Want You Back | c.h.

3.

Calum beamed with pride as he gripped the ARIA award in his hand. Tonight was hands down one of the best nights in both he, and the band's, lives thus far. As the boys headed backstage for the promo associated with winning the award, he watched as the rest of his band were greeted by their girlfriends and he hung his head in an effort to hold himself together.

He'd felt lonely before but this was different. This was one of the greatest nights of his life and he could think of only one girl he wished was running into his arms at the moment, but she was somewhere across the world, blissfully unaware of how much he still thought about her.

He bit back his longing and forced a smile, determined to enjoy the night as much as possible.

"Calum! We fucking did it! Get in here mate!" Ash yelled from across the room where his best friends, his brothers were locked in a group hug.

He pulled his hands from his pockets as he walked towards them embracing them with open arms and letting them hold the pieces that were left of him together.

He was undeserving of the friends he had and he knew that. They were kind, compassionate, giving of themselves, all the things he was often reminded he was not, when he thought of Emi and the similar list of reasons she had left him

As the celebrations backstage died down they were escorted to an interview. Calum did his best to stay in the background. He'd always hated these things, they felt forced and disingenuous, especially when he often just needed more time than they could give him to formulate the answer he wanted to convey. Not to mention the questions were often prying and made him uncomfortable to the point that he usually just didn't speak at all, instead allowing Luke and Ashton to do most of the talking. Micheal was like himself, content to just sit in the back and get lost in his own thoughts.

"Boys, your first ARIA how does it feel?" The interviewer asked.

She seemed nice enough, Cal thought. He tuned out the questions and Ashton's response and instead focused on the people milling about in the background. He wondered their names, what they did in correlation with the awards show, and he wondered if any of them had been through a heartbreak as brutal as his.

•

Emerson gawked at the man in front of her.

"What did you just say?" She finally stuttered out. Cesare grinned at her and repeated his words.

"My new restaurant opens next week. I want it to be your restaurant."

"But—but how? Why?" She stumbled over her words as her mind rapidly tried to process what he was saying.

"Emerson you have been an exemplary sous chef and it's time for you to run your own restaurant. I'm giving you total creative freedom. I'll be your investor, eventually when you achieve the success I know you will, you can buy me out and it will really be yours. You've been good to me Emerson, you have earned this."

At that, the tears Emerson had been holding back began to roll freely down her cheeks. It was happening, her biggest dream was coming true.

She couldn't wait to get home and tell Kyle.

She threw her arms around Cesare and he laughed pulling her in. I'm the past two years he'd become a true mentor and friend to her and she was unbelievably grateful for this opportunity.

•

Arriving home to the apartment she and Kyle shared, Emerson threw open the door and flung herself onto the couch after closing the door behind her. Face down in the pillows she let out and excited squeal that were it not muffled by the thick fabric of the sofa cushions surely would have startled her neighbors through the paper thin walls.

She lifted herself back to her feet, deciding that tonight was a night for celebration.

She dug around in the pantry and cabinets until she was satisfied with her ingredients setting to work on the chicken Marsala she had in mind.

"Alexa, play today's hits." She spoke to the device as it immediately began streaming some song that was vaguely familiar to her.

She added the wine to her sauce and stirred it the sizzling of the pan drawing here attention until the voice she'd never forget cut through the room.

"Alexa volume up." She said flatly.

The time disappears
You hold back the tears
Your best girlfriend just got engaged
You say you can't wait and need to make a change
You told me it's so hard to be lonely

What the fuck?

Emerson listened carefully to the rest of the song before glancing over to the television screen to confirm her suspicions. Calum and he rest of the boys faces staring back at her.

They'd put out a new album? Was the song really about her? We're their others about her?

So many questions sprang to mind and she nearly forgot about her dinner until the aromas caught her attention. She turned the chicken over in the pan and prepped the plates.

Right before she and Calum's breakup, her friend Margaret had gotten engaged. It had sent Emerson into a frenzy. She and Cal had been dating longer and despite their youth Emerson was ready for that kind of commitment. She loved Calum and at the time was so sure she'd never love anyone as much or find anyone who could love her more. That night she'd casually dropped a question into the conversation about Calum's feeling in marriage. He'd spouted off into a tangent about marriage being a sham and the divorce rates and how he was nowhere near ready and he would never even consider it until the band was done.

She'd been heartbroken. How else was she supposed to feel when the love of her life had basically told her he had no plans or intentions to marry her, at least not anytime in the foreseeable future.

He'd been unapologetic in his revelation as well, never even consoling her when she'd grown noticeably upset by his reply. Ultimately, that had been the beginning of the end.

Was this is way of apologizing? Of admitting he still thought about her? Did it mean anything at all?

The sound of a key in the lock and the door opening pulled her from her reminiscent thoughts and to her current life.

"Babe! I have the best news, you're never going to guess!"

An: next chapter Emerson and Calum are gonna run into each other! How do you think that happens? How do you think it goes?

I hope everyone's intrigued and ready to see their story play out!

Please make sure to checkout my story Paper Parachutes as well!

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