Somebody I Don't Know : Book 1 of the Teeth Series

8

Fallon was right. There was nothing that Calum could do to go back and change the things that had happened that led to the demise of he and Fallon's relationship. That didn't mean that he wanted to see her hurting, especially so publicly. Watching her fall apart singing the song she had written for him tore him to shreds from the inside out. He knew how much those words had meant, the weight they carried, when she had written them for him. Maybe he couldn't take away all of the pain she was feeling, but he could damn sure do his best to prevent any more pain from being added.

He knew that if the girls couldn't finish their set, their label and management would be livid and it would all fall on Fallon's shoulders. He didn't know what kind of story he would have to weave to cover for what he was about to do but that was a worry for another time. "Give me my bass." he yelled to his tech while his feet carried him, determined, towards the small huddle of girls, the rest of Fallon's band.

"What are you doing, Calum?" Erin asked as he approached with his hands raised.

"You and I both know that the only reason she isn't on that stage right now is me. Let me fix this."

"How is it you're going to do that exactly?" Wesley asked, her arms crossed over her torso, her drumsticks still in her hands.

"I know all the songs for the rest of the set, they're old ones she and I have played together a million times. I can play her parts so you guys can finish. If you end early you know Todd will take it all out on her and I don't think any of us believe she's in the state to handle that right now."

"This will look like I'm choosing your side over my own sister."

"There are no fucking sides, Erin. Have you got another idea? I'm all ears, but we're wasting time."

The girls all shifted uncomfortably, looking at each other trying to decide what to do, none of them offering anything.

"Come on then." He said, grabbing his mic pack and bass from his tech and clipping all of the pieces together, putting them on before moving to the stage stairs.

Erin sighed and followed after him, she along with Chayse and Wes all wearing looks of uncertainty as they took the stage with Calum in the place where Fallon should have been.

"Sorry about that brief little intermission Pittsburg. Fallon isn't feeling too good but luckily Calum from 5SOS has agreed to help us finish out our set. We've got three more songs for you tonight and we're gonna need your help. You ready?"

It took a minute for Calum to get comfortable on stage with the girls. He knew this would probably stir up all kinds of rumors within the fan base, but that had already been solidified when Fallon ran off the stage sobbing.

Maybe the paps would be decent and focus more on him performing in her place than on her very public emotional breakdown. He doubted the fans in attendance would do the same though.

He settled into the performance halfway through the first song. It had been a while since he had played any of Revelry's discography but it was a bit like riding a bike and came back to him more easily than he had anticipated.

Calum wasn't sure if that should have surprised him, thoughts of all the time he and Fallon had spent working on these songs before they were even released. Spiraling down that path of memories wouldn't do him any favors so he did what he could to suppress them. Focusing on the screaming fans that were in front of him and letting his muscle memory take over until the set was complete and the girls stepped to center stage to take their final bows while he headed down to get ready for the set he was supposed to play with his own band.

"Well, that was interesting." Luke said, appraising him with curious eyes as he joined the rest of his band in the on deck area of the stage, switching over to the bass he used for the start of their set and trying to get his head right to go back on stage.

"What?" Calum asked

"You covering for Fal." Michael said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"We all know that was my fault and I had a solution." He shrugged, not wanting to dwell too much on what had happened. If he stopped to think about it he would sink into a panic about what he could have or should have done differently. Fallon would probably tell him exactly that when she was less distraught.

"Just interesting that you came to her rescue. I thought you guys hated each other." Luke answered.

"I could never hate her." Calum said, growing defensive.

"The way you both have acted since everything, I don't think anyone really knows where the two of you stand."

"We loved each other and it didn't work out, that doesn't mean I hate her now." He wanted to say more but the stage manager gave them their cue and they headed up the stairs to the stage and their thousands of screaming fans.

*
Falum Finding New Rhythm?

Fans of pop-rock girl-band Revelry were stunned nearly silent in the PPG Paints Arena on Thursday night when bassist Fallon Harding fled the stage in tears in the middle of the band's opening set of the Fight So Dirty Tour. Revelry is currently on tour with Australian band 5 Seconds of Summer which garnered a lot of interest due to the former romantic relationship between Harding and 5SOS bassist, Calum Hood.

Fallon and Calum, dubbed by their fan bases as "Falum", began dating in the fall of 2017 after meeting at an awards show that each of their band's attended. The pair split in February of this year and while rumors of what led to their breakup have circulated, none have ever been confirmed by the couple. In fact, it was revealed in an interview with the members of 5SOS this spring that even the members of Calum's band don't know the reasoning behind it. Whether the same holds true for the members of Revelry is unclear.

Having said all of that there have been signs since the Fight So Dirty Tour began that a reunion between fans favorite ship might be on the horizon and we've gathered them all here for you:

1. Revelry and 5SOS are on tour together - prior to the announcement of the tour I don't believe anyone foresaw the former couple spending any kind of time together in the near future. Perhaps forced interaction will work to soften their hearts?

2. Revelry chose to cover "Dancing with a Stranger" - some fans believe this to be a subtle dig at the cover 5SOS did for BBC radio a few months ago that led to rumors that Fallon was the one to have ended things. That kind of petty never exists without feelings.

3. Fallon left the stage last night following a performance of Revelry's hit song "The Only Exception" - fans of the band are familiar with the fact that the song was written by Harding with Hood during the beginnings of their relationship. Fallon has previously spoken openly about her parents divorce and her struggle to believe in love before meeting Calum.  Both have given answers in interviews following their split yielding similar messages of love being a trap. Fallon becoming distraught during this particular song seems pretty indicative.

4. Calum took Fallon's place to finish out the rest of the set - Revelry could have called it a night when they realized their bassist was inconsolable but they did not. Instead, in full knight-in-shining-armor-saves-the-damsel fashion, the girls returned to stage with Calum to finish out their set. His presence was a reminder that these bands have toured together before and that Hood has writing credits on several of the songs on Revelry's second album.

So what do you think? Did Fallon break Calum's heart or was it the other way around? Will Fallon's breakdown cause issues for Revelry? Will we see a return of Falum? Let me know in the comments.

***

AN: so what do we think of Calum rushing to save the day?

What will Fallon think of it?

Let me know!

Ily!
Sav 🖤