“No, miss.”

“When will they be back?”

“Whenever they see fit to return,” she answered. “I believe they are still on their cruise in Lydia.”

“Of course.”

“Can I get you anything?”

“No thank you.”

She nodded and left and I closed the doors with another sigh. A bitter laugh escaped my throat as I rubbed the ankle I’d bumped on a chair in my hurry to get to the door.

Of course they weren’t here. They never were. I shook my head. After all the years of saying I didn’t care, today made me realize that a part of me still did.

I collapsed onto my bed with a long sigh and reached for my phone. The screen came alive and the picture of Demetri on my wallpaper instantly made me feel better. He cared for me.

I rolled onto my belly and texted my friends to let them know that I wouldn’t be in school today. I still hadn’t told Demetri about the audition results. I tapped my finger on my chin and decided that I would do that today. He was at work right now, but we could have lunch together.

Yeah, that seemed like a good idea. What better way to brighten my day than to go see my boyfriend? I giggled and danced into the bathroom.

After taking a bath, I tried to tame my unruly hair and then binged two of my favorite black and white movies. There was nothing like the classics and a tub of chocolate ice cream to make me feel slightly better.

After that, I picked out an outfit and did my make-up to conceal the dark circles under my eyes. I twirled in front of the mirror, looking a lot more confident than I felt, but hey, fake it ‘till you make it. My outfit was pretty cute and I couldn’t wait to surprise Demetri. I accessorized with earrings and the necklace he’d given me. I smiled at my reflection, grabbed my keys and bounded downstairs.

It was a thirty minute drive to where Demetri worked, but it didn’t matter. I was excited to see him and unlike my parents, I could count on him to be there. I pulled up at the parking lot right as the radio interview with Mila O’Kaine ended.

The security allowed me up to his office and I adjusted my hair and put on a bright smile before pushing the door open. My smile stayed frozen on my face as I took in the scene in front of me.

The papers that had fallen off Demetri’s desk were lying in an uneven mess on the ground. On the desk where the papers should have been, was Demetri. On top of Demetri was a dark haired woman who was straddling him as they kissed.

I couldn’t even move an inch as the shock set in. I couldn’t believe my eyes. A tear slipped down my cheek and then the anger kicked in and I stormed over to them.

“Demetri?”

The woman hastily scrambled off him and adjusted her skirt. She flashed me a sheepish smile as she buttoned her shirt and strode out of the room.

“Wait!” I yelled, storming after her, but Demetri pulled me back.

“Why are you here?”

I ran a hand through my hair as I stared at him in complete disbelief. I felt dizzy and sick. Maybe it was because I’d barely slept last night or maybe it was the ice cream I’d had for breakfast. Maybe I was just imagining all of this. Maybe I was still asleep.

“Callie.”

I was dragged out of my thoughts to see Demetri running a hand through his hair. His expression was blank, but his eyes held traces of annoyance.

“What are you doing here?”

“What am I doing here?” I asked, feeling my anger rising by the second. “No, the question is what the hell did I just see?”

“It was nothing you should have seen,” he sighed, going over to close the door.

“What the hell do you mean by that?!” I yelled and he frowned.

“Can you please keep it down? People are trying to work.”

I tucked my hair behind my ears with shaky hands. This couldn’t be happening.

I tried to brush the tears away. My chest was hurting and the office seemed to be caving in. I closed my eyes and tried to keep my breathing even.

The room is bigger than you think, I repeated to myself.

“Are you okay?”

I looked up to see him picking up the papers that had fallen.

“Do I look like I’m okay?” I whispered. “You were with another girl, Demetri!”

“Sorry.”

“Is that all you have to say?! I drove all the way here to see you!”

“Why?”

“Do I need an excuse to see my boyfriend?” I stared at him. “Why are you doing this?”

“We’ll talk about this some other time,” he sighed and gave me a tight smile. “I should get back to work.”

“It’s lunchtime.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“But I-”

“You should go.”

I fanned my eyes, trying not to cry anymore. I didn’t understand why he was being like this.

He sighed. “Come on, I’ll walk you to your car.”

I trailed behind him as we went downstairs and to the parking lot. I kept my head down so that no-one would see the tears.

“Don’t you like me?” I whispered as we got to my car. My cheeks were burning and I was too embarrassed to look up.

“I do…” he answered after a moment.

“Then why? Who is she?”

“Just a co-worker,” he said, running a hand through his hair. “Look, we’ll talk later, okay?”

I sniffed and got into the car.

“Drive safely,” he cautioned, tapping the top of the car.

I rested my head on the steering wheel, almost wishing I’d just stayed in bed and slept. This felt like some weird dream. I still couldn’t believe I saw him kissing another girl. He didn’t kiss me like that…

I sighed. Maybe it was a misunderstanding. He did say he would explain everything to me later. I just had to trust him. I didn’t want to lose him. Not him too.

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