Valerie’s POV

I wake up with a terrible headache and I’m afraid that Sandra and I have to clean a lot today. I think I’m calling some cleaning service today although Sandra is totally against it. She wouldn’t say no when I remind her we have to live Will’s time here to the fullest since he is going tomorrow. I have known Will, whose actual name is Guillermo but we call him Will because we have translated from Spanish, for eleven years now. He has been my best friend since forever and I love him as a sibling. To be honest, I thought we were going to end up getting married but eventually he told me he was gay when we were sixteen. I still remember that day and I’ll remember it forever.

Sandra and I have woken up at 11 after we went to bed yesterday at six in the morning after everyone was off. I invited Louis, Eleanor, Harry, Liam and Niall to stay over but they didn’t want to bother as they said like if they would ever bothered me and ended up leaving. As I think of Harry something flutters in my stomach and I lean on my door to see my cat looking at me bored. What am I doing?

Sandra and I walk outside the door feeling the nice breeze from the beach and decide we would walk to the restaurant where we are having lunch with Will. It’s right beside the beach and it’s Will’s favourite. I mean it is the only restaurant he has ever been here in LA but he barely comes so we kind of pamper him, you could say, and he wanted to come here again. It’s quarter past twelve and Harry hasn’t even texted me. Not that I care but still. We walk into the restaurant and there Will is, already sitting at the table flirting with the waiter.

Lunch with Will has been nice and now we are lying under the sun at the beach near home. It’s four and still no sign of Harry. I’m starting to feel stupid as time pass by and I expect something from him. I mean I don’t usually expect anything from my hook ups but the fact that I’m seeing him again and that I’m actually hanging out with him because we have common friends...What the hell we are friends so everything is sort of awkward. I’m regretting so much yesterday’s kiss as I think how awkward everything is going to be now.

-What’s wrong Valerie? – Will asks me laughing.

-She’s just regretting Harry’s kiss of yesterday night. – Sandra can read me so well it’s scary.

-Why would I do that? – I give in.

-Because you like him, my friend. – She says with her eyes closed taking all the sun in her pale skin.

-What are you talking about? I mean he is obviously hot; I won’t deny I feel attracted to him but from that to like him...

-You totally like him and he likes you back. – Will says so convinced that he makes me laugh.

-What are you Will talking about? You don’t even know him! – I laugh hard and he smiles. All that he wanted was to make me laugh and he has gotten it.

-I don’t need to. I see how he looked at you yesterday and he almost killed me when you introduced me to him. – Will says peaking at me with an eye open. – Oh my god, you are smiling like a fool. You do like him!

Sandra gets up from her towel smiling excited at me and I roll on the sand lying over my chest hiding my face in my towel.

-It doesn’t really matter anyway. He hasn’t even texted me and he usually texts me something every day.

-Or you text him. – Sandra says giving me a knowing look.

-Yeah but he clearly doesn’t want to talk to me after yesterday.

-Don’t assume things, you idiot. – Will says to me. – Let’s send him a selfie.

I laugh at his idea. He is out of his rocker. What would Harry think?

-Could you imagine? – I laugh. – That’s too much of nonsense! He would think I’m an idiot.

-Hold on, Will. – Sandra says dramatically. – Is Valerie, our Valerie, second guessing herself? – They both look at each other dramatically surprised and I have to laugh.

-You guys are idiots. No one would say I’m the actress here.

I go to the sea to bathe and to think and a group of teenage girls stops me very politely.

-Excuse me, are you Valerie Veneel? – I nod and smile at them. – Oh my god, you are beautiful.

Alright, they are sweet.

-Thank you. You guys are beautiful too. How is it going?

-Oh my god, it’s going great. So how fit is Louis?

I have to laugh at that. I didn’t expect this cute girls to be that direct and they laugh along with me.

-Very. – I say to them with a smile.

-Are you guys dating?

-No, he has a lovely girlfriend and he loves her. We are just friends, really. – I say to them and they all nod.

-Can we have a picture?

-Sure though you’ll have a picture with the hangover version of me. – I say laughing and they all laugh with me. Sweet girls.

When I come back to my spot at the beach I find Sandra sleeping and Will messing with her doing her new horrible makeup. I laugh silently and pick me phone. I have a missed call and a few messages. The missed call is Louis and the texts are Niall and Eleanor. They are all inviting me to go to the pool this afternoon so I call Louis.

-Valerie, eventually you decide it’s time to give us some attention.

-What? Sorry I think I’ve dialled the wrong number, Louis. – I like to mess with him.

-Are you serious? – He says amused.

-No. – I laugh. – What is it?

-Come over. Liam, Niall and Eleanor are here in the pool. Bring Sandra and Will if you guys are together. I’m not asking you. Just come over. – He is serious and that makes me laugh and I can hear him smiling.

-We are actually at the beach.

-Perfect. You can get rid of the annoying sand here in our outdoor shower. Bring them. I’m waiting for you guys. – He hangs up without giving me time to say anything. So typically Louis.

I tell my friends the plan and they seem quite excited in our way to Louis’ apartment. They have never been here so they are gonna be impressed just as I was impressed the first time I went there. Apparently Harry wasn’t with them or at least Louis didn’t mention him but maybe he thought I already knew where he was. I don’t know. I don’t even know why I’m thinking this much.

We get to Louis’ apartment and a wet Nialler opens the door for us, wetting me when he embraces me. At the pool we played Marco Polo and some sort of match of a weird and new sport with a ball where “pretty much everything was allowed”; Niall’s rules. At six both Sandra and Niall are starving and I’m a bit hungry myself. They say they will go to grab some pizzas and I’ll have a salad that Eleanor and I are preparing with Louis’ vegetables. Niall calls Harry and asks him if he is coming for dinner adding that I was there and he hangs up with a: “Sure, mate.” I don’t know if he is coming or not but I’m not asking.

Eleanor and I are preparing the salad laughing at Louis because he would steal our pieces of carrots and eat them thinking we are not seeing him but we do know who the thief bunny is.

-So you and Harry? – Eleanor asks casually.

-What about us?

-Well, you kissed yesterday.

-We did but we were drunk. We are friends, if that's what you ask.

-What? – Louis asks me sternly. – What are you talking about? You kissed him, didn’t you?

-Sure but I was drunk. He was drunk too and he hasn’t texted me in all day so I figure he is embarrassed or regretting it but it’s okay. I get it.

Louis stays quiet and Eleanor smiles at me and I ask her about her life back in England to get to know her better. Then she asks about my life and family and she asks me how to say a few things in Spanish. Teaching her is funny and we both laugh at her awful pronunciation.

Twenty minutes later Sandra and Niall get inside with all the food and Harry follows them. I’m already sitting at the table in the garden with Eleanor chatting about this and that when everyone joins us. Harry’s entrance is the most awkward scene I have lived and I have done a lot of awkward sex scenes with a huge variety of actors so I know what I’m saying. I don’t even know what to say to him so I opt for ignoring him; way easier.

Liam is telling a funny story which he swears it’s true but I truly think he is just making it up and I catch Harry looking at me a few times. He always looks away but one time we both laugh because he smiles sheepishly when he get obviously caught and I laugh at him. I really feel like walking towards him and kiss him. Why wouldn’t he call me?
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Harry’s POV

Jesus Christ, Valerie stills in her white bikini. What is she trying to do to me?
After dinner, when she has caught me staring at her a few times (how pathetic is that?) she says she was having a bathe at the pool and Nialler follows suit. I would but I have to go get change and I don’t want to lose a minute of Valerie’s bikini session. I see Niall, Liam, Louis and Val talk and I can’t help but to think that she could be my girlfriend and be right there with the lads having fun. She totally belongs where she is. It’s so easy to get along with her it’s crazy.

I squint my eyes to check if I’m seeing what I think I’m seeing when Louis takes Valerie up in his shoulders and she starts laughing. God, she is beautiful with her wet hair around her face and her tanned skin in that white bikini. Niall then gets in Liam’s shoulders and squint his eyes at Valerie while she sings The good the bad and the ugly rhythm looking at him challenging at what Niall laughs.

-It’s not fair though. I can’t fight against a lady. – Valerie says and Niall laughs.

-You got it, Val. I’m gonna merciless.

Valerie shakes her head pouting like a two year old and I am aware I’m smiling like a fool at her but this girl really amazed me. Then they start to fight and I can see how Liam and Louis are fighting themselves while Louis cheers Valerie who is enjoying as a little kid. Louis then falls back, throwing Valerie to the water. Sandra, who was the referee, says that Nialler has won and Valerie comes out from the water cursing and putting her hair out of her face.

-Fuck, Louis, you are terrible! I’m not paring with you ever again! I was undoubtedly winning this thing. You clumsy bastard! – She throws herself over Louis and Louis bursts into laughter.

-Niall clearly cheated! Sandra, Niall is a cheater! Not to mention Liam, he is the master of all the cheaters around the world!

-How did they cheat, Louis? – Sandra asks amused.

-How would I know? But they did. That’s for sure!

-You are the worst team a girl can ask for. – Valerie says dramatically.

She dives to the other end of the pool which is closer to where I’m sitting and smiles at me when she shows her face.

-Why wouldn’t you get inside the pool with us?

She asks splashing water at me and I shrug.

-Come here, you grandpa!

I have already changed and I’m going downstairs to get to the pool as Valerie has told me. When I get to the garden I see they are all talking in a big group. Eleanor is outside the pool sitting at the edge wrapped in her towel and Valerie is hugging Eleanor’s legs which are in the water. Valerie is basically swinging herself in Eleanor’s legs as a little monkey and I smile at that. Fuck, I’m falling for this kid.

As I get closer to my friends I see Valerie’s eyes fixated on me and she smiles but stays still. Niall then shakes my hair and messes with me. I guess I’m always going to be the youngest in the group. Valerie keeps on talking to everybody like she was before I arrived and she doesn’t even look at me. For some reason I thought she was going to give me some sort of special attention. Stupid of me to think that, I guess. She then winks at Eleanor and comes towards me. I get nervous as I see her half naked in that bikini of hers getting closer and closer to me. She then dives until she appears right behind me and gets on me in a piggyback. I feel her bare legs around my waist and her bare belly against my back. Not to mention I feel the fabric of her bikini against the low of my back and I know her sex is inches away from my skin. I’m sick.

She starts to caress my chest and my neck while we talk to the rest of the guys totally casual and nobody seems to be surprised or anything. She has no idea what she is doing to me though. She places her chin in my shoulder and doesn’t talk very loud because she knows I’m having her voice right in my ear every time she speaks. She turns me on when she whispers so that’s the thing I was missing.

I’m pretty sure I’m getting biologically hotter. Could I make the water around me evaporate faster? I hope that’s physically impossible. I really want to turn around and hug her as thigh as possible when she hugs me thigh around my chest with her soft arms and kisses my shoulder. She never kiss my lips though and when I turn my face to whisper some joke about Liam in her ear she quickly take her lips away, afraid that I was going to kiss her. I don’t understand a thing about her but I’m too at ease at this moment to ruin it with some talking. We can talk tomorrow or I can try to kiss her goodbye later.

Half an hour later she was gone and I didn’t have the guts to try to kiss her. She gave me a long hug and she was gone. I need to talk to her. Her mouth tasted too good to let it go. I don’t even want to think how her body would taste.

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Valerie’s POV

Now that was awkward. I feel so damn stupid. Jesus Christ, I’m not looking for a boyfriend at all. A relationship is the last thing I want right now but he can’t kiss me one night and ignore me the following day without even talking about it. I’m not a random whore that he can use like that. I need to talk to Louis and see what he thinks about his whole shit.

To: Louis Tomlinson "I know we’ve been together all day and I don’t want you to get fed up with me just yet but I need to talk to you. Can I call you?”


From: Louis Tomlinson “Fed up with you? Bullshit. I’ll call you the minute Harry shuts up :)”


I smile at his words and decide I’ll write a little until he calls me. I put on Coldplay on my stereo and takes my notebook after lighten my candles and an incense stick. This is what I call peace.
My room is filled with the smoke of absence
In the empty house.
The light which hits the wall
Makes me blind with its reflection
It passes through the glass; it gets in through the window
But it doesn’t find your boots
Or your shirts and pants which used to be in the wardrobe.
My day only shows what was never mine
To let me know later
That I can lose you again.

My phone rings and I see it’s Louis calling.

-What’s wrong, Bonnie?

-I am an idiot.

-I know but what’s troubling you? – He makes me laugh as usual.

-Come on. Why would I kiss Harry?

-Do you like him?

-I feel attracted towards him.

-If it just an attraction then it’s no big deal, you can easily find another hook up. I mean, do you have mirrors Val? You are hot. – I blush at his confession.

-Well, Harry doesn’t think that way.

-Are you serious, Val? Gee, you are so oblivious.

-What do you mean? What does “oblivois” even mean? You have just made that word up, Louis. This is serious. – He laughs at my “obliviousness”.

-It means that you are so clueless, Valerie. He is nuts because of you. I have been talking to him for half an hour because he thought he should have kissed you today.

-He definitely should have! Why didn’t he?

-Because he is another idiot. There you go; you are made for each other. – I can hear him smiling through the phone.

-Should I call him?

-I wouldn’t talk about that through the phone to be honest. But, Val, let me tell you something.

-Sure.

-You guys are both my friends and I love having you guys around and the fact that you get along with the lads is absolutely amazing. I just don’t want you guys to ruin everything we have for sex.

-Well, if he wants the same thing that I want, we shouldn’t have any problem.

-Are you seriously considering friends with benefits?

-I honestly think that would be great.

-Jesus Christ. This isn’t going to end well for neither of us. I love you though.

-Oh, Louis! It’s the first time you tell me you love me and I can’t hug you! Hug yourself for me Tommo! I love you too.

We both laugh and after talking about going to the beach tomorrow to have dinner by a fire that apparently Louis knows how to set, I go to bed excited about tomorrow. I’m talking to Harry tomorrow no matter how much of idiots we both are.

Notes