My Brother's Best Friend

9.School

No one wanted school to start. It meant the end to another perfect, party-filled summer and doing whatever we pleased, and the beginning of homework, tests, drama, and most of all, complete and utter torture. At least, that was the way I felt about it.
School just seemed like a complication to me. For someone like Louis, it was easy, and even though he kept his grades up, we all knew he didn't have to. You see my brother was one of those people you just knew was going to make it big-time.
Yup, he was going to be famous and living the life, while I slaved away in university like my dad would have wanted me to, surviving off of nothing but Ramen Noodles and energy drinks.
During the summer, I felt so free. Sure, there was drama, but when you weren't in school it seemed less important for some reason.
When we returned to school, practically everyone was going to be gossiping about who got together with who and who had a falling out and who broke up. High school really was superficial; I was sick of it.
Sure, I was popular, so it wasn't that bad, but only because Louis was my brother and Harry was his best friend.
It was almost every girl's dream to be Louis Tomlinson's or Harry Styles' girlfriend. In their eyes, they were the hottest guys in school. But unfortunately for practically the whole female student population, neither one of them were looking to be exclusive. Instead they just slept around, breaking girls' hearts one by one.
Since I was as close to the two as you could get, all the girls basically lined up to be my friend, just so they'd have a shot with Louis or Harry. It was something I had to look forward to (note the sarcasm) every year.
I wasn't a very good student; I tended to slack off and focus more on the social things, much to my teachers' dismay. It was just hard for me to pay attention because most of this stuff I wasn't even going to use in real life. It seemed that way, at least.
I wasn't the class clown; I left that to Louis and Harry. Since it was their senior year this year, they could probably get away with it, with the help of Hazza's charm. He could hypnotise anyone- not just me.
The days seemed to fly by, and before I knew it, school was starting tomorrow. That meant a last-minute shopping trip with the girls and an earlier than usual bedtime. I hated to be all grumpy and tired in the morning; trust me when I say I am not a morning person at all. After sleeping in all the time, I couldn't even imagine waking up that early.
....................................
Morning came all too fast, though.
BEEP BEEP BEEP.
My alarm clock was the most devastating noise I'd ever heard in my life. I groaned, my eyes fluttering open as I just lay there in bed, not wanting to get up.
Here it goes, another year of the same thing over and over again. And it wasn't even my last year in high school.
I turned over and buried my face in the pillow. Why couldn't they just ban school forever? All it did was make me want to scream. I didn't even know what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. What sucked is that you needed school to go to college, and I'd made a promise to my dad that I'd do that.
I just let the alarm clock ring as I closed my eyes, drifting back to unconsciousness. The next thing I knew, my covers were ripped off the bed.
"Get your lazy ass out of bed!" I heard my brother shout.
I gave him the finger. "Let me sleep," I moaned.
"No, seriously, Amber, you have to get up. School starts in twenty minutes."
"You think I care?"
"Do I have to pour water on your head like last time? Because I will."
My eyes flew open and I shot up in bed, my heart pounding. Shit. He was not going to do that again! Last time I nearly killed him for it. I glared at him, and he just smirked, laughing quietly to himself.
"God, Amber, your hair's a mess."
"Gee, thanks, big bro." I yawned as I swung my legs over the side of the bed and rubbed my eyes to clear the sleep from them.
"Harry's already here; he said he'd drive us," Louis told me.
I did a facepalm and groaned. "Are you freaking kidding me? Every time he drives us he has to turn up the music so loud it hurts my ears, and when I cover them he laughs." I pouted, crossing my arms over my chest. "And to top that off, he always acts like a complete asshole."
Louis laughed. "And is that news or..?"
"Well, I guess not. Give me a break, it's too early in the morning to form complete sentences."
Louis ruffled my hair playfully, his blue eyes sparkling. "Try to be ready in ten, okay, Ambs?"
My eyes widened and I stared at him incredulously. "Ten?!"
"Yeah, is there a problem?"
"Lou, I can't be ready in ten. I'm a girl. I have to shower, do my hair and makeup..."
Louis looked confused. "What, you can't do that in ten minutes?" he asked, raising an eyebrow as he ran his hands through his brown hair.
"Ugh!" I yelled, throwing my hands up in the air. "You boys don't get anything!"
Louis rubbed his temples, laughing to himself. "Right, then, well, I'll be downstairs with Harry. Don't pull your hair out trying to find the perfect outfit or anything," he joked, making me giggle.
I watched him as he walked out of my room. I was so happy my brother and I were friends again; ever since he'd played that prank on me with Harry, we've been getting on quite well.
Almost fully awake now, I hopped off my bed and made my way to my bathroom, stripping off my grey tank top and plaid pajama shorts that I always wore in the summertime, and turning on the shower to medium heat. I stepped in and closed my eyes, letting the water flow down on me, relaxing a bit. Damn, the shower felt so good.
I began to sing "Titanium" by David Guetta, even though I knew I sucked. Give me a break, everyone sounds better in the shower!
You shout it loud, but I can't hear a word you say
I'm talking loud, not saying much
I'm criticized, but all your bullets ricochet
You shoot me down, but I get up
I hadn't taken a morning shower in so long, during the summer I'd always done it at night. I'm pretty sure I lost track of time, just singing as the warm water flowed down like a waterfall on me, but I didn't care. At least, not in that moment.
I'm bulletproof, nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away
I bent over and grabbed my favorite watermelon-scented shampoo, squirting it out and lathering it up into my long dark hair. My voice increased in volume and confidence as I continued to sing.
You shoot me down, but I won't fall
I am titanium
You shoot me down, but I won't fall
I am titanium...
And then there was a deafening knock on the door.
I nearly jumped out of my skin, almost slipping in the tub. My heart hammered in my chest as I stared at the door, wondering if I'd locked it. It was probably Louis telling me to hurry up.
"Nice singing," I heard a voice say. It was muffled by the shower, so I couldn't tell who it was.
"Fuck you, Louis, I'm showering," I called, giving the door the finger even though he couldn't see me.
"I've got two things that I have to tell you in this moment," the voice said. "One: it's nearly seven thirty, and school starts in 2 minutes, and two: hate to break it to you for the second time, but it's not Louis."
My eyes widened and two thoughts slammed into my brain at the same time.
The first one was, Shit. Harry heard me singing. I never let anyone hear me sing, especially him, because it was just embarrassing. Of course that asshole had to walk in at this very moment when I was singing my heart out (probably terribly too.)
And here's the second one: Holy crap, it was that late? As much as I hated school, I'd never been late. I was surprised that they'd even have waited up for me.
Both were really, really bad.
"Damn you, Styles!" I cried as I shut off the water frantically, stepping out of the shower dripping, naked, and shivering. I wrapped a fluffy blue towel around myself and opened the door to see a smirking Harry looking me up and down.
"Damn," he whispered, his eyes travelling from my wet head down to my toes, and he actually licked his lips at the sight of me standing there almost naked before him. "Hello, sexy," he purred.
I just scowled and held the towel tighter around myself, but inside I was dying from embarrassment. Amber, you are officially an idiot. I was so frantic I'd forgotten to tell Styles to get out of my room while I got ready.
"You know, I hope this is going to be our daily morning routine from now on," Harry raised an eyebrow suggestively. "I love that sexy blue towel, Dots, but I'd love to see what's underneath even more," he whispered the last part, and for some reason it made my heart race.
I wanted to lift my hand and smack him, but I was afraid my towel would drop off my body. Instead I just crossed one arm over my towel and pointed towards the door. I really couldn't deal with this shit today.
"STYLES. OUT. NOW," I demanded with a furious look on my face.
"Oh, come on, Dots, don't be that way," he cocked his head and advanced closer to me, somehow captivating me with every move he made. "Why don't you sing to me?" he whispered with a smirk, winking a little at the last part.
I broke then. I couldn't help it. "Asshole!" I cried. "Get out of my room!"
"You shoot me down, but I won't fall, I am titanium!" Harry mocked, grabbing a random hairbrush from my dresser and using it as a microphone, making a face and waving his voice like a diva. I felt my cheeks heat up with both anger and embarrassment. Oh crap, was that actually what I sounded like?
"Aw, come on, Dots, don't leave me hanging," he said, making the puppydog eyes at me. I couldn't help it, even though I was furious I had to burst out in laughter. "Sing with me!"
"No!" I cried. "Harry, get out!"
"Wait, hold on, I'm getting a stroke of genius here," Harry cried, stroking his non-existent beard. I could practically see the wheels turning in his brain.
"Harry, I mean it-" I said through my laughter.
"Oh, Dots, she wants me, to get out of her ro-oo-oom," Harry sung with passion and hilarity, making up the words as he went along.
"And she, looks soooo goood, in that bright bluee towelll..."
we probably missedd homerooommm... but I don't caaareee... I want to seee herrr, in herr.. underw-"
"OH MY GOD!!!" This time I really did smack him, but he just continued to sing even through his laughter.
"Shee's pissedd at meee... but I can telll... shee seecretlyyy liiikes it."
"No I don't!" I shrieked, but the blush on my face proved otherwise. God, I hated having such pale skin! That just meant he could tease me even more.
"Oh, Dots, my beautiful Dots, I'm serenading you this morning, and just giving you a warning, you're almost too hot to handle for meee..."
My mouth dropped open. "Styles!"
"And I liikeee... Pancakes ," he finished the song with a bang, bowing like he was really onstage in front of millions of people. "Thank you, thank you very much," he said, imitating Elvis Presley.
I burst out laughing so hard my stomach hurt. "And I like pancakes?" I asked, gasping for air. i I clutched my stomach, laughing silently, making sure my towel didn't slip. I probably looked and sounded like a dying hyena, but I didn't care.
He shrugged. "I couldn't think of anything else, okay?"
"It didn't even rhyme!"
"Oh well." he smirked, and when my laughter died down again, he took the plunge. "So will you drop your towel now that I serenaded you beautifully?" he asked, his green eyes actually hopeful.
I laughed dismissively, rolling my eyes. "Get out, Styles," I commanded, pushing him towards the door.
"Damn, I don't even get a kiss for that?" he whined.
"Nope. Goodbye, kiddo."
"Hey, I'm a year older than you. Why are you calling me kiddo?"
"Because you're acting like you're two years old. Bye now." With that, I opened the door for him, and when he didn't budge, I shoved him forcefully out. He pouted like a little kid, and that was the last facial expression I saw before I slammed the door in his face.
I slid down to the floor, my back up against the door, still laughing to myself as I put my head in my hands.
God, he was such an asshole! Although I have to admit, that was kind of funny. And cute... and sweet... and adorable...
I squeezed my eyes shut. What was wrong with me? Styles was none of those things. As I've said multiple times, he's an arrogant, self-absorbed, obnoxious man-whore who thinks he's hilarious! Well, he's not!
But if that was true, why was my heart still beating a million times a minute everytime his name popped up in my brain?
And why the hell was I still smiling?
................................................
Twenty-five minutes later, we pulled into the parking lot at school, Sitting in the backseat as usual, I felt my insides clench up with dread as the ominous building towered before me. Our school was in the rich part of town, which meant it was set up nicely. It had the Greek-architecture feeling to it, with beautiful white columns and what seemed like a thousand steps leading up to the modern glass doors.
The parking lot was full as usual; Harry pulled into the spot reserved for seniors only. He and Louis let out a little hoot as they did this; it was their first day as a senior, and although they were late because of me, it didn't stop them from getting excited about the fact that all the senior privileges were theirs now. And here I was, sitting like a little kid in the backseat, pissed off because I still had one more year of this hell hole.
Harry cut off the engine, taking the sound of his awful music along with it. I breathed a sigh of relief as he twisted around to face me, grinning equally.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha," he taunted me, using the singsong voice. "We're seniors now, and you're not."
I rolled my eyes. "Really?" I asked, throwing my hands up in the air.
Louis turned to Harry, smirking a bit. "Mate, you just read my mind." They slapped a high-five to each other as I sat in the back, crossing my arms over my chest, feeling like a third wheel as usual.
"Well, since you're at the top of the high school food chain now, you might want to act like it," I suggested sarcastically.
"How about no?" Harry asked, and they burst out laughing again.
"You guys are ridiculous." I got out of the car and purposely slammed the door, just to annoy Harry. He scowled at me, but I just leaned against the car, smiling sweetly at him.
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing," I said, tilting my head to the side innocently. "Nothing at all."
"Whatever, Amber, I'm not the one that took an hour to get ready," Louis piped in, coming around to the other side of the car.
Harry and I exchanged glances, and he winked at me. I gave him the finger when Louis wasn't looking, and he laughed quietly.
Let's go," Louis said, oblivious to the situation, and we were off.
When we got into the office, the usual attractive young lady that tried to flirt with everyone was sitting behind the attendance desk.
"What are you guys doing late on the first day?" she purred, looking at us behind her cat-eye reading glasses.
Her eyes roamed over Louis and Harry and she bit her lip suggestively. Harry didn't seem to notice, but Louis immediately started flirting with her.
"Oh, hello," he said, flashing her that smile that seemed to make all the girls melt. "Well, we're here because my sister's alarm didn't go off, and we waited for her."
"Well, aren't you two gentlemen," the lady giggled, typing something on the computer. Her eyes flickered from me back to Louis again. "But I'm afraid the rules are that if you overslept, it's an unexcused absence," she said, wincing slightly as she spoke.
"Oh, I'm sure you can let it slide just this once, can't you?" Louis purred, sitting down in the chair opposite her as he winked seductively at her. Harry and I looked at each other, suppressing giggles.
"Not bad," Harry muttered under his breath. "But he's learnt only from the best. No one's as charming as me."
I shoved him playfully. "Shut up, conceited much?"
"You know you like it," Harry whispered in my ear, doing that thing he did that seemed to drive me wild, much to my dismay. I stiffened, my heart pounding in my chest. He just laughed at my reaction and stepped back.
"Told you," he chuckled. I didn't respond.
A minute later, the deed was done. The lady handed Louis three green excused passes, which he handed us.
"Like a boss," Louis whispered to both of us.
"Louis, you're so mean," I giggled, slapping him upside the head playfully.
"Wait!" I heard someone call behind us. We all turned around to see the young woman running for us in her high heels, looking totally desperate. I pressed my lips together, trying to contain my laughter. She waved three pieces of paper in the air.
"Amber and Louis Tomlinson and Harry Styles, right?" she asked.
"Yup," Harry said.
"You forgot your schedules, love."
"Thanks." Harry took all three papers and handed them to us. When he handed me mine, our hands touched for a split second. I quickly moved my hand, avoiding his gaze, but I could feel his green eyes studying me.
We all compared schedules. Juniors and seniors took a lot of the same courses, especially if the juniors were in AP classes like me. Hey, I might not have been the best student in the world, but my previous report cards managed to look like I was.
I had a few classes with Louis as usual; AP History and Biology.
"Hey, look, Dots, we have sports and AP Astronomy together," Harry cried, inching a little closer to me so he could read off my schedule. I felt my heart pound a little faster, hating and loving the proximity between us at the same time. I could smell his familiar scent and it lingered long after he'd stepped away.
"Yup," I said, trying to shake off the weird feeling that was happening inside of me. "Hey, it's about 8:45 now, and Astronomy is 2nd hour, right? We should be there right now."
"Then let's go." Harry nodded. "It says room 124, that shouldn't be too far."
"Ok, I'll see you guys," Louis saluted us before walking away in the opposite direction. I cringed as Styles and I walked to room 124 together, wishing I could be anywhere but here.
'''''''''''''''
A/N: Hey guys! Sorry I didn't update last night; I had writer's block for some reason... but I'm all better now as you can see! Ha-ha. I might be going to my friend's this weekend so we'll see if I can actually update or not. If I don't, please don't think I fell off the face of the earth! There's something called NO WIFI. LOL... anyway, I love all my readers and maybe if you guys are lucky (MAYBE) they'll be an extra chapter tonight! -Tasha 😝(p.s THANKS FOR 112 READS. Haha. )