Build Me Up (A One Direction Fanfiction)

Chapter 1

The day of my eighteenth birthday was the worst of my life; until I went to McDonald's.

I'd been fighting with my mom for years over how I wanted to run away and get away from her. Except that day was the day it was finally legal for me to leave. But of course, I couldn't just leave. No, I had to make every effort to throw a big 'fuck you' in my mom's face.

Long story short, it backfired, and so I somehow ended up sitting at McDonald's at two in the morning, crying over a bunch of greasy food, hating my life.

I only half-noticed that I wasn't the only one in the joint. There was a group of boys who I was too pissed off to really pay any mind to. They were busy laughing and messing around, and I was too busy feeling sorry for myself that I didn't even notice when they stopped and got really quiet, whispering to each other in hushed voices. I didn't notice until one of them came over to me, flashed me a big, cheeky grin, and said casually, "So, does a pretty girl like you usually come to McDonald's at two in the morning to cry at her food, or is this a special occasion?"

I stared at him for a moment, and then, for some reason, I laughed.

I don't know whether it was because I didn't know what to say, or because after all that had happened that day, some cute boy came up to me and called me pretty, or because I wasn't expecting anybody to talk to me, but I laughed. Finally coming back to my senses, I took a breath. "I've... had a long day, yeah." I responded, sniffing and giving him a small, half-hearted smile.

To my surprise, he sat down right next to me and gave me another genuine smile. He looked familiar for some reason. Maybe I went to school with him.

"Tell me about it." He said softly, brushing a tousle of light brown curls away from his eyes. I only stared at him, tilting my head to the side. Why was he even bothering with me? Trying to make me feel better, being so nice to a complete stranger? Suddenly I was aware of four other pairs of eyes on me, his friends at the other table, watching me. I flushed, tears welling up in my eyes again.

"This is a joke." I murmured. He looked at me with confusion (no doubt fake, I thought).

"I-"

"I see your stupid friends watching me. This isn't funny, picking on some girl who's obviously already had a shitty day! It's rude and insensitive and if you're trying to make it worse, it's working!" I exclaimed, letting a couple of tears stream down my face before wiping them away and averting my eyes, trapped in the booth by this stupid, insensitive jerk.

He was silent for a few long moments, probably trying to figure out what to say since I called him out. I was surprised he didn't just laugh and go back to his friends.

"We're not trying to make fun of you." He finally responded. "We saw you crying and wanted to help, but we figured all five of us coming over would probably just make you feel overwhelmed. They're watching because they're concerned, not because they think it's funny." He added quietly.

I looked back over at him, meeting his gaze. I bit my lip, trying not to let myself cry in front of him or his friends anymore. He seemed to be telling the truth, genuinely concerned.

"I... I'm sorry, I just- I've just-"

"It's okay. Don't worry about it. My name's Harry. You are?" He gave me a smile, green eyes analyzing my face. I wiped another tear from my cheek, for some reason feeling like I knew him from somewhere. Maybe that was my brain being stupid, though.

"I, uh- Sam. Sam Greene." I spoke quietly, still fighting back tears for some reason. I felt ridiculous, crying in front of this stranger, along with four of his friends onlooking.