"I wish I didn't say what was in my head

Too complicated, or maybe I'm just jaded

My intuition contradicts what we had said

Forever always has an end

And I'm tired of keeping all my feelings to myself

Was undercover, playing cards that I'd been dealt

You spun me 'round in circles 'til I tripped and fell

I admit, I got addicted, now I'm sick as hell"

✰

"What the fuck did you just say to her?"

As a chill goes down Arlo's spine at the low tone of Luke's voice, she can't even imagine how the man in front of her must feel. The tone of Luke's voice was something she'd never want to be on the receiving end of- it was absolutely lethal.

Everything feels like it happens in slow motion.

Arlo doesn't cry. She doesn't yell at James or reach for Luke. She can't do anything but stand there and look wide-eyed at the man in front of her,

It's not until she feels Luke's hand curl around her arm does she finally snap out of her shock. She tears her eyes away from James, finding Luke looking down at her. His jaw is flexed so tightly she fears he might hurt his teeth, his entire body tense, and his blue eyes absolutely smoldering with fiery anger.

He was angrier than she'd ever seen him- by far.

Using his gentle grip on her arm, Luke urges her behind him. He takes a step in front of her, his strong back the only thing she can see as James begins spluttering out a reply. "It's just show business, Luke-"

"My relationship isn't fucking business. It's my goddamn life and you sure as hell don't get to dictate it. You don't get to threaten my girl. You don't get to fuck around with my life. You don't own me. I fucking pay you." Luke spits, although his voice never raises.

He wouldn't yell in front of her. He'd never raised his voice at her and he never would, not even if it wasn't directed at her.

Arlo almost wishes he would yell. His low tone left nothing for her to interpret and although his words seemed to be understanding, she had no idea what was going through his mind. Had he put the pieces together? Did he know what happened?

She doesn't even notice how her hand had begun to grip onto the material of his white t-shirt until Luke turns to face her. His eyes soften as he sees the fear in her eyes, wishing more than anything that he could comfort her. He just wanted to sit her down and talk through this but he was far too angry to do any of that at the moment.

"Wait for me outside, Lo." Luke nods his head towards the door.

Arlo takes a glance behind her, finding the rest of the band standing there looking equally as angry as Luke. She'd been too shocked to notice their arrival, but it was obvious they'd heard everything. Calum has his eyes narrowed at James, Michael looks warily at Luke, and Ashton's eyes are on her, full of worry for his best friend.

Arlo doesn't move- she doesn't feel like she can.

All she knows is she doesn't want to leave Luke's side. She doesn't even want him to yell at James. She just wants to go home- not home as in the apartment either. She wants to be in the bookstore with not a single worry in the world besides what they would eat for dinner.

Rationally, Arlo knows Luke needs to do what she can feel he's about to do. It's all in his stance, the way his fists are balled, the tension in his muscles. The only time she'd ever seen him like this was when some random guy got a little too handsy with her at one of Calum's parties and Luke ended the night with split knuckles.

She wants to stop him, but James took something from Luke too. He had a right to be angry. Even if Arlo didn't want him to lash out, she didn't feel entitled to try to change his mind.

"C'mon, Abbs." Calum says softly, reaching out his hand for her to take.

They were all looking at her like she was about to break and she didn't know why. Maybe her face showed devastation her numb system couldn't comprehend or maybe they'd just heard the way James spoke to her.

"I'm okay." She chokes out, not stepping an inch away from Luke. As badly as she knew he needed to handle his own anger, she didn't want to leave him.

Luke clenches his jaw even harder, reluctantly tearing his eyes away from the hateful man in front of him to look down at his girl. The mere look on her face was tempting him to take her hand and storm out of the label without looking back.

But, there was no way in hell James was getting away with this. Not if he was responsible for putting him through three years of heartbreak- not if he had the fucking nerve to threaten Arlo.

"Five minutes, Lo." Luke says just loud enough for her to her. He gently removes her hand from his shirt and takes it in his own, tracing over her skin soothingly. "Then we can go home."

To his relief, she nods, taking Calum's outstretched hand. Arlo allows Calum to wrap his arm around her shoulder and lead her out into the hall. Although, as she hears the door of the boardroom close, she refuses to go any further.

Calum pauses as she stops in her tracks. "There's a break room around the corner-"

"I don't want to leave him." Arlo chokes out. Her eyes find the closed door of the boardroom where Michael stands. Ashton must have slipped inside the boardroom with Luke.

Calum winces. He knew for a fact things were about to get ugly and Luke probably didn't want her to hear that. But, Arlo is a grown woman and he also wasn't about to tell the girl what she could and couldn't do.

And well, maybe he was a little nosy.

Just as Arlo opens her mouth to speak, a large crashing noise echoes from inside the boardroom, followed by a lot of shouting that causes her heart to fall straight to her stomach. In an instant, her feet are moving, carrying her towards the boardroom.

Although, before she can make it more than a few steps away from him, Calum gently wraps his hand around her wrist and stops her. "Arlo, I really don't think that's a good idea." He warns with a wince.

Her voice cracks, her brown eyes teary and vulnerable. "What if he's hurt?'

Calum exhales, scratching the back of his neck in a nervous gesture. "Listen, I don't think it's Luke that's hurt-"

Just as the words leave Calum's lips, the door of the boardroom flies open, nearly taking out poor Michael who had his ear pressed to the door listening. Matt runs up from behind them, spewing out a million questions as Ashton literally drags Luke out of the boardroom.

The first thing Arlo notices is the blood dripping from his knuckles, the skin busted and already beginning to bruise. How is he going to play his guitar with knuckles like that? He loves playing guitar. Those are the only thoughts running through her mind as she stares at the abrasions in shock.

Ashton's hands are wound tightly around Luke's midsection but that doesn't stop Luke from lunging towards James, who Arlo can't even see. Not that she wanted to see him in the first place.

Luke's blue eyes are wild as he struggles to get out of Ashton's grip, his hair messy, though thankfully there's not a single wound on him besides the self-inflicted ones on his knuckles. "You keep her fuckin' name out of your grimy fuckin' mouth." Luke spits, lunging one last time. "If I ever hear you talk about her in that way again I'll break your goddamn jaw. That's a promise."

Luke finally breaks out of Ashton's grip, though he doesn't make a move to go after James again. He shakes his head, his chest heaving as his eyes flick over to Arlo for a split second. "You want promo?" Luke laughs, the sound low and condescending.

"Postpone the fucking tour." Luke says, causing shock to run through every person in the room. "I'm not playing another show or doing a goddamn interview until he's fucking gone." Luke spits, turning to Matt. "I'm not coming back until his name is off of the goddamn contract and he's banned from the label."

Luke gives James one last lethal glance. "And if you can't do that, then our record deal is being terminated immediately. We're the number one band in the entire goddamn world. We've got labels falling at our fucking feet."

And with that, Luke storms down the hallway, making a beeline for his girl. Although the only thing he wants to do is take her in his arms, he doesn't want to risk staining her pretty dress.

"We're going home." Is all Luke says to Ashton before leading them toward the elevator. The curly-haired boy merely nods in understanding, giving Arlo a comforting glance as Calum's hand finds her shoulder in support.

The air in the elevator is thick as the band steps into the elevator together. No one really knew the whole story besides Arlo, but they'd all put the pieces together the best they could and they felt sick to their stomachs.

All of that heartbreak that both of them went through, three years of them being apart all because some prick had cornered Arlo.

Once the elevator reaches the bottom floor, Luke is pulling out his phone, typing something quickly. He slips his hand into Arlo's, completely forgetting the blood coating them as he leads them out of the label.

Luke whispers something to the band about calling them later and thanking Calum, but it's all static to her ears. She couldn't believe that had actually happened and most of all she couldn't believe how relieved she felt that finally, somebody knew.

Holding that secret in for three years was the most mentally destructive thing she'd ever done.

A car pulls up to the curb and Luke leads her inside, closing the door behind them. She knew he was probably regretting walking to the label instead of driving his car right about now. Arlo can feel the warmth of his body pressing against hers and she uses that feeling to ground her during the short ride to the apartment complex.

Not a word is shared between them as they take the elevator up to his apartment. Not even when Luke unlocks the door and leads them inside, the apartment so quiet she was sure she could hear his heart beating.

Arlo was on the verge of tears, though she doesn't let them spill. Luke wasn't talking to her, he wasn't even looking at her and it was making her nervous. She didn't think she could handle him being upset with her.

Luke leads them to the master bathroom and turns on the sink. He holds her hand under the hot water first, wincing as he sees the way his blood had transferred onto her skin. It was a fucked sort of metaphor in his opinion- his blood staining her untouched skin.

"Luke..." Arlo's voice cracks. She couldn't take the silence anymore.

Luke exhales, turning off the sink once his knuckles are washed off enough to not look like he'd just murdered someone. "Why didn't you tell me?" Is all he says, his blue eyes burning into her own.

His gaze is almost too much- the look in his eyes neither angry nor pleased. He was unreadable and it made Arlo's stomach twist in fear of losing him when she'd just gotten him back.

Arlo shrugs, her bottom lip trembling as she balls her fists in order to hold back the emotion begging to spill over. "I was scared." She confesses honestly, her voice so vulnerable sounding that Luke swears he feels his heart crack.

His eyes soften, his hands finding her waist as he leans her back against the counter, slotting himself between her parted legs. "Baby," Luke says exasperatedly, his hand cupping her jaw. "You should have told me. I would have-"

Arlo shakes her head, taking her bottom lip harshly between her teeth. "Things were different three years ago, Luke. The band was just starting and we were only eighteen-"

"The fact that I was eighteen years old doesn't change the fact that I would have burned the world for you if you asked." Luke cuts her off swiftly, his voice genuine.

"I don't know what else I have to do to make you understand that the band is nothing compared to you. You are always my first priority, Arlo." His thumbs swipe under her eyes catching the moisture that had pooled there. "I don't give a fuck about fame or hit singles, I want you here. Safe, and happy with me."

Arlo's heart crawls up her throat, emotion suffocating her. "I didn't want you to have to choose." She confesses, the first tears finally falling from her eyes. "I knew you would choose me and I didn't want to be the reason you threw away your career. I didn't want to hold you back by being boring-"

"What the fuck did you just say?" Luke asks, disbelief lacing his tone. "Boring? God, Arlo is that what he told you?"

Her silence is the only answer he needs.

Luke's heart aches at the thought of her living with these self-deprecating thoughts for three years. He pulls her closer, his eyes softening as he does his best to push all of the anger from his body and focus on her. "Tell me everything he told you and I'll give you a million reasons why whatever he said isn't true."

And she does.

Luke listens quietly as she gets everything off her chest. Arlo spills all of the thoughts that had been haunting her from the words James put in her head, the insecurities that had been festering in the back of her mind.

And just as he said he would, Luke gives her as many reasons as she allows him to prove to her why James couldn't have been more wrong.

By the time Arlo has everything off of her chest, both of them have tears staining their cheeks. Luke kisses her forehead as he holds her against his body with more care than he ever had before- like if he loved her hard enough it might heal the three years' worth of emotional wounds James had caused.

"Arlo, baby." Luke says quietly, his voice hoarse from crying.

"Yeah?" She answers instantly, her voice scratchy as she picks up her head from his chest.

Luke's hands travel up and down her back, his blue eyes holding so much adoration as they look down at her. "Let's go pack a bag. We're going back to the bookstore for a while."