School Spirit | Muke/Cashton✔

Twenty

"Cal?" Ashton called out from the balcony of their room.

Calum stood from his bed, having been just laying around since it was the free day; making his way outside. "Yeah?"

"Can we, uh, you know... talk?" The question seemed harder to ask than it probably should have, but Ashton was nervous about bring up the subjects he wanted to talk about.

"I thought that's what you were going to say," Calum sighed, sitting in the chair next to Ashton's.

Ashton shifted in his seat. "So, uh, sorry about, like, breaking down on you, and whatever."

"No, it's fine, I totally understand. Besides, it seems to have helped- you haven't been too moody the last few days," Calum chuckled, lightening the air a bit.

"Am I that moody?" The curly haired boy frowned, jutting his lip out a bit. Calum laughed and poked it.

"I was just kidding... somewhat," he added quietly.

A fake look of hurt spread across the already frowning boy. Calum gave him a sympathetic look, poking his cheek this time.

Ashton let out a little giggle before Calum spoke. "But seriously, I really want you to get better, Ash."

Then, the second topic popped back into Ashton's mind. "Hey, in the bathroom, when you caught me... you know... yeah... you said something about losing someone already. And I really don't wanna sound like I'm all up in your business, but I heard you later that night... talking to your sister- you must've thought I was already asleep," he said cautiously.

"Oh." Calum hesitated. "Can we not talk about that, please."

"Calum, I want you to know that I'm always here for you, no matter-"

"Just drop it, Ashton."

"But, Cal, I wanna help you if you ever-"

"Ashton, your own problems are bigger and more important than mine!" Calum shouted, standing in an intense fury.

This time the hurt expression that flashed on to Ashton's face was real. He stood and quickly went back inside the hotel room. Grabbing his phone from the bed, he went to leave for a bit.

Calum realized what he had done, and quickly ran to the boy just as he reached for the doorknob. He grabbed his hips, turning him around so they were face to face. He saw a few stray tears pour down Ashton's face.

Wiping them away with his thumbs, he looked into the boy's hazel eyes. "Ashton, I'm sorry, it's just a hard topic to talk about," he whispered sincerely.

"I-It's o-okay," he stuttered, his breathing inconsistent.

"You know what?"

"What?"

"This is gonna sound really sadistic, but you're really, really pretty when you cry," Calum admitted, seeing the corners of Ashton's lips curve up slightly.

"Well, if I'm so pretty, then why don't you kiss me?" Ashton said it jokingly, but Calum took it a different way.

He kissed him. Fully, deeply, hungrily kissed him. It was something he had never felt with Tanner, and suddenly, he wasn't that sad (if at all) at the thought of not being in a relationship with the douchebag.