A Moment in the Crowd

Chapter 10: Fake ID

"That was insane." I tell Harry the moment after I've just met the rest of the band. 

They all showed up at once and I nearly passed out in front of them. No surprises that Harry was searching my face and waiting on me to say something stupid every time I greeted one of them. I got pictures with every one of them, how is this even possible. Someone needs to take me back to reality or shake me awake from my dream. 

"I find it strange that you seem to have nearly fainted in front of them but here you are talking to me like it's nothing?" He looks at me with that stupid grin still plastered on his face. 

I don't really understand it myself, but the moment I got pulled into Harry's car today it seemed so ridiculous that I just had to laugh. Then I felt too casual for laughing and somehow I ended up comfortable and talking to the guy like he wasn't playing stadiums every night. 

I guess the feeling hasn't worn out around him, and with the way he treats me like I'm not a fan, it makes me act like I'm not one. I guess it's a give and take process that doesn't really make much sense.

"I don't really know." Is all I can muster when he continues to stare at me expectantly. 

I remember suddenly that I've been dying to ask him about his damn Twitter account. What the fuck does a "Titanic for the first time face" even mean anyway? He must have some explanation for "These these are my knees." because otherwise I'm going to die not knowing what the hell he's on about.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" I sound so shy now, where the hell did my confidence go? I'm pretty sure it's hiding behind Harry Styles' perfect shadow standing next to me. 

"Of course, anything." He seems to light up, but maybe I'm imagining that too.

"What the hell is it with your tweets?"

The second the words leave my mouth he's nearly on the floor again out of laughter. I'm a little shocked, I didn't think it was that funny. Actually it wasn't funny at all, I'm being completely serious. I end up just staring at this guy almost dying from laughing so hard. Do all twenty-year-olds act like this? My non-existent friends don't exactly consist of people his age so how am I supposed to know. Maybe they do?

"Oh wow that was really not what I was expecting." He wipes a tear that has collected in his green eyes from laughing so hard.

"What? I was being serious. I mean you have to know that you make no sense, right? Makes me wonder why you have so many followers, it's unbelievable." 

Looks like I found the confidence again. It clearly decided to come back out after Harry's fit of laughter.

"Oh I know you're serious, that's why it's great." His knowing smile is back. What the hell am I missing, seriously?

"So are you going to tell me or leave me hanging here?" I end up laughing a little as I say it. I didn't think it would take that much to get an explanation to his damn tweets out of him. 

"No, I don't think you're ready to know what those tweets mean." Ready? Is he kidding?

"Uhmm.. Okay then?" Is all that seems to leave my mouth. I let him know with my tone that I'll drop it for now but I won't be leaving it alone forever.

"Let's go out tonight."

I nearly trip on my own feet at the shock of the words he's just said to me. Go out, go out where? With who? Why is he asking me? Did I just dream that line too? I can't be dreaming everything. 

He seems to notice my petrified look because he offers a quick explanation before I can find the words to answer him.

"Just to a bar or club or something. We can get you a fake ID you know."

How does he know I'm not nineteen? Oh that's right, I probably look like I'm three to him.

"I - well I guess..." I really don't know what to say. 

I never party. Never. I don't have many friends, and although I'm obviously not unfamiliar with a party atmosphere, it just hasn't always appealed to me. I don't dance first of all, not because I'm not good, although since I never dance I'm probably no good anyway, but still. I have, admittedly, been dying to try to go out more. Well, at least once. Shit, what the fuck do I tell him?

"Yeah, that would be fun. Where can you get a fake ID so quickly though?" 

Did I really just agree to go to a bar/club with Harry Styles? Yeah, I'm pretty sure I just did.

"I have ways of getting them." The knowing smile hasn't been wiped off of his smirking face since back at the waiting room.

He's smiling down at me now, I think. I'm not really sure because I'm about to pass out. Shake it off Lily. Hopefully pep talking myself to not faint in front of Harry Styles will help me not actually faint. Am I seriously about to party with him? 

"Okay good then. I'll be right back though, I need to call someone to get it for you." He smiles again. It feels like he's always smiling.

When Harry leaves I'm standing awkwardly in a state of shock. I haven't even processed my surroundings until now. 

There are a few couches and some sort of snack table, presumably for the boys. I wonder where each of their dressing rooms are? Most likely down the hall Harry ran towards. I realize that I can still hear the crowd from the concert. They've stopped screaming for the boys to come back on-stage but I can hear the buzz of excited chatting. I would be doing the same thing if I weren't standing in a paralyzed state backstage. 

I've never actually been backstage at a concert before this, and it's not as nice as I thought it would be. I assumed there would be massive amounts of snacks and tables full of food and drinks. But it's just a small snack table and some couches, then different corridors that lead off to god knows where. I decide to sit on the couch so that I don't look so awkward standing here alone. 

People dressed in the same security guard outfits as the one who came to get me from outside buzz around back and forth. Some people have microphones attached to their ears, and I can see people putting away guitars and rolling huge speakers out of the way. 

"Here you go." It's Harry.

I spin around whilst my heart is still recovering from the mini heart attack he caused by showing up behind me. He's holding an ID out to me. How the hell did he get one so fast?

I take the fake ID in my hands and look at the picture on the card. She looks nothing like me. The name says Melanie Grosswhich and she has a pixie cut. At least her hair is brown though.

"This looks nothing like me." I try to stiffle a laugh at the absurdity that anyone is going to buy that I'm Melanie Grosswhich born February 17th 1994. There's no way I look twenty. 

"Don't worry, if it doesn't work I'm sure I'll be able to persuade security. There's a chance they won't check it at the gate, we're going in as a group."

A group? With who? I can't help but gulp down my nervousness. What the hell am I doing, I'm never going to be able to act calm in front of Harry and - holy shit is he bringing the other boys? I barely survived meeting them, how am I going to survive acting like a normal person at a club with them?

"You'll be fine, let's go." He grabs my hand for the second time today and I'm shocked at the heat that sparks again. 

I'm almost 99% sure I'm going to pass out from this in a minute.