xp_logs | Callie and Fred

Callie shares some news with Fred and he takes it better than she expected.

The room Callie shared with Sooraya looked at first like a hurricane had blown through it. There were stacks of paper, books, clothes, and other assorted articles everyone. As one looked closer, however, it became evident that there was a definite order to the chaos. Piles to pack up to take with her, others to be put in storage until she returned to New York for college, some to give away, and others to toss. Amidst it all sat Callie, carefully examining a shirt before tossing it to the pile for Goodwill. She looked down at her phone, wondering when Fred would show up as he had already agreed to help. With what, well she'd fill him in as soon as he arrived.

Fred had always trusted his gut. Being the considerably sized entity it usually was, his gut had often been correct. When he'd gotten the call from Callie, and it had felt like someone planted an icicle in his chest, he knew to count on a talk he'd rather not have.

He'd should've seen it coming, he thought in retrospect, as he climbed the stairs to Callie's room and opened the door. She'd been off for a little bit, since slightly after he'd come back, and they talked very rarely in the past few weeks. He was more resigned than shocked when he opened the door to see the early onset of packing, and a slightly nervous looking Callie standing amongst her scattered belongings.

"Hey."

She looked up from her pile of belongings. "Hi. I," she looked around the room, "I'm going to Brazil."

Fred's eyes didn't widen. His lips didn't chew into his cheek. His breath didn't quicken. He just blinked for a few moments, then waved his hand at the room, "Need help getting packed?"

"Sure." There was a small smile as Callie rose and handed him a bad, instructing him to the pile of things to be thrown out. The two worked silently for a few minutes, making a decent dent in all the trash that had accumulated over the year. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough. Finally, she manged to speak again.

"I'll miss you."

Fred didn't turn from the piles of papers he was throwing away. His words came slow and soft, with no heat or venom one would expect from the odd statement, "I wish you'd not. Miss me, I mean."

"Well too bad because I will." She scooted over next to where he was sitting. "I'll be back in August you know. To go to Columbia. So it's not like we'll never see each other again. It's just for a few months. Still... I'll miss you."

"Nah, Calliope. You miss meh meaning." Fred's accent was thick, but whatever was shooting through his head, he did very well, keeping it off his face, "What I mean is: I don't want you to miss me, cause I just want you sad. Don't want you regretting your decision. Don't want you feeling guilty. This is your life Callie." Fred gingerly placed his hand over hers, "Brazil, then Columbia. Sure, we'll see each other time to time. But don't miss me. Half a world away, we won't be far apart, you, uh, you know what I mean?"

She nodded slowly her eyes fixed on his. "I don't regret it. I mean I'm really excited to go there. Like so excited," she smiled broadly. "I'm going to be working with this group called Alvorecer Novo. Angelo put me in contact with the woman who founded it, her name's Mariana Machado, after you left. And it took some time to work things out with my Visa and everything. I was just thinking I'd go down for Spring Break or just the summer but apparently they're having a lot of trouble with some of the crops. And I mean, I'm not an expert by any stretch, but I can help now. Plus I get to study under this amazing scientist while I complete high school. It's an opportunity that only comes once in a lifetime."

"Callie, that ain't nothin short of fantastic." The words were soft but earnest, "How long will you be there before Columbia?"

"Until August. I'm basically staying there and then moving directly to the dorms. My dad says he's gonna come to Brazil during August to help out too then take me back here."

Fred ran his hand through his hair and pat Callie's hand, "Sounds like you've got a full schedule already. Though, heh, with you? Can't say I'm really surprised."

She stared down at her hands for a few moments, collecting and organizing her thoughts. She was happy and excited to be going, but she would miss everyone, especially Fred. "Fred," she began tentatively, still looking at her fingers. "I would wait for you, but I don't think it's fair at the same time to ask you to wait for me. You know?"

Fred's arm went around Callie's shoulder and he grinned, his voice still quiet, "I,uh....Honest, Callie? I kinda figured we'd be talking about, uh, about something like this. Sometime soon. I'm kind of glad it was because you're going to be, uh, going to Brazil. Uh, what I mean is, Callie...I get it. No reason to feel bad or draw it out. I, honest, get it."

"Friends?" She looked up, smiling hopefully.

"Friends."