Straight Out of '94: A Michael Clifford Story

Chapter 2

Haley's schedule seemed to become incredibly busy over the next few weeks, and it seemed as if every new band in Los Angeles had decided to start booking gigs, and needing photographs for their posters, or of them at their gigs. 

She didn't think much about Turntables again until the next rainy day came along, and she found herself cooped up in her loft, incredibly bored with everything on TV and in her playlists. 

Pulling on her polka dotted rainboots and grabbing her umbrella, she headed out into the rain, wrapping her sweater tight around her to battle the chill of the air. 

When she finally made it to the music store, it's as cozy as she remembers it being, maybe even more so. This time however, she's not the only customer. There's a mother pushing a carriage with twins down the jazz aisle, and an adorable elderly couple standing in front of the classical music section. Haley wishes she had her camera with her, because it would have been a fantastic shot. 

As she stands at the front of the store, Haley spends a few minutes taking everything in. The first time she'd been there, she'd been more focused on her wet clothes and the rows of music, but as she looks now, the store seems almost like a movie set, something that doesn't usually exist in real life, and she falls a little more in love with it with each passing second. The guitars that hung from the walls were well used, and not just for decoration as she'd originally assumed, and the front face of the counter is lined with drumsticks. There's also a pair of legs hanging over the side, and she looks up to find a curly haired guy sitting atop the counter, tapping drumsticks against his thighs.

Not sure what she's looking for, she starts at the far side, grabbing an old Elvis Costello album, before making her way to the more modern music. She spent almost an hour in the store, going up and down the aisles, laughing at the NSync album she found, that she couldn't help but choose. She also found a live All Time Low CD that she'd never seen before, and decided after that if she didn't stop now, she'd end up buying half the store.

The guy was still sitting on the counter when she approached, and he smiled brightly at her.

"Hey, how ya doin'?"

Haley was thrown when she realized he had an Australian accent as well, and wondered if this was a family run thing, or if he knew the other guy who worked here. Either way, she smiled back.

"Good, thanks."

He hopped off the counter, walking around to the back, and took her music from her. 

"This is quite a selection you've got here."

Haley smiled sheepishly, shrugging.

"I like to think my taste is eclectic." 

As he nodded and continued to ring up Haley's purchases, she couldn't help but ask the question that'd been on the tip of her tongue since he spoke.

"Are you related to the guy with the blue hair?"

He laughed loudly, shaking his head.   

"Is it the accent?"   

Haley nodded.  

"So you've met Michael."  

Haley was glad he'd said the name, because she hadn't for the life of her been able to remember it. She remembered saying it, but after that, she'd been far too distracted by his eyes, and how attractive she found him.  

"We're not related. We're in a band together though, and we moved here from Sydney a few months ago. Made sense to get jobs in a music store." He hadn't stopped smiling since he'd jumped down from the counter, and Haley wondered if he was always that happy.  

"I guess it does."   

"I'm Ashton, by the way." He held a hand out for Haley to shake.  

"Haley."  

"It's green now, just so you know."  

Haley looked at Ashton weirdly, wondering what he was talking about.  

"Michael's hair. You said something about his blue hair, but it's green now. He gets bored with it a lot."  

"Good to know."  

Ashton continued talking as he took Haley's money and put her music in a bag,   

"So, I play drums, obviously." He gestured to the sticks that he'd previously been tapping against his legs. "Michael plays the guitar, and so does Luke, and Calum plays bass. We all sing, too. We're recording our first CD now, but we all work here, too, just in case the whole band thing doesn't make us any money."  

Haley wished him luck, and told him to save her a copy of the CD once it was done. He smiled widely and nodded, sliding the bag across the counter to her.  

"Hey, I'll tell Michael you said hi."  

Haley flushed, cursing her pale complexion, and shook her head. She'd grown oddly attached to the store in her two visits, and the last thing she needed was to be embarrassed to come in because of the admittedly very attractive guy who worked there.  

"You don't have to do that, I'm sure he doesn't even remember me."   

Ashton smirked, and Haley could feel her blush darken.  

"He might not be the brightest bulb, but Michael never forgets a pretty face." Winking at her, he turned his attention to the old couple Haley had seen earlier. "Have a great day, Haley! Stay dry!"  

Pushing the door open quickly, Haley found herself staring up at the last person she wanted to see in that moment. True to Ashton's words, Michael's hair was now an intensely neon green, stuck flat to his forehead with rain. He was looking down at the ground, but at the last second, his arms shot out, grabbing her waist to steady her, and she was almost positive that she had never blushed harder in her life than she was at that moment.   

"Sorry, sorry, I wasn't-" Michael looked up, and she found herself once again staring into eyes that she just couldn't figure out a color for. "Oh. Uh, hi."  

Michael's hands were still on Haley's waist, and when she looked down, he dropped them, taking a step back.  

"Sorry, um-" Running a hand through his hair, Haley smiled softly when she saw that the tips of his ears had started to darken, glad she wasn't the only one embarrassed in this situation. "My fault. I wasn't paying attention."  

Before she could say anything else, he slid past her and disappeared into the store. Haley could hear Ashton's loud voice even through the door, accompanied by a laugh, and she had little doubt that he was laughing at her.   

Pulling the hood of her jacket over her head, Haley took a deep breath and ran into the rain, across the street to her favorite coffee shop. She needed something warm, and something chocolaty to distract her from her embarrassment.