Summary: Calum and (Y/N) get along like cats and dogs.
Based on Love Prompts #48: "Will you shut up for a moment and let me kiss you?" &
#59: "What? Can't I just look at you?"
(Request: f1lottiem) (Words: 2.1k)
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"I made fresh coffee for anyone who might want some." Calum announces as he walks into the conference room.
"(Y/N) brought our Starbucks order already." Ashton comments, raising his paper cup in the air.
"I brought yours too. Oat milk with a little brown sugar, right?" I ask him, smiling softly at the man who is looking at me with a furrow.
"I'll have the one I made myself." He spits out, dragging his chair out and sitting on it while he brings his mug to his lips.
"Calum..." Ashton mumbles under his breath.
"What? How do I know she didn't poison my coffee? How do you know she didn't poison yours?" He asks, making me chuckle at his paranoia.
"Oh, we are going back to your asshole days again?" I blurt out, rolling my eyes as I fix my posture.
"Not again with this bullshit." Ashton groans; it is tiring for me even, always having a quarrel with the dude who can't accept the fact I will be opening for him.
"What? I am just saying, I don't know that woman. None of us does." He shrugs his shoulders at everyone. My eyes go wide and I am taken aback, really not knowing how to react to him right now.
"You really are a douche." I state, blinking unconsciously.
He stares at me for a moment, the whole room going silent just as the executives walk in the room.
I really don't know why this dude is so fucking aggrieved. He has been like that since he met me, which is so confusing because all his friends and acquaintances have been taking my ears off about what a great and lovely guy he is.
"Hey, (Y/N)... Can you wait a second?" Luke calls after me, making me stop in my tracks.
"Luke, I really need to put food in my stomach, or else I am going to eat all of you alive when we walk back into the conference room." I state and he chuckles.
"May I join you?" He asks, pointing at the elevator door.
"Sure." I reply, smiling at him softly.
"So..." He begins as we walk towards the elevator.
"So..." I repeat and stare at him.
"About Calum..." He goes on, scratching the back of his head.
"I really don't want to hear whatever you have to say about him." I let out and he sighs.
"I know. But he really isn't like that... Usually at least. He is very sweet and caring, a total love bear if I am honest. I don't know what is going on with him." He does the whole song and dance I've heard a million times this far.
"Well, it is a little hard for me to see that. He is a total jackass to me, in case you haven't noticed." I sass, crossing my arms in front of my chest.
"A little hard not to notice. But I don't know why he is like that with you. It is like you bring the worst in him." He explains but cringes as soon as the words leave his mouth.
"Gee, thanks for that, Hemmings." I reply, pressing the elevator button.
"That's not how I meant it. I am sorry."
"I know what you meant. But this is a bunch of bullshit. I tried to be nice to him, I tried to bite my tongue, but he is insufferable, and I never really did anything to him. So, I really don't want to hear what a great dude your friend is, because he is really not, at least not to me. I deserve better from him." I shrug my shoulders, earning a nod from him.
"I know you do. And he is going to get an earful about him being so mean, I promise." He assures me, making me sigh.
"Look, I just want a calm tour. There is enough drama in my life, I don't need that in my work-life as well." I state.
"We are all going to talk to him and I promise he is going to apologize." He holds his pinky up, making me chuckle.
"It's going to be quite an experience touring with all of you..." I chuckle, shaking my head at him.
(Calum's POV)
"Are you going to continue being an asshole to (Y/N), you dipshit?" Michael scolds, taking a seat across from me as I munch on my cookie.
"I am not an asshole." I protest, but he scoffs sarcastically.
"Dude, you accused her of poisoning our coffees. It's just coffee, say thank you, and drink it. She is really kind and you are a huge dick to her." He exasperates, but I just hum.
"You know I am right. We don't know what she wants from us." I reply but earn the most disappointed look from him.
"We want something from her. She has a solid fanbase and a profile that fits ours. She is a great choice for the opening act. Stop treating her like shit." He points out, making me sigh.
"I am really not... Fuck, I don't know what is going on. She is just... Frustrating." I let out, shrugging my shoulders. I just stare at my cookie, avoiding Michael's questioning gaze.
"Frustrating, huh?" He asks, his voice becoming teasing and cheerful.
"Yeah. Like, she gets me out of my head without even trying." I groan and Michael continues smirking, which makes me look at him confused.
"I think wittwe Cawum has a clush." He coos at me.
"Stop babying me."
"Stop acting like a little baby with a crush. It is gross and toxic. Man up and just, ask her out. Don't pull on her pigtails." He states confidently.
"I am not pulling on her pigtails. And I don't have a crush on her. She is just... Obnoxious..." I stutter but Michael seems unconvinced.
"And pretty. And awfully close to your type. So, suck it up like a big boy and admit that you like her, but your defenses are up so you are trying to make up excuses to convince yourself she is repulsing." He explains, tilting his head to the side.
"Who died and made you the head of psychoanalysis?" I ask him and he just shrugs.
"Freud." He sasses.
(Y/N's POV)
The night is chilly but the crowd inside the house is not really fitting for me. There is noise, and loud, thumping music which makes my ears kinda hurt, so I excused myself from the company. Michael's birthday is a great opportunity to celebrate him and the upcoming end of the tour, but my blues are not fitting in with the party.
So, the breeze that is hitting my face, along with the bit of the peace and quiet the balcony is offering me, makes me feel calmer, more at home, even though I am miles away.
"Drinking alone?" I hear someone ask, making me jump as my blood freezes in my veins. I turn to locate the voice, finding Calum walking closer to me.
"Is that bothering you as well?" I ask him, cocking an eyebrow at him. He chuckles, stopping next to me and leaning on the rail of the balcony.
"Care if I join you?" He asks me, making me shrug.
"Look, dude, I really don't need you offending me again. So, if you are here to jab at me to make yourself feel better, please, just go." I state, not even looking at him. I hear his breath hitch, but he stays motionless, still leaning against the rail.
There is silence among us, the only thing heard is the music from the party, muffled by the closed windows. I turn my head to look at Calum, to find out what he is doing, only to find him staring at me. He doesn't take his gaze from me when I catch him looking, which makes me look at him with a frown.
"Alright, what are you looking at?" I ask him, coming off more like an attack than I intended to.
"What? Can't I just look at you?" He asks, shrugging his shoulders.
"No." I reply and he cocks an eyebrow.
"No? Who is prohibiting me?" He asks, taking a swig from his cup.
"Me. Every time you look at me, you end up saying hurtful things. And I really don't deserve it. Especially tonight." I explain. He just sighs in disappointment, looking at his hands for a moment before bringing his eyes to mine.
"You look pretty tonight." He shrugs, still not looking away from me.
"What happened, Hood? Did you run out of girls to hit on and stoop low to my level?" I ask with a chuckle, but he looks at me so softly, that the smile freezes on my face.
"You were always the one above me. And no, you are the only girl I am hitting on tonight." He says confidently.
"How much did you drink?" I ask but he hums sarcastically.
"None. I have been drinking soda all night." He replies, showing me his cup.
"You have been a bitch to me until now. Why hit on me tonight?" I ask him.
"I figured out that being mean to you didn't make me like you any less." He shrugs, making me squint at him.
"I know. It was an asshole move on my behalf, and totally toxic, so I am sorry. Look, I don't mean to upset you, I just wanted to let it off my chest and apologize. I hope we won't be awkward for the last few shows." He says softly, making me feel the honesty in his voice.
"I'll see you around, I guess." He says, waving me off before he walks away from me.
His shoulders are slouched and he walks away slowly, and for some reason, I stay speechless over his little confession.
After that night, Calum and I have been awfully awkward. Everyone is whispering around after our every and each of our interactions, which only makes things more awkward than they should be.
And now, after the last show is done and while everyone is having a small party backstage for the end of the tour, my insides have been itching me. My heart wants me to move and talk to him, but my body and mind just tell me to bury this inside me.
He looks so sad, sneaking peeks at me from across the room as he talks with someone from his crew.
I bite my lip and take a deep breath, making sure my chest puffs up from it before I shake myself off and drag my feet towards him.
"Can we talk?" I ask him once I am standing before him. He looks up to me from his seat, nodding his head before he gets up.
"Sure." He replies, letting me guide us somewhere private.
We reach the empty dressing room, and I make sure I close the door behind us before turning to look at him.
"Listen, (Y/N)... If you want to talk about what I said the other day, we don't have to address this. I just wanted to let it out, we don't have to say anything more now. I know you are probably feeling, I don't know, awkward about what I said, but you don't have to say anything, we are fine, I promise." He mumbles, making me roll my eyes at him.
"Will you shut up for a moment and let me kiss you?" I ask him, making him look at me with a furrow.
"What?" He asks me back, still confused which only makes me smirk at him.
"Not the sharpest tool in the den, huh?" I wiggle my eyebrows, leaning up to bring my lips on his. He is taken aback for a second, just a second though, before he brings his arm behind my back to support me and bring me closer to him. I am tightly pressed against his body, feeling his chest inflate and fall as we kiss.
I push us back until he is sitting on the little couch of the room, not breaking the kiss, until I am straddling him. My hands cup his face, fingers tracing his cheeks as we both deepen the kiss. His lips are soft and plumb, and he makes such cute little sounds as we kiss that make me wanna get drunk on him.
His fingers are toying with the belt loops of my jeans, carefully not to even touch the skin exposed by my top rising. Which quite frankly, makes him look really hot.
"You are a great kisser, have you been told?" He asks me, parting from me to catch his breath.
"Yeah... But never by someone who's a greater kisser than me." I reply, making him chuckle. He brings his hand to the back of my head, bringing his lips on mine now, while he smiles against them.
"You smell so good." I moan, throwing my head back and causing his lips to slide down my neck.
"Do I, now?" He mumbles, lips still on my skin.
"So good." I whine, aching for him to find my sweetspot.
The music is thumping against the walls, while Calum and I sync to it, moving our lips to the rhythm.
It feels nice, like we have come a long way in just a couple of days, and that really makes me warm and fuzzy on the inside.