I read the rules for the boys over again. They follow them well, except for one. Don't do anything extremely stupid. That rule is hardly ever followed. Liam tries to get the rest of them to behave, but they rarely ever do. Someone is constantly doing something to someone else. Like Louis will chuck a spoon at Liam, or Zayn will straighten Harry's precious curls, or one of the guys will eat all of Niall's food.
The boys are all weird, they all have some sort of fetish. Liam with his fear of spoons, Zayn with his obsession with mirrors, Niall and food, Louis and stripes, Harry and cats. Some of the things the fans say about the boys aren't always true though.
Yes, Zayn likes mirrors but he isn't constantly looking in one or obsessed with his reflection. No, Harry isn't always a womanizer. Louis does like carrots, but he doesn't eat them 24/7 or know how to say them in 10 different languages; he only knows how to say carrots in 9. Niall does eat a lot of food and does love Nando's chicken, but he also happens to really like tacos and other things, too.
I know a lot about the boys because I live with them all in the same flat. My dad is having me live with them because he wants to make sure the boys won't do anything too ridiculous, but is too busy to do it himself, so I do it for him. I'm Simon Cowell's daughter, the creator of X-Factor and American Idol. He isn't entirely mean like he appears to be, he's just.... strict.
I have rules to follow, and so do the boys, but they are two different sets of rules.
The boys just aren't allowed to do anything stupid alone or with me. I'm not allowed to anything stupid, date the boys, have to keep my hearing aids in at all times, no drinking, stay away from the paps, and I have to check in with my dad. Daily.
It's horrible. I'm practically One Direction's fulltime babysitter. Don't get me wrong, I love the boys, but I want my own life, too. I don't get to do much that doesn't involve the boys. In the flat we have a music room so the boys can practice or write songs if they need to, but sometimes I sneak in and play the piano or guitar.
Sometimes people like to call me Beethoven because I play instruments and I'm deaf. I hate the nickname. That's one of the many reasons why my dad forces me to wear hearing aids. I can hear a lot of things, yeah, but I can't hear somethings, like whispers or extremely low music in a restaurant.
Sometimes playing music without the boys around is hard.
People say I look very similar to my father. I never met my mother, she left me with him when I was born. I have extremely long brown hair that goes to my waist, and brown eyes to match. I have pale skin, and I'm really skinny even though I eat quite a bit. I'm 18, and am really short, around 5' 3" or so.
"Hey Allie! Where are ya?" I hear Niall yell.
I quickly stop playing the piano, and shut it closed.
I run out of the room and across the hall to my room and sit down with a book.
"Back here!" I yell back.
He walks in and sits next to me, wearing a grin that I know means he wants something from me.
"Hey Allie, would you be willing to make some food? I'm hungry", he pouts.
"Didn't you just eat lunch an hour ago?" I ask.
"Yeah, but I'm still hungry!" he says.
"Sure", I ruffle his hair. I get up and walk into the kitchen, Niall following me like a puppy. It's one of my dad's unspoken rules to do just about anything the boys ask. Go out with them, cook, pick them up if they're drunk, things like that.
I quickly make something for him and hand him his plate.
"Where are the rest of the guys?" I ask Niall while he shovels down the food.
"Out with their girlfriends", he say between bites.
All of One Direction is taken, except Niall. He says he doesn't mind much though, since I'm his best friend and I make him food whenever he asks, which is like ten times a day. Anyways, Liam is dating Danielle, Louis is with Eleanor, Zayn is going out with Perrie, and Harry is with Taylor. Poor little Nialler, but atleast Niall fans are happy.
"Wanna go watch a movie or something, Allie?" he asks.
"Sure. What movie?"
"I was thinking something like the Grudge or Last House on the Left", he says.
"Last House on the Left!" I say, running to the couch.
Niall puts the movie in, and we cuddle up together. Niall and I are really close, but not like that or anything.
***
By the end of the movie, I'm clutching Niall with my nails practically digging into his arm.
He pulls my arms off of himself and kisses my forehead.
"You get scared too easily", he chuckles.
"But you love me anyways!" I say.
"I know!" he says, and looks away.
Right then, the door opens and the guys are back, with their girlfriends.
"Hey guys! And girls!" I wave.
"Hey Allie", they say back.
I get up from the couch and go give the girls hugs. I love all of their girlfriends, except Taylor. There's something about Taylor that rubs me the wrong way. She seems nice and all, but it's a fake nice. For whatever reasons, the guys wanted my approval before they started dating anyone. I gave it to them, but reluctantly when Harry asked me. I knew Taylor prior to Harry, but I didn't want to hurt Harry.
"How are you guys?" I ask them as they sit down.
"Good", they all say.
"That's good, well I'm gonna go do some chores or something... See ya!" I say, and go to the back of the flat to go do laundry. It was piling up too much anyways.
****
It's around 7 o'clock at night when I finish the laundry. Every night at 7:30, my dad expects me to skype him. I can't necessarily use a phone with the hearing aids. It's quite strange.
As soon as I put away the rest of the laundry, I sit on my bed, open up my laptop, and call my dad on Skype.
It rings a few times, before my dad picks it up.
"Hello?"
"Hey dad", I say.
"Hello, Allison. How were the boys today?" he asks.
"They were good. Liam, Harry, Zayn, and Lou went out with their girlfriends whilst Niall and I stayed at home. I fed them and did the laundry, too." I say.
"Good. Did you keep your hearing aids in?" he asks.
"Yes, dad. They were in all day except for when I took a shower", I sigh.
"Good. Did you follow everything else?"
"Yep. Not a single rule broken", I say.
"Great. Call you tomorrow, bye love", he says, and disconnects the call.
I fall down on my back and groan.
All of the calls were always the same. He asks how the boys did, if I followed everything, and then ends the call.
He never asks how I'm doing, or if I want to do something for myself. Dad doesn't believe in taking breaks. The only break I get is Christmas and New Years. If the boys are on tour, I go with them. If they're in London, we stay in the flat together. I see the boys more than they see anyone else. The only thing my dad cares about is the guys.
I call in some takeout for everyone, and then go do the dishes. Did I mention I'm their maid as well?
When the takeout comes, I give the guy some cash and hand the food to everyone.
I grab my own box of takeout and stalk to my room, hearing the everyone laugh at some crazy story Eleanor is telling.
I change into some pajama shorts and a big t-shirt, put my hair up into an extremely messy bun, and turn the tv onto some old show. I sit on my bed, watching the telly and munching on the takeout. The door creaks open and Niall walks in with his food, wearing some sweat pants and a t-shirt.
"Hey, you okay?" he asks, but he already knows the answer.
"Not really, I called my dad. Same as always", I say.
"It'll get better", he says, rubbing my back.
"Niall, you and I both know it won't. I don't do anything if it doesn't involve you or the rest of the boys. I love you guys and all, but I want to live my life, too", I say softly.
"Well what do you wanna do about it?" he asks.
"Honestly? I wanna break my dad's rules", I say.
"What are they?"
"Don't date the boys, don't drink, stay away from the paps, keep my hearing aids in, and check in with him daily" I say.
"I can help you break them, if you want", he suggests.
"Really Niall? Oh my god, thank you!" I say, throwing my arms around his neck and kissing his cheek.
"Why don't you start with the hearing aids? I know you hate those blasted things anyways", he says.
"Okay, but how will we talk to each other? We don't know sign language, and I can barely read lips", I say.
"We'll learn. But until then, we can text each other a lot", he smiles.
"Let's do it then", I say, and take off my hearing aids. The second I do, I can no longer hear anything, there's only sweet, sweet silence. I can no longer hear the tv show playing. I can't hear the whining of Taylor down the hall, or the laughing of the rest of the guys. Just sweet silence.
Niall says me something, but I can barely make it out reading his lips.
"Are you gonna finish your takeout?" I think is what he says.
"Did you ask me if I'm going to finish my food?" I say, unable to hear my voice.
He nods, smiling. I shake my head no, and offer him my food. He takes it gladly, and finishes what was left of my food. We end up texting the rest of the night on my bed, laughing at random things having a grand old time.
We end up falling asleep together on my bed, and next thing I know, I'm pressed against Niall with his arm around my waist.