"My words are falling and I don't even care

'Cause I know that it's all in my head

Yeah, I know that you're all in my head

If the stars ain't showing, the whiskey ain't burning

Well, I'm still gonna be your girl"

✰

For the first time in his life, Luke Hemmings was giddy.

He'd been that way for the last thirty or so hours. The warm feeling in his stomach appeared as soon as Arlo opened her window the night before and even though it was well into the next day, the feeling had yet to dissipate.

Despite the fact that Arlo hadn't shown up to the bookstore or band practice the day before, that warm feeling was still there. Luke knew Calum had put her to work hanging posters around town. In fact, Luke had begged Calum to let him skip practice so the girl wouldn't be left to her own devices, but apparently being the lead singer was an important job.

Luke had less than two hours before he would go on stage for his first-ever gig, yet the nerves hadn't even had a chance to settle in his stomach. He's far too excited to see Arlo again to even worry about being nervous.

Luke didn't have a fucking idea what the hell was happening to him.

The boy hadn't so much as looked at another girl since Arlo walked into his bookstore nearly a month ago. An entire goddamn month had gone by without Luke fucking some random to fill the void his parent's rejection had left him with. It was unheard of for someone like Luke Hemmings.

Even though most of the time he couldn't think without images of her flashing in his mind or control his heartbeat when she was around, Luke didn't hate it. In fact, he liked the giddy feeling running through his veins.

For as long as Luke could remember all he felt was hate. Hate for his parents for abandoning him, hate for his brothers for not sticking up for him, hate for people who merely looked at him the wrong way- he fucking hated everything.

The emotion was something familiar, something easy to process. Luke spent most of his teenage years hating people as a sort of defense mechanism. Now though, the small dark-haired girl that the band called their manager had changed his mind.

Luke Hemmings discovered that whatever the hell it was he felt for Arlo, was a lot more comforting than letting all of the hate in his heart take over.

He was so fucking excited to see her. Luke had been thinking about it all day. He wondered what she'd wear or how she'd have her hair done, if she'd like his performance, if her lips would have a coating of that gloss that made him want to-

"Luke!" Calum comes barreling down the stairs of the basement, his chest heaving from all the running he'd been doing for the last few hours. "What are you doing man? We've got shit to set up!"

Luke jolts from his place on the couch where he'd been staring at the wall thinking of Arlo for who knows how long. He finds Calum standing in the center of the room, his t-shirt soaked with sweat much like his head of unruly black curls.

Calum kind of wanted to make a comment about how Luke had been smiling like he was in love with the wall, but he bit his tongue. The boy knew he had bigger fish to fry- such as how he was going to find enough power outlets for all of their equipment in his living room.

"Can you come help with the stage?" Calum asks, his eyes skeptically narrowed on his best friend. The boys had known each other for years, but this was a side of Luke that Calum had never seen. "Unless you want to fucking fall through it halfway through the set or something."

"Okay, fuck." Luke holds up his hands in surrender as he pulls himself off of the couch. "When's Arlo getting here... for you know, manager shit?"

Calum doesn't even try to hide the knowing smirk on his face as the boys make their way upstairs. "Ooh, I know something about Arlo that Lukey doesn't." Calum taunts, his tongue poking through his teeth as he grins. "Does it bother you that I know where she's at and you don't? Hm, Luke?"

Luke scowls, swiftly shoving Calum's chest as the boy gets in his face. It did in fact, piss Luke off that Calum knew where she was and he didn't, but he would never admit that. "No." Luke scoffs, his cheeks involuntarily heating. "Now, do you want me to help with the stage or not?"

✰

For the second time in her life, Arlo Abbott was willingly walking through one of Calum Hood's infamous house parties. She cringes as the loud music seems to vibrate the walls and the humidity of the room clings to her skin, a result of the pure amount of people jam-packed inside.

Arlo knew that there would be a good amount of people here tonight, but she had clearly underestimated the four boys' popularity. The house was packed so tightly that she could barely move through the foyer.

She may have been a tad bit late, but she had made it with more than enough time to spare before the boys would go on stage. Arlo may have spent a few hours procrastinating by pacing her room and tugging at her hair in frustration.

The poor girl just knew that if she saw Luke, even for a moment, she would cave. When Calum suggested she hang posters around town, she had jumped at the opportunity to get out of seeing Luke at band practice the day before.

Arlo was completely and utterly weak when it came to that blonde boy with a heavenly voice. She knew it just as well as she knew that grass was green.

She makes her way over to the door that leads down to the basement, having to practically scream over the music to get past a group of guys leaning against the door. Arlo sends them a thankful smile before tapping her knuckles on the door.

Instantly, the door swings open revealing Michael Clifford. The basement was the only place in the entire house besides Calum's bedroom that was off-limits, giving the boys a peaceful place to collect themselves.

"Oh, thank fuck." Her red-haired friend sighs, his hand over his heart as if it would beat out of his chest. "We're freaking out without you down here, Arlo. Where the hell have you been? You look good, by the way." The boy rambles as he leads her down the steps.

A Nickelback song plays through the basement accompanied by the sound of a couple of bass chords being played.

Arlo's eyes widen as she takes in the sight before her.

Calum is laying stretched across the entire length of the couch, his long legs hanging off of the end as his bass lays across his stomach. He strums the chords lazily as he narrows his eyes at the ceiling in deep thought.

Ashton is sitting at the table they'd been using for their unofficial meetings, his drumsticks tapping along on the table to the beat of the song playing. He looks the most unbothered of all of the boys as if he'd done this before.

And as for Luke... the poor boy looked to be at his wit's end. Arlo's eyes find the tall blonde as he paces back and forth across the length of the basement, his hands clenching and unclenching as he cracks his knuckles. His face is pale like he might pass out at any second.

Although, as soon as the last step of the basement stairs creaks, his eyes snap over to her. It's unbelievable to him how the second he looks at her the panic that had been running through his veins for the last hour seems to dissolve into thin air.

As Luke looks at Arlo for the first time since he'd left her curled up asleep in her bed, he feels as though he can breathe again.

If her mere presence wasn't enough, Luke's eyes go wide as he takes in her appearance. Her outfit tonight is far different from the other times he's seen her in the best way.

An oversized faded gray band t-shirt hangs off of her frame, falling off of one of her shoulders and a mind-fucking pair of black fishnets are covering her legs, teasing his eyes just enough to make him struggle to swallow.

To top the whole look off, her dark hair is curled but slightly messy in the sexiest way- unbeknownst to him her once perfectly curled hair had been disheveled from the way she'd been anxiously tugging on the strands. Her makeup is the same as it always is, though he spots the tiniest bit of black eyeliner on her waterline that he's never seen before.

Arlo swallows thickly. Luke was completely unabashed in the way his intimidating blue eyes had been slowly dragging down her body, lingering on her legs. The look in his eyes made her stomach flip. She was already fighting a losing battle and she'd only been in his presence for a mere minute.

"Arlo!" Ashton jumps up from the table, abandoning his drum sticks. "The band is not supposed to beat the manager to the gig."

"Sorry." The girl winces, practically having to tear her eyes away from Luke. "I was busy uh... gathering more of an audience."

"Bullshit!" Calum calls from the couch. "Were you taking advantage of the free liquor upstairs, Arlo Abbott?" He pushes his bass off of his body and abandons the instrument in favor of bounding over to the small girl.

"No!" Arlo protests. "I really was getting more people!"

It wasn't technically a lie. On her way across the street, she'd seen a group of college-aged guys on their way to a house party at the end of the street and convinced them to bring their friends over for the boy's performance.

Arlo didn't really realize that she could have asked those boys anything and they would have done it just to hang around her a little longer, but she was proud of herself for contributing to the band's audience nonetheless.

"Guys, I think we need a shot for courage... or five." Michael gulps. "Let's move this upstairs before I go crazy."

The group quickly agrees, except for Luke though he doesn't voice it. All he can think about is how Arlo hadn't said hi to him, let alone looked at him for more than a second and he really wanted to stay downstairs and away from the crowd so he could ask her about it.

Luke didn't give a fuck if it made him sound clingy or childish- he liked Arlo and he wasn't going to let another moment pass without letting her know that too.

But, he doesn't get a chance, for his bandmates drag the girl upstairs leaving him no choice but to follow behind. Luke watches warily as they lead her through the crowd to the kitchen where the drinks are.

Instantly, the boys are greeted by different people. Arlo stands helplessly in the kitchen, silently waiting for them to finish conversing. Luke notices, cursing under his breath as he pushes past the small group of people in the kitchen in order to get to her. The girl's eyes go wide as Luke approaches, almost as if she hadn't been expecting him.

The truth was, Arlo hadn't.

One of the major reasons why she made the executive decision to distance herself from Luke is because she knows how well known he is. Arlo assumed that the moment they walked upstairs Luke would be swarmed by girls and friends alike.

And he was.

But Luke didn't give a damn about the girls who were begging with their eyes for him to take them to the bathroom and fuck them senseless. He didn't bother responding to the shitty people who only seemed to want to be his friend when they were too drunk to form a coherent thought.

Luke was beginning to realize that he only cared about her.

"You didn't come to the bookstore yesterday or today." Luke speaks simply, opening a new bottle of tequila. He didn't trust the open ones, especially not if Arlo would be drinking from them.

Arlo winces. As hard as he had tried to disguise it, there was hurt in Luke's tone. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt him, she was just trying to protect her own heart. "I was busy hanging up posters."

Luke's blue eyes stare shamelessly at her, looking her right in her own brown eyes as if he could read her mind. She swallows thickly, feeling as though the tall walls she had spent the past few days building were beginning to crumble already.

His eyes had a way of doing that.

Luke exhales, forcing his eyes away from her pretty face in favor of staring at the drink he'd just poured himself. He brings the cup of tequila to his lips, beginning to scan the house full of hundreds of people. It unnerved him to no end that Arlo would be alone for an hour or so while he was on stage.

"If you want a drink before we play go ahead and let me know." Luke says, bracing his arms against the counter. "Don't even fucking think about taking a drink from somebody else, you understand?"

Arlo leans her back against the counter beside him, doing her best to not get caught up staring at his very attractive, very tempting, very muscular arms that are directly beside her. The harsh tone of his voice sends a shiver down her spine.

"I thought these were all your friends?" Arlo asks in confusion, looking around warily. If Luke was worried about people here, then she knew she better be too. "I didn't think I'd have to worry about something like that."

Luke's lips part as he looks down at the girl. He curses under his breath. She really had no fucking idea how bad the world was. At this realization, the urge to hold her close grows. Suddenly, Luke doesn't give a fuck about the gig- all he wants to do is protect her from the harsh world they were living in, to shield her from all the evil he could so she could stay so blissfully unaware forever.

"Arlo, we can't possibly know every single person in here." Luke explains gently, not wanting to scare her, but also needing to get his point across. "Even if we did, you don't trust anyone but me or the guys."

Arlo nods, subtly scooting closer to Luke. They're so close now that his side is just barely grazing hers. Even if she was planning on distancing herself, she couldn't help that he made her feel safe. And besides, some drunk guy had just stumbled into the kitchen and she didn't feel like getting puked on.

"I need words, Arlo." Luke gazes down at the girl, his fingertips practically itching to pull her even closer. But, he didn't know if she'd want that and the last thing he wanted to do was scare her off, so he grips the edge of the counter to ground himself.

"I won't." Arlo echoes, nodding firmly.

Luke's eyes darken at how effortlessly she obeys him. It wasn't his fault that he had a naturally dominant personality and seeing Arlo so... willing made his head spin. Despite her radio silence earlier, he could clearly see how she reacted to his words, to his mere presence.

Luke may not be the best at all of that feelings shit, but reading body language was something the boy had mastered. He knows exactly what it means when her breath hitches in her throat and her eyes go wide. Arlo was as easy to read as those books she always has her nose stuck in, even if she didn't know it.

And well, it was only fair that Luke used this knowledge to his advantage.

"You won't what?" Luke bites back a smirk as her breathing stutters at his tone, just as he knew it would. He anticipates the way her eyes draw to his lips as he takes his lip ring between his teeth.

In situations like this, Luke was in his fucking element.

"I won't take drinks from anyone but you or the boys." Arlo's voice is strained as she practically shakes under his gaze. Mentally she was cursing herself. All of the work she'd put into resisting him had been futile all along.

"That's my girl." Luke hums before throwing back the rest of his tequila.

Arlo watches his throat work as he swallows the alcohol without so much as a wince. The girl had never indulged in alcohol before, but suddenly a piece of her wonders how the substance would taste on his lips.

Her stomach drops at her own thought, combining with his words to create a lethal blow to the last of her resolve. She exhales shakily. Arlo accepts the fact that she is completely and utterly done for.

Luke turns to face her, his body towering over her own in a way that makes the girl's blood run hot. "Are you avoiding me?" He asks, catching her off guard.

Arlo nearly chokes on her breath, her mind reeling.

"Guys! It's time!" Michael yells from the other side of the counter, nodding his head towards the small stage that the boys had managed to set up in Calum's cleared living room.

Luke is suddenly thankful for the liquid courage running in his veins as he realizes that he would be playing for well over two hundred people. Out of those hundreds of people, there was still only one person's opinion he gave a fuck about, but that didn't make it any less nerve-wracking.

Luke exhales, shaking his head. "We're talking about this later." He says sternly, his hand ghosting her waist just enough to skim the fabric of her t-shirt. "C'mon I have a place for you to stand while we play."

"I thought I was just going to stand by the stage?" Arlo asks, having to raise her voice in order for him to hear her over the party."

Luke shakes his head, his fingers catching her wrist as he steers them through the crowd. A gasp gets caught in her throat as Luke leans down to speak to her, his wavy hair brushing her cheek. "I want to be able to see you while I play. I can't do that if you're off to the side, can I?"

"Well no- I guess not." Arlo stumbles over her words. She just can't think with Luke so close. It's impossible.

Luke leads her upstairs, the top floor being mostly vacant as everyone crowds downstairs in preparation for the live music. The upstairs balcony of Calum's house perfectly overlooks the living room, allowing Arlo a perfect view from the railing.

And well, Luke would be able to glance up any time he needed to and find her instantly rather than having to sort through the crowd downstairs.

As they reach the railing, Luke reluctantly releases her wrist. "Stay right here for me, okay?"

Arlo nods, though after remembering their earlier conversation she quickly responds. "I'll stay right here."

Luke fights back a groan. She's such a good fucking girl. He would have told her that too, just to see the way her cheeks heat at his praise, but the boys are frantically waving him down.

"Luke?" Just as Luke turns to leave, her voice stops him.

He whips his head around, eyes wide as his name falls from her lips. "Yeah?"

"You're gonna do great." Arlo smiles, shyly averting her eyes to the ground. "Really, you're amazing- the band is amazing."

The ghost of a smile tugs at Luke's lips and he sends the girl a wink. "Thank you, sweetheart. I'll be right back." And with that, the boy bounds down the stairs.

By the time the band takes the stage, Arlo still hasn't quite caught her breath from her interaction with Luke. She leans against the railing, her mind reeling as Michael steps up to the mic. "Good fucking evening!" The boy shouts excitably. "Our shitty band doesn't have a name yet, but we do have three songs for you!"

The crowd downstairs goes absolutely wild, causing a grin to tug at Arlo's lips. The boys already looked so happy, so perfect up on stage- as if they were meant to be there. She's proud of them already and they hadn't done much more than step onto the stage.

Calum steps up to the mic next, a grin on his face. "If there are any producers or business officials willing to give us a record deal please contact our manager Arlo Abbott!"