// chapter eight //

talia's pov

+++

'okay, tal,' calum says. 'all you have to do is look straight into the camera and introduce yourself. say a few words about the new, and improved band. and sing your heart out.'

'al-alright,' i reply, clutching my carrot microphone tightly to my chest. we all sat grouped together, our instruments at hand, facing a timer-activated camcorder.

i felt a warm hand squeeze my shoulder reassuringly. michael sits at my left side, beaming at me. 'you got this,' he says. i flash a nervous smile and nod.

we hear the constant beeping of the recorder, and the corresponding red light blinks simultaneously with the sound.

beep.

dear jesus.

beep.

am i really doing this?

beep beep.

okay i can just make a run for it, and then-

beeeeeeeeeeep.

oh shoot.

i swallow a large breath of basement air, and cough nervously. 'h-hi. i'm talia skye hood. and yes, you've guessed it, calum's sister.'

'hey guys,' calum says from behind me. i figure he's waving at the camera.

'well,' i continue. 'the guys have been working pretty hard these past few days, with me as one of their biggest supporters. they wanted to change their sound to something.....'

'hardcore,' ashton finishes from where he was sitting on his beatbox.

'yeah,' i say, giggling shyly. 'and they've recruited me to be the newest member of 5 Seconds of Summer! i'm so excited to be your new lead singer. and we'd like to start our career off with a song by a great, inspirational band. this is Unbreakable by Fireflight. hope you guys like it!' i grin, and hold two thumbs up.

michael begins the starting riff, then the whole band joins in. 

i inhale, and hold the microphone to my lips.

this is it.

'where are the people that accuse me...'

+++

'god, i want to dream again. take me where i've never been.

i wanna go there. this time i'm not scared...'

we observe the camcorder's miniature screen with pride. 'damn, this cover is bad*ss!' calum exclaims happily from behind me.  

'this was a great idea, talia,' ashton says.  

'when are we going to upload it?' i ask, cutting off the praise i was receiving.

i see luke shrug from the corner of my eye. 'whenever it's edited and ready.'  

'i have an editing app on my macbook at home,' michael says. 'wanna come over and help me with that, talia?' 

as i was about to nod, calum cuts off with, 'wait, why does she have to come?'

michael snorts. 'relax, cal. it's not like i'm going to rape her or anything.'

calum tenses, and shouts over the audio of the camcorder that was long-forgotten, 'yeah. you'd better not. she's going to keep her virginity for as long as she can.' he points at me with a firm finger, and the other guys turn to me with amused expressions.

'you're a virgin?' ashton asks slyly.

i cross my arms over my chest, and shift them uncomfortably. 'well yeah,' i reply without making eye contact.

'huh. and you're fifteen?' he asks. i nod. 'i lost mine when i was twelve in the school's bathro-'

calum puts a hand on the dummer's chest to terminate his overly-informed sentence. 'yeah well, she's not like you, ash.' he sighs, and looks to me. 'fine. go ahead. but call me when you're finished so i can pick you up. mum and dad should be home from their business trip tonight, and we're going to have to cook dinner.'

i roll my eyes. 'by we, i suppose you mean i'm cooking the dinner while you lounge on the couch.'

calum nods. 'yeah. pretty much.' i sigh. 'but be safe, sis,' he says. even though it was addressed towards me, his gaze is directed to michael.

'calum,' michael says, exasperated. 'i won't do anything to her. chill.'

calum sends him a warning glare, and shoos us off with a flapping motion of his hand.

'let's go,' michael says, snatching the camcorder before taking my arm and leading me up the basement stairs. butterflies flutter up from the pit of my stomach when we make physical contact. i try to disregard it, but it's extremely difficult to.  

'use protection!' we hear ashton yell from behind us. michael lets out a hearty laugh, but i frown. he pushes open the door at the top level, and we emerge into the hallway.

quickly glancing at me from over his broad shoulder, michael says, 'my parents aren't home, so we won't have to worry about them.'

'well that sure is comforting to know,' i mumble sarcastically as i tug on my warm, black petty-coat. he looks at me with a twinkle in his eye, and pulls the door open, allowing a draft of freezing wind to enter the house. shutting the door behind us, we hug our arms and shuffle to his car, trying to avoid tripping on the icy pavement. michael presses a button on the mini-remote controller on his key chain, unlocking the automobile, and opens the passenger door for me.

what a gentleman.

smiling sheepishly, i slide in, and when we our both snug in the heated car, he turns the wheel with his left hand. with his other, he rummages in his deep jacket pocket, and pulls out a device. 'here,' he says simply, throwing the camcorder onto my lap.

ding!

i pull my phone from my back pocket, and allow my eyes to skim over the notification. 'ash tweeted about our cover,' i announce.

'what does it say?' michael asks, his eyes not leaving the road.

 ' @5SOS: hey guys :) just taped a new cover. been a while since we've done one. it has a 'twist' so you might wanna check it out when it's uploaded. we'll let you know when it's up! luv you -ash xx'

michael chuckles half-heartedly. 'leave it to ashton to spill the beans.'

'you wanted it to be a surprise?' i question.

he shrugs. 'i don't know. i thought it'd be cool to surprise the fam, since it's been a while since we've posted a cover.'

'right.'

he pulls up next to a house that's fairly the same size as mine. the only difference is the large tree that overshadows the home, two tire swings hanging from its main branch. i've never visited michael's house before; this was all new to me.

i take the camcorder in my hand, and exit the car, walking up the brick path that leads to the front door. michael catches up, and snakes his frigid fingers through mine. i struggle to tame the idiotic grin that was teasing the corners of my lips as he squeezes my hand.

'your hand is cold,' i blurt honestly.

'gee, talia. way to break the cute moment,' he states sarcastically. i snicker as he fumbles with his keys with his free hand, and unlocks the front door of his home.

'welcome to my house,' he announces, dropping my hand to make wide gestures with his bubble-jacket covered arms. i giggle, and he asks, 'you hungry? ....thirsty? because, if you're thirsty, i can help you with that. with pleasure.' he winks seductively, and that sends me into a blushing, sputtering mess.

'oh hell no!' i exclaim, a nervous laugh escaping my lips.

he shrugs casually. 'fine then. let's head up,' he says, jerking his head towards the stairs. he leads, and i trail behind. the wooden steps creak as we walk.

almost all of the doors on the level are painted a crisp, flashy white to complement the cream colored walls. only one door is a jet black, and it's the door michael heads to. 'i went through an emo phase when i was your age,' he declares nonchalantly, and slightly taps the door open with his combat boot.

when i was your age.

the words twist my stomach into knots, and the pain reminds me that michael is, in fact, an adult. he's a man, and it feels wrong to have this unexplainable feeling towards him, me being a minor and all.

'talia,' he says, awakening me from my daze. 'the camcorder.' he was hunched over his macbook, which sat atop of a black-wood desk by the window, looking at me. his jacket no longer hugged his towering figure, and was thrown onto the floor instead.

'oh. sorry.' i walk towards him, and hand out the device. he flicks the usb connector, and plugs it into the laptop.

a few clicks here and there, and the thumbnail of the video appears on the screen, different tools and effect buttons framing it. 'you've worked with one of these before, right?' he reassures.

'yes. of course.'

'great. because i'm hungry, and i'm guessing you are, too. i'll be back with sandwiches,' he moves aside, and i pull out the stool that was tucked under the table. 'just stay here, and work your magic.' he says, kicking his coat under the bed before exiting the room.

i sigh, and tug my winter coat off, flinging it onto michael's unmade bed. 'okay then,' i whisper to myself, and begin to enhance the quality of the video. 

+++

hypothetically, around two hours have passed with me clicking on different filters, and toying with the audio quality to perfect the cover. michael hasn't showed up with his sandwiches yet, and with the amount of effort i've put into the video, i really need one. the sky has darkened about 5 shades heavier since the time i entered the house, and i was around an hour away from calling cal to pick me up. 

judging from the sounds of pistols going off, and car tires screeching against asphalt roads from downstairs, michael was playing Grand Theft Auto in the living room.

i hit a few buttons to boost the lighting. my concentration was completely focused on the screen that i didn't notice that i wasn't hearing michael's video game anymore. i didn't notice that scraping sound of plates on a wooden coffee table. i didn't notice the heavy footsteps that trudged up the stairs.

and i definitely didn't notice the pair of soft lips sucking at my neck softly, and the warm hands that were placed on the sides of my arms.

i felt my entire body melt as he moved his mouth slowly, and teasingly. the wet trail of sloppy kisses that he left made my skin tingle. with one hand, he gently placed the plate of forgotten sandwiches on the blank space beside the macbook, his lips still attached to my neck.

'forgive me?' he mumbled, tickling my skin. i clutched the bottom of the stool i was seated on, preventing myself from falling over.

'for what?' i whimpered weakly, my previous thoughts long forgotten. he nibbled on a thin layer of skin just above my shoulderblade, and i prayed that it wouldn't leave a lovemark for calum to discover.

'i left you alone for a while.' the huskiness of his voice was surprising, and it left me with a constantly-beating heart. he removed his lips from my collarbone, and onto my lips. i was enjoying my first kiss. the rush i was experiencing was indescribable. thank god that i was sitting, or else i would've humiliated myself by crumpling to the floor.

'f-fine,' i stammered against his lips, struggling to keep up with his pace.

his hands lifted to my cheeks to cup them, and i tangled my fingers into his fluffy, violet hair. his upper teeth softly tugged on my bottom lip, and i pulled at his hair for support. that caused him to bite harder, so the moan that was threatening to escape his lips would stay put.

then, he detached them.

my arms hung slightly from his neck, and he slid his hands to my waist. we both stared at each other. he gazed at me with such a strong feeling of lust, a way that no boy has ever looked at me before. his now-glossy lips were a darker tint of red than usual, and were swollen. his strands of hair were askew from the amount of times i played with them during the kiss. i wonder if i appeared the same way.

he left one final peck on my lips. 'better let you get back to work,' he whispered, his voice still raspy.

leaving the sandwiches, he shuffles back downstairs, leaving me stunned and red-faced.

+++

i'm soooo sorry for not updating.

i wrote that to make up for it, haha.

teehee xx