It Hasn't Been Long Enough

Callie didn’t see Pete all night, and she was beginning to worry about him. Maybe Gloria was right, and he was back into using drugs. She just wasn’t sure. Even though it was her off-day, she decided she would go see how Patrick was doing. As she walked toward Patrick’s room, she heard him and Pete talking.

“Hey, Pete, can I talk to you for a minute?” Callie asked as she walked into the room.

“Sure,” Pete said.

“We’ll be right back,” Callie said as she pulled Pete out of the room and to a set of seats in the corner of the waiting room, which nobody was currently occupying. She figured it would be better to have this conversation without a lot of people around.

“Is something wrong?” Pete asked as he sat down next to Callie.

“Where were you yesterday?” Callie asked, simply.

“You pulled me out here to ask me where I was yesterday?” Pete asked in disbelief.

“Please, just answer the question,” Callie told him.

“What is this about?”

“Pete, where were you yesterday?” Callie repeated.

“Callie, I don’t understand…” Pete began.

“Please, just tell me where you were.”

“Fine,” Pete sighed. “I was out with Andy and Joe.”

“You’re lying,” Callie stated.

“What?” Pete asked.

“I saw Andy and Joe yesterday in Patrick’s room. I asked them where you were, and they said they didn’t know. So, tell me the truth, where were you?” Callie asked, trying to keep her voice quiet so she wouldn’t draw attention to them.

“What the hell, Callie?” Pete yelled. “What are you? Some crazy girlfriend that has to keep tabs on her boyfriend at all times?”

“I just want to know where you were yesterday. No one knows where you were.”

“I was out with friends,” Pete said.

“Friends? What friends?” Callie asked. “Pete, are you doing drugs again?” she asked quietly.

“What?” Pete yelled. “You know I’m not doing drugs!”

“But you’re disappearing, not telling anyone where you’re going. It’s exactly like it was four years ago,” Callie said.

“I am not doing drugs,” Pete said through gritted teeth.

“I want to believe you, Pete. Really, I do,” Callie said. “I just want to know where you were yesterday. If you just tell me, I’ll believe you, and I’ll never bring it up again.”

“Callie, I’ve already told you that I’m not doing drugs! If you don’t believe me, then that’s your problem. Fuck, I’m out of here,” he yelled, walking to the elevator and entering it at the same time Emma got off of it.

“Damn it, Pete Wentz!” Callie yelled as the elevator door shut.

“What was that about?” Emma asked, taking Pete’s vacated seat.

“Pete and I just had a fight,” Callie said.

“Yeah, I kind of figured that one,” Emma said sarcastically. “What were you fighting about?”

“I confronted him about where he was yesterday,” Callie told her.

“Oh, really?” Emma asked. “What did he say?”

“He told me he was out with Andy and Joe. When I told him I knew he was lying, he just asked if I was some clingy girlfriend that needed to keep tabs on him.”

“Did he ever tell you where he went?”

“No, he just said he was out with friends. So, I asked him what was on my mind. I asked him if he was back to doing drugs,” Callie admitted.

Emma’s eyes went wide. “What did he say?”

“He told me he wasn’t doing drugs, and then he got all pissed off saying that I didn’t trust him,” Callie explained. When Emma didn’t say anything, Callie continued. “Do you think he’s doing drugs? I mean this was exactly how it was four years ago.”

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Emma admitted. “I didn’t know Pete back then. But, from the way Patrick talks about it, I would guess he’s not. I mean Patrick doesn’t seem to suspect anything.”

“Yeah, well it took us a while to figure it out before,” Callie said quietly.

“What makes you think he’s doing drugs anyways?” Emma asked.

“I ran into Pete’s ex-girlfriend, and she said he was back into doing drugs. I didn’t believe her at first, but she just seemed so sincere, and then I started thinking about him disappearing without saying anything to anyone, and it just kind of fit,” Callie said quickly.

“Wait, you said his ex-girlfriend told you?” Emma asked. Callie nodded her head, and Emma continued. “Gloria?”

“Yeah,” Callie said. “Why?”

“Well, I don’t know if she’s the best source. I mean, she did just break up with him, and she’s not one to take something like being dumped lightly.”

“She said she wasn’t upset that Pete broke up with her. She knew he loved me, and that she wasn’t angry at either of us. She just seemed genuinely concerned about him and his drug use,” Callie told her.

“That doesn’t seem like Gloria.”

“You think she’s lying?” Callie asked.

“Well, I don’t know for sure. All I know is that you need to talk to Pete.”

“As you can see, that didn’t go over really well. He just walked out on me.”

“You need to talk to Pete,” Emma repeated.

“I’ll try,” Callie said with a smile.