They Don't Know About Us

I Want To Be Strong For You

*Niall's P.O.V.*

The lads and I just finished our interview, and were now heading back to the dressing room. This morning, I was a little disappointed because I didn't get to see Nicole at all. She just left without saying anything. Well, I did sleep until ten, so I get her point there.

We walked into the dressing room, and started changing back into our clothes. Louis was running around the room while Zayn chased him, I think Louis stole his comb... Liam was simply dressing, and Harry was on his phone. I decided to join in on the fun. I yelled at Louis and told him to pass me the comb, and soon it was now a who can throw the comb above Zayn's head kind of game.

"Niall, have you checked your phone recently?" Harry asked me. I tossed the comb back over to Louis and walked over to Zayn, "Not really, why do you ask?"

"Marie texted me and told me to tell you to check your phone," Harry replied, "She says it's an emergency."

I frowned, confused by what the problem is. I walked over to the table and grabbed my phone. I noticed I had seven missed call and two voice mails. They were all from Marie. I wonder what the problem is...

I pressed the voice mail, and listened to it.

"Niall, it's Marie. We have a really big problem. Nicole ran off. Chase and Ashton told me that these two girls were being really mean to her. Then, they dumped Coke all over her and she just ran off. She even ran out of school. We can't find her anywhere and don't know what to do. You have to come help me look for her. A couple other people are looking, but we don't know where to look. The only person who could possibly know is you. Please, get over here fast."

The call ended. I stared into space with wide eyes.

"What did Marie call about?" Harry asked, and walked over to me.

"S-She said Nicole ran off," I answered, my voice still shocked from what was just said on the phone.

"Why did she run off?!" Harry exclaimed. I saw Zayn and Louis stop their little game, to see what was happening. Liam also joined the crowd.

"What's going on?" Zayn asked.

"Nicole ran off," I repeated. They looked at me shocked, "Why?" Louis asked me.

"Marie said that some girls were being mean to her and then dumped Coke all over. After that, she ran out of the school, and no one can find her."

"Damn it..." Louis muttered under his breath, "Who knows what she's doing to herself..."


"What do you mean?" I asked, almost scared to know the answer.

"I think we all know, Niall," Louis replied, "We all know how Nicole gets when she gets hate."

"S-She'll be fine!" I protested, "She's been in therapy a lot, that means that she won't be doing that!"

"Did you really think a few months of therapy would help her?" Louis asked, "I don't think she'll ever be completely over it."

"How could you say something like that?" I asked, starting to get worked up, "She hasn't cut in months. I doubt she'll do something like this! Why are we spending time arguing over this? We need to go find her."

We all agreed on my plan, and quickly left the dressing room.
*


Louis pulled the car up into the school parking lot. We quickly got out. The parking lot, was mostly barren, but there were a few teachers out here. I decided to go talk to one of them.

"I'm going to go look for Marie, so I can find out what's really going on," Harry replied. I nodded, and Harry jogged off. I quickly walked over to the teachers.

"Um, sorry to bother you, but I came to look for Nicole Everense," I told them, awkwardly.

"Do you know her?" one of the guy teachers asked. I nodded, "Yeah, I'm her boyfriend, and I live with her."

"Oh, Marie said that you will know where she is," The female teacher replied, "Well, Chase said that she ran over out that door," She pointed at the door to the right, "Lots of people are looking, but we can't find out where she went. Do you have any idea?"

I thought about it for a moment, "Well, she tends to hide in places that people don't usually go in."

She nodded, "Do you mind looking?"

"Not at all," I replied, "My friends and I will go looking."
*


*Nicole's P.O.V.*

How long have I been in here now? It feels like forever, but I don't mind at all. I would much rather stay in here then go back to the others. I want to just curl up in a ball and slowly disappear from this world. I want to drown out my worries and just let them all slowly fly away.

I was now laying on the dirty floor. I didn't bother to clean up my cuts, so my sweater was stained with blood. I felt a bit of cold air drifting through the crack under the door and the floor absorbed it, transferring it to my skin.

I glanced to the ground in front of me, and saw the blade. I felt the urge coming back. I need to continue. A few cuts never seem to be enough for me. I grabbed the blade, and sat up. I lifted up my shirt, to see that a lot of cuts were scattered over my stomach. I then slid my blade across bare skin on my stomach. I looked at the red line, as it grew, spreading down my stomach. I felt a need to create a new one, so that's exactly what I did.

Then, I abruptly stopped. Niall entered my mind. I imagined all the times he's gotten mad at me for continuing my bad habit. I can't let him find out about me doing this. I need to hide this right now. I quickly grabbed some toilet paper, and wiped off the remaining blood. I noticed that there was some blood on the waist band of my jeans, but it was unrecognizable. I washed off the cuts with some water, and threw away the bloody toilet paper.

I leaned my back against the wall again, unsure of what I should do. The previous events in the cafeteria were replaying in my mind again. I remembered all the horrible things they said. I instantly broke down in tears again. I can't keep staying like this. Tied together by only a few strings.

Suddenly, I heard the door push open. I instantly looked up at the door. Standing in the doorway was Louis. I saw him look down at me, and his eyes widened, "Nicole, thank God I found you!" He exclaimed. He quickly rushed to my side.

It's not too good for me. I can't go back and have everyone staring at me. I made such a fool of myself by running out of the building. And, I don't want to ever see those girls again.

He crouched beside me, and hugged me, tightly. I felt his accidentally pressing against my cuts. I gasped out in pain. He quickly let go when he heard me gasp, "What is it?" Louis asked, frantically.

"N-Nothing," I lied, trying to avoid his gaze. I can never lie when I look anyone in the eyes.

"You're a bad liar, Nicole," Louis replied, "Tell me the truth, or I'll find out myself."

"I-I can't tell you," I whispered, my voice hoarse.

"Why not?" Louis asked.

"I-I just can't..." I repeated. Louis didn't seem satisfied by my answer. He reached down to then end of my shirt, before I could even react. He lifted my shirt halfway up, exposing all my new cuts.

Louis gasped, and let go of my shirt, not wanting to see the horrible sight. I looked up at Louis again, to see tears welling up in his eyes, "I-I thought you had stopped. Niall said you did."

I didn't reply to Louis's question. I broke down sobbing instead. Louis held me against him, as he sat beside me. He made sure he didn't accidentally touch my fragile cuts.

"Now, why are you trying to hide your cuts?" Louis asked, still holding me.

"I-I can't let Niall find out," I replied, "I-If he does, h-he'll be mad that I started cutting again. I-I want him to think I-I didn't start again. I-I want to be stronger for him."

The small bathroom fell silent for a moment, only my sobs filled the air. Louis finally spoke up, "Why?"

I frowned, "W-What do you mean by why?"

"Why do you have to be strong for him?" Louis asked me. The simple question seemed to baffle me, "U-Um, because...." I couldn't seem to find the answer.

"That's what I thought," Louis quietly replied, "You don't know. Niall knows you aren't the strongest person. No one is perfect. We all understand that it's hard for you to quit something that you used to be so accustomed to. Niall won't be mad at you. I think he'll understand."

"No he won't," I replied, starting to control the tears, "He thinks it's something that I can simply stop. Please, Louis, don't tell him."

"Nicole, we have-" Louis began, but I interrupted him, "Please Louis?" I repeated, tears welling up in my eyes. Louis sighed, "Fine..."

Suddenly, the door opened again. I saw Niall and Liam walk in this time. Niall saw me, and instantly looked relieved.

"Nicole, thank God you're okay," He said, and crouched beside me. Louis ended his hug with me, so I could embrace Niall. But, I didn't this time. I was worried his hug would hurt me.

Niall helped me back up to my feet, "Don't ever worry me like that again," He whispered, then hugged me. Fortunately, it was a gentle hug, unlike the tight one Louis gave me. I felt a few tears fall from my eyes. Niall finally let go, and looked me in the eyes, "Why don't we just go home?" He suggested.
*


We had to go back to the school, so Niall could tell them that I was found and going to be taken home. The car ride home was completely silent. No one really knew what to say. I assume Niall would be talking to me alone when we got home. Louis pulled the car up into the driveway, and we got out. I walked into the house, and Niall joined me.

"I-I think I better go take a shower," I quietly told Niall. He nodded, and left me to go up to my room. I grabbed a comfortable outfit from my dresser and walked into the shower. I took a long shower, washing the stickiness from my hair and body. I got out of the shower, and blow-dried my curl hair, so my hair naturally went back to its usual loose curls. I put on a loose floral jumper and some black leggings. I saw my promise ring on the counter and slipped it on, along with a pair of moccasins.

I walked out of the bathroom to see Niall already in my room. He was sitting on the end of my bed, so I joined him. I sat beside him, and lifted my knees up to my chest.

"Do you wanna explain what happened?" Niall asked me, "I heard it from Marie, but I want to know your side to the story."

I took a deep breath, and told him my side, "W-Well, I was sitting at lunch with Chase, Ashton, and Clara, when suddenly these two girls came up to me. They told me that I was a drunken slut and other names like that. Then, I was about to cry, so one of the girl's dumped Chase's soda all over my head. That's when I ran out of the cafeteria, and found myself running out of the building. I then ran until I could find someplace to cry. I-I'm sorry for running off..."

"It's okay, baby," He whispered into my hair, "I would've probably done the same if I were you."

"I-I'm tired, is it okay if I rest?" I asked him. He nodded, and was about to leave, when I grabbed his arm. He turned to look back at me. I was silent for a minute, then whispered, "Will you stay?"

He smiled, "Of course, love."

I laid my head on my pillow, Niall lying on my other side. I felt myself shaking from the cold air in the room. Niall seemed to notice, "You cold?" He asked.

"A little," I admitted. He wrapped his arms around me, allowing warmth to flood through my body. The room was silent as Niall held me in his arms.

"Niall, do you love me?" I whispered.

"Of course, why would you ask such a thing like that?" Niall asked. I shrugged, "I don't know..."

"Is it what the girls said?" Niall asked. He figured me out, "Maybe.." I sheepishly replied. Niall sighed, "Don't let them get to you. I love you with all my heart."

I smiled, "I love you, too," I whispered, before falling asleep.
*


I woke up later to an intense pain. I yelped out in pain and felt something instantly let go of me. I immediately sat up.

"Nicole, what's going on?" Niall asked, confused, also sitting up. I looked around, to see I was only in my room with Niall. Then, I realized that the thing that was hurting was my cuts, "O-Oh, um, nothing."

"Obviously it's something!" Niall protested, "Now, tell me!"

I felt tears welling up in my eyes, "I-I can't tell you," I whispered.

"Then, I'll figure out myself," Niall replied, playing on with my little game, "You cried out in pain when I wrapped my arms tightly around your stomach...."

He's won the game. Niall swiftly grabbed the end of my shirt, before I could react. He saw all the new cuts. Niall saw everything.

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HE KNOWS! OH SHNAP! HOW WILL NIALL REACT?! I wanted to dedicate this chapter to everyone who is reading! I finally reached 2K. Thanks you so much, Ilysm!! Comment, follow, and like! Bye lovelies! -Madison