Just A Moment
Chapter Seven
“Alright let’s get us some tunes on, then!” Harry exclaimed over the ruckus ensuing the backseats. We had all gotten our food (which was a rather intricate endeavor, may I just say) and were on our way to catch the ferry over to “The Island”, as we in Kearney called it. The boys were all fighting over who had ordered what and splitting up the food- and when I say “splitting up”, I mean throwing hamburgers and packets of fries around the car.
Harry and I had smartly ordered our food separately. It was sitting safely beside Harry’s seat, away from the fray.
My mind was anywhere but Harry’s actions as I tried not to be distracted by the mayhem that was proliferating in the back. Before I knew it, Harry had pressed the “On” button and the last CD I had in there came blasting over the stereos.
“-A NA NA! THEN WE’RE LIKE YEAH YEAH YEAH!” erupted, startling everyone and making me swerve just a little bit.
“Hey! They’re playing this one over here too?” Liam exclaimed.
“Yeaaaah!” Niall whooped, extending a hand to Louis for a high-five.
“Uh, this is actually a CD, guys…” Harry intoned, squinting at the display.
There was a quick silence as everyone looked at me.
I laughed uncomfortably, remembering that they all thought I wasn’t a fan…
“Oh, this must be the random mix CD that my friend Ebony made for me! Remember Ebony?” I turned innocently to Harry for a moment before returning my eyes to the road.
“Oo, let’s see what else the lovely Ebony put on here!” Zayn leaned forward from the back - apparently not wearing a seatbelt, the naughty boy - and pressed skip. There was a few seconds of silence before the warm strumming of an acoustic guitar filled the car with just seven strokes before Liam’s vocals entered.
“Is this our acoustic version of One Thing?” Harry turned to me with a slight smile on his face.
“I guess so?” I shrugged, nonchalantly. “I haven’t really listened to this CD much…” I bit my lip, biting back panic. I knew that if Harry kept pressing next, he’d come to Little Things, and then Live While We’re Young, then More Than This… It was basically my compilation of “favorites”.
Oops.
“You know, let’s just turn on the radio-” I reached for the FM button but was slapped away by Harry.
“I think the rest of us are quite interested in what else Ebony has put on here!” He chuckled. “Am I right, boys?”
A chorus of “Yes!”s erupted from the back. I tensed just a bit as Harry pressed skip.
“Little Things!” Zayn said.
Skip.
“GET SOME!” All the boys shouted.
Skip.
“More Than This! Good track, that one…” Louis nodded in approval.
Skip.
“Chasing Cars?” Niall smiled and shook his head incredulously.
“Now that really brings you back, eh?” Louis shook his head.
Skip.
“Take Me Home! Am I sensing a pattern here?” Liam smiled coyly, leaning forward intently.
“Harry, take out the CD, yeah?” Zayn nodded towards the eject button.
“NO!” I yelped, drawing five very intrigued glares. “I mean, can’t we just turn on the radio, or…”
“See, Hannah, now we absolutely have to see.” Harry smiled cheekily, pressing the eject button. I wanted desperately to squeeze my eyes tight, but I was driving, sooo…
“1D FAVE - in all caps - Mix. Heart smiley face heart!” Harry read, sounding rather pleased with himself. “Just a random mix CD, eh?” he chuckled along with the rest of the boys. “Well, Ebony is really quite a good friend!” He finished, tapping the CD for emphasis.
I could’ve died of relief right then and there. They still thought that Ebony had made the CD. Halleluja-
“Yeah, except for the fact that that is Hannah’s handwriting.” Zayn shrugged.
At that moment, I don’t think my eyes could’ve been any wider or my mouth dropped any lower.
“How could you even know that, mate?” Louis laughed.
“Cuz of the little notes she wrote each of us last night that were on the fridge this morning.” Niall nodded, picking up on Zayn’s line of thought. “Lemme see that…” he said, holding his hand out to Harry. As Harry passed the CD to Niall, his brow wrinkled together.
“What notes?”
“You know, the ones reminding us of things that management had sent over and we were trying to avoid, and then a few little duties that she assigned us?” Zayn piped.
“Pff, didn’t see those!” Louis scoffed contently.
“Me neither!” Harry agreed with a grin.
“I saw those but didn’t exactly make it a point to memorize the way she dotted her I’s or crossed her t’s!” Liam chuckled.
“The reason I remember it is cuz it looks like the Disney font.” Niall shrugged, passing the CD back to Liam.
“Oh, my god, it totally does!” Liam’s eyes widened. “Now I see it!”
“So why would the girl who testified to never having heard of us before have a One Direction mix CD with some rather random titles on it?” Louis leaned forward coyly.
I stared intently at the road.
“Oh, come on, Hannah, just admit that you’re a lying little weasel!” Harry glared condemningly at me, a glint of playfulness hiding in his eyes.
I shot him an impetuous glance. “I never lied!”
“Did too! You said you never even heard of us!” Louis pointed an accusing finger at me.
“Now that is not true!” I raised my eyebrows, undaunted, ready to win.
“Is so!” he shot back.
“False statement! You were all going on about fangirls and whether I’d ever heard of you before and, as I recall, the question I was asked to answer was whether you’d be safe around me! Which I answered completely truthfully!” I returned vehemently.
Zayn nodded. “She’s got a point, mate. That was just before I walked in.”
“See?” I smiled cheekily.
“The point still stands, though, that you are indeed a fan and didn’t tell us!” Louis held onto his claim.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize that was a rule!” I shook my head and laughed, trying to calm the panic that was quickly building within me.
“Well, it usually comes up when you invite five international celebrities that you practically idolize to live with you for a few days!” He scoffed.
“Alright, alright, that’s enough!” Liam waved us off. “I think what Louis is getting at is whether you invited us to stay with you based on actually wanting to help out or just because we’re your favorite celebrities.”
Louis looked at Liam for a moment before quipping, “That actually wasn’t at all what I was getting at, but brings up and even more interesting point!” He looked pointedly at me in the rearview mirror.
I pulled into a parking spot since we had just arrived at the pier, put the van into park, and turned to face the lot.
“Ok, look.” I took a deep breath. “Yes, I am a fan. I watch your videos, I knew all your names before the hospital, I can pick out each one of your voices distinctly, and I may or may not know every single one of your songs…” All ten eyes widened, and I could tell they were bracing themselves for Fangirl Central. “But-” I continued firmly, “I can promise you that what I did had nothing to do with who you are. My sister, Jessie and I saw that bus coming down the street and I had already made up my mind to go out and help if anything happened. I had Jessie calling 911 and Allie running around getting supplies ready before you even crashed!” I said breathlessly, remembering those horrible moments. I closed my eyes, trying to clear the images from my mind. “The point is, every moment I have spent with each one of you, from the very first word that I spoke to you-” I looked right at Zayn, “-to that brilliant plan you and I concocted back at Big Lou’s-” I directed my referral to ordering separately at Harry, “I have honestly thought of each of you as a normal person, as someone I’d never met before, just trying to get to know you. Please trust me when I say-”
“Um, Hannah…” Louis interrupted.
“No, just let me finish!” I held up my hand. “Just trust me when I say that I’m not looking for fame, I’m not trying to be friends with you for the perks or for any ulterior motives, I’m not going to go crazy fangirl on you and I won’t sell any of your half eaten toast on eBay. I just-”
“Hannah, we get what you’re saying, but-” Liam tried.
“No, please just hear me out! I just want you to-”
“HANNAH!” Zayn shouted, startling me.
“What?”
“Yeah, the ferry?” Niall jumped in. “It’s kind of leaving.”
I whipped my head around to see the ferry about to take the fifteen minute trip out to the island. Without us.
“Oh, gosh…!” I threw my head back.
“Bet we can still make it if we run.” Louis smiled mischievously.
“LET’S GO!” Liam shouted. Niall and Zayn flung open the sliding doors as the four boys set off at a run towards the ferry. I leaned over to grab my and Harry’s food. I was about to open the door and attempt to take off after then when a sharp pain from my abdomen reminded me that running was probably a very bad idea.
“They’ve forgotten that we can’t run, haven’t they.” Harry said in that slow manner of his.
“Yeah.” I shook my head at the boys catapulting down the pier. “Eh, they’ll figure it out after a minute.” I shrugged, an amused smile stretching across my face. I sat myself back in the car and turned the heat back on, rubbing my hands together.
“Shall we eat, then?” Harry looked hungrily at the bag I held in my hand.
“We shall eat!” I smiled, handing it to him. As he took his burgers and fries, still steaming hot, I laughed at the three boys standing on the edge of the pier, desperately trying to wave down the ferry as it pulled away.
Wait- three boys? I thought that all four had-
“Hullo!” Niall piped, hopping nimbly into the van.
“Niall!” I smiled. “I thought you were joining their little brigade down there!”
“Well, halfway down the pier, I realized it was a hopeless cause. Plus, I knew that if I got back first, I’d get first dibs on the food, so here I am!” He smiled, grabbing the bag nearest him.
Harry and I chuckled, already stuffing our faces with the greasy goodness.
~*~
Half an hour later, all of us were laying around the big van, totally stuffed.
“Man, it’s no Nando’s, but those were some damned good hamburgers!” Niall nodded approvingly, licking his fingers of the remnants of his three enormous burgers.
“Ugh, do you know how bummed I am that we don’t have Nando’s over here?” I groaned.
“Hannah Clarke.” Niall looked me square in the eye, making those butterflies erupt in my stomach again. “Until you have had Nando’s, you have not lived.” He cracked a gorgeous smile that made me forget to respond for a second.
“Oh, uh, yeah I know!” I finally sputtered. “I’ll just have to fly out to the UK or Ireland sometime to test your claim!” I smiled stupidly, trying to regain my senses.
“Oh, my ‘claim’, as you call it, will hold strong! Nothing, my love, can beat Nando‘s!” Niall pointed firmly at me.
“Alright, I’ll take your word for it!” I giggled at his adamancy and pure.
“Oh, my god, I shouldn’t have had that second burger…” Harry groaned, closing his eyes and resting his head on the head rest. Yeah that’s what head rests are for…
“Aw, does ickle Harreh have a tummy ache?” Zayn tickled Harry’s stomach teasingly.
“Zayn Malik get your bloody hand away from me!” Harry growled, his eyes still closed.
“Yeah, messing with Harry now when he’s in deep pain but couldn’t move if he wanted to is just a terrible idea!” Louis munched sarcastically on the rest of his fries.
“Hannah…” Harry groaned.
I rolled my eyes. “Lay off, boys…”
“When will the ferry be here?” Zayn whined.
“Soon!” I said for the billionth time. “Look, you can even see it coming across the water!” I gestured towards the ocean.
“Yes, Hannah, we can. However, we’ve also been able to see it coming across the fucking water for the past ten minutes!” he rolled his eyes.
“Well do you all wanna just head back to the house, then? Cuz if you’re going to complain then we can just-”
“NO!” Came the urgent reply from all the boys. I knew they’d been going stir-crazy and wouldn’t pass this up. Smiling smugly, I turned the keys towards me, turning off the car.
“Alright, then, let’s walk down to get our tickets and meet it.” I opened my door to get out.
“Wait!” I heard from the other side of the car. Before I knew it, Niall had bolted around the car and was offering his hand to me. “Let me!”
I smiled bashfully and let him help me out of the car and onto the ground. “Thanks!” I bit my lips shyly.
“Well, I felt bad about bolting off before and figured I’d make it up to you somehow!” There was that beautiful smile again…
“Well, it was quite sweet of you and I appreciate it!”
“Yeah, I’d find it quite sweet of you and appreciate it if you came over and helped me out!” Harry interrupted our moment with his demand.
“You can get yer own arse outta the car!” Niall shouted back.
I smiled, chuckling under my breath. These boys…
~*~
“Wow.”
It was hours later and we were all bundled up on the roof watching the sunset. The day’s excursion had been a success; we had all fooled around on the island for awhile, took some pictures, made sandcastles, gotten ice cream even in the freezing December air, done typical teen things. When we had finally made it back, Louis & Harry had made the brilliant observation that their bedroom sported a large window that led to the flattened roof, perfect for watching the sun set over the mountains.
Now, you have to remember that it is December 2nd and absolutely freezing outside. Hence, we were all bundled in fluffy coats and big blankets straight out of the dryer.
“I honestly don’t think that I’ve seen anything so beautiful in my entire life.” Louis shook his head in a rare moment of sincerity. “I mean, other than my naked body. That, my friends, is a chiseled work of art!” And there it went…
Once the chuckling died down, I found myself shivering just a little bit more than I had been a couple minutes ago.
“Hey, c’mere.” I looked to my left to see Niall offering his arms out to me. I happily scootchedover to him, ducking under his blanket as he pulled me into him. He was surprisingly warm and began rubbing my arm to get me warmer.
I saw Zayn watching us with a smug smile from the corner of my eye. I cast him a sidelong glance in time to catch him waggling his eyebrows suggestively at me. Sticking my tongue out at him defiantly, I snuggled deeper into Niall’s embrace, feeling pure content.
“Stop it, Louis!” Liam guffawed as Louis tousled his hair one more time. “Seriously, mate!”
“Oh you know you love it!” Louis chuckled.
“So you boys ready for the concert tomorrow?” I asked, legitimately curious.
“I dunno ‘bout the rest of you, but I’m totally pumped!” I felt Niall nod gently into my head.
“Yeah, I think it’s gonna be a really good time.” Liam agreed.
“I just wish I had more time to recover, I guess.” Harry intoned.
“Aw, yeah, that’s going to right suck for you!” Niall looked sympathetically at his bandmate.
“Oh, please, it’s just going to get him even more attention from the fans! Isn’t that right, Hazza?“ Louis goofed, slapping Harry on the back.
“Mph!” Came Harry’s pained response. “Really, Lou? Really?”
“How are you going to do that, Harry?” I asked.
“I dunno, probably just stay in one spot most of the time.” He shrugged.
“Well, at least the doctor got you in that secured boot.” I tried.
“Yeah, one that makes it real easy for walking!” The sarcasm was adorable coming from his grinning lips.
“True!” I conceded with a smile. “Well, no matter what, I’m sure you’ll all be fabulous tomorrow!”
“Aren’t you coming?” Liam looked at me hopefully.
“Yep! Got my tickets months ago!” I grinned bashfully.
“Yay!” Louis threw his hands up gleefully.
“Where are your seats?” Harry asked.
“Section H Row 4 Seats 7, 8, and 9.” I rattled off immediately, a blush quickly flooding my cheeks.
“Section H?” Louis looked at me weirdly. “Well, those aren’t so great!”
“I know, they were all I could afford…” I trailed off, feeling somewhat ashamed.
“See what you’ve done, Louis?” Niall shot a glare at the boy, drawing me closer. “You’ve made her upset!”
“No I haven’t! I haven’t made you upset, have I Hannah?” Louis implored.
“No, of course not!” I tried to subdue Niall.
“Well, of course she’s going to say that!” he shook his head.
“Ugh, well then, to make it up to you, how about we move you down where Eleanor was going to be? Since she’s still in the hospital…” Louis trailed off, suddenly finding his fingernails very interesting.
“Aw, you took my idea!” Liam frowned, smacking Louis lightly & trying to ease the mood.
“Could she be backstage beforehand, too?” Harry added, not even acknowledging the Eleanor comment. My heart clenched in utter joy at the hope on his face. Harry Styles wanted me backstage before the show.
“Of course she can!” Zayn scoffed. “I really don’t see why she wouldn’t be allowed to!”
“Aw, guys!” I blushed happily.
“What? We want the girl who saved our lives to be there! I mean, without you, tomorrow wouldn’t even be happening!” Liam met my eyes kindly.
“And I do believe we’re beginning to like you!” Harry broke into one of his smiles. C’mon, you’ve seen the gifs on Tumblr and such. You know that smile.
Which is why you also know that I completely melted.
“Well, you should be happy to know that I’m beginning to like you all as well!” I returned, unable to contain my smile.
“And here I was thinking you liked us before! You know, being a fan and all!” Louis never missed an opportunity to rub that one in my face.
“You know what I mean!”
“No, I don’t believe that I do!” He grinned mischievously. “Go on and say one thing about each of us that you like now that you didn’t like before you met us!”
“Okayyy….” said slowly. “Well, I like the way that Liam is always building everyone up. He always makes me, at least, feel special and wanted.”
“Oh, well, you know, I try!” He winked.
“And I like Harry’s wittiness.” I nodded towards the curly head just peeking out over the Toy Story comforter he was wrapped in.
“You didn’t think I was witty before!” He said in disbelief.
“Harry, no one thinks you’re witty now.” Zayn deadpanned.
“Except for Hannah, apparently, but we all know she’s a very special child!” Louis said with a nod.
“I like how Niall is always trying to make everything easier for everyone else. He’s very selfless and kind and I really like that about him!” I looked up at him with a smile, trying to keep my cool.
“Aw, yer gonna make me blush!”
“…not the only thing she really likes about him!” I heard being mumbled from Louis’ general direction.
Sending him a warning glare, I continued, “And finally, I like how Zayn can be sitting there all quiet for an entire conversation and then he says one little thing and send the entire room into hysterical laughter!”
“You know how I do!” he winked as Liam had.
“So yeah! Satisfied?” I challenged Louis.
“Uh, no! You didn’t mention the most anticipated moment of your little speech! You know, the part where you talk about how much you like me?” He looked dubiously at me.
“Oh, yeah! Well that’s mostly because I wouldn’t have anything to say! You bully me, lead the boys into trouble, physically abuse all of us, and are a complete mess!”
“And that’s why we like her!” Zayn pointed to me with an amused smile.
“Well, I never!” Louis stood. “I’m going inside. Harry?” He helped the younger boy up and proceeded to stomp away, diving through the large window headfirst.
“If it’s any consolation, I really do think he likes you!” Harry smiled before letting himself in the window precariously.
“You know, I think I’m gonna go inside myself. It’s getting a little too chilly out here. Wanna ransack the kitchen with me, Zayn?” Liam stood, stretching.
“I was just about to suggest that!” Zayn hopped lithely to his feet and began following Liam inside. “You kids have fun, yeah?” He and Liam waggled their eyebrows in sync at me before slipping through the window.
I turned back to the last few rays of sunlight reflecting off of a collection of fluffy clouds that were settling over the mountain and sighed in contentment, snuggling into Niall’s side.
“So tell me,” he broke the silence a few moments later. “Why didn’t you want us to know that you were a fan?”
I shrugged. “I guess I just didn’t want you guys treating me like another crazed fan and I wanted to actually know you as more than just One Direction, ya know? I didn’t think I’d get that chance if I freaked out or whatever. Plus, under the circumstances, getting an autograph wasn’t the first thing on my mind.” I said, referring the bus crash.
“So even when you talked to Zayn, you didn’t think about us like that?”
“I think the fact that I knew who you were and who was in there definitely drove me a little more to get you all to safety, but I can honestly say that if it had been anyone else, I would’ve done the exact same thing. A life is a life, and it doesn’t matter whose it is. Everyone deserves a chance at survival.”
“And that,” he turned me to him, “-is one of the things that I’ve grown to like about you.”
“What?”
“Your drive to do the right thing. Your humanitarian tendencies. Your positive but urgent outlook on life…” he trailed off as I got lost in his eyes. “It’s just…” he tried again, dropping off again.
That’s when his eyes flickered to my lips.
My breath caught as I realized what he was thinking about. I kept my eyes locked steadily on his as he leaned in, closer and closer… I could smell that gentle scent that was distinctly his… I could see the little freckles that dotted his nose… and there were his lips, so close… And his sweet breath fluttering on my face… It was almost too much…
And then he kissed me on the cheek.
Somehow, as the last rays of sunlight disappeared over the mountains, that little peck on my cheek meant so much more than anything else he could’ve done.
Harry and I had smartly ordered our food separately. It was sitting safely beside Harry’s seat, away from the fray.
My mind was anywhere but Harry’s actions as I tried not to be distracted by the mayhem that was proliferating in the back. Before I knew it, Harry had pressed the “On” button and the last CD I had in there came blasting over the stereos.
“-A NA NA! THEN WE’RE LIKE YEAH YEAH YEAH!” erupted, startling everyone and making me swerve just a little bit.
“Hey! They’re playing this one over here too?” Liam exclaimed.
“Yeaaaah!” Niall whooped, extending a hand to Louis for a high-five.
“Uh, this is actually a CD, guys…” Harry intoned, squinting at the display.
There was a quick silence as everyone looked at me.
I laughed uncomfortably, remembering that they all thought I wasn’t a fan…
“Oh, this must be the random mix CD that my friend Ebony made for me! Remember Ebony?” I turned innocently to Harry for a moment before returning my eyes to the road.
“Oo, let’s see what else the lovely Ebony put on here!” Zayn leaned forward from the back - apparently not wearing a seatbelt, the naughty boy - and pressed skip. There was a few seconds of silence before the warm strumming of an acoustic guitar filled the car with just seven strokes before Liam’s vocals entered.
“Is this our acoustic version of One Thing?” Harry turned to me with a slight smile on his face.
“I guess so?” I shrugged, nonchalantly. “I haven’t really listened to this CD much…” I bit my lip, biting back panic. I knew that if Harry kept pressing next, he’d come to Little Things, and then Live While We’re Young, then More Than This… It was basically my compilation of “favorites”.
Oops.
“You know, let’s just turn on the radio-” I reached for the FM button but was slapped away by Harry.
“I think the rest of us are quite interested in what else Ebony has put on here!” He chuckled. “Am I right, boys?”
A chorus of “Yes!”s erupted from the back. I tensed just a bit as Harry pressed skip.
“Little Things!” Zayn said.
Skip.
“GET SOME!” All the boys shouted.
Skip.
“More Than This! Good track, that one…” Louis nodded in approval.
Skip.
“Chasing Cars?” Niall smiled and shook his head incredulously.
“Now that really brings you back, eh?” Louis shook his head.
Skip.
“Take Me Home! Am I sensing a pattern here?” Liam smiled coyly, leaning forward intently.
“Harry, take out the CD, yeah?” Zayn nodded towards the eject button.
“NO!” I yelped, drawing five very intrigued glares. “I mean, can’t we just turn on the radio, or…”
“See, Hannah, now we absolutely have to see.” Harry smiled cheekily, pressing the eject button. I wanted desperately to squeeze my eyes tight, but I was driving, sooo…
“1D FAVE - in all caps - Mix. Heart smiley face heart!” Harry read, sounding rather pleased with himself. “Just a random mix CD, eh?” he chuckled along with the rest of the boys. “Well, Ebony is really quite a good friend!” He finished, tapping the CD for emphasis.
I could’ve died of relief right then and there. They still thought that Ebony had made the CD. Halleluja-
“Yeah, except for the fact that that is Hannah’s handwriting.” Zayn shrugged.
At that moment, I don’t think my eyes could’ve been any wider or my mouth dropped any lower.
“How could you even know that, mate?” Louis laughed.
“Cuz of the little notes she wrote each of us last night that were on the fridge this morning.” Niall nodded, picking up on Zayn’s line of thought. “Lemme see that…” he said, holding his hand out to Harry. As Harry passed the CD to Niall, his brow wrinkled together.
“What notes?”
“You know, the ones reminding us of things that management had sent over and we were trying to avoid, and then a few little duties that she assigned us?” Zayn piped.
“Pff, didn’t see those!” Louis scoffed contently.
“Me neither!” Harry agreed with a grin.
“I saw those but didn’t exactly make it a point to memorize the way she dotted her I’s or crossed her t’s!” Liam chuckled.
“The reason I remember it is cuz it looks like the Disney font.” Niall shrugged, passing the CD back to Liam.
“Oh, my god, it totally does!” Liam’s eyes widened. “Now I see it!”
“So why would the girl who testified to never having heard of us before have a One Direction mix CD with some rather random titles on it?” Louis leaned forward coyly.
I stared intently at the road.
“Oh, come on, Hannah, just admit that you’re a lying little weasel!” Harry glared condemningly at me, a glint of playfulness hiding in his eyes.
I shot him an impetuous glance. “I never lied!”
“Did too! You said you never even heard of us!” Louis pointed an accusing finger at me.
“Now that is not true!” I raised my eyebrows, undaunted, ready to win.
“Is so!” he shot back.
“False statement! You were all going on about fangirls and whether I’d ever heard of you before and, as I recall, the question I was asked to answer was whether you’d be safe around me! Which I answered completely truthfully!” I returned vehemently.
Zayn nodded. “She’s got a point, mate. That was just before I walked in.”
“See?” I smiled cheekily.
“The point still stands, though, that you are indeed a fan and didn’t tell us!” Louis held onto his claim.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize that was a rule!” I shook my head and laughed, trying to calm the panic that was quickly building within me.
“Well, it usually comes up when you invite five international celebrities that you practically idolize to live with you for a few days!” He scoffed.
“Alright, alright, that’s enough!” Liam waved us off. “I think what Louis is getting at is whether you invited us to stay with you based on actually wanting to help out or just because we’re your favorite celebrities.”
Louis looked at Liam for a moment before quipping, “That actually wasn’t at all what I was getting at, but brings up and even more interesting point!” He looked pointedly at me in the rearview mirror.
I pulled into a parking spot since we had just arrived at the pier, put the van into park, and turned to face the lot.
“Ok, look.” I took a deep breath. “Yes, I am a fan. I watch your videos, I knew all your names before the hospital, I can pick out each one of your voices distinctly, and I may or may not know every single one of your songs…” All ten eyes widened, and I could tell they were bracing themselves for Fangirl Central. “But-” I continued firmly, “I can promise you that what I did had nothing to do with who you are. My sister, Jessie and I saw that bus coming down the street and I had already made up my mind to go out and help if anything happened. I had Jessie calling 911 and Allie running around getting supplies ready before you even crashed!” I said breathlessly, remembering those horrible moments. I closed my eyes, trying to clear the images from my mind. “The point is, every moment I have spent with each one of you, from the very first word that I spoke to you-” I looked right at Zayn, “-to that brilliant plan you and I concocted back at Big Lou’s-” I directed my referral to ordering separately at Harry, “I have honestly thought of each of you as a normal person, as someone I’d never met before, just trying to get to know you. Please trust me when I say-”
“Um, Hannah…” Louis interrupted.
“No, just let me finish!” I held up my hand. “Just trust me when I say that I’m not looking for fame, I’m not trying to be friends with you for the perks or for any ulterior motives, I’m not going to go crazy fangirl on you and I won’t sell any of your half eaten toast on eBay. I just-”
“Hannah, we get what you’re saying, but-” Liam tried.
“No, please just hear me out! I just want you to-”
“HANNAH!” Zayn shouted, startling me.
“What?”
“Yeah, the ferry?” Niall jumped in. “It’s kind of leaving.”
I whipped my head around to see the ferry about to take the fifteen minute trip out to the island. Without us.
“Oh, gosh…!” I threw my head back.
“Bet we can still make it if we run.” Louis smiled mischievously.
“LET’S GO!” Liam shouted. Niall and Zayn flung open the sliding doors as the four boys set off at a run towards the ferry. I leaned over to grab my and Harry’s food. I was about to open the door and attempt to take off after then when a sharp pain from my abdomen reminded me that running was probably a very bad idea.
“They’ve forgotten that we can’t run, haven’t they.” Harry said in that slow manner of his.
“Yeah.” I shook my head at the boys catapulting down the pier. “Eh, they’ll figure it out after a minute.” I shrugged, an amused smile stretching across my face. I sat myself back in the car and turned the heat back on, rubbing my hands together.
“Shall we eat, then?” Harry looked hungrily at the bag I held in my hand.
“We shall eat!” I smiled, handing it to him. As he took his burgers and fries, still steaming hot, I laughed at the three boys standing on the edge of the pier, desperately trying to wave down the ferry as it pulled away.
Wait- three boys? I thought that all four had-
“Hullo!” Niall piped, hopping nimbly into the van.
“Niall!” I smiled. “I thought you were joining their little brigade down there!”
“Well, halfway down the pier, I realized it was a hopeless cause. Plus, I knew that if I got back first, I’d get first dibs on the food, so here I am!” He smiled, grabbing the bag nearest him.
Harry and I chuckled, already stuffing our faces with the greasy goodness.
~*~
Half an hour later, all of us were laying around the big van, totally stuffed.
“Man, it’s no Nando’s, but those were some damned good hamburgers!” Niall nodded approvingly, licking his fingers of the remnants of his three enormous burgers.
“Ugh, do you know how bummed I am that we don’t have Nando’s over here?” I groaned.
“Hannah Clarke.” Niall looked me square in the eye, making those butterflies erupt in my stomach again. “Until you have had Nando’s, you have not lived.” He cracked a gorgeous smile that made me forget to respond for a second.
“Oh, uh, yeah I know!” I finally sputtered. “I’ll just have to fly out to the UK or Ireland sometime to test your claim!” I smiled stupidly, trying to regain my senses.
“Oh, my ‘claim’, as you call it, will hold strong! Nothing, my love, can beat Nando‘s!” Niall pointed firmly at me.
“Alright, I’ll take your word for it!” I giggled at his adamancy and pure.
“Oh, my god, I shouldn’t have had that second burger…” Harry groaned, closing his eyes and resting his head on the head rest. Yeah that’s what head rests are for…
“Aw, does ickle Harreh have a tummy ache?” Zayn tickled Harry’s stomach teasingly.
“Zayn Malik get your bloody hand away from me!” Harry growled, his eyes still closed.
“Yeah, messing with Harry now when he’s in deep pain but couldn’t move if he wanted to is just a terrible idea!” Louis munched sarcastically on the rest of his fries.
“Hannah…” Harry groaned.
I rolled my eyes. “Lay off, boys…”
“When will the ferry be here?” Zayn whined.
“Soon!” I said for the billionth time. “Look, you can even see it coming across the water!” I gestured towards the ocean.
“Yes, Hannah, we can. However, we’ve also been able to see it coming across the fucking water for the past ten minutes!” he rolled his eyes.
“Well do you all wanna just head back to the house, then? Cuz if you’re going to complain then we can just-”
“NO!” Came the urgent reply from all the boys. I knew they’d been going stir-crazy and wouldn’t pass this up. Smiling smugly, I turned the keys towards me, turning off the car.
“Alright, then, let’s walk down to get our tickets and meet it.” I opened my door to get out.
“Wait!” I heard from the other side of the car. Before I knew it, Niall had bolted around the car and was offering his hand to me. “Let me!”
I smiled bashfully and let him help me out of the car and onto the ground. “Thanks!” I bit my lips shyly.
“Well, I felt bad about bolting off before and figured I’d make it up to you somehow!” There was that beautiful smile again…
“Well, it was quite sweet of you and I appreciate it!”
“Yeah, I’d find it quite sweet of you and appreciate it if you came over and helped me out!” Harry interrupted our moment with his demand.
“You can get yer own arse outta the car!” Niall shouted back.
I smiled, chuckling under my breath. These boys…
~*~
“Wow.”
It was hours later and we were all bundled up on the roof watching the sunset. The day’s excursion had been a success; we had all fooled around on the island for awhile, took some pictures, made sandcastles, gotten ice cream even in the freezing December air, done typical teen things. When we had finally made it back, Louis & Harry had made the brilliant observation that their bedroom sported a large window that led to the flattened roof, perfect for watching the sun set over the mountains.
Now, you have to remember that it is December 2nd and absolutely freezing outside. Hence, we were all bundled in fluffy coats and big blankets straight out of the dryer.
“I honestly don’t think that I’ve seen anything so beautiful in my entire life.” Louis shook his head in a rare moment of sincerity. “I mean, other than my naked body. That, my friends, is a chiseled work of art!” And there it went…
Once the chuckling died down, I found myself shivering just a little bit more than I had been a couple minutes ago.
“Hey, c’mere.” I looked to my left to see Niall offering his arms out to me. I happily scootchedover to him, ducking under his blanket as he pulled me into him. He was surprisingly warm and began rubbing my arm to get me warmer.
I saw Zayn watching us with a smug smile from the corner of my eye. I cast him a sidelong glance in time to catch him waggling his eyebrows suggestively at me. Sticking my tongue out at him defiantly, I snuggled deeper into Niall’s embrace, feeling pure content.
“Stop it, Louis!” Liam guffawed as Louis tousled his hair one more time. “Seriously, mate!”
“Oh you know you love it!” Louis chuckled.
“So you boys ready for the concert tomorrow?” I asked, legitimately curious.
“I dunno ‘bout the rest of you, but I’m totally pumped!” I felt Niall nod gently into my head.
“Yeah, I think it’s gonna be a really good time.” Liam agreed.
“I just wish I had more time to recover, I guess.” Harry intoned.
“Aw, yeah, that’s going to right suck for you!” Niall looked sympathetically at his bandmate.
“Oh, please, it’s just going to get him even more attention from the fans! Isn’t that right, Hazza?“ Louis goofed, slapping Harry on the back.
“Mph!” Came Harry’s pained response. “Really, Lou? Really?”
“How are you going to do that, Harry?” I asked.
“I dunno, probably just stay in one spot most of the time.” He shrugged.
“Well, at least the doctor got you in that secured boot.” I tried.
“Yeah, one that makes it real easy for walking!” The sarcasm was adorable coming from his grinning lips.
“True!” I conceded with a smile. “Well, no matter what, I’m sure you’ll all be fabulous tomorrow!”
“Aren’t you coming?” Liam looked at me hopefully.
“Yep! Got my tickets months ago!” I grinned bashfully.
“Yay!” Louis threw his hands up gleefully.
“Where are your seats?” Harry asked.
“Section H Row 4 Seats 7, 8, and 9.” I rattled off immediately, a blush quickly flooding my cheeks.
“Section H?” Louis looked at me weirdly. “Well, those aren’t so great!”
“I know, they were all I could afford…” I trailed off, feeling somewhat ashamed.
“See what you’ve done, Louis?” Niall shot a glare at the boy, drawing me closer. “You’ve made her upset!”
“No I haven’t! I haven’t made you upset, have I Hannah?” Louis implored.
“No, of course not!” I tried to subdue Niall.
“Well, of course she’s going to say that!” he shook his head.
“Ugh, well then, to make it up to you, how about we move you down where Eleanor was going to be? Since she’s still in the hospital…” Louis trailed off, suddenly finding his fingernails very interesting.
“Aw, you took my idea!” Liam frowned, smacking Louis lightly & trying to ease the mood.
“Could she be backstage beforehand, too?” Harry added, not even acknowledging the Eleanor comment. My heart clenched in utter joy at the hope on his face. Harry Styles wanted me backstage before the show.
“Of course she can!” Zayn scoffed. “I really don’t see why she wouldn’t be allowed to!”
“Aw, guys!” I blushed happily.
“What? We want the girl who saved our lives to be there! I mean, without you, tomorrow wouldn’t even be happening!” Liam met my eyes kindly.
“And I do believe we’re beginning to like you!” Harry broke into one of his smiles. C’mon, you’ve seen the gifs on Tumblr and such. You know that smile.
Which is why you also know that I completely melted.
“Well, you should be happy to know that I’m beginning to like you all as well!” I returned, unable to contain my smile.
“And here I was thinking you liked us before! You know, being a fan and all!” Louis never missed an opportunity to rub that one in my face.
“You know what I mean!”
“No, I don’t believe that I do!” He grinned mischievously. “Go on and say one thing about each of us that you like now that you didn’t like before you met us!”
“Okayyy….” said slowly. “Well, I like the way that Liam is always building everyone up. He always makes me, at least, feel special and wanted.”
“Oh, well, you know, I try!” He winked.
“And I like Harry’s wittiness.” I nodded towards the curly head just peeking out over the Toy Story comforter he was wrapped in.
“You didn’t think I was witty before!” He said in disbelief.
“Harry, no one thinks you’re witty now.” Zayn deadpanned.
“Except for Hannah, apparently, but we all know she’s a very special child!” Louis said with a nod.
“I like how Niall is always trying to make everything easier for everyone else. He’s very selfless and kind and I really like that about him!” I looked up at him with a smile, trying to keep my cool.
“Aw, yer gonna make me blush!”
“…not the only thing she really likes about him!” I heard being mumbled from Louis’ general direction.
Sending him a warning glare, I continued, “And finally, I like how Zayn can be sitting there all quiet for an entire conversation and then he says one little thing and send the entire room into hysterical laughter!”
“You know how I do!” he winked as Liam had.
“So yeah! Satisfied?” I challenged Louis.
“Uh, no! You didn’t mention the most anticipated moment of your little speech! You know, the part where you talk about how much you like me?” He looked dubiously at me.
“Oh, yeah! Well that’s mostly because I wouldn’t have anything to say! You bully me, lead the boys into trouble, physically abuse all of us, and are a complete mess!”
“And that’s why we like her!” Zayn pointed to me with an amused smile.
“Well, I never!” Louis stood. “I’m going inside. Harry?” He helped the younger boy up and proceeded to stomp away, diving through the large window headfirst.
“If it’s any consolation, I really do think he likes you!” Harry smiled before letting himself in the window precariously.
“You know, I think I’m gonna go inside myself. It’s getting a little too chilly out here. Wanna ransack the kitchen with me, Zayn?” Liam stood, stretching.
“I was just about to suggest that!” Zayn hopped lithely to his feet and began following Liam inside. “You kids have fun, yeah?” He and Liam waggled their eyebrows in sync at me before slipping through the window.
I turned back to the last few rays of sunlight reflecting off of a collection of fluffy clouds that were settling over the mountain and sighed in contentment, snuggling into Niall’s side.
“So tell me,” he broke the silence a few moments later. “Why didn’t you want us to know that you were a fan?”
I shrugged. “I guess I just didn’t want you guys treating me like another crazed fan and I wanted to actually know you as more than just One Direction, ya know? I didn’t think I’d get that chance if I freaked out or whatever. Plus, under the circumstances, getting an autograph wasn’t the first thing on my mind.” I said, referring the bus crash.
“So even when you talked to Zayn, you didn’t think about us like that?”
“I think the fact that I knew who you were and who was in there definitely drove me a little more to get you all to safety, but I can honestly say that if it had been anyone else, I would’ve done the exact same thing. A life is a life, and it doesn’t matter whose it is. Everyone deserves a chance at survival.”
“And that,” he turned me to him, “-is one of the things that I’ve grown to like about you.”
“What?”
“Your drive to do the right thing. Your humanitarian tendencies. Your positive but urgent outlook on life…” he trailed off as I got lost in his eyes. “It’s just…” he tried again, dropping off again.
That’s when his eyes flickered to my lips.
My breath caught as I realized what he was thinking about. I kept my eyes locked steadily on his as he leaned in, closer and closer… I could smell that gentle scent that was distinctly his… I could see the little freckles that dotted his nose… and there were his lips, so close… And his sweet breath fluttering on my face… It was almost too much…
And then he kissed me on the cheek.
Somehow, as the last rays of sunlight disappeared over the mountains, that little peck on my cheek meant so much more than anything else he could’ve done.
7/25/13