Fragile Souls (H.S)

"I hate you!"

Later that day, when the lunch bell rang, while everyone else rushed out of the room, Louise took her time and continued scribbling down the notes she needed from the board. But secretly, she was scared Harry would be waiting for her and would hit her. her head was still buzzing from when he grabbed her earlier and she told him to let go of her. The look of surprise on his face had made her day, and she had liked standing up for herself. But he had only grabbed her when Louise rushed forward to try to break up Liam and that guy's fight. Was he...no way...Harry Styles couldn't have been trying to protect her.

He hated her.

She exited the classroom, and was relieved to see that he wasn't waiting outside for her. She made her way to the lunchroom and as soon as she entered she looked for Nialla, but her eyes instead caught with Harry's. He was already looking at her, fury glimmering in his eyes. He probably remembered her earlier defiance and was plotting her death, but instead of being fearful, she gave him a wink. His jaw clenched and he slowly rose from his seat.

The temptation of running overcame her, but when she turned to open the door, she saw Liam's assailant sitting in a corner surrounded by girls and boys, asking him questions and buzzing around him like flies. Louise could only hear a flutter of the words they were saying, and they were mostly talking about how brave he was to stand up to Liam, and how hot he was. He definitely was a looker, Louise had to admit. Also, his name was Zayn, and Louise thought about how the stylish name fit the stylish boy.

Lost in her thoughts, she jumped at a warm hand grabbing her wrist, and she shuddered at Harry's warm breath on the side of her face, "Come with me. Now."

She turned her head and looked up at him, blue eyes meeting with green, "No."

"What makes you think you can say that to me?" He asked.

She pulled on her wrist though his grip remained firm, "What do you want from me, Harry?" He tugged on her wrist and she dug her heels in, not that it would do any good. "I'm not going anywhere with you, so quit it."

"You're being difficult today, why?"

"Maybe I'm sick of you messing with me."

"Maybe you should come with me before I throw you over my shoulder and carry you out myself."

"Do it," she challenged. "Make a scene, because I'll kick and scream the whole way."

"Ooh la la," Harry purred. "Don't tempt me, princess."

She glared at him, daring him to drag her out and saw his temperance melting away with every second she defied him and didn't do what he asked. Suddenly his eyes darkened and she prepared myself to be lifted up and carried. He took a step towards her and she tensed up, his hand slightly outstretched then suddenly he paused. He grinned and his next actions were too swift. His hand grabbed something and lifted it over her.

The pasta that the lunch ladies served fell on the front of her shirt, and stained it. She let out a cry of surprise and pulled on her wrist, and since he had allowed his grip to loosen, she managed to tear her wrist free. She stumbled away from him, already hearing the laughs of others in the cafeteria. She looked up at Harry, who had a wide smile, obviously pleased with his actions.

"I...you...I hate you!" She yelled, "I hate you!"

He rolled his eyes, "Yeah, well, me too."

Tears stained the back of her eyes, though she refused to cry in front of him. She rushed towards the doors of the cafeteria and pushed through them, her legs carrying her back to her classroom.

***

That evening, at around eight, Louise found herself at Nialla's house, laughing and feeling comfortable. The embarrassment of earlier had begun to wear off. When she was in Nialla's presence, all of her worries seemed to fade away. They had been best friends for so long, in the same boat of bullies and prejudice for years. They were doing the usual girly thing such as painting each others nails when suddenly Nialla's phone rang.

She hesitated before picking it up, "Hello?" Her eyes widened in surprise. "What? Oh sorry, that was really rude. I mean, how can I help you?" Her jaw dropped at whatever the person was saying. "With me? Why?" She nodded, her eyes still bugging out. "Oh, okay. I mean...I understand." She looked at Louise with her eyebrows raised. "Could I maybe...talk to you later? I'll give you an answer tomorrow at school. Okay. Bye." She hung up.

"Who was that?" Louise asked.

"Zayn. You know, the Zayn that attacked Liam for me. He just asked me to a party this Friday."

"What?" Louise exclaimed. "No way! That's awesome! Are you going?"

"Maybe," She said cautiously. "But only if you come with us."

"A shame about that party," Louise grumbled.

"Please! I could never have fun if you didn't come with me. And besides, you've told me about how you've always wanted to go to one of those parties. We need social experiences like this. How could we be teenagers without them?"

"What if Harry or Liam is there?" Louise asked.

"We'll just avoid them."

"And do you honestly think it'll be that easy?" Louise demanded. "They never leave us alone! It'll be easier for us if we just stay away!"

"Do you honestly want to keep living like this?" Nialla asked. "In fear of Harry and Liam? You told Harry that he'd have to drag you kicking and screaming out of the cafeteria. Where'd that girl go? She was stubborn, confident, and didn't take any shit from Harry. Bring her back, because she was born out of your irritation of Harry's bullshit. And I know she still exists, and going to this party will be a huge middle finger to the both of them. They don't control our lives, Louise. They never have, and they never will."

Louise thought about it before letting out a defeated sigh, "Okay. Fine. I'll go with you. But I refuse to third wheel, and if I feel the slightest bit uncomfortable, I'm out."

"Same," said Nialla. "But do you promise to go with me to the party this Friday?"

Louise rolled her eyes but nodded nonetheless, "I promise to go with you to the party this Friday."