The Middle | Hemmings + Styles AU

24. a bass player's fingers

I scolded, glancing at the full takeout container. We'd ordered dinner from our favourite Italian restaurant and for once, Aunty Peg hadn't tried to grope the delivery boy. "You haven't touched any of your pasta."

"I'm not hungry," she spoke quietly, placing the pasta on the coffee table and pushing it away from her.

"Are you okay?"

She smiled, her eyes seeming more worn and tired than usual, "I'm supposed to be the one who worries. Not you."

I decided to leave it at that, because Aunty Peg hates it when people fuss over her. Instead, I put on a Here Comes Honey Boo Boo repeat, and finished off my own dinner. We'd reached the end of the episode when I realised my aunty hadn't been making her regular commentary, and when I looked over at her, she was asleep.

Even though it wasn't Sunday, and even though I knew she'd be upset at me, I covered her with a blanket and grabbed my laptop to email my parents. I didn't know why I felt so worried, aside from the fact that lately Aunty Peg had been acting a little unlike Aunty Peg.

As I began typing, I tried to think of it all from a rational perspective: so she had a headache last week, that's not exactly a life threatening disease. And she was getting older, so was it really that unusual that she'd fall asleep on the lounge at 9pm?

I closed the email app before I could send the email, deciding that I'd only worry my parents and I didn't want to ruin their trip, not even for a moment. Instead, I opened up iTunes and created a playlist which I'd later burn onto a CD for the store. 

Grunge didn't like it when I did that. He was sort of traditional, believing that albums told a story and therefore, that's how they should be listened: as an album. Maybe he was right, but I liked making my own mixed CDs, compiling songs from different genres and bands to tell a story of my own.

Speaking of Grunge, he'd booked the boys their first gig since they'd acquired him as their manager. It was going to be on Saturday, and I'd been giving out fliers advertising the show details to every customer who'd visited the store that week.

He'd also called in a favour from an old friend, who owned a small recording studio around the corner from the store, and gotten the boys some studio time to record a new EP in a few weeks. Ashton had been spending every spare moment since writing lyrics and riffs.

He and Luke visited the store twice this week with an acoustic guitar and a cajon, giving Grunge and I previews on the new tracks. I could already tell that their new songs were going to be edgier and more mature, making 5SOS an even more attractive match to support The Forgotten Kids on tour.

If Harry had an intentions of making that happen, I didn't know. I hadn't heard a single word from him and disappointingly, the closest interaction I'd had to Harry was when Clark came into work yesterday to deliver some more merch and posters from Pilot Records.

I jumped when my phone started ringing, and over on the couch Aunty Peg stirred slightly but didn't wake up. "Hey Liv," I answered.

"I can't see Oliver anymore," she said, not even bothering to say hi first.

"What? Why?"

"He mentioned the b-word."

Blinking, I tried to figure out what on earth she was talking about. The only b-word that ran through my brain was bands. "What b-word?"

"Boyfriend! He wants to be my boyfriend," she groaned with disgust, sounding like Oliver had asked her to eat snails or something. "So, I told him we can't see each other anymore."

"Are you really going to end it just like that?"

"Stella, didn't you hear me? He said BOYFRIEND."

There was no use arguing with Olivia when she was like this. She'd always been this way, completely terrified of commitment when it came to anything more serious than a friends-with-benefits type scenario. "Well, you're in luck. 5SOS have a show on Friday night. You can take your pick between Ashton and Calum."

"What about the other one?"

"He's seeing someone," I smiled, because Luke mentioned that Michael had invited Lila to the show. None of the boys had met her yet, but Michael couldn't stop talking about her.

"Ashton's the bass player, right?"

"No, that's Calum."

"I'll take him," Olivia said decidedly, like she was picking out a puppy or a pair of shoes.

"You haven't even met him yet," I laughed.

"He's a bass player, Stella and a bass player's fingers are magical things."