Disconnected | Luke Hemmings

chapter twenty six

As usual, time flew by way too fast. January was a busy month for the boys; they had lots of tour rehearsals and promotional things to attend to get ready for the months to come. Luke and I spent time together when we could, mostly just being lazy and enjoying each other's company in the simplest of ways. We went out a couple times, but he was too busy to really do anything overly adventurous. Thankfully, our schedules mostly coordinated, and we were able to have a few evenings a week together after both putting in long days of work.

I tried really hard not to think about the tour, but it was pretty much all the guys talked about. It made me happy to see them so excited and proud of themselves, so I worked hard to hide the dread that had taken residence in the pit of my stomach at the thought of their impending departure. I knew that Luke could tell that it was bothering me; he had the ability to read my thoughts and feelings just by the way I was acting without me ever having to say them out loud. I didn't want to talk about it with him, because I didn't want him to feel bad about leaving. So instead, he just held me close and let me fall asleep in his arms every night.

One day after work, I decided to try to enjoy some "me" time. Mom was exhausted and had gone to bed early, Luke and the boys had a meeting with their tour manager and tour staff, and then he had plans with his family for the evening. I had told him that he could spend the night later if he wasn't busy, so I hoped that I would hear him come into the house eventually. In the meantime, I decided to get into comfortable clothes, pour myself a bowl of popcorn, and enjoy some Netflix in the comfort of my living room. I found a romantic comedy that peaked my interest and hit play as I snuggled into the pillows on my couch and tucked a blanket in around my legs.

I was only about half an hour into the movie when I heard a light knock on the front door before it creaked open hesitantly. I perked up instantly, craning my neck to see who had come in.

"Hello?" I called out. "Luke?"

"Hey, sorry. Just me," Michael's voice responded. "Can I come in?"

As soon as I heard his voice, I got up off the couch and walked over to greet him.

"Well yeah, of course!" I replied. Michael grinned at me, the tufts of his teal hair poking out at every angle. He shrugged out of his ripped denim jacket and hung it over the railing of the stairs.

"Sorry I'm not Luke," he said. "Although if you're really desperate, I could always go shove a hoop through my bottom lip and start wearing only black skinny jeans and the same four shirts every week."

I laughed genuinely at that and patted him in mock reassurance on the shoulder. "Thanks, but I think I'll wait patiently for the real thing. Come sit. I'm watching The Other Woman."

"Gross," Michael chuckled. He plopped down next to me on the couch anyway and immediately helped himself to my popcorn.

"It's funny!" I protested with a whine.

"Do you realize how much more entertaining that movie would be if the characters were Jaime Lannister, Fiona from Shrek, and whoever Leslie Mann plays in George of the Jungle instead of just the actors who play those guys?"

I rolled my eyes at him. "Whatever. Luke told me you guys watched it on tour last time at least twice."

"Guilty," Michael admitted as he shoved another handful of popcorn into his mouth.

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure of Michael Clifford coming to my humble abode to hang out?"

Michael shrugged. "Not much, really. I just wanted to hang out. I know Luke's busy, and Amy's busy, and I haven't seen you much lately. So yeah."