Unrequited

Chapter 3

5:30pm (1) New Text 

Mum

hi charlotte. so sorry, going to be working late with sam tonight. lots of stuff to work out. you ok to get room service for dinner? rather you didnt go out for food by yourself. dont wait up for me. mum xxx

--> Reply 

thats fine mum. dont worry i expected this kinda thing(: we’re here for your job not a holiday. will do! char xx

I sat slumped over an armchair in one of the designated common rooms on our floor of the hotel. My legs hung over one arm of the chair and my head rested on the other. I flicked through the channels on the TV, settling on an unfamiliar soap opera. I didn’t bother following the storyline; I was a little spaced out - from the flight or my new found acquaintances I didn’t know. The boys had been out rehearsing all day for the first show of the tour which was in two days. I knew Mum would be going absolutely out of her mind at this point and I decided to just fend for myself the next few days. I had never minded doing things for myself, being alone. Not in an unsocial kind of way. I just needed to be left to my own thoughts sometimes. I became quite the analyst when left by myself. I began to reflect over the previous day and the five boys I’d met. When meeting boys for the first time I generally tended to be quite shy and reluctant to say much. However with Liam, Louis, Harry, Niall and Zayn, it was a completely different story. They were all older than me and had a very relaxed atmosphere around them which had seemed to, in turn, set me at compete ease in their presence. I’d known them for only a day and yet was already comfortable enough joking with them and just being myself. I was pondering this thought when those five boys burst through the door, a jumble of winter coats and rowdy laughter. Judging by the curls plastered to Harry’s forehead, they’d been caught in the rain.

“Hey, Charlotte” beamed Liam, shrugging off his coat.

“Hey”, I said with a wave. “I thought pop stars weren’t made to walk in the rain”

Zayn snorted. “The idiot taxi driver dropped us off a block early and the windows were too fogged up for us to see exactly where we were before we got out of the car.”

“Taxi? Don’t you guys have like special cars or something?” I asked

“The buses arrive in a couple of days but ‘til then we have to manage peasant-style”, Louis joked, slumping down on a couch near mine.

“Oi. Us peasants know no better and neither do you for the time being!” I reminded him.

“Until the buses come!” Louis repeated. Zayn and Niall joined Louis on the couch, taking control of the TV remote, while Liam perched himself on a stool at the breakfast counter and Harry went to the fridge. I tore my eyes away as quickly as I could when I caught myself staring at the way Harry’s tracksuit pants were slung incredibly low on his hips. “There’s no food!” he complained, slamming the door shut. “Yeah, we’re living off room service I think” I told him. “At least, I am, Mum’s ditched me to work with Sam tonight, so! Speaking of, I better go back to my room and get some dinner, I might see you boys later”

“What? Dont be silly”, said Liam, “Stay and eat with us!”

“Yeah we did promise to look after you, we can’t let you go back to your room by yourself and just sit there all night!” Zayn joined in with Liam.

“You sure? I don’t want to like, intrude on you guys or anything” I secretly hoped I wouldn’t have to go back to room and be alone for the whole night.