Through the Dark

Chapter 1~ H.S

Harry sighed as he walked into the new school. He has been kicked out of five other schools in the past two years. He left the last school because he got into a fight. The other kid had it coming to him though. He was picking on a kid cause he was gay.

No one believed Harry when he said he didn't start the fight. Everyone sees his tattoos and judges.

The curly haired lad strolled up to the front desk. An old lady sat there, her glasses at the edge of her nose. Frankly, she reminded Harry of the creepy monster woman in that Disney movie.

"How can I help you?" A forced smile was on Monster Lady's face.

"I'm Harry Styles. A senior. I need my schedule and that stuff." He replied.

The creepy lady, who's name tag said Carren, rolled her eyes and typed something on the computer.

"Here is your schedule and locker information. A student guide will be here in five minutes. Take a seat and wait."

Harry sat down in the creaky green chair. His fingers tapped on the wooden armrests. The sound of papers shuffling filled the air. The room smelt like stale crackers.

The office door flew open and a student walked in. His brown hair was slightly messy. He walked up the desk.

"Sorry I'm late Carren. I was calming Niall down. So, where is the new kid?"

"He's right there. Just stay with him all day and show him around." Carren said with a small nod.

The brown haired boy turned on his heal and locked eyes with Harry. He shuffled over and stood in front of him.

"Hey mate. I'm Liam Payne. You must be Harry. Ready to go to class?" Liam said while offering Harry his hand.

Harry nodded and shook hands with the boy. The two left the office and went into the empty hallway.

"Home room just started. Your locker is right there." Liam said while pointing to a dented locker.

Harry looked at it with distaste. Even though the school sucks, he didn't think the lockers would.

Liam looked at the schedule and turned the dial. The locker opened and Harry put his bag in it. He pulled out his binder with his long fingers.

The metal door shut with a gentle push.

"Follow me. Mr. Kolar is pretty chill. Normally he just has us take some notes. Some of the other teachers are plain bastards though. You have to make sure to watch out for Miss Bard. She's the band teacher." Liam announced.

"Good thing I'm not in band then."

The two teenagers continued on in silence. The only sound being the soft pat of shoes on floor. They walked for about two minutes.

Liam abruptly stopped in front of a beat up door. His slender hand reached for the handle and pushed down. The door opened and the pair walked into the class.

"Hello Mr. Kolar. This is Harry, the new kid." Liam introduced.

"Thankyou Mr. Payne. I will talk to him. Right now, I believe someone needs to be calmed down. Come back up here when he's better." The teacher said.

Liam's eyes widened and he quickly turned. Harry watched as his new friend walked over to a small boy. The curly haired male gasped. The small boy was simply beautiful.

Everything about him was beautiful. His bleached blonde hair, baby blue eyes, and rosy cheeks. Even with the tears and snot running down his face, he was gorgeous.

A body in front of the blonde brought Harry out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Liam making his way back towards the front. The puppy eyed boy came to a stop next to Harry.

Harry leaned over and whispered in Liam's ear.

"who is that?"

"That's Niall." Liam replied.

"why is he so scared?"

"That's what a severe social anxiety disorder looks like Harry. Just don't talk to him and he'll warm up to ya."

"i'm gonna go say hi."

"No Harry don't do that!" Liam whisper-shouted as he raced after Harold.

It was too late though. Harry was already at Nialls desk. He crouched down by the boy and said hello.

Niall looked up and his blue eyes enlarged. His breathing sped up and his face grew flushed. Before Liam could intervene, the boy sprinted out of the class.

"fuck." Harry said.

"Fuck is correct. C'mon we have to go find him. Mr. Kolar we're going to find Niall!" And with that the two boys booked it out.

"Where do you think he went?" The curly haired 17 year old asked.

"I'm going to say the library. No one is ever in there and it's his safe place. Normally he's in there."

"Why is he so scared though? I know social anxiety but, why? Isn't social anxiety just being shy and nervous about public speaking?" Harry asked confused. He wasn't trying to be offensive, just curious.

Liam sighed.

"Okay, for one, social anxiety is in no way just 'being shy'. Never say that again. It is a real and serious disorder. And no, Niall has not always been like this. He used to be so happy. He's always struggled with anxiety, but never this bad. When he was fourteen, his biological dad kidnapped him. He traumatized the poor kid. Niall was so scared when they found him. He would scream when anyone came close to him. He was even scared of me for a while. Pretty much everything makes him nervous now."

"Woah." Harry was speechless. No one deserved to go through what this innocent boy has.

"Ya it's pretty messed up. We're here. I need you to stay out here please. I'll wave to you if it's okay for you to come in."

Harry watched as Liam disappeared into the room full of books. A determined smirk grew on his face. He was going to make this traumatized boy smile again.