Transitions

House Tours and Trial Dates

"So, what do you think?" Calum asked.

I ran over to all 4 boys who were leaning against the banister and hugged all of them with my sister jumping in on the hug too.

"I think this is going to be amazing. I want to see upstairs and the backyard."

We walked up the 2nd set of stairs to the third story. On one door was a light up sign that said Studio in Use in big red letters. We stepped inside to see a line of guitars against one wall, a laptop and recording equipment against another wall with a microphone set up in the corner. Ash's drum set was on a separate end of the very long room. They led us through the other rooms and overall I was shocked. In the game room there was a large floor to ceiling window that overlooked the backyard. I could see the pool, and the giant backyard they had. The other boys and Mackenzie had gone downstairs but Luke stayed. He sat down on the neon blue couch that was in the corner, patting the other end for me to come and sit with him. I made my way over to the couch and threw myself onto the cushion, sulking.

"Will you please tell me a little more about what this situation is?" he asked, putting his hand on my knee.

I sighed, "Okay, so I did the X-Factor USA in 2012. Austin from The Tide was on it as well way before this band came into play. We were friends and all that. We kept in touch via Twitter once in a while but that's beside the point. At the airport in Los Angeles, we ran into Austin and his band, as well as The Vamps, they were on our flight to Sydney as they are touring through the area. Nate (which is their drummer) mentioned that he's seen my YouTube covers, and they want me to be their supporting act on tour, okay cool that's whatever. Here's the catch, Austin said if I want to tour with them, I have to go on a date with Nate, who's my age and apparently likes me." I started to explain, trying not to burst into tears from my frustration.

Luke looked at me with a puzzled expression, "I don't understand the big deal. Just go on a date with the kid and if it goes well, then maybe you two are meant for each other."

I sighed, "No Lukey-poo," I started, applying his pet name, "You don't get it bub, Michael apparently has feelings for me, strange yes I'm fully aware. I have slight feelings for him too, I thought they were more than fan girl feelings, but they really aren't and I'm afraid I led him on. He's too old for me. I mean Mikey's cute and all, you all are, but that's beside the point. WHAT DO I DO?"

His piercing blue eyes widened as he understood the dilemma, "Oh. I see. Um, well. Mikey really doesn't need a girlfriend right now I can tell you that much. I say give this kid a chance. Do you want to tour with them?"

I nodded my head so fast I made myself dizzy, which made Luke laugh.

"Well there's your answer. I'll take care of Mikey, and let's get this date set up so you can stop going mad. Where's your phone?"

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and handed it to Luke. He scrolled through my contacts and found Nate's iMessage contact. He opened it, and tapped the video camera icon to pull up FaceTime. I heard the sound of it connecting to make a video call and ran to the other side of the room, hiding in the closet. I could hear Nate's voice pick up.

"Hey, uh, Luke... Where's Riley?" he asked.

"Where is Austin? I need to have a word with him in regards to a deal he made with Riley."

I guess Nate went to go find Austin because there was silence.

"Hey man, what's up?" Austin's voice came from the speakers.

"What's the deal you made with Riley in regards to touring and going on a date with your little blonde partner?"

I heard Austin laugh, "Basically what I told her was she can tour with us, if she goes on a date with little baby Nate. He has a thing for her, and rumor has it based off her Twitter, she has a thing for him as well. So I wanted to try and set them up. I think they'd be really good together. They hit it off really well on the plane."

I slowly opened the closet door and emerged into the room again. I listened to their conversation about possibly having me and Nate do a trial date tonight to see how things go. They decided on having us go rock climbing since we were both athletic. They agreed on picking up Nate in an hour since their hotel was about 10 minutes away from the house. Luke would be a chaperone, which I found embarrassing. Once Luke got done making plans, I ran back to my room to get ready. It was rock climbing so I guess I didn't have much to get ready for. I opened my closet and pulled out a pair of track shorts and a jersey, running into the bathroom to shower quickly. My sister had already put her shampoo and conditioner in the shower so I used that instead of mine. I let the hot water engulf my body and relax me. Once I was done, I wrapped a towel around me and went back into my room to change. I grabbed a clean sports bra out of my bag as well as a pair of underwear. Once I finally was dressed, I slid on a pair of socks and one of the pairs of converse I got from the boys. I grabbed my wallet and one of my drawstring backpacks and made an easy travel bag. I tossed my wallet, a cupcake flavored lip balm, my little Polaroid camera that instantly prints photos and a few other miscellaneous items. Standing in front of my mirror, I pulled my hair back into a messy French braid to keep it out of my face while climbing. After putting on a little bit of eyeliner and making sure I had deodorant on, I was all set to go and get this over with. According to Luke we were going rock climbing for 2 or 3 hours and then he was going to drop us off at the pizza restaurant that was down the street from their hotel and would pick me up at midnight at their hotel. I walked downstairs to find Luke sitting on the couch playing Minecraft.

"Hey, I'm ready to go if you are." I piped up, making him jump.

He saved his game and turned off the console and the television, getting up and leading me out to his jeep. It was a newer model and it was blue and beautiful. It had a 4 inch lift kit added onto it. I climbed into the passenger seat, buckling my seatbelt. Luke got in and started the car, pulling out of the driveway and going down the road. We drove for about 20 minutes into downtown Sydney near the hotel. Luke pulled into the parking garage of the hotel and parked the car. I stepped out, letting my feet land on the ground with a loud thud. Luke and I walked out of the parking garage over to the main entrance of the hotel. I took my phone out of my pocket and texted Nate.

R: Hey, we're here. Where are you?

N: I'm upstairs finishing getting ready. Come up to the 4th floor and wait by the elevators. I'll be out in a few moments. :)

We took the elevator upstairs and I sat on the wooden bench that was outside to wait for him to finish getting ready. A few minutes later I heard a voice coming down the hall. I think he was giving himself a pep talk. He appeared from the hallway with his hands behind his back. I stood up and waited for him to come closer.

"Hey. I got something for you." He said, with a smile on his face.