Made in the AM

Chapter 3

We enter the room and are greeted with a loud shout.
"Hi!" One of the boys exclaims, bounding over to Cleo and I. "I'm Niall!" Cleo's face lights into a smile and I feel her buzz with energy.

"Hi! I'm Cleo and this is my friend RayLynn! Where's everyone else?" Glancing around, I notice David was gone, leaving Cleo, Niall and I alone with a couple security guards. Niall turns around, confusion furrowing his blonde brows.

"I must have been so excited I left them behind!" He says, grinning and bouncing around on his feet. I can't help but grin and get excited with him, his happiness is just so infectious. "You girls aren't like the others that come here. They're usually screaming and throwing phones and pens with pictures in my face."

"We're Mid-Westerns. We tend to be more mild mannered than the bimbos here." I mutter before quickly slapping a hand over my mouth. "Wow. That was mean." Niall just chuckles at me, throwing an arm around Cleo and I's shoulders. Shouts echo from a door across the room and I feel Niall tense.

"Here come the rest! Oh this is going to be so much fun!" I don't have time to process if he's being sarcastic or not because suddenly the door flies open and there's a soccer ball in my face. Cleo yelps in surprise as I fall straight back, the ball rolling off to the side. A liquid seeps down my face and I swipe at it, my hand coming away red.

"Fuck." I mutter as blood drips quickly to the floor, splattering into my jeans.

"Shit, shit, shit." Someone mutters, squatting beside me. "I am so sorry, I didn't know you'd be right there and-" I glance up at the man in front of me and he stops talking. My heart pounds in my ears as I stare into swirling green eyes. "I-I'm-"

"Good going Harry!" Someone says from behind us. Harry glances up and rolls his eyes.

"Shut up Louis. It was all your fault anyway." Harry looks back down at me as I hold a hand to my nose, gently pinching it. "I'm Harry." He says quietly, a small smile toying with his lips. He stands and extends a hand for me to grab.

"I'm RayLynn." I say, grabbing his hand and standing up. Cleo stands frozen beside Niall, a hand covering her mouth. I raise an eyebrow at her, which seems to unfreeze her. Anger quickly settles on her face as she storms up to the guy retrieving the soccer ball.

"Are you serious right now?!" She shouts. The guy whips around, slamming his head against the underside of a table. "Louis freaking Tomlinson. You ACTUALLY just hit her. In the face. WITH A BLOODY SOCCER BALL!" I snicker behind her and she whips around. "What?!?"

"Was the pun intended?" I ask, hiding my grin behind my hand. Her brows furrow before shooting up. A grin lights up her face as a laugh escapes.

"Oh my gosh! No! I didn't even realize!" Harry and Niall snicker beside me as Cleo's face flushes. Louis stands up cautiously, holding the soccer ball.

"I'm really sorry." He says, addressing Cleo. She turns and smiles warmly at him.

"Ah, it's fine. If I had a dollar for every time Ray got a bloody nose, I'd be a millionaire. Anyways, you're fine aren't you Ray?" Cleo says, looking at me. I take my hand off my nose and wiggle it. No blood escapes so I nod.

"Yep! Just kinda bloody." I say before bending over and picking up my hat off the floor. A security guard comes over to me, holding a box of wet wipes. I take them and thank him before wiping myself clean.

"Hey! Look who showed up!" Niall says suddenly. All of us turn around to see two more people standing at the door. "Zayn! Liam! Hey guys! This is Cleo and RayLynn." Cleo and I wave to the boys respectively. Zane simply nods at us, while Liam catches my eyes and stares for an uncomfortable amount of time. Harry clears his throat, causing me to look up at him. He glares gently at Liam before guiding me over to a set of seats where Cleo sits beside Louis and Niall.

"It's not so much that I'm antisocial, it's just easier to do it online." Cleo tells the guys as I walk up. Harry gives me a weird look and I smile lightly.

"Cleo's a senior in college, which she does online because she's ahead." I explain quietly to him as the group continues talking. Zayn stands in the back of the room, slightly stand-offish and as I open my mouth to ask him to join us, a frazzled looking man runs into the room.

"Alrighty boys, time to get these girls backstage and you five on stage. Up, up. Let's move people!" The man shouts and claps his hands causing Cleo and I to giggle softly. We all stand and follow the man to the stage. Harry smiles at me and gently kisses my hand before getting his mic attached and doing small stretches. The boys get in position and the curtains rise, filling the stadium with screams and blasting music.