Beside You

Chapter One

I stood in front of my full length mirror in my bright bedroom, tucking away fly-away hairs into arranged grips. I stared at my reflection, admiring my beautiful green summer dress flowing in the gentle breeze streaming through my open window. I looked up, looking at my eyes and face. My blues eyes sparkled in the streaming daylight. I stroked my light, soft, shoulder-length hair as I smiled. I grabbed my brown sandals, found my keys and made my way to my small car, locking my door behind me.

I barely even drove down the busy motorway; it always took a long time to get from mine down to London to see Harry. But the time was worth seeing my best friend, who had arranged a barbecue with a couple of his close mates. I hadn't seen Harry for months, seeing as he'd been on tour with his world famous band for the past six months. I'd manage to spend a day with him when they were at Wembley, but that day had been at least four months ago. Now four months on, and a half an hour car journey away, I'd see him once again.

That half an hour car journey ended up taking an hour and a half, but I still had a wide grin on my face as I was about to be reunited with my best friend. I drove up to his gate, waiting for him to finally buzz me in.

I finally parked neatly in between two cars, assuming they were just Harry's band mate's. I got out, brushing down my dress and clipping away any loose fly aways of hair as I walked casually to the door. I knocked gently, and within five seconds, I was greeted by a surprising face. I was gobsmacked as I stared into the face of Calum, my older brother.

When Harry told me he was inviting a couple of his friends around for his barbecue, I had expected Louis, Zayn, Niall and Liam, his own band mates, not for him to also invite my brother's band along. Calum looked at me with a confused smile, before I threw my arms around him. I hadn't seen him since I last saw Harry, and I hadn't Skyped him in what seemed like forever. We both let out a friendly laugh, smirking at each other. We weren't like normal siblings; we barely ever fought against each other. Calum and I were so close, we were basically best friends. I suppose we used to be inseparable. That was until Cal formed a band with his friends Michael and Luke from school. Then we grew apart, but only slightly. We were still as close as ever.

Calum wasn't my full brother-he wasn't even my half brother. He was my step-brother. My Dad met his Mother when he was on a business trip to Sydney from England. With only a year between us, we'd practically grown up together seeing as our parents got married when I was four and Calum was almost six.

I followed Calum into the garden, where seven sets of male eyes greeted me. I said hi, letting myself sit in an empty seat next to Niall. Each boy had something to tell me; whether it was about their tour or their relationships, we all caught up with each other's lives.

Our lively conversation about random funny moments of the tour was interrupted by a quiet cough, making me turn my head in the direction of the noise. My eyes met a set of gorgeous hazel brown/green glimmering orbs, which could only mean one person was joining us for our conversation.

'Erm, excuse me but I think I was sitting there?' said Ashton, his voice cocky and over-confident.