I opened my eyes, blinking against the sun that was streaming in through the windows.

“God, you sleep even longer than I do,” Niall grinned from beside me, as I sat up, rubbing my eyes and trying to figure out where I was. Oh. Right.

“Yeah, well, I was a bit exhausted,” I admitted. “Thanks for letting me crash here, by the way.”

“Anytime, JJ,” he grinned, moving his computer off his lap and crawling off the bed. “I’ve ordered us breakfast, if you want. And then I thought we could head out and do something.”

“What time do we have to be at the venue?”

“Not until 3:00.”

“And the others?” I asked, swallowing. “Will they be joining us?” I didn’t really want to face them all just yet, my embarrassment from the previous day still ever-present.

“Doubt it,” Niall replied. “Louis and Liam went surfing and Harry and Zayn just left to go look at tattoo places.”

Good, I thought, getting out of bed myself. A day with Niall was just what I needed to relax.

After some delicious breakfast and a short trip to the rental car place, Niall and I were on our way to the Taronga Zoo outside Syndey. It was a beautiful day and with all the other boys being stalked by paparazzi back in the city, it was easy enough to get out there and enjoy the visit without much bother. I, of course, had to drive since Niall didn’t have a permit, and naturally we got lost three or four times before actually getting to the zoo, so we didn’t have long once we were there.

This was all right, though, since it didn’t seem like either of us were really paying attention to the animals at all. We just walked along, comfortably chatting about anything and everything.

Stopping near the gorilla enclosure, we leaned against the railing, observing the primates as they went about their business, which mostly involved eating and lying about.

“I think you’d make a good gorilla,” I commented to Niall, who looked up at me from behind his Ray Bans.

“Oh yeah?” he laughed, looking back at them. The biggest one had rolled onto his back and was scratching himself contentedly. “Yeah, I could do it, I think,” Niall agreed, smirking. “Though Harry’s got the nose.”

I blinked. Then, I burst out laughing. “Oh my God, he does!”

“What, you never noticed?” Niall asked, disbelieving. “Harry has ape nostrils.”

I snorted, causing Niall to laugh more. I don’t know why I found this so funny, but it was, and I was nearly crying by the time I calmed down. Niall watched me in amusement, a smile on his lips as I tried to compose myself.

“Oh man,” I giggled, wiping my eyes.

“Well, speaking of Harry,” Niall began hesitantly, as if testing the waters. I knew what was coming, but stayed silent, my good mood instantly dampened. “Do you want to talk about yesterday?”

Yes. No. Maybe.

I shrugged. “I don’t know what there is to talk about. I looked like a complete nutter in front of everyone and ruined your day off.”

“Well now you’re just being dramatic,” Niall chastised lightly, following me as I headed off to the next exhibit, which apparently housed koalas, though we couldn’t see any through the trees. “I had a lovely time. And I even got a swim in.”

I rolled my eyes at him, but appreciated his attempts to make light of the situation. “You braved those bull sharks, didn’t you, Nialler?” I teased, whacking down the top of his red snapback (his new favorite, apparently).

“Anything for you, love,” he smiled, straightening it on his head. “But seriously, though. Are you going to tell me what makes you so scared shitless of the ocean or what?”

“Well, when you put it that way,” I replied sarcastically, sending him a smirk.

We settled on a bench outside the koala enclosure, as there wasn’t anything too exciting to see in there, apparently. “I was five,” I started, looking over at him, not even feeling the least bit embarrassed over telling him the story. “We were at the beach, me, my mum, dad, Louis and Lottie who was just a toddler. We had been playing football on the beach, but then Louis cut his foot on a shell or something, so my dad took him back up to the hotel. Mum was preoccupied with Lottie and I was bored. So, I went swimming. I mean, I could swim and still can, so I didn’t think it was a big deal that the waves were big or that my dad wasn’t with me. I figured I could handle it.”

“Of course you did,” Niall cut in, giving me a smirk. “Even as a kid I’m sure you were a little terror.”

“Definitely. I don’t even know what possessed my parents to have four more kids after me and Louis. Anyway, I went in and the current happened to be really, really strong that day. So, I got pulled out past where I could stand and I apparently I wasn’t as good of a swimmer as I thought, since I couldn’t barely keep my head above water.” I shivered a bit, shaking the images from my head. “They did CPR on me for five minutes. Apparently I hadn’t been breathing for closer to eight by the time they had actually gotten me out of the water; the doctors were surprised I didn’t have any permanent brain damage from lack of oxygen…though if you asked Louis he’d say that I’m pretty messed up in the head.”

I smiled lightly at Niall, but he didn’t smile back. He was staring at me, with those piercing blue eyes of his, and for the first time ever, I felt myself blushing under his gaze.

“What?” I asked.

“You…you could have died.” Niall blinked and looked away, as if he were trying to work it all out in his mind.

“I think I technically did die, though only for a few minutes.”

“No, I mean…yesterday. I’m so sorry, JJ,” he said, turning to me suddenly. “I’m really sorry about yesterday. I never should have pressured you into coming. I can be a fucking twat sometimes.”

I laughed and he frowned, looking angry with himself. “Niall, it is not your fault at all. It’s no one’s fault. And I didn’t almost die; now you’re being dramatic. Besides, who knows, maybe I’ve been cured.” I doubted it, but I would say anything to make him feel better.

Niall didn’t look too convinced, but a moment later he slapped his hands on his knees and stood up. Stretching his arms above his head (I tried to ignore his shirt riding up and exposing his midriff), he turned to me. “Well, at least one good thing came out of this.”

“And what’s that?” I asked, standing with him.

“You’re talking to Louis again.”

I grinned. Yes, yes I was.

“Yeah. That’s all settled.”

“Can I ask what all the fuss was about?”

I sighed slightly, debating whether or not to actually loop Niall in on all of this. But, I really didn’t have anyone else to talk to about it so…

“Louis thought that I came on tour just to be with Harry.”

Niall’s eyebrows shot up. “Really?”

“Yeah. And needless to say he wasn’t really happy with that idea. Thought I was only there for Harry and to get my own fame from following you lot around.”

Niall winced. “Shit, JJ. I’m sorry, that’s ridiculous. I can’t believe he thought that.”

“Yeah, but it’s all sorted now, I guess,” I said. Even though Louis and I hadn’t actually talked any more about the whole Harry situation, based on our interaction the day before, I figured we were good.

“Wait, there isn’t anything going on with you and Harry right?” Niall asked, a playful smile on his lips. “Because he has been really flirtatious with you lately.”

I gulped. “No,” I replied evenly as Niall chuckled. “He just…he knows about Liam.”

I don’t know why I said it, but I knew that Niall could easily tell when I was lying. But, if I told him something like the Liam thing, maybe he wouldn’t notice the lie.

“I didn’t tell him,” Niall said quickly, holding up his hands. “I swear, JJ…”

“I know,” I assured him. “I apparently told him when I was drunk on my birthday and now he is taking immense pleasure out of making me feel uncomfortable at every opportunity.” That, at least, wasn’t a lie.

“Ooh,” Niall nodded. “You tend to really spill all your little secrets when you’re wasted, don’t you?”

I let out a frustrated grunt. “Yeah. Aren’t I lucky?”

I moved back to the railing over the enclosure, wanting to change the subject before it went back to Harry. I didn’t want to talk about him, especially when I was getting angrier with each passing moment he didn’t try to contact me. I had been checking my phone all day – nothing. What the hell?

“Where are all the koalas,” I grumbled, squinting through the brush. “We’ve been in Australia for two whole days and I haven’t seen a single one except that massive poster of one at the airport.”

“Yeah, I thought they were like rabbits or something down here, you know, all over the place.”

“What just hanging out in back gardens and parks?”

“Yeah, why not?”

I shrugged and continued looking. “Nialler, make a koala call.”

“…is there such a thing?”

“I don’t know. But I want to see one.”

“Hey, Koalas!” Niall called into the enclosure, earning some stares from our fellow visitors. “Koalas….come out and hello! Or G’day! Anything works!”

Still nothing. Niall sighed in defeat.

“It’s okay, Irish,” I said, patting him comfortingly on the shoulder. “I appreciate you trying.”

Finishing up at the zoo, we headed back to the parking lot, but I could tell there was something still on Niall’s mind. Nudging him in the side with my elbow, I raised my eyebrows. Niall got the point and took off his hat, ran his hands through his blonde mop and replaced the lid, before speaking.

“JJ, you know you can tell me anything, right? Like, if you ever need to talk about stuff…even if you’re embarrassed about it, you can talk to me, you know.” He smiled softly at me and suddenly my chest hurt, like I could burst out crying at any moment. How was he so fucking amazing?

“Thanks Niall,” I replied, sliding my hand into his and giving it a squeeze. “But I don’t have any other life-or-death stories to share, unfortunately. But I appreciate you being there for me.”

He smiled again. “That’s what best friends are for.”

I paused for a moment and looked at him. “Best friends?”

“Well, yeah,” he replied, suddenly looking embarrassed and rubbing the back of his neck. “I mean…I consider you one of my best friends.”

I watched him for a moment as the realization set in. I had never had many close friends – I didn’t really get along with many girls and the boys were often rather intimidated by me. Sure, I counted Louis as a friend, but he was my brother, and Eleanor was a friend, but she was Louis’s girlfriend first. And Harry…well, Harry didn’t count. Zayn was a friend, but we weren't really that close.

Niall, however…

“Yeah,” I grinned. “Best friends.” We were. My best friend was Niall Horan and it couldn’t get any better than that.

He beamed at me and we continued our way to the car.

“Alright, give me the keys,” I said, holding out my hand.

Niall stopped short. “I don’t have them. You have them.”

I blinked at him. “No, I don’t. I gave them to you to hold since I don’t have a purse.”

“No, you didn’t.”

Simultaneously, we looked through the driver side window. The keys were sitting right there in the passenger seat, so close yet so far. We glanced at each other.

“Shit.”

**

Needless to say, Paul was not happy with us when we strolled into the venue an hour after we were supposed to. But, his chastising fell on deaf ears, as we were immediately distracted by the commotion going on near the stage. Liam, Harry and Louis were all crowding a pretty, young, woman, asking feverish questions and looking rather excited.

“What’s going on?” Niall asked as we approached the group.

I avoided meeting Harry’s gaze as they turned to face us – I was furious with him and really didn’t think I could prevent myself from smacking him if he sent one single smirk my way. But, the little bundle of gray fur that was nestled in the woman’s arms immediately caught my attention.

“This is Ann,” Liam said, excitedly. “She’s brought us a koala!”

“Hi there, guys,” Ann said nicely, stepping away from the crowd so we could get a better look at the little creature. I stared at it in complete wonder. It was perfect.

“Her name is Kat,” Ann continued. “And she is four years old. If you want to hold her you can.”

Liam quite literally shoved Harry and Louis out of the way to stand in the front of the line, causing Ann to laugh. “Alright, just hold her under her bottom like this. Yes, that’s right, and she’ll just grab onto your shirt, no worries.”

Liam beamed as the koala clung to his t-shirt.

“Alright, Liam, look up here,” a photographer said, appearing out of nowhere. Ann stepped off the side near Niall and me, while Liam grinned for the camera.

“Do you want a picture as well?” Ann asked Niall, turning to him.

“Ugh, no I don’t think so.”

“What?” I asked, finally tearing my gaze away from Kat and to my friend. “Why the hell not?”

Niall shrugged, looking at his bandmate. “I just don’t trust it.”

“Are you insane?” I asked, as Ann laughed. “How can you not trust it? It’s so fucking majestic and perfect and represents everything good in the world.”

Niall wasn’t backing down, though. “Nope. I don’t like it. Beady eyes. Creepy.”

“You’re so weird,” I mumbled.

“Just one picture, Niall,” Liam encouraged. “I’ll hold it, don’t worry.”

Looking none too happy, Niall shuffled forward and stood about a foot away from Liam as the photographer snapped a few more pictures.

“Careful, Niall,” Harry said, coming up next. “It might just claw your face off.” Niall glared and shuffled back over to me. I was struggling not to look at Harry while still looking at Kat, so I missed most of the next events, but suddenly Liam was whining about poo.

“It poo’d on me!”

Paul was laughing at him and pointing at the brown stain in the center of his shirt.

“What?” Harry asked, looking concerned suddenly and holding the bear away from him. “Ugh, it got me as well!”

“I’ve got some wipes in my bag,” Ann laughed, taking Kat from Harry. “Head over there and I’ll come help clean you up.”

Both boys glared at Kat, apparently no longer happy with her, before moving off. I bounced slightly on the balls of my feet, watching as Ann cuddled the koala, before looking over at my brother.

“Give it to JJ, first,” Louis said, nodding towards me. “She looks like she is about to piss herself in excitement.”

Suddenly, the koala was placed in my arms and it felt like my life was finally complete.

Hello, little one.

I held the thing in my arms, staring down at it with abject wonder. How could anything be so incredibly perfect? I stared at it for a bit longer, completely unaware of anything else around me, until the camera went off and I was nearly blinded by the flash. Instinctively, I gripped it closer to me, suddenly afraid it would be taken away and looked around frantically for an exit.

How illegal was it to kidnap a koala? Would they let me on the plane home with it if I kept it in one of those nice little dog carriers? Did they sell eucalyptus at Tesco? Would Mum let me set up fake trees in my room to recreate its natural environment? So many things to figure out, but first I had to make my escape.

I took one unconscious step toward the exit, warily watching Ann as she tried to help clean the poo off of Liam and Harry. The bear nuzzled against my collarbone and adjusted itself in my arms, clearly signaling its willingness to run off with me.

Fear not, little one. We will be together. Forever.

“Uh oh,” Louis chuckled, watching me close. “Give the koala back to Ann, JJ,” he warned, taking a step closer to me.

“Has she gotten you as well?” Ann asked, coming back over. I didn’t answer, since I was too busy plotting my escape.

“No, she’s about ready to bolt,” my brother replied with a mischievous grin. “Come on, JJ, give her here.” He came over to me and held his arms out, taking the little bear away from me.

“But…but…” I pouted watching her immediately grip onto Louis’s shirt. “But I want one.”

And I wanted to take her home and call her Beverly and we could have our own YouTube show called ‘JJ and Bev’ which would be similar to Charlieissocoollike only infinitely better because I would have a fucking koala as my co-host.

Louis held her up, oohing and awing as she stared up lovingly with her beautiful black eyes.

Apparently, I was easily replaced in her affections.

Bitch.

But I still loved her. And desperately wanted to take her home. Maybe I could just move to Australia and have a whole koala farm? Yes…that would work. It was a brilliant plan actually. I could scope out some possible locations for said farm while we were on tour. Then, I could apply to university in Australia and study the koala. Become a Doctor in Koala Studies or something. And then I could marry a Russian billionaire (because they are a dime a dozen, let’s be honest) and use the money to purchase enough koalas to populate my farm. And then I could –

“JJ!”

“Huh?” I looked up, bewildered, at Paul, who snapping his fingers in front of my face.

“They need help unloading the instruments.”

“Oh. Right.”

Being a personal ass really sucks sometimes.

**

During a break in the flood of interviews, the boys headed out to the mall down the street for some food, while I hung back to set up the merch table, which was my official duty on this leg of the tour. Since the boys were actually headlining this time, there were a lot more things to be done and a lot more people needed to do those things. Obviously, I wasn’t exactly qualified to install the lighting or work the sound booth, but laying out t-shirts and pricing bracelets? That I could handle.

I was hanging up the different shirt options on the display, bopping along to my iPod, which was currently playing a selection of Bon Jovi’s greatest hits, when I turned around and nearly pissed myself in surprise.

Harry was standing there, hands shoved in his trouser pockets and an anxious look on his face. “Hi,” he said, as I yanked my ear buds out.

“Hi,” I replied, none too happy with him. Turning back to the task at hand, I said, “I thought you went to the mall with the lads.”

“No, I stayed back. I…I’d like to talk to you. Apologize for…for yesterday.”

I sighed, turning back to look at him. “Okay. Apologize.” I crossed my arms over my chest and waited.

“Do you think we could, erm, go somewhere a bit more private?”

I rolled my eyes, but followed him nonetheless to the green room backstage. It was quiet, with none of the other lads there, and also because Harry wasn’t saying anything. I leaned against the dressing table and watched him expectantly.

“Well? I’m waiting.”

Now it was Harry’s turn to roll his eyes. “Come on JJ,” he said in exasperation. “Don’t be like that. I’m sorry, okay?”

I blinked. “Apology not accepted.”

Harry let out a disbelieving laugh, before coming toward me and putting his hands on my hips, leaning in for a kiss.

“I’m serious,” I growled, shoving him away. “I’m pissed at you.”

“Why?” he asked. “Listen, JJ, honestly, I’m sorry. I’m really sorry about throwing you in the water. But I didn’t know you would freak out like that.”

He really wasn’t making this easier for himself. “You did, though!” I shot back, waving my arms angrily. “I told you to put me down, I asked – no, begged – you not to throw me in and yet you did it anyway.”

“I didn’t think you were seri - ”

“Right, you didn’t think,” I interrupted, scowling. “You didn’t think about me. You only thought about yourself and what you thought would be funny. And then, you don’t speak to me at all last night and all day today? What the fuck is that?”

Harry had the grace to look guilty. “I figured you’d be angry with me, which, apparently, was a correct guess.” He had been overly defensive for a moment, but then his face dropped and he suddenly looked more vulnerable than I had ever seen him. “And, honestly,” he continued, no longer looking me in the eyes. “Honestly, I was terrified by the whole thing, JJ. I mean…I thought that….I thought that I had killed you for a minute, you know? You were in that water and you didn’t come back up like I thought you would and Niall was yelling and you still didn’t come up and I couldn’t see you…and it scared the shit out of me, JJ.”

He looked up at me, his green eyes dark with remorse.

“I’m sorry,” he said once again, only this time it sounded like he meant it. “I’m so fucking sorry. And I’m sorry that I didn’t apologize sooner. I did go to your room last night, but I guess you were already asleep.”

I blushed slightly. “You came to my room?”

“Yeah…it was late but I couldn’t sleep and I thought that maybe you would let me see you…”

For some reason, I felt guilty then, as if it was my fault that he couldn’t sleep and I should have been there to comfort him.

“No, I wasn’t there,” I replied, shifting awkwardly. “I went to Niall’s.”

“...Oh.”

“I couldn’t sleep either and I thought that if I was with someone that it might help,” I defended, moving across the room just to do something.

“You could have come to me,” Harry replied, sounding a bit annoyed. Whatever guilt had been in his low voice before had left by this point. “I could have helped you.”

“But I was angry with you,” I shot back. “And you weren’t talking to me.”

“Well, I would have if you had been in your room and not Niall’s.”

“Why are you doing this, Harry?” I asked, angrily. “Why are you turning this into a fight when it doesn’t need to be?”

“Because you barely want to be seen with me, you push me away whenever you can, and yet you’ll go spend the night with Niall. You haven’t spent the night with me yet, you know.”

“I have done. After Saturday Night Live you came into my room.”

“Yeah, but you were on the verge of death, that hardly counts. You never voluntarily come to me to sleep.”

“That’s because spending the night with you would actually involve very little sleeping.”

Harry smirked at this, his annoyance dissipating as quickly as it had come. Coming towards me again, he pinned me against the food table, grinding his hips into mine. “No sleep at all, actually,” he muttered huskily, before leaning down to pepper my neck with kisses and light bites.

I gasped slightly at the pressure he was applying to my body, feeling his expertly trained hands run up my sides. Suddenly desirous, I gripped his loose t-shirt in my hands, pulling him closer to me. Damn, he was attractive.

“Hmm,” he hummed, crushing his pelvis into me once more. “I take it you forgive me then?”

And just like that I snapped out of it.

“Argh! God dammit, Haz!” I cried, pushing him away and storming to the other side of the room in order to separate myself from him. “Why do you have to be so fucking frustrating?”

“Sexually frustrating, apparently.”

“No! Well…no! Maybe…It’s just you stand there with that annoying smirk and those annoying dimples, and your fucking curly hair and your God damn gorilla nostrils and I really can’t take it anymore!”

“Gorilla nostrils?”

“Harry,” I cried desperately, wanting to smack him. “You’re not listening to me.”

He sighed and dragged his hand through his hair. “Right. Sorry.”

“It’s just…” I started, trying to find my words.

I thought about how infuriating he was at times, like when he tries to feel me up under the table at our dinners, or how he makes such inappropriate comments to interviewers, and how he tries to get in my pants every single time we’re alone together. But then, I thought about the dress and the Train tickets and how good I felt about myself knowing that he found me at least somewhat attractive.

“It’s just that you can be so bipolar sometimes. I mean, fuck, Harry you were so sweet a moment ago and then you turn into such a sleaze. And all you seem to do is make me uncomfortable in front of everyone and I really don’t like it. But then you can be so incredibly sweet and charming and I am so fucking confused.”

“So…do you want to stop…whatever this is?” he asked, unsure of what I was getting at. I was unsure, as well.

Now it was my turn to sigh. “No…I don’t. At least, I don’t think I do. I just don’t know what to do, Haz.” I sat down on the couch and dropped my head into my hands. “Louis thinks that I came on tour because I fancy you and am using all this to get attention. Your fans all think I’m a slag and while I don’t really care what they think I still don’t enjoy getting insulted every time I turn on my computer. And you…you’re you. You are this Adonis while I took Lou a whopping three hours to look semi-presentable. I mean, I’d be crazy if I didn’t take advantage of the fact that you want to snog me, right?”

Harry grinned slightly. “More than snog, actually.”

I rolled my eyes, but laughed slightly. “And I’m assuming you’re still not looking for a girlfriend, right? Because if you are, that would just throw another wrench into this whole fucked up relationship.”

He shrugged. “No. Don’t think Louis would really appreciate that one.”

“So now you care about what Louis thinks?”

“Not particularly,” he grinned. “But you do.”

“That’s really nice, considering you’re his best friend,” I replied sarcastically.

Another shrug. “Louis and I will always be friends. Thick as thieves or whatever. Nothing is breaking up Larry Stylinson,” he beamed. “But no need for the added drama, right?”

I chuckled at him, completely amazed by how casual and carefree he was with these sorts of things. “What am I going to do with you, Haz?”

“Anything you want, babe.” He smirked at me, but then it turned into a genuine smile. “Come here.”

He took my hands and pulled me up so I was standing in front of him. I was expecting a kiss, but instead he wrapped his arms around my shoulders and hugged me tightly. “If you want to go on a break, I’m okay with that.”

I giggled into his chest, circling my arms around his trim waist and enjoying his scent. “We can’t go on a break if we’re not actually together, Harry.”

He groaned in relief. “Thank fuck, because I am desperate for some sex.”

“Harry!” I smacked his arm as he laughed.

“I’m kidding! Jesus, woman.”

“Only you’re not,” I chuckled, knowing him all too well. He smiled sheepishly and pulled away.

“We’re alright then, yeah?” he asked, raising his eyebrows and peering down at me. “I’ll even stop being a twat around the lads.”

“Oh, really?” I asked, feigning adoration and complete gratitude. “You would pretend to be a gentleman for little old me? Oh, Harry, you do care!”

“Not if you’re being a smart arse,” he replied, pinching my bum hard and dancing away before I could smack him. Grinning, he darted out of the room, singing ‘I Kissed A Girl’ by Katy Perry at the top of his lungs. I watched him skip down the hallway, laughing and wondering how the hell I was attracted to such a fool.

“Hey, JJ!” I turned around to see Paul coming from the other direction, numerous shopping bags in his hands. “Why isn’t the merch booth set up yet? We’re opening the doors in an hour.”

“I’m going, I’m going!” I replied, shoving past him. “Nice to see you’re not doing the lads’ bitch work anymore,” I commented and I was sure he flipped me off. But I was too content with my lot to care. Things were looking up.

**

“JJ, can you come with me?”

I looked up at Martin, one of the members of the stage crew, who had come to find me at the merch table. The boys had been on stage for a while now and were coming towards the end of the show – only four songs or so left, I imagined. My night as merch girl had actually been pretty pleasant. The Australian fans were lovely and actually wanted to have a conversation with me, as opposed to demanding pictures or an autograph or information on the boys. They also left killer tips, which was the best part, if I’m honest.

But at this point in the night, it was a bit slow, as everyone was at their seats and screaming their bloody minds out. Now, it was only disgruntled dads who were coming by looking for some relief from the noise.

“Right now?” I asked, looking at the few random blokes milling about the table.

“Yeah, they need you backstage for something.”

I looked over at Dylan, my fellow merch maestro and he nodded. “I got it, JJ, no worries.”

“No stealing my tips, mate,” I warned over my shoulder as I followed Martin toward the stage area.

“No promises!”

I flashed my pass at the security guards near the stage (and stuck my tongue out at Niall when I caught his eye) and continued with Martin up the stairs, close to where Josh was banging away at the drums. I had watched some shows from this viewpoint before, but it didn’t make the spectacle any less thrilling. The boys had really made it.

Harry finished up the last verse of ‘Use Somebody’ (a brilliant song and one of my favorite covers, that and ‘Valerie’) and the girls went insane. I clapped along and hollered my support, getting a wink from Haz and a cheeky grin from Louis. Zayn turned and saw me then, his face lighting up like a Niall in a sweet shop…or Niall in the vicinity of any sort of food. It was almost as if…as if he knew something.

“We want to thank you all so, so much for coming out here tonight,” Louis said to the crowd, who had screamed again as soon as he had stepped forward. “We are so happy to be here in Australia for the first time and we have been having a blast.” More screams. “We’ve been on the road for a while now and we’ve been lucky enough to have someone very special to me come along for the ride.”

Fuck. No.

At this point all of the boys – Josh, Sandy, Dan, Jon, included – were looking over towards me, grinning. Bastards. I moved to leave the side stage and hopefully hide somewhere where I couldn’t hear whatever it was that Louis was about to say about me, but I knocked into a broad chest and found myself held there.

Paul.

“My lovely sister,” Louis continued, before being drowned out by the (unexpected) screams. “My sister has been along with us helping out with various things and keeping us in line. And it was her birthday the other week.”

I watched Louis closely, seeing his smile falter a little bit as he addressed the audience. My heart was nearly beating out of my chest, just wondering what all the Tweets would say about me in the morning.

“It was her birthday and I was being a bit of a jerk to her at the time,” Louis said. “And since I’m an idiot, I didn’t get her a birthday present, which is truly unforgivable for an older brother to do. Then, to make matters worse, she got food poisoning - ”

“It was gross,” Harry added, from his relaxed position on the couch.

“And then yesterday she had a truly awful day. So, I spoke to the lads and we’ve decided that we are going to dedicate her favorite song to her, in hopes of making her feel a wee bit better.”

I grinned then, my heart swelling with love for my brother. He could be a twat sometimes, that was certain, but so could I. But like Harry said, thick as thieves.

As the opening chords started and screams escalated, Liam walked to the front and began singing.

“I’ve tried playing it cool, but when I’m looking at you I can’t even be brave cause you make my heart race.”

Harry jumped up then and, sending me a wink, ran to the front of the stage. “Shot me out of the sky, you’re my kryptonite. You keep making me weak, yeah, frozen and can’t breathe.”

Zayn danced along, being his incredibly sexy self, making the girls go crazy. “Something’s gotta give now, cause I’m dying just to make you see that I need you here with me now, cause you’ve got that one thing.”

At the chorus they all did somewhat choreographed moves, standing at the front of the stage and singing their hearts out. I was laughing and singing along, beaming with happiness, until I saw Niall turn and look at me. Without warning, the Irishman came running towards me and Paul gave me a hard shove forward.

“What?” I cried, looking back over at him, but the burly man just gave me an unconcerned shrug. Bastard.

Turning back to Niall, who had grabbed my one hand and was pulling me further on to stage, all the blood drained from my face. I was not meant to be on stage. In front of thousands of people. People who, for the most part, didn’t like me. And yet here I was, holding hands with one of the most desired men in that room. And it was fucking terrifying.

All of this happened within seconds, for when I finally adjusted my vision to the blinding stage lights and was able to actually comprehend what was happening, Niall was just starting his verse. Looking right at me, a proud grin on his face, he sang.

“Now I’m climbing the walls, but you don’t notice at all that I’m going out of my mind all day and all night.”

He squeezed my hand before spinning me away. I fell into Louis, who was laughing at me. Draping an arm over my shoulder, we walked to the front of the stage and he pointed out at the audience, before singing to me.

“Something’s gotta give now, cause they’re dying just know your name. And we need you here with us now, cause you’ve got that one thing.”

At the chorus he broke away from me and I knew my face was bright red with embarrassment. One Direction kept singing, while I stood there awkwardly, wishing I could sink into the floor. This was not a good birthday present, Louis!

Harry, thankfully, was keeping his distance from me, but that didn’t stop Zayn and Niall from coming up and trying to do the Inbetweeners dance with me at the bridge. I couldn’t help but laugh at them, as they eagerly urged me and my horrific dancing on. My laughing only increased as Louis returned holding what I assumed was the rest of my present.

“You’ve got that one thing…”

“Happy birthday, JJ!” Louis cried in place of Liam’s last solo, handing the life size stuffed koala bear to me. It had a bright blue bow around its neck and a little certificate that said its name was ‘Chelsea’. Clever, Lou.

The other four boys finished up the chorus. Louis couldn’t exactly join in, as I was practically strangling him with a hug. Was I mortified by the whole experience? Yes. Was I going to be pissed tomorrow when the YouTube videos were loaded? Yes. Was I still concerned about Dylan stealing my tips? Of course. But Louis was, quite honestly, the best brother I could ask for, and this moment of embarrassment - along with this stuffed animal from a Build-A-Bear Workshop that was (sadly) the closest I would get to owning a real koala - was still, quite possibly the highlights of this entire experience.

Louis pulled away and grinned down at me. “You know I love you, right?”

“Yeah,” I nodded. “I know.”

“And I’m sorry for being a twat.”

“Me too,” I smiled. “You’re the best…But can I please get off the fucking stage?”

The boys had finished singing and were watching us expectantly. Niall was asking if everyone to give it up for me, which I took as my cue to leave. Louis laughed and let me dart off back to Paul, who was red in the face from laughter.

“You looked like a deer in the headlights,” he snickered when I returned to him and the boys broke into ‘Save You Tonight’. “Bloody fantastic.”

“Shove it, Paul,” I replied, though I was still smiling. “I can’t believe you let them do that to me.”

“That’s what you get for saying I do the bitch work.”

I grinned apologetically at him, before turning back to watch the lads, clutching Chelsea to my chest tightly.

Yes. This had been a very good day. A good day, indeed.