Jace

{23}

"So everything's ok with Louis and Eleanor again?" I asked to fill the gape of silence.

"I dunno. We'll just have to wait and see." We stood on the roof of the arena leaning over the railing and peering at the clouds and the activity below. I could make out Louis pacing behind the bus, talking on the phone and Zayn sitting in one of the plastic chairs with his sketchbook.

"Liam," she said suddenly, as if she had to get it out before she lost the nerve. But then she shut her mouth and chewed her bottom lip, thinking again. "I'm mad at you."

"I know," I sighed. "And I'm so so sorry. I needed somebody to talk to and, I don't know, help me think straight. You were so overwhelmed already that I didn't want to make you flip by telling you that the boys knew. I thought I was doing the right thing."

"But I think I overreacted," she looked down, embarrassed. "It's not the end of the world that the other boys knew. I just thought it was.... Do you wanna...maybe be friends again? Do you forgive me?"

I stared at her for a moment in sheer disbelief. "I should be the one asking you that."

"Just answer the question dumb nut," she smiled. I wrapped her in a hug and savored this moment. If she wouldn't be mine then I had to make the most of the moments that felt like she was.

"Yes. I do forgive you and I want to be friends again."

"Oi!" Niall shouted at the top of his lungs. He stood on the ground, yelling up to us. "Preston says to get down and come have lunch!"

Chuckling, we started to descend the stairs. "How is it that Louis always makes you not mad at me? What does he tell you?"

She hesitated. "He tells me that if he can't have the perfect relationship, than I have to live it for him. Petty fights don't mean a thing, but they'll destroy you very quickly. We can't focus on the bad things, only the good. He says that I have the fairy tale love he always dreams of and that I can't ruin it for him because his real love is already falling apart."

Louis. Such a poet and the savior of my love life.

There were fans crowding the gates and we waved, sitting down at the plastic table and chairs that we had set out I enjoy the beautiful weather.

"Katherine!!!" Someone screamed. Kat's head snapped toward the gate. "Katherine Steel you fraud!!"

"Just ignore-"

"Excuse me?" she ignored my advice and marched straight up to the gate. Naturally, we all followed her for backup and to see what was going on.

The girl at the gate had deep brown hair so dark it looked black. She scowled even as she was pummeled into the bars of the gate and shook around by the other fans trying to reach for us. "Don't pretend you got this job because they liked you! I know you're dirty little secret!"

"What are you talking about?" Niall asked defensive towards Katherine, but confused. What secret? While we were all confused, Katherine looked increasingly nervous.

"You bribed management to give you the job! I know! My cousin was one of the girls auditioning and she saw you give a blonde dude a huge stack of cash!"

"Caleb?" Louis looked bewildered. None of us knew what to believe. But now that the topic was on the table...we were going to cut Katherine for another girl named Allery Mo but Caleb insisted we choose Kat. He fought and fought and fought for her. Was it all because of a bribe?

"Don't be ridiculous," Katherine stuttered, her eyes darting around. "I don't have any money to bribe people with."

The girl behind the gate sneered. "Of course not. You got it from your filthy rich parents!"