KNOCK OUT [LH]

Chapter 8: Crying In The Club

"Can...you...reach?" I grunt, gripping onto Calum's ankles as he balances on top of my shoulders outside of Meredith's only nightclub, The Vault.

"Almost." Calum answers, as he reaches for the fire escape in the darkness. "Can you give me a little more height?"

When I told my parents that I'd be staying over at Calum's for the night, I know for a fact that they weren't expecting their rule following daughter to be illegally sneaking into a nightclub at midnight. Yet here Calum and I are, stacked on top of each other like some kind of professional gymnastic duo, as we try to scale the outside of the double story building in order to slip in through the back window.

Pressing my palms into the cold brick exterior to stabilize myself, I can feel the dull thumping music from inside, and with a deep breath I channel the strength of my inner John Cena, pushing myself up onto my tippy toes to give Calum a few more inches. But my legs wobble weakly under his weight, forcing me to take a staggering step backwards.

"Quit moving, Win!" Calum whisper-yells, grabbing onto the wall to keep himself balanced as his platform Doc Martens dig into my tender muscles, and I wince slightly at the dull pain.

"Oh, I'm sorry." I tighten my grip around his ankles and push myself up onto my tippy toes again. "It's not like my spinal column is collapsing, or anything!" I hiss back, as Calum reaches back up for the fire escape.

"This was your idea." He points out, and I purse my lips because he's right.

It may not be one of my brightest ideas, but it is still one I'd proudly take credit for. It was a simple plan really: I would give Calum a boost up to the fire escape on the second floor, he would pull me up, and then we would both sneak in through the back window and find Luke Hemmings.

Another foolproof plan, I'd say.

"Got it!"

I feel my spine straighten out when Calum's feet leave my shoulders, and I sigh in relief as I roll them back into place, before tilting my head back to watch my best friend pull himself up onto the landing of the fire escape.

Sticking to the plan, Calum reaches back down to yank me up with ease, and together we shimmy open the partially open window, silently slipping inside the dimly lit nightclub.

As Calum slides the window back into place, I take in our surroundings, and I'm more than certain that we've managed to sneak through the men's restroom. The row of porcelain urinals and sinks are helpful, but the totally wasted dude blinking back at us, mid-stream and mouth agape as he utilizes one of the urinals, is a dead giveaway and truly solidifies my assumption.

"Evening, good sir." I say to him with a small friendly wave as he continues to stare back, taking a timid sip from the bendy straw in his colorful drink.

Bet he wasn't expecting to see two teens crawl through the bathroom window tonight.

He doesn't reply, so with a shrug I turn to Calum and reach up to dust some fallen snow off of his shoulders, before straightening out my sweater.

"Ready to party, Cal?" I ask, wiggling my eyebrows vigorously as I start to do the sprinkler, but he's quick to catch my hand and slowly lower it back down to my side, making me pout.

"Let's not get too carried away, Win." Calum says as he tucks a bit of escaped hair back into my bun. "Remember we're only here to find Hemmings."

"Right, right."

When Calum and I finally make our way into the main part of the club, my senses are instantly bombarded by the intense atmosphere.