Abducted By Styles [IN RE-EDITING]

• F I V E •

SONG FOR THIS CHAPTER- SKINNY LOVE by BIRDY

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C A R O L I N E

Warm, salty tears spill from my eyes uncontrollably. He's just a stinky meanie. He's just a dirty-minded rat. I can't stop myself from thinking about who I really am though. A nobody. My body is leaned against the thick trunk of my favourite old oak tree resting on top of a curvy slope that overlooks the castle. I bury my tear-soaked face in my long shirtsleeves, my knees hugged tightly to my chest. I look up at the large military training field in fron of me, seeing the region's brave heros march in rows from the distance. The loud, hollering commands of the army general can be heard, vibrating through the atmosphere.

I feel something wet trickle onto the back of my head, and so I look up through my tears to see raindrops falling into the green grass beneath me. I decide to be stubborn and ignore it. Rain isn't a big deal.

Harry is such a big jerk. I hate him so much. I know this is extremely appropriate coming from a princess like me but, I'd like to shove a prickly cactus up his butthole. Like, who the heck does he think he is?! Going around encouraging the maids to sleep with him and all! The Courageous have always had a good name, and Harry's ruining everything.

Soon, the rain is pouring, and I can hear the slightest thunder from up above. Sometimes, it's as if the sky reflects my emotions at the time. Right now, how furious I am is clear, and I gaze at the violent grey clouds rolling in.

It's starting to get chilly, and my teeth are chattering. My hair is soaking wet, and drips from the rainwater in it, fall onto my wrist. But I continue to sob my heart out, until I feel a large, wet hand on my back.

"Why are you crying, Caroline?" I hear a familiar, worried voice ask. I quickly look up, and through my pool of tears, I see Zayn.

He is in dainty denim jeans and a red plaid shirt, rolled up to his elbows. His sugar brown boots are covered in mud. I observe his warm chocolate brown eyes and his upper neck length dark brown hair, which is now fully drenched and flat. His eyebrows are knitted together in concern. He rubs my back soothingly, and I sob even harder, and collapse in his tattooed arms.

It's nice to have a best friend to cry on. I bury my face in Zayn's warm, broad chest. Through his shirt, I can feel his throbbing heart. "Tell me what's wrong. You're freaking me out." Zayn commands with a trembling voice.

"Let's go inside first, then I'll tell you." I sniffle as I wipe my runny nose with my sleeve. I wipe my eyes with the back of my hand, and it has black streaks on it. Probably mascara.

Zayn helps me up and together we run back to the castle. The booming thunder echoes behind us.

~•~

Zayn and I arrive through the doors of the castle hand in hand.

The maids hand us clean towels. My pink sundress is now see through and has muddy stains on it. Zayn's clothing is equally dirty. My teeth chatter as I wrap the towel around my delicate body. Zayn dries his hair with his.

That's when I hear my mother crashing through the halls.

"CAROLINE ANN WESTON! What on earth have you been doing out in the rain?!" Her voice is loud and all the maids lower their heads and bow respectively.

"Mother, I-" I am cut off by her. "Shame on you, you are a grown ladylike princess. Not a two year old toddler!" She shakes her head, disgusted.

"There she goes again." Zayn half mutters, half huffs under his breath.

Luckily, Mother doesn't hear him.

"But-" I protest, but am cut off again. "It's incredibly rude to walk into the castle looking like filth!" She says, pointing to my muddy and wet dress.

You know what else is rude? Pointing and cutting people off. I have an urge to say this, but I don't. I know the consequences, believe me.

"Go upstairs and get cleaned up for dinner right now!" My mother commands. "Zayn, there are is extra attire in the storage room."

"Yes, your majesty." Zayn says with a bored expression. Mother gives a stiff little nod.

Zayn looks at me one last time before I watch him leave to the storage room. "What are you looking at?" Mother snaps. Maybe a little too long...

With that, I stroll up the staircase to my bedroom. My maids have already prepared a steaming bath for me which I immediately step into, after slipping off my dirty dress and swinging it over the railing. I smile to myself, looking at the touch of pink rose petals which float at the surface of the water.  After rethinking the course of the day, and realize something I hadn't noticed before.

Harry wasn't outside my room when I arrived.

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H A R R Y

It's raining, it's cold and I'm outside looking for a sensitive princess. How fucking worse can this day get!

It's also starting to get dark, the horizon painted with a deep purple and a glowing pink almost as if the sky is a canvas. I've searched everywhere. I've driven all around the city, even the castle borders looking for stupid Caroline.

She's nowhere.

I can't leave without Caroline. It's just not an option here. Trying to keep my cool is slightly difficult since her kind killed my mother. I mean, I couldn't care less whether she runs away or comes back or shit, but I'm doing this for my mother.

She deserves justice.

Since the maids are usually looking for me, they must have already noticed me gone. It hasn't even been a full day yet and I've already fucking lost the princess. I'm such an idiot.

"Excuse me, by any chance have you seen a crying blond girl walking by anywhere?" I ask as patiently as I can to a group of little kids eating ice creams. Who the fuck eats ice cream out in the rain...

A little red-haired girl giggles. "Hey mister, why is your hair so curly?"

A short blue eyed boy chimes in, "Oh no! Did you accidentally staple your lip? Mumma never lets me near a stapler."

I try not to get mad at these obnoxious little kids, because their stupid questions aren't making my situation any better. I ignore the questions and ask again."So have you?" The kids think a second and leave me empty handed with only shrugs. I force a small smile and jog away, shivering.

I think about the possibilities and there's only one place I haven't searched. The kitchen of the castle.