Dirty Little Secret // C.H.

Twenty-three

"You're really here." Sienna said through soft cries.

"I'm here." Niall assured her, he tightened his grip on her and closed his eyes as he took in the feeling of her embrace. "I know things have been tough lately. You wanna' go for a walk and catch up?" He suggested sweetly.

Michael and Luke shared a glance upon hearing his words. They believed something was bothering Sienna, but only Ashton and Niall knew what exactly it was. Now, Niall was here confirming their suspicions.

They were relieved. If Niall knew what was bothering her, he could help. She would let him help.

Calum, however, felt like he'd been punched in the stomach.

This, he thought, is all because of me.

"Let me hug you for a little longer first." Sienna sniffled, closing her eyes as she hugged her best friend. "Just a little longer."

~~~~~~

Sienna and Niall talked about everything. Everything she'd been going through, everything they each had been doing since they'd last seen each other. Even though they'd talked about most of it on the phone, talking about in again in person made it feel more real.

The boys were just about to go on stage when Sienna and Niall returned from their walk.

The first thing they noticed was the smile on Sienna's face. The smile they'd all been missing lately.

Calum quickly noticed Niall's arm around Sienna. They were still speaking, but he couldn't make out what they were saying. He only heard a high pitched ringing in his ears as he stared at Niall's hand on Sienna's waist.

Niall pressed a kiss to the side of Sienna's head, a quick, innocent gesture to show Sienna how much he had missed her. Calum quickly averted his eyes, a nauseous feeling growing in his stomach and heat rising to his face.

Maybe they aren't just friends anymore, Calum thought.

"You look happy." Luke observed as Sienna and Niall came to stand in front of them.

Sienna smiled up at him and gave him a nod.

"I've missed that smile." Michael stepped forward to hug Sienna, catching her—and everyone else—off guard.

"You okay, Mikey?" Sienna wondered as she returned his embrace.

"Yeah." He answered simply. "Just don't like seeing you unhappy. That's all." He explained as he pulled back from the embrace.

Sienna smiled up at him before bouncing up on her toes to kiss his cheek quickly.

She sometimes forgot how much things effected Michael and how perceptive he really was. He noticed, and cared, much more than he let on.

"I'm gonna' go on out." Sienna told them. "Knock em' dead, lads."

"You go on. I'll catch up with you." Niall told her.

Sienna made her way through the entrance to the security pit by the stage and the lads turned to Niall.

"You know we're thrilled to have you here," Luke began. "but what's going on?"

"Enna's been going through some stuff." Niall admitted. "You know how difficult it is to be in that sort of mental state." He said to Ashton.

"Yeah." Ashton responded with a sad nod. "Yeah, I do."

"She's getting better every day, but sometimes there are some setbacks." Niall looked around at the four of them, glancing at Calum once more than the others. "It's not that she doesn't want to tell you lads about what she's going through." He assured them. "It's just..."

"Sometimes you just need your best mate." Ashton said simply, looking to Luke.

Luke felt the worst when Sienna didn't feel like opening up. He was responsible for her, after all. He wanted her to be happy. He wanted to be the one she turned to when things got bad again, but he understood things with Niall were different and had been since the day they met.

What Luke didn't know, was that Sienna couldn't tell him why she was upset. It wasn't that she didn't want to. She knew if he ever found out about Calum, he'd never forgive her.

"I told her the second she needed me to just say the word. So, here I am." Niall said with a shrug. "I hope you lads don't mind the intrusion."

"Not at all." Michael grinned. "We're always happy to have you."

"Thank you," Luke spoke up. "for caring enough to come to her." He said gratefully. "We've all noticed something off with her lately, but..." He shook his head slightly. "she hasn't wanted to open up about it." He told him. "She's already doing better now that you're here." He noted. "As far as I'm concerned, you can stay for the rest of tour if you'd like."

They shared a laugh about Luke's statement. Except for Calum, who snapped his head in Luke's direction as soon as the words left his mouth, a movement Ashton noticed immediately.

Calum and Niall had been friends for years, but the thought of seeing Niall all over Sienna, and vice versa, every day for the rest of tour made his stomach drop.

It's only a matter of time until they become more than friends, Calum realized. If they haven't already. How could they not? Best friends fall in love all the time.

Niall is an amazing guy. Funny, charming, and obviously better for her than I am. I mean, she called him to come fix what I fucked up.

What, Calum wondered, the hell am I gonna' do?