Mariana let her body fall back onto the bed. She stretched both arms out to her sides as she looked up at the white ceiling of the room. A while ago, she had opened the paper bags that Calum had brought. She couldn't help but laugh at some of the things inside. She was thankful he had remembered to buy her soap, shampoo, and underwear. She was glad she wouldn't smell like a man anymore. And most of all, she wouldn't be wearing another one of his boxers again. Mariana didn't even know how embarrassed he had gotten buying those panties at the store; he had sacrificed his entire dignity and ruined his honor just to get them for her.
Those funny things weren't really what stuck in her head. Lying down now, she perceived the inconceivable tragedies that had happened this morning, and it was making her sick, literally. She held her head using her left hand; contemplating so much gave her a headache.
A bunch of concerns were circulating in her brain, making her nauseous. She covered her nose and mouth with her hands as she sneezed. Her body felt debilitated and deteriorated, and she knew this was bad. Her throat was sore, causing her to cough repeatedly. Her body was shivering, and her body temperature rose. A loud groan came out of her mouth, an indication that she was unhappy. This was the worst place to catch a cold. She sighed and closed her eyes, hoping to just fall asleep and forget about everything in the world.
Meanwhile, Calum peacefully sat on the treadmill deck, which wasn't moving, watching what Trae was doing. Trae was standing and lifting the 60-pound dumbbells in both hands as if they were feathers.
Calum rested in a squatted position, placing his arms on his knees and locking both hands. They were on the third floor, inside the workout room of the headquarters. The room was surrounded by glass walls, and the green scenery outside made them free from disturbance, giving them a sense of peace and serenity. Only the two of them were in the room, and they pretty much owned the place by themselves. Despite Trae's age, he still liked to do a lot of exercises. No doubt he had stayed muscular for years. He wore a white, thin, sleeveless shirt that was wet with his own sweat. It was the middle of the afternoon, and the summer sun of June was one of the reasons why Trae's sweat cascaded like an inexhaustible waterfall. Surely, it wasn't just the dumbbells that caused those sweats because they were nothing to him. Trae was working his ass off while Calum simply relaxed, and not even a single drop of sweat appeared on him. He wasn't in the mood to exercise, not after what had happened this morning. He was looking at Trae but perceiving something different. The alluring face of Mariana and her mouth-watering body were haunting him; they were imprinted in his brain, and he couldn't erase them.
"Aren't you gonna work your ass off?"
Trae continuously lifted the dumbbells.
"I'm not in the mood today."
Calum casually said.
"It confuses me because you're not in the mood all the time, but this is the very first time you've used it as an alibi for not doing something."
His maniacal laughter echoed in the room. Calum frowned and didn't bother to create a response.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, it wasn't a good alibi, buddy. I can read you like a newspaper, precise and clear."
Calum showed a little smile before he bowed his head and shook it.
"You are a different breed of psychic."
He raised his head again after he knew that Trae had put the dumbbells down on the floor. He opened his mouth as he looked at Calum; he was flabbergasted by what miracle he had seen.
"Who the hell taught you that?"
A ton of discombobulation appeared on his face.
"Taught me what?"
Calum was also in a state of confusion. He wondered why Trae seemed to be deathly astounded.
"What the fuck? Are you kidding me?"
Trae asked with disbelief and started to laugh maniacally again.
"Who the hell taught you to smile? That person needs to be rewarded. This is impossible."
Calum automatically became silent. What he had heard wasn't funny at all; it only reminded him of his stupidities. It reminded him of Mariana, who never stayed out of his mind.
"Come on, Calum! Don't tell me it's the woman you've been protecting."
Trae's statement gave Calum numerous motives to not say anything. He took his words as an insult rather than a compliment. Trae was right, which is why he felt brutally humiliated.
"Stop it, Trae. Your statements don't make any sense; they only disgust me."
Calum firmly said, he was so opposed to Trae's declarations.
"Fine! Fine. But still, it was so impossible. Can you do that again?"
"No."
His immediate response made Trae burst out laughing. He was thinking there was something really odd about him because he couldn't have the guts to laugh like Trae did. He understood why his smile was surprising to see. Same as him, he was also amazed by that first time he caught himself smiling. Trae had very good reasons to laugh at him like that. But still, Calum wasn't in favor of how he laughed, particularly because he did it like he was sacrificing his life. Trae was almost out of oxygen, catching his breath and managing to say this:
"Oh shit, Calum. You're killing me."
Calum gaped at him.
"Yeah, you're killing yourself."
He wanted to let Trae know that what he was doing was suicidal. After a minute, which Calum thought was an eternity, Trae ceased his laughter. He lifted the dumbbells that he had put down on the floor to continue what was interrupted. Calum remained in his sitting position, his gratitude overflowing. He thanked God that finally, the suffering of his ears was completely over.
"By the way, our plan to let Crow look innocent did work out. That was a clever idea."
The appreciation on his face was perceptible. But the real thing was, he needed to use that topic to create a new conversation. A conversation that he hoped Mariana wouldn't be involved in. Trae spoke:
"Yeah, we fooled the fucking FBI again."
"Fooling them was the easiest part of our job. It doesn't take a lot of hard work."
They both agreed with each other, and luckily, Calum found it safe to sustain their dialogue.
"You should be thankful to your dad."
"And why the hell did that jerk get joined in our conversation?"
Calum raised his voice. Trae didn't leave the thought of intentionally provoking him.
"Because he helped you."
"Are you for real? Helped me for what? I don't even need any of his fucking help. Don't tell me to be thankful for that useless jerk."
Trae knew how he hated talking about his father.
"Whoa, easy, buddy. I just wanted you to know that I wasn't seeing your face in the news for a while. Thanks to your dad, you can already keep that woman as long as you want."
Calum stood and took a few steps towards the glass wall in the room, crossing his arms over his chest. No matter what conversation he opened up, he always felt aggrieved.
"I didn't ask him to do me a favor. I don't expect anything from him."
Trae put the dumbbells down on the floor again. He grabbed the small towel and wiped his sweat. After that, he went near to Calum. He stood next to him, their sights focused on the green landscape outside.
"Your dad, he's not one of our enemies, Calum."
"And he's also not one of those people we should trust."
A bitterness in the tone of Calum's voice inexorably became unnoticed.
"Give him a chance."
"There was someone who was worth a chance. But sadly, he is that someone who doesn't deserve one."
Trae couldn't win over Calum's affirmations. He patted him on the shoulder and smiled.
"You are just like your father. Not that you don't deserve a chance; it's because of how you stand in what you believe."
Calum wasn't pleased with what he had heard. He faced Trae and looked at him with dismay.
"I don't want to become like him. I'm not a coward, a loser, a useless, selfish man who can only save himself. I'm not like him; I'd rather be dead than be like him."
Calum was good at hiding it, hiding the toxicated pain that was slowly poisoning him to death. Trae's purpose of joining his father in their conversation was to reconcile them, but the callus in Calum's heart was too thick to melt. Maybe what his father had done must have been very heavy that he didn't have any plan to try carrying it. It must be the basis for his forgiveness to be given to him. Trae never intended to hurt him; instead, he tried to make him whole again, even if that was as impossible as his smile. Trae constrained himself to never open his mouth to say something. He knew Calum and everything about him. He knew it was painful for him to make his father a matter in the conversation. He cared for him like how a father should care for his son.
"I am proud of you, son. "
This came out of Trae's mouth.
***