Other Side of the World

As it turned out, Haley wasn’t the only one being out of character that night. Liam was too, and he didn’t even have much alcohol in his system to be classified as ‘piss-drunk’. So he didn’t have any explanations as to why he was acting the way he was. He’ll just blame it on hormones or whatever.

Liam rushed after Haley who was staggering slightly off of the sidewalk, confused and lost. He screamed for Belle’s name in the middle of the living room – as he was pretty certain that Belle was the reason for Haley’s presence at the party – and as it turned out, there were a lot of Belles in that party.

He grabbed her upper arm and spun her around before stopping in his tracks. He realized before this, he hadn’t seen her out of her school uniform.

She was wearing a gray dress, if one could call it that since Liam’s idea of dresses were revealing and sexy – but hers had long-sleeves and stopped at mid-thighs. She wore a silver belt and was wearing a pair of dark jeans. Her boots were made from some sort of a brown fabric. Her hair was tied up in a messy ponytail, curling down over her shoulder, exposing the side of her neck.

“Are you insane? You’re planning to walk around in the middle of the night drunk?”

Even though she was wearing some so utterly conservative, the fabric of the dressed hugged and fell on her curves nicely. He didn’t know that anyone could be so sexy when covering up so much skin, but obviously he was proven wrong that night.

“What if there’s someone who would mug you, ey? Or molest you or whatever?”

She staggered backwards again. Liam’s grip around her arm tightened and he loathed the fact that Haley had her heads stuck in the clouds, again. As if Liam wasn’t there when he talked to her. It was a waste of breath, really. Why did he even bother? He could just go back to the party, get some girl and wake up the next morning happy. Satisfied.

But he stayed.

Haley threw back her head a moment ago, completely ignoring her as she sought for stars.

“Where’s your home? Give me an address. I’ll take you back,” he grunted.

“D’you think he’s dead?”

Liam was just about to give up at this point.

“I don’t know, Haley,” he said absent-mindedly, trying to drag her to his car. “How many drinks have you had?”

He felt her forehead against his chest.

“I’ll take that as ‘a lot’.”

On reflex, his arm went around her body, pulling her closer.

He felt her fingers clasping the fabric of his shirt as if it was a lifeline.

He fought the urge to roll his eyes as he had an idea why she suddenly turned upset. “Look, I’m going to tell you the truth now. Long distance relationships, regardless if it’s ‘only’ a year or so as you kindly put it, aren’t going to last that long. You’re a teen. He’s a teen. Who’s to say he doesn’t have another girlfriend already back in the States? Doesn’t mean he’s dead. Now, your home address please—?”

“He’s dying.”

“Haley, I swear to god this mushy mushy, lovey dovey emo crap is getting on my nerves—”

“I mean, he’s dying. For all I know, he’s already dead. He’s already dead and I wasn’t even…there for him because I’m a selfish cow.”

As they stood there in the middle of the whistling wind, Liam knew he should’ve run back into the room where everyone was having fun partying. But he was rooted to the ground by her sudden statement. Liam placed a finger under her chin, his thumb caressing her skin. He wanted to say something, but he wasn’t good with comforting. If anything, he would make people feel crappier with his ‘comforting words’.

He should’ve run. He should’ve searched for Belle thoroughly around the house and never to speak to Haley again. But he couldn’t. And then in his train of thoughts, Haley did something that Liam didn’t expect her to do.

Haley wrapped her arms around his neck and brought his lips down to hers for the second time that night. Thinking made her head hurt. Thinking did nothing good for her thus far. So she decided not to think anymore.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

“A party?” Nathan said, leaning back against the couch, grateful for the hot cup of coffee that provided warmth to his cold hands. He was nervous. He didn’t know what he was doing. It was on an impulse. And his parents would probably chain him to the bed after this.

“I’m sorry,” Mrs. Rebecca Walker said sincerely. “I’ve tried calling her but she isn’t picking up her phone. It must’ve been a hassle for you to come here just to see Haley.”

He dismissed it politely but he was lying through his gritted teeth. He hated flying. Hell, even his physician advised him against flying. He had never done anything on impulse as big as this before. He could’ve charged his phone, call Haley and apologize profusely. But he thought it would be fitting if he apologized to her in person.

He had a new reason to hate phones now.

“Do stay for the night. We have a guest room down here,” she said.

“Oh, I don’t want to trouble you or anything. I can check into a hotel somewhere,” he said and Haley’s aunt shook her head.

“It’s no trouble at all, really. I insist. You must be tired from that long flight. And Haley should really be back by now,” she said, looking concerned. “I’m going to try calling her friend. I’ll be right back.”

It had been hours since he first landed in Australia – and when he searched for Haley, her aunt said he just missed her as she went out with a couple of her friends to a party. And then he had to wait for another 3 hours in a completely foreign place just to wait for the reason he was there in the first place.

He could tell that Haley’s aunt was getting slightly distraught by her absence and Nathan assured her that Haley was fine, that she was just probably having too much fun. Nathan wasn’t too worried as the night seemed still early to him.

He was, though, worried about the fact that Haley suddenly went to a party. He recalled that she told him once that she disliked going to parties because she always had a feeling she was going deaf in a “hot sea of people drenched in bodily fluids.”

So why the sudden change?