#Charlotte antonakis

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [2.6]

Masterlist

A/N: The finals season is wrapping up and I'm almost finished all my projects, but I still got lots of content I'll be banging out over the holiday break. Thanks as always for sticking around!

Warnings: none

--

Charlotte could draw many parallels between Toronto and New York: tall-ass skyscrapers, streets shrouded with people all with more important places to be, homeless who begged for money on every block and a niche of street food and culture to indulge in. 

After the two hour flight into Canada, the bands took the day to decompress before their show the next day. The hotel they were staying at was beautiful, and a perk to staying in a gorgeous hotel in the dead of summer was the rooftop pool -- which Maria practically begged the girls to come with her for a 'pool day'. 

A pool day sounded like just the thing Charlotte was due for. Her hands were cramped from clutching pens and her fingers were blistered from working on the guitar so much -- a break was overdo. 

She stood in the illustriously well-lit bathroom, admiring her slim physique in the little black bikini she'd slipped on. It was a newer piece that Maria had picked out for her on a recent shopping trip, and while Charlotte wasn't so keen on how little it covered at first, the more she looked at it on her the more she liked it. 

Tying her hair into a half-assed bun, Charlotte exited the bathroom to find Chloe still lying on the bed, texting and smiling like a mad man. She didn't pay much attention to her bandmate, but Charlotte didn't mind. She watched the galaxy-haired drummer with a coy smile as she slipped on a yellow sundress.

The last time Chloe looked this giddy was just before the band had taken off -- about three years ago, now. She hadn't had much luck in the way of romance since her career had skyrocketed, much like the other girls, she was always busy traveling, tracking, writing. And when she did meet a potential interest, it didn't forego more than a week when Chloe would either loose interest or she would be ghosted for no apparent reason. 

"Who ya' talking to, Smiley?" Charlotte asked.

"Jeff the Killer," Chloe replied.

Charlotte nodded, "Well, maybe you can take two minutes away from Eva and go get your swim suit on? Before we get assaulted with Amber alerts?"

At the mention, Chloe set down her phone and glanced at the singer, "Do you think it's too early to be sending bathing suit pics?" she asked. 

Charlotte simpered, "Um -- it's been about a week, so I'd say so. Does she follow your insta?"

"Yeah,"

"Then just post it there," 

Chloe smiled, "Ah ha! The subtle thirst trap! You're a genius!"

I'm not so sure 'subtle' is affiliated with any social media, Charlotte thought to herself.

"Thank you," she replied. 

Chloe changed into her own electric red one-piece and shorts, and the girls quickly went to meet their friends at the pool. They caught a glimpse of the elevator just as it was beginning to close, growing cause for the girls to sprint. 

"Hold the door!" Chloe called. 

A hand extended out of the gap and held the doors open for the girls to rush in. And lo and behold, Luke and Michael were in the elevator as well. 

"Hey, fancy meeting you guys here," Luke grinned.

"Funny how we just keep running into each other," Charlotte smirked, "As it by fate,"

Chloe meanwhile glared down at Michael's swim trunks, "Nice shorts, Mikey," 

Michael glanced down at his blue swimmers, printed with little silhouettes of fish and turtles -- sure, at first glance they may have been more suited for a child rather than a twenty-year-old man. But Michael liked them, so what?

He, as well as Luke and Charlotte, waited anxiously for another snarky remark from Chloe, but she just looked straight ahead. She said nothing. 

"And?" he asked. 

"And what?" Chloe turned to him.

"No follow up?" 

Chloe smiled, "Oh, I have a follow up. I'm just in a good mood right now," 

"Oh,"

"... If I wasn't in a good mood, I'd ask why you were skimming through the children's section at Walmart for swim trunks," Chloe went on.

Luke snapped his fingers, "There it is," 

The pool wasn't the only highlight of the hotel's rooftop. Aside from umbrella seats, a canopy bar and a hot tub, the kids had a stunning view of downtown Toronto. Not as infinite as Tokyo and not as imperialistic as Vienna, the skyline of glass buildings reflected off of one another, creating a beautiful ripple of blues and teals that crashed against the cloudless sky above. 

Maria and Kimberly were already laid out on deck chairs, soaked in sunscreen, rays and bikini clad. Across from them were Ashton and Calum, partaking in a game of ping pong. There were no other guests on the deck, meaning they had the pool to themselves for a while.

 Kimberly pried her eyes open when she felt a shadow fall over her, scrunching her eyes and blocking the sun with her hand to find Charlotte and Chloe standing over her. The material of her own navy blue two-piece glinted in the rays.

"Yes?" she raised an eyebrow at them, prompting Maria to look over.

"You guys are no fun," Chloe chided.

"No fun? We were waiting for you," Maria said, her voice a little gravelly. 

"Our bad, but somebody just couldn't stop texting another particular somebody," Charlotte winked at the girls. Kimberly awed up at Chloe.

"Aw, how's Eva?" she asked.

"Wishing she was here instead of Syracuse, I imagine," Chloe replied, taking the deck chair next to her. Charlotte took the one on the other side of Maria, both of them stripping back down to their bikinis. 

"You guys have been talking for how long, now?" Maria asked.

"Just under a week," Chloe replied.

"And it's constant," Charlotte remarked, "I think we have reasons to be optimistic," 

"We can start getting optimistic after the three week mark. If you don't scare her away, I'll be so proud of you," Kimberly told her.

Chloe simpered back, "Your confidence in me is astounding," 

At the other end of the pool, Luke was just pulling off his t-shirt and unpacking his backpack. He had his iPhone with an audiobook he thought he would try out. He could hear his mom's voice in his head, reminding him to be sure he put on lots of sunscreen. It was ironic how he came from one of the hottest continents in the world, and yet he was as pasty as a soy bean. 

When he turned back around, reaching as best he could to slather sunscreen on his back, his line of sight fell on Charlotte. Her yellow sundress had disappeared and she was clad in a black triangle bikini, contrasting against her natural olive skin that seemed to glow under the sun. Her shapely legs crossed one in front of the other as she hunched over to shake out her hair. He had to swallow the lump in his throat when she suddenly swung around in his direction, not realizing that he'd been caught staring when his eyes locked with hers. If he had a clear view of Charlotte than she had a clear view of him. 

He smiled sheepishly and waved, a tint of blush covering his face. Charlotte shook her head at him with a little smirk and put up her middle finger. Though she wasn't exactly innocent in the staring department either, and how could she not be?

"Eyes to yourself!" Chloe suddenly shouted, having caught Luke staring, too. Her outburst drew the attention of everyone else. 

Ashton giggled to himself, therefore missing Calum's backhand. The ping pong ball whizzed right by his face.

"I win!" Calum declared.

"You do not!" Ashton countered, "That went out of bounds,"

"We didn't set an out of bounds!" Calum argued. 

Ashton pointed to one of the potted plants behind him, "Yes we did. We agreed if it landed after the tree on my side, or the towel rack on your side, then it's out. Besides, Chloe distracted me,"

"Oh, boo hoo," Calum chided back, "Sore loser," 

With the others distracted, Michael took the opportunity to take a running start and do a cannon ball into the pool -- effectively splashing everybody within a metre of him. Maria and Kimberly were violently ripped from their sun bath with icy cold water droplets, while Chloe hid behind her deck chair and Charlotte covered her head. 

"Michael!" Kimberly scolded, sitting up in a huff. The guitarist remerged from the water, rubbing chlorine from his eyes and shaking out his drenched hair.

"The water's fine, guys! Come on in!" he replied.

Luke shook his head at his hyperactive friend, mouthing a 'sorry' at Charlotte before jumping in himself. Charlotte made good to stand back this time -- the other girls weren't so lucky.

"Oh, come on guys!" Maria whined, wiping cold water off her legs, "A little warning would suffice!"

Charlotte couldn't help but laugh at her friends. Sure, they were trying to have a relaxing afternoon in the sun, but hey, a pool was a pool. And since no one else was around...

Kimberly saw it coming this time, and she moved off the deck chair just in time as Charlotte jumped in after the boys. Maria grimaced when more water splattered across her face.

"Where's my --" Chloe then cannon-balled in, sending water everywhere once again, "... towel?"

There was an assortment of balls and blow up floats for the bands to fool around with -- though given the colours of the toys they were very well meant for little kids. Never the less, a game of volleyball ensued in the pool, with Charlotte and Chloe on one team and Luke and Michael on the other. Calum and Ashton's ping pong game was still in full swing, considering that Ashton demanded a rematch. Kimberly kept the score this time around and they set the boundary lines. 

Luke pitched the rubber ball to Chloe, who bunted it over to Charlotte, who spiked it back at Michael. However, Michael miscalculated where the ball would land and ended up getting knocked in the face. He fell back into the water.

"Oh, shit!" but he emerged quickly, rubbing at his nose and eyes. All attention around the pool was directed at the sudden injury. 

"You okay, mate?" Luke swam over to him. 

"Mike, I'm so sorry!" Charlotte exclaimed, thinking the worst she'd done was bruise his eye or cheek. And God knows they'd have fun explaining a heinous mark to their managers.

Michael pushed the water off his face with his hands and pushed back his sopping hair, looking dazed as he glanced around the pool, "Where am I?" he then glanced at Luke, "My God, are you gorgeous," he then broke out into a smile. Luke rolled his eyes.

"He's fine," he assured the girls, grabbing the ball and handing it to him, "Your serve,"

Meanwhile, the ping pong game was getting heated. Kimberly's head was practically moving in sync with the little white ball as it bounced between Ashton and Calum. Ashton was determined to knocked the ball past Calum but he was a swift opponent. At the next pass, Calum batted the ball just a little too hard however.

The little white ball whizzed past Ashton's head this time, only instead of hitting the ground it flew over the deck and over the railing... over downtown. The boys were stunned, Kimberly was at a loss for how to call the game. 

"So... who wins?"

They both stared down a stunned Kimberly, who only shrugged as she racked her logic, "Okay... the ball is technically... definitely out. Ashton wins by default," she decided. 

"Yes!" Ashton rejoiced, throwing his hands up. 

Calum just shook his head and threw his paddle down, going instead for the neon green floatie, "It's too hot for ping pong anyway," he slipped the floatie around his waist and took off in a little run.

"Go Calum!" Michael chanted. Calum reached the edge of the pool, but instead of a grandiose jump he simply chose to hop in. He didn't even get his head past the water thanks to the floatie. The boys broke into fits of giggles.

Maria just shook her head, "What? You afraid to get your hair wet?" she called.

Calum smirked at her, "Are you, Little Miss Sunshine?"

Maria rolled her eyes, opting to stand up and proudly show off her purple bikini set. Calum subconsciously licked his lips, which didn't go unnoticed by Luke. Maria stood at the deep end of the pool, did a little bow, and dived in gracefully. She emerged a few seconds later, shaking out her raven black hair. 

"Beat that, Marty Mc-Floatie!" she smirked at Calum. 

Ashton did some flexes and bending before he took his running start, ready to make another big splash. However, he didn't count on Michael. hucking the rubber ball at him as he jumped in. The ball nailed him square in the chest and instead of a pencil dive he just flailed in. 

"Michael!" the girls scolded. Ashton made a quick recovery, glaring over at his bandmate.

"Fuck you!" he pretended to cry, clinging to Luke in pity. Luke held him tightly.

"It's okay, honey, he didn't mean it," 

Kimberly pushed some of her dreadlocks over her shoulder, nervous to get them wet. It wasn't so much getting them wet that was the problem, but the drying process could be pretty tedious depending on the day.  

"Come on, Kim!" Chloe urged.

"Do you know how much of a bitch it is to do my hair when it gets wet?" she replied. 

In his peripherals Luke spotted another large floatie: a raft, to be specific. He had a brilliant idea, then. He swam to the other edge of the pool and retrieved it, pushing it towards Kimberly.

"Here!" he called, "Use this!" 

Kimberly smiled at him, "Thanks Luke," she quickly tied back her dreads and sat on the edge. Luke and Calum held the inflatable raft steady so she could wiggle on top, laying on her stomach and paddling over to meet her friends. Her hair was safe. 

Much of the afternoon was spent splashing about. They played a couple round of volleyball and then tried to play a game of Marco Polo. Emphasis on tried to. Poor Calum was picked to 'Marco', but the others devised to slip out of the water quietly all while shouting 'Polo'. 

"Marco!" he called tirelessly, his eyes squeezed shut as he hopped from spot to spot.

"Polo!" Chloe called back, helping Kimberly off of the raft. 

"Marco!" Calum called again.

"Polo!" Ashton quietly sat back on a deck chair and threw his hands behind his head. Calum's patience was wearing thin. He should've at least tapped someone out by now. Calum waded through the pool for a good five minutes before he realized everyone was cheating. 

"You wankers," he muttered, understandably miffed when his friends started laughing. 

At some point, Charlotte took to clambering back to the edge of the deck for a dry spell. She sat on the ledge and let her feet dangle in the water. Just as soon as she slathered on some more sunscreen, Luke had come to sit beside her. He had with him a cold bottle of water that he offered to her.

"Thanks," she smiled at him, "You want some SPF 50?" 

"I'll pass," he shook his head politely. Charlotte raised an eyebrow at him, having heard those words many a times before Luke would be complaining of sunburn hours later.

"Famous last words," she teased. Luke stuck out his tongue. 

Chloe and Ashton were still in the pool, facing off against Maria and Calum in a fierce game of chicken. Kimberly just watched from her raft, sipping a bottle of orange juice while Michael played referee. 

Luke kept his glance on Charlotte, she couldn't help but shiver as water droplets slid down her spine. She was a sight to behold under the sun, her golden skin ablaze against the sharp black fabric of her bikini, and she had some makeup that stained beneath her eyes but Luke didn't point it out. She looked really cool, actually.

"How're you doing?" he asked, not having much of a chance to talk to since they took off again. Really talk, the way they used to. 

"I'm wet," Charlotte replied, unable to keep the smug smile off her face. Luke rolled his eyes.

"No shit," he grinned, "I mean really, though. What's going on with you?" 

Charlotte shrugged, "Nothing. I'm stuck on the road with a bunch of crackheads for three whole months. Other than that... I guess I'm just -- existing,"

"Existing?" 

"Yeah. I'm here, but lately I feel that I haven't been here," she pointed to her head. 

Luke's smile fell a little, "Has Ben been bothering you again?" 

"No," she shook her head, "No, I think he finally got the hint,"

Luke sighed and looked down at his hands, his face tinting red but not from the sun, "You know..." he spoke after a small moment of silence. Charlotte glanced at him and sipped from her water. He laughed nervously, "You're gonna think I'm a cheese puff or something but -- I'm really fucking grateful for you, Char," 

Charlotte broke into a flattered smile, "I'm really grateful for you, too,"

"But seriously," Luke said, "I feel like I don't thank you enough for everything you do for me. No one else would do the things you do for me, no one else tries me happy like you do and you have no idea how much you mean to me. And I know I dicked around on ya a couple weeks ago --"

"-- Water under the bridge," Charlotte said, her heart burning in her chest. She had no idea where this was coming from. 

"But the fact is I don't know what I did to deserve you and I need you to know how fucking grateful I am for you... even when I don't deserve to have you in my life. And if you feel like you can't talk to me about shit 'cause I'll judge you, I won't. I'll always take care of you. You're my best friend and I don't know what I'd do without you," 

Charlotte bit the inside of her lip, willing away the stinging sensation in the back of her eyes, "Jesus Christ," she wrapped her arms around him. She never expected him to say anything like that to her, especially because it was the exact way she felt about him. 

"Am I corny?" he chuckled, hugging her tightly. None of them cared that they were just skin-to-skin in midday. She smelled so sweetly of grapefruit intermingled with bitter chlorine.

"No, you're perfect," Charlotte laughed, "If anything, I'm the one that's grateful for you. No one puts up with my stupidity and shit like you do. I don't know how you do it, honestly,"

Luke snickered and shook his head, pushing some of her wet hair behind her ear, "You're not stupid. You're far from it, Shorty," 

Charlotte smiled and punched his arm, "If the others heard us they'd take the piss out of us so hard right now," 

Luke rolled his eyes, "Like I told you before, they're just jealous of us, "

"Always gotta' be a fucking optimist, don't ya?" Charlotte huffed.

"Always gotta throw in a fucking curse, don't ya?" Luke shrugged. 

Charlotte glared back, and before Luke knew it he had been shoved into the pool. When he resurfaced Charlotte was in a fit of giggles while he sputtered and coughed up chlorine. 

"And here we were having a moment!" 

#luke hemmings #luke hemming imagines #luke hemmings x reader #luke 5sos #calum hood imagines #calum 5sos #calum hood #ashton 5sos #ashton irwin #michael 5sos #michael clifford #catch the caper #5 seconds of summer #5 second of summer imagines #5 seconds of smut #5sos fanfic #5sos #original story #original female character #Charlotte antonakis #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [2.4]

Masterlist

A/N: Happy Nov 1st everyone! Spooky season is over, my cold is gone and I have a renewed energy to push out some more overdue content while on my reading break. Hope you all enjoy and don't forget to like, comment and reblog ;)

Warnings: mentions of depression, abandonment, attachment issues, family drama

"You see all the world to believe

That there's a lot inside of me But it's time that I'll come clean I'm not what I seem, no Some would say I'm possessed, yeah But I'll confess, I've just been obsessed With life and death and emptiness, I guess Can't you see all of the change in me?You took these starving limbs, try to see Try to see what they could be I thought it would be something I thought you'd complete me That you'd erase all the pain that I felt in my brain If you fill my heart with love Then you'd fill my voids above

And now you see I didn't change a thing"

Maria listened to the recording word-for-word, her heart breaking with every sorrowful note Charlotte sang. She knew Charlotte was a little fragile, but hearing this made her fret beyond words. 

Charlotte meanwhile sat on Maria's bed, clutching her velvet body pillow as she patiently awaited Maria's critiques. Maria pulled the headset off and pushed away from her desk, staring at Charlotte with overwhelming concern.

"That's really fucking deep," she gasped, "When did you write this?"

"Last night," Charlotte admitted, "I got a little drunk and... then I got creative," 

It was evident she was changing, using her complex emotions to weave lyrical mastery. Maria was beyond impressed, she was also scared for her. 

Maria got up from the desk chair and came to sit with her friend on the bed, holding her tightly. She was spooked, Charlotte had a side to her that was much darker and heavier than any of the girls had witnessed during their first EP and album. Maria wanted desperately to take all complexities away, yearning for the days when they'd tease Charlotte about her and Luke's friendship and when Charlotte would tell them all to buzz off. She remembered Charlotte being happier, lighter a year and a half ago.

But she also wasn't happy then, either.

God knew how many mountains it would take before Charlotte would finally find the happiness and peace she wanted. And it was clear that what was once a cute and platonic friendship had stemmed into something that was twisting Maria's best friend inside out and back again. 

"Charlotte," she spoke quietly, "What happened yesterday?" 

Charlotte wiped her nose on her sweater sleeve, she was ironically chilled since it was the dead of summer now. 

"Luke was supposed to come by. We're working on the song I showed you last week, thinking maybe we'd perform it at a couple shows," she huffed quietly, "He stood me up. He called me hours later to apologize but -- I don't know. Maybe I'm just making mountains out of mole hills?"

"What is it?" Maria asked, "Talk to me babe, I don't like seeing you like this," 

Charlotte shrugged, "I just got this idea that he was afraid to be talking to me. He was almost whispering, like he'd be in trouble if..."

"... If Melody knew he was talking to you?" Maria asked. Charlotte scoffed.

"I mean -- you're whispering into the phone while your girlfriend is in the next room? I'm not your damn mistress! I'm your friend! I've been there for him longer than Melody ever has!" 

Maria grabbed her by the shoulders, smoothing out the ripples in her cardigan, "I know Lottie, I know," she nodded, "Do you think maybe that's the problem, though? Melody maybe feels threatened by you?" 

Guilt wormed its way back into Charlotte's gut, her chest tightening. She was selfish, jealous, and yeah, she was definitely needy. 

"I want what's best for Luke, and she thinks she also knows what's best for him but -- I mean, every time they have a fight I'm the one he comes to. I'm the one he escapes with. I --"

"He uses you," Maria stated calmly, "And it's not fair to you. Not with the way you're feeling,"

Charlotte was taken aback, but a little relieved, seeing that someone else could see it to, "Maria..."

Maria shook her head, "You used him just as much as he uses you. It's not his fault, or yours. You're not bad people. But Luke is naive; and so were you for a little while. Melody still has her hooks in Luke and winds him tighter than a bobbin, so the poor kid doesn't know what do to,"

Charlotte sighed heavily, "I mean -- she must be phenomenal in bed or something. I just -- I can't figure it out. Why does he stay with her?"

"For the same reason you stay with Luke," Maria replied. Charlotte found it odd how she spoke in present tense.

"Stay?"

Maria listed off her fingers, "You recognize you're in a complicated situation. You have complicated feelings. You think Luke will give you everything you want. But you won't point out the trouble -- stir the pot, so the speak -- because you're afraid he's going to leave you. Just like Ben did," 

"I'm in a cycle," Charlotte finally admitted, "And I don't know how to stop it," 

"You need to find a way to break it," Maria nodded, looking down despondently, "And maybe that means taking some time off from Luke," 

Charlotte's eyes went wide, "Dude, we're back on the road in days," 

"I know," Maria nodded, "But you don't need to spend so much time with him. Not if it's going to cause you all this grief,"

"I don't have grief when I'm with him --"

"You have grief when he lets you down," Maria acknowledged, "Believe me, you're not the only girl in the world to be fucked over by men -- and their sadistic girlfriends,"

Maria loved Luke like a brother, but even she had to admit that he could be a little asshole at times. What, with the way that he used Charlotte: hiding at her place, confiding in her over and over and still letting her down. He was a good guy, yeah, but he wasn't her priority. Maria would step onto a third rail for Charlotte before Luke any day. 

And as for Melody, Maria would gladly clock her over the head with a Yellow Pages. Who the hell did she think she was? Dictating who Luke could and couldn't speak to? Making Charlotte feel so unwelcome when she was here first! She was the one who kept Luke's head together -- and maybe that was how the cycle could break? 

Charlotte needed to stop being so available.

"Men are a plague on all logical reason and thought," Charlotte huffed, lying back onto the duvet. Maria laid back with her.

"And no matter what, we're cursed to want to love them," she said, grasping Charlotte's cold hand, "... But we also need to protect ourselves from them,"

♛♛♛

This time around, Charlotte dreaded having to go back on tour. She believed Maria was right in that she needed some time apart from Luke. And yet, they'd be stuck together for three straight months, confined in tiny buses and green rooms. 

At least they were starting close to home -- New York State. On their way to Uncasville, Charlotte stopped back in Brooklyn for a couple days; knowing Troy wouldn't care so much but Penelope would give her the classic 'Greek Guilt' for not visiting. 

The Antonakis family sat at the dinner table, silently albeit. Troy was picking at his peas and carrots while Charlotte craved a cold beer as opposed to the glass of water her mom stuck to her. Penelope was noisily and obnoxiously cutting into her chicken breast, annoyed that her kids were being so quiet. 

"So, Charlotte," she finally said, "How was Europe?"

Charlotte glanced at Penelope, perplexed that she only asked after three dragging hours, "Beautiful," she answered truthfully, "We went to Vienna, Berlin, Rome..." 

"Did you see Hitler's bunker?" Troy asked, now more engaged than before.

"Yeah," Charlotte nodded, "It's a parking lot. No memorials or nothing. Just a dirty, greasy lot," 

"How fitting," Penelope nodded, "And the girls are okay?"

"They're great," she replied, "We're working on some new music,"

"You know what you're doing now?" Troy asked smugly.

Charlotte glowered at him, "Yes, Mr. Smartass," 

"And those boys you're traveling with?" Penelope finally asked, "Where are they from, England?"

"Australia," both Charlotte and Troy replied.

"Oh, that's right," Penelope grinned, "A bunch of koala huggers,"

Troy glanced listlessly at his mom, "I want to hold a koala someday,"

"They all carry diseases, darling. That's the last thing you want," Penelope warned.

"You can hang out with koalas at the zoo," Troy pointed out.

"That's the Central Park Zoo. They've all been sterilized," she replied promptly. 

Charlotte shook her head, "I feel like I'm in a zoo, sometimes," she muttered quietly. 

"And you excited for school, Troy?" Penelope asked, "Still floundering away in... what am I paying for, again?"

"Communications," Troy glared at his mom, "And I'm footing half the bill now," 

"Oh of course, that's right," Penelope turned to Charlotte, less than impressed, "Our baby boy has a job now," 

"Really?" Charlotte was surprised, if not a little relieved. He had to start paying back his student loans somehow and it was about time he pulled up his socks, "Where?"

"The pizza shop down the road. You make great tips," Troy grinned.

"He's the delivery boy," Penelope said, "Finally has an excuse to get that rusty old bike out of the yard," 

"That's great, Troy," Charlotte smiled.

"Thank you,"

"Now if only we could change his taste in loose women, then I'd be happy," Penelope said. 

Troy dropped his fork, the utensil clattered loudly against the porcelain, "I told you, I stopped seeing her," he sang sarcastically.

"And you still don't tell me where you go at night," Penelope mocked back. 

Charlotte glared between the both of them, "You just told me he's a delivery boy for a pizza shop," she said.

Penelope scoffed, "Oh, no. He has the day shifts. At night he's out at all hours and comes back early in the morning. Doesn't say where he's been but I always smell sex on him," she glowered at her son.

Troy rolled his eyes and turned to his sister, "Can I please come on tour with you?" Charlotte shook her head. 

"I'll stop getting after you when you tell me where you go at night," Penelope said.

"Why don't you stop trying to insert yourself into my life? You're like a stalker, mom!" Troy bit back, "You're a creep!" 

"Troy!" Charlotte scolded.

"I told you, if you weren't going to be truthful with me, then I'll find out for myself," Penelope told him. 

"That's bullshit!"

"Oh my God, you guys!"

"No swearing in my house!" Penelope scolded, "If you don't like my rules, then you can go live somewhere else,"

Troy, now red in the face, pushed himself away from the table and stood, "Fine, I will. Psycho!" he then stormed out. Two seconds later he stormed back in and grabbed his dinner plate, then stormed out again. 

Charlotte put her face in her hands; her crackhead family was the last thing she needed to deal with right now. Penelope shook her head and kept on eating.

"He'll be back," she sighed, "He left his phone on the chair," she also had a rule about having no phones at the table.

Charlotte shook her head, "I don't get why you're so hard on him," she said, "He's nineteen for God sakes,"

Penelope scoffed back, "And he's a boy. And I trust the opposite sex about as far as I can throw them," 

"Mom, that's ridiculous," she sighed, "Men are -- dumb, yeah -- but they're not all out to hurt you,"

"Oh no? How do you explain your father?" she glowered, "Up and left when you were seven years old! Totting off with a little Russian floozy at the Meat Packing District --"

"I know, mom! I know what happened, and we haven't seen Dad in years," Charlotte nodded, now getting irritated. It was the same story over and over whenever one her kids acted out; she'd guilt them into remembering how their father left and how they had to swear never to turn out to be deadbeats like him. 

Penelope snorted, "Old fool. Didn't even come crawling back when his baby scratched the skies of success -- and making us some actual money," 

Charlotte was unsure where her mom was veering off now, "... Is this some misguided attempt to get me to pay for Troy's tuition?"

"No," Penelope shook her head, "I have they money to pay for all of it. Let him think he's being a man, though. That boy has no idea what the world's gonna' do to him," 

Charlotte pressed her lips together, "Well, maybe he would if you would... I don't know... loosen the leash a little," 

Penelope glared at her with shock, "Loosen the leash? You give 'em an inch, they take a mile. You can't trust men, Charlotte,"

"Well, Troy's not going to trust you if you don't let him breath a little," Charlotte argued, "What is it with you? You sound like you don't like men at all!" 

"Charlotte, I love your brother!" she hissed back, her posture softening a little, "He's my baby. He's all I got left of your father -- and you. You're gone a lot, especially this year. And the more successful you get, the longer you'll be gone. Is it so bad for me to not want to be alone as I get older?"

Charlotte swallowed the lump in her throat. In her mom she could recognize the very issues she was dealing with: abandonment. Maybe this was where all her issues stemmed from, but like Penelope she wanted to keep the people she cherished so much as close to her as possible, even if they didn't reciprocate her feelings. She didn't smother Troy because she was a control freak, but because she didn't want to be alone. Her husband had disappeared off the grid and her daughter was touring from continent to continent, of course she would be a little lonely. 

"Mom, you're not alone," Charlotte finally said, "You'll always have Troy and I -- even if we are half-way across the world. But -- smothering your kids is just bound to drive them away, and then you'll definitely be alone. We love you, but you make it really hard for us to like you. And when you get all crazy on us, we don't want to be around you, so of course you're going to feel alone,"

Penelope stared despondently at her chicken and veggies, letting her daughter's words slowly sink in, "I've been driving you all away?" she said quietly.

"I wouldn't necessarily say 'driving us away', but you need to calm down. Let Troy be a nineteen-year-old kid. Men are naive, yeah, but they're not all out to hurt us. We are all trying to navigate the world for ourselves so we do what we think is right for us. And in Troy's mind, the further he get away from you, the happier he'll be," Charlotte said, "Give him some to breathe, and he'll come back," 

Penelope nodded slowly, "Maybe you're right, honey," she sighed, then she reached over and grabbed Troy's phone from the empty chair, "Besides, he has to come back anyway. That boy's life revolves on this thing,"

♛♛♛

Charlotte sat on the rooftop, smoking a joint and looking out over Brooklyn by night. The bridge was illuminated in bright blue lamps that casted diamond-esque reflections over the rippling water. Cars buzzed through the dark like fire flies, and someone had their wood-burning stove running, the comforting scent of a camp fire was floating through the air. It was cooler now than it had been earlier, summers in New York were exceptionally hot and the night was the only refuge you could get if you didn't have an AC. 

Penelope had been quiet most of the night, when Charlotte went up she was still sitting on the couch and watching Jeopardy, waiting for Troy to come home and apologize. On the one hand, Charlotte was relieved she could talk some sense into her overzealous mother, on the other hand, she couldn't wait to get back on the road and away from her family. There was too much drama she just didn't want to cope with at the time. 

Speaking of drama, she jumped when her phone rang beside her. Her heart sank when she saw Luke was calling her -- again. He had been trying to get in contact with her since they landed in New York, but Charlotte was taking Maria's advice and staving off her friend. Maybe he'd think she was mean, maybe that she was a bitch for ignoring him? Fine. 

She was upset, and she had every right to be. Her brain was doing somersaults, trying to weed out ways in which she could just turn her emotions for him off. She wanted to go back to way things were before, when Luke was nothing more to her than a goofball who liked penguins and sending ridiculous snapchats her way. When her stomach didn't sink every time he was near her. 

Charlotte ignored the call and continued to smoke, but the joint didn't seem to want to do its job tonight. If anything, it only made her think about Luke more. What was she going to say to him when they finally would have to meet up? Sorry, your girlfriend is a cunt and she's not going to dictate whether or not we can friends. By the way, I also happen to be in love with you and could treat you way better than she ever could. 

No, Charlotte shook her head, it's safer for you if you just keep your mouth shut. 

Inexplicably, her phone rang again. Luke was relentless this time, and Charlotte's patience was running thin. She reluctantly picked up the call.

"Hi," she greeted quietly.

She heard exhale on the other side, "You are mad with me, aren't you?" it hurt to hear because his voice was smooth velvet, and you could hear the disappointment in his voice. 

"... I'm not happy," Charlotte admitted. 

"I should've called you earlier, I know," he said, "I didn't mean to stand you up, Char, honestly,"

"I know," Charlotte nodded, "Luke, it's not just that, though,"

"What is it, then?" he seemed a little impatient now, "Charlotte, you've been ignoring me for days,"

"I know," 

"Did I do something?" that was a rhetorical question. So many things, and yet nothing at all. She just wanted to scream that it wasn't him that was the problem. 

"Luke... I got some shit I'm just trying to deal with," she kept it as vague as possible, "My family is stressing me out, I'm scrambling to get a song produced by November, I have to live out of a suitcase for the next three months, I just --" she trailed off quietly, unsure of what it was she wanted to say.

"Talk to me," Luke begged, "What's going on, Charlotte? You can always talk to me," 

Oh, how I wish that were true, now.

"I need to figure some things out, is all. So, maybe for the next little while... you wouldn't mind giving me some space?" Charlotte whimpered out meekly. 

The line was quiet, but she could still hear him breathing. She figured his mind was racing, trying to piece together what Charlotte was trying to say but she doubted he would know.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked again, "'Cause I never want to hurt you," 

"This isn't about you, Luke," Charlotte lied again, "It has more to do with me," 

"Okay," he finally relented, "If I did anything, then I'm really sorry, Charlotte,"

How is it always about him?

"I know, Luke," she swallowed nervously, "I'll see on Friday?"

"See you Friday, I --" she hung up before he could finish, knowing that the next three words to leave his lips would have her agonizing the rest of the week. 

Little did Charlotte know however, across the street from her townhouse, Luke was hiding behind a corner at the end of the block. He was going crazy in his hotel room in Manhattan, trying and failing to reach her, so he flagged down a cab and went straight for Brooklyn.

He could see Charlotte's silhouette on the roof, the wisps of smoke floating from her joint. There was a cloud of gloom around her, he could see it from a mile away. He wanted to stop her pain, relieve her but he didn't know why she was upset. Not that she wouldn't dare tell him. 

He was trapped in a cycle with her, trying to get her to confide in him just as he did when she was with Ben. Eventually she would open up about what was happening, the key was to let her wait it out until she was ready to talk, she would come to him when she wanted. And no matter what, no matter what was happening, Luke would swear to drop it all and listen. He hadn't been a good friend to Charlotte, and he was determined to make it up to her now.

#luke hemmings #luke 5sos #luke hemming imagines #luke hemmings x reader #calum hood #calum 5sos #calum hood imagines #ashton irwin #ashton 5sos #michael clifford #michael 5sos #5 seconds of summer #5sos #5sos fanfic #5sos imagine #the 5sos show tour #Charlotte Antonakis #original story #original female character #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [2.3]

Masterlist

A/N: Happy Wednesday everyone!

Warnings: some angst, mentions of depression

--

"I know it's warmer where you are, And it's safer by your side, But right now I can't be what you want, Just give it time"

Charlotte nodded along to the building beat, her own voice a foreign entity as it floated through the air in the -- soundproof -- studio in LA. The demo was beautiful but it needed that extra push to make it a hit lead single. A lead single for an album that was months away from being completed. 

"And if you and I, Can make it through the night, And if you and I, Can keep our love alive, we'll fight, We can meet in the middle, Bodies and souls collide Dance in the moonlight, Where all the stars align, For you and I, for you and I"

The girls were impressed however, with Chloe claiming it was some of their best work yet. It was more electronic than their previous pop/rock sound, with humming bass lines and ethereal echoes that wailed from verse to verse. And Charlotte's voice was the pinnacle, reaching a prominent gravelly growl when she'd sing the long notes, paired with Maria and Kim's backing vocals, it was eargasmic bliss.

Kim was the type of person who used a Pinterest board religiously and was already culminating ideas for what the video would look like: black and white obviously with animated doodles, black paint, and fast-flashing lights. And maybe some mild nudity?

"That's sexier than Brendon Urie in 'Miss Jackson'," Maria said. 

"It's beautiful," Charlotte had to admit.

Chloe slapped her on the back, promptly shocking her, "You outdid yourself, Lottie! So smile a little more!" she told her. Charlotte forced a really big Joker smile. 

Kimberly elbowed the drummer, who now had galaxy-ombre hair. The girls swore with all the hair dye that Chloe must've switched to wigs when they weren't looking. 

"Well... I couldn't have done it without you guys," Charlotte said, smiling at each of her friends. 

"We got to stick together," Maria claimed, "We're all we got in each other," 

With the demo complete, Charlotte gave the approval for the tape to be sent to be remixed and produced for the final product. She was nervous to hear it, but there was also an element of excitement coursing through her. There was immense pressure on following up the success of the first LP with the second, but she was confident with the way Catch the Caper were growing musically that it would be some of the best material they put out yet. 

Charlotte still had reservations about only letting key personnel in on their material, not eager to replicate the first mess of 'Heaven'. The song would still be on the album, but it would be released later on. Maybe within the summer of next year when the album was more grounded for release. And then there was 'Saint', the song that she and Luke agreed would be a shared piece between them, but he insisted it should go on her album. Three songs down, another seven or so to go...

For the two and half weeks they had back home, she and Luke spent some of it rehearsing 'Saint'. Unlike 'You & I', this was a song she was actively getting excited about, heartbreaking yet it held a particular bite that could be the backing track to the lead in an indie movie finally taking back control of her life. Well, there's the saying that we're all the lead in our own stories, Charlotte was still working on getting to the end of hers. 

Luke was supposed to meet Charlotte that afternoon. She left her apartment door open for him, got out her guitar and put out a plate of shortbread cookies for them to munch on while they worked. He was a few minutes late, but Charlotte chalked it up to Luke being Luke. He was always late for shit. 

However, ten minutes late soon turned to thirty, then forty five, then a whole hour. Charlotte sat on her couch, eating her cookies and watching Dr. Who, trying to ignore the fact that she was just stood up. No phone calls or texts were sent, and there was no miraculous knocking at the door. What the hell could he possibly be doing? It wasn't like Luke to stand Charlotte up like this; if he couldn't make it he would call her first. 

Charlotte soon realized she that the cookie plate was nearly empty, and Luke was two hours late. Something was wrong here. Unless she got the date wrong? Maybe she should phone him?

Luke was fine -- physically speaking. Let's just say that he got a little ahead of himself with the time. Melody opened her big mouth again and they went at it, she was upset again because Luke was spending more time with Charlotte on his break than he was with Mel. She did have a fair point, but Luke just wished she wouldn't fly off the handle so over dramatically. He couldn't help it that he was working on something that he was quite proud of with one of his best friends.

A minutes-long fight had elongated into an hour, and soon enough Luke gave up; frustrated and itching to take some control back. And take control he did. Anger turned to an afternoon of passion-fuelled angry sex, both he and Melody taking their stress out on each other in the best way possible. And Luke couldn't deny afterwards how much better he felt by the time the late afternoon arrived.

It was by the end of her fourth Dr. Who episode that Charlotte's phone finally rang. Luke was calling; this ought to have been good. 

"You better be fatally injured or missing a pint of blood," Charlotte said when she picked up, "I just ate three-quarters of a bag of cookies and I'm not proud of myself," 

Luke was standing in his kitchen, dressed only in some slacks while Melody showered upstairs. By the time they were both exhausted he realized the time, and his lust for his girl was replaced by guilt for his friend. Of course he had to call her, but he hoped Charlotte would understand.

"I am neither one of those things, and you have no reason to be ashamed. I think we've all been there," he said, trying to sound cheery.

"Dude, what the fuck?" Charlotte asked, clearly annoyed, "Where have you been? I was about to send out some K9 units," 

Luke grimaced, knowing fully-well how upset she was, "Charlotte, I'm sorry. I-I got a little caught up in some things. I'll definitely make it up to you, though," 

It was then a terrifying thought entered Charlotte's head -- did Melody do something? Throw another mass tantrum? What was she saying to him? About Charlotte, namely.

"Is everything okay?" she asked, now a little concerned.

"I'm okay," he assured her, looking up when he heard the shower water stop running, "I'm sorry, love. But how about I come over tomorrow instead?"

Charlotte noted how quiet his voice suddenly became, he didn't want Melody to know he was talking to her. It was a strange, complicated plight: suddenly becoming a secret to your best friend. If Luke was so afraid to talk to her when Mel was around, then what the point? It was clear Melody was drawing some lines -- so Charlotte figured she should do the same.

"No, it's okay. We leave again in a few days, you should spend the time with Melody," she told him. 

Luke could hear the bite in her voice, "Charlotte, I really am sorry,"

"I know," Charlotte nodded, "I'm not mad at you. I swear. Spend some time with your girl," 

"Alright, I love ya," he mumbled.

"Love you too," Charlotte said listlessly, then hung up without another word. Groaning aloud, she then grabbed the plate and dumped out what was left of the cookies. She felt sick now, and not just from the sweets. She was mad at Luke, pissed off that he blew her off. Then she felt stupid for being jealous of Melody. She was jealous of Melody, but at the same time Charlotte had probably seen more of Luke this year than she had. 

You have no right to be upset with him, his girlfriend comes before you. That's the way it should be. Leave them alone.

Charlotte decided that it only hurt more because she knew how hurt Luke was by Melody. He used Charlotte as a vessel to blow off steam, to laugh for a while, pretend he was something he wasn't when he'd go back to her. Charlotte knew he could be so happy, she could make him so happy. But time and time again, he would go crawling back to her. 

Meanwhile, Luke quickly shoved his phone away as Melody came sauntering in to the kitchen, adorned in only his t-shirt. Her eyes glimmered with the Devil as she stood before him, smelling of fresh coconut shampoo with a smile that could stop any man dead in his tracks. He held her and gave her a kiss on her head, but he averted his eyes to the wall behind her. 

"What do you wanna' do for dinner?" she asked sweetly. 

"Anything you like," he affirmed, "We can cook, we can order in," 

"Let's order in," she decided, pulling away to go for their drawer of various take-out menus. 

Luke watched Melody from where he stood. He felt better, he felt happier, relaxed -- but he didn't feel whole. Then fear settled in, the fear that he was indeed falling out of love with Melody. Because when he looked at her, his mind raced back to mornings with Charlotte, sitting at her kitchenette as she made them both coffee and would go on and on about whatever had captured her interest in a dream she had. Her thoughts were as beautiful as her face.

Melody was beautiful, she shone like a strobe light. But Charlotte was a damn lighthouse beacon, burning so bright and full that she washed Melody out. However, there were some days Luke feared Charlotte may just burn out. 

A half empty bottle of wine sat on the coffee table, beside it an empty glass that Charlotte had just finished. She poured herself another glass, guitar perched in her lap and she began to play again, singing a wistfully sad melody about feeling, well... used.

"You see, I want the world to believe, That there's a light inside of me, But it's time that I come clean. I'm not what I seem, no, Some would say I'm possessed, yeah, But I'll confess I've just been obsessed With life and death and emptiness, I guess. Can't you see all of the change in me?"

The more she drank, the more emotional she became. The more poems she wrote, her voids once filled now flooding out. She was lonely, felt more lonely tonight than she had in so long. She could hear memories of her own words echoing in her head, like a bad dream. 

"Three years I let myself get tossed around in a salad spinner of emotional turmoil. Now I'm watching Luke go through what I went through; we both see the same thing in each other and yet willingly stay in a precarious and chaotic situation. I mean -- that must register as clinical insanity!"

"Well, ask yourself: why did you stay with Ben? When you had every single person in your life telling you how toxic that relationship was, why did you stay?" 

"I didn't want to be alone," 

What did she mean by that? Of course Charlotte wasn't alone, she was surrounded by friends! Friends who told her hours ago that they would support her no matter what. And yet, drunk on wine and emotions she felt more empty than she had in months.

The last time she felt so lonely she had been dumped. Eight months ago, she was tossed aside like a pebble on the street. Ben abandoned her, and in her less than cognitive state of mind, Luke abandoned her too. She was abandoned for something better, something closer, easier. Something she could never get within arms reach of.

"You took these starving limbs, tried to see. Tried to see what they could be, But I thought I'd be something.I thought you'd complete me, That you'd erase all the pain that I felt in my brain. If you filled my heart with love, Then you'd fill my voids above. Now you see, that didn't change a thing,"

She recorded her voice as oppose to write, she gave up writing as her penmanship was a little sloppy now. Tomorrow she'd decide whether or not to put this song on the album. Tonight the only guest in her apartment would be her perilous brain.

#luke hemmings #luke 5sos #calum hood #calum 5sos #michael clifford #michael 5sos #ashton 5sos #ashton irwin #5 seconds of summer #5sos #5sos fanfic #luke hemmings x reader #luke hemming imagines #calum hood imagines #original story #original female character #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines #charlotte antonakis

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [2.2]

A/N: Heyy, I'm trying a new format link for my master list. Here's to hoping it works 🤞

Warnings: Swearing, slice of life mostly

--

"Why does Luke call you 'Shorty'?" Michael asked Charlotte. They were all packed onto the bus, some ways away from Berlin. Within the next week they would close the European leg of the Sounds Live Feels Live tour and take another break before heading back for a cross-country tour of the States.

The young songstress turned to him, his hair faded back to a bleach blonde to take a break from the dye, "He never told you?" she replied. 

Michael shook his head, having paused his Nintendo game "I always assumed it was 'cause you're a dwarf," he glanced at his mates who were enthralled in a tense game of Uno.

Charlotte rolled her eyes "A: fuck you. B: no. When we first started hanging out together we went to this cafe for coffee and they had these really amazing shortbread cookies -- the kind with the little cherry in the middle. I bought like six or seven of them -- and I really love shortbread -- so he just started calling me 'Shorty' because of it," 

Michael smirked, "So, if I put a shortbread cookie in front of you, you'd lose your shit?" he chuckled.

"No," Charlotte replied, "I have a sweet tooth is all. And yes, he also makes fun of me because he's a giant and I am not," 

"That's actually kinda' cute," he grinned, "I'm hungry, now," 

"We'll be in Berlin soon enough, and you can have all the Schnitzel you want," 

When they reached the hotel, the girls were all set for a couple hours of sight-seeing before they'd have to head off for soundcheck. Unfortunately, they were instead treated to a barrage of calls from Terryn.

"Oh, brother," Maria sighed when her phone started to ring, "It's the Terror!"

"What does she want now?" Kimberly asked.

"Maybe she was driving Harry nuts so he blocked her number and she's bothering us now?" Chloe grinned.

"Isn't it sad how we all shit on the one person who got us to where we are?" Charlotte thought aloud. 

Kimberly shrugged, "Hey, I'm not knocking her, but the woman's a little control freak. I get heartburn whenever she's within six feet of me!"

"You think we don't know the pain?" Chloe replied as Maria picked up the call, "I get a migraine when the old bag starts screeching,"

The three girls turned to Maria when they heard Terryn's familiar screeching, just as Chloe had described. She placed her cold hand over her forehead, feeling a pain coming on, "Oh! Here it comes!"

Maria's face was drawn in confusion and horror, trying to understand what their manager was crying about in her hysteria, "T-Terryn! Terryn! Slow down! I can't understand a word you're saying!"

Charlotte glanced at Kimberly, "I wonder what's wrong?"

"Probably isn't happy with record sales or something," Kimberly shrugged. 

"We didn't do anything! What are you talking about?" Maria hollered into the receiver. The more Terryn talked, the paler Maria's face became as she relayed the terrible news, "What? How?"

The girls were curious now, sensing that this wasn't some over-dramatizing feat from Terryn, "We didn't do anything, I swear!" Maria said. 

"What is it?" Chloe whispered.

"Yeah? What didn't we do this time?" Kimberly added.

"Hold the line, Terryn. Take a Xanax for crying out loud!" Maria pulled the phone away, "You guys aren't gonna' believe this but our song's been leaked!"

"Which song?" Charlotte asked cluelessly.

"Doctor Doctor!" Maria replied, "The one you wrote about dickwad!"

After that, any sound became white noise to Charlotte. She whipped out her phone and logged onto Twitter, and sure enough, their band was trending with news of a leaked audio for 'Doctor Doctor. Charlotte couldn't believe it, feeling like her diary had just been raided and someone aired out all her dirty laundry for the public to feast upon. That song wasn't meant to be released for months, and whoever had grabbed the audio clip had just flushed eight months of work and prep down the proverbial drain. 

She played the clip and sure enough, she could recognize her voice and Maria's guitar tinkling quietly as she sang. The clip already had thousands of listens, the edge of surprise for the new album had been blown, "Fuck my life,"

"How is that possible?" Kimberly cried as she listened to the clip, "How -- I mean... what the actual... I mean -- what the fuck!?" her fists clenched tightly.

"We got ripped off!" Charlotte exclaimed.

"There goes single number one," Chloe huffed.

Maria was still on the phone with Terryn, "I don't know how it happened, Terryn! We haven't shown this song to anybody! I swear! I swear on my abuela no one has heard the song! You think we'd jeopardize our careers like that? Look -- I... I'll call you back!"

As if it wasn't any more possible, Charlotte began to feel sicker, "Girls, we played it in the studio weeks ago -- with the guys," she admitted.

"And anybody could've passed by and heard us," Kimberly gasped, "The doors aren't exactly sound proof and we don't know who works the switchboards," 

"The migraine just got worse!" Chloe exclaimed, clutching her head, "Oh, my God! What do we do?"

"Nothing," Charlotte shrugged, "What can we do? The song is out!"

Kimberly scrolled through Twitter on her own phone, "At least the feedback is positive," she mumbled. 

"Oh, goodie!" Chloe chided, "Everybody loves a stolen song! The public is sick!"

The girls' outburst had drawn some considerable attention in the lobby, especially from the boys. They came wandering over, sensing the thick throes of panic.

"Hey," Ashton greeted them, "What's happening?"

"Somebody leaked our fucking song!" Chloe exclaimed, loud enough for passing hotel guests to stop and stare at them. Maria grabbed her.

"Lower your damn voice!"

"My head hurts!"

The boys were visually and understandably just as gobsmacked at the girls, "Somebody leaked your song? Which one?" Calum asked.

"The one we played for you guys. 'Doctor Doctor'," Charlotte replied soullessly.

"Who the fuck would do that?" Luke asked. 

"If we knew that, would we be in the middle of a crisis?" Kimberly snapped.

Harry then came over to calm the crisis, "Alright, girls I understand you're upset, but let's move this upstairs. People are staring at us,"

"Being photobombed is the least of our worries right now," Maria chided back. 

Nonetheless, they hauled their things up to their rooms and reconvened together, trying to piece together how the audio was stolen and what their next game plan would be. Releasing 'Doctor Doctor' as the lead single was now out of the question, the anticipation was ruined. Charlotte's tongue tingled with dread as ideas were passed back and forth, anxiety overtook her when they all came to a solid conclusion.

"What if we replaced 'Doctor Docter' with 'You & I'?" Maria finally suggested, staring nervously at Charlotte. The younger brunette was at a crossroads, having sworn the last thing she wanted was to release something that -- if interpreted correctly by a handful of people -- would become more destructive than she would like. 

Chloe crouched down in front of her, placing her hands on Charlotte's shaking knees, "Char, nobody is ever going to know who you wrote it for. Hell, we were kinda' thick the first time around, too," she tried to smile.

"And until we get the rest of our songs recorded and produced..." Kimberly shook her head, "It's a beautiful song, Charlotte. I think it'll be received well," 

Charlotte placed her head in her hands, her chest felt as though it would burst at any moment, "I -- it'll take weeks to get done. We're on the road, we have to edit, record, track everything --"

"We're back in LA next week, babydoll," Maria said softly, "If we put the pedal to the metal... we could have it out by December,"

"A little later than Terryn would like, but screw her. These are extenuating circumstances," Chloe said.

"I don't know what to do," Charlotte said, her voice cracking. 

Maria nodded slowly, she felt for Charlotte but at the same time they were under a wire for time. Charlotte didn't have an eternity to figure out whether she was ready to tell the world how she felt about Luke in a song that people may not even interpret it as being for him. She had to grow up.

"Charlotte, it's a song," she said sternly, "It's a silly little love song that you could've written about anybody at any time. Nobody is ever going to know it's about Luke and if someone tries to steer down that path we'll find a way around it, but 'You & I' and 'Doctor Doctor' are the only concrete songs we have prepared. So, I'm sorry, but you need to get over yourself," 

It hurt and angered Charlotte to hear those words, but she knew Maria was right. Nobody would ever know; she even played part of it for Luke and even he didn't get the hint. But it wasn't so much Luke's reaction she was worried about.

"What about Melody?" she asked, "What if she figures it out?"

"Let her figure it out!" Kimberly exclaimed, "That bitch has been nothing but cruel to us from the moment she came charging in like a bull at Indianapolis. Who cares what she thinks? This is your song, your story,"

"And if she has a problem, she'll get her hands on you over my dead body," Chloe assured, "And ya'll know I'm crazy enough to whack a bitch before I let anybody get their hands on you," 

Charlotte tried to smile a little. Maria folded her arms over her chest, "So? What do you say, Charlotte? We got your back no matter what," 

Charlotte was quiet for a long time, trying to will her voice box to make some sort of affirmation noise. This was personal risk she'd take, but it was for the good of the band. The band, her livelihood, her friends were always going come first. She knew what she had to do.

"Alright," she finally agreed, "I'll do some last edits and we can start tracking next week," 

The other three let out a collective sigh of relief, knowing that this wasn't easy for Charlotte to do but they appreciated her taking the leap. And they'd back her up no matter what. 

"I love you!" Chloe praised, throwing her arms around the singer, "I love you! I love you so damn much! I'm gonna' buy you so many gifts for your birthday this year!"

Charlotte chuckled but hugged her back, "You don't have to do that but thank you. I love you too, Crazy Person," 

Maria stood up and grabbed her phone, "I'll call the Terror, let her know what's going on," 

"I'll order us some room service," Kimberly decided, "I'm starving," 

"I think the guys want to have lunch with us," Charlotte said.

"Well, they can go on their own. We have shit to carpé," Maria said, dialling Terryn's number.

The entire afternoon the girls worked on rehearsing and perfecting the song, editing and rewriting so it became a collective Caper song. It was beautiful and desperate and Charlotte couldn't help but emotionally triggered as though it was the first time she penned it down. They would only have about two and a half weeks to get the first demo completed. 

Charlotte couldn't help the tingles that coated her tongue, all throughout the day and into the evening when they were minutes away from playing their Berlin show. And she still for the life of her couldn't figure out who would steal their song and leak it on the internet. Who could be so cruel and detrimental?

And then on stage, as Catch the Caper broke into their song 'E.V.O.L', the conclusion slammed into Charlotte like a brick wall. It hurt so much to think about, but it angered her too. And it made a lot of sense. 

There were five people in that studio that heard their first acoustic demo: four of them were young men who would never dare break the unspoken oath of artistic secrecy. But there was one person who would be brazen enough to do so. 

Charlotte couldn't even admit it to herself aloud but she kept the conclusion in the back of her mind. And as they stage was packed up for the night her eyes fell on Luke, on the phone probably with his little devil's angel right now. She couldn't point the finger, namely because there was no proof and Melody would just deny it. Not to mention it would probably drive a wedge between she and Luke -- as though her feelings for him weren't complicated enough. 

♛♛♛

Luke sat across from Charlotte, both of them silent on the long-winding bus drive from Cologne to Barcelona. She had her earplugs in as she listened to the hasty recording of 'You and I' she made on her computer, something to guide her and the band when they'd go into the studio. The girls worked in any spare moments they had to compose the right bass beats, guitar chords and drum spreads that turned simple words on a page into a rough concept for a beautiful work of art. 

Luke could hear small echoes of the song leaking from Charlotte's headphones. She didn't talk about the song much, even when he asked. He figured she was still upset about 'Doctor Doctor' having been exposed to the world with no warning. At least the girls were moving on to the next, perhaps she didn't want to talk about the song simply because she wouldn't dare let the opportunity for a leak arise anywhere.

So, Luke busied himself with his own guitar, trying to twang out the same melody he had playing in his head all day. He envied Charlotte in that it took her a simple chord and she could write out a full verse in a matter of minutes -- with the right inspiration, of course. What he would give to be as artistically gifted as she was. 

Charlotte felt the opposite when she heard Luke's music. His work was much more optimistic than hers, taking a more positive outlook on life rather than her cynical and bittersweet approaches. The sound of her own voice permeated through her ears and she couldn't help but cringe at some parts, but if Luke heard it he'd tell her that her voice was perfect, no slip of error. 

Her eyes flickered to him for a moment, and she blushed when she saw he was staring right back at her. She mouthed 'what' at him, to which he shrugged and raised his eyebrows up and down, the creepy way which always sent a shiver up her spine.

"I hate when you do that," she said, pausing her song and pulling out her earphones. 

He only chuckled, "How's it coming?" he asked.

"It's okay," she said, confident in her answer. It seemed the more she listened to the actual melody, as opposed to focusing on the words' context, she found she enjoyed it more. It made it easier to work, "What're you working on?"

"No bloody clue," he sighed, sinking back into the chair, "I wish we weren't driving,"

"You don't like staring out the French countryside?" she asked.

"I do," he nodded, "But if we took a plane, we could've been there by now. Maybe get some sleep," 

"I don't mind so much," she said softly, looking out over the lush produce orchards and fields filled with colourful wildflowers, "I do have to admit, it is a little strange how the booking agencies have us zig-zagging all across Europe. We've been to Germany three separate times in the last month," 

"I don't know why they do it like that, maybe it keeps us on our toes?" Luke replied. 

"It keeps me annoyed, if anything," she chuckled, "Maybe after all this touring shit is over I'll fuck off to Bali for a couple weeks, do some exploring. You're welcome to join me if you want,"

Luke smiled, "A trip to Bali with my best mate? I'd be honoured," he said.

"Somebody has to drive me nuts with his lame jokes," she cocked her head to the side, "Besides, I feel like it would be fun; traveling with no schedules or shows. Haven't done that in a while,"

"It's a date. Next summer: you and me, two weeks in Bali," Luke declared. 

"Done," she smiled, "God, what are we even gonna' be doing next year?"

Luke shrugged, "Hopefully, still out on the road, doing what we love. Still have you with me, causing mayhem,"

"If anyone causes the mayhem in these bands, it's Chloe and Michael. Pinky and The Brain," she said.

"They keep it entertaining. Chloe with her fucking phrase books," he snickered. 

"She means no harm," Charlotte assured, leaning over to see his guitar, "You writing a song?"

"I have no clue," Luke shook his head, "I think I'm just bored,"

"Well, in boredom there's always something to entertain us," she said.

Luke licked his lips, contemplating quietly to himself, "I was thinking about that song we wrote a few months back. What do you want to do with it?" 

Charlotte raised her eyebrows, "How do you mean?" 

"Well -- I mean, do you want it? You did most of the brainstorming so I'll give to you if you want it," he said.

Charlotte stifled a laugh, "Luke, we wrote it together. It's our song. We can both have it. It's the ultimate culmination of what two crackheads come up with when they're sleep deprived and filled up on shitty pizza," she grinned, "You think we should sing it?"

"Together, yeah," he nodded, "Have we ever sung together?"

"Not in public," Charlotte felt a lump grow in her throat. It was one thing for her and Luke to sing and goof off on the privacy of her apartment, but it was another for this side of their friendship to blossom over a stage in front of fans, "I mean -- if you want to, I'm down. Maybe when we get back to the states we can work on it," 

"Sure," he nodded, "We can help with your next album too, if you'd like. I know, the whole leaking thing was a bit of a thorn but --"

"It's okay," Charlotte forced a smile, "Things happen. I'm not going to focus on past fuckeries from inept assholes," she wouldn't dare give away her accusations.

Luke smiled at her, oblivious to her conclusions, "That's the spirit, Shorty,"

#luke hemmings #luke 5sos #ashton irwin #ashton 5sos #calum hood #calum 5sos #michael clifford #michael 5sos #5 seconds of summer #5sos #luke hemming imagines #luke hemmings x reader #calum hood imagines #5sos fanfic #5sos imagine #Charlotte antonakis #original story #original female character #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [2.1]

Masterlist

A/N: Hello! Welcome back to the segment where my brain keeps cranking out content for a week until it dries up again for another three months. As always, your gracious patience is always appreciated :)

Warnings: alcohol consumption, strong language, some angst

With an arm holding her steady Luke helped Charlotte walk back into the bar. Her head felt much clearer and her insides calmer, but she breathed deeply and steadily nonetheless.

"Hey guys," Luke called to their friends, "We're gonna' head back," 

"Alright. We'll catch up with you guys," Calum replied.

"You okay, Charlotte?" Maria asked.

"I'm good," Charlotte assured her, "I'll see you back at the room," 

"Goodnight, you two!" Chloe called as they made their way out, but as soon as they exited she was the next one to get up and run to the bathroom to empty out her stomach.

The Viennese streets were calm and peaceful, but there was a steady stream of cars that whizzed past them. Hoots and hollers from more drunk patrons echoed into the night, and despite the late hour buildings were still lit up in dazzling, twinkling lights that guided the pair back to their hotel.

"You okay to walk?" Luke chuckled as Charlotte stumbled a little.

"I'm good," she reassured, reaching into her bag and smiling when she grabbed the rose, "Oh! I don't know why I brought this with me," 

She brushed the flower over Luke's nose. They both started to laugh like children and Luke took the stem between his teeth.

Charlotte gasped, "Oh my God! You could be the next Bachelor!"

Luke chuckled still with the flower in his mouth, took it out and offered it back to her, "Charlotte, will you accept this rose?"

Charlotte giggled but shook her head, "Nah,"

Luke's jaw dropped.

"What? Not used to rejection, Mr. Hemmings?" Charlotte teased.

Luke chuckled, "Oh, I'm very used to getting rejected," he said.

"By who?" she asked, "Who the fuck would actually reject you?" she elbowed him in the ribs. 

"Well --"

"No, seriously," she drunkenly rambled, "You're like -- the sweetest person I've ever met. And you're just so kind and cute and you're so innocent,"

"Innocent?" Luke raised an eyebrow at her.

"Well, maybe not actually innocent in all rhetorics," Charlotte giggled, "But yeah, you just have an innocent vibe about you,"

"Shit," he laughed, "Fanfic writers are gonna' rave about that,"

They made it back to their hotel in one piece, with Luke holding Charlotte up most of the way. He sobered himself up mentally so he could take care of her. She kept tripping over her own shoelaces as they made it into the lobby, so Luke decided to pick her up and give her a piggy back ride. Charlotte didn't complain, she wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders and enjoyed the ride, giggling a little when Luke would trip now and again.

"Luke!" she yelped, holding onto him tightly when he purposefully bounced her, "Don' do that," she whimpered, to which Luke simply laughed. He even held her on his back during the elevator ride and carried her to her room. 

He carried Charlotte to the bed, turning to let her off but she ended up pulling Luke down on top of her, both of them let out an 'oof'. Charlotte then started to laugh.

"Sorry," she giggled.

"You okay?" he grinned.

"Yeah. You're kinda' heavy," she admitted and Luke moved off of her and stood, "No, wait! Come back!" she whined. She moved to sit up on her knees and grabbed his hand. 

Luke couldn't help but laugh as she pulled him back down next to her. 

"You're a clingy little drunk, you know," he said.

"I know," she sighed heavily, "But isn't that another reason why you love me?"

"Of course," he replied, brushing some more hair away from her face. She started laughing again, this time a snort made its way in, "What's so funny?"

"You," she giggled.

"Me?"

"Yeah. You've got really nice eyes, you know," 

Luke raised his eyebrows, "Oh, do I?"

"Yeah," she nodded, "Everything about you is just nice. And you're really pretty, too,"

He chuckled, "Charlotte, you're really smashed,"

"Oh, so what?" she moved to lie down on her stomach, pillowing her head in her arms, "It's the truth. I'll be sober tomorrow, but you'll still be beautiful to me,"

He couldn't help but smile, appreciating that she wasn't all in her right mind but it felt good to hear her say that. Even if she did steal the quote from 'The Dreamers', there was something sort of romantic about being complimented with a line like that. 

"You just ripped off 'The Dreamers'," he said.

"Don't you judge me," Charlotte snuggled up to the taller boy, her arms coming around to hug him. 

That was another film Luke hadn't watched in a long time. Melody couldn't ever watch it with him, she would just complain about how boring it was. She couldn't appreciate the art form and culture it represented. Not like Charlotte could. 

Luke held her, taking in her staling but heavenly smell of grapefruit. He rubbed his hand up and down her back, slowly warming her up. He saw the goosebumps ripple out over her skin, the hand with the fresh Virgo tattoo brushing over the collar of his shirt. 

"I think I want to take a break from Melody," he said suddenly, unable to stop himself before it slipped out. Luckily, Charlotte was falling in and out of consciousness, sleep moving in on her.

"Hmm?" she hummed, blinking her dark brown eyes open.

"I think I'll head back to my room," Luke said, gently moving to escape her grasp despite how badly he wanted to stay.

"You can stay if you want," Charlotte told him, trying to force her eyes to stay open, "Maria won't mind," 

"It's okay, love. Besides, you snore," he grinned. Charlotte glowered at him before settling back into the sheets.

"Cocky bitch," she murmured.

Before leaving he pressed a soft kiss to her temple, her light snores already leaving her. He had his eyes trained on her as he came to the door, taking one last lingering glance. She was peacefully asleep, sure to fall victim to one hell of a nasty hangover in the morning. He surely couldn't escape the same fate. He wanted to crawl back into that bed and hold her, to feel her arms wrap around him again and make him forget all his troubles. They'd done it time and time again but somehow, something here was different. He felt different, and it wasn't just the alcohol clouding his judgement.

For a split second he could hear Calum's voice in his head, trying to force out what Ashton and Michael had insinuated time and time again. The harrowing thoughts he had in the bathroom that November afternoon when he was late to their songwriting session. Could he actually want Charlotte? Did he want her to be his? She embodied so much of what others wanted for him, but was she actually what he wanted? What he needed?

♛♛♛

The lights in the room were still on when Maria awoke, her head throbbing and her insides being twisted inside out. She groaned as soon as she felt the hangover hit with the force of a wrecking ball. Sitting up was a bit of a challenge, but when she did all she could feel within was the vile need to expel her guts. She dashed to the bathroom in a flash, throwing up every drink she'd consumed the previous night. 

The guitarist was oblivious when she felt somebody hold back her hair, registering that it was probably Charlotte who was suffering just as horribly as she was -- maybe worse. But when she was finished and sat back, she was surprised to see Calum crouched next to her.

"G'morning," he grinned that classic, handsome grin of his. Sleep was still evident in his face and he had dark circles under his eyes. 

"Hey," she grumbled, pinching the bridge of her nose, "Am I in your room?" 

"Yeah," Calum nodded, "Tried helping you to yours but you kinda' gave out on me in the hall,"

"Oh, God," Maria felt sick again, "Did I do anything stupid?"

"No, no, you were okay," Calum shook his head, "Just needed to sleep it off," 

"Where did you sleep?" she asked.

"The couch. I don't mind," he replied, "Y'alright?"

"Fuck do you think?" she mumbled.

"Temper, temper now," he said, managing a chuckle.

"Sorry," Maria glanced up at him through cloudy eyes, "I just feel like somebody hit me with a damn wrecking ball,"

"I know," Calum sighed, running a hand through his disheveled hair, "I'll get us some water,"

"Thanks," Maria mumbled, but she made no move to get up from the floor. The marble beneath her was cool and soothed the excess body heat that flowed through her. 

Calum stood up slowly and felt his head spin. He blinked until his double vision cleared up and walked carefully to his mini fridge. Rubbing his eyes until he saw stars, he grabbed two fresh bottles of water, along with the bottle of Tylenol he kept in his bag. 

Maria had gotten up by now and was sitting on the side of a tub, a meagre attempt to get her shit together. She was wearing a jacket that wasn't hers, it was most definitely Calum's telling by the smell of cologne and aftershave. 

Calum smiled softly at her and made his way back over, sitting next to her on the tub and handing her the water bottle.

"Thank you," she drank from it slowly.

Calum shook his head a little after he drank, trying to will away his nasty headache. He didn't feel the need to throw up, which was good but any noise that was just that bit too loud was like someone taking a hammer to his skull.

"You mind if I pop out for a smoke?" he asked Maria.

"Smoking kills," she warned, finally sporting a grin. 

"Hasn't worked yet," 

He stepped out onto the balcony and shut the door behind him, placing the cigarette between his teeth and lit the end. The lads and his family had warned him time and time again about the risks, but Calum usually smoked whenever he had a hangover, just so that he could relax for just a little while. 

Maria wandered back over to the bed, still drinking her water bottle. She forced herself to stand because if she laid back down then she'd certainly fall back asleep. The more water she drank, the better she felt. Her eyes landed on the bedside clock: 7:08 AM.

She remembered how Calum had given her his jacket after they left the bar and she was still wearing it now. It was comforting to her. She recalled how they seemed to talk all night, all about the little things and the unimportant, but she could listen him drone on and on all the time. When they'd returned to the hotel she remembered her knees buckling under her from the fatigue and how Calum was quick to catch her before she hit the floor, then he escorted her into his room as it was the closest and put her to bed. And despite his own lack of cognizance he prioritized making sure that she was okay. 

Finishing the last drop of water she stepped out onto the balcony, coming to stand beside him at the railing. They smiled at each other and he offered her the cigarette, to which she accepted. She didn't smoke often, but when the opportunity arose she wouldn't back away. The stood over the streets of Vienna, watching the illustrious city slowly wake up along with them. 

♛♛♛

Charlotte sat next to Luke and read her book quietly. They shared the earbuds that was connected to his iPhone, listening to The 1975. It wasn't a long flight to Verona but everyone was notably tired after the previous night. Harry made sure to take the piss out of all of them for staying out so late. 

Ashton and Michael were playing cards and Chloe and Kimberly were watching a show on the tablet, Maria was passed out and Calum mesmerized by his own tablet show. Luke was sipping on a soda and looking out the window. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to Charlotte. 

She slid the book over and pointed to the block of text she pointed to, "what do you think?"

Luke dulled the music's volume and started reading the lines, no doubt another song she had inexplicably come up with on the spot:

"Some things are meant to be secret and not to be heard, So if I tell you, just keep it and don't say a word, When the doors are all closing, it's bound to get loud, 'Cause all these bodies are hoping to get fucked on the sound"

"Cool. What's it about?" he asked.

"About how my business is nobody else's priority but my own," she replied, "I don't know, I just sort of thought of it. I also just realized I swear at least once in almost every song I write,"

Luke snorted, "That's because you're too sophisticated for sappy words," he replied.

"My mom says it's because I'm uneducated," she chuckled, taking the book back.

"Remember that you're talking to a high school drop out," he said. 

Charlotte just smiled, rolled her eyes at him and continued to scribble through her book. 

They arrived in Verona in the late morning and all agreed they were too tired to go out and do any sightseeing. Besides, their schedule was too tight, they only had enough time to eat, rest, and head off to soundcheck. From the balcony of the Verona Arena, Charlotte and Luke stood at the edge and were greeted by a see of adoring fans. It was a little overwhelming, but at the same time exhilarating. Their shows in Italy kicked off with high energy and mass enthusiasm from the crowds. 

Catch the Caper did get a little revenge on 5 Seconds of Summer -- and they hit where it hurt. The morning their bus was driving to Munich, Michael was trying to find the eggs they usually kept in the fridge. This morning, they were no where to be found.

"Where are the eggs?" he called. Ashton was the only one to make the effort to get up and look with him, perplexed as the eggs were in the same spot they'd left them the previous day.

"Where the fuck did the eggs go? Honestly," he grumbled.

"Maybe they cracked up and left?" Calum grinned.

"Bad joke," Michael replied. 

On a whim, Luke had a curious idea, remembering the girls' thinly veiled threat for prank revenge. He then remembered they were all goofing off in the bus yesterday, any one of them could've had the opportunity to...

"Check the freezer," he said suddenly.

"The freezer?" the boys all gawked at him.

Luke shrugged, "Just check. We'd smell rotten eggs if they'd put them anywhere else," 

Uncertain, Ashton whipped open the freezer door, and to his astonishment he found the carton of eggs staring him in the face. Taped to the carton was a note: This is an egg-straordinarily chill prank ~ CtC.

"Bloody Capers!" he cried, dropping the frozen-solid eggs onto the counter, "They froze the eggs!"

"And made puns," Michael added. 

Calum was shocked, Luke was a little impressed, "Now it's on!" the bassist swore.

"Nobody can take my breakfast from me and escape the consequences!" Michael said. 

"Relax guys," Luke said, "We'll get our revenge. When they least expect..."

In France they had a little time to relax, now having fully adjusted to the time change. There was something about France that had Kimberly head over heels, similarly to how Charlotte reacted to Japan. The girls woke up early the morning they had to leave for Lille and watched the sun come up over the Eiffel Tower, and it was easily one of the most breathtaking things they have ever witnessed.

Charlotte had finished and tinkered on the song she and Luke wrote, not sure whether it would be a better fit for her band or his. Titled 'Saint', the song explored the connection of two individuals who relied on each other for emotional compassion and served as temporary relief.

... because life imitates art.

"I know it's chemicals that make me cling to you, And I need a miracle to get away from you, I know it's chemicals, and I need a miracle, And I'm not spiritual, But please stay, 'Cause I think you're a saint and I think you're an angel,"

She strummed the guitar and sang softly, only eliciting some attention from the girls as they sat on the other side of the bus, hearing her singing from the bunks. Maria peaked through the curtain, seeing Charlotte's silhouette outlined in the dark bunk. She smiled and closed the curtain again, letting her work in silence.

"I said, You give me something to talk about, something to talk about, I said, You give me something to think about that's not the shit in my head, You're a miracle, You're a miracle, A miracle"

Luke was playing the same song with his unplugged electric, Facetiming with Melody so she could have a first listen. And of course, she melted at the first few words, his voice like rich velvet.

"You like it?" he asked when he finished playing, "Me and Char wrote it,"

"Honey, it's so cool," she smiled, "I can't wait to hear when it's finished," 

Luke blushed a little as he slid his guitar off his lap, fixing the phone's angle so he could see Melody better, "I don't know if it'll be a 5sos song yet, I might give it to the girls,"

"I don't know about that, Luke," she shrugged, "Might be the direction you take your next album?"

"Maybe," he slid down so he was laying on his stomach on the hotel bed, resting his chin in his palm and staring down at his beautiful girl.

"Are you writing anything else?" she asked, hopefully hinting that he would write her a truly beautiful love song.

"Haven't had much time, I'm afraid," he replied truthfully, "I don't think I've gotten a full eight hours of sleep in weeks,"

"No rest for the wickedly talented, I suppose," Melody smiled, though she was a little perplexed. He had enough time to write a song with Charlotte, and while it was a beautiful song, she doubted Charlotte would ever pen a verse about her. 

"Don't fret," he grinned cheekily, "I got a couple ideas for some new content. Maybe one or two of them are about you,"

Melody blushed, "I can't wait,"

A new notification suddenly flashed across the screen, reminding Luke he had to go to soundcheck. They were playing in Zürich tonight. 

"What was that?" Melody asked.

"Just my timer. I got to run, babe; soundcheck," he said, moving to slide off the bed. 

"Aw, do you have to?" she mockingly whined. She hadn't had a full conversation with Luke in weeks, but she knew he had commitments he had to fulfill. 

"'Fraid so. I'll call you later, though," Luke promised. 

"Alright, if you have to," Melody huffed, "Have a good show," 

"Bye," he then hung up. 

Melody's phone flashed with the rate-my-call notification, but she shut off her phone and tossed it over onto her pillow, rolling over to stare up at the ceiling. She felt a little guilty at the bitterness that was growing inside of her, Luke had hardly bothered to ask how she was doing, yet he probably mentioned what he and Charlotte got up to two or three times. They even wrote a damn song together, of course they did!

She couldn't help the disdain for the young songstress whenever her name would come up, despite how many times Melody told herself that Charlotte could never hold a candle to her. What did Charlotte have to offer that Melody didn't? So she could write music, big deal. She was way cooler than any Bambi-eyed, Disney Princess wannabe -- not to mention her boobs were bigger.

He didn't even say 'I love you'. Then again, you didn't, either.

Melody shook her head and grabbed at her phone, the song Luke had just played still echoing in her ears. She should've loved it, but to be honest it annoyed the shit out of her because it was so beautiful. It was a beautiful song that Charlotte wrote with Luke. 

Her Luke. 

#luke hemmings #ashton irwin #calum hood #michael clifford #luke 5sos #ashton 5sos #calum 5sos #michael 5sos #luke hemmings x reader #luke hemming imagines #5 seconds of summer #5sos fanfic #5sos #calum hood imagines #original story #original female character #Charlotte antonakis #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [2.0]

Masterlist

A/N: I don't wanna go back to school 😒

Warnings: alcohol consumption, vomiting, tattoos if that's a trigger?

--

Six hours earlier, Luke, Michael, and Ashton were engrossed in a cut-throat game of Grand Theft Auto. Police sirens whirred and the clanging and battering of car collisions echoed every few seconds. So far Luke was winning, much to the surprise and resentment of his bandmates.

"I swear to God, you're cheating," Ashton huffed as his player was eviscerated in another violent crash.

"Don't give him too much credit. He's just having a lucky day," Michael told him.

"Don't get pissed with me just 'cause the two of aren't cutting it," Luke grinned. 

A few feet over in the kitchenette was Calum, sifting through the cupboards of non-perishables for the oatmeal box. It had to be around somewhere, knowing the guys they put it in the wrong cabinet. At least they'd stopped putting the empty containers and boxes back in the cupboards. 

"Have you guys seen the oatmeal?" he called to them.

"Check the cupboard," Ashton replied, not really paying attention. 

Calum glowered at his mates, "Which one?" he asked. 

"Uh -- t-try the one on the left," Michael replied cluelessly. 

Calum gave up, figuring their game was more important and took to his search on his own. Rummaging through the cupboards, he was quite surprised when he felt something smack over his forehead. Clattering on the countertop were maybe ten or so packets of blue raspberry jello. 

"Why do we have all this jello?" he asked. But when he turned around, the guys were still engrossed in their game. Calum finally rolled his eyes and whisked one of the packets like a frisbee. It bounced off of Michael's snapback.

"Hey!" the sudden impact jolted him and he lost control of his car, his player crashed into a roaring tanker, "What the fuck?"

"Why do we have a shit ton of jello powder?" Calum asked again. 

Ashton finally paused the game and went to collect the packets, "They're mine," he said simply.

Luke raised his eyebrows, "Since when do you eat jello?" he asked.

"I don't," Ashton shook his head, "They're for a prank I've been planning," 

"For the girls?" Calum asked, to which the older boy nodded, "That toilet thing was months ago. Why you doing it now?" 

"Because a good prankster needs time to come up with an elaborate prank -- besides, it's been long enough they won't see it coming," Ashton said.

"Fair argument," Luke nodded, "What're you gonna' do with it?"

Ashton glanced down at the packets, "... I haven't figured that out yet," 

"Oh!" Michael suddenly exclaimed, "We could encase their instruments in the stuff!"

Calum shook his head, "You want to be responsible for the financial damages, be my guest, mate," 

"Not to mention Maria will beat you with your own game controller," Luke said. 

With a bit more light conversing and then some more video game distractions, by the time the guys went for their afternoon rest, Ashton tripped over the winning idea. Literally, he tripped over the plug-in chord for the mini fridge in his room. 

Fast forward six and a half hours later and the girls were busily scooping out and salvaging their drinks from the mess of blue gelatine -- bent in on executing their revenge. Luckily, the door to the boys hadn't touch the fridge in the craft room and the girls cooked up a quick way to revenge.

Cleaned up and just ready to take to the stage, the girls marched through the halls with their instruments at the ready. Maria was triumphantly drinking  the can of beer she's rescued from its jello prison, though the aluminum still held overly sweetened hints of blue raspberry flavouring. Waiting at the stage door were the boys, idling about and trying to come off as innocent. 

"Wondering what was taking you lot so long," Calum grinned.

Maria smirked up at him, "Well, we'd be on time but we got a little caught up in cleaning duty," 

Chloe scoffed, "Y'all think you're so damn clever. I mean -- jello? First of all: what a waste of a perfectly good non-perishable food product, second of all: how dare you!"

"How dare you turn a toilet bowl into a carnival game," Ashton replied, "Messing with a man's pride, that is!"

Before the girls could reply, the stage manager called out to them, none too patient for this back and forth, "Capers! You're on two minutes!"

"This isn't over," Kimberly warned them, "Watch your backs on stage tonight for any flying projectiles,"

"Like what, toilet paper?" Luke scoffed.

"How about pudding bombs?" Charlotte suggested, "Since we've taken to the art of wasting food," 

"I feel bad for Ash, mostly. He'd be right in the line of fire," Maria shrugged. 

"Capers! Let's go!" the stage manager called again. 

Ashton had on a shit-eating grin, "Have a good show, Capers,"

The girls glanced at each other, "Oh, we will," in sync, they raised their arms and slapped down a warm, wobbly ball of jello onto each boys' perfectly cleaned shirt. Suffice to say, they were none too impressed.

"Oh, come on!" Michael whined, "I just washed this!"

Kimberly shook her head, "Tut, tut, boys. That's gross,"

"Yeah, you better go change," Maria grinned, wiping her own sticky hand on her black pant leg. With that, the girls started filing out to the stage.

"Oi!" Calum called, "This isn't over!"

"Yeah!" Luke cried, "You may have won the battle, but you ain't won the war!"

Charlotte turned and walked backwards, smiling at the tall, blonde lad with defiance and pride flush in her face, "Yet," she whispered coyly. She flashed the boys and wink before following her girls out. 

Luke couldn't help the lingering smile in his face as he returned to the dressing room with the boys, they were all grumbling about having to change yet again. 

He rummaged through his go-bag for the spare t-shirt, silently thanking Harry for his nagging about having one for every show -- just in case. He didn't pay much attention as Calum wandered over, buttoning up his fresh flannel.

"Hey," he mumbled quietly, "Be honest with me now: do you got a bit of a thing for Charlie?"

Luke huffed, "Oh Jesus," he groaned, "What's Ashton been saying?"

"Nothing," Calum shook his head, "Have you been saying something to Ashton?"

"No," Luke replied, "And besides mate, I'm with Melody,"

"I know... unfortunately," he mumbled the last bit, "Are you guys alright? You and Mel?"

"Of course we are," Luke replied immediately, "I'm happy Cal, I swear to ya',"

"I believe ya'," Calum said, "But all joking and jello aside, if you have any problems, I'm always here to talk to you," 

Luke smiled at him with appreciation. He wanted desperately to tell someone how he was actually feeling but saying it out loud would just make it all concrete. And that was the last thing he needed. He wanted to love Melody the way he used to, effortlessly, but these days it felt hard. Forced. It was hard to be happy around her. Hard to be passionate about her and talk about her and he hated feeling so down about it. The last thing Luke needed was people trying to complicate things by asking if he and Charlotte were stoking flames. They were just friends and it made it hard to be so when other people -- namely his friends -- were questioning whether or not there was something more between them. 

Charlotte made him happy. She always made him so happy.

Melody had made him happy, too. Maybe they just needed a break from one another so they could get back to where they started. Maybe this tour was just what they needed? It wasn't that Luke didn't care about Melody anymore; he did. And some part of him still loved her dearly while another part told him that he didn't have to put up with her bullshit. 

Luke huffed and forced a smile at Calum, "Thanks mate," he said honestly. He contemplated spilling his guts to Calum right then and there. Everything he kept bottled inside. Opening his mouth and letting all his frustrations come flooding out. Instead, the only thing that came out of his mouth was a blatant lie, "But Mel and I are all good at the moment,"

♛♛♛

Luke had been sitting in the dressing room after the show, uninterested in what the others wanted to do for their post-concert celebration. He was chewing on his nails, lost deep in thought. 

He had a long message typed out, not yet sent to it intended recipient: Melody. He knew being on tour was technically a 'break' but somehow he still felt bound to her, like their wrists were cuffed together and all he wanted was to cut himself free. He didn't want to break up, but he didn't want her to be his responsibility at the moment. 

The anxiety brewing in his stomach had him deleting and rewriting the message over and over again. Should he send a message? Was that cowardly of him? He'd be more of a man if he called; just face the music. He was hesitant. He didn't want to hurt Melody and was scared that if he told her he wanted -- no, needed -- a break, she would immediately go off with someone else and wouldn't want him back. 

She's not that type of girl. She just isn't. 

Luke was unsure of how to proceed, but the emotional turmoil churning through his head came to an abrupt end when he heard the pounding of footsteps trodding through the halls.

The door to the dressing room burst open and his mates came flooding in, the girls much more refreshed and his mates hastily putting themselves back together for a night out. Charlotte came to sit next to him, and Luke immediately deleted his text message.

"You alright?" she asked, "We were all in the --"

"Craft room. Yeah," Luke nodded, "Just wanted to check in with my mum,"

Her brown eyes lit up, "How's Liz doing?" 

"She's good," Luke lied right through his teeth, "She says hi. Oh," he then reached over to the end table, picking up a fake rose, "Someone tossed this at me during 'Amnesia'. Y'want it?"

He waved it in front of her face and booped her nose with it, making Charlotte scrunch her nose and giggle, "Sure. You're such a gentleman,"

"I know," he grinned back. 

"Oh Kick-Ass! Hit-Girl!" Kimberly called to them, "We're going out for drinks, you guys coming?"

"I think they'd fancy some alone time," Michael smirked, earning a swift smack at the back of his head from Calum, "Hey! What was that for?"

"Shut up,"

"We're coming," Luke told them.

They all headed out to the nearest bar and as they walked, Luke slowly felt all consuming thoughts of Melody drift away. Once settled in, Ashton ordered everyone a round of shots.

Luke wasn't going to get drunk over his issues with Melody, either. Especially when he had Charlotte by his side. He had nothing he wanted to escape and he was already at ease with her by his side.

After downing a few shots, he began to feel the alcohol hit. The night seemed less impossible with every glass he tossed back. He ran his fingers through his hair and ordered himself a plain coke once his eyelids started to feel heavy.

"You alright?" Charlotte asked, shifting on the barstool to sit parallel to him, "You're looking a little flush," she smirked.

Luke stifled a laugh, "Oh, shut up. I can see it in your face too, Shorty," 

"Me?" Charlotte said in faux surprise, deliberately over exaggerated, "If you think I'm the kind of person to get drunk at the first bar on a pub crawl, you don't know me at all, Hemmings,"

Luke laughed to himself and sipped his coke. Whenever Charlotte got tipsy she would become very energetic and giddy, more so than when she would be sober. Luke however would slide straight into slurred speech, scattered thoughts and random laughter. 

"Alright," Luke smirked, "We'll see who lasts the longest then," 

Charlotte grinned back, accepting the challenge, "Well, it ain't gonna' be you if you're already on the soft drinks,"

It wasn't long after that the kids decided to move to another bar. Luke and Charlotte trailed along behind the group, still not yet too tipsy and cracking jokes to each other the entire walk over.

Maria secured them a booth for eight, the kids squeezing in together. Luke had his arm resting behind Charlotte on the backrest for comfort. His other hand was wrapped around a pint of beer that he lifted to clink with the others' glasses.

Tucked in her purse was the rose Luke had given to Charlotte, she was unsure why she brought it with her at this time. 

"Did you know that you're not actually supposed to serve beer in a chilled glass?" Calum said.

"How come?" Maria replied, her head resting on her closed fist.

"Well, the condensation dilutes the beer, and the freezing temperature changes the temperature of the beer. That's why bottles out of the fridge taste so icy," he said.

The guitarist took another sip of her pint, "I didn't know you knew that, Cal," 

Calum grinned back sheepishly, "I happen to know a lot of weird shit like that,"

"It's not weird at all," Maria shook her head, "... It's kinda' cool. And good to know should I have to fall back on a bartending career,"

Charlotte kept glancing at Luke throughout the night, trying not to stare for too long but found the task harder and harder the more she drank.

They'd reached the third bar soon enough and everybody was upbeat, well on their way to obnoxious. Cheering for each other and many of the guys sang random songs as they went from bar to bar. The jokes became funnier without any actual substance. The laughter was louder. The night became more alive with every ticking minute. 

Charlotte ran her hands up the her arms and shivered, "Jesus and Mary, it's fucking freezing," 

"You want my jacket?" Luke offered, moving to take off his denim jacket.

"Don't be silly," Charlotte replied, shaking her heavy head, "You've got shows to play. You're not allowed to catch cold. Keep it on,"

"Well, you're playing shows too, there's no excuse for you either. C'mere," he lifted the lapel of his jacket, the warm denim and his long arm coming to drape over her. She was immediately blanketed in the comforting scent of his cologne and the warmth of his body heat. Her head cleared for a moment, her stomach tingling. 

"Very intuitive of you," she smiled up at him.

"I'm just full of surprises," Luke grinned, pulling the jacket tighter around her and keeping her steady as they walked through the streets.

Somewhere on their way to their final bar, Michael stopped dead in his tracks when he came upon a tattoo parlour -- open late. His drunken mind was past the line of logical reason and he decided in that moment that he wanted another tattoo.

"Hey!" he called to the others, "Let's get some tattoos!"

"Oh, Michael! No!" Chloe chided, "Drunk tattoos are bad enough of an idea. Drunk tattoos in a foreign city are even worse,"

"What do you want to get?" Calum asked him.

"I don't know! But let's go in and see!" Michael replied, bouncing up and down like a child. Charlotte wasn't all that opposed to the idea, she already had a few small tattoos she'd collected on the road. Why not get another?

"I'll go with you, Mikey," she volunteered, slipping out of Luke's jacket. 

"You guys go ahead," Kimberly chuckled, "We'll meet you at the bar," the others pressed on.

"Nothing too big, now!" Ashton warned them.

"We'll be ten minutes!" Michael called back, "C'mon Char,"

Charlotte stood in the doorway of the parlour, turning back to Luke, "You want to come? Finally break your ink virginity?"

Luke was just on the cusp of saying yes, but the more sober side of him kept him back. He wasn't opposed to getting tattoos, the boys already had some and they looked damn cool. He wanted one too someday, but there was just something about the needles and threat of pain that turned him off.

"Maybe some other time," he told her, "Have fun, though,"

"Your loss!" she said before disappearing into the parlour. 

There was something evidently missing as Luke sat in the booth, not touching his pint as he waited for Charlotte and Michael to return. He was curious as to what she would get, probably something small but significant like her others. When they'd first met she had a Sailor Moon tattoo on her right arm: her favourite show as a kid. After that came the dandelion tattoo on her shoulder blade, the only tattoo her mom really approved of. And then there was one she got in the new year, the outline of a butterfly just behind her left ear. They were all important pieces of Charlotte's character, telling her journey on her own body.

Soon enough he could spot his two best mates weaving through the crowds and joining their friends at the table. Michael and Charlotte both had little bandages wrapped around their middle fingers. 

"That was fast," Ashton checked the time on his phone, they had only been gone thirty minutes as opposed to the promised ten, "What did you guys get?" 

Michael started pulling off the bandage, "Just an X," he replied, "Didn't hurt much,"

"That's 'cause you're both two sheets out on your way to three," Calum replied, "Final Fantasy Ten?" the guitarist nodded happily.

"Should -- should you be pulling that off so soon?" Maria asked, sober enough to worry.

"It's just a precautionary thing, it's fine," Charlotte assured her, pulling off her bandage as well. On her finger were an array of tiny little dots and stars.

"What is that?" Luke asked her.

"My zodiac," she replied, holding her hand up proudly, "It the constellation of Virgo," 

"Aw, it's cute!" Kimberly beamed. 

Luke's hand move subconsciously, tracing around the skin of the freshly inked tattoo. Charlotte gulped at the touch of his warm skin over her cold fingers, it was kind of nice.

"You like it?" she asked.

Luke smiled at her with heavy eyes, "Yeah, it's beautiful. It suits you," he replied.

"What do you guys want to drink?" Chloe asked them.

"Just a beer," Michael replied.

"I'm good right now," Charlotte nodded.

Luke raised his eyebrows, "Tapping out already?" he asked.

"You wish," she replied, "Just taking a little break. I'm tired," her head fell to rest on his shoulder.

"Can you make it back to the hotel? We can call a cab," Michael said.

"Nah, I can walk," Charlotte assured, over-pronouncing the 'k'.

"Well, I'm not carrying you if you fall asleep," Chloe warned, sipping on her martini.

"Don't be ridiculous, Luke's gonna' carry her if anything," Maria teased. Charlotte flipped her off, with the fresh ink being showed off quite nicely. 

"That's only 'cause I care about her," Luke replied, taking the high road, "Not gonna' let her fall or get sick on the pavement," 

"I don't get sick," Charlotte whined, her stomach suddenly churning at the mention.

"That's a lie," Calum grinned, fondly remembering the morning after the AMAs; undercooked sausages and all.

Charlotte smiled and moved to stand from her chair, smoothing out her hair, "Maybe so, but at least I own it. Excuse me," she then headed off in the direction of the bathroom.

"She going to hurl?" Ashton asked. 

"Oh, she's totally going to hurl," Kimberly replied, simpering a little to herself, "Little lightweight,"

Luke excused himself and went after her, following the little brunette to the unisex toilet. Charlotte just pushed the door open and fell next to the toilet, tossing her head over and coughing up her drinks. Without hesitation, Luke crouched down and held back her hair.

Charlotte heaved everything up quite quickly and immediately felt better. She moved to sit back on the floor, wiping her mouth with toilet paper Luke had handed to her.

"Alright, you win," she chuckled.

"I accept graciously and humbly," Luke said, helping her to her feet, "Time for us to go. You feel okay?"

Charlotte nodded, "Yeah," she took a step, but stopped when the vomit-inducing anxiety flooded her again, "Wait --" they waited a moment, but nothing happened, "Okay, yeah. I'm good," 

Luke chuckled, "Alright, let's get you home," 

#luke hemmings #luke hemming imagines #luke hemmings x reader #luke 5sos #calum hood #calum 5sos #calum hood imagines #ashton irwin #ashton 5sos #michael clifford #michael 5sos #5 seconds of summer #5 second of summer imagines #5sos #5sos fanfic #5sos imagine #boy bands #girl bands #charlotte antonakis #original female character #original story #band blog #band imagines #band imagine blog

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [1.8]

Masterlist

A/N: woohoo! Two chapters in one day! 🤙

Warnings: mentions of drug use

The food was beyond delicious. Maria and her cousin, Andrea, had spent the day cooking up all these little finger foods for the guests to snack on. They were the cutest things the girls had ever laid eyes on and Maria was pretty proud of herself. 

Charlotte had a little paper plate in her lap with three little sandwiches of smoked salmon and cream cheese and sausage pastry puffs. She was listening to another guests recent travels through South Africa, not paying attention when Luke would reach over now and again and try to steal some food off of her, just to annoy her. Grabbing a sausage puff with a toothpick, waiting for Charlotte to glare at him and grinning like a little shit as he quickly shoved the piece into his mouth. Charlotte glared at him every time.

"Piss off, dude!" she laughed, much to everyone's amusement, "Go get your own!"

"But Michael took the last sausage puff!" he whined, goading her with puppy-dog eyes. 

"Well, that's not my fucking problem," she pouted back, "Eat the salmon ones,"

"Ew, no," he shook his head.

"What if I put vegemite on it for you?" 

"... We can discuss it," 

Soon after the party quieted down long enough so they could all sing Happy Birthday to Maria. Afterwards, they cut into the cake and dipped into the freshly-heated bougatsa. Luke and Calum were immediately transported to heaven at the first bite. 

"Holy fuck, I missed this stuff," Calum said, powdered sugar staining his lips. 

"It's fucking good, yeah?" Luke hummed.

"This ain't nothing," Chloe told them, "When Charlotte's grandma used to make it fresh -- I swear, that shit was better than sex," 

"Do you know how to make this, Charlotte?" another guest asked. The mousy brunette shrugged shyly.

"I've attempted it once or twice, but I always fuck it up," she replied. 

"We got to get your mom to show us how to make this," Kimberly nodded.

Charlotte narrowed her eyes, "My mom? Teach us how to bake?"

Kimberly shook her head, "I didn't believe me, either," 

"Hey, we're not complaining over here," Luke piped in, grinning at Charlotte. Some cake icing dotted the corner of her lip, "Hold still, babe,"

He brushed his thumb at the corner of her lip and wiped off the icing. Charlotte hoped he didn't hear the thunk of the lump she'd swallowed the moment he touched her.

The others ate their dessert and consumed an assortment of drinks. Ashton and Michael got into a thumb wrestle over who would get the last bougatsa; Kimberly claimed victory while they were distracted. 

"Ya thumb wrestle like children? Ya lose regardless!" she told the sulking boys. 

Maria excused herself from her friends for a bathroom break. Ducking out from the party she trotted down the hall and turned into the bathroom doorway. However, she stopped dead in her tracks. Melody was rooting around in her bathroom drawers, seemingly looking for something. 

Maria thought she must've been hammered and she was seeing things, but Melody was none the wiser. She kept rummaging around through her toiletry drawer, what the actual fuck?

The older latina crossed her arms and leaned against the doorway, "What're you doing?" she asked.

Melody's head shot up faster than a crack of lightning, her face paling when she'd been caught, "Hm?" was her only response.

"... What are you doing?" Maria asked again, her patience already on a thin line with this girl.

Melody slowly closed the drawer, "I was just looking for some aspirin. I got a bit of a headache," she said, trying to play it off cooly. Maria was unsure as to whether or not she was telling the truth. If she wanted aspirin, she could've just asked. 

"One drawer over with the first aid kit," she instructed slowly. Melody opened the next drawer and gasped in triumph when her eyes landed on the little red bottle.

"Oh, here it is!" she grinned at Maria, "Thanks," 

"Sure," Maria nodded, "... Just ask me next time instead of going through my shit," 

Melody shrugged, "Well, you were having too good a time it was kinda' hard getting your attention. Figured you'd keep it in the bathroom anyway; but you're right. Total invasion of privacy. I'm sorry," 

"It's fine," Maria lied, "Come on. I'll get you some water," 

She had Melody slink out first and she watched the young influencer disperse into the crowd. Maria took one last glance at her bathroom, an eerie chill crawling up her spine. Something wasn't right, here. She shut the door behind her and made good to lock it this time. 

♛♛♛

The next afternoon, the girls were sat in the airport's lounge as they awaited their flight's departure. They were all giddy -- albeit a bit hungover -- for this next leg of the tour. That is, they were... until Maria told them about last night's run-in with Melody.

"What the fuck is she doing going through your bathroom drawers?" Kimberly scowled. 

"That's just downright fucking creepy, even for Melody," Charlotte said. 

"Yeah. What -- she wanna' know what scent of Vagisil you use or something?" Chloe remarked, earning some seedy stares from strangers sharing the space. 

Kimberly grimaced, "Lower your voice, for God sakes. Everybody's a prude these days," 

Maria slumped down in the arm chair she was sat in, "Girl looked me dead in the eye and told me she needed some aspirin. Bitch, if you need aspirin, you come and ask the host who's bathroom the aspirin is in. You don't just invite yourself to look through the drawers; that's like inviting a total stranger to go through my underwear drawer!" 

"I had a date try that with me once," Kimberly said suddenly. 

Chloe's eyebrows furrowed, "... And did he violate your underwear drawer?"

"No, but I violated his eyeballs with my hairspray," Kimberly said.

Charlotte cringed, "Get your ass off Bumble," 

"That's really creepy though, Maria," Chloe continued. 

"You wanna' know something creepier?" Maria said, "I don't think she was after the aspirin," 

"Why? What do you think she wanted?" Charlotte asked. 

Maria shrugged, "Something she clearly couldn't ask me for, probably for fear of judgement," 

"Like what?" Kimberly asked. 

"Name it. I got cough syrup in there, bath salts, a couple different painkillers. And if that wouldn't do the trick, she'd probably raid my spice rack for the nutmeg," Maria said.

"Nutmeg? What're you talking about?" Kimberly asked again. 

Charlotte shook her head with discontent, "She thinks Melody was looking for drugs," she kept her voice low so other passengers wouldn't hear them. 

Chloe's eyes went wide, "Drugs? What kind of drugs would we have? We smoke weed, drink illegally, and the main food group in our diet is McDonald's,"

"Announce it to the world, why don't you," Charlotte grimaced, "Not like we're famous or anything,"

"Sorta famous," Chloe pointed out, "We on a B level," 

Kimberly was in dismay, "Wait, hold up -- you can get high off nutmeg?" she asked in disbelief.

"Apparently, too much of the stuff is like an amphetamine overdose," Maria replied.

"So... say if one were to eat a whole pumpkin pie..." 

"You eat a whole ass pumpkin pie, you'll def get sick, just not from the nutmeg," Charlotte said.

"Why would you wanna' eat a whole pie, anyways?" Maria asked. 

Kimberly shrugged sheepishly, "Sometimes, post-breakup ice cream just isn't good enough," 

"Yeah, we can't all have a big Australian pretty boy coming over to wipe our tears away like you, babydoll," Maria said to Charlotte. Charlotte stuck her tongue out.

"Jealousy is unbecoming, Maria," 

A look of horror suddenly overcame Chloe's face, the mention of Luke triggering a harrowing thought, "What are the odds do you think Melody does use something? 'Cause if she's using, there's a good to fair chance she'd get Luke involved. And I don't know how I feel about that,"

"Luke Hemmings and drugs?" Kimberly scoffed, "That's like giving double espresso to a puppy,"

Charlotte shook her head confidently, "Luke doesn't use drugs. I mean -- I would know," she said, trying sound certain, "You guys said it yourself, we're practically together all the time. The guys too -- if he was on something but... he's -- he's just -- he's not!"

"No one's saying he is," Maria placed a hand on her knee to calm her down, "Okay? We're not saying he's on anything. We're not even certain Mel is on anything,"

"Yeah," Chloe nodded to Charlotte, "Maybe she's just a creep who likes to go through other people's privacy? Maria caught her doing it last night," 

"And you're right, Lottie," Kimberly added, "We've all known Luke for years. If he was on something -- I mean, I'm pretty sure we'd pick it off," 

Maria brought her hand to her forehead, "I don't even wanna' imagine what Ashton would do if he caught Luke snorting shit,"

"Forget Ashton. What about Liz?" Kimberly said, "Finding out her baby is a junkie? She'd kill Mel first, and then Luke,"

"Why kill Melody first?" Chloe asked.  

"You think Luke would get into that shit on his own? Yeah, right. Momma Hemmings' coming at that bitch with a fucking two-by-four and knock those duck lips off her face," the bassist scoffed.

Charlotte then interjected, "Could we talk about something else, please?" she asked, clearly uncomfortable with the subject. The girls couldn't blame her, how terrifying would it be to find out one of your closest friends, someone you practically share every aspect of your life with, abuses pills? 

"Sure," Maria nodded, just as eager to steer off topic. Besides, Luke didn't fit the mold anyway. He'd smoke weed, sure, but they all did, "What're we gonna' do first when we get to England?"

"Sleep off this hangover for one," Chloe replied. 

The conversation changed and soon enough, the girls were being called to board their plane. And yet, for the majority of the flight Charlotte had a sinking feeling in her gut. Even when Luke and Calum popped by her seat for a chat, she couldn't help but look at the 6'2 blonde a little differently. Her mind was wandering, looking for anything that indicated to her that Luke's behaviour was off. But he was normal, as normal and goofy as the day they'd met. 

You're being ridiculous, she thought to herself, he's not on anything. He never would... right?

♛♛♛

The moment they stepped off the plane, Charlotte took her phone off airplane mode and regretted it immediately when she saw she had a few missed calls from her mom. Eight, to be precise, and a flurry of text messages.

"For fuck sakes..." she fell into step with Maria as they made their way to exit Heathrow, "Look at this,"

The bleary-eyed latina took a glance at the phone screen and shook her head. Penelope was at it again with her overbearing and over-worrying.

"Jesus, eight calls? Seriously?" she asked.

"One for nearly every hour of the flight. And like, twelve messages," Charlotte replied, she scrolled through the messages, "Your brother is still seeing that whore. I know he's lying to me. What did you say to him before you left? Why aren't you answering my calls?"

"Didn't you tell her you were travelling today?" she asked.

"Oh, of course," she nodded back, "When she gets hysterical though, all rational thought flies out the window," she started to dial her mom's number. 

Maria's eyebrows furrowed, "It's 11pm over there right now, isn't it?"

"Well clearly, it's an emergency. So I think she'd appreciate the call back, regardless" Charlotte smirked, knowing fully well her mother was already fast asleep. 

Maria shook his head, "You're bad, Char," 

"I know," she put the phone to her ear, "But I look damn good while doing it," 

A few feet behind the girls, Luke fell into step with Ashton. Charlotte wasn't the only one to note Bryana's lack of presence at the party, and Melody's words echoed in his head on repeat. Ashton didn't often let it show when he was down, he was supposed to be the happy-go-lucky git of the group. Always laughing and joking around, so it was rare when Luke would truly see Ashton upset.

"Hey," 

"Hey," Ashton yawned into his fist.

Luke licked his lips nervously, "Listen, I don't want to get into anything but... are you and Bri okay?" he asked. 

The curly-haired drummer seemed to go a shade paler at the mention, but his face gave nothing away, "Whatcha' mean?"

The blonde shrugged sheepishly, "I mean -- she wasn't at Maria's party last night --"

"I told you: she had a thing," Ashton replied, staring at the younger lad quizzically. 

"What kind of a thing?" Luke asked. Ashton neglected to respond, instead focusing on pushing through the crowds of travelers, "I'm not trying to pry or anything, mate. I just -- if something's going on, we're here for you. All of us," he nodded in the direction of the girls.

Ashton feigned a smile, "I know. And I'm good, we're all good. I promise ya,"

If there was one thing Luke would change about Ashton, he'd get him to be a little more truthful with his emotions. For as long as he could remember, Ashton would bottle up his feelings on the inside and slap a smile on his face, and on more than one occasion he'd crash and burn at the end of misery lane. 

"Alright," 

An hour and some later the bands arrived at their hotel. Charlotte had called her mom, hearing the same grating annoyance in Penelope's voice as she bitched about how it was the middle of the night, but afterwards proceeded to complain to her daughter about how sure she was Troy was keeping things from her. Charlotte did what any burnt out daughter would do with their paranoid, overbearing mother: tune her out and simply agree with everything she was saying so she'd settle down. 

"That's the problem with your generation; you all romanticize drugs and unwrapped sex until you end up pregnant and have to live with your overworked parents for the rest of your lives -- rent free!"

"I know mom, I know," Charlotte sighed, slumped over the couch of her hotel room. 

Across from her sat Chloe on the bed, sprawled out and trying to doze off. But Penelope was so loud she could hear her from the speaker. She kept her eyes trained on the singer, and when Charlotte caught her gaze she made a gun sign with her hand and motioned to blow her brains out. Chloe simpered. 

"Are you even listening to me?" Penelope snapped. 

Charlotte rolled her eyes, "Yeah mom, I've been listening for --" she glanced at the bedside clock, "Forty-eight minutes exactly," 

Penelope huffed, "Alright, alright. I know when you're sick of me, sweetheart. Just try not to cry too much when I finally kick the bucket," and here came the guilt. 

"Mom, I'm not sick of you," Charlotte reasoned, "But I just got off a nine-hour flight and I'm exhausted," 

"So, why did you call me?" Penelope asked.

"Because I feared you'd harass the phone company again if I didn't," she replied, "Now, just calm down. Troy's an adult and he can do what he wants," 

"But what if he gets her pregnant or she gets him into LSD? I don't want no helter skelter hipsters coming around my house and blowing their sage around!" Chloe heard that and nearly busted out laughing.

Charlotte rolled her eyes, bleary and fatigued, "Mom, he's not going to get anybody pregnant. I mean -- look at him. The kid's swimmers probably can't even make it past the cervix," Chloe grimaced. 

"Charlotte, don't be so crass," Penelope chided.

"Well, stop being so paranoid! And lay off the kid! You can't be helicoptering over his shoulder all the damn time," Charlotte replied. 

"It's not paranoia, but a mother knows when a girl isn't right for her son!" she replied, "If you ask me, the Martinellis should've sent that girl to reform school long ago," 

"I know, mom," Charlotte huffed, "Look, I got to go but just take it easy for God sakes. Give Troy a little room to breathe," 

"He's not like you, Charlotte," Penelope stated, "I never have to worry about you, you're independant. It's your brother the world is going to eat alive. Goodnight, Charlotte," and with that, the older woman hung up. Charlotte wanted nothing more than to toss her phone out the window. 

Chloe grinned at her friend, "... So, how's Penelope?" she asked. 

Charlotte glared back at her, "Why is talking to my mother for forty minutes more exhausting than a transatlantic flight?"

"Because she's crazy," Chloe stated simply, "No offense -- but I mean, helter skelter hippies? What does she think this is? The Manson Murders?" 

"I don't even know anymore," Charlotte peeled herself off the couch and went to collapse on the twin bed, "The woman is like a damn gas leak. I don't see her or hear her for a multitude of time, but she's slowly trying to kill me,"

"Maybe you ought to get her Xanax for Christmas," Chloe smirked. 

Charlotte crawled under the blankets, fully prepared for a twelve-hour nap, "Xanax wouldn't be strong enough. I need some elephant tranquilizers," 

"Isn't that shit toxic for humans?" 

"I don't know. But we'll find out," 

Chloe huffed and grabbed the chord to draw the curtains closed, crawling back into her own bed for a nap, "Get some rest Charlie, you'll feel better," 

"Mmhm," Charlotte already had her eyes closed and was willing herself to sink into some sleep. However, her phone buzzed with another text and she swore she was going to hit the ceiling. 

"Oh my God! This woman!" she grabbed the phone to turn it off, but her blood ran cold when she saw it wasn't her mom who had sent her a text.

"Hewy Char"

"II miss yo,"

"I'm sdtill down if yaou arey?

"Jus forq a night?"

"It's Ben, by the wak," 

Clearly he was drunk, so it gave Charlotte no satisfaction that he was only texting her because he was inebriated. She could've sworn she blocked his number, anyways. But how disrespectful could a person be? Not only to their ex, but to themselves as well?

"What is it?" Chloe asked, noting Charlotte's despondent silence, "Is it your mom?"

Charlotte felt a cold shiver ripple down her spine. Apart from anger, the only thing that pumped through her blood was fear. The thought of him coming anywhere near her again nearly had her on the brink of tears. Years of forgotten manipulation and abuse came flooding back in the blink of an eye and Charlotte felt she was back in her apartment, cold, alone and shattered. 

So she immediately blocked his number and deleted the texts.

"No, it's just data warnings," Charlotte replied, swallowing the dense lump in her throat, "Nothing important,"

#luke hemmings #luke hemming imagines #luke hemmings x reader #luke 5sos #calum hood #ashton irwin #michael clifford #calum 5sos #ashton 5sos #michael 5sos #Charlotte Antonakis #original story #original female character #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines #boy bands #girl bands

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [1.6]

Masterlist

A/N: I hate everybody in the entire fucking world... except you guys. you guys are cool ;)

Warnings: mostly fluff, mentions of conflict

--

Charlotte's page looked like an ink bomb had been set off. She was writing mid-lyric when the pen had decided to snap and thin black ink splattered everywhere; on the journal, on the desk, ever on her nice moppy jeans.

"Son of a bitch!" she quickly grabbed a rag from her bathroom, soaked it in hot water and scrubbed vigorously at her jeans. It was just so happened the ink landed over her crotch, and as she scrubbed the water seeped in and made it look like Charlotte had an accident of a different sort.

As she tried to get the ink out, the door to her bedroom swung open and Maria, Chloe, and Kimberly came sauntering in; all stopping dead when they saw the wet stain in Charlotte's crotch. 

Chloe smirked, "We interrupting your good time, Lottie?" 

Charlotte glared back at her, "My pen broke and got all over my favorite fucking jeans, and I'm trying to clean them," she grumbled, "Get your mind out of Cosmopolitan,"

Kimberly's face contorted into horror, "No! Those are the moppy ones we found at Vintage Thrift?" Charlotte nodded solemnly, "Fuck, dude!"

Maria rolled her eyes, "Whatever, they're pants. Just throw them in the wash and put on a new pair. C'mon, we're gonna' be late!" 

The girls had booked a studio session to discuss and start the blueprints for their next album. And unfortunately, Charlotte had a key song in her journal that was now blanketed in ink puddles. The lyrics were gone. 

Nevertheless, the girls still had a menagerie of work to pick from, having compiled a good chunk of writing between the four of them. The challenge would be piecing it all together to form the next album. There was always a fear in creating the second album, and what most artists ended up doing with trying to recreate the same success with the same formulas that had made their first album successful. Charlotte didn't believe in those types of do-overs; if you wanted to stand out you had to be different from everybody else.

Changed into a new pair of jeans, Charlotte and the girls sat on stools and small couches, instruments in laps and books thrown on the workbench as they discussed which directions to take. And no matter what, Charlotte's cursed song always came out leading the charge.

"I just think it's really sexy," Maria confessed when discussed 'You & I', "If we integrate a heavy bass line, it could be like Do I Wanna Know 's badass female cousin,"

"You hear that, Lottie?" Chloe piped up, "You're writing Arctic Monkeys quality shit!"

Charlotte blushed, "I'm pretty far from that level, but okay," 

Kimberly shuffled up in her stool, "I agree with the girls. That being said Char, if you're not comfortable putting the song out just yet, it's okay. We can work around it,"

"Hell, who's to say people will even figure out it's about Hemorrhoid?" Chloe said, trying to lighten the mood with a joke.

Maria glared over at her, unimpressed, "Why are you like this?"

Charlotte could understand where the girls were coming from, and the more she read over the words the more she could hear, feel the sound and energy it radiated. It was a passionate, desperate song that was edgy and heartfelt and frustrated. It was a song that she poured her emotions into, and it wasn't necessarily the emotional stint that terrified her. It was what everyone would think, perceive when they'd hear it.

"Look, I'm gonna' think about it," she admitted, flipping through her ink-wrinkled journal to her recently finished song 'Doctor Doctor', "I think this should be a contender, too," 

Meanwhile, crossing the country to the West coast the boys of 5 Seconds of Summer were sitting in a studio, listening to the demo they would record over for their new song. It was something written for them -- as opposed to something they wrote themselves -- for a new movie coming out in the summer, Ghostbusters.

If the marketing team played their cards right, and the movie was a mass success as producers had predicted, then 'Girls Talk Boys' would be the summer smash of the year. They liked the retro vibe and Ashton and Michael were already excited at the prospect of paying homage to one of their favorite movies. 

Going in two different directions, the bands spent the rest of the week planning, directing, and beginning to track for their new singles. The label wanted Catch the Caper's new song to be released somewhere between September-November, so the girls had a lot of work to do on top of their tour. 

Leaving to go back to LA was harder for Maria and Kimberly than it was for Chloe and Charlotte. Chloe had a bit of a strained relationship with her dad since she'd come out, so she didn't exactly have a happy-household to go back to. As for Charlotte, as much as she loved her mom, she could only take so much of her. And she made Troy promise to stay out of trouble. 

"Don't worry, you won't hear hyde nor hair of me," he said.

"That's see hyde or hair, smartass," she ruffled his scruffy hair, "And try not to piss mom off too much," 

Troy scowled, "Mom gets pissed off if I butter the bread wrong," 

The flight to LAX was shorter this time around, Charlotte figured it was probably because her mind was racing. Her long fingers tapped along the chair arm in time to the beat of 'Doctor Doctor' playing in her head. The song wasn't as passion-driven as 'You & I' yet it embodied the misery and heartbreak Charlotte was wallowing in months ago. 

God, Ben dumped her nearly six months ago, and look at her now. 

She waited patiently in the elevator, hauled her bag in tow behind her and threw the door to her little apartment open. It smelled of grapefruit and linen, just as she left it. The curtains were still drawn to close out any prying eyes. 

Tired, Charlotte didn't even bother bringing her bag to the bedroom, she simply shed off her coat and went to the couch, immediately falling backwards into the soft material. However, she was reasonably startled when she found she landed on a body.

"What the hell?!" she shrieked and shot up. But to her surprise -- and dismay -- Luke was sprawled out over her couch, just as terrified as she was. 

"Well, bloody fuck! Good to see you too, Shorty!"

Charlotte's blood pressure quickly descended and she relaxed, "Luke, what the hell are you doing? You scared me half to death!"

"I didn't mean to! I knew you were coming back today," he grinned, "Did you miss me?"

"Dude, I've been stuck with you in South Asia for six weeks straight," Charlotte huffed, lightly punching him in his shoulder "... Of course I missed you," 

Luke was partially honest when he'd told Charlotte he just wanted to drop by. He did -- but he also wasn't too comfortable heading back home right now. He and Mel had another blow-up, but knowing how concerned Charlotte would become, he didn't say anything about it. Not that she didn't have her suspicions...

They agreed to order in a pizza and settle in for the evening. Charlotte had kicked off her shoes and had her feet propped on the coffee table while she ate her pizza happily. Luke meanwhile had her guitar sat in his lap and strummed the strings gently with his fingers. Dr. Who was playing in the background.

Charlotte threw her head back into the cushion, "Can't be bothered to go into the studio tomorrow, I'm too tired," she huffed. 

Luke smiled and continued playing the guitar, "Sounds more like a 'you' problem,"

"You have to come with me tomorrow," she pouted at him, "Terryn said so,"

"No she didn't," Luke chuckled. 

"No, she didn't," she shook her head, "But it's more fun when you're there," 

"We'll be in with the guys tomorrow, anyway," he said.

Charlotte's face lit up, "You're recording a new song?" 

"For that new Ghostbusters movie coming out. I think you're really gonna' like it," he said.

Charlotte readjusted so she sat perpendicular to him, "Let's hear it," 

Luke's face tinted a shade of pink, but he refused, "Sorry, not yet,"

"Seriously," she whined, "You're really gonna' make me wait until the demo tomorrow? I let you hear my new shit all the time,"

He poked her in the ribs, "Fair argument," he pulled the guitar forward and re-tuned some of the strings until they were in the key he needed, "Now, you're sworn to secrecy. You can't tell anybody I showed you this," 

"Knock it off. I'm gonna' listen to it tomorrow anyways, Tony Soprano," she replied.

Luke figured he was just trying to stall because he was nervous. He always was playing new music for Charlotte, and even though she knew he'd love anything he wrote there was always a small hint of anxiety plaguing him. Kind of like how she would get when she'd play music for him. 

He began playing an sang softly,

"When the girls, when the girls talk, When the girls talk boys,Oh, when the girls, when the girls talk, When the girls talk boys,"

Charlotte nodded along in time to the bouncy tempo he set,

"When you're talking to your girls, do you talk about me? Do you say that I'm a sweetheart, do you say that I'm a freak? Do you tell them white lies, do you tell them the truth? Do you tell them that you love me the way that I've been loving you? 'Cause every night you and I find ourselves, Kissing and touching like no one else, Falling and falling until I fell, For you"

Charlotte clapped as he finished, "You didn't write that, did you?" 

Luke froze momentarily, "How could you tell?" he asked.

"I just can. I know how you write," she shrugged, "Don't get me wrong, it's catchy. It just needs more... you. You guys need to put your spin on it," 

Luke knew where Charlotte was coming from, she never called him out from a bad place. She was right, she knew him just as well as the guys did. And even if they didn't write the song, she knew they'd still smash it. 

"You want to write a song?" he asked suddenly.

Charlotte raised her eyebrows, "Right now?"

"Why not?" Luke shrugged.

She smiled happily, "Alright. Let's do it,"

Their creativity flowed right until two in the morning when they finally fell asleep. They were writing and rewriting, experimenting with new chords and melodies. They didn't name it, didn't have plans to take it to their producers, it was just something fun they could keep for themselves. It was a perfect combination of emotional angst and punk rock vandal rolled into one. 

Charlotte was a phenomenal songwriter, Luke wasn't sure how she did it half the time. The poetry she stitched together was so profound it sometimes had him near floored. Paired with the voice of an angel, Luke couldn't help but be captivated by her talent. The first time they had an all night writer's session, they came out on the other side with 'Outer Space'. Needless to say, Luke was exceedingly proud of that song just because of Charlotte's contributions. 

Luke never was much of a morning person. He was grumbling incoherently when Charlotte was already up and clunking around to make coffee.

"What if we just fucked off for the day and skipped the studio?" he groaned, pulling a pillow over his face.

"No, get up. And you can't complain about your tiredness, I just got off a damn plane," Charlotte replied.

"Five more minutes, Mum," he turned over. 

"Five more minutes?" Charlotte marched around to the couch, "You're the one that wanted to stay up and write a song,"

"You're the one that wanted me to sing in the first place," he mumbled back.

Charlotte placed her hands on her hips, an evil idea coming to mind. She grabbed the edge of the couch cushion and yanked it out from under him. Luke rolled and was suddenly lying flat on the wooden frame. 

"Ouch," 

"Time to get up, sweetie," Charlotte grinned, tossing the cushion to the floor, "And don't ever call me 'mom',"

Luke watched her circle back to the kitchenette, "How would you feel about 'Dad' then?" she flipped him off. 

He eventually managed to pull himself up and stretched out his back, an annoying little kink had formed overnight. He joined Charlotte at the counter for a fresh cup of coffee and a plate of shortbread cookies, fresh from the packet.

Charlotte stared at him tentatively as he sipped his coffee, "So... you uh... you want to talk about it?"

Luke glanced at her over the mug's rim, "Nope,"

"okay,"

♛♛♛

Ashton was curious when Luke showed up to the studio wearing the exact same outfit from yesterday, but he didn't press on about it. For now. 

The bands were supposed to be working in separate studios in the building, of course the separation didn't last long. They didn't mind, it was more the producers who had a problem with the constant interruption to work and the shenanigans that would take place. 

It was just before noon when Luke tore himself away from the mock guitar battle between Michael and Maria, his phone was buzzing. Melody texted him that she was downstairs with a change of clothes, coupled with an apology. 

No one really paid attention when he stepped out, all except for Charlotte who knew better. 

Calum and Michael were playing a demo of 'Girls Talk Boys' for the girls when Luke returned, freshly changed into a new flannel and skinny jeans. Trailing behind him was Melody, much to the girls chagrin. Nevertheless, they put on smiles as she entered.

"Hey! Long time no see!" Maria said. Charlotte and Kim stayed quiet.

"You mind if I hang out for a bit?" Melody asked.

"The more the merrier," Michael replied, giving away his spot on the couch for her, "The girls were about to play their new song for us,"

"You're getting first exclusive rights, here," Chloe said.

Her dark almond eyes lit up with intrigue, "Ooh, I'm down!"

Kim rolled her eyes.

They boys were thrilled to have a first listen on Catch the Caper's new song. The three boys crammed in together on the one couch while Michael sat on a rolley chair. Mel sat on the arm of the couch next t The girls were ready to play their first full performance of 'Doctor Doctor'. 

Luke gave her a subtle wink that made Charlotte's heart race, and she couldn't help but smile and blush.

"Alright," Kim started, "Now remember, no heckling until the song is over,"

"Shut up and play," Calum bit back. 

"Shut up and kiss my ass," Maria smirked. 

Despite the song being written about her breakup, Charlotte couldn't help but have Luke at the forefront of her mind. It was hard for her to look at him as she sang, let alone with her being right there, so she kept her gaze averted to the floor. Luke was just all that she could think about, every morning, ever show, every love song, every lyric they wrote together. Every time she looked at him she felt overwhelmingly happy to have him in her life.

"Just a heart broke bitch, high heels six inch In the back of the nightclub, sippin' champagne I don't trust any of these bitches I'm with In the back of the taxi sniffin' cocaine Drunk calls, drunk texts, drunk tears, drunk sex I was lookin' for a man who was on the same page Now it's back to the intro, back to the bar To the Bentley, to the hotel, to my old ways" 

Ashton was the first to break into an overly enthusiastic round of applause, "Somebody get these girls a Grammy! Stat!"

"Oh, shut up, Ashton," Kim giggled. 

Calum was curious as he raised his hand, as though he was in school for some reason, "Hold on -- Lottie... have you actually done cocaine?"

Charlotte cocked a brow at him, sliding back, "Have you met me, Cal?"

"She's only addicted to Doctor Who," Chloe added.

Michael snorted, "Is that the 'Doctor' you're referring to?" he asked.

"Gosh, however did you know?"

The others gave praise where praise was do and near immediately they jumped back into developing their new songs. Charlotte noticed however that Melody had been a little too quiet since she finished singing.

#luke hemmings #luke hemming imagines #luke 5sos #ashton irwin #ashton 5sos #michael clifford #michael 5sos #calum hood #calum 5sos #5sos #5 seconds of summer #5sos fanfic #5sos x reader #charlotte antonakis #original story #original female character #band blog #band imagines #band imagine blog

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [2.5]

Masterlist

A/N: You know when I was getting to the end of this chapter I had Madelaine Kahn's "I'm Tired" from Blazing Saddles lol. But thanks for your patience, I'm happy to have some more breakthroughs in my writer's block ☺️

Warnings: some depression, slight angst, practical jokes

--

Charlotte's next song came pretty easily over the next week. Aside from the previous one she showed Kimberly -- titled 'Empty' -- for the first few days on the road Charlotte sat in her bunk, plucking way at her guitar and scribbling down all the misgivings she was feeling. It helped, it made her feel a lot better. And soon enough, she stopped being so upset with Luke.

Luke had respected her request for space as the tour progressed from the outer cities of New York and into Virginia. But they were still polite to each other, they sat together at breakfast and would goof off with their friends in the bus. But he never pried into her mindset, he didn't push her to do anything. He could see her beacon was burning out but he was determined to keep her lit for as long as possible. He wouldn't intrude, but he would support her. 

The girls were heartbroken to learn of Ashton and Bryana's breakup. It was a mutual thing, kept relatively quiet. Nevertheless, Ashton put a brave smile on, assuring his friends that he would be okay. There'd be other girlfriends, for sure, but it was still a sad feat. The girls especially loved Bryana, who was the polar opposite of Melody. 

Chloe however seemed to score in the dating pool. Passing through Syracuse, Chloe had caught the eye of an adorable young woman at a ramen restaurant. Eva was a college student, a little shorter than Chloe with dark, close-cropped hair and a smile that -- according to Chloe -- radiated sunshine and daisies. Chloe was so captivated by Eva that she didn't realize her wonton slipped off her spoon and splattered into her bowl, sending soup everywhere. 

"Dammit, Chloe!" Kimberly snapped, she and the girls grabbing a multitude of napkins to clean the mess.

"Sorry,"

However, Chloe wasn't all too concerned with a wonton soup spill. It was only when Maria noticed the drummer was throwing heart eyes that she urged Chloe to go talk to her.

"Go introduce yourself," she urged.

"No way," Chloe replied urgently, "She watched me bomb the table with soup,"

"That's one of the more forgivable things you've done," Kimberly said, earning her a swift under-the-table kick from Charlotte.

"What Kimberly meant is you won't ever know if you don't try. Besides," Charlotte turned to the young woman sat two tables behind them, "She's giving you Hallmark eyes," 

"Go to the Hallmark eyes," Kimberly nodded. 

With enough encouragement, Chloe plucked up the courage to go talk to Eva. It had turned out that Eva had tickets to see the show tonight, and that only made the smile on Chloe's face go wider. She invited her to come hang out with them afterwards, probably off to a bar or something before they'd pack up for tomorrow. 

Eva was ecstatic to meet the girls, as well as the guys from 5sos. She wasn't one to deny that she had a bit of a fangirl moment, too. But she was most captivated by Chloe the entire night, watching her galaxy ombre hair thrash as she ravaged the percussion. The two girls spent the entire night talking, discussing everything from the worlds' politics to what toppings they preferred on their ice cream. Chloe never wanted the night to end.

Regardless to say, Chloe was sad to leave Syracuse the next day. However, Eva had given Chloe her number and told her to keep in touch. Chloe had a huge smile on her face the entire bus ride to Darien. 

Charlotte was glad at least two of her girls were finding luck in the romance department. She had some suspicions about Maria and Calum. Just before they set off on the road, a photo of the pair had been published to some gossip fad website. Calum and Maria definitely spent the day together at Venice Beach, looking cozier than the girls would've expected. But when asked about it, Maria played it off as just her and a friend hanging out. Calum was the same when approached by the guys. 

Tonight the bands were playing in Holmdel: the Hamptons of New Jersey -- as Maria so lovingly referred to. In the ten days the tour had been on the road, Charlotte had completed another song, entitled 'Good to be Alive'. Despite its optimistic title, the themes and words were more sardonic and polarizing, a reflection of where Charlotte felt she stood: she was happy to be alive, but right now her life kind of sucked. So, what else was there to do accept turn her misery into music?

It wasn't all just misery for Charlotte, however. She suspected the boys were up to no good. When she and the girls came crashing through the green room they were all huddled together, looking rather suspicious as they sprung apart suddenly, trying to come off as natural.

"What's the ploy?" Maria asked, coming to plop down on the couch. 

"We were talking about what we're gonna' do for Luke's birthday," Michael replied. Luke scowled over at him. 

Chloe's face lit up, "Hey! That's right! The baby is twenty in six days!" she awed at Luke. Luke pouted and folded his arms like a child.

"I'm not a baby," he muttered. 

"Oh, it's okay, honey," Kimberly smirked, "You just won't get wrinkles as fast as Ashton, is all,"

"Hey!" Ashton protested, "What did I ever do to you?" Kimberly just stuck her tongue out at him. 

Charlotte sat on the arm rest of the couch, dressed in ripped baggy jeans, fish nets, and a Ramones shirt she clearly cut at the waist to turn into a crop top. She smiled at Luke.

"So, what are we doing for your birthday?" she asked coyly.

Luke huffed, "Trying to convince Harry to change the dates in Canada so I could at least have a drink," he sighed.

"Oh, yeah. We're in Canada tomorrow," she thought aloud.

"We're in Camden on his birthday," Michael said. 

"Ah yes, Camden," Maria nodded, "The Jersey of New Jersey,"

"Why are you shitting on Camden?" Calum asked.

Charlotte snorted, "You've clearly never been to Camden," 

"What does that mean?" Luke asked. 

"Just don't wear your jewelry and nice watches, is all," Kimberly warned. 

There was a sudden swift knocking at the door, "Capers! Ten minutes!" the stage manager hollered.

Chloe groaned, "Ugh, already?"

"Come on, ladies," Maria urged, waving her hand at the boys, "We've got to set the bar for these losers," 

"You wish," Ashton snickered.

"Have a good show!" Michael called happily.

"Break a leg!" Calum piped after.

"Avoid the projectiles!" Luke said. 

Charlotte glanced cautiously at the four boys before they all filed out, an uneasy feeling sitting within her.

"Those eggheads are up to something," Kimberly surmised.

"Oh, good. You guys feel it, too," Charlotte said. 

"Like he said," Maria huffed, "Watch out for flying projectiles,"

Luke had cracked open a can of coke as he watched the girls from the wings. He couldn't help but smile when he heard his favourite part of 'E.V.O.L' so sardonically sung by Charlotte. That -- and watch the way she danced in those jeans.

Charlotte had her focus on the roaring fans she she broke into the post-chorus, bending down and crouching at the front row as she sang,

"Candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker, Every kiss you give me makes me sicker, A day in the dark, a day in a cloud of gloom, yeah"

From the corner of her eye she saw Luke and couldn't help the giddy smirk that spread over her face. She turned to him as she sang into the mic,

"I look at you, you look at me. Milk and roses, squeaky clean, Well, you're the best I've ever seen... and what!?" she turned the mic at the audience, who sang back perfectly, 

"AND I'M YOUR DYING BEAUTY QUEEN!"

"That's fucking right!" 

Luke couldn't help it, he always felt electrified watching Charlotte perform. He'd be standing on that stage in less than an hour but there was always an element of badassery in her stage presence. She tossed the mic in the air and caught it with ease as the song went into the bridge, the tension in the theatre building slowly before the anticipated eruption of pink and roses.

"It only takes two lonely people, To fuck love up and make it evil, It only takes a drop of evil, To fuck up two beautiful people,"

Out of nowhere, Luke felt a hard tap on his shoulder. He jumped, but relaxed when he saw it was only Michael. He had on a Ninja Turtle beanie, complete with eyeholes for the mask. 

"You ready mate? 'Sex' is next," he said.

Luke grinned mischievously at the matching Ninja Turtle beanie in his hands, nodding enthusiastically as he pulled it over his head.

"Let's do it,"

Charlotte drank a bit more water when the song finished, Chloe towelled off her sweaty neck and Kimberly tuned her guitar for 'Sex Yeah' coming up next. 

Maria, feeling especially cocky, called for the entire theatre's attention, "Hey guys," she spoke confidently into the mic, garnering the rest of the band's attention, "Who am I?"

She started playing her guitar to 'She Looks So Perfect', bouncing and jumping similarly to how Michael would play. The crowd went ecstatic.

"Perfect likeness!" Charlotte said into the mic, glancing back at the wings. Luke had disappeared.

Kimberly then joined in on bass, prompting Charlotte and Chloe to happily join in on their respective ends and do an impromptu cover of SLSP. Charlotte moved and acted how she'd seen Luke do on stage: awkward and tall,

"Simmer down, simmer down, They say we're too young now to amount to anything else, But look around, We worked too damn hard for this just to give it up now, If you don't swim, you'll drown, Don't move --"

"HONEY!" the crowd finished, then went on to sing the chorus without the band.

"Hey! Hey! Hey!" Chloe said into her mic, waving her hands to pipe them down, "Wrong band guys! Wrong song!" 

"Later on," Charlotte promised, "This next one is a reminder to all of you to take sex ed seriously!"

"Wrap it before you tap it," Kimberly quickly added. 

Seconds into the song, the boys were already putting their revenge prank into action. Armed with screwdrivers and wrenches and expertly disguised in their Ninja Turtle beanies, they were ready to go to war.

"Could we get arrested for this?" Calum asked, semi-cautious of what kind of trouble they'd be in with maintenance and stage hands.

Ashton shook his head, "We'll get a stern talking to and that's it," he said, "Come on, they're nearly halfway,"

Catch the Caper were none the wiser as they performed 'Sex Yeah' without a hitch, jumping and having fun while also informing the public about dastardly double standards and biased gender roles in a modern society. 

"If history could set you free (from who you were supposed to be), If sex in our society (didn't tell a girl who she would be), 'Cause all my life I've tried to fight what history has given me, me"

If it wasn't obvious, the sex education the girls received in school was appalling. 

Charlotte exhaled quickly before the second verse, "If women were religiously recognized sexually," she then sauntered over to Kimberly, standing just behind her and mirroring a grab at her backside, "We wouldn't have to feel the need to show our ass-ets to feel free,"

But as pre-chorus came, the girls were stunned when four ninjas in black rushed the stage. Then they went to work and trying to dismantle Chloe's drum kit. 

"Been there, done that, got the t-shirt, Sold my soul, and yeah, the truth hurts,"

Charlotte was in shock at first, gawking and still singing word-for-word before quickly registering the 5sos guys were only trying to get cute with their set. Poor Chloe was playing the drums and trying to bat them away with her sticks. Kimberly and Maria were helpless to do anything, figuring the best they could do was keep playing. 

"Tired image of a star, acting naughtier than we -- Jesus!"

Charlotte tried to come to Chloe's rescue, batting, pushing and pulling at the boys as they got a hold of the medium tom. But she was suddenly lifted into the air and thrown over a broad shoulder. It was Luke, given the scent of familiar cologne. Charlotte's only defence mechanism was to slap his butt to ill affect as he placed her at the end of the stage, sticking his tongue out at her before running back to help his mates. She was quick to run after him but the drum had already been dismantled from the rest of the set.

"Fuck you!" Chloe shouted at the guys, though she couldn't help but be entertained by their shenanigans. The crowd just ate it up! 

The boys triumphantly carried out the medium tom; it took two of them to do it. Charlotte just followed in defeat, shaking her head at the audience as she started singing again. Even she couldn't help but have a laugh.

"'Cause all my life I've tried to fight what this fuck-er-y has given me. Oh my God,"

Maria's only coup de grace was to snatch the beanie off of Calum's head, putting it on herself before tearing back to finish the song. Luckily, the guys hadn't come back to destroy any other pieces of their set. 

That all really just happened in front of nine-thousand people.

The guys couldn't help but peak around with giddy, nervous but anticipating a raucous outburst from the girls when they'd come off stage. They meant no harm of course, and Chloe didn't pretty good considering she was short a drum. 

"Hey guys," Chloe finally spoke when the song finished, glancing at where her med tom used to be, "I think I'm missing something,"

Kimberly shook her head, "Quick! What's the natural predator of a turtle?"

"A backhand over the face," Charlotte replied sharply, jumping onto the drum platform to check on Chloe, "You okay?"

"I'm good! I got this," Chloe told her confidently, "Go be magical!"

Luckily, the rest of Catch the Caper's set finished without any more indignities. And they noticed when they came off stage that the guys had seemingly disappeared. In the dressing room they left the med tom, on the batter head was scribbled: 5SOS RULEZ!

"I hate that they wrote it with a 'z'!" Kimberly grimaced. 

"My poor drum," Chloe shook her head, "Damaged and defiled by a bunch of hooligans,"

"It's alright, Chloe," Maria assured her, "We won't let this stand," 

The guys played another excellent show, though they were all weary of an oncoming attack at any point in the night. To their surprise, the girls never tried to humiliate their set. The guys relax a little and play their show in full. 

However, they weren't expecting such quick retaliation on the Capers' part in terms of creativity. An hour and some later, after the concert had come to a close, they were shocked when they returned to their dressing room and found themselves in a bit of a drown. 

"Woah!" Michael stopped dead in his tracks but his body shouldn't repel the force of motion, and he nearly tripped into the hundreds and hundreds of little plastic cups filled with water. Luckily, Luke and Calum caught him just in time. 

"Well, this is new," Calum noted. 

Not only was the floor a square-footed slipping hazard, but all of their bags and gear were stuffed at the top on an amp -- at the other side of the room.

"This battle is not over!" Ashton declared mightily. 

"No," Luke shook his head, "But it may get a little soggy,"

#luke hemmings #luke hemming imagines #luke hemmings x reader #luke 5sos #ashton 5sos #ashton irwin #calum hood #calum 5sos #calum hood imagines #michael 5sos #michael clifford #5sos fanfic #5 seconds of summer #5sos #Charlotte antonakis #original story #original female character #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [1.7]

Masterlist

A/N: Re-editing this story has been good for me on a give-my-brain-a-break-from-life level.

Warnings: self-conflicting emotions, small angst, fluff

--

"Morning, honey," Melody's smiling face and perfectly messed, yet neat bed head was illuminated in the soft light of the morning. She sat on the edge of the bed with two hot coffees already prepared.

"Morning," Luke smiled, moving to sit up against the headboard. 

"How's your back?" she asked. Luke had had a bit of a stiff spine since he'd spent the other night on Charlotte's couch. It occurred now and again, but it wasn't anything a couple Tylenols couldn't fix.

"Not bad," he replied. The bed in his house was always more preferable than a couch and there was the added bonus of getting to wake up beside his girl. Though, they rarely cuddled in the night as Melody always said he was like a human furnace -- always overheated. 

"I'll make us some breakfast," Melody placed the second coffee mug on the bedside table and gave him a sparing kiss. She left the bedroom wearing only his t-shirt. 

Melody had sent Luke a lengthy text apology yesterday, explaining yet again how out of line she was and how she would promise to calm down. And like always, Luke went crawling back to her, swallowing every apology like it was water. But when she slipped up, Luke could see that Melody was trying. She was doing everything she could to prove herself with this last round and even if Luke's minor instincts told him this was just another honeymoon phase, it was much nicer to be getting along and laughing rather than fighting and crying. 

They couldn't always make time for each other, they were both professionals so it was to be expected; but when they could make time for each other Melody was as sweet at cherry pie. Sure, the insensitive comments flew out now and again but Luke had taken to letting them slide in favour of keeping the peace. 

Charlotte meanwhile was going out of her mind whenever Melody was around. Having to be home for the next little while meant that even when they were all hanging out, significant others would tag along and Melody just couldn't stop rubbing her the wrong way. Even Bryana had picked up on it long ago and the two of them had had a lengthy conversation about how -- mean Melody was. 

And yet, time and time again, Charlotte kept her mouth shut for the sake of her friend. Maybe that was why she kept letting Luke into her home after their spats, because a part of her knew that the nights they shared were all she was ever going to get from him. 

"It's not like I haven't tried warming up to her," Bryana shook her head as they walked the marina together, "But she just has this unpleasantness about her that I can't shake off. I come home and I need to have a shower after we hang out,"

Charlotte looked out over the crowds swarming Venice Beach, "What does Ashton say?"

Bryana scoffed, "Ashton can't stand her. But you already knew that. As far as he's concerned, he'd put a rocket up her ass before he'd ever willingly hang out with her. She's just so... so..."

"Cold," Charlotte said glumly, "I just don't understand how Luke lives like he's in fucking Lovers' Lane one day and then the next he's over at my place crying his eyes out,"

"How often is he at your place?" Bryana asked. 

Charlotte shook her head, "About as often as I was calling him over Ben," 

"Damn," the taller blonde sighed. 

"Do you ever wonder why we're so... self-destructive as a species?" she asked.

Bryana raised her eyebrows, "Damn, you going hardcore philosophical on me?" 

"It just bothers me," Charlotte shrugged, "Three years I let myself get tossed around in a salad spinner of emotional turmoil. Now I'm watching Luke go through what I went through; we both see the same thing in each other and yet willingly stay in a precarious and chaotic situation. I mean -- that must register as clinical insanity!"

Bryana glanced at the ground thoughtfully, kicking some loose pebbles that were left on the blackstop, "Well, ask yourself: why did you stay with Ben? When you had every single person in your life telling you how toxic that relationship was, why did you stay?" 

Charlotte replied immediately, "I didn't want to be alone," 

"But sweetie, you're not alone. Your girls love you to death, just like how the guys love Luke like their own brother!" she said.

"I don't know what it is," Charlotte shook her head, "I just didn't want to leave because I was scared to be alone. Maybe I have daddy issues or something but... the idea of him leaving me was so fucking terrifying that I would do anything to make him stay. And in the end, I still lost," 

Bryana nodded, "And maybe Luke needs to lose before he can wake the fuck up. Because we all know if he sticks with this girl, his sanity won't be long for this world," 

It was five days before 5 Seconds of Summer and Catch the Caper would take off for the next leg of the Sounds Live Feels Live tour. The guys were spending the day filming a new music video for their fully developed demo of 'Girls Talk Boys'. And Luke had a little proposition for Charlotte.

"You want me to be in your video?" she sounded shocked, yet a tad excited as she talked into her cellphone.

"Don't sound so surprised, you've been in our videos before," he replied, referencing to when Catch the Caper featured as "bad girls" for their video for 'Good Girls', "You're a natural actress,"

"Bullshit. What do you want me to do?" 

"Well, let me set the scene: you're Sigourney Weaver all alone in your trendy New York apartment, and all of the sudden shit! There's a ghost living in your fridge and it wants to eat your soul!" Luke explained.

"How original," she chuckled. 

He smirked back, "And you act all terrified and victimized until four unexplainably handsome, professional supernatural exterminators come to your place to remove the ghost safely and humanely," 

"You can remove ghosts humanely?" she asked, "What the hell do you bait them with?"

"We haven't planned that far ahead in our thesis," Luke replied, "You wanna do it?"

"Of course I wanna do it!"

The next day Charlotte showed up to the designated studio where she was thrusted into all things Ghostbusters. The crew had even recreated the signature Ghostbusters' hearse and had put together almost authentic Ghostbusters gear for the boys. And somehow, Michael had been 'volunteered' to dress up as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. 

She and Calum had to wolf whistle when Michael came waddling in, looking like a sumo-wrestling sailor.

"Looking good, babe!" Charlotte awed.

"Charlie's thinking thoughts," Calum smirked, "Charlie's having ideas seeing your legs in those marshmallows," 

"You're runway material!" she cheered. 

Michael rolled his eyes, "You guys suck at flattery,"

Charlotte was set up in a small kitchenette that reminded her of the studio apartment she used to share with Maria when they first branched out. There was another actor in an all black, skin-tight suit and alien-esque type of mask. He was supposed to hide in the fridge and spring out at the guys in an attack, where Charlotte would 'hit' him with the frying pan to take him down. 

Ashton and Michael's mock bravery was almost admirable, only Charlotte couldn't help but burst into giggles at the faces Michael pulled when he was wrestling with the 'ghost'. Ashton wasn't much help to Michael as he jumped around from counters to chairs into the exceedingly small space to try and terminate the creature -- until Charlotte would come in and bump the ghost with her frying pan. If anything, the ghost looked more like he belonged in the Alien series, but she wouldn't say anything. It was all just for pure fun.

Charlotte was allowed to hang out on set after her scenes were finished, and she had fun watching the boys be heroic Ghostbusters. It reminded her of their heroism in the 'Don't Stop' video, the one where Calum absolutely despised his lime green costume. They were hunting for ghosts in libraries with floating books, and trailing through basements looking for a Slimer plush. 

And of course, it wouldn't be a complete Ghostbusters homage without some gooey, green slime. 

In Charlotte's opinion, Calum was the luckiest as hardly any of the plastic-smelling goop spattered on his face. The boys had flashbacks to their Kids Choice Awards performance where they were literally showered in the stuff. After his own sliming, Luke ran a hand through his goopy hair and his eyes fixed on Charlotte sitting in one of the folding chairs. She and another producers were applauding their award-worthy performance.

"Hey Shorty, can I have a hug?" he asked, extending his goop-dripping arms toward her. Charlotte immediately leaped out of the chair.

"Not gonna happen, Tolan," she replied defiantly.

Luke feigned hurt, "But I trapped a ghost for you!"

"Ashton trapped the ghost for me! And he didn't even do it right!" she exclaimed.

"Hey!" Ashton whined, "I distracted him for you!"

"That's the thanks we get for doing a civil service," Michael huffed. 

Luke took the moment to dive and try to grab Charlotte, but she ducked out of the way just in time. He spent the next five minutes trying to chase her down and slime her.

"Slime was not in my contract!"

"Oh, c'mere!"

♛♛♛

Charlotte was packed up yet again, bags stationed by the door as she preened and fixed her makeup in the bathroom mirror. Tomorrow, the tour would continue to England, tonight however Charlotte and the girls would have a night out. It was Maria's twentieth birthday. They still weren't old enough to frequent any clubs, but that didn't stop Maria from having a little get together at her own place. And surely she would have some alcohol ready on standby. 

Taking one final glance in the mirror, Charlotte had a crippling pang of deja vu flood through her. Her hair was curled in bouncy rings and her eyes lined in dark, smokey makeup. And yet, there was something oddly familiar about her look, the clothes she wore and the excitement she felt. The last time she was on her way to a birthday bash was just over a year ago with Luke -- where he met Melody. It felt as though it was only yesterday when he had her cornered on her couch, begging her to come with him to this party he had no interest in...

"Why don't you take one of the guys with you?" she asked, trying to look past his towering figure to watch her Dr. Who episode.

"They already made plans, and Harry really wants me to show up. Boost my image or some shit like that," Luke whined, moving to block her view again, "Come on, it'll be more bearable if you're there with me," 

Charlotte glared up at him, "What the fuck would a nobody like me do at some socialite's stupid birthday party? It's at a club and we're not even old enough to drink,"

"Like that's stopped you before," he scoffed, getting down on his knees and literally begging, "C'mon, Char, please? I will fucking -- I'll come over and do your dishes for the next month, or even your laundry! Better yet -- I'll grant you access to my HBO account for the rest of the year!" 

Charlotte shook her head at him. The introvert in her told her 'no friggin' chance in hell', but Luke's pleading puppy dog eyes had more effect. Besides, there was always the perk of free food.

"If I say yes, will you stop being a pain and let me watch my Dr. Who in peace?" she asked.

"Absolutely!" he nodded desperately. 

"Then you got a deal. Now, sit down and shut up," they shook on it. Luke gasped in victory and plopped down next to her, both of them getting lost in the travels of the TARDIS, "We can still discuss that HBO account, though," 

Charlotte snickered at the memory. It was ironic how adamant he was about not going to this party, and it wasn't even an hour in before she had been dumped when Melody was presented to him on a pedestal. 

She also remembered how blasé Ben had been when she told him about this party. He wasn't all that interested in talentless celebrities and neon nightclubs, he instead wanted to talk about the recruiters that were coming by the college to look for fresh new talent, and how badly he wanted to get picked. Charlotte's life was so much cooler than Ben's, and yet he never seemed to want to talk about what was happening in her life. 

Charlotte pushed the memory out of her head. Instead, she grabbed the box of bougatsa she picked up from their favorite bakery -- one of Maria's favorite desserts -- and made her exit. 

Maria lived close enough that Charlotte could just walk there. Looking up at the skyscraper where she lived, she could clearly see her little apartment twinkling with multi-colored strobe lights. Ducking into the lobby, she could see the elevator doors just beginning to close.

"Hold the elevator!" she shouted, sprinting to catch the lift. Luckily, the occupant stuck his hand out to hold the doors long enough so Charlotte could slip inside. She was pleasantly surprised to find Calum was her kind stranger.

"Thanks," she huffed.

"No problem," he grinned, toting a gift box that was too neat for him to have wrapped himself, "You look nice,"

"So do you," a distinctive scent suddenly caught her nose, "Do you smell bergamot?"

"Yeah, it's my cologne," he nodded, "Tom Ford," 

"Oh, nice," Maria loved the smell of citrus and bergamot, "You got her a gift?"

"Yeah," Calum nodded, turning a slight tint of red as he glanced at the box, "I know she told us not to bring nothing for her but... I mean, it's a birthday party. You feel naked showing up without a gift," 

Charlotte smiled at him, "That's sweet of you! Whatcha' get her?"

"Just a spa box set thing. It's peach champagne scented," he said.

"Oh, fancy," 

"Yeah. They had a vanilla one but it just seemed too plain for Maria," he shrugged sheepishly. 

Charlotte glanced up at the ceiling, still smiling like a little fool, "She's definitely anything but plain, that one," 

"What did you get her?" Calum asked. 

Charlotte glanced at the dessert box, "Bougatsa. You know the Greek dessert with the pastry and the hot custard inside? I mean, it's not hot right now 'cause they'd melt but... you know... ovens," 

Calum's face immediately lit up, "Oh shit, you're the best!" he beamed, "I haven't had that stuff in so long!"

"Well, we'll get ya' reintroduced tonight," she grinned.

The elevator doors slid open and they walked side-by-side to Maria's apartment. She had sent a text to her guests saying that the door would be unlocked and they could just slip right in. Music was already pulsing through the room and the typically tidy apartment was decorated with an assortment of pale pastel balloons. On the counter was a decadent and extravagant cake decorated in frosting roses and bejewelled belts. 

"Hey! There you are!" Maria suddenly tackled Charlotte in a hug. She was dressed to the nines in a cute red mini dress paired with her favorite gold hoops. The only detractor was that she was barefoot, and quite frankly, Charlotte didn't blame her. 

Maria's eyes went wide when she saw the box in Charlotte's hands, "Is this what I think it is?"

"If you're thinking about bougatsa, you're bang on the money," Charlotte grinned. 

"Oh my God! I love you! You can just set them down on the counter there, babydoll,"

"Will do," 

Calum smiled when she hugged him next, "Happy birthday, Maria!" 

"Thanks for coming, Cal!" she gushed.

"Well, what else would I be doing on one of my best mate's birthdays?" he replied. 

The pleasant scent of fragrant citrus wafted through her nose then, "... Are you wearing a new cologne?" she asked him.

Calum blushed a little, "Yeah... thought I'd try bergamot this time,"

Maria smiled, "I like it. It suits you,"

Charlotte backed away slowly, wandering over to the refreshment table where Ashton was already sipping on his own red cup.

"Nice of you to join us," he grinned, "You look smashing,"

"You're not so bad yourself," she beamed, pouring herself a glass of vodka and cranberry. When she turned around she could see Maria and Calum were still deep in conversation, they had barely left the door's threshold. 

"You ready for Europe tomorrow?" Ashton asked, nudging Charlotte gently.

"Oh, am I ever!" she replied, "I think the last time we were in Amsterdam we stayed long enough for like -- a shitty pizza or something, and then we had to move on," 

"We'll take you 'round more this time," Ashton grinned back, "So long as Chloe doesn't try to pick up another phrase book," he nodded over to the couch where the now green-haired drummer was sitting with Michael, Kim, and some of their other friends.

"Kim put her foot down this time. No more Rosette Chloe," she chuckled.

Ashton shrugged, "Not like I won't miss her -- 'cause I won't," 

Charlotte took another look around the room, realizing that somebody was missing from their friend group, "Is Bryana hanging around somewhere?" she asked.

Ashton's smile faltered a little bit, "Oh, she couldn't make it tonight. Had a thing. But she sends her love," he replied. 

"Okay,"

"You uh -- you guys went out the other morning, right?" he asked her suddenly. 

Charlotte nodded, "Yeah,"

"What did you talk about? I-If you don't mind me asking," 

Charlotte was unsure as to what sort of answer he was looking for, but she told him the truth, "We erm... we discussed our shared distaste for a particular somebody," 

They both looked towards the kitchenette where Luke and Melody were hanging out. Melody was talking to another girl while Luke was chilling against the fridge, drinking from his own cup. The moment he saw Charlotte staring back at him his eyes twinkled a little bit. He was relieved to see her, wanted nothing more than to go over to her and free himself from the less than thrilling conversations of social media influencers.

Ashton was disgusted. Melody had Luke tethered on a metaphorical leash and it drove him mad. And when he looked at Charlotte she was staring at them too, but not with distaste. She seemed more disappointed than anything. It gave Ashton a little hope that maybe she was thinking the same thing he was. 

If Ashton had it his way, he would've pushed Luke and Charlotte together months ago...

"After tonight, he's free of her for three whole months,"

#luke hemming imagines #luke 5sos #luke hemmings #5 second of summer imagines #5 seconds of summer #5sos fanfic #5sos #5sos imagine #calum 5sos #ashton 5sos #michael 5sos #michael clifford #calum hood #ashton irwin #charlotte antonakis #original story #original female character #band blog #band imagine blog #band imagines

[sleekervae]

Yoü & I [1.5]

Masterlist

A/N: Okie, so it's been a couple years but I'm updating this story again. If you want to catch up I recommend going back through my list to get up to speed with where we are here, but I'm bringing this story back and I hope you guys like it. Xo

Warnings: angst, drug paraphernalia, fighting with your family

--

Weeks had gone by, all filled with travel, culture, and of course a nearly-sold-out show every night. The girls had completely fallen in love with South Asia and were sad when they had to head home mid-March. Not that Charlotte complained much when she'd arrived back to her apartment. The first thing she did was fall face-first into her bed and have one of the best sleeps of her life. 

A few days later, the girls of Catch the Caper had decided to take some time off and fly home to Brooklyn. Charlotte couldn't deny her mom drove her nuts, and the other girls could vouch for how intense Penelope Antonakis could be at times; let's just say she had some rather particular values. But at the end of the day, Charlotte loved her unconditionally. 

It was a crisp, but temperate Wednesday morning and spring had sprung in New York. Small beams of light broke through the wispy white curtains of Charlotte's childhood bedroom, the walls dusted in a washed-out rose and old photographs hung from rusted nails. Tucked into the frame of an old vanity mirror, hanging just over Charlotte's desk was a picture of her and Luke, a polaroid taken just after the night they'd first met. Charlotte favoured that photo like it was gold. 

The twenty-year-old singer slept soundly in her bed, not even the alleyway dog barking outside could wake her. Although, a high-strung Greek woman and her hard-headed son would seem to do the trick. 

"Troy! You bring that trash around and you're grounded!"

"I'm nineteen mom! That shit doesn't apply to me anymore!"

"And stop swearing in my house!"

Charlotte's eyes popped open and she sat up as though the atomic bomb had just gone off. But the only bomb that had gone off was her mom and her younger brother, Troy, fighting. 

"You haven't even met her yet!" Troy snapped.

"I know enough about her parents to know she's not the kind of girl I want my son courting!" their mother snapped back. 

"Courting? What is this? Camelot?"

Charlotte rolled her eyes and pulled herself out of bed. It was evident if she wanted to get any work done, it wasn't going to happen in her house. Rubbing the sleep from her face she trudged into the living room to see what all the commotion was about.

"Guys, what the fuck?" she groaned, "It's too early in the morning!"

Penelope glared back at her daughter, "Sweetie, it's quarter after ten. And no swearing in the house!" 

Oh brother.

Charlotte shuffled into the kitchen where she was immediately drawn to the coffee pot on the stove. She poured herself a cup as her mom and brother followed, still bickering between each other. 

"Charlotte, you'll never believe who your brother was shacking up with while you were gone," Penelope muddled on.

Troy protested eagerly, "We weren't shacking up!"

Penelope scoffed, "Violet Martinelli!" she exclaimed dramatically. Charlotte glared at the both of them cluelessly.

"Why is that name familiar to me?" she asked as she reached for a coffee mug.

Troy sighed, "You remember my senior homecoming parade? The girl hanging off the cheerleader float with all the rainbow elastics in her hair?"

"And wearing her cheer skirt as a top!" Penelope gasped, "I don't understand how the principal didn't suspend her on the spot," 

Charlotte's memory jogged back in, fondly remembering the spectacle of a seventeen-year-old celery stick dancing on the cheerleader's parade float with her skirt being her only article of clothing worn. The skirt wasn't even the strangest part; this girl had three or four different braids sticking out of her head, all tied with a menagerie of rainbow elastic bands. She looked like a performing art exhibit at the MoMA.

"Oh, now I remember," Charlotte poured the coffee into her mug and took a refreshing sip, "How'd you hook up with her?" she was partly surprised, partly impressed. Troy, with his lanky build and shaggy hair, embodied more of a Malibu-weed-smoking-surfing poser rather than the typical high school heartthrob. 

Troy glanced nervously at his mother as he replied, "Through Molly,"

Penelope grunted, "And I know that's a lie. You've never once mentioned a Molly to me, ever!" 

In this case, Molly wasn't a person, Charlotte thought to herself, "Pretty sure he's telling the truth, Mom," 

"We didn't hook up!" Troy went on, "We just went to a couple parties together!" he pointed at Penelope, "She's flipping out because she was being a psycho and stalking my Facebook page!" 

"If you're not going to tell me where you're going and who you're with, then I'm going to find out myself, mister," Penelope crossed her arms, "There are so many awful, trashy people out there looking to take advantage of youth like you!"

Charlotte took another deep swig of her coffee, "Charlotte travels the world for a living. You don't get up on her case!"

"Because their manager promised me they'd keep a constant eye on the girls in non-English speaking countries," 

Charlotte figured it was best to leave out the whole 'lost in Japan' bit, "A good percentage of the population speak English in Asia," 

"Good enough for you to get by on your own? I don't think so, Little Rockstar," Penelope bit back. 

"What the f -- heck are we even supposed to be fighting over?" she asked.

Penelope glared at Troy, "Your brother is sleeping around with white trash," 

"I wouldn't necessarily call her 'trash' because she does drugs, but okay," Troy shrugged. 

"Oh, so you do admit it!"

"Admit what?"

"That you did drugs with her!"

"I didn't do drugs with her and I didn't sleep with her!" now, that was a lie.

Charlotte slammed her mug down, "Alright, that's enough! Mom, bring the intensity down to a negative two! Troy, stop going out with Violet! Fine?"

"Fine," Troy huffed. 

"Great! And now, I don't want to hear about this again! Case closed!" she suddenly missed the raucous racket of Hollywood and her sweet little apartment. 

♛♛♛

Charlotte and Troy walked side-by-side down the cherry-blossom-covered streets of their neighbourhood, having finally managed to sneak away from their mother for some quality sibling time. Troy had a cigarette tucked behind his ear, much to Charlotte's intrigue.

"When did you start smoking?" she asked.

"I don't," Troy shook his head, "I mean -- I-I tried. Violet smokes so I thought I'd... ya' know,"

"Look, I can understand if you like this girl, but destroying your lungs is not worth the trade-off," she said. 

Troy shrugged sheepishly, "Guess your right. Besides, what's Mom going to do to me if she finds these hanging around the house?"

"You won't have a house to live in," Charlotte replied simply.

"Does Calum still smoke?" Troy asked.

"Yes he does. And we're still trying to entice him to quit, too," she said. 

"You're going back on tour with them next week?"

"Two weeks. You gonna' miss me?"

"I didn't miss you all the times you left before. This time around won't be different,"

Charlotte nudged him in the ribs, "Don't be a dick," she knew he was only making a joke, but sometimes Charlotte had to wonder if Troy's humour was rooted in his pain. After all, he still wasn't over their dad up and taking off several years ago, and Charlotte didn't expect him to take it well whenever she had to go away. 

They stopped at a local brunch restaurant, relatively quiet because it was a Wednesday after all. They always ordered their usual; him the classic breakfast with fried eggs, sausages and hash browns and she'd always get the french toast with house-made raspberry compote. 

"So," Troy mumbled between sips of his orange juice, "When's the new record coming out?"

Charlotte smirked at him, "Well, we have to write it first. I came up with some shit here and there but it'll probably take another year," 

"You should write a song about me," he grinned.

"What the hell would I write for you?" she replied, "My bum brother is coasting through community college. Exciting plot line," 

Troy snorted, "Your boyfriend wrote a whole damn single about college dropouts. Don't hate," 

"A: you're not a dropout. B: Luke's not my boyfriend," she contested, counting off with her fingers.

"Could've fooled me with point B," he shrugged, "What's this next album going to be about?"

"I just told you we have to write it,"

"Yeah, but you also said you had some shit written down already," Troy whined, "You can tell me. I won't blab," 

"Not with your head clear of Molly, you won't," she replied, "And be careful with that shit. You know what could happen if you get caught with it,"

"My famous sister gets to tote the junkie brother tag around the rest of her life," he said.

"Don't joke about that," Charlotte glared at him, "I'm serious. You never know what that shit is cut with. A lot of kids have died from it,"

Troy refrained from rolling his eyes, "You're starting to sound like mom," 

"Way to insult me. Thanks," 

Troy shifted his chair closer, "Lemme' ask you though: you, a woman of the world, has never tried any drugs? You're seriously not that squeaky clean,"

Charlotte glared back at him, "Troy..."

"You can tell me. I'm not mom, either," he said.

"Troy, I don't do drugs. I've been offered and I've seen it, but I don't take drugs," she replied.

"You smoke weed, though," he pointed out.

"Weed and ecstasy are two very different things," she replied.

"Weed is a drug,"

"It is clinically impossible to overdose on weed," 

Troy nodded halfheartedly, "Fair point,"

The waiter then came by and dropped off their meals, and Troy started eating immediately, "Listen to me," Charlotte started, "I don't care what you do or who you do it with, just be careful for the love of God,"

He raised his right hand, "Swear on nana's grave. Eat your breakfast, it'll get cold," he then reached over and took off the tip of the whipping cream.

"Hey! Back off!" she batted his fork away. 

"You still haven't told me what your album's about," he said.  Charlotte started cutting into her french toast.

"I don't know yet," she shrugged.

"So, what's your song about, then?" he asked. 

Charlotte chewed nervously, "... I haven't decided on that, either," 

♛♛♛

The day had quickly passed into dusk, and there was a rich, colorful sunset painting the sky. Charlotte sat on the ledge roof of the townhouse, watching the dark silhouette of the Brooklyn Bridge tower prominently over the East River. Manhattan was still bustling and the noise carried over with the gentle spring breeze. Charlotte would pick Brooklyn over Manhattan any day; sure it was more modern and considered the place to live, but Brooklyn was her home. It was rustic, strong, and full of culture and vintage beauty. Brooklyn wasn't as stressful as Manhattan, it was more Charlotte's speed.

Charlotte brought the doobie to her lips and inhaled softly. Penelope knew her children smoked weed, and hell, she wasn't all that innocent either. She just couldn't stand the bitter smell festering in her house, so she forced the kids to do it outside. 

She had spoken to the girls a while ago, all agreeing to meet and spend some time in the studio to plan their next album. Even on a break, the music business never stopped. Charlotte still was on the fence when it came to that song. The girls loved it, and despite knowing who it was for they all agreed it would be the cutting edge single to lead them to their next success. To be honest, Charlotte would've rather written a hundred shitty break-up songs then release 'You & I' to the world; it felt like a sin to put it out for all to listen. 

Suddenly, Charlotte's Snapchat pinged beside her. Her heart dropped to her gut when she saw Luke's name flash across the screen. Tentatively, she opened the picture, it was a plate of bao dumplings from her favorite restaurant in LA. Her stomach rumbled on cue, surely the munchies would be kicking in at any moment. She smiled and sent back a picture of her sizzling joint. 

He sent her a text afterwards.

Partaking in the devil's lettuce, r we?

You shouldn't have sent me that pic. Now my munchies are on high alert.

You should come join us XP

Very funny, Mr. Comedian.

Who u hanging with? Bet they ain't as cool as me!

He didn't respond at first. Only a few seconds later did she get another snap photo, in the frame was Ashton, Bryana, their friends Roy and Paul, another young singer, Madison, and Melody. Ashton and Bryana were pulling faces for the camera, Roy had his middle finger up and Paul's cheeks were stuffed with food. Madison was making a kissing face, Melody however just had a half-assed smile; not that anybody else seemed to notice. 

Charlotte felt a jab in her heart, and the creepy shadow of loneliness climbed back into her body. She didn't even think when she typed back quickly.

No, definitely not as cool as me. 

♛♛♛

"Charlie's turning Japanese..."

"Oh, no," Charlotte groaned, "Are you filming this? I look awful!" she pulled the blanket over her face.

Luke chuckled quietly at the grainy Instagram video. In the ambient golden lights that shone against the perfectly crisp, white sheets, Charlotte's blushing pout had captured the hearts of the twenty-five-hundred-plus viewers who had liked the post, the comment section flooding with awes. 

It was fair to say that after experiencing Asia with Charlotte, Luke would never love it in the same way again. He just loved seeing how excited she became at every unique landmark, food, and city they paved through. Her elation was contagious and Luke couldn't remember a moment when he didn't smile with Charlotte by his side. 

He missed that trip already, but he was about to go away with her again. And he'd see her Bambi eyes light up as though on a steady high kick. 

The moment he heard the bathroom door open, Luke quit the app and set his phone aside. Melody came sauntering back into the room, her face clear of the makeup she wore at dinner and had changed into her Victoria Secret pajama set. She curled up beside her boyfriend on the bed, sighing in content. 

"What were you laughing at?" she asked softly, her voice sweet as honey now. 

"Just some of the tour videos Paul sent over. He's puttin' em' all together right now for the diary," he replied simply. 

Melody smiled, "I wish I could come with you guys,"

A flare of excitement surged through Luke and a part of him wanted to beg her to come. At the same time, he knew she had prior commitments and shoots planned for whichever brands she was representing now. Her work was just as important to her as his was to him and he wouldn't be the type to tear her away from it. 

"Not this time round but the next leg: it's you and me. Crossing the country like one big-ass roadtrip," he said. 

"Sounds amazing," she reached up to press a kiss to his pale lips. She tasted of spearmint toothpaste and a hint of the ginger from their dinner. 

Luke shuffled down to get comfy beside her, turning on his side and tucking his arm over the pillow. Melody had turned off the lamp and cuddled in beside him, and he was more than ready for their routine of silent whispers and pillow talk about everything and nothing at all. They did it lots when they started getting serious; they would just confide in each other about how their day went and would discuss anything that came to mind. 

However, Luke was surprised at what Melody wanted to talk about.

"I think Bryana's gonna' dump Ashton," 

Her honey-like voice dripped and burned in his ears, flaming-hot words branding into his brain. He was taken aback but how brash and upfront she was.

"What?" his nose crinkled, "What're you talking about?"

"I can just tell," Melody shrugged, "You know, you see them together but they're not really -- together. Does he talk to you about it?"

Luke was still in a state of shock, "Uh -- n-no. What -- you think she's unhappy?"

"She just doesn't seem excited like she used to be. Lost the spark in her eyes. It's a shame because they're really cute together," Melody spoke as though she was talking about the weather, so effortlessly and without mind. Luke had spent time with his best mate and his girl only mere hours ago, and there was nothing to indicate to him that there was trouble in paradise. They seemed like the perfect couple.

Perhaps that was why Melody could pick it off?

"I think you should talk to him about it," she went on, "Maybe just check in with him? I mean, I don't exactly blame her if she's on the edge; he can be a lot sometimes," 

Luke was annoyed now. He didn't fight back, but he wasn't happy. He appreciated where Melody was coming from but her angle was all wrong. And what did she mean by that: Ashton was a lot? He was just energetic, a great lad just living life. Of course he was boisterous, but Luke didn't think that was a bad thing. 

"Right," he nodded quietly, "Let's talk about something else," 

Melody frowned, sensing his change in mood, "I'm not saying it to make you upset, I just worry for him. He's still our friend; girlfriends come and go but your friends are your friends," 

Her words were wise yet incredibly poignant. It made Luke uncomfortable.

"I know... so... so I'm getting really into this girl's music. Her name's -- erm -- Halsey, I think..."

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