(Tom’s POV)
Tom sat at the edge of his hotel bed in L.A., staring at his phone like it might explode.
Missed Call: Nina (4)
Missed Call: Nina (1 hour ago)
New Voicemail
He didn’t need to listen. He’d already heard the last one five times.
“She’s not eating. She’s not talking. Tom, what did you do?! She’s falling apart and it’s not just a breakup — it’s breaking her.”
He ran a hand through his braids, frustration brewing in his chest.
“This is messed up,” he muttered to himself. “This isn’t even real—”
He pulled up the photo again. The one that had destroyed everything.
The one of him and the girl outside the club.
The kiss.
The damning evidence.
Except it wasn’t what it looked like.
He hadn’t kissed her. She’d grabbed him, caught him off-guard, and the flash made it look like he’d leaned in. He remembered pulling back — fast — and walking away. But the photo didn’t care about the truth.
Neither did the internet.
And neither did Isadora.
Until he could tell her in person.
His phone buzzed again. Unknown number.
He hesitated, then picked up.
“Tom Kaulitz?”
“Yeah?”
“This is Marcia Almeida. Isadora’s mother.”
He stood up instantly, heart racing. “Please—please let me talk to her. I just want to explain. I didn’t—”
“I know, Tom,” her mother said softly. “I know the truth. Nina told me everything.”
Silence.
Then: “I want you to see her. She needs to hear it from you. But... you’ll need to tread carefully. She’s fragile right now. And she still loves you. Even if she doesn’t admit it.”
He swallowed hard.
“I’ll be there. Just tell me when.”
“Tomorrow morning. We’re still in L.A. I’ll send the location.”
Tom barely slept that night.
His brother Bill noticed.
“You good?” he asked, sitting next to him in the lounge, handing him a Coke.
Tom stared at the drink for a second. “No. I messed up. Even if I didn’t mean to, I hurt her bad.”
Bill nodded slowly. “Then fix it. Don’t let her sit in that pain alone. She wouldn’t do that to you.”
Tom looked out the window, heart tight in his chest.
He had to fix this.
He had to hold her again.
And this time, not let go.
YOU ARE READING
"Strings Between Us
Romance2004. Germany. Tom Kaulitz is used to getting what he wants - the stage, the crowd, the girls. As Tokio Hotel begins to rise, so does his ego... until she shows up. She's the Brazilian guitarist in a rival band - quiet, sharp-tongued, and completely...
