Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) Charrr pointed out that I accidently put Crystal's name when I meant to put Karla so sorry about that! Karla…Crystal…easy mistake, right? ;) Here's the next chapter :D
Hattie's POV
I could hear male voices shouting and laughing and the thumping of the ball being bounced on the ground. I held my breath to steady my nerves and stepped outside. There were seven boys outside with a very similar, Hispanic appearance. Most of them were glistening in sweat, yet still managed to look like they should be from a photo shoot or something. They all had the same dark brown hair and were clearly in shape. I suddenly felt extremely self-conscious of my appearance. I was wearing a knee length pale blue dress to match the bow in my hair but I worried that I looked too childish.
'Oh, hey there,' the boy with the surfer curls said, suddenly shocking me out of my trance. I gave a tentative look behind my shoulder, debating whether to go back.
'Don't be scared. I promise you we are very friendly. I'm Xav,' the boy said.
'Who are you?' another boy asked. This one had long dark hair tied into a ponytail.
'Um…I'm Hattie. I live next door. My mother said we should bake a cake to welcome you to the village. Your dad said that I should go and play with you in the garden,' I said, quietly.
'Cake? I love cake,' one of them grinned.
'Well it's nice to meet you, Hattie. Do you want to play?' Xav asked.
'Um…I'll just watch,' I said shyly.
'Come one…I bet you would be brilliant at shooting,' He smiled and I shook my head.
'If you don't want to play, why don't you give me a hand refereeing? I need and extra pair of eyes to keep this lot from cheating,' another boy said. He sat on the table next to the pitch and smiled at me with a warm, kind smile.
'Okay,' I agreed and quickly walked over to where the boy was sitting and the basketball game started again.
'I'm Uriel. What did you say your name was again?' He asked.
'Hattie. Hattie Lane,' I replied.
'Cool name. You sound British?'
'Yes, I moved to South Africa a couple of years ago. My father got a job promotion,' I smiled.
'Do you like it here?'
'Yes it's a beautiful place. I'm not really keen on the spiders though,' I laughed and Uriel chuckled. His hazel coloured eyes light up like gems when he laughed.
'Thankfully I haven't seen one yet. Believe me; I wouldn't be so calm about it either.' Uriel chuckled.
'Are they really all of your brothers?' I asked curiously.
'Yes, all six of them,' Uriel smiled.
'Uriel! Zed is cheating!' One of his brothers shouted suddenly.
'I didn't see, Will,' Uriel replied with a smirk.
'He's using his powers!' Will replied. Another brother suddenly elbowed Will in the ribs, as if to shut him up.
'What does he mean by his powers?' I asked curiously.
'Zed's unbelievably amazing basketball powers,' Uriel chuckled and his brothers awkwardly looked at one another as though they were talking with their eyes.
'Although, others would say that Zed's basketball skill is a fluke,' Xav suddenly smirked.
'Hey! It's not a fluke; it's pure talent. Let me prove it. Let's have a shoot-off,' Zed declared and suddenly the awkwardness disappeared as the brothers went back to their normal selves.
'Fine. Game on brother,' Xav laughed and the brothers split into teams and took it in turns to see how many times they could get the ball in the hoop.
'Uri, Hattie, fancy a go?' Xav asked us. Uriel looked at me questioningly.
'I don't know how,' I replied.
'It's easy; you just have to get the ball in the hoop. You can be on my team because, let's face it, I am the best,' Uriel laughed.
'Well see about that,' Xav grinned and threw the ball to me. I panicked and ducked so it wouldn't hit me. All of the boys started laughing at my incompetence.
'Good luck, Uri,' Zed chuckled.
'Ignore him Hattie, we can take them down. Just…try and catch the ball,' Uriel smiled reassuringly. I decided instantly that I liked Uriel. He was nice and funny and…and there was something about him that I couldn't quite describe.
'Sure you can, go ahead and prove yourself worthy,' Xav smirked and, just to show off, he threw the ball into the hoop without even looking in the right direction.
'Hattie and I can beat you arrogant ass any day,' Uriel scorned and spun the basketball around his index finger. I hoped he wouldn't be too mad once he realised how bad I actually was.
'Go on then, let's see what you got,' Zed laughed and knocked the ball out of Uriel's hand, passing it to me.
The basketball hoop was a lot taller than me, although I am rather small. That wasn't an excuse though; I didn't even know how to throw a ball, let alone through a hoop. Sport was never my forte in school. There was a group of us that would 'forget' our gym kits every lesson. The group included a girl who dressed head to toe in gothic attire, even in the heat of summer, a boy who skipped more lessons than attended, the school bully who even the teachers were too afraid to stand up to and me: the dreamer. The teachers weren't that bothered though; they saw me play sport at the beginning and were quite pleased that I sat out for the safety of myself and the people around me.
'I'll show you,' Uriel said, realising my unskillfulness with sport. He stood behind me and took hold of my hands. I couldn't help but hold my breath. This was the closest I'd ever been to a boy and it was making me nervous.
'Make a triangle with your fingers….like that yeah. Then hold the ball up so you're looking at the ball through the triangle. Then give it a push, make sure your hands end up pointing in the direction of the hoop,' Uriel said, stepping back.
The ball went nowhere near the hoop. In fact the maximum height it reached was about half the size of the pole.
'That was tragic,' Xav said, shaking his head and tutting.
'Be friendly, Xavier. Give her a chance,' Uriel warned.
'Or maybe a little bit of height?' Xav suggested wickedly and suddenly, I was lifted off the ground by Xav and held tightly around the waist. I squealed in surprise when the ground suddenly disappeared from beneath my feet.
Uriel chuckled and passed me the ball. I gave shooting another shot. Yet again, it didn't go in but it managed to hit the metal ring of the hoop.
'Progress,' I laughed quietly as Xav lowered me to the ground.
After a couple more shots, the boys decided they needed a drink and I followed them back into the kitchen which had suddenly got a lot busier with seven sweaty boys inside.
'Who won the game?' Saul asked as we entered the kitchen.
'Hattie,' Uriel grinned and winked at me.
'Yup…you are looking at the next big basketball superstar there, dad,' Zed agreed and chuckled.
'Is my mother here?' I asked in confusion.
'No she left a while ago. She said something about checking up on your father,' Karla replied.
'Oh…I should probably go then,' I said.
'No, you're very welcome to stay,' Karla said.
'Why don't you stay for dinner?' Saul suggested.
'Thank you very much,' I smiled although I'm not sure I wanted to stay without the comfort of my mother here. I felt awfully shy.
'Speaking of dinner…what do we have and how long will it take?' Will asked.
'Boys…all you ever think about is food,' Karla sighed.
'That's not all we think about,' Xav said mischievously and winked at me, causing blood to rush to my face and paint my cheeks a delightful pink.
'Behave,' Saul warned. 'Go show Hattie around the house or something.'
'To the Boudoir?' Will asked me cheekily. I couldn't see my face but I was sure my blush got deeper.
'William and Xavier Benedict. One more remark like that and neither of you will be getting any dinner,' Karla warned.
'Sorry mom,' Xav laughed although he didn't look it. I got the feeling that he often had a naturally flirty charm to him.
'Yeah mom, from now on we'll be proper gentlemen,' Will agreed and led me out of the room. Uriel came with us whilst the rest of them stayed in the kitchen whilst their mother dished out orders on preparing the dinner.
Will and Uriel took me upstairs to a messy bedroom with three beds. Will threw himself on his bed and laid back with his hands folded behind his head. Uriel sat on another bed and I awkwardly perched next to him
'You don't talk much, do you?' Will asked.
'Cat got your tongue?' Uriel asked.
'No. I don't even know any cats,' I replied, causing Uriel and Will to burst out laughing.
'You don't have to be shy around us. We already like you,' Uriel said.
'Thanks. I like you also,' I replied awkwardly, avoiding eye contact by facing the floor.
'Glad to hear…' Uriel chuckled.
