As Calum neared Alyssa's bedroom, he could hear the soft sound of an Arctic Monkeys song playing through the small crack of her door.
When he finally reached it, he peeked inside, instantly catching sight of Alyssa sprawled across her stomach on a large bed with papers and textbooks scattered all over it.
He smiled as she continued to type away on the laptop in front her; a pair of glasses perched on her nose and her hair up in a ponytail.
Suddenly realizing how creepy he was being just watching her, he nervously reached up to knock; the abrupt noise causing Alyssa to glance up from the computer screen. She saw part of Calum's face protruding from the door and she gasped, clearly not expecting to see him.
"Oh, uhm," he started as he tried to slip through the crack of the door, only to then bump into a nearby dresser. "Ah, fuck."
Alyssa used his time of struggle to her advantage and sat up quickly. After adjusting herself, she glanced back up at Calum, who was now fully inside her room.
"Hi," Alyssa said, trying to contain her giggles. For some reason, she couldn't help but find his discomfort comical. "Are you okay?"
He shyly smiled back at her before nodding. "Yes, hi."
"You made that look a lot more complicated than it needed to be," she noted before finally letting out a laugh.
Calum's heart raced at the sound but shook his head, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "Yeah, sorry about that."
"Oh, no worries," Alyssa assured him as she rose from the bed. "Man, if I would have known you were coming, I would have worn something a little less hobo-ish."
Watching as she walked over to the closet on the other side of the room, Calum found himself discretely giving her a once over, completely baffled.
"I wouldn't complain anymore if more hobos dressed like that," he told her, staring at the black knee highs that covered her legs.
Peering at him over her shoulder, Alyssa laughed again and felt her face heat up. "Silly boy," she remarked, turning around to face him properly.
Calum bit his lip as he made his way towards her. "Honestly, Alyssa, you're killing me right now and you don't even know it."
"Did you just come here to seduce me? You're interrupting my study time," she joked with raised eyebrows.
"Is it working?" He questioned cheekily, trying to grab her but she maneuvered around him, giggling at his surprised expression.
"Hey, where do you think you're going?" He asked, a frown appearing on his face.
"To my bed?" Alyssa replied with a wink before walking over to it.
"Not without me you aren't," he claimed, and in a second, he had his arms wrapped around her waist, making her squeal.
"You didn't even kiss me hello. That's very rude of you," he said while tickling her sides.
Alyssa laughed as he led both of them towards her bed.
"Oh, I'm so sorry," she said, turning her head to look at his that was perched on her shoulder.
She quickly pecked him on the cheek before plopping onto the mattress. "There you go."
Calum frowned again as he stood in front of her. "What kind of kiss was that? Kiss me like you mean it!"
Alyssa face faltered a bit at the memory of her and Kassi's discussion earlier but smiled up at him nonetheless. "Is Luke here as well?" She asked, changing the subject.
"Yeah, he is," he responded, sitting beside her.
They both stared at each other for a while, Calum soon inspecting the paperwork around them. "What are you studying for?"
"Uh," Alyssa started, following his gaze. "The stages of psycho-social."
"And how long have you been studying?" He asked, reaching out to tuck away a strand of hair that had fallen out of her ponytail.
"Ever since I woke up actually," she told him. "Which was at nine in the morning."
"Well," Calum began with a smile, scooting all the paper together so that he had room to lay on the bed and lean against the headboard as he tugged her along with him. "It looks like it's the perfect time for you to take a break."
"Wait--"
"Nope," he stopped her. "Cuddle with Calum."
"But--"
"Come here, Alyssa," he said assertively this time, opening his arms. "I just want you in my arms for a bit, okay?"
Sighing, Alyssa obliged and moved to lay beside him, but he catches her by surprise and guided her so that she was straddling him instead.
"What's on your mind?" He inquired with eyebrows furrowed in concern.
"Oh, you know," Alyssa drawled out, trying to come up with something. "Just Luke and Kassi."
"Really?" Calum asked, looking unconvinced.
"Well, I mean, yeah. Kassi was fretting earlier because she thought she ruined her chances with Luke because their date didn't go by as planned," Alyssa explained, babbling slightly.
She had hoped that her incessant babbling would distract him from her awkwardness because having her say something totally stupid while she was straddling Calum like this would just kill the mood. She wanted to pinch herself.
"Man, they really are meant to be together," Calum chuckled,
tightening his hold on her hips. Alyssa gasped quietly.
"What makes you say that?" She managed to ask, staring at her hands in her lap.
"Luke was going off the entire ride over here about how he thought he acted like such a dick for choosing fans instead of ignoring them to spend time with Kassi," Calum elaborated. "It was ridiculous."
"He was just being a good idol," Alyssa countered, smiling. "And Kassi happens to be a very understanding person."
"I'm sure he knows that now," Calum agreed, smirking. "I bet Kassi is showing him just how understanding she is in the living room."
Alyssa gasped again, lightly shoving Calum on the shoulder. "You're unbelievable."
He laughed, grabbing her hand before she could pull away. "And you're beautiful."
Calum looked at her directly in the eyes as he told her this, her face turning a bright shade of pink at his words. Unable to restrain what she had been dying to say, Alyssa took a deep breath as bit her lip.
"Calum, do you want me?"
He stared at her in disbelief. "Of course I do, why wouldn't I?"
"No, I mean..." Alyssa sighed, frowning to herself. "How come you don't want to..."
"Alyssa..."
"What are we?"
