Exotic

~ caught with one's pants down ~

"Caleb?" a female voice called from a room adjacent to us, and a light blinked on. Caleb swore and staggered back from me as a girl in blue pyjamas appeared in the lit doorframe, rubbing one tired eye. She had dark hair, hanging in tangles down to her waist, the same olive skin as Caleb, and the same blue eyes. She regarded us like a mirage, narrowing her eyes in and out as she tried to decide whether we were a figment of her imagination or not.

"Lauren... it's not what... hmm. There was a..." Caleb stammered over excuses, struggling to string together a coherent sentence. The girl, Lauren, was looking more and more doubtful by the second. I was surprised she wasn't a little more shocked. Caleb made it clear from his stammering that she wasn't aware of his sexuality.

You look like a chick.

Oh, yeah.

"Sorry to wake you up, honey," I stepped forwards, cutting Caleb off quickly. "You must be... Lauren! I've heard... so much... about you."

I hated myself for my hesitation, and Lauren's scepticism seemed to grow as a result. "Who are you?"

I looked back at Caleb, who looked like he was about to pass out. I turned back to Lauren with a smile I hoped was convincing. "I'm Steph. I was just popping in to... my feet really hurt. Shoes, you know! They kill you!"

I tact on a hushed giggle at the end for extra effect.

Lauren's expression didn't change. "Caleb doesn't bring girls home."

I gave her a dazzling smile. "I guess I must be special then?"

Lauren's expression relaxed, but probably because she'd bought I was a dumb, and not worth her time. Perfect. "Must be. Caleb, don't wake up Mum. I am not covering for you if you get caught."

She disappeared through the door and her light went out. Caleb let out a shaky breath that I was sure he'd been holding for the last minute. I turned towards him a gave him another smile.

He did not return it and pulled me quickly to the end of the corridor. He shoved me through a door into a dark room and closed it quickly behind us. When he brought the lights up, I found myself in a messy bedroom, clothes strewn all over the place. An unmade bed with black sheets was shoved into one corner, a desk stacked with paper in the other. There was a bedside table stacked with dirty plates and dog-eared paperbacks. His carpet looked like it hadn't been vacuumed in weeks. Despite myself, I scrunched my nose in distaste.

"Here," Caleb picked up a green t-shirt and black pants from one of the piles on the floor. "It might be a bit big for you but... whatever."

I pursed my lips together. "Are they... clean?"

Caleb pushed the shirt to his nose and inhaled, and then tossed it callously at my head. "Yup."

I sighed, and walked over to the mirror hanging to the wall beside his desk. "Do you have any makeup wipes?"

"No," Caleb sounded jumpy and defensive. "My aunt might. I'll check the bathroom."

"Your aunt?" I asked, surprised. "She lives with you?"

"Yes. And her five-year-old daughter, my two brothers, my sister and my mum and dad. And three cats, two beagles and a galah," Caleb listed off effortlessly. "So when I say be quiet, be quiet."

I mimed zipping my lips closed. Caleb turned and left the room, closing the door gently behind him. I turned back towards the mirror and dug my fingers into the sides of my wig, unclipping the sides and gently lifting it off my head. I whipped off the cap beneath and mussed my hair with both hands, sending it sticking up in every direction, still stiff from the gel. I almost sighed at my reflection. Back to the base.