Sooner or Later (Feat. 1D and 5SOS)

13. Little White Lies

All of a sudden, Emma found herself lying flat on her back with a major headache and absolutely no recollection of how she'd gotten there. When she tried to think back to what had happened, she just saw splotches of black and white.

Carefully, she touched her forehead and winced when her fingers found the tender spot. She could feel a small lump forming. Come tomorrow, she was probably going to look like a unicorn. Great, just what she needed. As if junior high wasn't hard enough already.

While her best friend struggled, Heidi stood there with her hands covering her mouth, but the sound of her giggles seeped through the webs of her fingers. "Are you okay, Emma?" she asked with a snort.

Emma groaned in response, which made Heidi laugh even louder.

"Oh my god!" a boy shouted. "Harry hit someone!"

Then Emma heard the sound of heavy feet trampling the ground. They were heading her way, all five of them! Emma had to come up with a brilliant plan, and quick!

She looked over at Heidi and frantically motioned for her to leave. "Go! Go! You can't be here!"

"Where am I supposed to go?"

"Go to the playground. Go somewhere. You can't be here!"

"But ... But ... Ugh, fine! You owe me for this!"

Reluctantly, Heidi ran and hid behind the bushes, where she would remain until the coast was clear, or until the squatting position became too unbearable for her thighs.

She shoved her face between the itchy, smelly leaves and watched as the group of teenage boys approached Emma with worried looks. Most of them were concerned for Emma, but Louis was more worried about his soccer ball, which had somehow disappeared after bouncing off the poor girl's forehead. He kept checking the area while the rest of the boys hovered over Emma, but he couldn't find it anywhere.

"Hey!" Niall exclaimed as a huge grin overtook his face. "It's the Keeper of the Chips!"

"Her name's Emma," Liam corrected, which only added to Louis and Zayn's confusion. The pair of them just stood there exchanging confused glances and wondering how their friends knew this unlucky girl.

Harry knelt down beside her. "I'm so sorry," he said, his green eyes writhing with guilt. "I don't even know how that happened. It just got away from me."

"It's okay," Emma replied, trying not to sound too happy about the situation. But how could she complain with Harry kneeling so close to her? This was exactly what she wanted! Of course, if given the choice she would've preferred to have captured his attention in a more graceful manner, one that didn't leave her head throbbing in pain. Beggars can't be choosers, though, right?

"Is your head okay?" Harry asked as he placed his hand on the side of Emma's head. While he spoke, his thumb gently massaged her temple. "Is your vision blurry at all?"

Emma felt the heat creep up her cheeks. "Uh, no. It's perfect, actually." You're perfect, she nearly said.

Then, without warning or invitation, Louis suddenly crouched down beside Harry and set his eyes upon the girl. "Emma, is it? Look, I'm really sorry that Harry hit you in the head and all. He's quite a clumsy idiot, isn't he? But before you went down, you didn't happen to see where that soccer ball went, did you?"

"Not now, Louis," Harry said, giving him a light shove.

"What? I'm just saying ... It's my favorite ball, and I'd really like to get it back."

As Louis spoke, Heidi glanced behind her and saw his cherished soccer ball lying in the grass. She knew it was only a matter of time before he came over to look for it, so she quickly snatched the ball and chucked it back over the bushes.