The Jerks Next Door || Ashton Irwin [5 Seconds Of Summer]

Chapter 30 | Fighting

Al POV

Calum and I had decided that I would be sleeping in his bed tonight. Or more so, I had decided. I needed to talk to him. So much had happened today. Did I regret everything I had done? Sure. Did he? Not so sure about that. He couldn't throw away his friendship. He couldn't throw away all of the band's hard work for this stupid little squabble.

That night, I had taken my clothes from my room and walked over to Calum's apartment. When I knocked on the door, it was Luke who opened it, looking tired and withdrawn. He didn't say anything, but just opened the door to let me in. I presumed he knew it was easier that way than to actually try and argue with me.

When I got into Calum's room, he was just coming out of the bathroom, hair wet and only boxers on. I blushed a bit, but I couldn't help but stare. He caught me and smirked, opening his mouth to say something arrogant and cheeky but I cut him off. "Yes I was checking you out; no you have no right to be cocky."

He chuckled and walked over to kiss me after wriggling his sweatpants on. I would have loved to get lost in the kiss but something was bothering the both of us.

"Calum?" I murmured.

He sighed, knowing what was to come. "Yeah."

"What did you guys say to each other today? The truth, preferably," I hesitated.

He sighed again. He knew he wouldn't be able to get out of this. I was nothing if not stubborn. He made sure that we were both ready to go to bed before he could tell me anything, wearing out my already thin patience. I sat down on his bed, my leg shaking with anxiety, and my teeth chewing on my lower lip.

He sat down next to me grudgingly. He didn't really want to tell me, I could tell. But I didn't really care. I was going to get it out of him one way or another.

And he told me. Everything. I was still a little suspicious. He could have lied at any point or omitted some of the details, but the way that he said everything made me trust him. I knew it was hard to make up a lie right off the bat with so much detail and emotion. No one was that good of an actor, particularly not Calum. I'd seen him try acting. It was horrendous.

By the time he had finished, my jaw was practically on the floor. I didn't know where to start. This was a major confession. "Oh my gosh, I guess there must be a reason that you were with those two other girls before me, right? You wanted to prove that you weren't gay?" I tried to diffuse the tension but it must not have worked because Calum looked at me darkly. "Sorry." I looked down.

He ran a hand through his hair and fell back on the pillows, making the bed jump a little bit. That probably wasn't the best way to sympathize with him, but I wasn't really good at this kind of stuff. It seemed like forever ago that we had gone on our first date to the aquarium.

I lay down on his chest and he started stroking my hair. I nudged my head up towards him and noticed him blinking up at the ceiling. Whomever it was who called him gay must have really hurt him. It was up to me to pick up the pieces. That was way too much responsibility for me. I wasn't great at doing this kind of thing. I had never done it before. I had never had the responsibility of another person on me. It was always just me and I was content with it. But I had to try.

"Calum, you know there's nothing wrong with being gay, but I know it hurt you and I want you to know that I'm here for you." Well that was a failure. God, I was soo bad at this.

He let out a deep, shaky breath, then smiled at me. It wasn't a huge smile, or even a grin, but I could tell he knew that I was trying. I smiled back at him and kissed his cheek. We eventually just fell asleep like that. Saying that I woke up the next morning with a major crick in my neck was an understatement.