Adelaide's Point of View

"I can't believe you would paint your entire room black," Calum stated with amusement, his brown eyes rolling at me as he dipped the roller into more of the paint.

I continued to stroke the brush back and forth on the corners, dangerously close to the royal blue tape covering the woodwork. An old baggy t-shirt that came to my knees covered my petite body and raggedy sheets covered the floors to protect the carpeting from any splatter. "It's not the entire room. The ceiling is staying white."

He chuckled loudly. "You're such a smart ass."

"At least I'm not a dumb ass," I fired, seeing the transformation from the awful orange to black right in front of my vision.

Calum just giggled at my pretentious words. I loved how he completely understood my sense of humor. It was comforting, having a friend who you were able to tease to show affection.

We had been painting my room for a few hours now, enjoying endless conversations about nothing. He had a beautiful mind that I was desperate to look deeper into. But Calum was never as open as I wished he would be. When he didn't like a question, he would just freeze and switch the topic altogether. His jaw would clench together tightly as if his two rows of teeth were hugging.

With a sigh, I placed my brush back into the bucket and laid down against the coverings on my nearly empty bedroom floor. "I'm exhausted," I complained. "Will you tell me your favorite memory?"

Calum quirked an eyebrow at me. It was one of his habits. "My favorite memory?" He clarified and I nodded, causing his adorable grin to grow on his cheeks. "I seem to be enjoying right now, Addy."

"No, for real," I whined. I did find his comment flattering, but I could also decipher the sarcasm in his tone. "Would you like me to tell you my favorite memory first?"

He smiled at me, falling onto his back next to me. His fingers twiddled with a piece of my brown hair. "I would love that."

"I was nine. My parents took me to the circus in town. There were lights and cotton candy everywhere, but all I could look at was the giant elephants they had. We were sitting in the front row so the elephant trainer saw me staring at them with awe, right, and he asked me if I wanted to pet it, while the circus show was going on. I thought it was the coolest thing ever, the elephant was so rough to touch. Then next thing I knew the trainer said I could ride on top of the elephant and the two of us climbed up this ladder to the spot on the top of the elephant's back, and the elephant strolled around which caused the spotlight to turn on us. So I was the main event for a circus. Probably one of the best moments of my life," I admitted, feeling a smile grow on my face from the nostalgic feeling in my tummy.

Calum's expression matched mine. He flopped to one side, using his hand to steady his head so he had a complete view of my face. "Alright circus freak, my favorite memory I was thirteen. I had always been bad at history, like really bad, and my teacher at the time was not too supportive of me. She told me I would never get a good grade on a test because I was dumb. And I loved proving people wrong, so I got a tutor and worked really well and on the next test I got a perfect score. I was the only kid in the whole school to get a 100, so I also had my picture up on the wall in the front of the school forever, which was super cool. I just remember being really proud of myself, and I haven't had that feeling in a long time."

A silence filled the air as he finished his story. I just wanted to hug him close to me to fix whatever that this sadness was that was lingering inside of him. I gently reached out and traced my finger over his cheekbone, the two of us remaining to keep eye contact the entire time. "Well you're very cute for a nerd," I joked, making his grin return.

Calum sat up, pushing his hands into the floor so he was standing tall and towering over me. His hands grasped the roller and he dabbed some more paint on it, evenly dispersing the color onto the wall. I watched the way his biceps flexed through his flimsy band t-shirt and the way his eyebrows furred together in concentration. My favorite part was when the sunlight would stream and reflect off his tan skin, making him appear to glow even more than he already was. My view traveled down towards his butt, and I had to confess it did look very muscular and squeezable.

His brown eyes met mine as he spun around abrubtly, a knowing smirk growing on his face as he caught me admiring his backside. I could feel my cheeks getting hot. He whipped the roller at me, flicking some of the black paint on me with laughter.

I squealed, jumping off the ground. "Oh it's on!" I yelled, squirming over to my brush and throwing some paint onto his body as well.

Calum burst out laughing as he ducked and then took another shot of paint aiming towards me. Within seconds we were in a full on paint war, and I was so grateful we decided on taking the furniture out of the room to paint. I couldn't even hide my happiness as the two of us bopped around, splashing the black liquid around like it was water and leaving a masterpiece on each other like our clothing was the canvas.

One of his throws splashed up, coming in contact with my face. I screeched in horror, although I was giggling at the same time. Calum set down his weapon and approached me, an obnoxious chuckle escaping his mouth. I reached up to wipe the paint off but it resulted in smearing it across my cheeks even more.

"Not even close," Cal told me, swatting my hand out of the way so he could remove the paint from my face with a cloth.

"Oh shush, this is your fault," I teased playfully, beaming at my neighbor with delight.

"You could have ducked like a normal person," He suggested in a cocky manner, making me laugh. I noticed at this time how close our bodies were. If I took another half a step closer our stomachs would be tightly pressed together. Calum seemed to notice our proximity also, and his brown eyes flickered towards my lips. "You have some on your lips."

I did my best to keep breathing as his large thumb swiped across my delicate skin. He observed the fleck of paint that had transferred for merely a second, then returned his gaze back to me. The tension between us grew as we both waited for one another to mumble something or jerk away from the intense eye contact, but I didn't want this moment to end, and apparently neither did he.

Without warning, Calum crashed his lips against mine. The paint brush immediately fell out of my grip and landed on the floor with a thud. I barely paid attention to the noise, only caring about the way our lips moved in sync. Calum tugged me closer to him, his hands resting on my waist. My hands roamed from his biceps all the way up his toned arms to the back of his neck. I carefully slipped my tongue into his mouth, but he broke away quickly as soon as I attempted to deepen the kiss.

"Sorry," I apologized awkwardly, feeling my cheeks turn crimson with embarassment.

He shook his head rapidly. "No it's okay, really. Um, I just remembered that uh, I had to be home for dinner. That's all."

"Oh," I muttered, not falling for his lie and feeling utterly uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry, Addy. This has nothing to do with you," Calum attempted to reassure me. "I promise. Things are just complicated, okay? I'll come over tomorrow after I've cleaned up."

I gave him a small smile. "Alright. I have to work in the morning though."

"Right. Well good luck," He said sincerely. His mind seemed to be elsewhere, not even paying attention to what was going on in reality. "Bye, Addy."

"Bye," I whispered, my voice so shaky that it was barely audible as I closed the door, leaving me alone in my now extremely messy house.

--

The next morning I woke up with a throbbing headache. It was most likely due to the fact that I could not stop thinking about Calum Hood.

Even after he had exited my home, my brain was constantly wondering what was going on through his mind. He was the one who had kissed me. I don't understand why he was so uncomfortable when we began to make out.

As I continued my second coat of paint on the walls afterwards, I was still doubting myself. Maybe I just wasn't a good kisser or something? Either way I desperately craved his internal thoughts and wanted to dig inside his mind and figure out his shady behavior. He seems conflicted with something, but I had no clue as to what that was.

I took an extensive shower, scrubbing away both the paint covering my body and also Calum's touch. I wouldn't say that I was necessarily angry with him, more of just curious and embarassed. I was dreading our next run in, but I also couldn't wait to see him again. It truly was twisted logic.

I slurped down my cereal for breakfast and got changed for work, pulling my hair up into a sleek ponytail and throwing denim jeans on, along with a simple t-shirt. I did my best to mimic the way Lucy had been dressed.

The journey to work was not as long as it usually felt. Perhaps this was because I couldn't stop the thoughts of my breathtaking kiss with Calum circulate through my subconscious. I tried my best to focus on the way my sneakers appeared as they dashed along the cement sidewalk, the rubber bottoms squishing from shock absorption.

"There is the beautiful Adelaide!" Michael cheered as I stepped inside Fabulous Florist, being hit with the floral aroma as if it was a high speed train headed right towards me. I smiled at my peppy co-worker, wading into the store to meet up with him. "Alright let's get you suited up. Here's your apron, your oh so sexy baseball cap, and here is your name tag. My mum wanted to put Adelaide on there but I told her you liked to be called Addy."

I chuckled, dressing myself in the standard attire. "How do I look?" I asked, pretending to strut down a runway, which only made us both laugh.

Mrs. Clifford entered the store from the backroom, her eyes lighting up at the sight of me. I grinned politely at my new boss. "Addy! Let me show you around."

I followed her lead, going into the storage area, and we stopped at the very beginning of the wall where numerous cards were hanging. "This is where you'll clock in," She explained, handing me a card with my name and a barcode on it. "Just swipe it across the screen when you get here and when you leave to keep track of time. Go ahead and try."

My fingers gripped tightly onto the cardstock material and swiped it through the scanner, making a computerized sound come out of it. Mrs. Clifford clapped in approval. "Great, that's all you have to do. The schedule is up right next to the machine and you will check that every two weeks to see when you'll be working. If you need any changes, just let me know. You'll usually be working with Mikey and Lucy."

Skimming over the schedule, I noticed how easier it was to comprehend than I expected. I was only going to be working three times this week to get familar with the store. I was perfectly fine with having ample time to myself.

I was lead to the storage area, seperated into four main rows. "This is where the flowers are groomed and grown. Our gardeners and I do this part, don't you worry about. This second row is where all the craft supplies are, you'll take these supplies over to the tables in the very back and make lovely bouqets with. The third row is where the various baskets are held, there are different sizes for different prices. The fourth is more gardening tools that you will rarely need. You'll mainly be making bouqets and baskets and occasionally working the front desk."

"Sounds good," I responded, trying to process all of this overwhelming new information.

Next, she showed me the break room which was equipped with a table, microwave and fridge. She informed me that I was allowed one fifteen minute break per day. Adjacent to the break room was a single bathroom that seemed quite tidy and sanitary. We returned back to the glass counter which Michael was currently sitting on. "My son will teach you how to use the cash register."

"I will?" He repeated, making his mother scowl at him. Michael just cracked up at her expression. "Alright Addy, it's pretty simple. Just scan the barcode on the bouquet they bought, tell them their total, press this green button and put the money in, hand them a coupon for their next purchase, and you're done. If they have to pick up a custom order just call my mom or the assistant manger, Diana, over. You don't have to deal with that."

"Perfect," I uttered. "So what should I do now?"

"Considering it's your first day, you can just sit in that stool right there and observe. When Lucy comes in she'll show you how to make baskets because apparently she's the best at making them, but I beg to differ."

I laughed, leaping up to the stool and and pressing my back against the wall to steady myself. Michael's eyes scanned my body, making me feel slightly insecure. His hand reached out and dabbed against my neck. "What are you-"

"You have something under your jaw. It's like black?" He pointed out, still trying to get it off of me.

I giggled. "Oh that's just paint. You had an excellent color choice by the way."

"How did it get on your neck? Are you really that much of a lazy shit that you can't paint a wall properly?" Michael teased, folding his arms across his chest in a relaxed manner.

"No, um, I got into a bit of a paint war," I confessed, glimpsing down at the lineloleum floor so I wouldn't have to look at his concerned.

"Oh that sounds fun. May I ask with who?" He pressed, leaning in a bit closer to me.

I cleared my throat. "With Calum."

"Dammit Addy!" Michael yelled, slapping his hands on the counter ferociously. He then grasped onto my wrists, gaining my complete attention. "Addy, you have to listen to me. You can't be hanging out with Calum under any circumstances. He's so dangerous. I really do not want anything to happen to you, okay? So please, for your own good, stay away from that monster."

I flinched at his words. "I don't get what's so bad about him, Mikey. He's so nice and funny. He was my first friend here."

"You have no idea how badly I wish I could tell you what he's done," Michael declared, shaking his head. "I don't even want to talk about it though. It makes me so angry. You should be afraid of him. His nice and funny attitude is all just an act."

"No one can be that good of an actor," I protested. He grimaced at me in disapproval and I hopped off of my chair, placing one hand on his forearm. "Look, I'll take your word for it, okay? I obviously haven't lived here as long as you so I don't know all the town gossip. But he lives next door to me. It's inevitable that we'll see each other."

"I know," Michael answered, a sad smile overtaking his features. "I really wish you could like move in with me. I don't want you anywhere near a monster like Calum. I'm so scared for you, Addy."

I gulped, wondering what the hell had possibly gone on before. This didn't stray me away from Calum, however, it only dragged me closer to him. I wanted to figure this mystery out. "I'll be okay, Mike. If I ever need help, I'll call you. Does that make you feel better?"

"Much better," He replied, handing me a piece of paper with the staff contact list on it. "I'm sorry if it feels like I'm bossing you around, but I already like you Addy. I'm just worried for your well being."

I smiled at him. "I like you too, Michael. It's weird to be making friends so quickly. I'm typically very awkward, but the move has really brought me some confidence."

"Everyone just loves your weird accent," He informed me with a slight chuckle. "I can't wait to get to know you, Addy."

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Author's Note: Yikes so we have a kissing scene that didn't go over too well, and we have another warning from Michael. What do you think Calum has done in his past that makes him so hated? Let me know in the comments, I'd love to see your predictions!

Do you prefer Addy's friendship with Calum or her friendship with Michael? Although the prologue did show her and Calum's relationship, that doesn't mean that will be her only one in this book ;-)

Thank you sooooooo much for reading! It honestly makes me so happy and I appreciate it soooo much

I update every other day so check back for more ok

Love you lots, have a great day :) xx

dedicated to hopefuldreamers aka caroline aka nicole because she's like my bff on here and i love her a lot aw