All I Hear // Calum Scott

Prologue

We met when we were both twenty-three. That was three years ago. The thing is, we didn't really see each other face to face the first time. I was on my laptop, minding my own business, until Dad told me to watch the phone for him.

He left the room, and I stared at the phone for a while, listening intently to the hold music, a song by Robyn. I wondered why they paired heartbreaking lyrics with a dance beat, and then I resumed to stare at my laptop. After a few minutes, the song came to a sudden halt and a voice came over the speaker.

"Hello... Hello? Hello, sir?" The voice behind the phone called. It was weird hearing the voice, because those few words that were spoken gave me chills. His voice had a low-sounding tone that strangely made me feel warm with every word. I can tell from his accent that he was from Hull, which was nearby.

"Are you there?" He said. I didn't want him to end the call, in fear of Dad being furious, so I unmuted the phone and answered the voice.

"Umm, no, he's not here, but I'm here," I replied without hesitation.

He chuckled, which made me smile. He had a nice, warm laugh as well.

"Who's this?" He spoke, his voice sounding half cheerful and half curious.

"This is his daughter; I'm his daughter... The guy you were talking to earlier," I said, biting my lip.

"Oh... Umm... Where is he? The guy who talked to me earlier?" He sounded more nervous now.

"He's in the bathroom," I said, looking back. "He'll be back soon-"

"I hope," I muttered worriedly under my breath.

The boy laughed again. I thought he wouldn't hear that. I just laughed along with him.

"You have a... Nice voice," I complimented him awkwardly. "A nice speaking voice, I mean."

"Oh, uhh, umm," he stuttered nervously. "T-Thank you."

I looked back. Dad was standing patiently behind me, his arms crossed firmly across his chest with a confused look planted on his face.

"He's back," I said.

I didn't give the phone to Dad just yet.

"Calum," he replied.

"What?"

"I'm Calum," he said, giving me an actual introduction. "And you?"

"... Kate," I hesitated, smiling shyly behind the phone.

"Kate... Umm... Meet me at Fuel next week?" His voice slowly rose an octave in excitement.

"What?" I repeated.

"Oh, F-Fuel," he stuttered again. "You know, that club... Over there..."

I laughed.

"Oh, right," I replied, regaining my calmness. "See you there, I guess."

"Okay," he cleared his throat. "Bye."

I handed the phone to Dad in one clumsy gesture. I couldn't believe he just asked me out.

~*~*

I worked at that club.

I was the main bartender for Fuel for the earlier shift, pouring every beverage in its preferred shot glass with my face often a blank slate, most likely because it's been a long day for me. It was only on some evenings when you could see a faint smile.

It was only my first week working at that club, and I guess I could say I was doing pretty well. I'm used to adapting to different jobs, since I move houses almost every month, because of my dad's job. I work the most out of all my friends. While I take on the responsibility of two jobs each day - one in the morning and another as a night shift - my friends spend their weekends as if every weekend was Spring Break. But my family needs all the money we could get to care for my mum, who was diagnosed with cancer just a few weeks ago. Whatever happens, I know she'll survive.

There was a karaoke contest on that night Calum and I decided to meet face-to-face for the first time. I overheard a conversation nearby that Jade Scott was going to perform again. Since I first heard her voice when I started working here, it has been one of the only few things that would calm me down.

As I started to lean on the counter, a young man who looked about my age approached the bar. He leaned towards me.

"Hi... Umm," he looked around him, hesitating, and then he looked straight in my eyes with his, colored a calm, light shade of green. "Do you know if you've seen a girl named Kate around?"

"Umm, I'm a girl named Kate," I replied, straightening my posture but still leaning on the counter. "Your name?"

That voice sounded familiar. Then it hit me.

"Calum." The name flew right out of my mouth. I stood completely straight. "No, I mean your name. It's Calum, right?"

"Oh, it's you," he smiled. "You're the Kate I was looking for."

This is Calum? I thought. I wasn't expecting him to be this handsome.

"You work here?" Calum asked.

"Yes. The earlier shift," I said, smoothening my uniform.

"My sister's performing soon," he added, turning his attention to the stage.

"Oh, who's your sister?" I said happily.

"Umm... Her name is Jade," he answered, and I noticed him sneak in a wink. "Jade Scott. You might have heard of her."

"Your sister is Jade Scott?" I gasped. "I'm a huge fan!"

"Yep," he grinned. "Amazing singer, amazing sister..."

"She seems like such a nice person to be around," I grinned back.

Soon the whole club simmered down, and everyone turned their attention to Jade, who just stepped on stage.

"Hello, Fuel," she spoke sheepishly into the microphone. "Thank you for having me. This is 'Say You Love Me.'"

"I love you, Jade!" Calum shouted from the back of the club, where we were. His voice sent chills down my spine again. A group of girls up in front laughed when they heard him. We both laughed with them.

"I like this song," I commented.

He was smiling during the whole performance. We stole subtle glances at each other during some parts of the song.

I smiled back. I haven't smiled this long in a while.

Sadly I had to leave early because apparently, me, a twenty-three year old bartender, has an earlier curfew than other people in their twenties (hence the earlier night shift). I couldn't stay for the rest of the competition, and I had to say goodbye to Calum earlier than I wanted to.

~*~*

After a month, we decided to take it a step further and start dating.

Those few years were the happiest years of our lives. We went everywhere together. We talked almost everyday. We shared everything together. Well, almost everything.

But on Saturday, September 20th, 2014, everything started to change. Right after he broke up with me, although he said he would always be there for me as a friend, he took a vacation for a week in which he answered none of my calls. It was the loneliest week of my life.

Currently, we're growing inches closer each day, trying to relive those happiest years, and still learning new things about each other.

And, surprise!