Wasted Time

Chapter 6

Luke's POV

"Is Michael up?" asked Calum, putting his head round the bathroom door. I shook my head and shrugged my shoulders, unable to speak due to the fact that I was brushing my teeth.

"When did you last see him?" I leant down and spat out a mouthful of toothpaste.

"Actually, I haven't seen him for ages. We got back quite late last night after taking Emily and Maddy home from ice-skating, and I assumed he was already asleep, or on his laptop in his room or something. I didn't want to disturb him."

"Wise," he said, winking. "Whose turn is it to wake him up this morning?" I looked at him with mock fear in my eyes.

Waking Michael up was not fun, but it had been necessary this week since we had decided to try really hard to get some writing done for the next album while we had some free time, and if we didn't motivate each other, it was easy to waste whole days and not achieve anything.

"Ashton's...?" I tried weakly.

"He's still eating breakfast, he got up late," shrugged Calum. "I did it yesterday, it's definitely your turn. Sorry, mate." I put my toothbrush away and sighed in exasperation.

"Michael?" I said, tapping lightly on his door. I don't really know why I bothered; he wouldn't be awake yet anyway, and that was hardly going to wake him up.

I opened the door and peered into the darkness. Michael and Ashton had taken the two single rooms, and Calum and I were sharing a twin room. As my eyes adjusted, I could make out a lump on the bed.

"Michael?" I said softly, walking over to the bed. As I got closer, however, I realised that the lump was just Michael's duvet, his bed unmade from the last time he had slept in it, and that he wasn't in the room at all.

"Are you sure Michael isn't up already?" I called to the kitchen, where Calum and Ash were discussing the writing they had been doing. "He isn't in his room."

"What?" asked Cal, confused. "No, he's definitely not anywhere else in the flat. I've checked."

**

After a couple of hours of searching the flat all over, calling Michael's phone without reply, and checking with everybody we could think of to ask if they had seen him, we gathered in the kitchen to try and think things through.

"I don't think we have anything to worry about," reasoned Calum. "I mean, I know we'd scheduled writing for today, but maybe he's forgotten or something."

"But he clearly hasn't been home all night," I pointed out. "I mean, where did he sleep?"

"We've checked with all our friends in London," said Ash. "I really can't think of anybody else."

We all looked up as the door opened, and an exhausted-looking Michael walked in.

"Dude, where have you been?" asked Ash, sounding irritated. "We said we'd write today."

"Ah, sorry," he mumbled. "I was, er - at a friend's."

"Which friend?" I asked.

"Was it a girl?" teased Calum, nudging him as he sat down at the table. Michael muttered something under his breath, his cheeks going pink. Suspicion started to grow in my mind. What had he been doing that he didn't want us to know about?

"Anyway, we know we're all pissed at Michael, but let's get on with the writing, okay?" said Ash. Michael left his chair as quickly as possible and rushed towards his room to get his guitar.

When he pulled the door to behind him, I noticed something on his arm.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing.