She Fell For The Boy Next Door

In her dorm, Alice had just finished sticking up photos on the wall when a tall girl walked into the room. She had waist length dark brown curly hair and hazel eyes. She smiled upon seeing Alice and extended her hand for shaking.
“Hi! I’m Stacy Jones, and you are?” the girl said in a friendly tone.
Alice shook her hand.
“I’m Alice Nichols” she said, managing a smile.
Stacy dumped her bags and glanced around her. She walked over to Alice’s side and looked at the photos.
“Wow, is that guy your boyfriend?” Stacy asked, pointing to a photo of Cale pushing Alice on a swing at a park.
Alice nodded.
“Yeah, his name’s Cale” she said, gazing at the bright picture.
Stacy turned at the tone of Alice’s voice and frowned.
“Do you miss him?”
Alice cleared her throat.
“Yes” she muttered, feeling tears itch behind her eyes.
“Is he back at home?”
A nod.
“And where is home?”
“New Hampshire” Alice told her.
Stacy whistled.
“That’s a far cry from sunny Cali” she observed.
“Yeah, I know” Alice agreed.
Trying to brighten up, she kept talking.
“Where are you from?” she asked Stacy.
“Florida. My boyfriend Seth is still there, holding down a job at a rock climbing place. This is him” Stacy replied, pulling a creased photo out of a back pocket in her cutoff jeans.
Alice took it and looked down at the faded image of a slim guy, about 21, with spiky brown hair, brown eyes and a white smile. She smiled and handed it back.
Stacy grinned.
‘We’re engaged. We’re getting married at the end of this semester” she revealed, unable to contain her excitement.
Alice promptly burst into tears.
Stacy looked at the shorter girl in horror; five minutes and already she was crying? She hugged Alice, patting her on the back, attempting to comfort her. Alice snuffled and wiped her eyes, thankful for Stacy.
“Sorry” she said quietly.
Stacy shook her head.
“No, it’s OK. Don’t be sorry” she replied.
Alice sat on her dormitory bed and grabbed her old portfolio from the tiny side table. She opened the file and looked for a long time at each photo. Several of them were of Cale when he could still speak, but a few others were of him after that fateful day at school and after he was said to be mute.
Stacy sat beside her, glancing at the pictures, one by one.
“Does he know you have these of him?” she asked.
Alice laughed and Stacy smiled in relief.
“No, he doesn’t. I might tell him. One day” Alice said, slipping the photos back into their folder.
The girls went about their business, sorting out all their stuff and eventually getting ready for bed. When they were in bed, they sat up and talked for a while, asking each other about their distinctive other halves. Answers were swapped and they became fast friends. Stacy urged Alice to speak first, and so she gladly lurched into the wonder that was Cale.
“Cale and I met when we were five. He helped me up when a bigger kid was pushing me into the mud. We were born on the same day, the 19th of October, 1993. His favorite color is white because he says white is clean and pure. He was born in Tennessee and he spoke with a wicked Southern accent. He has a husky called Saffy and he’s an only child. One day, he really wants to go back to Nashville and live there again. He wants a massive farm with horses, paddocks, the whole shebang. He loves Westlife and Escape The Fate, but he listens to a ton of different music. He loves reading and his favorite author is J.K. Rowling, therefore his favorite books are all the Harry Potter ones. When we were little, we went to Disneyland and we got lost. Cale held my hand the whole time until we found our parents again. We would have been about eight or nine at the time. He plays the guitar and he loves James Bond and old Disney movies. He fell out of a tree when he was twelve and broke his right arm. He was thrilled ‘cause he couldn’t write anything at school for ages. What about Seth? Oh yeah, and Cale’s surname is Vreeland and his middle name is Thomas” Alice said, smiling happily at long last.
Stacy gazed at her in shock. Alice could really talk when she wanted to!
Stacy cleared her thoughts and started to talk.
“Seth’s best friend is my brother and we’ve known each other since I was ten and he was twelve. His middle name is Aiden and his last name is Bolton. His favorite color is orange and he was born in South Carolina. He never wants to go back there, he loves Jacksonville too much. All his immediate family is there though, but he’s always been rebellious and one of his cousins is in Florida so he’s stayed with him since he was twelve, which was when he and my older brother became such good friends. He owns a Lamborghini and it is his pride and joy. He always listens to Jesse McCartney and Justin Timberlake. I suppose you would call him a prep. He doesn’t read a lot but he likes books by Stephen King. He prefers horror movies and comedies to anything else and he can’t stand reality T.V. of any kind at all. He’s never been to any American theme parks but he’s been to Australia and he likes it there. He’s a drummer and he often goes out and plays in his friend’s garage with the rest of the guys in the band. And I have a question to ask you” Stacy trailed off vaguely.
Alice nodded.
“Sure, go ahead” she said, feeling loose for the first time in what seemed like forever.
“You said that Cale “spoke” with a Southern accent. What is that supposed to mean?” Stacy asked, keeping her eyes on Alice’s face.
The reaction was immediate. A wall went up in Alice’s eyes and her open smile shut down. Her brain prepared her with smart comebacks for the fierce onslaught of questions that was sure to come.
Stacy waited patiently and silently while Alice inhaled a deep breath.
“When we were 16, Cale went through a physically traumatic experience and ever since then he’s been mute. I haven’t heard his voice for nearly three whole years” she said, becoming distressed.
Stacy leapt out of bed and crossed the room to Alice’s to hug her. Alice held tight, her tears sliding down her cheeks and soaking Stacy’s shoulder.
“You really love him, don’t you?” Stacy said gently.
Alice nodded her head fast, still crying.
“Aww” Stacy hummed.
“You can go to sleep, Stacy” Alice muttered, burrowing beneath the covers and hiding her face.
“OK” Stacy said quietly, getting up and climbing back into her own bed.
That night Alice cried herself to sleep.