The Secret Princess (One Direction Fanfic)

Chapter 2: Introducing Niall

Chapter 2

NIALL’S POV:

Don’t ask me how I got into this. I couldn’t possibly even begin right from the start. All I knew was that at the age of eleven, I had befriended a beautiful, bright girl named Sophie Tomlinson. She had just moved here to Australia and she took me by storm. She was funny, clever, everything I could’ve ever wanted in a friend. Everything that I could’ve wanted in a girlfriend. But that was silly, because I was only eleven years old. I didn’t need a girlfriend. But if I was to have one, it couldn’t be Sophie.

I had been hired by her parents, the King and Queen, to grow up with Sophie. Protect her from the bad and keep her happy, and most of all, a normal, alive girl. So dating her was the last thing on my list. Believe me, it would’ve taken less than a second to ask her to be mine, but I was here for one thing and one thing only—to protect her. That meant standing by her, looking out for her, and knowing as much as she knew, but not date her.

As we grew up together, I became so much fonder of her. We’re the same, really. I had to watch her go through the highest times in her life, to the lowest. I had been trained for everything. But when she came clear and told me that she was a princess: that I did not expect. So I reacted the way a normal thirteen year old boy would—silly and stupid. No way was I going to tell any living being. That was her secret and her secret only. Plus, I’d get fired otherwise.

No, Sophie didn’t know that I was her bodyguard. There’s been so many times where I’ve planned on telling her, trust me. But I’ve been specifically told to keep my mouth shut about that. They believe that if she knew why I was really her friend, she wouldn’t be the same and open up the way she has. But no, that’s not the only reason why I’m her friend. I’ve loved every single minute of this job.

“Niall!” I heard her yell out for me. I could hear sadness in her voice. Immediately I turned around to face her. Her eyes were glossy and red and her mascara had trailed down her cheeks only slightly.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” I bombarded her with questions – though I had to, in case something had really gone wrong. I placed my right hand on her shoulder just like a supporting friend would. I knew my duties and I stuck by them. If anything was to happen, I’d need to be the first to know. That’s why I had to be her friend and try my hardest to stay that way.

“Harry…” she trailed off, still sobbing in her hands. Her tears were escaping the space between her fragile fingers and falling straight to the floor. Harry. I never really warmed up to him. There was always something about him that proved to be untrusting and now my suspicions were confirmed.

“What did he do? Sophie, what did he do to you?” I looked up from her and searched around the school area. It all looked calm. Teenagers gossiping, hugging, and having a good time before the morning bell sounded. By the looks of the stable area, I could tell that this mustn’t have been an emergency, but a personal problem, like heartbreak. I knew the feeling all too well.

“He cheated on me. And just dumped me…” She managed to say as she wept and brought her fingers down to her sides, revealing her sparkly hazel eyes. Instinctively, I wiped a tear away from her cheek. She was just perfect. Who in the world would want to break her heart? I for one would never ever have that thought even cross my mind if I was to date her. I shook my head mentally when I realised what I was just thinking.

“Hey,” I gently pushed some of her tangled hair out of her face and looked deeply into her eyes, “you know he’s not worth your tears.” I reasoned. It was true. No one was worth her tears.

“But I… I don’t even know why he would do such a thing!” She cried and looked up, hoping her tears would dissolve back into her eyes. She pressed her lips together to keep herself from quivering. I knew she didn’t like crying in public, so I wrapped my arms around her and kept her head rested in my shoulder to keep anyone from seeing her.

I knew she’d like it that way, “You’re the best Niall.” She mumbled in my chest. I rubbed her back and let her sob softly.

“What happened?” A voice questioned. I glanced up and saw Louis and Liam start walking over to us. Louis had a concerned expression upon his face. His eyes flickered from Sophie to me and he raised his eyebrows, as if asking if the situation was serious.

I hate to admit it, I really do, but even Louis knew why I was here. He knew that I was hired to stand by Sophie. Only she didn’t know, and I hated that. Sometimes it drove me mad, stressed me, because I was lying to my best friend. From what I can remember, Louis had told Liam who they really are as well. He had known him long enough to trust him and I could trust him as well. So I wasn’t surprised when he looked as worried as Louis. But Liam wasn’t hired for anything. I would’ve known if he was. He was just a genuine, supporting friend.

“Harry dumped her.” I simply said to him. There was nothing else to say, really. The douche broke her heart.

“What a loser!” Liam shook his head. “Come here.” He waved his arms over at Sophie and signalled her for a hug. She looked up at me and let go to give him one too.

Don’t get me wrong, I know Liam is a great guy, and Sophie has told me plenty of times how they could never happen, but it got to me a little. He was a good looking guy, so when I saw them together, I got a feeling of jealousy just bottling up inside of me. But that was ridiculous, because I shouldn’t… I can’t let my feelings get in the way of my job.

She softly let him hug her and slowly shook her head.

“You’re right, Niall,” she cleared her throat, “he isn’t worth a single tear.” After saying that, she released from her hug with Liam and pressed her hands against her cheeks to forcefully get rid of the tears. I knew she was just saying this to try and convince herself that she was okay, and hopefully that worked.

“Of course I am! He’s worthless anyway.” I smiled at her. I waited for her to smile back. Her smile makes my day… I mean, she has to be happy, that’s what I’m here for.

She brightened up and shone that smile of hers. Her eyes showed that she was faking it a little, but she was trying, and that’s all I needed. She deserved to be happy and treated right, and that’s exactly what I try to give her each day – a best friend while doing my job all at the same time. It’s worked perfectly fine since we met.

The bell for went off for the start of the day and we all exchanged concerned looks, only to wipe them off and focus back on Sophie. She was going to be fine, she was stronger than she thought. Plus, Harry wasn’t anything special. I knew his type. I bet he wasn’t even hurting the slightest.

“Are you going to be okay?” Louis asked her.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m good.” She replied and nodded her head, continuing to convince herself.

“C’mon, let’s head to class.” I wrapped my arm around Sophie to show my support and she smiled as we started walking off.

A/N: Remember to keep voting and commenting! It would mean a lot :) Thanks guys!

~Jess xo