Chapter SEVEN

C A L E B

"You haven't talked to each other in three days? Seriously?"

I looked up from where I was tuning my bass. Max looked a little more shocked than I hoped. "What's the big deal? We're seeing each other again today."

"Today?" Archer called from the kitchen just as the microwave beeped. "Yes, Archer," I sighed, strumming. "Today."

"You sound depressed," Max raised his eyebrow. "Want to talk about it?"

"There's nothing much to talk about," I said, placing down my bass. "It's still awful between the two of us and now Dave's asking us to post stuff online so it'll be a bit more interesting for people."

"Why?" Archer walked into the living room, placing the bowl of popcorn in the middle of the coffee table. He tossed Max a bag of chips, opening one for himself as he plopped down beside me.

"Hey, I just remembered," Max said before I could reply to Archer. "We have that radio interview tomorrow, right?"

"And that's exactly why he's making us do it. I'll have to finally say that I'm dating someone, and of course they have to make it obvious that it's Liam. As if it weren't obvious enough." I said. There was a moment of silence as I picked up my bass again. All three of us have been writing in the studio for our next album already, but our tour is a few months away.

"Caleb, why do you guys hate each other?"

I stopped strumming, looking up at Archer. "I told you why already." Max shook his head. "No. All you told us was that something happened between you guys and you haven't talked in three years."

I shrugged. "It's a long story, guys."

"And we have time," Archer said. I raised an eyebrow at his eager smile, shaking my head. "No, you don't. Liam's on his way here."

"So just tell us some parts of the story!" Max was never one to get mushy or cute about moments, but here he was pouting at me. "Please? Archer and I have been coming up with theories but I don't think we got close to what actually happened."

I stared at my two bandmates. Of course they deserve to know what happened, they were dragged into this mess because of something I did. And it's not like I was going to keep what happened a secret from them forever. I just hoped maybe Liam and I would've been in better terms when I finally decided to share the whole story.

But, since it looks like that's not really going to happen any time soon, might as well just rip off the band-aid.

"Alright," I sat straighter, pausing when both Archer and Max suddenly scooted closer and leaned in almost in sync. They were unbelievable, really. "Liam and I," I paused again. Liam and I. "We were childhood friends. My family moved to the U.S. when I was ten, right? Well, it just so happened we moved in at the house next door to theirs."

"You were neighbors?" Archer's eyes widened. "And your houses were actually beside each other?"

"We became best friends, actually."

It seemed like Max wasn't expecting that, either. "I thought he was an ex boyfriend."

My mouth opened then closed promptly. I had to think about how to answer that one. "Um, we grew up together. Our bedrooms happened to be right across from each other, again it was a coincidence. We had like these mini balconies, they were very tiny and you could barely step out the room without the fear of falling. Anyway, as small as they were, it proved helpful when we wanted to visit each other. We'd just... hop over."

"Awww." Both Max and Archer smiled. "That's some fairytale shit. I wouldn't actually believe you, but goddammit the story is so cute that I want to." Max's sudden confession made me laugh.

"I'm not making this shit up. You can even ask my family about it."

"Did you guys go to the same school?" Archer asked.

"No, it's the only time we weren't together. That's why we used to hang out a lot after school in either one of our rooms. Our moms found out after a few months and they said it was okay. Liam got close to my family and I got close to his." I smiled as I remembered Liz and Andrew. They treated me like part of the family. Liam was an only child, but he got along with Melanie. My parents adored him, too. Everything worked out.

Max nodded, absorbing all the information. "So, you guys became besties and got close to each other's families. Then, what happened?"

"Um, he was actually the one who pushed me into singing. When he found out I knew how to play guitar and bass, he asked if I could sing." Archer cut in, bouncing slightly where he was seated. "Did you serenade him?"

"No! I—Well, I don't think so? I sang because he wanted me to, or when he asked me to." I looked at both of their expressions. "I didn't actually serenade him!"

Max snorted and grabbed a handful of popcorn. "Yeah, okay. We'll pretend like we believe you."

"So what really happened?" Archer asked, his knees bouncing up and down. "Did you actually fall in love?"

"Well, I didn't like him like that, not at first. Mostly I was new to the whole boys liking boys and girls liking girls thing at the time," I explained before tilting my head up a little. "He told me he didn't like me either. I think.. I'm not sure, but I think he knew by that time that he was gay." I shook my head, focusing on Max and Archer now. "Anyway, remember when we were all sixteen and met for the first time?" Both of them nodded.

"Well, he was the first one I told about that."

Dave contacted me just after my sixteenth birthday. He said a friend of his saw me perform at our school's talent show and he wanted to offer me a spot in a band he's forming. He told me if I sounded good, he'll sign me once I get a little older.

"So," Archer scrunched his eyebrows together like he was solving a puzzle. "You were born in Australia, moved and lived in America for a few years, then flew back all the way to Australia when we became a band?"

"Yup," I nodded. "And, to give you guys a little context, almost everything between Liam and I changed the night before I left for Australia to be part of this band."

The doorbell sound almost made me jump, having completely forgotten that Liam had been on his way. I placed my bass down and fixed my top. "That's him, I guess."

"But the story!" Max pouted. Again. It was really weird seeing it on Max. Archer just looked like he was amused by it.

I rolled my eyes. "I'll tell you both another time." I walked to the front door, Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dumb following. I opened the door and sure enough it was Liam, dressed in gray sweatpants, a plain black shirt, and a beanie.

"Oh. Hi!" He looked surprised to see Archer and Max.

"Hey, Liam!" Archer waved, giving Liam a toothy grin. Liam easily smiled back, adjusting the beanie on his head. "Hey, Archer, Max. Wasn't expecting to see you both today."

"We were actually just leaving," Max grabbed onto Archer's arm and pulled him outside. "Great seeing you though, Liam! Caleb, be good."

"Fuck off," I said the same moment Liam replied, "Nice seeing you too."

We watched both idiots walk away, the silence dawning on us once again. "Okay," I coughed. "Would you like to come in?"

Liam nodded, even smiling a little as he closed the door behind him. I noticed the glitter on his eyelids and the gold shine his cheekbones gave off when the light from the living room hit his face. "Are you wearing make-up?"

His hand flew to his cheek, swiping before examining his fingers. "Oh, yeah. I meant to take it off, I was at a shoot before I came here."

I nodded, glancing at his face one more time before looking down and walking towards the couch again. "You could wash up in the bathroom, if you want? It's down the hall, last door to your right."

I didn't look up when Liam mumbled, "Thank you." Instead, I picked up my bass and started to play a tune to one of our songs as I waited for Liam to return. He did so, his face now bare and his phone held in one hand. He collapsed onto the opposite couch with as much grace as a fish out of water.

"Tiring day?"

"Been standing up for five hours straight," Liam replied easily, chuckling at himself. "Do you mind if I take a picture of you and post it? Dave has been bombarding me with messages asking what I was planning to do while I'm here."

"You plan to take photos of me playing the bass?" I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Liam shifted, already pointing the camera at me. "I'll be posting it, obviously. I just need to get him off my back right now."

He really did look exhausted. "Okay, go ahead."

I went back to strumming, hearing the shutter go off from his phone. Not even two minutes later my phone let out a ping! telling me I had a new notification.

@LiamWalker: He's ignoring me :-(

Attached was the photo he took. I heard Liam sigh, letting his phone drop onto his stomach and slumping further down my couch; if that was even possible. "What do we actually have to do today? Dave didn't specify. All he told me was that we needed to give people and the media something to talk about."

"Patricia said something about having proof that we don't only go out for paparazzi to take pictures of us together, like we hang out on our own too. She asked us to take pictures with each other."

"And right after you just asked me to take off my make-up." It took me a moment to figure out Liam was joking.

I bit my lip, totally not expecting that. "And is your hair a mess too?"

"The beanie went with the outfit," Liam shrugged one of his shoulders.

We turned quiet as I continued playing the bass. Liam's eyes closed for a moment, and I thought he'd actually doze off like that, which would have resulted in some serious neck pains given how slumped he currently was, but he slowly sat up again. "Are you hungry? I haven't eaten dinner yet."

I shook my head. "I haven't either. There's some food in the kitchen, want to help me cook?" I stopped myself from mentioning the fact that I knew Liam loved cooking, probably as much as he loved acting or modeling.

Liam studied me for a second before he shrugged. "Sure," Liam stood and it was the most relaxed I've seen him. Probably because he was excited to cook.

"Why do you guys all live in a condominium?" Liam asked as I opened the fridge, trying to find some things we could use for a dish.

"It wasn't my idea," I told Liam. "Max and Archer suggested it. We do a lot of writing here, they said we might as well get a place near the studio. Worked out fine for me since my family lives in America."

"They all still live in America?" Liam raised his eyebrow.

"Mom and dad do, but Melanie moved in with her boyfriend recently and he lives here, about a two-hour drive from where we are." I held up tortilla wraps I found at the back of a case of beers. "Want to make burritos?"

"Sounds good," Liam said, walking towards the cupboard. "I'll find the ingredients. You get whatever meat you have."

#

I found some ingredients and spices I could work with before Caleb handed over a plastic of frozen ground beef. I looked at the plastic before looking at Caleb. "That's the only meat I have. It's perfect for burritos though!" He smiled proudly.

"Yeah, it is," I nodded. "But you have to defrost it."

"Oh," his eyes widened. "Sorry." He laughed at himself, taking the ground beef and started running it under warm water in the kitchen sink.

"Your cooking skills haven't improved." I mumbled to myself, knowing the water would drown out my voice.

"They have!" Caleb suddenly said. "I don't burn myself anymore when I try to make pancakes."

I didn't realize he heard me so I just nodded, heating up the pan. A few minutes later, I was finally cooking the ground beef. I made Caleb cut up lettuce and tomatoes so we could add those in.

He said he didn't like tomatoes. I knew that, but I didn't say anything. All I replied was that we needed vegetables in the burritos .

He tweeted a picture of me cooking.

@Caleb3N.E: love a man who can cook

I didn't comment on the caption, neither did he.

We've been making small talk, and it was all going well for the most part. We even managed to crack up a few jokes here and there until the burritos were finally done. After setting everything down in the dining room, Caleb got out a few beers.

"Thanks for cooking. These are great," Caleb said after a bite of the burrito.

"You helped." He just gave me a look that said yeah, right. "I think you should sit beside me," I added after swallowing the food in my mouth. He was currently sitting across from me. "If you still think we need those pictures of us together."

"Oh," He sounded disappointed, I didn't want to think about why. "Yeah, sure."

He brought his plate and beer, settling down on the seat beside me. He had his phone out on the table too. I took out my own phone and turned on the front camera. I angled my phone in front of us so that the lighting was good.

"Will it totally be crossing the line if I put my head on your shoulder?" Caleb asked.

"No, it's fine."

He placed his head on my shoulder, hair tickling my neck. I felt some sort of knot pull inside my stomach. I mentally cursed myself for still reacting this way.

He closed his eyes with a smile on his face and I gave the camera a toothy grin. We took a few more, each with a different sort of expression but the pose never changed.

Once we got the pictures, Caleb lifted his head up. "Send it to me," he said. "I'll post it." I AirDropped him the pictures, trying not to focus on the fact that if I took out the part where we're being forced to take these pictures, we actually did look like clingy boyfriends just enjoying a night in.

@Caleb3N.E: @LiamWalker thank you

I pursed my lips. He added a burrito emoji and a pink heart emoji for goodness' sake.

"I'll clean up." He placed his phone down, taking both plates and walking back to the kitchen.

I perched my chin on top of my hand, exhaling a long breath. I startled when Caleb's vibrated on top of the table. Caleb couldn't hear it because the water in the kitchen was running.

You know that reflex you have when something makes a sound and your eyes immediately go to that object making the sound? I never wanted to look down, and I wish I didn't.

I saw who the text was from, full name and everything.

I looked away before I could read the actual message.

I sat still, completely unmoving until Caleb came back. He noted the expression on my face. "What's the matter?"

"You got a message."

Caleb stared at me in confusion, taking his phone from the table. His eyes widened once he saw who it was from.

I didn't give him a chance to speak. "Hey, remind me, wasn't Kayla the name of that girl you kissed at that party three years ago?" I asked, bitterness and sarcasm evident in my voice and I couldn't give a crap about it.

"Liam, no. I—I mean yes," He stuttered. "But I haven't spoken to her since that night. She only started texting me a month ago!"

"It's great how she still knows your number after all this time."

Caleb looked like a deer caught in headlights. "We.. We saw each other and she asked for it. I didn't know—"

"Mhm," I heard enough. More than I wanted to, actually. "Right. I think I should go."

"Liam," Caleb said, blocking my way. "I'm serious. This isn't a big deal, come on. We were doing so well just now, we weren't—"

"We weren't what?" I looked Caleb in the eye. "Arguing? Bickering like kids? Crazy how after a few pictures suddenly we're best friends again."

"Liam, that's not what I meant."

"You lied to me," I swallowed, feeling the whole situation take a turn. "You said you'd never even think about Kayla anymore because you said that night that I was the only one that mattered." I was being an idiot, I was being reckless. I was letting Caleb know that these things still affected me—that he still affected me. My vision began to turn cloudy, my eyes stinging as I continued to make a fool of myself. "You also lied about not being able to get over me if I ever left you, because then you got yourself a girlfriend."

"I didn't lie to you, Liam." His voice gave it away. We were both on the verge of tears.

I let out a bitter laugh. "Which are you referring to? The message, the night I saw you at the party, or the night before you left for the airport and you snuck into my room?"

"I'm sorry," Caleb choked out.

Crashing. It was as if I was crashing straight into a wall. "You told me you loved me, then you kissed me. And you kissed me again at the airport. You told me you'd ask me to be your boyfriend officially when you came back because you told me you didn't want to ask me right when you're about to leave."

"Liam, please—"

"And I stupidly went along. Because you promised. You're the one who promised me and you know that when it comes to you, I could never say no." There were tears now, and I let them fall. Caleb was still battling them.

Good. I wanted him to remember all the things he did.

"Remember after three months I got my first acting job in Australia and I was supposed to surprise you? Remember that night I saw you at that party?" I laughed bitterly. "I couldn't believe it, Caleb, honestly."

That had his walls breaking. I continued regardless. "You were kissing. another. girl. Remember that, Caleb?" I wasn't shouting, neither of us had been all this time.

Shouting was for when you were angry, pissed. I was just tired of pretending.

"Kayla was nothing." Caleb's voice sounded defeated.

"Apparently, so was I." I walked past him. "Liam, you were not nothing," Caleb grabbed hold of my arm to stop me, but he immediately let go once he realized what he did. "Please, listen to me."

"I'm done, I'm exhausted." I wiped the tears from my face, aware of how puffy and red I must've looked. "I'm leaving."

Caleb stood frozen as I walked towards the front door. His fists were clenching and unclenching, his whole expression screaming lost and unsure of what to do now.

"Maybe we were only teenagers back then," I found myself saying. "But I have never loved anyone the way I loved you, Caleb."

I think that line broke something inside both of us. Difference was, he was still trying to hold himself together.

Good for him. I've already lost.

And then, I left.