I Swear That She's the One

[Callie’s POV]

I pulled on my oversized sweatpants, along with a green Bright Eyes shirt I had stolen from Stephen, and hastily threw my wet hair into the messiest bun I could. I slid my glasses on, not wanting to bother with my contacts, and trudged into the living room. I plopped onto the couch, and wrapped my arms around my midsection hoping to subdue the pain.

I was about to turn the TV on, when my phone buzzed signaling I had a new text. I groaned, not wanting to talk to anybody, but softened when I noticed it was Stephen. I sent a short reply, and tossed the phone back down, before grabbing the remote and flipping the TV on. I settled on Tosh.0, hoping the comedy would help me feel better, and could feel my eyes drooping again.

My light sleep was soon interrupted by a knocking at my door, and I groaned loudly not wanting to get up. I practically stomped to the door, and swung it open, ready to be angry at the person standing behind it.

“I come bearing gifts,” Stephen said with a smile and holding his hands up.

“I can’t believe you,” I said with a smile and letting him inside, “You’re too sweet to me. And how did you know to get chocolate, salty things and midol?”

“I called up Jess and asked her what she does when she feels like that,” he said opening the bottle for me, “Now take these and I’ll grab us spoons for the ice cream.”

I poured two of the pills into my hand, before downing them with the Slurpee that he had set on the counter. He appeared with two spoons and I followed him to the couch, where he sat all of the snacks out on the coffee table. I sat down next to him, immediately cuddling into his side, and took the spoon he was offering to me. I stuck it into the heaven known as Cherry Garcia and watched as Stephen scrolled through the TV guide trying to find something to watch.

“I like your look today,” Stephen said settling on A Walk To Remember, “That shirt looks really familiar though.”

“Are you kidding me? I look like horrible! And thank you, some boy left it here when he slept over,” I said smirking at him, “And are you sure you want to watch this with me, I’ll be sobbing everywhere.”

“You always look gorgeous,” he said kissing my head, “And you can cry on my shoulder.”

I smiled, blushing a little, and gave him a quick peck before turning back to the screen. I watched the story unfold, and it wasn’t long until I had tears in my eyes threatening to fall. When they finally did, Stephen rubbed my back, and let my tears fall onto his shirt like he promised. My eyes were finally dry once the credits rolled down the screen, but I kept my face pressed into Stephen’s shoulder.

His scent was an intoxicating mix of cologne, laundry detergent and soap, and it made me not want to let go of him. I nuzzled in closer to him, suddenly feeling tired, and felt him hold me tighter. I turned my head to look up at him, and caught him smiling, causing me to smile as well.

“Can we take a nap?” I asked him quietly.

“Only because it means we get to cuddle,” he said kissing my forehead and pulling me off the couch with him.

We walked down the short hall into my bedroom, and I fell onto the bed as soon as I moved the covers back. Stephen chuckled, and slid in next to me, before throwing the mounds of blankets back over us. I instantly slid closer to him, and he threw his arm over my midsection, pulling me as close as possible. Our noses were barely touching, and I couldn’t help but to stare into his bedroom brown eyes.

“Let’s just stay here forever,” I said letting out a content sigh, “It just feels right.”

“Anywhere with you is right,” he said causing my heart to melt, “Touring is going to be hard now, knowing I’m leaving you behind.”

“It’s going to suck not seeing you,” I said biting my lip, “But it will make the times we do get to see each other that much better.”

“So much better,” he said kissing me quickly, “Since I have a feeling we won’t fall asleep, why me? I mean, why would you pick someone who’s gone so much of the year?”

“Because I’m crazy,” I said trying to be serious, “I’m kidding. But honestly, it’s because of how sweet you were when your brother was in the hospital. You always seemed so optimistic, even when it wasn’t the easiest thing.

“Then I actually started talking to you, and I realized how similar we were. You’re down to earth, and so real, and that’s exactly what I need. I always know where I stand with you, so I don’t have to worry that you’re lying or going behind my back. It’s a good change.”

“Does that last part have something to do with your tattoo?” he asked tracing randomly on my back, “I understand if you don’t want to say.”

“I’d tell you eventually, so right now works,” I said drawing a breath in, “When I said it was for a rebirth, I meant it. About two years ago, I found out I was pregnant with my high school sweethearts baby. We were both excited, but we didn’t get to revel in that excitement for too long.

“When I hit about four months, I had a miscarriage. I blamed myself instantly, although it was natural causes, and it didn’t take long for him to say it was my fault as well. It caused quite a few fights between us, and then I found out he was cheating on me.

“I broke up with him, being left with almost nothing since I lived with him, and toughed out my final year of schooling. I applied for residencies in all the out of state hospitals I could, and was thrilled when I ended up getting the one here. I had a clean slate, where no one knew my name, and that’s why I call it my rebirth.”

I looked everywhere but his eyes when I was finished, and could feel the tears that had brimmed my eyes. Stephen was the first person I had told, minus my best friend Victoria, and it felt weird having to repeat a story I hadn’t told in a long time. I was worried that it could hurt Stephen and I’s relationship, seeing as I was a mother to be at one point.

“I understand if this makes our relationship a little weird,” I said finally looking at his eyes, “It’s a lot to dump on you, I know.”

“I’m just trying to figure out why someone would do that to a girl who just experienced the worst thing ever,” he said brushing a tear away from my cheek, “I promise to never hurt you like that. Ever.”

“You’re too good to me. Thank you, for everything,” I said hugging him as well as I could in our positions.

He kissed me softly, and nuzzled his face into my hair before telling me we should take the nap we had talked about. I agreed, placing my face in the crook of his neck, and fell asleep to his heartbeat, and comforting smell.