// chapter five //

talia's pov

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'so i found this really cool song on spotify,' clarisse says, munching on a bag of popcorn from my kitchen.

'oh really,' i say in a monotonous tone, feigning an interest for her scope of music preferences. i adjusted my position in the wooden dining chair, skimming through my notifictations on twitter. all of a sudden, my phone was no longer in my grasp, and i look up to see clarisse holding it between her butter-smeared fingers.

'you're addicted to this thing, tal. you need to socialize,' she smirks, sliding my phone into her pocket.

i roll my eyes playfully. 'yes, mother.'

she smiles, accomplished. 'i thought you said your brother's friends are here,' she says, throwing a popcorn in the air, unsuccessfully trying to catch it with her open mouth. it bounced off of her nose, and she frowned.

'they are,' i say. 'they're in the basement, but i don't know why they're so quiet.'

clar shrugs, and throws the bag of popcorn onto the dining table, standing up.

'where are you going?' i ask, sitting up straight to ready myself in case i need to follow her.

'to the basement. i want to see what type of stuff they do for fun. not to be perverted or anything,' she replies, cracking open the basement door.

i recall how tense calum usually got when i disturbed their 'guy time', as they call it, and frown. 'clar, i don't think that's...'

but she was already starting down the stairs. i groan and trail after her. if she was going to get scolded at by calum, i might as well be by her side.

i follow closely behind clarisse, and i pick up murmured voices coming from the guys. i silently questioned why they were being so hushed and controlled. normally, when the four of them got together, it would turn into a mad house.

then i hear ashton's accented voice, and the next words he say grab my attention. '...all we need is talia's approval.' clarisse turns to me with a confused expression, and i shrug.

using their oblivion to my advantage, i ask from the staircase, 'my approval on what?'

my voice gained their attention, and the guys' eyes skip from me, to clarisse, and back to me. calum and luke meet eyes, passing mental messages back and forth. finally, calum shrugs and says, 'uhh... talia, can you come over here?'

i raise an eyebrow when i notice the tense atmosphere, and the odd expressions worn on their faces. i climb down the rustic, wooden steps, and beckon clarisse to mirror my actions. 'ooookaaay? am i in trouble or something?' i ask curiously, my gaze darting between each boy.

ashton's eyes slightly widen. 'no no! not at all.'

'then what's up?' i plop down on the opposite end of the old couch that calum sat on, while clarisse preferred the green beanbag that was adjacent to ashton. ash sends her a boyish smile, but her face remains placid.

luke turns to me with his piercing, blue eyes. 'we need to ask you something; something important.'

'shoot,' i say.

the blonde-haired boy sucks in a gulp of air before saying, 'we want you to be in the band.'

the words catch me in its hands, chilling me to the bone, and dropping stones into my stomach. i blink about 182 times to recuperate from my shock.

'what?'

michael rolls his eyes before repeating the phrase, but at a much slower pace. 'weeee waaant yoooooouu to beee in the baaaaaaaand.....'

i scoff. 'i heard what he said, dumbass. but why?'

'we want a change in our direction of music. more hardcore. and you'd be the perfect lead singer to help us accomplish that goal,' my brother says from beside me.

my eyebrows shoot up my forehead. 'lead singer?? cal, i can't even sing.'

he twirls his eyes. 'don't lie, tal. i've heard you plenty of times.'

'but i-i can't perform. stage fright, remember?' i stutter.

luke seats himself next to me, and takes my hand, causing the butterflies to flutter rapidly in my stomach. 'talia, all of us went through that phase. you'll get over it. i promise.' he smiles so sweetly at me, that it was impossible for me to not smile back. in my periphery, i see michael scowl at our intertwined fingers.

calum clears his throat.

luke drops my hand, and wipes his on his black jeans. i frown, and awkwardly fold my palms together on my lap. 'but back to the point,' luke says. 'recruiting you into our band would be a big change for us, yes, but it's ultimately worth it. we won't be the band that's scorned upon by adults, because we want to change our lyrical style, too. we don't want to write songs about unrequited, silly love, but more than that. and you'll help us with that, right?'

i contemplate my options. if i help them, my whole life will change. i'll no longer be a nobody; i'll be the frontwoman in 5 Seconds of Summer. hell, i won't only be that. i'll be a songwriter, too. if i don't help them...

'but why me, though?' i suddenly exclaim.

'because you're close to us, talia. we'll be more comfortable if we go through this with you,' ashton replies, plea dripping from his words.

'i...i don't know.'

clarisse rolls her eyes. to be honest, i almost forgot that she was present, and witnessing the situation. 'just say yes, damn it.'

'okay fine. i'll do it,' i say, giving in in a casual manner. but my mental state was anything but casual.

luke wiggles his eyebrows. 'you'll do what?'

i allow a grin to break out on my face. 'i'll be your lead singer.'

the guys stand, and cheer simultaneously, pulling me in for a group hug. i laugh, breathing in their mixed, aromatic cologne smells. i smile when i realized how tight luke was squeezing me. 'yay!' ashton cheers, giggling. 'new bandmate!'

we embrace for a few more seconds, before we release each other, smiling. ashton looks down at clarisse, who was still sitting back on the beanbag in the same position she started out with, pouting. 'aww,' ashton cooes. 'someone's feeling left out.' he bends down, getting ready to scoop her up.

her eyes widen, as she shakes her head. 'no no- i'm fine-you don't have to-' she sputters. it was too late, because ashton was already engulfing her slim body into a bear-hug. we all chuckle as clarisse awkwardly pats the curly-haired boy's back.

i stop mid-giggle as i felt a pair of warm arms wrap around my waist, pulling me from the ground. i look to my side to see michael's smirking face, which he buries into the crook of my neck. i let out a squeal, and he laughs. 'you're so adorable, talia,' he says, his voice muffled, and his plump lips tickling my skin as he spoke. i try to squirm away, a joyful smile worn on my face, but michael shakes his head, his purple hair grazing my cheek. 'nuh-uh-uh. you're going to have to deal with this 24/7 when we're on tour,' he says playfully, still squeezing my sides.

i giggle, but then i see luke's head bent in an awkward stance, his face dull without a smile. calum notices this, and rushes to his side, tackling him into a man hug, which brings a sad smile to the tall boy's face. 'you're a nice cuddle-buddy, lukey,' my brother says.

'heh heh...' luke replies, hiding an emotion that i can't quite pick up.

i frown, worried about luke, and michael looks up, to meet eye contact. 'what's wrong, babe?' he asks, winking.

i roll my eyes, trying to hide my smile, and he lets me go, dropping me back onto the floor. 'i'm going to order a celebratory pizza,' michael declares. then he turns to me with an actual smile and says, 'an anchovy pizza,' leaving everyone to groan in disgust, but i'm smiling. and i'm smiling because, for once, michael clifford was considerate enough to remember my favorite type of pizza topping.

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#clashton is otp.

and for some reason, i like #tichael better than #lalia.

#lalia sounds like some type of disease...

comment if you found the blink-182 reference above ^-*

MICHAEL'S BIRTHDAY WAS TWO DAYS AGO; I'M CRYING BECAUSE THAT MEANS A 19 YEAR OLD GUY IS FLIRTING SHAMELESSLY WITH A 15 YEAR OLD GIRL IN MY STORY

not that it's wrong but, woah...

and now the name 5 Seconds of Summer actually makes sense bc there's five members now ^-^

and if you're confused with the purpose of the title of the story (paramore) it's because i wanted to compare the actual band, paramore, to the 5sos in my story. both bands have female leads, and the rest of the band members are guys.

well i'd better end this A/N right now bc i'm guessing not many people read it so...

...vote, comment, add to reading lists, etc.

ps. clarisse/ lily collins on the side/ above (she looks like a fairy lmao).

pss. dedicated to @asianwitch  bc she helped me decide luke and talia's ship name at school.

psss. teehee xxx