The Only Reason (5SOS)

II. Introduction

"My pleasure." I said and accepted the toddler. I placed her on my hip and rocked her a little, to keep her entertained. The lady hauled three suitcases out of the plane, don't even ask me how she managed. I followed her all the way until were in front of the passport checking booth. The woman thanked me and took her child back. 

I took my place in line and switched my phone back on. There were a couple of texts from Harry, Perrie and Anne. I decided to reply to them once I had everything covered. Everything seemed so unfamiliar, almost frightening. When it was my turn, the man who sat inside the booth had an angry expression on his face and he stuck his hand out rudely. Resisting to roll my eyes, I handed him my passport. He flipped through it carelessly and motioned for my to pass. Why were people so arrogant?

I made my way to the baggage claim and ended up wasting so much time waiting for one damn suitcase. I looked at my reflection on my phone, my hair was still somewhat straight and my face was presentable. I noticed I had bags under my eyes, but they weren't that bad. I quickly applied some concealer, hiding the evidence of how tired I was.

I hadn't realized the baggage had already started rotating in circles. I spotted my large, black suitcase but it was just about to disappear out of sight. I broke into a jog and hauled it down just in the nick of time. The toughest task was yet to come, meeting the boys I'll be living with. One wrong first impression could send everything to hell. 

I swallowed my nervousness and passed through the arrivals gate. I glanced around, probably looking like a lost puppy. I made my way to the exit casually before spotting a teenage boy standing there. He was holding a paper with 'Jess Styles' printed on it in big, bold letters. I let out a sigh of relief, thankful he hadn't forgotten to pick me up. I took a deep breath and walked over to him.

"Hi, Ashton?" I peered at his face, his hazel eyes met mine and he froze.

The boy stared at me for a minute, making me feel self-conscious. His hair was blond and the curls reminded me a bit of Harry, but Harry's were longer and most luscious looking. He smiled, showing off two adorable dimples. He really resembled my brother. That kind of soothed me, at least I'll have a reminder of him living with me under the same roof.

"You must be Jess." Ashton finally said.

"Yeah, it's nice to meet you." I smiled, sticking my hand out. Ashton slapped it away playfully and gave me a big hug. I instantly felt welcomed and hugged him back, inhaling his attractive cologne. He even gave similar hugs to Harry's. I grinned into his shoulder, feeling safe and knowing I had just made a potential new best friend.

We pulled back and I followed Ashton to his car. I sat in the passenger seat, not bothering to buckle my seat belt since Harry wasn't here to reprimand me. I guess this was sort of a good idea, it gave me freedom and Independence to some extent. Ash got into the car and turned the key in the ignition, bringing the engine to life.

"What made you decide to come to Sydney? Just curious here, I mean, your family is in London." He said, glancing at me then back on the road as we exited the airport's parking lot. Flashes of the living nightmare I had been through a year ago lingered in my head, haunting my mind. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself down and not over react.

"I've always liked Australia. I guess I wanted to be liberated, without having my family on my back all the time." I said the first thing that came to mind. Of course, it wasn't a complete lie but it was far from the truth as well. "So, what are your friends like?"

"You mean my band mates?" He chuckled. My eyes widened in shock, Harry never mentioned them being in a band.

"No way! I had no idea." I exclaimed, I was really impressed already.

"Yeah." Ashton laughed at my excitement. "We're called 5 Seconds Of Summer."

"Love the name." I said truthfully. "Are you guys like famous or something?"

"Or something. We play a few gigs here and there, nothing major though. We have one three days from now, you should definitely be there." He said.

"I'd love to. Anyway, about the guys?" I asked, changing the subject once again. I was actually very interested in the boys I will be living with. 

"There's Luke, Michael and Calum. Luke is the shy and awkward one, but tends to get extremely cocky sometimes. Michael is the ultimate gamer, I guess you'll find him pretty interesting. He dyes his hair a different color every two or three weeks, he's currently stuck on white with black streaks. He's also the type of guy you can really confide in. Calum is the funny and nice one." Ashton rambled on and on, me only catching small bits of what he was saying. I kind of lost interest.

"They seem very nice." I concluded, staring out of the window.

"What about you? What are you like?" He asked, clearly interested. 

I thought for a moment. I left my old life behind, I could be anyone I wanted to be. I wasn't going to change completely, I was just going to show people the parts of me I was comfortable with. I thought of all the possible things I could say and ended up picking one of the things that I adored the most.

"I'm kind of confident in myself but shy at the same time. I love singing and my biggest dream is to become a makeup artist. I'm boring, nothing special." I said, biting my lower lip. I suddenly wondered if the guys didn't like me as a person, what would happen?

"No, no. You sound interesting. I'd love to hear more but we're here." Ashton said, pointing at a huge white house we were parked in front of.

I hadn't even noticed the car stopped moving, let alone that we've arrived. I swallowed the huge lump that had been forming in my throat. I slumped my handbag over my shoulder and exited the car. I waited until Ashton got my suitcase out and was rolling it towards the front door. The house was accompanied by a perfectly manicured lawn with a few trees scattered along the edges.

I followed in Ashton's footsteps, waiting for him to unlock the door. The house was oddly quiet, giving off a nervous vibe. I sucked my breath in as Ash pushed the wooden frame open. I walked into a rather large foyer and watched him set my luggage just below the marble white staircase. He cracked his knuckles and gave me a reassuring nod. I smiled back at him weakly, my insides melting.

"We're home!" He announced, his voice echoing through the entire premises. I heard three pairs of feet pounding against the floor, heading towards us. With every step getting closer, my heart sunk even further.

Well, this was it.

A/N: Don't forget to vote and comment. <3