The Redemption of Callie & Kayden

leg and then walks out of the room, leaving the door open. I hear her say something to one of the doctors and then a nurse shuts the door.
    I take a long-sleeve thermal shirt out of the bag, which is filled with jeans, shirts, and socks, and slip it on over my head. Then I reach for a pair of jeans, ready to put on my full costume and go lie to the world, just like I’ve been doing my entire life.

Chapter 4
    #67 Reunite with something you thought you lost
Callie
    We arrive in Afton late at night when the moon is a ginormous orb in the charcoaled sky and the blizzard is creating a veil in front of the truck, making it hard to see. We would have made it here by dinnertime, but Seth made us stop for lunch and play in the playhouse at McDonald’s. But it was kind of all our faults for getting so carried away and staying until we got in trouble by the manager.
    I think we were all avoiding something. But what that is, I’m still trying to figure out. After a very long, exhausting drive, Seth and I sneak up into the garage and crash on the bed without having to talk to my mother. The place holds one of the strongest memories in my head, and when I first walked in, I nearly fell over as I remember how it felt when Kayden touched me, kissed me, became a part of me.
    “I’m bummed,” Seth states as we lie face to face on the bed in our pajamas. The space heater hums in the background and the glow of it and the lamp highlights the spackled spots on the walls. He fakes a pout. “I was totally looking forward to meeting your mother.”
    I gently pinch his arm. “You liar. You’re so glad she’s asleep.”
    He giggles and then rolls to his side, propping himself up on his elbow. “I know. I wish I was, but from what you tell me about her, she’s not going to be that fond of my colorful personality.”
    I sit up in the bed, take the elastic out of my hair, and then refasten my ponytail. I let my arms fall into my lap and I chew on my lip, thinking about tomorrow and seeing Kayden.
    Seth touches my bottom lip and my initial reaction is to flinch, but I work at it and keep it under control. “A penny for your thoughts?”
    “It’s nothing.” I sigh and flop down on the bed on my side. “I’m just wondering what it’s going to be like… seeing him again.”
    He considers this as he sweeps his bangs off his face. “It’ll be like the first time I decided I was going to talk to you. You have to think of Kayden like a skittish cat. If you say the wrong thing, he might flip out.”
    “You thought of me as a skittish cat?”
    “A skittish kitten.” He grins and winks at me. “You looked like you were going to claw my eyes out the moment I approached you.”
    I fluff the pillow and tuck my hands under my head. “What if I say something wrong, though, and he gets upset?”
    He unlatches his watch and rolls to the side to set it on the Tupperware bin next to the bed. Then he pivots to his hip and faces me. “You won’t.”
    I lift my legs up and slide them underneath the blankets. “How can you be so sure?”
    He smiles and touches the tip of his finger to the tip of my nose. “Because he opened up to you the first time, which means you’ve already said the right things. So all you have to do is go there tomorrow and be yourself.”
    “I hope you’re right.” I click the lamp off and the room goes dark. The pale glow of the moonlight filters in through the window. “I really hope you are.”
    “I’m always right, darling,” he says, and then squeezes my hand. “Just don’t overthink it.”
    I shut my eyes and hold onto the thought that tomorrow I’ll see him, alive, and not bleeding on the floor. Maybe then I can finally get the god-awful image out of my head.
Kayden
    It’s mid-December, the start of winter break. If I weren’t here, I’d be heading home from school, probably with Callie and Luke. It’s weird knowing she’s probably driving into town right now, just getting home, so close to me in distance, and yet she still seems far away, almost unreachable, since I’m stuck in here and she’s out there.
    I’ve secretly been collecting rubber bands and I have five of them on my wrist. Not that Doug knows it. I kept pretending that I broke them until I had a collection. The thickness gives more of a sting and it settles me on the inside each time I flick them. I need a lot of settling because my mother showed up tonight and has been here for over an hour trying to work things out with the