Seeking Willow {One Direction Fan Fiction}

Chapter Nine

CHAPTER NINE

(HARRY'S POV) 

We were all rushed down secret hallways and entrances and into this small backroom somewhere inside the mall. Since Willow was sitting on my lap in the car, I was the one that brought her inside the mall, holding her in my arms. I could barely see the fans' reaction to the girl I was holding, but I could've sworn I heard a few gasps and shocked faces once they saw Willow. Well, there goes Willow being a secret.

Time was running fast and soon, we only had fifteen minutes to get ready. Lou was rushing around, handing us our clothes to wear for the concert and adding some last-minute makeup. Paul and a few other security guards kept exiting and entering the room to check up on the crowd and to make sure fans hadn't found our secret room. Some people from management were laying down some rules before going out.

"Don't change the lyrics,"

"Don't get your clothes dirty,"

"Don't run or else you'll trip over the wires and get hurt"

"Don't do anything unexpected,"

"Define unexpected," Louis challenged Mark, one of the heads in management who was currently telling us what and what not to do onstage. From all of the rules he was giving us, it seemed that all we could do was stand onstage and just sing, with a few fan interactions here and there.

"Something like... crowd surfing. Don't go crowd surfing," Mark added. I mentally rolled my eyes. Management was sometimes a bit too overprotective. 

Soon we had five minutes left until showtime and I could already hear muffled screams of fangirls, although we were hallways down from them. We were doing last minute microphone checks and going over the set list. From the corner of my eye, I could see Willow sitting in the corner, her eyes cautiously peering around the room almost as if she was determining who and who not trust. She looked a bit overwhelmed from all of the people rushing around to get things done, but she also looked scared. I don't blame her though; if I was her age and was in a room with a bunch of people I didn't know, I would be terrified.

Once I was finally free from makeup and crazy rules, I walked over to the corner she was sitting in and sat down in the small space next to her. Her brown eyes lit up once she saw me next to her and she climbed up onto my lap and sat down. A wide grin formed on my face as I slowly shook my head, studying the little girl who was smiling up at me.

As Niall was getting his mic checked, he glanced over at the two of us and flashed Willow a goofy smile, sending her into small, cute giggles. Knowing that he had accomplished in making her happy, he kept making silly faces until someone had pulled him aside to go over chords he had to play on his guitar. 

I could tell Willow's excitement was dying down because she had begun to notice that everyone was trying to get the five of us to the stage quickly to begin the show. When Paul beckoned me and the rest of the boys to come, Willow turned her head to meet my eyes,  looking confused and worried. Her small hands quickly grasped onto my right arm, almost as if she was silently pleading me not to go.

"Hey, you'll be fine," I reassured her in a quiet tone, "We'll only be gone for a little bit. Plus, you've got Lou here to watch you, she's really nice," I pointed to Lou who was putting all of her makeup supplies away, "She has a daughter around your age, named Lux. She'll take good care of you,"