One Direction Preferences✔️

Soundtrack Series • FOUR • Change Your Ticket

Harry: You had changed in front of him many times before. However, these last few days he's been giving you a look. A look like the one he's giving you now. "What?" You finally question him. You had remained quiet about it up until this point. "Nothing, you're just so beautiful." "Shut up," you counter, rolling your eyes and pulling on your sweatshirt. "No, I'm serious, you really are so beautiful. It's not like I haven't always known that you were nice to look at, but damn." You couldn't take his compliments. You knew he was just talking out of his ass. Not that he was meaning to or anything. He was just latching onto the nearest thing he could that could give him compassion, and that just so happened to be you. These last few days on the road with him you had seen a shift in his emotions towards you. They were much stronger, clearly. The sex didn't help. It never does. You should have known better. Never have sex with your best friend; it's some sort of golden rule or cardinal sin you're sure of it. But he had been true to his word though, at least in the last couple of days after he had said it. He hadn't gone back to his ex, which was your main reasoning for flying all of the way out here. You are sure it has something to do with the fact that you can never leave his side while he's on the road. But nonetheless, she hasn't come up once while you've been around. "You're delusional," you comment as you walk into the bathroom to brush your teeth. You had to get back to LA and knew he was going to put up a fight. "Why are you even getting ready? I don't have to be at the stadium until one." And here he goes with the ignorance. "You know exactly why I am getting ready," you say from the bathroom, running the water over your toothbrush and stealing some of his toothpaste. "I don't, and it's really bothering me." You poke your head into the bedroom, glaring at him as you begin to brush your teeth. He only laughs, he knows exactly what he's doing. You return to your reflection in the mirror, questioning if you should have even made the trip down here. You know you are his rebound, but isn't it better for him if it's you and not someone else? It's definitely better for you and your sanity. You have control of this situation. Now you can really be the one to help him get back to the old Harry, the Harry he was before that retched girl ever walked into his life. You had the power now. You can't do that to him, though. Harry is your best friend. You can't just use him like that, no matter if it is a better alternative. He has to find his own way. Your thoughts are broken up by his arms lacing around your waist. "You really shouldn't be getting ready," he says into your ear. You see the smile on his face as he begins to kiss your neck and your heart aches. These emotions aren't real. Nothing he is feeling or has been feeling towards you in these last few days means a thing. It hurts you to see him like this, to see him so blind, yet again, to what he is doing to himself. "Well I am," you return, pulling from him to begin packing your bag. Definitely something you should have done while he was still asleep, he is now going to make this a nightmare for you. "You don't have to stick by your old rules anymore," he acknowledges, "I never liked them in the first place." "I made those rules," you begin as you pull your bag onto the bed, "so that no one beyond those walls can ever say I am around too much. This is your tour, not mine." "There's nothing wrong with you being around, though. You're three day rule has always been shit to me." "Yeah, I know that." "Then don't go. No one will care at all if you stay for a few more days." You turn to look at him, you were finished with his playful demeanor. "I will."
Liam: You weren't at all sure where you were going. All you know is that apparently Liam was involved because this private plane certainly wasn't Mark's. This is all so out of the blue and so very unexpected. You had gotten a text from Mark this morning telling you to take the bag that was packed by the front door of the apartment and get in the taxi to come to the airport. You hadn't encountered either of them on your journey so far, so that brought even more questions up. You were assuming none of the staff on the flight were allowed to say anything about your destination because they hadn't said a word to you other than a simple greeting when you stepped on board. You weren't big on surprises, but Mark was one of the best at them so this, whatever this was, was sure not to disappoint. You were so proud of Liam. He had actually taken your advice towards Mark and given him a chance, obviously. He had actually helped Mark out with all of this. Of course, none of that had actually been confirmed by either of them, but this was a surprise so why would they tell you anything. This plane is definitely Liam's doing though; you have been on it before. Your legs begin to fidget in anticipation as the plane begins to descend. All of the windows had been closed, and you had been instructed not to lift them. You wanted to so badly, though. You want to know where you are. You hadn't been in the air for very long. Less than an hour you are almost certain. You surely still have to be in the UK. But your passport had been packed in the bag for you. Confusion was sweeping over you quickly. As the plane prepares to land, your heart begins to race. You are so close to finding out where Mark had sent you. Once officially on the ground, the attendant brings you your bag from storage, a bright smile on her face. Of course she would be smiling, she knows what is going on. The pilot opens the cabin door, and you get up from your seat. He smiles at you as you make your way to him. "Cheers," you say to him as he extends his hand to you. You shake his hand, and he nods. You step out into the air; it was cold. Looking around, it all seems vaguely familiar. A car is waiting for you at the bottom of the stairs; its driver stands beside the open door. You quickly walk down the stairs to get out of the cold. A smile on your face. Mark must be in there. You walk up to the open door, empty. The entire car is empty. Confused, you get into the backseat, setting your bag beside you as the driver closes the door. You watch as he walks around the front of the car and gets into the driver's seat. "Can you tell me where we are?" You ask, hoping he was actually able to tell you. He shakes his head with a smile. Mark was really going all out with this. As you begin your drive away from the airport the streets are looking even more recognizable. You are looking around for any sort of popular land mark, hoping something will catch your eye but nothing comes. He must have been instructed to avoid them. You keep your eyes on the street names, and it soon hits you. You're in London. But why did you need a private flight to London? Surely Mark knew you would have much rather made the drive with him. That had to be Liam's suggestion. The car slows as it approaches a very tall building. One you are sure you have seen before, possibly even been in. You haven't made very many trips to London in the past, but you are certain you know this area. The car dips down into a parking garage, and all the familiarity of the surface goes away. The car stops by the lifts, and the driver gets out. "He should be down any moment, you can go ahead and get out." You slide out of the backseat, it was useless trying to identify where you were based on a parking garage. You hear the lift chime, and your focus turns to the doors. They slowly open and you smile. Wherever you are, you are happy to be here with...Liam?
Niall: It was all too much to be worrying about, but you couldn't help yourself. You would be on tour right now. That is if you were with him and not in New York. He's been on the road for a couple of weeks now, and you know all too well what that life is like. The traveling, the schedules, it was chaos. You always loved it though. It was the only way you were going to be able to spend any time with him, so you had no choice but to accept the hectic lifestyle of being on the road. You sit in your office on lunch, not wanting to join Kati or any of your other coworkers at lunch down the street at the usual spot. You had brought your's today and decided just to spend the time in your office with your thoughts. A dangerous place to be. You stare at the clock. Right now you would be asleep, more than likely in a lush hotel room. The day would be starting early, you are certain. This would probably be your last day with him on the road. You never wanted to seem like you were crowding him and the boys, or that you couldn't live without him. He would wake up and protest, and you would more than likely stay an extra day, but only one. You did have a schedule to keep back home. You would wake up in a few hours, using your scratchy morning voice to order breakfast. God you missed making those orders. You missed taking care of him really. No matter if you were on the road with him or not, that was one of your main priorities. The distance between you now prevents that almost completely. The distance. It had changed your relationship so much. He didn't want you to visit him and you were constantly distracted by memories from the life you had left. Nothing was right. You continue to look at the clock, allowing the food in front of you to get cold. His day would be officially starting by the time you left the office. This is when the two of you would probably go out and explore the city before having to head to the venue. You enjoyed this part of tour the most. You had been able to see so many places around the world you would have otherwise skipped over thanks to him. You owe a lot to his lifestyle. After exploring the city for a few hours, he would get the call to make his way to the venue. With you in tow, the two of you would get in a black SUV and quickly be escorted through the city. Once at the venue, you would get out of the car, usually in sight of a couple hundred fans lined around fences. You hadn't heard their screams in a long time. You could honestly say you missed them. What were they going to think of you not being on this tour with him? You had always been there. Up All Night, Take Me Home, Where We Are, you had been on them all. Except now. Now you sit alone in your office, in New York City. Nearly ten thousand miles between you and him. Everything was so different now. You weren't going to be doing any of the things your mind had just played before you. You were stuck here. It isn't like you hadn't known that you wouldn't be able to go on this tour with him. How could you with this job? It was no revelation. Actually having to live it out though, was what was getting to you. Yes, you knew you would be staying here for the most part. But no, you hadn't prepared to be told you weren't allowed to visit, not even for a weekend. You miss the times when he would be begging you to stay. Instead you were living in the one where he told you not to bother even showing you. Whatever this time was, you wanted no part of it. You look down at the now stone cold food sitting in front of you. You push it off your desk and into the trashcan. You didn't need lunch today anyways.
Louis: You weren't sure how he did it. Traveling around like this. Going nonstop night after night, month after month. You had only been with him for a few days and were already exhausted. But tonight was your last night. You had to get back to Cannes. Classes hadn't been placed on hold just because you thought you had an emergency to get to. You weren't sure how he had been acting while he was here without you. But you were certain you had seen him smile more now with you here than you had in the whole time the two of you were in Cannes together. Maybe he did just need you here. Maybe it had nothing to do with the lifestyle. You take his hand the moment he comes over to you after walking off stage. You press a kiss to his lips and hand him a towel. "Perfect show," you say with a smile. "Thanks babe," he returns, giving you another kiss. The lot of you quickly pile into the awaiting cars and head back to the hotel. You had already packed everything up, your flight was leaving tonight, and it was going to be a struggle not to miss it. You follow him off of the lift and to the room. He seems to have no sense of urgency. You check the time on your phone. There wasn't much to spare. You don't say anything though, knowing leaving him is a touchy subject. Once in the room you walk straight over to your bag, lifting it onto your shoulder. "No," he says simply. You would be lying if you said you didn't think it was coming. Of course he was going to say something. "Louis," you begin, but the look in his eyes stops you. "You can stay," he assures you. You chuckle and shake your head, walking over to him, your bag still resting on your shoulder. "I have to get back to classes and plus, I don't have any more clothes." "I will buy you some," he counters quickly. "Oh, because that will go over so well with everyone else," you say, thinking about how much the fans love when he takes you out shopping. "Who cares about them?" He retorts, waving his hand towards the window. "This is about us." He is right; you couldn't let the people outside that window dictate your relationship. However, you couldn't let your grades slip. He was going to be fine without you, at least until May. That wasn't that far away. You have a few breaks in between now and then that you can come back and visit, but for now you have to go. "I get that, but I just can't. I will be back to visit later on." "Later on isn't good enough," he whines. "You're here with me now, why can't you stay? Just a few more days." You listen to his words. He really did want you to stay; this was about you. Liam had assured you a few days back that you being here would change his reclusive demeanor. You had been able to do just that. But you know the moment you leave he will retract himself. That's the last thing you want. He takes a few steps towards you, and now you are face to face with him. He presses a kiss to your lips, the passion radiating from him sends ice through your veins. "Please." You slowly open your eyes to look into his. It's only a few more days. You know he will more than likely try and play these games when you try to leave again if you don't go ahead and get it over with tonight. You were only making it worse on both of you by staying. He needs to know that you can't always fly out when he's feeling down or missing you. He had his boys with him. But he wanted you. You stare into his eyes. Those eyes. They tell you so much. He needs you here. It's only a few more days.
Zayn: To say this is a mutual decision is a lie, simple as that. You can feel the heat of his glare as you walk back and forth in front of him. He was letting you do this all on your own. He wasn't going to lift a finger. You didn't expect him to; this was completely your decision. The right one, you are certain. But you struggle not to look over at him as you pass by. You know he is hurting, but he's so closed up, there's no hope of getting through to him anymore. The boxes are never ending it seems, and you had your fingers crossed that they would even all fit in your car. Gwen was on standby if you needed any help. She wanted to be here even if you didn't, but you had advised her to stay away. Her presence would have only made this situation even more worse. You stand in the middle of the bedroom, the last box sitting at your feet. You had spent nearly a year and a half in this house. You had decorated it ceiling to floor. Now you were leaving it all behind. None of this was yours anymore. You were no longer a part of this lifestyle. Tears begin to fall now. You curse your emotions. You had stayed so strong this afternoon, not allowing a single one to fall. But now that you stand here, thinking about how it had all gone wrong you couldn't help yourself. You stare at the bed. Some of the most amazing nights of your life had been spent in that bed. You wondered if he would get rid of it. What is he going to change now that you're gone? Half of everything in this house had come from you, and now that you had taken it back out, it looks so empty. It is a completely different house. For a completely different Zayn. A Zayn that you just couldn't be with. He isn't the one you fell in love with. No matter how hard you thought he would return or change, it just hadn't happened. You pick up the final box after making sure to wipe the fallen tears. You didn't want him to see how upset you are. You carry the box down the stairs and out to your car, sitting it in the floorboard of the passenger's seat. You walk back into the house, you had one last thing to do. You walk past him, through the kitchen and into the garage. You stand in the cold as you stare at the row of keys hanging up by the door. It was time to go. You bring yours down and grab ahold of the only gold key on the ring. The sobs come now as you grip onto it tightly. You're certain he can hear you allowing your emotions to consume you, the echoing of this cold room making sure of that. You thought ending your relationship with him was the hardest thing you had ever had to do. It wasn't though, it's this. Standing here, the key to the home you had made together cutting into your hand as you are about to walk out of the front door for the last time, is a million times worse. The aching in your heart brings more tears and you collapse onto the steps leading back up to the kitchen. Everything had fallen apart, and so quickly. How could four months be the deciding factor on a two year relationship? You aren't sure how, but that is exactly what had happened. You stare at the key in your hand, it is time to go. You remove the gold key from the ring and grasp onto it tightly. You take a deep breath and stand back to your feet. You open the door back up to the kitchen and step into the house for the last time. You look around the open floor as you slowly walk through. You would miss everything about this place. You take a final deep breath as you approach Zayn. His back is to you as he still remains seated in the armchair facing towards the front door. You open up your hand. You have to let go. You set the key on the arm of the chair as you walk by, not a word coming from you as you continue on towards the door. He doesn't say anything either. You weren't exactly expecting him to though. He certainly wasn't going to ask you to stay. He had been silent this entire time, why would he change that now? You close the front door behind you without any sort of exchange between you at all. You stop at the top of the stairs, looking down on your car piled high with boxes. Your new life was stuffed into that car.