Don't

Twenty

~ Almost four weeks later ~

"But I don't want to go out!"

I whine from my bed, curled up in a ball trying to stay safe from my crazy friends and sister. I can hear Calum laughing from the laptop. I just wanted to talk to the guys so I'd asked to Skype, apparently Mikey and Ash were busy but Cal had some free time.

"You have to go out, it's your birthday" Becci says

"Yeah, stop being an old lady" Mary adds

Rude! I'm not old.

"Come on, I made us vodka jellies" my friend Karen calls from behind the others

"Alright guys enough" Charlie motions for them all to leave then sits on the bed next to me, stroking my hair, "please get dressed Dylan, a night out will be good for you"

Why does everyone assume they know what'll be good for me? I just want to stay home and in my pajamas. I want to talk to Calum and have him make me laugh. Okay, so I haven't been out in a while, and maybe we were supposed to be going to the Electric Ballroom, which is my favourite club but I just don't feel like it. I really don't want to pretend to smile at people who call themselves my friends but then only show up for my birthday night out and barely even talk to me when we're there anyway.

"I don't need a night out" I say quietly

Charlie huffs, "Calum tell her" she looks at the screen with hopeful eyes

"You need a night out, Dylan" he tells me, "and Charlie's right, it'll do you good. In fact I think it'll be a great night"

I look up at the screen, glaring at him slightly, "and why is that, Hood?"

"Because your friends are there, and some have come a long way to see you" he smiles, "just go out, drink, dance and have fun. Forget about the world for a night"

"I hate you sometimes, you know?" I sit up, moving from the bed and pull out two T-shirts from my dresser draw, holding them up to the screen, "storm troopers or angry banana?" He laughs loudly, looking at his own band's merch in my hand, "what? I never hid the fact that I was a fan" I shrug

"Definitely troopers"

"Shame, I like that banana one" I put it back into the draw, "okay Charlie I'm going to get ready, you can leave now and celebrate the news with the others"

"You're going to change in front of Calum? Isn't it enough to do that with Ash?" She looks at me shocked

"What?" Calum says confused

"I change in front of Ashton if we're on Skype and I have to go somewhere or I'm getting into my PJs. It's no biggie" I move around to my wardrobe pulling out some black skinny jeans and my Metallica vans from the bottom.

"Oh okay cool" he shrugs like it's the most normal thing in the world

I smile going up to the screen, "but you're not Ashton Irwin" I giggle at his pout as I turn my laptop to the wall

"You're so mean" he whines making me laugh.

Charlie looks at me and smiles, "what?" She just stands up and walks out of my room, closing the door. "Calum"

"Yeah?"

"My friends are so fucking weird"

~

"3, 2, 1, go!" We all counted then licked the salt, drank down the shot of tequila and bit down on the lemon.

"That is nasty" Charlie says with a disgusted look on her face, "why do we drink this stuff?"

"TO GET DRANK!!" Mary and I yelled together, laughing hard