Stranded

Chapter 6

Niall and I spend nearly the enitre day together. We go to play lazer tag, bowling. And to be honest, it was the best day of my life since he left. 

As we're sat on the pier, I think about his question. The question about whether or not we'd be able to to be friends again and suddenly, I'm scared. I'm afraid that he'll leave me again. I can't...won't go through that again. I can't trust him. I just can't. 

"About your question earlier, about us being friends..." I trail off. 

"Yeah, what about it?" he asks. I sigh because I know that what I'm about to say will hurt him. And though I hate seeing him hurt, I can't let him hurt me. 

"We...we can't be friends." I say, getting straight to the point. He turns to me. 

"What? Why not?" he asks. I take a deep breath because I can feel the tears coming on. The wall that I've built up is starting to break. Behind this wall was all the pent up anger, frustration, fear, and most importantly, abandonement that I've held in. 

"Because...you hurt me once, andI can't be sure you won't do it again. It's because I'm not sure I want to risk my heart just for the sake of being with you again. And being with you, it makes me feel alive again. It makes me feel myself. But, I can't go through what I went through. I just...I can't." I say, tears spilling over my eyes, my voice a mere whisper by the end. 

Niall gently takes my face in his hands and forces me to look into his eyes. Those charming, peircing blue eyes that I thought I could trust. 

"Lilli, what I did to you was stupid and I'm so sorry. I would NEVER do what I did to you in the past. Ever. In fact, I don't know if I'll ever be able to forgive myself for what I did to you because...because I love you. I've never stopped and though I've tried to push down these feelings, I can't help it." he says, tears springing into his eyes. 

I search his eyes for something. Anything. I search to see if he really means what he's saying, that this isn't really just some joke. To see if there's even a hint of betrayal. But there isn't. The only things I find are hopefulness that I'll accept his words, hurt that I don't believe him, and truth that he means what he says. 

I have to make a major desicion. I have to choose to trust him and risk everything that I've built up in the past five years, or I have to choose to not believe him and live in my safe, but miserable life. 

"Niall?" I whisper. 

"Hmm?" he hums. 

"Kiss me." I whisper. My stomach instantly fills with butterflies. My heart starts pounding and I feel a bit lightheaded. It's been a while since I've kissed anyone. I close my eyes as he slowly leans in and presses his lips to mine. 

I have to say, this kiss was amazing. It wasn't like any other kiss I'd ever had. 

His lips are soft and warm and gentle and fit perfectly with mine. This kiss is soft, and slow, and lingering, and gentle, and passionate, and long and to describe it in one word...perfect. 

....................................

As we're slowly walking back to the scooter, Niall takes my hand in his and intertwines our fingers. He seems a bit aprehensive, so I smile at him in reassurance. 

"Niall?" I say. 

"What?" 

"I'm afraid to ask this but...what are you going to do once they see us hanging out together at school? You said that if you didn't leave me alone, they'd hurt me, but what are you going to do?" I ask, hoping that he doesn't say that we'll just pretend we hate each other. 

"I don't care what Harry or any of those other dickheads have to say. I'm through with all their bullshit. If it comes down to a fight, then I'll be ready." he says, determination in his voice. 

"No, Niall, I don't want you to end up getting hurt." I say and he smiles at me. 

"I won't. You know Harry?" he asks and I roll my eyes. He laughs. 

"Of course I do. He's the son of a bitch with the curly hair." I say and Niall nods his head. 

"Exactly, that one. He used me to be his training partner." he says. 

"Training partner for what?" I ask. 

"For boxing. And he's good. Really good. And if it does come down to a fight, I know he'll be the one to fight me. But see, I know all his moves and I'm just as good as he is." Niall answers. 

"So, tell me about them. What are they really like? Are they all as bad as they seem? Or does Harry make them act this way like he did with you." I ask. Niall bites on his lower lip in consentration and then answers. 

"Well Harry's like the puppet master. The leader. He pulls the strings. He really is a bastard but I have no idea why. I think something's happened in his personal life that's made him as vile as he is today." 

"And waht about his right hand man? The one with the girlfriend?" 

A smile comes to Niall's face. 

"Oh, you mean Lou. He really is a great guy. He can be rude at times but that's just his personality. He tells it like it is, kind of like you. He only seems to be as bad as Harry because he's trying to...let's use the word, sober Harry up. And he can only do that if he stays in the group."

"And his girlfriend?" 

"Eleanor Calder. She's pretty and has a good personality and is absolutely perfect for Lou. Their constant PDA can get annoying at times, but she's nice and really funny. She's only in the group because Louis is, and if she goes away, so does her chance of ever getting to see him." 

"Okay. Next one. The one with the dark hair and eyes and is really quiet most of the time." I say. 

"That's Zayn Malik. Our Bradford Bad Boy." he says and then laughs. "Zayn can be quiet, and he's not as bad as he seems either. Most of the time, he just sits and draws. He's very mysterious, but if you talk to him when he's not around Harry, he's a fun guy. Great listener too." Niall answers. 

"And the last one. The one with the curly hair but it's lighter than Harry's." I say. 

"Liam Payne. He's like the daddy of the group. Very responsible, great listener, always there for you. He's probably the most nice out of all of us. He's such a ...goody goody. He never does anything bad." Niall says. 

"Then why is he in Harry's group?"

"That's a mystery to all of us. But, there's something holding him there and he won't tell anyone. He hasn't even told me. I just know he's not a bad guy either." Niall says. 

"So, Harry's group is consisted of people who are afraid to leave for some reason. Hes basically threatened all of them if they leave. Wow. What a twat." I say and Niall's laugh rings througout the park and I can't help but laugh along with him.