Let Me Show You

5. Flying

*** Big shocker another time-lapse video ahah ANNOUNCEMENT: just know that my story is not 100% about 1D, and Dakota will be exploring other friend/love interests as the story continues xoxoxo ***

"You are PER-FECT!" Valorie shrieks as I enter the dressing room for the (hopefully) last time today. "The boys are going to drool a whole river over you" I can tell she was trying to scare me by being serious, but I could practically hear her smiling from behind the curtain.

"Sure they are" I say as I dramatically roll my eyes checking out myself in the mirror one last time before slipping off the baby doll dress. Not bad for a farmgirl...

"I know you're rolling your eyes in there, now stop it! We have to hurry! My assistant said the only flight she could get us in the next few days is tonight in three hours!" Shit! I throw on my old clothes and shoes before grabbing the "want" clothes pile and we rush through checkout. Valorie says she has to stop by her office to grab her emergency trip bag and to say goodbye to some people before we can leave. After that, it's off to London... off to my new life.

***************

"You have NEVER been on a plane before?" Valorie asks, completely surprised.

"I just have never needed to I guess. Before, my whole life revolved about my little hometown in California..." I find myself in a dream state looking out the window. I'm actually above the clouds, flying through the air, on my way to an amazing city, to work for my childhood dream boy band as a photographer, meaning I'll get to be around them 24/7 while getting PAID real money. I think about all of those mean girls back in California and how they still think they are on top of the world. I think about my family and what they are doing right now. I think about my future, about the new world I will soon become a part of.

At that thought, I start to feel the four bags of airplane nuts that I thought were a good idea at the time coming back up. What if I'm a failure? Will my family accept me back? What would school be like after I come back with even more things for them to make fun of me about? What if the band members aren't all I expected them to be? "Oh no..."

"What's wrong?" Valorie asks looking very concerned. "You look green in the face are you going to be..." and with that I am out of my chair and halfway up the aisle to the tiny bathroom.

After throwing up more food than I remember eating, I return to my seat to find Valorie fast asleep. I carefully climb over her into my seat and continue my window dreaming. Everything is going to be fine... Everything is going to be fine... Everything is going... to be... fine... and with that I'm fast asleep next to Valorie.

***************

"That was... AMAZING!" I exclaim to Valorie once we are safely landed in London. I'm actually in London!

"I knew you would like it! That's the best part" she says.

"So where exactly are we going now?" I ask

"To go get our bags at the bag pickup area" she says as if I should know even though I have never been in an airport before, never mind fly in a plane.

"But where after that?" I ask hoping to squeeze out a bit more information on what is happening.

"To go meet the boys of course! I think they are back at the flat but I'm not sure... I'll have to call and make sure everything's alright, I hope they haven't ... again." She mumbles that last part and I can't quite hear but I'm sure everything is fine. "Don't worry! I have everything handled!" I hope she didn't see the worry in my face.

"Yeah! I mean they are just five guys..." five extremely attractive, talented, funny guys. No big deal.

"Remind me to ask you your thoughts of them after the first week, okay?" She laughs, but I sense some seriousness behind her voice. I just laugh along pretending everything is fine. I try and act cool and to not panic at the thought of my new life and what it will be like to travel the world.

We grab our bags after a long game of wait, run to check a bag that looks like ours, walk away upset, wait some more and repeat. After pushing through crowds of people, I find myself outside watching Valorie hop into a shiny black truck with tinted windows. Before I think twice, I'm in the truck next to her on my way to meet One Direction. Or so I thought.

The truck pulls into a too-small-to-hold-five-grown-men-house. What are we doing here? My mind starts to fill with every bad scenario possible. What if this whole thing was a scam and I'm being brought here to fulfill some lonely man's sexual needs. Chills run all the way through my untouched body.

"We're here!" Valorie yells excitedly.

"Umm... where exactly is HERE?" I ask feeling smaller and smaller.

"Oh we are just here to sign a few papers and give you your cameras and stuff for the job! Don't worry, we are going to see the boys right after this." She winks and I nod following her out of the truck into the small house. I immediately notice that the house looks like it came out of a magazine or a movie. Valorie leads me down to the basement and into, what I assume, is known as the 'Camera Room.' She grabs two cameras, a big pile of paper, a computer and a phone. Then she leads me back out into the sitting area still in the basement to explain to me my new life.

"So, put your listening ears on and get ready because you're about to get the lecture I've given so many time before. Your the new one here. Me? Well I've been doing this for years! Literally been sitting in this room giving this speech more times than I can remember. But you are hearing it for the first time. Just like the twenty or so other people we have tried to get to stay. I hope you'll be different." It seems like she added the last part for the first time because that was the only part she actually looked at me for.

She holds up the bigger of the two cameras, "this is your main camera," then the smaller one, "and this is your second camera in case you lose or break the first one and need a camera right away." Next she holds up the computer, "this is going to hold all of your photos that you take of the boys as well as your schedule and their schedule. Don't lose this! It has already been organized into folders for you, all you have to do is shoot and upload."

Holding up the phone she says, "all of the boy's numbers are in here as well as my'n and the security. Emails and your schedule are also on here. You can customize this however you want but you must never EVER let this out of your sight. Got it?" I nod quickly getting the message that this phone is important. Lastly, she holds up the pile of paperwork. "I have to say this is most definitely my least favorite part of the job, but it has to get done." She slams it down on the coffee table along side the cameras and apple products. "Questions?"

"Yeah, what exactly am I supposed to be taking pictures of?" My voice sounds higher pitched than normal but that's what I get for being nervous as fuck.

"Whatever you want." She starts smirking and I get the idea that this is all a test. "Anything else?"

"Yes, is there going to be twenty plus people taking pictures along side of me?"

"Hell no! You're the only one sweetheart, but don't worry you wont be lonely..."

"But I thought you said you had given this speech more times than you could count?" Now I'm even more confused than before.

"Oh I see the confusion, no they all quit or were fired because of multiple reasons that I am not allowed to discuss. Now let's head upstairs and go to meet the boys before you start asking questions even I don't know the answer to."

***************

I'm only finished with the introduction of the paperwork by the time we pull through a huge gateway up to a castle-sized building. Valorie hands me one of my camera's and sends me up to head inside. I walk up slowly playing with my new camera. I can focus and change the lighting fine, but I can't seem to actually take a picture. I'm pressing the button but it isn't working. I take one hand off the camera to open the door but before I can reach it, it is swung open for me and I find myself facing five shadows.

"Hi! We're One Direction" the figures say in unison as I hear the snap of my camera for the first time.