#soft!calum

Calum always looked beautiful in your opinion. There was something extra wonderful about him tonight, though. Perhaps it was the leather jacket and skinny jeans combo. It could also have been the new daring blue haircut. Of course there was always the possibility that the alcohol flooding your system was just exaggerating your attraction to him. The gentle moonlight playing over his handsome face when he looked up at you probably didn’t help either. Whatever ‘it’ was, your heart was beating even faster than it usually did when he gave you that soft smile.

“Hi, Calum!” You grinned, reaching out for his hand. “I wondered where you’d disappeared off to!”

Your friend chuckled quietly, taking your hand and guiding you down onto the bench beside him. “I was just having a smoke.” He shrugged, gesturing to the cigarette stump at his feet.

“Gross.” You pouted, “I thought you were quitting.” You really did hate that Calum smoked, it was one of the very few things that the two of you argued over on a regular basis.

“I tried.” Your friend laughed humourlessly. “I failed. I guess life is that little but tougher without it.” He looked sort of sad as he clasped his hands in his lap and stared down at them.

“I’ll help you try again.” You smiled, resting your head on Calum’s shoulder. “I’ll quit something too and then you won’t feel so alone.”

Your friend looked at you with the deepest fondness in his chocolate brown eyes. “You’d really do that for me?”

Nodding without hesitation, your tipsy brain allowed a potentially dangerous sentence to spill from your lips. “Of course! I’d do anything for you, Cal.”

It’s the sort of thing that friends say to each other all the time. That simple sentence should just be a promise born of platonic love, nothing more. Things have always been kind of different with Calum, though. Every loving glance, all of the fond words, the playful banter... it all felt more meaningful with Calum, somehow. Perhaps there had always been something deeper between the two of you that had been ignored.

The fleeting thought was given strength when Calum reached out to take your hand. “Thank you, sunshine.” He whispered, interlacing your fingers with his own. “You always know how to cheer me up.”

You smiled, giving Calum’s hand an affectionate squeeze. “Why are you sad?” You asked, shuffling a little closer to your friend. “It’s a party, your meant to be having fun.”

A weak smile curled the corners of Calum’s lips as he shrugged. “Guess I’m just not really in the mood.” He replied quietly.

Seeing Calum sad had never been something that you could tolerate. If your friend wasn’t enjoying the party anymore, you weren’t either. “Then lets go back to your place!” You suggested. “We can buy take out on the way.”

You’d expected Calum to meet your proposition with a little more enthusiasm than the tiny, hesitant smile you actually received. Your friend usually loved late night chats with you, it was a common enough occurrence and he’d always seemed to enjoy them.

“I’m not so sure that’s a good idea tonight.” Calum finally replied. “I think I probably just need some rest.”

A frown creased your face as the blue haired man let go of your hand and got to his feet. Being turned away by Calum hurt more than it probably should have. “But, we always have a post-party gossip.” You argued sadly. “Who else am I gonna laugh at this video of Luke’s dorky dancing with?” You held up your phone for emphasis but it seemed to have very little impact.

Some emotion that you couldn’t quite identify sparkled in Calum’s eyes as he met your gaze. “I’m just tired and a little too tipsy to be alone with you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” You asked incredulously, confusion flooding your brain as you stood up. “You’ve been tipsy when we’ve been alone together a whole bunch of times...”

Something gave way inside Calum. You saw the very moment when some sort of barrier between his brain and mouth shattered, allowing words to spill out that he’d obviously tried to keep inside for a long time. “And every single time I’ve had to stop myself from doing something stupid!” He replied, his cheeks turning crimson as it dawned on him that he was saying this stuff out loud. “You have no idea how many times I’ve come this close to trying to kiss you.” He holds up his thumb and forefinger close together to illustrate his words.

It probably should have been a shock to you. Calum was meant to be your best friend, he was supposed to be your platonic soulmate. Yet here he was confessing that he wanted to kiss you. In truth, though, you weren’t surprised at all. In fact, when you looked back, this all seemed kind of inevitable.

“I’m sorry, sunshine.” Calum continued when you failed to respond to his confession. “I never wanted to ruin our friendship, I just... I want more than that with you. I can’t hide it anymore, it’s just eating away at me.”

Despite your absolute certainty that this was always meant to happen, words continued to fail you. Stepping forwards you took Calum’s hand and tried to put every ounce of love you had for him into the gaze you shared with him. He’d been brave enough to voice the underlying truth, now it was your turn to take a leap. You cupped Calum’s cheek gently and moved closer, keeping your movements slow and deliberate to give him a chance to stop you at any time. He never did, in fact he moved in to connect the kiss so that it happened a second sooner than it would have done.

The kiss was slow and loving. You savoured the way Calum tasted, loving the way his lips moved against yours in a sort of quietly desperate way. It felt like the end of a long journey, as though you’d finally reached the destination you’d been heading towards for a really long time.

When the two of you pulled apart, Calum met your gaze again. He looked kind of startled but all of the previous tension in his face had vanished. “I’ve wanted to confess this to you so many times, but I was so worried you only wanted to be my friend.”

You smiled, wrapping your arms around his waist and resting your head on his chest. “I don’t want to be just friends, not anymore.” You confirmed, knowing that they were the truest words you’d ever spoken.

Masterlist

The extremely stressful evening is making you more nervous to let him know that your expecting another baby. The two of you had agreed to hold off on having any more children until your youngest is at least three years old. Of course, this is easier said than done. You’d gone back on birth control medication but you’d had a sickness bug a couple of months back that must have disrupted them.

“I swear these kids are trying to put me in an early grave.” He sighs, sounding throughly exhausted as he slings his arm around your shoulders. “It’s a good job we’re such a good team.”

You smile tiredly. “Yeah, we need to be.” You reply, fixing Calum with a significant gaze. “Now might not be the best time to tell you, Cal but...”

Calum turns to meet your eye, one eyebrow raised questioningly as though he’s about to tell you to continue.

Unfortunately your one year old chooses that moment to cry again for what feels like the hundredth time tonight.

“I’ll go...” Calum groans, getting to his feet before you have chance to go yourself. You watch as he disappears into the hallway and listen to his slow footsteps traipsing up the stairs.

You smile to yourself a few moments later when you hear Calum’s voice through the baby monitor perched on the little table next to the sofa. “Hey baby princess.” He coos softly, “you already had your medicine... do you just want daddy cuddles?”

There’s never been a shadow of a doubt in your mind how good of a dad Calum would be, regardless of how many children you have. From the moment he’d held your first child in his arms, it’d been clear that he was a natural father. He’d proved it on thousands of occasions since and you smile at some of the memories as you force yourself to your feet.

If you’re about to tell Calum that there’s another little Hood on the way, you feel like a nice mug of hot chocolate will help to calm his nerves.

You can still hear your youngest daughter crying through the monitor as you busy yourself making two mugs of hot chocolate. Occasionally, Calum will yawn or sleepily beg your infant to go back to sleep. The whole thing kind of melts your heart, even though you’ve heard exchanges like this hundreds of times with all three of your precious children.

A little spark of excitement comes to life in your chest as you think about all of the moments you’ll get to repeat with the new little one.

By the time you’ve finished the hot drinks, your one year old seems to have settled down. You smile to yourself as you decide that the hot chocolates would be enjoyed just that little bit more of your were cuddles up to Calum in bed.

Luckily your husband hasn’t come back down stairs yet. It’s not unlike him to stay with the little ones after he’s gotten them back to sleep, he likes to make sure they’ve fully settled before he leaves their bedside.

You manage to pick up the baby monitor and carry it up the stairs with the two steaming mugs. Even though you walk up and down these steps multiple times a day, you still find yourself smiling at the photos lining the walls of the staircase. There’s a photo from your wedding day; it’s a close up of the two of you, you’re smiling widely, your eyes closed gracefully as Calum’s arms wrap you in a huge hug and he presses a soft kiss to your cheek. There’s three photos of tiny newborn babies, each with chubby little red faces poking out from a blanket and beneath a soft little hat. There’s also a recent family photo that Ashton had taken on his professional camera for you. It was a candid shot, taken at the park when you’d shared a family day out with the Irwins a couple of months ago. Calum had your eldest daughter in his lap, both of them smiling brightly at each other, a huge slice of cake in each of their hands. Your son is sat cross legged on the picnic blanket, chocolate cake crumbs around his mouth and a mischievous smile on his face as he reaches for a second slice. You have the youngest baby in your arms, staring down at her softly as you feed her with a bottle. It’s a perfect snapshot of your beautiful family.

That little spark of excitement for the new baby to join your family is back and you’re smiling to yourself as you quietly push open your bedroom door with your hip. Calum isn’t here yet, so you flick on a lamp and place down the baby monitor and the mugs on your bedside table before venturing back out onto the landing.

You briefly check in on the eldest two children, lingering in each of their doorways for second too long because they look like such little angels when they’re fast asleep.

When you get to the nursery, your heart almost explodes with love at the sight that greets you. Calum’s fast asleep in the big comfy rocking chair, your youngest daughter curled up in his arms snoozing soundly.

As much as you hate to disturb the beautiful scene, you know that the little one will be better off in her crib. You gently prise the slumbering infant out of Calum’s hold.

Your husband stirs, opening his eyes just in time to see you place the one year old back in her crib. “You’ve got the magic touch.” You whisper fondly. “She’s such a little daddy’s girl!”

Calum smiles sleepily. “She’s my little angel...”

It’s absolutely impossible to contain your love for Calum, he never ceases to make you a soft mess of emotions. “Well maybe it’s time for super dad to go to bed too. I made you a hot chocolate.”

Rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands, Calum slowly gets to his feet and traipses out of the nursery. You bundle the covers around your little girl and whisper gently. “Sleep well, Princess. I have to go tell daddy that his next little angel is only seven months away.”

Your daughter sniffles in her sleep but doesn’t stir. You like to think it’s her way of saying she’s excited to be a big sister.

Once you’ve kissed the little one goodnight, you pad back to the bedroom, half expecting Calum to already be asleep. When you close the door and turn towards the bed, though, your husband is staring at you, slack jawed, his eyes sparkling with something like bewilderment.

You’re utterly confused for a moment until a tiny cough crackles through the speaker of your baby monitor. It’s only then that you realise Calum must have heard you announcing the new baby to your daughter a few moments ago.

“Are you really...” He asks, his expression unreadable.

There’s a tiny knot of nerves in your tummy as your nod. “I was about to come in here and tell you, Cal.” You whisper. “I’m pregnant... again.”

There’s a moment of silence and Calum’s only emotion seems to be shock. When he doesn’t utter a word after a few more seconds you gently prompt him. “Are you happy, I know we said we’d wait a while but...”

Calum’s face breaks into the biggest smile, the same one he’d worn when he’d found out about your first three pregnancies. “Of course I’m happy!” He exclaims. “How far along are you? Do you know yet? Have you made a doctor’s appointment?”

You giggle at your husband’s excitement as you join him in bed. “I think I’m about two months pregnant and no I’ll make one in the morning, then we can find out for definite.”

Calum nods happily, reaching out to place a hand on your tummy. “Hey there baby bean!” He coos gently. “I’m your daddy! Welcome to the hood family, little guy...”

“Guy?” You ask, raising an eyebrow questioningly. “They could be another girl...”

Calum simply laughs and pecks a kiss to your cheek. “Either way, they’ll be half you and half me, that’s all that matters in the end.”

At one point someone in a werewolf costume scared Luke enough that he almost leapt into his girlfriend’s arms. The rest of the group laughed so hard that you were sure that, at least one of them, would pass out.

You were more than a little relieved when the neon lights of club you were headed for, became visible through the light mist of rain that had started to fall.

“See we’re almost there now!” Calum grinned at you over his shoulder. His voice was slightly muffled due to the vampire fangs he’d insisted on wearing since he put the rest of his costume on about an hour ago. “I told you it wouldn’t take long.”

You rolled your eyes. “It’s taken long enough.” You huffed, “you better buy me at least three of my favourite cocktails or else...”

Calum’s grin turned into a smirk as he raised one of his thick, dark eyebrows. “Or else what, baby?” He pressed, slowing down so that he could fall into pace beside you. “What punishments do you have in mind if I don’t buy you drinks?”

His teasing tone didn’t have its usual lustful effect on you due to his ridiculous joke shop fangs. You couldn’t stop from laughing as he took your hand, intwining his long fingers with your own. “I’d say ‘no sex’ but that just seems too obvious.” You replied.

Calum couldn’t even pout effectively and you were sure for a moment that he was about to take out those silly vampire fangs. He decided against it, though, and opened his mouth to respond to you before something caught his eye up ahead.

You followed his gaze and immediately froze to the spot. Someone dressed in an evil clown outfit with the most frightening make-up you’ve ever seen, emerged from the mist like something from your very worst nightmare.

As the terrifying clown loomed closer, they obviously noticed how scared you looked and an almost malicious smile curled their grotesque lips.

Your blood ran cold as your feet refused to move, rooting you to the spot. For a short moment, Calum kept walking, smirking a little like he’d initially thought your fear was funny.

It was almost as though everything around you faded away and you could barely even feel Calum’s fingers interlaced with your own anymore. All that you could focus on was the terrifying clown and the more you urged your body to move, the less it seemed to want to obey you.

The clown seemed to have their eyes focused on you and they quickened their pace, heading directly towards you. They obviously seemed intent upon capitalising on your fear.

It’s then that the tell-tale signs of a panic attack started to creep up on you. Your breathing started to quicken, escaping you in shaky gasps as your hands start to tremble and tears start to blur your vision.

“Hey, baby it’s okay.” Calum says, wrapping you up in a tight hug. “I won’t let that asshole get to you I promise.”

You buried your face in Calum’s chest as he stroked your hair comfortingly. “I’d never let anyone hurt you, you know that, right?” He asked, the sincerity in his voice impossible to miss.

The trembling in your hands had now spread through out your entire body as the tears streamed down your cheeks. “Thought you’d... left me...” you sobbed, fully aware of how pathetic that must have sounded.

“Never!” Calum replied honestly. “I love you and I’ll protect you, always. I’ll never leave you!”

As you attempt to let your boyfriend’s words comfort you, Ashton’s voice broke through your fog of panic. “Hey! Leave them alone, asshole.” He said, his tone stern.

“Yeah.” Calum added. “Take your lame ass face paint elsewhere.” He scoffed.

Even in your delicate state, a watery laugh escaped you. The clown muttered incredulously as their footsteps disappeared out of earshot.

After a short moment you pulled back and offered Calum a weak smile before turning to Ashton who was still standing guard beside you. “Thank goodness you were here to help.” You smirked at your friend. “Calum was useless.”

Your boyfriend made a faux hurt noise before pecking a kiss to your forehead. “Well maybe Ash can buy you all the drinks you’ve been asking for then.”

“Hey!” Ashton pouted. “You’re supposed to buy the hero drinks, not the other way around!”

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