Meet You There / Calum Hood

Chapter 10: Charlotte, NC

The following day I was awakened by my phone ringing. Groggily, I grabbed it off the nightstand beside my bed.

Michael's name was on the screen. "H-hello?" My voice came out raspy. "Victoria, we have a problem!"

"Problem? What are you talking about?" I quickly asked him as I got out of bed. "Just come to our room, hurry." He hung up.

I jogged down the hotel hallway to the room Luke and Michael were sharing. Before I could knock, the door opened. Michael grabbed my arm and pulled me inside.

"What?" He shut the door behind me.

"Someone sent me more pictures from the night we went clubbing on your birthday." He handed me his phone.

An unknown phone number had texted Michael 3 pictures with the message, "Let's play a game. Cash app me $3,000, or I will release these pictures and ruin your reputation. You have 24 hours. Choose wisely."

I hesitantly clicked on one of the pictures.

The first one was Michael and I drunkenly making out. The second was Michael getting to know my boobs. And the third was me walking away from Michael right after. You could see both of our faces so well in both.

Tears started to fill my eyes.

I handed him back his phone. "What are we going to do?" I heard his voice crack. "I guess we them release the pictures. They won't ruin our reputations bad, but it'll just hurt us a bit."

A knock on the door caused me to jump, "Shit-"

"It's just Luke. He's back from breakfast," Michael went to open the door but stopped.
"Wait, are we gonna tell everyone?" He yell-whispered to me.

"I don't know? Should we?!" I yell-whispered back.

Luke knocked again impatiently.

"What do I do?!" Michael looked at the door then looked back at me.

I shrugged, "Just open the door, I guess."

He facepalmed, "WeLL yEaH I'm GoInG tO OpEn ThE dOoR, bUt I'm tAlKiNg aBoUt wHaT wE'rE dOiNg AfTer I oPeN tHe dOoR!"

The door clicked open; Luke walked in sassily, holding the key in his mouth. His hands were both holding plates filled up food, and under his arms were bottles of apple juice.

When he saw us, he rolled his eyes. "Thanks-for-opening-the-door-guys. I-appreciate-it." He mumbled through his teeth and sat everything down on the table. "What're you doing up so early, Tori?"

My eyes flickered over to Michael. I felt my heart beat faster. "Well, uh, I gotta go. Michael, you can fill Luke in on the situation. I'll talk to Calum and Ashton." I rushed out of their room.

Slowing down my breathing, I walked over to Calum and Ashton's room. I knocked on the door softly.

No response.

I knocked again, a bit harder.

The door unlocked, and a half-asleep Calum opened the door. The room behind him was pitch black. I could hear Ashton snoring.

He squinted, his eyes adjusting to the bright hallway lights. "Tori? It's like 5 am."

"I need to talk to you." I pressed myself against his chest, wrapping my arms around him. The sudden warmth of his body gave me chills. He chuckled and hugged back instantly.

"Mhm, come on inside so I can shut this door." His voice was raspy and more profound than usual.

He shut the door, and the room became dark again. I felt his hand fall down my arm, looking for my hand. When he found it, he held it, pulling me deeper into the darkness.

I heard the bed squeak, and the sheets rustle slightly. "It's too early to talk. I'm tired. Lay down. It's an hour until my alarm goes off," He yawned, "We can talk after that. It can't be too important."

Well, pictures of your best friend feeling me up is something that would be pretty high on my list of important things to tell you.

I kicked my shoes off and laid down on the bed next to him. He tugged the sheets over the both of us. I comfortably lay on my side, facing away from him. He pulled me closer to him as he wrapped his arm around my waist.

The world around us seemed peaceful.

I forgot all my worries and drifted off to sleep.