Cut!

Take 25 - Tell Me a Lie - Part 3

A/N: Comment as you read. It helps me focus. 

I woke up to the sound of yelling. An argument was taking place, and I could hear every word of it clearly—too clearly.

“This is bullshit!” I recognized Louis’ voice. “I don’t have to put up with this. We don’t have to put up with this.”

Rubbing my eyes, I looked over at Harry, who was still sleeping beside me. How could he sleep in this noise? I untangled myself from his arms and rolled out of the bed. Still in my jammies, I trudged out into the living room.

Zayn and Louis was standing on one side of the room, their faces contorted with anger. On the opposite side, Liam and Niall was trying to calm both of them down.

“I know that, Louis,” Liam said. “Trust me: I get it. But you can’t act rashly.”

“Are you freaking kidding me?” Louis spat. Gesturing with his hand, he pointed to something on the table. I tried to arch my neck to see what it was. “Elle is going to see this shit. As if she doesn’t have enough to deal with already.”

Zayn ran a hand through his hair, messing it up. “I’m with Lou here. We shouldn’t put up with this, they’ve been after her for so long now. It’s not fair, and I think we need to release a statement or something.”

“A statement of what exactly?” Niall shouted. “Don’t bully our friend’s it isn’t cool?” He snorted. “That won’t go over well for either of us.”

Louis frowned at him and returned his attention to Liam. “What if it had been Saphira? Would you still have been this chill about?”

“I wouldn’t have any other choice, mate.” Liam shrugged. “I get that it bothers you, but you can’t just jump in and take on the whole media on your own.”

“I don’t think you get it,” Zayn said. “Those are ridiculous claims, and they’re fabricating lies. I’ve spent time with her—she’s not like this.”

“I spent some time with her too,” Liam said. “We all have, and we all like her. But she has to be used to this; she’s been in the business longer than us.”

Wait… Who were they talking about? At first, I had assumed it was either Louis’ or Liam’s girlfriend, but now? It wasn’t Terry was it? I frowned and leaned in to listen some more, well-knowing that I  should let my presence be known.

“You didn’t see her last night,” Louis said. “It affected her… badly.”

Last night? Something clicked inside my mind, and I stepped forth. “Are you talking about me?” I asked.

All four of them jerked around to face me. If I hadn’t been too occupied, I would probably have admired how synchronized their moves were.

“Cami!” Zayn’s voice broke when he said my name. Clearing his throat, he tried to smile. “What are you doing up so early?”

I glanced at the clock. “It’s 7AM.  That’s not so bad.” Crossing my arms, I looked at them. “Why are you arguing?”

Louis laughed nervously. “It’s a habit. You know. We spend so much time together so sometimes there’s bound to be some friction.”

I frowned. “You have to be the world’s worst liar.” I walked over to them, aiming straight for the table. “Let’s see what got all your panties in a twist.”

Once I got closer, I recognized an old fashioned newspaper tabloid. I reached for it, realizing that my own face was staring back at me. It was taken last night when I froze downstairs. Louis’ arms were around me, and he had a worried expression on his face.

The headline read: Ludmilla Hanson doesn’t settle for one—she needs two directions to choose from.

“Don’t read it,” Zayn said.

Ignoring him, I turned to the page, finding more pictures taken out of context. The earlier photographs of Harry and me covered one page, while the opposite held pictures of Louis. The article in itself was well-written fiction, but it still hurt to read.

“Is this how the world sees me?” I muttered. I turned around to look at them. “Well? Is it?”

“It’s just rumors, Cami,” Niall tried. “Fecking rumors, that’s all.”

I laughed without any humor. “That’s all? They’re painting me as a fricking whore.” I opened up the paper, showing him the well-placed photographs. “Not only is that extremely offending to me as a human being, but it’s also slut-shaming.” I threw it on the table. “This is ridiculous.”

“That’s what I said,” Louis added. “I told them that we need to put a stop on these rumors once and for all.”

“What?” I narrowed my eyes at him. “You want to storm out there and deny this, so they can fabricate more rumors? They will take anything you say out of context, making it look like we’re hiding something.”

“Exactly,” Liam said. “Thank you.”

I glared at him response. Running a hand through my entangled bed-hair, I sighed. “It’s too early for this shit.”

This was so much worse than the pictures of last night. Ludmilla had enough trouble trying to get healthy again without me adding to the stress. The worst thing was: I couldn’t blame anyone but myself for this. These pictures weren’t proof of Ludmilla’s past wrongdoings, it was cleverly shot photographs of moments that backed up a ridiculous rumor.  Moments that I was responsible for.

“I’ve had it,” Zayn said. “I’m going to call my agent and set up a press conference. I won’t stand for this anymore. It has to end.”

“Right,” I said. “And then what? You storm out there and tell everyone how I am not like this? You know what will happen then?” I stared at him. When he didn’t reply, I continued, “Then tomorrow, we’re going to wake up to a new headline: Ludmilla Hanson, now with three parts of one direction protecting her. You can’t do that to Terry.”

Louis kicked the couch. “This is such bullshit.”

“What is?” a fifth voice joined the conversation. Looking up, I saw Harry rub sleep out of his eyes as he walked over. He looked between us. “What’s happening?”

 A/N: Give it a vote, maybe? This is the second update for tonight. Let's see how far I can get: Bring those pompoms. Drama is up ahead!