An Ounce Of Hope
Rane's POV:
The sea of females twisted and screeched. My trivial body was bumped into and stepped on by their heedlessness. Really ladies? Get a grip on yourselves. But my silent thoughts were left unsaid, and unheard by the screaming girls. They continued to chant and bustle around. I felt a hot hand grab my wrist. I whirled around to confront whoever had seized me, but it was only Tabytha.
"Tabby! Where where you?"
"Where was I? Where were you?"
"Trying to find you. I left you alone fore one minute and you ran off!"
"I thought I saw them, okay?" Tabby pouted, securing her grip on my wrist before continuing, "Now, come on! They'll be out in any minute and I want to be as close as possible."
"Yeah, sure." I said, but it came out as more of a moan. It was evident I didn't want to be there. The whole "go crazy over boys" label wasn't really my thing. But it was certainly Tabby's, and being her best friend, it was my job to get her in and out of the signing alive. So far, I was failing.
I had already lost her twice. I was so taken back by the confusion of the obnoxious fans. Don't get me wrong, I like this One Direction's music, but they're just not really my thing.
Then, just like that, Tabby lurged forward, nearly pulling my arm out of its socket as she went. She pulled me through clumps of screaming girls, who nearly blew out my ear drums. She pulled me past a flamboyant flash mob. She pulled me, until there was no where else to go. Before us, the crowd was too dense to pass through, and behind us, people were quickly closing in at all sides. My claustrophobic nature caused me to shift, uneasily.
"How did you talk me into this?" I asked Tabby, and she smiled in response. As if her bare smile was enough to answer all of life's questions. I scowled at her and her smile only grew.
She placed her hands on my shoulders and squeaked with excitement. I smiled, genuinely happy to see her in such a good mood.
"We're meeting one direction!" She smiled and flailed her hands in the air.
"They're just signing our cd's, babe. It's not like they'll remember us tomorrow. They do this all the time. We're just another stop on the map."
"Wow. Way to be the worst spoil-sport ever, Rane." She pouted, sticking out her bottom lip. I threw my hands up in the air, "I should win an award."
"Aren't you the least bit excited?"
"I guess a little bit. But these girls are getting on my nerves. They're so obnoxious."
Tabby surveyed the scene around her and nodded, "Yeah, sorry about that."
I laughed, as if there was something she could do about it, "It's fine, love. I'm sorry to be such a pessimist."
"It's okay. Just try to get in the mood of things. You'll like it a lot better."
I nodded, genuinely appreciating her thoughtful advice. I tried my best to get excited. Though my hollow spirits did rise when a short, brown haired man jumped onto the stage before us and yelled, "All right, all right settle down, ladies! The boys will be out in a moment. So please, form a single file line along this railing." He explained, pointing to the railing that snaked around the campus. All at once, the sea of women rose and ran over to the railing, screaming and tripping all the way. My hearts pounded as Tabby pulled my numb body over to it. She grabbed a hold of it with one hand and pulled me in line. With her short stature, one would assume she wasn't very strong. But on the contrary, she was one of the strongest girls I knew. She was also one of the prettiest. Her golden hair was crimped, and her loose waves transitioned into their bright red tips. Her round face had a smooth, creamy complexion, and my jealousy for her beauty was ever present. Even though she always told me I was prettier, with my long brown curls that reached my lower back. My face was much like her's, round and even. But I loved her hair, and I forever coveted it.
A chorus of screams broke out, louder and shriller than ever before. I cringed, and strained my neck to see the stage. Five boys filed behind the signing table and sat down, laughing at one another and waving to their ecstatic fans.
"They're here! They are here! They. Are. Here! OMG PINCH ME!" Tabby yelped, anxiously spinning around in circles. I laughed and continued to watch the five boys. They pulled up their chairs and nodded to the security guard, who let the first of the crying women through.
The line moved slowly and steadily, never loosing pace as long as we went. With every step, Tabby's excitement grew. Once we finally reached the edge of the stage I was convinced if she didn't see them right then, she would've exploded. Even my excitement had grown. Our trembling legs carried us up the stairs and we filed in front of the table. Tabby went first, handing her cd to Zayn, who was furthest to the left (Tabby had madei it a point to teach me their names).
I did the same and calmly greeted him, "Hello."
"Hey lovely!" he smiled. Meanwhile, Tabby was shamelessly flirting with Harry, beside me. Zayn mindlessly passed my cd to Harry, who neatly signed it.
"Thank you!" I smiled.
"Your very welcome!" He handed my cd to Niall. When I saw the blonde, Irish boy, I had to laugh. Upon his head, sat three snapbacks, one piled on top of the other. He noticed my giggles and smiled at me.
"Nice hats!" I commented. He laughed and replied, "I couldn't decide on which one to wear this morning, so I wore them all."
"That's always the way to go. I honestly like them, though. That one's cool." I said, pointing to the one on top. It had the "OBEY" logo on it, with a white background. My idiotic smile grew as he took it off and examined it, spinning it around on his finger.
"You know what?" He asked, still deep in thought.
"What?"
"This hat. It would look a heck of a lot better on you." His words made me blush, and he ran his fingers along his beloved hat's rim. "You can have it." He seemed so nice, not full of himself like other celebrities I had met.
But my country roots urged me to be polite, "No, I couldn't take you hat!"
"Do it for me, babe. I'll sleep better at night knowing your wearing it. Please?" His Irish accent was too much to bare, and I gave in.
"Thank you so.." But I never got to finish my sentence. He gingerly passed it over the table, but the moment my finger tips brushed against the rim, I pulled back. I felt something cold and sharp against my neck, and a strong arm crossed my body, bruising my arm. I yelped, when I realized the cold, sharp object was a knife. What's going on?
I registered my perpetrator was female the moment she spoke, "You were gonna give your hat to this rat, Niall? Why didn't you give it to me? What does she have that I don't?"
I could smell the liquor on her lips, and I felt the knife dig into my skin. I froze in fear, not daring to move. My face turned white and my body went numb. I watched as the scene unfolded before me. Girls screamed and fled from the stage. Not one of them looked back, fearing they would too be adducted. All the boys stood up, leaning slowly over the table, sending me worried looks. Especially Niall, his face was even whiter than mine, and his whole body was shaking in fear. He tried to send me a calm look but, it only made my fear grow. Tabby collapsed on the floor, passing out from the intensity of the moment. Harry ran around the table and kneeled over her, gathering her in his arms. I saw a tear trickle down his face. Security advanced, and I felt the knife press further into my skin, until my skin broke and a trickle of blood rolled down my neck. Frantic tears started to stream down my face as she yelled, "Security takes a step closer and the girl dies."
Everyone stopped dead in their tracks, and no one moved. A quiet wail escaped my lips and uncontrollable water flowed from my eyes.
"Stop crying." she demanded, and I swallowed my tears.
Niall slowly raised his hands, showing he wasn't trying to be a threat. He slowly slipped over the table top saying, "Hey. Hey, Calm down, lady. You know what? I'm sorry, I didn't give you a hat! You want these? You can have them, really? Just let the girl go and I'll give them to you. Just let her go, yeah?" His words were slow and soothing. I took another shaky breath as he advanced.
"Stop right there! I'll kill her!" she threatened him. More tears rolled down the blonde's face.
"Please! If you don't want my hats, what do you want?" Niall wailed. Louis and Zayn were holding hands, Zayn comforting Louis. Out of the corner of my eye, I thought saw Laim secretly make his way off the stage. Where was he going?
The drunk woman didn't answer Niall, but her grasp on my arm tightened, and I could feel my blood being cut off from my finger tips. She began to shake, but not half as much as I did. My whole body was vibrating involuntarily How was this happening?
"Please!" Niall whispered through his tears. Irrepressible tears began to fall down my face, again.
"Stop crying." She demanded. She brought the knife up the my cheek, lightly slicing my it, then brought it back to me neck. I squeezed my eyes shut, as the stinging cut started to bubble and trickle down my face.
"Stop it. Please, I beg of you! I didn't mean to hurt your feelings! Please let her go!" Niall apologized, over and over, repeating the same words at least a hundred times. I'm going to die here. Like this. I never lived. I can't die. Please, God, don't let me die.
Louis slowly wiggled over the table, and brought Niall into a strong embrace. Niall's red eyes never departed from mine. His cheeks were as red as blood and sweat glistened from his pores.
My heart throbbed in my head. We all stood in silence. I heard breath in my ears. I watched Tabby's motionless body. I watched Zayn's face in horror. My whole life flashed before my eyes. I'm not ready to die. Don't let me die. I felt the blood and tears mix, and pour down my cheeks. My salty tears stung my cuts, and all my limbs went numb.
Suddenly, I heard a loud thump, and the bloody knife dropped from my neck, clattering on the floor. The woman collapsed at my feet. I let out a sob of relief and turned to see Liam, standing behind me with a shattered porcelain vase in his hand. I looked at it in aw as he said, "I'll pay for that later."
He brought me into his strong embrace, and all my bottled tears began to explode into his chest. I stained his blue, plaid shirt with my blood, but he didn't seem to care.
"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." I repeated, softly, through my stubborn tears. Niall came up behind me, and I brought myself to enough strength to turn to him. He brought me into his own chest, and I began to cry even harder. I couldn't help myself. All my emotions just poured out and my common sense vanished.
"It's alright dear. It's all over. You're going to be okay. You were so brave. Everything's alright, now. I'm right here. I'm right here. Shhhh..." He quietly comforted me, sympathetically rubbing my back. He continued to repeat his words, with more conviction than I've ever heard in a man's voice. After a minute, I gathered a deep breathe and took a step back, wiping my raccoon eyes. His poor, green hoody had blood stained all over the chest. He seemingly didn't want me to let go of him, as he pulled me back into his chest. "You gonna be alright?" he asked. I nodded slowly, burying my nose in this hoody. We stood there, like that, for a moment.
"Tabby!" I remembered, turning to see her motionless body, covered my Harry's shaking torso. I kneeled down next to him.
"She.. she needs a ambulance." He whispered through his tears.
"It's on its way." A security guard informed us. Harry flashed an angry look at him, saying, "It needs to be here, now!"
"We're doing the best we can." The security guard informed him.
"Do better." He snapped, and picked Tabby up, bridal style, resting her head on his shoulder.
Louis ran up behind him, and tried to comfort him as they carried her outside. I watched helplessly, and another tear rolled down my face.
"You should go, too. Get those cuts and bruises checked out." Niall walked up behind me. I shook my head, and said, "The hospital has more important injuries to attend to."
"C'mon." He sighed, and rubbed my back, leading me off the stage. Liam and Zayn followed close behind us.
"I never even got your name." Niall said, staring at the ground.
"It's... Rane." I sighed, not peeling my eyes off of Tabby's limp body in Harry's arms.
An hour later
I sat in the hospital hallway, outside of Tabby's room. I held back tears as I reflected on the previous events. They whirled around my head, and I couldn't seem to get them in order.
Harry was Tab's the room, talking to her. She became conscience just a minute ago. It was my turn next, but I knew not to infringe on their privacy. I ran my fingers along my cheek, realizing dried blood was smothered all over it. I felt my throat, and the deep cut instantly batted my hand away, sending pain through every limb of my body. Louis, Zayn, and Liam were in the waiting room, comforting one another.
Niall was... somewhere around here. He told me he had gone to get something for me. My curiosity was the only thing that kept me from breaking down.
A distant telephone rang from the nurse's office. I turned to see Niall snooping around behind the desk, suspiciously prowling around in boxes. I laughed as he jumped over the counter when a nurse turned the corner. He ran over to me with a small, blue first aid box in his hands. He sat, cross-legged, in front of my throbbing body.
"That was close." He sighed, referring to the nurse, who was glaring at him, suspiciously.
"What are you doing?" I asked, as he pulled out a sanitary wipe from a box he had brought with him.
"I found all this medical crap behind the nurse's counter. I thought you could use some of it." He smiled, sheepishly, and leaned forward, tenderly cradling the wipe on his fingers. He pressed it, timidly, against my cheek. It was cold, making me shiver. He quickly pulled it back, "You okay?"
I let out a shaky breath and said, "Yeah, I'm fine. Go ahead."
He bit his lip as he continued. His worried expression wavered from my eyes to my bleeding cheek.
"This might sting." He warned, and I braced myself for the worst. It wasn't that bad, since the cut on my cheek wasn't too deep.
"Alright. Now for the neck." He said, matter-of-fact-ly, and wadded up the wipe, tossing it on the floor next to him.
He pulled out a new one and leaned in to examine my neck. A disgusted look crossed his face.
"Oooh! Ouch! That look's nasty." He cringed. I softly laughed as he took his words back, "I didn't mean to say that, sorry! That was rude."
"It's fine. It feels as awful as it looks." I confessed, and he squinted to get a better look.
"Are you sure you don't want to get that checked out? It looks really, really deep."
"I'm fine." I lied. I just didn't want to miss my opportunity to talk to Tabby, before her parents arrived. Heaven knows how long they'd take with her.
I watched how much it pained him to see me like this. He stared into my eyes and said, "This is definitely gonna hurt, babe. I'm sorry. But I have to do it. It'll get infected if I don't." His apology seemed painful for him to say. I slowly nodded as his shaky hand rubbed the wipe across my neck. I cringed, squeezing my eyes shut as he bravely continued to clean the cut out. I lip down hard on my lip, and held hot tears back. The stinging pain shot through every cell of my body.
When he finished, he sighed, "It's over now."
"Thank you." I tried to smiled. The door clicked behind me and Harry's worn body appeared.
"How is she?" I asked, without hesitation. Harry flashed me a sympathetic look.
"She's doing better."
I pushed myself up and entered the room. Tabby was limply lying on the hospital bed, and she flashed me a groggy smile.
Three Hours Later
Niall's POV:
Rane's and Tabby's parents had both arrived. They were all at the hospital with Tabby. Security had informed Rane she needed to go to the police station, in order to fill out some legal crap. Rane was reluctant to leave her best friend's side. So, I quickly volunteered to accompany her.
We arrived, already tired and worn out from the day's events. She had confessed to me she had a headache, and I told her to get some rest. We sat down on a couch in the waiting room, and she rested her head on chest. Almost immediately, she fell into a deep sleep.
She looked so fragile when she slept, like the world had bend her out of shape and she would break any moment. I replayed the events of the previous day in my mind, wondering what possessed me to give that hat to her.
I guessed because she was beautiful. And beautiful girls make stupid boys do crazy things. I remembered how the drunk woman seized her, and how the very sight of the knife had made me want to throw up. I remembered how, when I saw the blood, my heart shattered into a million tiny pieces. It would never be fixed, unless Rane fixed it for me. I couldn't let his girl go. I wanted her to sleep peacefully in my arms forever.
I would tell her how I felt. We would stay in touch. I would treat her like the jewel she is.
I slowly moved my hand up her arm. She winced, but stayed asleep. It was a wince of utter pain. I hesitantly pulled at her sleeve, allowing her tanned skin to be revealed. As I rolled her sleeve up, the tan turned to purple.
A mess of purple and blue and red was graffitied on her arm. The bruise was at least six or seven inches long. It was deeper and more gruesome than any bruise I had ever seen. I guessed the drunk lady had done this to her, too.
Why didn't she tell me? My hatred toward the drunk burned ever brighter and stronger. How could the world be so cruel? Why were people so thoughtless?
Why did this have to be my fault?
Inside, I beat myself up for causing all this mess. I loved this girl. I loved her? That sounds crazy, I know. I've only known her for a night. But the thought of spending every night with her made all my trivial thoughts go away. I hated the circumstances, but I loved the opportunity to hold her close to me.
An officer emerged from the small door frame and waved for us to come in. I rolled her sleeve back down, and stroked her cheek, the one that wasn't wounded. She slowly aroused from her sleep, looking up at my with groggy eyes.
"Wake up, Rane. It's your turn." I whispered. She smiled and sat up. I calmly interlaced our fingers, and lead her through the door frame, after the officer. He lead us into a small room, where he sat Rane down in a chair.
"You'll need to leave now, sir." He stated, gruffly, turning to me. I let go of Rane's hand and sent her a comforting look as I exited the room.
An Hour Later
Rane's POV
I exited the interrogation room. Gosh, you'd think I was the criminal. They had asked me so many questions, they all blurred around my brain. My heavy eyes longed for another nap, and my exhausted heart wanted it to be in Niall's arms. He was everything to me now. He seemed to get me, better than I got myself. As I reentered the waiting room, I was relieved to see Tabby sitting there, snuggling with Harry. They were so cute, together. She was obviously head over heels for him, and I was almost sure he felt the same. Her eyes lit up when she saw me, and she ran over to embrace me.
"You're not in the hospital?" I asked, surprised to see her.
"They said I could leave if I wanted to. And who wants to stay in that dump any longer than needed?" Her excitement soothed me. Harry waved to me, and I waved back. She silently squealed and lowered her voice, "Harry gave me his number. He said he wanted to stay in touch."
I raised my eyebrows with excitement and hugged her again. Once she had calmed down, she informed me, "Our parents are at the hospital, waiting. Oh! But, Niall wants to talk to you."
"Where is he?"
"Outside." She smiled, and pointed to the door. "I'm going to call our parents."
She scurried off to the pay phones. I walked over to Harry, and he stood up, giving me a hug. I whispered in his ear, "If you dare to hurt her, I will find you." My threat made him laugh.
"I wouldn't think of it." He assured me, "Bye, Rane."
"Goodbye, Harry."
I made my way over to the giant, metal doors, and leaned all my weight on them in order to pry them open. The cool, night breeze kissed my face and sent a brief shiver down my back. Niall was standing at the bottom of the stairs. I laughed at the sight of him, for once more, he had three snapbacks piled on the top of his head. I made my way down the stairs and stood directly in front of him.
"Nice hats!" I commented. He laughed and replied, "I couldn't decide on which one to wear this morning, so I wore then all."
"That's always the way to go. I honestly like them, though. That one's cool." I said, pointing to the one on top. It had the "OBEY" logo on it, with a white background. He gently pulled me closer, wrapping his hands around my waist.
"You know what?" He asked, seemingly deep in thought.
"What?"
"This hat. It would look a heck of a lot better on you." I giggled, and closed the gap between our bodies.
"You can have it." His smile grew with every word we exchanged. I bit my lip.
I remembered how my country roots urged me to be polite, "No, I couldn't take you hat!"
"Do it for me, babe. I'll sleep better at night knowing your wearing it. Please?" Once again, his Irish accent was too much to bare, and I gave in. I gently pulled the hat off his head, careful not the disturb the others.
I placed it on my own head, peering at him from under the rim. He grabbed the brim and spun the hat backwards on my head. I laughed.
"Thank you so.." But once again, my words were cut off. But this time, I wasn't because some idiotic drunk pulled a knife to my throat. This time, it was because Niall's lips collided with mine, and a spark lit up my soul. After a moment of disbelief, I began kissed him back. He ran his hands further around my waist. I gently and playfully nibbled on his bottom lip, and I felt his lips curve into a smile. We stood there, trapped in one another. The world didn't matter. The events of the day didn't matter. This was the happy ending to my dramatic story, and no one could ruin it. Even if they tried.
An Hour Later
I sat in my parents car as we drove down the highway. It was five o'clock in the morning, and we still weren't even half way home.
The golden glow of the street lights danced across the seat next to me, where Niall's hat silently laid. Every time I looked at it, I remembered him, and how much I missed him grew. A cruel tear slipped down my cheek as I picked up the hat and placed it on my lap.
I flipped it upside down, and examined it, thinking about all the boys.
Before I left, I had said goodbye to all of them. It was funny how attached you can get to people after only eight hours. I remembered how I couldn't stop thanking Liam for saving my life. I remembered how Harry and Tabby shared tears as her car pulled away. I remember how Louis and Zayn always tried to put a smile back on my face. I remembered how Niall cried as I left. I remembered how he ran after our car, waving like a mad man.
As I ran my fingers around the brim, I saw a dark smudge on the hat's interior. I pulled it closer to my eyes, squinting in the dark of the night. What was that?
Numbers?
It was numbers. A string of ten numbers. A smile grew across my worn face and I wiped away my tear. Niall, you cheesy little monster.
My thoughts were brought back to the kiss. A butterfly flew dangerously around my stomach. I wondered if I would ever see Niall again.
All I had was an ounce of hope.