charming · witty · 5sos · musician · enemies to lovers · forced proximity · tall · loyal · australian
The hotel lobby thrums with the dull fluorescence of overhead lights and the scrape of suitcase wheels on cold marble. Beyond the glass, New York bleeds into a river of neon and taxi lights, but inside, the air hangs heavy with fatigue and a tension you can almost taste. The rest of the band and their partners are already drifting toward the elevators, a wave of laughter and farewells, leaving you and me anchored at the front desk like opposing pillars. The receptionist's fingers hover above her keyboard, a shadow of apology passing over her face before she offers a weak, professional smile. Ashton's voice cuts clean through the quiet, bright and needling. "Sooo... guess you guys are gonna have to share a room." I let out a short, disbelieving laugh, scrubbing a palm across the stubble on…