It's Tuesday, and she's almost midnight. Ashton is taking care of Riley while I'm at work.
I'm currently making a coffee for a young guy in his early twenties. We're closing after I'm done with him.
Five minutes later, I'm wiping the floor, barely able to keep my eyes open.
"Hey, Calum, I can do that if you want me to" Paige appears next to me. "I can close today, go home and rest. You look like a mess"
"I'm okay" I mumble, letting out a big yawn.
"Don't lie to me"
"I'm sorry, Riley kept me up all night" I massage my temples, leaning against the counter.
"Riley?" Paige grabs the broom from me, starting wiping the last part of the floor.
"Oh, yeah, she's my.. Uh, my daughter" I scratch the back of my neck, not really sure what her reaction will be like.
"You have a daughter?" She meets my eyes. "That's cool"
-
"You can not be serious" I laugh. "I was there too!"
"Really?" Paige smiles up at me. "What seats did you have?"
"Standing tickets. Me and my friends was in the middle, like fifth row, maybe" we're talking about the all time low concert a year ago. Apparently, she's a big fan, and we were both there. "You?"
"Second row, in the middle"
"We must have seen eachother then" I lean against my car, running a hand through my hair.
"What does your friends look like?"
"Uh, well, they're all tall. Ashton has curly hair. Luke's blond and a has a lip piercing, he's the kind of the hot guy every girl states at" I chuckle a bit, looking down at my feet. "Then we have jasmine and Michael. If you saw a couple making out throughout the whole concert - it was them. Oh, and Michael had blue hair at the time"
"I saw a guy with blue hair!" She says. "My best friend whined about how hot his friend was"
"Let me guess, it was me, huh?"
"Yeah, keep dreaming"
I'm just about to reply when my phone interrupts us. I look down at it, it's Ash. "Sorry, I really have to take this"
"It's okay" she says, hiding her hands in the pockets of her jacket.
"Yeah?" I say while pressing the phone to my ear.
"Calum! Man, where are you?" Ashton shouts, barely letting me finish my hello. "She's past one am and Riley have been crying for 45 minutes"
"Why is she crying? Isn't she asleep?" I frown.
"No, she said she wanted to wait for you so we watched cartoons for a while" he explains. "Then she started crying because she thinks you won't come and get her. I don't know, I think she's just tired and she miss you"
"I'm sorry, I got caught up in something" I glance over at Paige, who's currently scrolling through her phone. "I'll be there in ten, okay?"
That's when I can hear Riley's loud crying in the background. She's sobbing, crying out a 'I want daddy' that just breaks my heart.
"Please hurry, nothing will make her stop"
"Just tell her I'm on my way" I say. "See you soon"
I hang up, dropping the phone into my pocket.
"Hey, Paige, I'm really sorry but I have to go" I scratch the back of my neck.
"Is she alright?" Paige looks up at me. "Your daughter?"
"Oh, yeah, just a bit tired" I smile at the fact that she actually asked. "She's supposed to be asleep a long time ago"
"Well, I shouldn't stop you from picking her up then" she says. "I'll see you tomorrow"
I softly smile, holding her gaze for a few extra seconds. "Yeah, see you tomorrow"
-
I open the door, hurrying inside. I can hear Riley's sobs coming from the living room.
"Hello? Ashton? Riley?" I ask, turning around a corner to reveal Ashton and Riley. She's placed in Ashton's arms, and he's trying to calm her down.
She looks up, her tears eyes meeting mine. "Daddy!"
"Hi, honey" I smile, walking over to the couch to steal Riley from Ashton. "Why are you crying, huh?"
"I missed you" she whines, snuggling her face in my shirt.
"I'm here now, Ri, I was just at work" I place myself next to ash, having Riley in my lap. "Sorry I'm late, ash"
"What were you doing? I thought you closed at like 12"
"Oh, yeah, I just forgot the time" I look down at Riley, her cheeks are still drained in tears, but she's quite calm.
"How?"
"I talked a bit with Paige" I mumble, playing with Riley's brown hair.
"Who's Pai- oh my god! Is that the girl you work with?" He asks, eyes going wide. "The one with the boobs?"
"What?" I glare at him. "What do you mean?"
"The new girl at your work, with the nice boobs"
I stare at him. I haven't really thought about her.. Well, her boobs. And the fact that Ashton has makes me kind of uncomfortable. I don't know why, because well, Ashton always look at girls breasts.
"Why would you stare at her boobs?" I ask.
"What are boobs?" Riley looks up at me, her shaky sobs finally gone.
"Nothing" I sigh. "Anyways, I guess yes, ash, the new one"
"Oh, she's hot"
"She not just hot, she's so nice and funny and, you're not gonna believe me on this one, she likes All Time Low!"
"Wow, a girl who likes a famous band. Literally can not believe it"
"Stop being a dick, Ashton" I send him a quick smile, before standing up with Riley in my arms. "So, thanks for taking care of her. And sorry for all the crying and yelling"
"No problem, she's a kid, kids always cries and screams"
I grab Riley's backpack, handing her flapoodle before pressing her clothes down her bag.
"Are you still up for going to Melbourne this weekend?" Ashton asks, leaning his body against the wall.
"I don't know, I feel bad for leaving Riley all the time. We only have our weekends together" I look down at my tired daughter in my arms.
"Chloe and jasmine will take care of her, Riley loves them"
"I know, I know, but I want some time with her sometimes"
"Just think about it, okay?"
"I will" I open the door, glancing down at Riley before looking back at Ashton. "Thanks, Ash, for helping me with her"
"Anytime, man"
"I'll see you"
"Bye"
_____
A/N ~
SORRY THIS ONE SUCKED AND WOW IT WAS LATE EW
Okay, so 3 comments from 3 different persons (my comments and replies does not count soz) and I will post the next chapter this weekenD instead of next week!
Don't forget to tell all your friends and enemies and strangers and people about December if you like it :D
Love y'all! Thanks for reading
xx
