Who do you love?

25

Jet lag was a bitch. It had only been a few months since Calum's last international flight but his body felt completely depleted as they deboarded and headed for the hotel they'd be staying in. He knew that some of the exhaustion stemmed from spending hours on a plane seated next to Teal while trying not to make it plainly obvious that he had feelings for her. The hours had dragged by slowly, his knee touching hers, the smell of her perfume lingering in the air and even now on his clothing. He had been far from tired when she had fallen asleep, her head rested on his shoulder but he had feigned sleep in an effort to keep their physical contact without drawing any further attention to what was happening between them.

He'd never been more excited to see a hotel room in his life and he was quietly hopeful that Teal would go through her bag before she returned to sleep, hopeful that she would find the note and key card he had slipped in her bag after check in and join him in the bed that was loudly calling his name.

*

The sound of someone entering his room stirred Calum from his sleep, he forced his eyes open, his vision blurred until he blinked enough to force it to focus. "Took you long enough." He mumbled in his particularly raspy morning voice.

"Sorry." She whispered. "Didn't see the note until I got up to use the restroom. Came right after."

He moved over in the bed and pulled back the covers allowing Teal to climb in next to him.She cuddled against his chest and he wrapped an arm around her, it just felt so natural. He buried his face into her hair, pressing his lips to her scalp and breathing in her sweet floral fragrance and wishing it could be like this all the time. In time though, he knew it would be.

"Get some rest." She mumbled against his bare chest, the feel of her breath hot against his skin. "It's gonna be a long day."

"Just do one thing for me, T." He asked her, a yawn catching him off guard, "promise me that while we film these dates that you'll remember I'd rather be doing this stuff with you."

She nodded but didn't reply and he hoped she would keep his words in mind as the last few weeks of this played out. He couldn't bear the thought of losing what he had just managed to obtain.

*

Jules' hand didn't feel right in Calum's. It was too large, too rough, too "un-Teal" like. He did his best to play the part he had been cast in though, smiling and putting on the show. There were bigger things at stake here and he didn't want to risk outing his feelings for Teal in a way that would be detrimental to them. This wasn't his first walk with acting, he'd been putting on a face for the public for years, it came with the territory in his line of work this time he just had to give the performance of his life.

He didn't figure it would be too hard to act excited today, he was actually really looking forward to what he had planned for his date with Jules.

"Is everything alright with you?" She asked him, her voice low in the car, meant for only him to hear in the crowded ten person van.

He frowned and gave a small nod. "Do I not seem fine?" He asked, worried that he was already blowing things.

"No, you do. I guess you've just felt a bit distant recently and I worried that I've done something wrong. We just haven't really talked since..."

He cleared his throat. "No, no, it's nothing like that. I've just been in my head a bit. Past few weeks everything has kind of come rushing at me and I don't know it was just a little overwhelming so I've been reserved. I'm sorry if that's put you off. I think today might make up for it though." He told her, a sly hint at a smile cracking.