❛ 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐥 ❜

𝟎𝟎𝟔; 𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐬

CARAMEL
- Motherly Instincts -

"And then, I just walked away." Octavia explained, throwing her legs over the redheaded boys lap. The duo were sat on the couch in Michael's dorm room, Ashton accompanying them as he sat sprawled on the floor, with his back against a chair for support.

Via was explaining her interactions with the devil himself that had occurred throughout the day to Michael, and the peppy boy had turned up with a bottle of vodka so who was she to deny him in the conversation? Either way they would've found out because Calum would've told them anyway and his story probably would've been a lot less plausible and accurate than what had actually happened.

"Wait so-" Ash sat up straight, taking a sip from the bottle, "-he got mad at Luke because he let you stay in his room and then stole your phone and got pissy when you said you'd tell Mike?" The brunette clarified watching the curt nod that was sent in his direction and letting out a scoff, his arm reaching up to hold out the bottle. "Drink up babe, he's gone mental."

"The fact he had the audacity to get mad at Lu?" Octavia scowled as she remembered hearing the raised voices whilst she was changing in the boy's room. "It's fucking bullshit that's what it is." Michael blurted, both Via and Ash getting ready to respond before they were cut off by a harsh ringing coming from the boy's phone.

"Michael who the fuck-" Octavia furrowed her eyebrows leaning over before seeing the contact name on the phone and a squeal escaping her mouth. The girl quickly removed her legs from Michael's lap, grabbed his phone and ran into his bedroom locking it- ignoring the rapid knocks against his door.

Michael's room was interesting. It was actually fairly empty. His bed was pushed up against the back wall on the left hand side, a dresser on the right wall when you walked through the door and a bunch of band posters stuck up on the wall. All Time Low, Greenday, Nirvana etc. And then of course in addition to this was the large pile of laundry that took up basically the entire floor.

"Mama Cliffo!" Octavia squealed, throwing herself down on her best friends bed, a large smile tugging at her lips as she held the phone out in front of her and accepted the incoming call.

"Via darling!" Karen smiled from the other side of the screen at the familiar sight of her sons best friend. It wasn't unusual for the girl to hijack facetime calls from Michael when it was his mom calling. The girl loved Karen more than her own mother - for good reason of course.

After finding her drunk mother at Karen's house one day when she was younger, Octavia continuously went over whenever her mom was there drinking so that she could see Michael. As they got older, Via's mom spent less time with the Clifford's and more with her boyfriend at the time but the redhead was still so close with Michael she refused to part from his house - that and she was attempting to avoid her mom and her boyfriend.

This meant that she became incredibly well acquainted with her best friends parents. The girl had always found that whenever her mom got a new boyfriend after her parents divorce she would shun Octavia away more than ever. She stayed at the Clifford's with ease, much more than she had at her house. Their showers had a better water pressure, Karen made the best lasagna on a Thursday evening, and Michael's clothes were really fucking comfortable to sleep in when she stayed over without telling anyone.

Octavia was comfortable with Michael. And he was comfortable with her.

They changed in the same room. He helped shave her legs. The redheaded girl often vividly recalled one evening when they were sixteen, Mike ran to collect her birth control for her because she was bed bound with cramps. He sent her mom's new boy of the month away every-time they tried to play 'father' and pick her up without permission and he very willingly french kissed her when they both wanted to figure out how to do it. And then again just to make sure. And once after that for safe measure.

"What's wrong?" Karen's smile was replaced with a frown immediately after greeting the young girl, in turn Octavia's eyebrows furrowing at the strange nature of the question being asked out of nowhere.

"What do you mean?" She pulled her lip between her teeth, tilting her head to the side, taking the phone to the door and unlocking it before situating herself on the bed once again. She wanted to know how long it would take Michael and Ashton to realise they could just walk in whenever they wanted to now.

"You look sad." The woman pointed, her camera slightly shaky as she walked around with the phone before setting it down at the kitchen counter to thoroughly engage in the conversation.

"It's nothing major-" Via began to explain as Michael gave a harsh push to the door with the hand not clutching the quarter full alcohol bottle - very obviously after listening in from the other side. "Her worst enemy is acting up again." The boy mystically waved his hands around in the air, jumping down next to the girl in his bed and resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Hi mom." He grinned, taking a sip from the drink and watching his mom's eyes light up at the sight of him and the eye roll she then gave watching him drink from a vodka bottle.

Ultimately, Karen chose to ignore her sons behaviour and instead focus on the mention of Calum. Of course she knew who the boy was, he was one of Michael's very good friends - however she also knew of everything he had ever done and said to Octavia and could understand where her distaste for the boy came from.

"Via just ignore him." Karen softly sighed, "or get Mike to punch him in the face for you." The woman shrugged with a small smile, watching as Octavia handed the phone to her son. "Luke would do it for her." The boy sung, pushing her into the wall as the girl sat up and climbed over him and off of the bed.

"Or I'll do it myself!"  Octavia suggested, snatching the bottle from Michael's hand and preparing to walk out the room and let him engage in a phone call that was meant for him in the first place.

"Love you mama!" The redhead called out as she shut the door behind her, catching eyes with Ashton who was already half way through another vodka bottle and gesturing for her to sit down with him and join in.

So that's exactly what she did.

a/n

karen is such a gem<3
love her sm

anyway here's a lovely little update about our fav frat boys. someone get ashton in the same room as the boys because I've never seen someone miss their friends so much😭