XVIII

Jackie's POV:

"Show's over." Calum shouts at them as they break out giggling like schoolboys. "Now get out, I have strict orders from my mumsy that I need my beauty rest. Plus there's her." he says as he snakes his hand around my waist.

I playfully swat him away.

"I'm not your damn showpiece, Cal." I joke but by the look on his face I can tell he thinks I'm being serious so I add "I'm kidding." and watch him relax.

"Oi, mate, party here on Saturday, yeah? Yeah, it's decided then." Michael bellows and Luke cheers in agreement.

Calum shoos Luke and Michael out the front door as the coo at us.

"Whatever, now get the fuck out of my house." he says lowly in a vain attempt to shut them up.

Once the door latches his attention is on me once again.

"Wanna watch a movie? We can watch it in here since my dad's at work and mum's asleep." he says, gesturing to a big screen TV in the living room.

I nod in response.

"And we can even use Netflix." he grins.

"Oooh, fancy." I joke.

"Only the best for you, babe." he replies and I feel my face heat at his choice of words.

"Why couldn't Michael and Luke have watched the movie with us?" I asks suspiciously.

"Because, then I wouldn't be able to do this." he says, leaning over to place a quick kiss on my lips before pulling me closer to him on the couch.

"Have you seen The Lego Movie?" he asks and I laugh.

"What is it with you and kids movies?"

"I'm a kid at heart." he shrugs. "Why? would you rather watch The Notebook?" he asks with a smirk.

"What if I said yes?"

"Well, then I guess we'd watch The Notebook."

"Nah, lets watch The Lego Movie."

"I like your style." he says.

"I like you." I reply, grinning at him.

"Ditto." he mirrors my words from the first time I told him that I liked him. That was only a few days ago but it feels like a lifetime ago.

He gets up to make popcorn and I stretch across the entire length of the couch. When he returns he starts to spread blankets across the carpet between the couch and TV.

"You can sit up here, dumb ass." I say teasingly as I sit up.

"I know. But look." he says, rolling across the vast expanse of lounging space that he's just made available using the blankets.

"Well, then." I say, laying back down on the couch then rolling off of the front. I thud onto the carpet and groan at my own clumsiness. Then I hear Calum laughing profusely. I can't help but to laugh too. Not so much at myself but at how much he's laughing at me.

I grab the edge of the blanket closest to the couch and roll toward Calum, enveloping myself in the fluffy material.

"You look like a burrito." he remarks, laughing then offers me popcorn but I scrunch my nose at him in response.

Eventually he lays down next to me. Despite a valiant effort on my own part I start to drift off to sleep toward the end of the movie.

"Tired?" he asks and I nod wearily in response.

"Let's go to bed then." he says, standing up and turning the TV off.

I start to sit up and untangle myself from the blankets but Calum gets to me first. Lifting my blanket-rolled form into his arms and throwing me over his shoulder as he carries me down the hall.

Apparently I rolled the blanket around myself pretty snugly because I can't move my arms at all. I'm drowning in laughter and soon Calum's laughing with me.

He sets me down on his bed gently and I get back to work on unrolling the blanket. Once I'm finally free I snuggle under the thin covers but I'm still cold.

Goosebumps are forming on my arms so I brush my hands up and them in an attempt to warm them.

"Cold?" Calum asks me.

"I'm fine." I reply even though I really am cold and the covers aren't doing any good.

He moves to his dresser. "You can wear one of my jumpers if you want." he says, handing me a gray knit sweater.

"I have one in my bag. But wait, a what?" I ask, taking it from him.

"A jumper?"

"You mean a sweater." I correct.

"No, I mean a jumper. I'm still Australian, Jackie." he says which causes me to sputter out a goofy laugh.

He smiles the warmest and most comforting smile at me as he climbs back into the bed.

I sit up and pull the sweater over my t-shirt. Once I tug it all the way down it reaches halfway down my thighs and the sleeves are far too long. But it's comfortable.

I lay back down and Calum rolls onto his side, pulling me into him and holding me securely as I fall asleep.

Calum's POV:

I fell asleep fast last night and I wake up fairly early.

Jackie's legs are tangled with mine and her arm is across my chest. I don't want to move her, but I'm really fucking hungry so I try my best to remove myself without waking her. I carefully free myself and walk to the kitchen and see my mum eating cereal at the bar.

"Good morning, dear." she says with a smirk.

"Morning. What?"

"That girl's in your room, isn't she?" she asks with a quirked brow.

"Maybe." I answer as I pour myself a glass of orange juice.

"Is she your girlfriend?" she asks and I spray orange juice onto the kitchen bench.

"Uh, no." I reply, shaking my head and wiping my mouth.

"Well, she seems nice. Don't push her away. Don't use her." she warns with a glare that could kill. "On another note, how'd she get that bruise?"

I clear my throat, is it really my place to tell anyone about what happened between her and her dad?

"Her dad." I reply slowly, looking into my mum's eyes as she inhales sharply.

"She can stay as long as she needs." she says sharply, getting up from the bar and putting her bowl into the sink.

Then Jackie comes stumbling into the kitchen, she's still wearing my jumper which makes her look even smaller since the sleeves are so long on her.

"Hi." she mumbles sleepily to my mum and me.

"Hello, love. I need to go to work, but Cal'll make you some breakfast, yeah?" my mum says, patting Jackie's shoulder as she exits the room.

"Cereal?" I ask Jackie and she smiles that beautiful smile of hers as she nods.

Jackie's POV:

"I promised Ash I'd stay at his house tonight." I sigh, entering Calum's bedroom after changing clothes.

"Oh, okay." he says, looking down. "When will I see you again?"

"When do you want to see me again?" I reply.

"You can't answer a question with another fucking question, Jackie." he snaps.

"Uh, like tomorrow maybe. I might come for the party." I say quietly. "Is it all right if I leave my bags here?"

"Yeah, sorry, of course it is. It's more than all right if you stay here too." he says, pulling me in for a hug.

"Okay, I need to go." I say, pushing against his chest and grabbing my purse and a set of clothes from my bags in the guest room.

I don't look back. I don't want to see his expression right now. I need to leave. I need to see Ashton.

I drive like a maniac to get to his house and burst through the front door without announcement.

"Ashton! I'm here!" I announce as I see him round the corner.

"Hey." he greets me.

"Hi." I reply, avoiding his eyes.

"What'd he do?" he asks and I see his jaw clench.

"Nothing, Ash. Calm down." I say, settling into the couch.

Ashton lives in a small apartment with his mom. She's known me for ages. I was always over here in high school. I'm still over here a lot.

"Nothing yet." he retorts.

"Okay, look, he had a good reason to be the way he was. He's not like that anymore." I say but the look he gives me weakens my defense.

"How do you know that Jackie?" he quizzes.

Then it hits me - I don't. He could be lying to me about all of it. But is he? I don't think so.

"I don't." I answer quietly.

"Yeah. What'd he tell you? Did he tell you about what a druggie he is? How many girls he's fucked over? How many times he drank until he couldn't see straight? How many fistfights he got into for no reason? Because I've seen him like that time and time again."

"Yes, he told me all of that." I reply, not wanting to talk about it anymore.

We spend the day doing nothing, really. Looking through AP magazines and listening to old All Time Low CDs. It's a typical Friday with Ashton that I needed more than I realized.

Then morning comes and I find myself filled with nervousness about seeing Calum again.

Calum's POV:

Why did my mum think she was my girlfriend? Do I want her to be my girlfriend? Why did I act like such a jerk to her right before she left? Why did I let her go like that?

So many questions that I have no answers for.

But I know that I want to talk to her, that I want to see her. I'll see her later today, I can wait, I try to convince myself but end up calling her anyways.

"Uh, hello?" I choke out nervously.

"Hi, Cal." she says and I hear the smile in her tone.

Luke walks in the room and puts his ear to the phone but I shove him away.

"How are you?" I ask.

"Um, I'm okay I guess."

I respond with "Cool." and Luke slaps me on the back of the head at my stupid comeback.

"What the fuck, Luke? Quit it." I say, covering the microphone.

"Is that All Time Low I hear in the background?" I say into the phone as a stupid grin spreads across my face.

"Why, yes it is." she replies quietly. "Cal?"

"Yeah?"

"What's up?" she says suspiciously.

"Are you coming tonight?"

"Yes." she replies and I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding in.

"Okay." I say.

"Okay." she replies then after an awkward five seconds I say "See you then, I guess." and she murmurs agreement then the line goes dead.

"You'd better not fuck up this time, mate." Luke says as he walks away.

"I know." I mumble to myself.

A/N: Eeeek, this definitely wasn't the most interesting chapter. Buuuuuut the chapters coming up are gonna be much better so stay tuned!

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