Who's Gonna Love You Like Me? [Brother's Best Friend!Calum AU]

Part 1

With a single shouldered shrug, Josie smiled knowingly and raised an eyebrow at Calum. "I'm asking you." A risk, those words falling past her lips, but she couldn't take them back. Nor the implication behind them. But Josie was trying to learn not to be regretful of things, standing by decisions she made.

There was a subtle shift in his features, lips parting to lick his lower lip. Calum looked almost impressed, if not a bit startled, at Josie's words, and she didn't quite blame him. She watched something flash in his dark eyes, eyebrows lowering as a bit of a warning, silently telling her she was wandering into territory she shouldn't be. Not that she had to be told that. The hitch in her throat was a sign enough.

Before Calum could respond, however, a sudden weight of an arm settled around Josie's shoulders, a soft yet startled gasp escaping her as her six-foot-four brother playfully hung off her shorter frame. "Do you love your party or what?"

Josie tore her gaze away from the dark haired man across from her to grin up at her brother, whom she could tell was already well on his way to getting drunk. His cheeks were flushed, pushed up to show off his dimpled grin, eyes glazing over. A chuckle equal parts forced and amused escaped Josie, his presence tightening the knots in her stomach, as she wrapped her free arm around his waist. "Of course," she answered. "I'm feeling all the love."

Luke grinned, clearly satisfied with her answer. "Good," he declared, wrapping his other arm around her as well, keeping her close. Josie could feel Calum's eyes on them but she didn't look back at him, letting her brother hug her as he continued, "You were too far away at Davis. 'm glad you're here now."

His words widened Josie's smile, a happy warmth flushing her skin. Despite sometimes inserting herself in Luke's friend group when they were kids, her brother never made her feel as though she was just tagging along or that she wasn't welcomed to join. Being so close in age, Luke was Josie's first best friend—honestly, he had a higher friendship role than any best friend she's had—and she was easily closer to him than she was to her other two older brothers, Jack and Ben. Don't get it wrong, Josie loved all of her brothers. But if she had to pick a favorite, it would be Luke.

Which was why Calum's gaze on them felt so heavy, like it was weighing her down, slowly squeezing the air out of her lungs. Luke's hug felt warm for all of the wrong reasons as Calum watched them, and Josie forced herself to look up, for her blue eyed gaze to meet his brown. His stare was intense as ever, looking right through her, and despite the neutrality of his features, Josie picked up on the look in his eye. She saw the reluctance that swam in them, a hint of panic he was doing a good job in hiding from those who wouldn't expect to see it there. But Josie knew; she knew to look for it, knew it was probably present because she could feel it knotting her insides, too.

It was a kind of emptiness in her chest that allowed for the bass of the music playing in the house to settle too deeply, wondering if Calum felt it too as he tore his gaze away from them and took a long sip of his drink. Did he feel guilt, too?

She hoped he didn't regret it because she sure as hell didn't. But that didn't mean there wasn't any room for the guilt to take up residence. Not when her brother was holding her so tightly, so happily, rambling on about how excited he was for her to be living with him. Oblivious to the tension his presence only intensified between his best friend and sister.

"It'll be just like old times, right, Cal?" Luke's voice pulled Josie out of her thoughts, swallowing the lump in her throat as Calum looked at them once more. The song playing through the speakers changed to an unfamiliar R&B type that Josie thought was more Calum's style than her brother's.

A wry expression briefly twisted Calum's features, a subtle quirk of his eyebrows and purse of his lips as his eyes met hers quickly. A silent scoff of yeah, right being spoken by him just through his features to her as Josie bit the inside of her cheek, her smile disappearing.