Totally Not Me ( 1D/ N.H. / Niall Horan)

Chapter 8

Niall's POV

"Don't pay them any attention. The Barbie doll appears to have found herself a Ken." Louis says rolling his eyes and breaks my eye contact with Cailin by standing in between us.

He has nicknamed Cailin the Barbie doll because she appears flawless every day...just like someone took her out of a package and placed her on campus.

That guy, Ryan, is such an asshole! It's disgusting the way he looks at Cailin. He obviously sees her as a prize. He could have any girl on campus, and from what I hear, he pretty much has...well, the ones he thought was worth his time. He is so full of himself and yet, all the girls drool over him. I'll never understand what girls see in assholes.

I keep trying to find a hint of the Cailin I encountered last weekend. I could have sworn I saw a cry for help in her eyes when she looked at me but she looked away so quickly that I wasn't sure if it was my mind playing tricks on me or not.

I guess we will see how the last class of the day goes. I still sit next to her. I'm not expecting much interaction from her. Then again, I don't ever see her acknowledging my existence but she seemed to today.

"Earth to Niall!" Louis says while waving his hand in front of my face pulling me back into reality. "Are you okay, lad?" He asks.

"Yea...I'm fine. I'm just tired and hungry." I lie to cover up where my head was at.

"When aren't you hungry?" He laughs.

"When I'm sleepin'!" I sarcastically answer.

"We both know that's rubbish." He quickly calls me out laughing and I join in.

That's one thing I like about Louis. He says it like it is with a sarcastic twist. He always keeps my laughing. I can't help it! He's quite funny.

The bell rings for lunch to be over and the next class is a blur. I'm still trapped in my own thoughts about Cailin or Jana or whoever the fuck she is. See? That's the thing! I haven't a clue and it's eating away at me.

The bell rings and it's off to my last class. I'm curious as all hell on how this is going to go. So curious, apparently, I get there before anyone else. The teacher barely looks up as I make my way to my seat and wait...and wait...and wait. Every minute seems like forever and every person walking through the door isn't her. Finally! She enters the room staring down at the floor.

What I always took as being a stuck up snob isn't that at all. She has confidence but she doesn't look around at everyone expecting them to swoon over the fact they are breathing the same air as she is. What I used to take as stiff, rigid, and cold really seems to be awkward, uncomfortable, and distant. It seems like she'd much rather be anywhere else than in the skin she's in at the moment.

She glances up at me as she reaches her desk and begins to smile until that damn bag slides off her shoulder, distracting her.

I lean forward and inform her, "You know, my dad would have let you leave that in his classroom for the day."

"NOW you tell me?!" She tries to hold back the smile which only softens the harsh look she is attempting to give me.

I hold my hands up and shrug my shoulders. She faintly smiles and shakes her head.

Class speeds by in record time. When the bell rings, Cailin stands up and attempts to place that damn bag on her shoulder. It slips off immediately and she lets out a frustrated sigh as it hits the floor with a thud.

"I'll carry that for ya." I say as I grab her bag.

"You really don't have to." I hear her say as she catches up to me. She keeps looking around worriedly as we exit the building and head over across campus to the locker rooms.

"Hey you two!" A cheerful voice creeps up on our right. Cailin jumps about fifteen feet into the air. It's Lou. I have a couple classes with her. She's cool. I'm baffled on why she hangs out in the crowd she does. I can only assume that it's because her twin sister, Sam, does.

The Teasdale twins have quite a reputation, but not in a bad way. Louis filled me in on their deal. Basically, if you're comfortable swimming in the friend zone with them, you're in the right place. They don't date much. According to Louis, it's because they are super picky but something tells me he tried and failed miserably. I'm quite content with the friend zone. I'm here for a year because of my dad's work and then I'm back home. Plus, there's nothing wrong with being picky. Why waste your time on a girlfriend when you can find your princess?

What's the difference? A girlfriend is someone you want to be with, want to be close to, and want to treat like they are the most important person in your world. A princess is all of that but it's no longer just a "want to" but a "need to" and that "need to" is something that comes naturally without warning...at least that's the way I see it.

"I thought this day was never going to end!" Lou exclaims and drags me out of my own head.

"Yea. Me either." Cailin answers her but keeps looking around with a worried look on her face. What is her deal?

"Are you going to tryout for a sport this year, Niall?" Lou asks.

"I was thinking...uh...soccer." I laugh at myself. "I keep trying to remember that's what you call it out here. Lord knows I'm no good at what you call 'football'!" I say with that last word in air quotes mocking the American meaning of the word.

Lou laughs and a see a faint smile on Cailin's face as she stares at the ground.

We reach the locker rooms and I hand over Cailin's bag to her. She looks me right in the eyes and thanks me. It appears she was going to say something else but Lou grabs her by the arm, informs us they are going to be late, and drags her off.

I turn on my heels and look up to see Brent, Ryan, and a handful of the senior assholes standing about a building away from me...watching.

Ryan says something to Brent and the two of them start walking towards me. I don't know why I have this uneasy feeling. I haven't done anything wrong. I can't just start walking away. They know I've seen them. So, here I stand, alone, with anxiety that grows with every step they take closer.

A/N- I know I haven't updated in forever. Sorry about that. I had to finish my other story first so I could focus on this one for a while. Please vote, comment, and/or share! Thank you so much for reading!!!! :)