Chapter 1 – Rude Encounters

Spring break is supposed to be fun. Well, my spring break was going to be nothing close to fun. I was stuck in a no-name town hanging out with the few people I knew. There is nothing to do in the little town in New Jersey that I lived in. No malls, no movie theatres, no places to hang out.

So here I was on a warm April afternoon, sitting at my computer talking to a few friends as my phone started to vibrate. I looked it over not recognizing the number. "Hello?"

"Hey Kay! How are you?" a familiar voice said. The guy had a British accent, and I only knew one person with a British accent.

"Harry, I miss you! Where are you? You've been gone too long!" Harry and I had met through my cousin Julia, who he dated for several months while she was in England. Harry was the sweetest guy I knew. I had gotten along with him and even encouraged him to break up with Julia. After the break up, Harry and I became close friends hanging out when we could. We didn't see each other much because he lived in England. But not only did he live in England, Harry was in a band and wasn't around all that much.

He laughed, "I miss you too. Actually, I'm outside your house. Come out I need to talk to you."

I hung up my phone and went down the flight of stairs to the main floor of the house. I went out the door to see a green mini cooper in my driveway. It was Harry. He got out of the little car wearing a gray sweater and blue jeans, which was warm for spring clothes. I jumped up wrapping my arms around his neck and my legs around his muscular waist. He placed his warm lips on my cheek and left a soft kiss. "Ah, my angel, it's good to see you're beautiful face! I've missed you, Kayleigh."

"Harry, what are you doing here in America? What are you doing at my house?" He placed me back on the ground making me feel short to him.

"I'm here to pick you up. We're going to California for spring break. Your mom called me the other day to see if you could spend the week with me and the other guys. We have an award show to go to, and a six day weekend to share."

I stared at him in disbelief. "You're serious? You're taking me to California for spring break?" He just nodded his head. I jumped on him again and kissed his cheek repeatedly for about five minutes. "I love you! You're the best!"

I finally got off of him and walked back to my room to pack. I pulled out a black suitcase and a navy blue duffel bag. I packed all clothes in the suitcase and all necessities in the duffel bag.

After packing, we left for the airport. The plane was leaving at 3 and wouldn't arrive until at least 10 p.m. We arrived in California a little later than we had anticipated. The landing was delayed to clear the runways for us to land.

We sat in the back of the cab looking at the sights. "Alright, let me warn you, the guys are probably going to get a little wild with you around. Let me explain who each guy is so you're not so out of the loop. Dougie is the baby. He gets kind of hyper sometimes and he doesn't talk much because most of the time he thinks he offends people. He'll be sharing a room with Danny. Danny is sweet and he doesn't know what he's saying half the time, which is usually hilarious. Then there's Tom. He is usually quiet and keeps to himself, unless something is bothering him. He's a good kid, a good friend to have when you're down. And one of our other friends is going to be there. His name is James and he's a really funny guy. So he' won't be a problem. Tom and James will be sharing a room."

"Where I am sleeping? I don't sleep on couches, Har." I lowered my sunglasses to look at him. I hated sleeping on a couch and ending up with a bad back.

He shifted uncomfortably. "I hope you don't mind sharing a bed…"

"With whom?! I'm not into bed sharing with guys I don't know," I said crossing my arms over my chest. How could he force me to sleep in the same bed with someone I didn't even know?

"Would you relax? You're sharing with me. The apartment has three bedrooms. Two bedrooms have two beds. The other has one bed. Is that okay?"

I smiled, "That's fine. But you have to promise not to fall in love with me. I can't have my best friend in love with me. Promise?"

"Promise." Harry took my pinky in his and shook it. "Plus you're not my type," he quipped back. We both started to laugh. He was lying. After him and Julia broke up, he tried to ask me out. I said no.

California was warm with a bit of a breeze in the air. The sky was painted with stars without a cloud to block them. The buildings reminded me of New York City except with no graffiti on them.

When we got to the apartment, there were three guys standing outside. They helped collect the few things I brought with me while I paid the taxi cab driver. We settled into the living room. I stood against the arm of the leather couch. Harry was seated on the arm of the couch and wrapped his arm around my waist.

"Guys, this is Kayleigh or Kay as she likes to be called. She's Julia's cousin," Harry smiled as he introduced me.

A boy sitting on the other couch in a black button up shirt and blue jeans spoke up. "She better be nicer than that other bitch."

"She is a bitch, but she's my cousin. And if it wasn't for her I wouldn't be here," I shot back. This guy had to be Dougie. I'm not even in the house five minutes and he already offended me. I could tell I wasn't going to get along with him.

"Just ignore Tom. He's been in a bad mood all day. I'm Danny. Nice to meet you," the brunette guy spoke up. His accent was different than Harry's, it was thicker. I wondered why.

The last two boys introduced themselves as James and Dougie. James was in a black t-shirt and blue jeans. He seemed rather friendly and I wanted to get know him. Dougie didn't say much beside his name and I wondered if it was because he was afraid to offend me like Tom had.

"We had a long flight; you must be jet lagged. You should get some rest. I'll be back in a few minutes." Harry kissed my forehead and directed me to our room. "Night angel."

I went to my bedroom locking the door behind me. I sat on the edge of the bed and ran my hands through my light brown hair. In less than 24 hours, I had been surprised, taken away, and had my family insulted. I was in California and I hadn't even told my mother. I'm sure she wouldn't be too happy about that. I rummaged through my suitcase to find my camouflage shorts and black tank top. I switched clothes and unlocked the door for Harry to come in. I then climbed into bed to try to get some sleep.

Harry joined me about a half hour later. He climbed into bed cuddling up next to me. He wrapped his arms around my waist. I turned to face him. "Hi."

"Hi, I thought you were sleeping," he whispered.

"Not much; I couldn't sleep. Is Tom always so negative? I know Julia's a bitch but he didn't have to say it."

Harry moved a piece of hair out of my eyes. "Kay, I warned you. Tom's a great guy. You just have to get pass the rough exterior. Tomorrow we're going to the beach try to warm up to him then. But for now don't worry about it. Get some sleep. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

I lay in bed thinking of ways to get close to Tom. He hated my cousin and I didn't want him to hate me. His comment bothered me until I fell asleep thinking of the beach the next day.