The boys and I have this theory that almost everything in the world can be divided into two groups.
There are people who like classical music and people who like pop. There are city people and country people. Coke drinkers. Pepsi drinkers. And there are the kind of girls who have boyfriends in high school, and the kind of girls who don't.
Niall, Zayn, Liam and I had always assumed that we both belonged to the latter category. ''Not that we'll be forty-year-old virgins or anything,'' I reassured. ''We'll just be the kinds of people who have relationships in college.''
So, it was a surprise to the boys and me when I wound up in Group A, with the boyfriended girls. At first, I tried to hide it.
After I came home from the Ed Sheeran concert, I told them the vaguest of details. I didn't mention the kissing. There was no point getting all worked up about a kiss. One kiss does not a relationship make. I'd kissed boys before, and usually by the next day the kiss was forgotten.
Except I knew that with Harry it was a big deal. I knew from the way the warmth flooded my whole body that night after he dropped me off at home, kissing me once more at my doorstep. By the way I stayed up until dawn hugging my pillow. By the way that I could not eat the next day, could not wipe the smile off my face. I recognized that the kiss was a door I had walked through. And I knew that I'd left Zayn, Liam and Niall on the other side.
After a week, and a few more stolen kisses, I knew I had to tell them. We went for coffee after school. It was May but it was pouring rain as though it were November.
''I'll buy. You want one of your froufrou drinks?'' I asked. That was another one of the categories we'd determined: people who drank plain coffee and people who drank gussied-up caffeine drinks like the mint-chip lattes Zayn and Liam ware so fond of. Niall and me were the one who always ordered a frappuccino caramel, our favorite coffee ever.
''I think I'll try the cinnamon-spice chai latte,'' Liam said, giving me a stern look that said, I will not be ashamed of my beverage selection.
''I'll just have the same as always,'' Zayn said.
Niall always went with his usuall drink so I didn't had to ask him.
I bought us our drinks and four piece of marionberry pie. I sat down next to Zayn, who was across from Liam, who sat next to Niall running the fork along the scalloped edge of the flaky crust.
''I have something to tell you lads,'' I said.
''Something about having a boyfriend?'' Zayn's voice was amused, but even though I was looking down, I could tell that he'd rolled her eyes.
''How'd you know?'' I asked, meeting his gaze
''Please. Everyone knows.'' Zayn said with the best girly voice he can do. ''It's the hottest gossip aside from the one of Melanie Farrow dropping out to have a baby.''
''It's like a Democratic presidential candidate marrying a Republican presidential candidate.'' Liam added.
''Who said anything about marrying?'' I asked.
''We're just being metaphoric," Liam said while he rolled his eyes. ''Anyhow, we know. We knew even before you knew.'' Niall told me.
''Bullshit.''
''Come on. A guy like Harry going to a Ed Sheeran concert? He was buttering you up.'' Zayn said, what made Niall and Liam cracking up in a fit of laughter.
''It's not like that,'' I said, though of course, it totally was like that.
''I just don't see why you couldn't tell us sooner,'' Liam said, while Niall was whiping away his tears.
I was about to give him my whole one-kiss-doesn't-mean-you're-in-a-relationship speech and to explain that I didn't want to blow it out of proportion, but I stopped myself. ''I was afraid you guys would be mad at me,'' I admitted.
''Ofcoures we aren't,'' Niall said. "But we will be if you ever lie to us again." Liam said, ind of serious this time.
''Okay,'' I said.
''Or if you turn into one of those girlfriends, always ponying around after her boyfriend, and speaking in the first-person plural. 'We love the winter. We think that dress looks amazing one her.''' Zayn said with his girly voice again, making us all laugh.
''You know I wouldn't rock-talk to you guys or in first-person, I promise.'' I sad while laughing
''Good,'' Zayn replied. ''Because if you turn into one of those girls, I'll shoot you.''
''If I turn into one of those girls, I'll hand you the gun.''
They all laughed that, tears streaming down my cheeks. Niall popped a hunk of pie into his mouth. ''How did your parents take it?'' Liam asked.
''Dad went through the five phases of grieving -denial, anger, acceptance, whatever- in like one day. I think he's more freaked out that he is old enough to have a daughter who has a boyfriend.'' I paused, took a sip of my coffee, letting the word boyfriend rest out in the air. ''And he claims he can't believe that I'm dating a musician.''
''You're a musician,'' Liam reminded me.
''You know, a pop musician.''
''The White Eskimo's is rock,'' Zayn corrected. Unlike me, Zayn cared about the myriad pop musical distinctions: punk, indie, alternative, hard-core, emo-core.
''It's mostly hot air, you know, part of his whole bow-tie-Dad thing. I think Dad likes Harry. He met him when he picked me up for the concert. Now he wants me to bring him over for dinner, but it's only been a week. I'm not quite ready for a meet-the-family moment yet.''
''I don't think I'll ever be ready for that." Niall shuddered at the thought of it. ''What about your mom?''
"She offered to take me to Planned Parenthood to get the Pill and told me to make Harry get tested for diseases. In the meantime, she ordered me to buy condoms now. She even gave me ten bucks to start my supply.'' I said serieusly, what made Niall, Zayn and Liam laughing their ass off.
''Have you?'' Liam gasped, after he got his breathe back.
''No, it's only been a week,'' I said. ''We're still in the same group on that one.''
''For now,'' Niall said with a grin towards Liam.
One other category that the boys and I devised was people who tried to be cool and people who did not. On this one, I thought that Harry, Zayn, Liam, Niall, and I were in the same column, because even though Harry was cool, he didn't try. It was effortless for him. So, I expected the five of us to become the best of friends. I expected Harry to love everyone I loved as much as I did.
And it did work out like that with my family. He practically became the third kid. But it never clicked with any of the boys. Harry treated them the way that I'd always imagined he would treat a my friends.
He was nice enough -polite, friendly, but distant. He didn't attempt to enter their world or gain their confidence. I suspected he thought they weren't cool enough and it made me mad. After we'd been together about three months, we had a huge fight about it.
''I'm not dating one of them. I'm dating you,'' he said, after I accused him of not being nice enough to Zayn, Niall and Liam.
''So what? You have lots of friends. Why not add them to the stable?''
Harry shrugged. ''I don't know. It's just not there.''
''You're such a snob!'' I said, suddenly furious.
Harry eyed me with furrowed brows, like I was a math problem on the blackboard that he was trying to figure out. ''How does that make me a snob? You can't force friendship. We just don't have a lot in common.''
''That's what makes you a snob! You only like people like you,'' I cried. I stormed out, expecting him to follow after me, begging forgiveness, and when he didn't, my fury doubled. I rode my bike over to Liam's house, where I know Niall and Zayn would be. And as I aspacted, they all were at Liam's. They listened to my diatribe, their expression purposefully blasé.
''That's just ridiculous that he only likes people like him,'' Niall scolded when I'd finished spewing. ''He likes you, and you're not like him.''
''That's the problem,'' I mumbled.
''Well, then deal with that. Don't drag me into your drama,'' Zayn said. ''Besides, I don't really click with him, either.''
''You don't?''
"No, Lulu. Not everyone swoons for Harry.We all don't like him that much.'' Liam said.
"I didn't mean it like that. It's just that I want you guys to be friends.'' I said while I looked down at my lap.
''Yeah, well, I want to live in New York City and have a normal brother. As the man said, 'You can't always get what you want.''' Niall said.
''But you guys are three of the four most important people in my life.''
They looked at my red and teary face and their expression softened into a gentle smile. ''We know that, Lu. But we're from different parts of your life, just like music and me are from different parts of your life. And that's fine. You don't have to choose one or the other, at least not as far as I'm concerned.'' Liam said, trying to comfort me.
''But I want those parts of my life to come together.''
Zayn shook his head. ''It doesn't work that way. Look, I accept Harry because you love him. And I assume he accepts us because you love us.''
''If it makes you feel any better, your love binds us. And that's enough. Us and him don't have to love each other.'' Niall added
''But I want you guys to,'' I wailed.
"Lucy,'' Zayn said, an edge of warning in her voice signaling the end of her patience. ''You're starting to act like one of those girls. Do you need to get me a gun?''
Later that night, I stopped by Harry's house to say I was sorry. He accepted my apology with a bemused kiss on the nose. And then nothing changed.
He and the boys remained cordial but distant, no matter how much I tried to sell them on each other. The funny thing was, I never really bought into Zayn and Niall's notion that they were somehow bound together through me -until just now when I saw them half carrying Harry down the hospital corridor.