#jetblackcalums

It was a long ride home, but it was worth it in the end. She grabbed her books and shoved them into her bag as her professor ended the class. She slung her bag over her shoulder as she joined the stream of students that filed out of the classroom.

 Vera had to hurry if she wanted to get to the bus station in time to make it home. She had elected to take a late bus back to her hometown, seeing as it was only an hour or two away but she had no other transportation. And she didn’t want to make her parents come to pick her up.

 She hurried to her dorm, the chilly temperatures tinting her cheeks a rosy pink. She had already packed her stuff before her astronomy class, knowing there wasn’t much time to do anything else after it was over. She said goodbye to her roommate, telling her to have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

 Vera would miss her, but she’d see her roommate again soon. She stepped back out into the cold, crossing the campus quickly towards the bus stop. There were one or two other people huddled beneath the small canopy that had the same idea as Vera.

 She sat down on the opposite side of the bench, cradling her bag in her lap as she waited for the bus. It arrived a few minutes later, the three of them filing into vehicle after paying the fare. Vera found a seat towards the back of the bus, claiming it as her own as she pulled her headphones out of the bag and inserting them.

 The bus shuddered beneath her once everyone was seated, pulling away from the stop and beginning the journey back to her hometown. Vera watched her surroundings pass by in the darkness, counting each streetlight as they zoomed past her window.

 She fought her heavy eyelids, her day of classes catching up to her. She’d have to get a cup of coffee or something to keep her awake for the short walk to her house from the bus stop. She knew she’d probably be awake for most of the night, but at least she could sleep in for a few hours in the morning.

 It was a few hours later that the bus sputtered to a stop in her hometown. Vera collected her things, making her way down the aisle with a small thank you to the driver before she was stepping onto the curb. She adjusted the backpack on her shoulders higher as she watched the bus drive off to the next stop in its route.

 Vera breathed in a frosty air, finally feeling like she was at home. Everything here was familiar to her having grown up in the town. The same old flickering streetlight that was positioned out front of the library, the same cracked sidewalks that never got fixed and the same long line of shops that was down the street from her home.

 The particular coffee shop that Vera was heading to was open twenty-four hours. It wasn’t too far, just a few shops down. She figured it wouldn’t be too busy seeing as it was nearly midnight, her neighborhood always retired early.

 She spotted the soft golden glow of the lights cast against the cold sidewalk and picked up her pace. The small coffee house was always warm and inviting – one of Vera’s favorite places to go. She grabbed the handle and pulled it open, stepping inside to the warmth inside.

 Despite the late hour, a few people sat inside either reading and sipping at their coffee, or talking with a friend they sat across from. Vera moved towards the counter, ready to grab her drink and be on her way. She stepped behind the guy in line, the tall brunette looking vaguely familiar.

 He was unusually tall with unruly curly brown hair, dark skin and despite the temperature outside, his arms were bare, decorated by black ink that contrasted well with his skin tone. It was almost then that it seemed to click in Vera’s mind that she recognized him.

 “Calum?” She was asking before she could stop his name from rolling off her tongue.

 The boy in front of her turned at the sound of his name, his dark eyes settling on Vera. It was the same deep gaze that she had known since she grown up. Calum was her neighbor since the third grade, always walking to school together. They were the best friends throughout high school, making sure they picked the same classes so they wouldn’t have to be apart.

 But once graduation came and Calum was accepted into an athletic training program at another university, Vera couldn’t follow. The school he had picked had nothing to offer her, not even having her preferred major. Calum had promised her that they would keep in touch, but their communication had gotten lost in the book work and the many tests and projects that they had to keep up with.

 Calum seemed to slip Vera’s mind, she didn’t even realize that he was going to be coming home for the holidays just like she was.

 “Vera?” Calum asked, his head quirking to the side as he remembered her instantly. “Oh my god, I haven’t seen you in forever,” he smiled, pulling her forward into a hug.

 Vera wrapped her arms around his torso, breathing in his familiar scent. He still smelled the same as always, wearing the same cologne since his junior year of high school. “How have you been, Cal?” She asked as she pulled back, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear.

 He waved his hand through the air, stopping momentarily to grab his drink from the barista. “I’ve been okay, you know, just busy with school. What about you? I can’t remember the last time we had a long conversation.”

 “Just about the same. I’m just glad to be home for now,” she smiled, quickly giving her order to the barista and paying for it. Calum took a sip from his cup, the steam rising out of the small hole as it left his lips. “Did you just get home tonight?” She asked as she waited for her drink.

 “Yeah,” Calum confirmed, nodding slightly. “I drove home but I’m still on the college schedule and I’m not tired at all,” he chuckled.

 Vera found herself laughing along as if it were old times. She grabbed her drink that the barista set on the counter and Calum led her back to his table, subconsciously grabbing her suitcase and trailing it behind him as they walked.

 “The ride here made me a little tired, not gonna lie,” Vera chuckled, sitting down across from him and finally taking a sip of her drink. The warmth flooded her mouth, almost instantly waking her up as if Calum wasn’t doing the trick already. “I was just grabbing something to keep me awake for the walk home.”

 Calum’s eyebrows creased together, “I’ll give you a ride back home, Vera. Don’t worry about it, we live beside each other anyway,” he said, fingers tracing the lid of his coffee cup.

 Vera blushed, the pink tint warming her cheeks. “Thank you, Calum.”