how you get the girl

four

november 11

i woke up this morning motivated. at eight thirty, i was dressed in black jeans (as usual), an olive green t-shirt, and vans. there was coffee brewing and i was standing over the stove, an omelet sizzling in a dark grey pan. normally, being up at eight thirty was an event only occurring in my nightmares, but here i was, bright eyed and bushy tailed. after pouring myself a cup of black, bitter coffee, i sat myself down and enjoyed breakfast for the first time in what seemed like months.

shivering with the sudden jolt of caffeine, i grabbed my phone, tapping on the group message labeled, "2 assholes and calum" (the name is courtesy of me, obviously).

me: guys!!! lets hang out today

me: i have cookies at my house

ashton: shouldnt u be with lover girl??? <3

lukey: lover girl?

me: tomorrow i will be, but its dudes day

lukey: whos lover girl

ashton: ok whatever. can i bring my guitar?

me: yeah. luke bring yours too

lukey: ok but whos lover girl?

ashton: ok ill pick up luke and we'll be over at noon

me: yayyyy

lukey: guyssss :-(((

it's been two weeks since luke, ash, and i all just chilled together. ashton works two jobs, to super market and the record store. luke was finishing his senior year of high school online, which took up most of his time. i was out of school and unemployed, which left me an unnecessary amount of free time. my average day consisted of binge watching "harry potter" movies and pondering life's crucial questions during hour-long showers.

normally when ashton, luke, and i hang out, we play guitar and watch comedies on netflix. aziz ansari is great for bro-bonding, by the way. as twelve o' three hit the clock on my microwave in bright red letters, a sharp knock resounded through my apartment. a voice, deep and smooth, said, "let us in."

"why should i, luke?" i chided, in a mocking tone. a smile appeared across my face.

"luke wants to hear about lover girl, that's why," ashton retorted, laughter arising from my throat as i swung open the door. the blonde boys stepped in, each tossing their bulky guitar cases into the corner of the room.

"okay, explain," luke said bluntly, as he sat on my fading, black couch, long legs outstretched.

ash and i plopped ourselves down on either side of luke. happiness still evident upon my face, i started talking.

"so, two weeks ago, i went to the store where ashton works at like one in the morning. i needed bread and milk and stuff, so why not? then i see this girl, lacey, really short, really cute, adorable brown hair, pretty pale skin, fucking amazing freckles, tiny hands-"

"yeah calum, we get it. cute. please continue now," ashton said, though luke was in awe.

"oh- right. so anyway, she was trying to get cereal off of a tall shelf and i offered to help her out...," i rambled on, telling the story with as much detail as possible. i told luke all about our adventures in the store and proceeded to fill ashton in on our "date" tomorrow.

after i was finished, luke applauded, happy for me. in school i was never especially successful with girls. it may have been my awkward physique, ridiculous fringe, or the fact that i was a band geek, but relationships weren't my forte. my lack of ability to talk to girls had always been bad for my self esteem, but nowadays, i'm more confident. not to mention the fact that i have a good haircut now as well.

after sitting in silence for about five minutes, ashton suddenly looks up from his phone. "we should form a band."

"wait, what?" luke asks, sounding shocked.

"well, we all play guitar. i can play the drums pretty well, too. and you're a really good singer," he says, looking at the youngest boy.

"well, yeah," i agree, "but can any of us write songs?"

luke chimes in, "i'm sure with a little inspiration it'll be easy enough. i'm all for making a band."

i nod, "sounds good to me."

"name ideas?" ashton asks, thrilled that we're going along with his idea.

"uhmmm," we all think for a moment before luke says, "bromance?"

ashton giggles and i groan. "yeah, we might need to think about that a little more," he states.