Chapter SEVENTEEN

L I A M

"Please welcome, Liam Walker!"

The background music played and the crowd cheered as I stepped onto the platform. I waved towards the audience, smiling and giving Jeffrey Vent a one-armed hug. He gestured me to sit down on the couch as the crowd quieted down. "Thank you so much for joining us, Liam."

"Thank you for having me, Jeffrey." I crossed my legs. Body language was important during interviews. A confident, comfortable body language told the audience you were at ease in their presence and the interviewer's.

"Your new movie had just released." Jeffrey gestured to the screen behind me where it showed the poster of the movie. "I heard it was a massive hit, watched it a few days ago myself." Jeffrey added, crossing his legs as well.

"It just did, and thankfully it's been doing great in theatres. How'd you like it?"

"I thought it was amazing! Right, folks?" He turned to the audience who cheered in reply. Jeffrey seemed genuine enough. Sometimes interviewers said things they didn't mean, it was all part of their job after all.

"Thank you so much!" I replied, actually meaning it. The black top I was wearing had small dots, buttoned all the way up with the sleeves folded in a way that fitted my biceps exactly. I picked up the mug from the coffee table as Jeffrey asked another question. "And you just finished filming another movie, correct?"

"Yes, it was a lot of fun. Everybody who I had the pleasure with working with was amazing, and I'm really glad to be part of it. It'll be released next year. October, if I'm not mistaken."

"I'm sure we're all excited about that," Jeffrey said. "So, for the knowledge of everybody watching, not only are you brilliant actor, but you're also taking the modelling world by storm."

The cheers suddenly became louder. I turned around to see what the fuss was about. The screen showed a picture from the photoshoot I did with Calvin Klein as one of their ambassadors a few months ago. In the photo, I was wearing nothing but black boxers, my skin having been sprayed with water to appear dewey. "Woo, look at that!" Jeffrey exclaimed and the audience members whooped in agreement, making me laugh.

"Is that the reason you invited me, just so you can show that picture?" I joked, this time making the audience laugh.

"What? No! Of course not!" Jeffrey waved his hand but winked at the crowd, a seasoned entertainer. He leaned forward, smiling. "How are you, Liam?"

"Pretty great." I smiled back. "What about you, Jeffrey?"

"Good, good. Speaking of pretty great," Jeffrey gestured to the screen behind us once more, and from his tone, I kind of had a guess as to what I'd see.

It was a picture of Caleb and I the time we exited the building of Showbiz Management HQ, the first time we were photographed together. Another cheer from the crowd.

Dave had warned me beforehand that they might ask about Caleb. "Ah, of course." I chuckled, despite the sudden twist in my stomach.

"You recently announced that Caleb Novak, from 3 New Efforts, was your boyfriend." More cheering as a picture of Caleb and I on the red carpet at the movie premiere showed, and it was moment where I kissed his cheek. I wiped my palms on my jeans. "Yes, we announced it during the movie premiere. We figured it was time to let people know." I smiled.

"How did you two meet?"

"Through some mutual friends," I lied. "He and I started messaging. A few months later we started dating, and now…" I trailed off, shrugging.

"I'm sure everyone is dying to know," Jeffrey leaned in closer for effect. "How is the relationship going?"

"Well," I bit my lip, trying to think of what to say. "It's new. You know how relationships are when you're just getting used to one another. So far, I've loved every second of it."

"Will it be okay for you to share some details? I'm sure everyone's dying to know more."

"He's actually with his family right now—" I stopped as the crowd cheered again, louder than any time before. I turned around and the screen was showing two pictures from when we were at the airport. The first was Caleb and I hugging, the second was of us kissing.

Seeing us kiss was… something else.

"You gave him a kiss goodbye, eh?" Jeffrey wiggled his eyebrows and I couldn't help but laugh.

Jake had almost the same reaction as Jeffrey when he found out. Meredith on the other hand had kept asking questions. I grinned at Jeffrey. "What can I say? He's quite irresistible isn't, he?"

The crowd seemed to agree. "You both really are just adorable. Oh, have you met his other bandmates?"

"I have! Archer and Max, both super nice lads, incredibly talented."

"They're all quite handsome, huh?" Jeffrey was addressing the audience then, and there were a few distinct answers of agreement. "Liam, I'm actually curious to know what Caleb's like in a relationship."

I thought for a minute, trying not to focus too hard at the cameras currently pointing at my face, the dozens of people eyeing me from their seats, and the thousands of people watching from their televisions. They were all just waiting for my reply.

"You know, if I'm being honest, I think if I try to describe him I just wouldn't do him justice. I mean… I guess I'm just really lucky, you know?"

Jeffrey and the audience seemed to like that answer.

I may have lied about how Caleb and I met, but I wasn't so sure that the other stuff were lies.

#

That evening I was already asleep when my phone started ringing obnoxiously. I slowly extended my arm, sighing when I couldn't find my phone on my nightstand. I felt around my bed, but no such luck, and the ringing was still going.

"What the hell?" I grumbled, heaving myself upwards. I rubbed both my eyes and flung the covers off me before standing up.

My bedroom was dark. I walked towards the light switch, but I tripped over my own feet and face-planted on the way.

I just stayed there for a moment. "Perfect," I huffed, groaning as I stood up. Now I knew my phone was on top of my desk. I grabbed it and made a move to turn on the lights, but not before I managed to hit my hip at the edge of my desk.

"Son of a—" I clutched my hip, momentarily forgetting that I was carrying my phone and it dropped side first onto my right foot.

"Fucking hell!" I cursed loudly this time. I hopped on one foot, gritting my teeth as I picked up my phone.

It turned out that Caleb was calling to FaceTime. I clicked accept as one hand remained on my still hurting hip.

"Hey, I hope I didn't—"

"I will kill you." I said.

"What?"

"I was already fast asleep when suddenly someone," I narrowed my eyes. "Decides to call at—" I checked the time, eyes still adjusting to the light. "Eleven in the evening. My phone just so happened to be all the way across the freaking room."

"I'm… sorry?"

"You better be," I huffed, padding towards my bed. "I literally fell on the floor, got stabbed by the desk, and hurt my foot just so I could answer you."

Caleb was smiling first, next thing I know he's laughing out loud. "You're such an annoying person, you know that?" I scoffed.

"I'm sorry," He said again in between laughs. I went back to my bed and laud down as I waited for him to calm down. "Oh my God, of course that's a sentence I'd only hear from you."

I immediately went to defend myself. "Hey, I am not normally this clumsy, you ass."

"Fine ass, thank you very much." Caleb winked.

"Fuck off."

I got nothing but laughter in response. "You swear more when your precious sleep is disturbed."

"I was tired all day, must be why." After the interview, I had a meeting with the casting director of a new potential movie I'd star in, then afterwards Jake forced me to come to the gym and have a two hour work out session.

"Oh, then let's talk later?"

"No, let's talk now." I yawned despite my sentence.

"Liam, you obviously—Oh. I didn't know you slept without a shirt," I saw Caleb quirk an eyebrow before shaking his head. "Anyway, you should just go back to sleep."

"Caleb, I'm already awake," I said. "Just say what you have to say."

"It can wait, you know."

"Caleb Thomas Novak, you will start talking or I swear I will reach through this phone and smack you."

"Okay, okay!" Caleb raised one hand in surrender. "I'll tell you! Damn, remind me never to wake you up."

"What time is it there, anyway?"

"Uh, around six a.m."

I noticed how horrible my bedhead was through the front camera. I ran my hand through my hair, trying to tame it. "You're up early. Going somewhere?"

"No, it's the jetlag kicking my ass. What I actually needed to say was that my parents want to start talking and or calling you again."

I almost dropped my phone on my face. Luckily, I didn't.

Caleb continued, oblivious to what just happened. "They asked for your contact number and I didn't know how to refuse. I was going to wait a few more hours before I told you, but I figured they might get to you first before I warned you. They still don't know we're only fake-dating, they think we're together for real."

I sunk deeper into my pillows. Fake-dating.

"Okay, so when they decide to contact me, I have to just act like we're in love and that nothing happened before that?"

Caleb ran a nervous hand through his curly, black hair. "If it's not too much to ask. Again, it'll be difficult explaining how this all works if we tell them we're bound to a contract."

"I haven't spoken to mom or dad about us yet, but if I'm doing this for your parents then you're doing it for mine too."

"Deal."

I shifted to my side, the arm holding my phone was laying on top of the mattress now. My eyelids were starting to get heavy. Neither of us spoke for a while, just staring at one another.

"Liam," Caleb called, voice gentle. He was probably aware that I was beginning to feel sleepy again. "Do you know what pulchritudinous means?"

I scrunched my nose. "Pulka-what-what?"

"Pulchritudinous." Even his laugh was soft, eyes crinkling at the sides.

"That's a mouthful, and it sounds like a disease."

"You're so weird." Caleb shook his head, still wearing that smile of his that did weird things to my chest. "It's not a disease by the way, you can look up the meaning."

"I don't think I even know how to spell polkatanious." Caleb sighed exasperatedly at that, shaking his head. "Anything else I should know? Maybe another fancy word you'd like to impart?"

"Actually, there is something. I come back in exactly three weeks. We have a bunch of interviews and whatnot."

"Want me to pick you up from the airport?" I offered without hesitation this time.

He pursed his lips, contemplating. "Hmm, I don't know. My flight comes in early in the morning. I wouldn't want you to miss hours of your beauty sleep and start cursing at me."

"Ha, ha, ha. Hilarious. I can't breathe because of how much I'm laughing."

"You're a killjoy, you know that?" Caleb stuck out his bottom lip. "But, yes, you can. Only if you want to."

I nodded, yawning before I could tell him that I really did want to. "I think I need to sleep now."

Caleb nodded, shifting from where he was laying on his bed and getting into an upright position. "Sorry for being the cause of your physical injuries."

"I'll live. Maybe. Unless I die, then my death is on you."

Another laugh, then he was smiling at me. "Good night, Liam."

"Good… morning? Yeah, it's morning there so good morning, Caleb."

We hung up, and conversation started playing in my mind. I found myself searching on Google.

Pulchritudinous: a way to describe great physical beauty.

I stared at my phone for a good minute before I was typing again.

To: Caleb Novak

I now know what pulchritudinous means.

Not even a few minutes later, he replied.

From: Caleb Novak

So u did look it up ;-)

I was grinning more than I should be. It didn't matter since nobody was around to see.

To: Caleb Novak

I like you, you put noses on smiley faces :-)