To Fall So Deep

The five boys walked into the classroom, and the atmosphere suddenly changed. Every student in the class turned their attention to them, watching as they took their seats around the queen bee, Jezabelle and her friends. The boys were all handsome, and different in their own way, but together made an inseparable team.

"That's the wolf pack," Leina whispered to Nina.

"The wolf pack?" Nina was confused.

"That's what the entire school calls the lot. Best mates, all 5 of 'em," Elissia explained, "Niall the blonde one, eating a bowl of cereal; Louis with the beanie. Those two are the best footballers."

"Then there's Zayn with the black hair. He's an amazing artist. It's mad to think about what he can do with a can of spray paint or a marker. The one with the camera and the chevron tattoo is Liam. He's the senior editor of the school paper… he's so beautiful that one," Leina sighed. Elissia chucked.

"And last but not least with the curly hair and green eyes is Harry Styles aka Romeo. A womanizer, and the son of the top lawyer in London. Every girl at Ashford fancies him, but as the romance Gods would have it, it's only proper that thee Harry Styles and Jezabelle Nixon be together," Elissia informed.

"It's a shame, really. She's is pretty, but a total git," Leina groaned. Jezabelle winked at Harry, who smiled back at her.

"When's the first game boys?" Jezabelle asked.

"Next Friday," Louis answered.

"I want to see everyone in this classroom there for support," Niall announced. The class cheered.

"I'll be there for the paper. But next time try not to kick the ball in my face," Liam said. The boys laughed.

"Maybe you shouldn't be lying so close to the field bloke," Zayn suggested.

"I needed an epic shot of the team," Liam justified.

"I'll be there with a batty sign advertising Louis' big bum," Zayn laughed. Louis stood up and checked his own butt out.

"It's the Tommo arse. Don't skip your squats, lads," Louis declared.

"Careful there mate. Too many squats, your arse will blow up and instead of dropping plates, you'll knock them over," Harry chuckled, followed by the boys and the rest of the class. Even Nina let out a smirk.

"You little bugger," Louis said, and flipped the middle finger towards Harry.

A man in slacks, a dress shirt, and tie walked into the classroom carrying a black briefcase. He set it on the table before writing his name on the blackboard: Professor Goodwin. He was a young teacher, about mid 30's. He smiled at the class and took out a piece of paper from his briefcase.

"Good morning class, I hope everyone's having a swell morning. It's the first day of the quarter. I see many familiar faces, and for those of you who do not know me, I am Professor Goodwin and I'll be your homeroom teacher," Professor Goodwin said.

"Sir, your history class last year was one of my favorite courses. I hope your teaching methods weren't compromised by the Academic Incursion," Jezabelle said. Leina rolled her eyes.

"Ah, thank you Miss Nixon," Professor Goodwin smiled.

"Sir," Liam started, holding his hand in the air, "what happened to your long hair?"

"I was forced to cut it. Due to the Academic Incursion both my curriculum and my hair had to be chopped. I was gutted," Professor Goodwin explained.

"Academic Incursion?" Nina whispered to Elissia.

"The Headmaster went on a bit of a spring cleaning over the summer. Reviewing professors' curriculum, making sure it fits. If it's out of the norm, it's out," Elissia explained.

That would explain Professor Goodwin's haircut, or how Corrine wore a tight bun and mentioned that the Headmaster didn't like her very much.

"Is there something important you need to say Miss Vitale?" Professor Goodwin asked.

"Sorry sir. I was just explaining to Nina here what the Academic Incursion is. She's new to the school," Elissia declared.

Fuck. The entire class turned their head in the direction of Nina, who sank in her seat. She felt her back heat up, and her cheeks flush. She hated being the center of attention.

"New student? Welcome to Ashford Academy!" Professor Goodwin walked towards Nina. "Would you mind telling myself, and the class a little about yourself?"

The classroom sat in silence, staring and waiting for Nina to open her mouth. She swallowed and sat a little straighter. Without looking anyone in the eye, she kept her view towards Professor Goodwin.

"Uhm, hum, I-I-uh," Nina could already hear Joleen telling her to 'spit it the fuck out.' She exhaled and tried again, "My name is Nina Dela Vera," the class gasped and began to whisper. Her nonexistent European accent was a dead giveaway that she was American.

"Dela Vera?" Professor Goodwin questioned, "as in Professor Corrine Dela Vera?"

Nina nodded, "yea. She married my father, Leopold Dela Vera several years ago."

"Leopold Dela Vera?" Jezabelle whispered to her friend. "As in one of the guys Harry's dad's firm is going against in court right now?"

"And Miss Dela Vera, where are you from?" Professor Goodwin asked.

"I'm from Monterey County, California in the U.S.," Nina answered. The whispers continued.

"Have you met Katy Perry?" Niall quickly asked. The class laughed, and Niall shrugged, "it's a serious question."

Nina actually laughed, her smile genuine. This surprised her, she hasn't let out a full out chuckle in several months, "I haven't met her personally, but I did get to see her live in Los Angeles once."

"Wicked!" Niall smiled, and Nina smiled back at him.

The rest of homeroom was dedicated to asking Nina random questions about California, and about America in general. While normally Nina disliked the attention, none of the questions were pressing, or had to do with her situation in England. They were all fun, and light hearted questions that made Nina smile or laugh. To laugh was such a foreign thing to her, since she hadn't done so in a long time. For the most part, the students seemed to be accepting of her. Miss queen bee Jezabell, wasn't too fond of the attention she wasn't receiving, but reassurances from her two friends helped her cope. In the duration of asking Nina questions, Harry didn't really pay too much attention to her-- an assurance that he probably didn't remember her, or really cared about her for that matter.

At the end of homeroom, the entire class shuffled to their first class of the quarter. Nina stayed behind and waited for Leina and Elissia who were going to walk her to her English class. They exited the classroom, Nina feeling a little more confident than earlier. As they walked through the hall, and towards the stairs, they passed by the wolf pack. They all smiled at Nina, Niall giving her a high five. She was already stepping on the staircase when high-fiving Niall, that suddenly she missed a step. Her body began to fall, but before tumbling down the wooden staircase and suffering bruises and a suppressed confidence, she was caught by a pair of strong arms.

Harry Styles cradled a scared Nina, looking at her with his piercing green eyes, and while the mind told her to look away, she couldn't move her head. He brought his face closer to her's, his warm breath tickling the tiny hairs on her face.

"We've got to stop meeting like this," Harry whispered. He remembered her. He slowly put Nina back down on the step that she missed, gave her smirk, and a wink-- a wink that Jezabelle noticed.

"Oh my God, are you okay Nina?" Leina asked, coming to her aid. Elissia patted her down.

"Uh yea, I'm fine. Thanks guys," Nina smiled at them.

"If it weren't for Harry, you would've been a goner," Elissia claimed.

"Not a goner, completely, but you would've gotten seriously hurt," Leina corrected, "thanks Harry."

Leina, Elissia, and Nina turned to look at Nina's savior, but he was already gone. With that, they girls slowly walked down the staircase together, and towards the direction of Nina's English class.

"So, tell me," Elissia squealed, stopping Nina off to the side of the hall.

"What?" Nina questioned. Elissia's eyes were big, almost as big as her smile.

"What did Harry's arms feel like? Strong? Muscular? Enchanting?" Elissia asked.

"Yea, and he said something to you when he caught you! What was it?" Leina pressed.

Nina chuckled and shook her head, "nothing, he didn't really say anything. And his arms, were just arms."

"Just arms?" Elissia said, a disappointed tone in her voice.

"Okay, they were a little muscular but--"

"Muscular Elissia, they were muscular," Leina squealed. Both she and Elissia fanned themselves.

"Why are you guys making a big deal out of Harry? I thought you guys said he was a womanizer?" Nina mentioned.

"He is. But just cos you're on a diet, doesn't mean you can't look at the menu," Leina winked.

The girls continued down the hall, until they reached a classroom near the courtyard. They promised to see each other at lunch, and with that Nina entered the room by herself. It slipped her mind that Corrine was teaching the class, because when Nina walked in she was surprised to see Professor Corrine Dela Vera sitting at the desk. Students were already taking their seats, and Nina took one that was off to the side. The bell rang, and that was the cue for Corrine to stand up. She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted when a mop of curly brown hair rushed in.

"Sorry Professor," Harry said. Corrine raised an eyebrow.

"Sing a song, sing a song, sing a song," a few students chanted, banging on their desk.

"I will not tolerate lateness Mr. Styles," Corrine stated, "and due to the Academic Incursion, I unfortunately cannot torture tardy students by forcing them to sing in front of the classroom anymore."

A unison, 'awww' escaped from the students, and Corrine did nothing but shrug.

"So, how will you torture us now?" Harry said.

"I haven't quite figured out a plan that Headmaster Talbot will approve, so for now, you're off the hook Harry. Why don't you go ahead and take that empty seat right there so we can get the class started," Corrine pointed to the only empty desk, which to Nina's luck happened to be next to her.

Harry sat down and looked at Nina, "maybe it's a bright idea I sit next to you. So I can catch you whenever you fall," he winked, and Nina didn't know what to do, so she quickly looked down at her lap.

Harry turned his attention from Nina back to the front of the class where Corrine began passing out a packet of papers. Having him sit next to Nina was a distraction to her, and wished she had picked a different seat. She tried to concentrate on Corrine, which became a first since she spent all summer trying to avoid her, but thoughts about Harry kept infiltrating her mind.

His cheeky smile, his green eyes, and the slight, deep raspy timbre in his voice that sounded like he just woke up were traits that Nina only knew about him, but was enough to make her feel… feel… something; something that she couldn't really pin point.

Nina found herself catching a glimpse of Harry out of the corner of her eye every other minute. And whenever she did, she noticed a bruise on his neck. A bruise? A hickey. Was that why he was late? Because he was using his womanizing powers for a quick make-out session with another girl, or Jezabelle? The thought made Nina's stomach churn, and suddenly she felt a little angry and disgusted with her green-eyed classmate.

Notes

I hope you're all enjoying so far! Don't forget to give me feedback / constructive criticism if you've got it. Rate & subscribe too!

-Erica Jaine <3